VT bass or BDDI V2

[Dom Amato]

Good morning everyone!

Right now I gave a Mesa TT-800 going into a Hartke HD410. I am in love with how the amp sounds clean and with a little drive on it, but I am not a big fan of how it sounds driven hard. I was hoping to remedy that by using a preamp thorough the amps “boogie channel”. The question is which one?!

What I am looking for is a preamp to get a better sounding dirty tone for hard rock and whatnot. Im torn between the VT bass and the Bass Driver DI v2 both from Tech 21

I love a driven SVT so I am leaning towards the VT bass, but I still cant make up my mind. I guess my questions to you are,

1.) Which pedal is “more versatile”?

2.) Which pedal is more aggressive? Are the drives kinda similar?

3.) How does the RBI preamp compare? (Just out of curiosity incase I wanna do a rack mount build)

I play mostly p basses with roundwounds, but also play jazz basses and a ray5hh with flats.

Thanks everyone!!

 

[tech21nyc]

The VT Bass DI focuses on vintage style Ampeg Tones. The Bass Driver DI covers some of that ground but is popular in part because of it's simplicity. The RBI is basically the rack version of the Bass Driver DI but offers more connection capabilities, greater output and headroom.

You're always best trying. It's the only way to know for sure.

 

[Dom Amato]

The VT Bass DI focuses on vintage style Ampeg Tones. The Bass Driver DI covers some of that ground but is popular in part because of it's simplicity. The RBI is basically the rack version of the Bass Driver DI but offers more connection capabilities, greater output and headroom.

You're always best trying. It's the only way to know for sure.

For more aggressive stuff, the Bass driver seems to make more sense to me

 

[gregmon79]

I think the BDDI is a "tighter" pedal. The VT is great, but as @tech21nyc stated, it gets more vintage tones. Both are great, but the BDDI is a more modern flavor and gets a tighter feel and sound IME.

 

[richntiff]

Have you considered the Ampeg SGT-DI? It's probably a better choice than either of those two.

 

[Solude]

The BDDI into an Ampeg with 800Hz Mids boosted is the sound of heavy rock bass. Does the TT let you boost that freq?

 

[Dom Amato]

Have you considered the Ampeg SGT-DI? It's probably a better choice than either of those two.

Yeah but I dont like how muddy it gets when its driven very hard. Sounds too spongy to me

 

[Boneless]

The VTBass may sound spongy to your ears.

My view:
- Sansamp BDDI: sounds fake, too much of a scoop on full blend, congested treble, blending in the clean signal always sounds worse to me than getting the processing right. BUT it works in the mix. Good for hard but not really overdriven tones.

- VTBass: sounds a bit fake, pillowy, very "rich" but a bit bloated to my ears. BUT it works in the mix. Good for tones like, dunno, this:



(Early millennium indie rock, warm tone, very "euphonic" in a sparser mix).

 

[Parzival]

They are pretty different but I enjoy them both equally.

 

[Dom Amato]

The VTBass may sound spongy to your ears.

My view:
- Sansamp BDDI: sounds fake, too much of a scoop on full blend, congested treble, blending in the clean signal always sounds worse to me than getting the processing right. BUT it works in the mix. Good for hard but not really overdriven tones.

- VTBass: sounds a bit fake, pillowy, very "rich" but a bit bloated to my ears. BUT it works in the mix. Good for tones like, dunno, this:



(Early millennium indie rock, warm tone, very "euphonic" in a sparser mix).

The SGT is what I think sounds spongy lol

 

[Deleted member 271037]

Based on the fact that you're planning on running it into an actual amp+cab I would choose the VT Bass, purely based on the fact that you can switch off the speaker sim. You can't do that with the BDDI.

Of course, the 810 cab(sim) is a huge part of "the Ampeg tone" so if that's what you're looking for you may find that you prefer having the speaker sim engaged. Personally I think running a cab sim into an actual cab is a recipe for poor tone. With the VT Bass you will at least have a choice.

 

[Lagaupia]

I love VT Bass DI especially for recording.

 

[groovaholic]

a better sounding dirty tone for hard rock

Only you can know which tone you prefer.

I love a driven SVT so I am leaning towards the VT bass

That seems like a sensible choice

1.) Which pedal is “more versatile”?

The BDDI v2 covers more ground, but you already have a versatile amp.
If this pedal is intended to fill in one of the few things you feel the amp doesn't do well, get the pedal tailored to fit that role.

2.) Which pedal is more aggressive?

IMO the VT DI gets nastier...especially when you turn up the "Character" control.

 

[Dom Amato]

Based on the fact that you're planning on running it into an actual amp+cab I would choose the VT Bass, purely based on the fact that you can switch off the speaker sim. You can't do that with the BDDI.

Of course, the 810 cab(sim) is a huge part of "the Ampeg tone" so if that's what you're looking for you may find that you prefer having the speaker sim engaged. Personally I think running a cab sim into an actual cab is a recipe for poor tone. With the VT Bass you will at least have a choice.

I was going to add a 2nd 4x10 in the future haha. From what Ive read, the BDDI seems to be better for more aggressive drive. I dont necessarily need a speaker sim to be honest.

 

[Dom Amato]

Only you can know which tone you prefer.

That seems like a sensible choice

The BDDI v2 covers more ground, but you already have a versatile amp.
If this pedal is intended to fill in one of the few things you feel the amp doesn't do well, get the pedal tailored to fit that role.

IMO the VT DI gets nastier...especially when you turn up the "Character" control.

Doesnt the “presence” on the BDDI do a similar thing?

 

[FirewalZ]

I only use my BDDIv2 to FOH/PA and not to my amp...most of the time im either wearing earfilters or IEM's so I cant hear the difference anyway. However, I get loads of compliments on the FOH sound. After all these years and tons of other options, the BDDI is still a great tool.

 

[groovaholic]

Doesnt the “presence” on the BDDI do a similar thing?

Take this with a grain of salt since its been a while since I owned either DI...
But my recollection is that the "Character" knob on the VTDI affects gain in the midrange.

The BDDI "Presence" knob is more of a traditional control, dedicated to a different frequency than the treble control.

 

[JoeDoe]

My vote is VTDI. It can cop SVT and B15 tones, and that Bite switch is great. The BDDI does have a tighter, more modern aka scoped sound, and is a standard for a reason, but if I had to have only one, I’m going VTDI all the way.

 

[Dom Amato]

My vote is VTDI. It can cop SVT and B15 tones, and that Bite switch is great. The BDDI does have a tighter, more modern aka scoped sound, and is a standard for a reason, but if I had to have only one, I’m going VTDI all the way.

Im trying to get like a 90s overdrive bass tone for hard rock and what not. I think the boogie channel on the amp itself does a great job at B15 tones and lighter driven SVT stuff. It doesnt get dirty enough for my taste however haha

 

[henryjurstin13]

I have a VT Bass, VT Bass DI and used them extensively... for YEARS. I've quit using them because I'm now using an Aguilar Tone Hammer 500. I'm not trying to derail, but I found a lot of happiness with an amp that has built in gain/dirt. That being said, the VT DI has a lot of dirt & a very useful blend....