Anyone Got one of the new East 4 Knob Deluxe U-Retro with the full passive path?

[Darkstrike]

I'm considering one for my Roscoe with J pickups.

All the features seem great, and the blend knob finally having a detent is great, but I'm still a bit wary of it at 275 euros, lotta cash for a pre-amp.

The passive path is a major attraction though, for a more vintage J sound, as it the mid sweep over the stock Bartolini's push/pull selector.

[funkypenguin]

ive just had one fitted to my Warwick, its one of the best and most flexible preamps ive used. It can nail pretty much any sound you can think of, the passive pathway is something more preamp manufacturers should seriously consider offering as an option, it really warms the sound up having the passive tone rolled off

heres a good demo vid, should give you a rough idea of how flexible it is

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YziXggTfWM

[Muzz]

Glad you posted that, I was looking at one of these, but none (neither) of those sounds in the vid would be any use to me. Ta.

[Darkstrike]

Yeah, I always wondered why the proper active/passive setups weren't more common. seems like a stellar idea.

That video is class, lots going on there!

[funkypenguin]

It gives you a rough idea, the woods your bass is constructed from and the pickups you use will affect the sound a great deal (not to mention your playing style!) but the preamp is good enough to enhance any bass IMHO

[Darkstrike]

I listend to Easts own two vids, which were pretty sweet too. Kinda made me want a new P just to put a P-Retro in...

[Darkstrike]

Just put one on order, can't wait to try it out!

[Darkstrike]

Arrived today, and quickly whipped it in, truly stellar, much better than the Bartolini pre I had installed, the options and tones are ridiculous.


Shame I can't play with it more now, as I injured my thumb at work.

Edited August 17, 2012 by Darkstrike

[LukeFRC]

[quote name='Darkstrike' timestamp='1345218770' post='1775181']
Arrived today, and quickly whipped it in, truly stellar, much better than the Bartolini pre I had installed, the options and tones are ridiculous.


Shame I can't play with it more now, as I injured my thumb at work.
[/quote] thats a shame. Wee question, I was looking at the East and Bart pre's recently- which bart pre was it, and what didn't you like about it?

[Darkstrike]

[quote name='LukeFRC' timestamp='1345225393' post='1775295']
thats a shame. Wee question, I was looking at the East and Bart pre's recently- which bart pre was it, and what didn't you like about it?
[/quote]

It's an NTMB, and it's not a bad pre by any shot, I still have it in two basses, it's just the East is IMO much better.

The main reason I looked away from the Bart is because the bass in question has J pickups, so I wanted a passive tone and passive mode, aiming at more vintage Jazz tones, to go along with the more modern. The treble in the Bart is a bit meh compared to the East, and the Mid Sweep is much, much more handy than the Bart's mid push/pull too. Plus it was ridiculously easy to install, almost no soldering, and most of that was because I wanted to use the 18v battery harness that was already in the bass.

That's only quick impressions mind, I tested to make sure it was working, but had to give up due to my thumb, hoping it eases up later so I can give it a proper crack.