Microtubes X Ultra

[Daz39]

Yeah, colour me surprised!

still, sounds ace though...

[Dapper Bandit]

4 hours ago, Cuzzie said:

A damning unbiased review of the pedal..........oh wait, I forgot, basstheworld only review stuff they are paid to review, likely to be fairly neutral at best.....

The big pedal reviewers on Youtube have now hit that point where they're big enough to earn money doing something that was initially a passion project. Big names are sending them pedals for free and / or paying them to feature their product.

I've been caught out a couple of times now by glowing reviews that completely gloss over any negatives and it is frustrating but I can also see the pressure a self-employed content creator would be under to keep the paying customers happy. It's a double edged sword, even more so when the pedals in question are often over the £200 mark.

[Cuzzie]

Agreed

I wanted Basstheworld to do a comparison between a pedal they had already done which was similar to a different makers one.

I contacted them and said, this would be a fun review, I like the way your review and things.

He wrote back saying we are maybe working with the manufacturer in tying to review this other pedal.

I offered to post mine over for them to do a comparison - flat out refusal as the manufacturer of the one I was going to send wasn’t paying them, and they said that.

They were up front, but in the same breath, you have to trust your own ears and educate yourself on somethings capabilities, most of these reviews can not be objective, which is a shame.

[Dapper Bandit]

It's like Nick and Juan at Pedals & Effects, everything they review is the best example ever. The Meros Enzo is the best symth pedal. But so is the Boss SY1 and the Pigtronix Mothership.

They should really refer to them as demos rather than reviews, that way at least everyone would know where they stand.

[dannybuoy]

Anyhow, I still want to try one! Anybody taking the plunge?

[Cuzzie]

Yep Ed Friedland has said he will never pan something, I suppose you could read between the lines and gauge how excited he is by something as to how good it is.

Patrick Hunter makes every Pedal sound the same.

Maybe ‘reviewers’ only review stuff which is pretty good, so it's self selecting.

Maybe i’ll Build something really crap, send it to one, pay them to review it and see if they say it is great.

[Cuzzie]

2 minutes ago, dannybuoy said:

Anyhow, I still want to try one! Anybody taking the plunge?

Go for it

Spend the £400 smackers on it, and i’ll be generous and give you £200 for it when you realise your DP3X and TH pedals give you what you need already

[Musicman20]

Unfortunately, despite how interesting it is to see demos, most of the professional demos are paid for. Otherwise, why would they do it, unless they are musicians with financial stability and they just enjoy it...

I've seen Darkglass products jump to higher and higher prices. £400 for a distortion pedal is absolutely INSANE.

They have become 'the' distortion tone for more metal/heavier tones....and personally I think it just makes all basses sound very very similar. It sounds almost metallic and processed. 

The craze is: fanned fret bass, shed loads of Darkglass distortion, normally some sort of dual pickup bass....then the bass riff almost sounds like a djent style guitar riff.

I still prefer Tech 21, if I'm honest.

Also, you can get a Helix Stomp and probably get exactly these tones or close and thousands more. 

 

 

[Kev]

Yet you’re all still in here talking about the new Darkglass pedal , every time one is released, more like Talkbass every day this forum....🙄

Regards to the B3K comparison, I do see the X as a replacement for that pedal, indeed that’s how it went in my setup.  Voice only, otherwise the pedals are very, very different from one another in how they work!

[Kev]

6 minutes ago, Musicman20 said:

Also, you can get a Helix Stomp and probably get exactly these tones or close and thousands more.

Interesting, I didn’t realise the was anything out there that really did parallel bass processing in a multi effect unit.  What model?

[Cuzzie]

9 minutes ago, Kev said:

Yet you’re all still in here talking about the new Darkglass pedal , every time one is released, more like Talkbass every day this forum....🙄

Regards to the B3K comparison, I do see the X as a replacement for that pedal, indeed that’s how it went in my setup.  Voice only, otherwise the pedals are very, very different from one another in how they work!

Any time anything bass related gets released, we talk about it, it’s basschat......

Dont think there’s a special Darkglass club on here, but by all means get one going.....

[Osiris]

23 minutes ago, Kev said:

Interesting, I didn’t realise the was anything out there that really did parallel bass processing in a multi effect unit.  What model?

The Helix family, including the baby Stomp, allow you to run parallel signal paths and to use variable crossovers for splitting your signal however you want. There's a ton of drive options including some bass specific ones* and you also have the option to use guitar amps as drives too if you want to. The quality of the modelling is virtually indistinguishable from the real thing to my ear too. 

* There's even a B7K model, which I find totally authentic if only because I can't get a usable drive sound out of it no matter what I try, but that is exactly the same experience I had with the Dark Glass amp. Loved the clean channel but the drive section isn't for me, but then again I'm not trying to sound like Noddy whatshisname with the daft jumpers 

[thodrik]

30 minutes ago, Musicman20 said:

Unfortunately, despite how interesting it is to see demos, most of the professional demos are paid for. Otherwise, why would they do it, unless they are musicians with financial stability and they just enjoy it...

I've seen Darkglass products jump to higher and higher prices. £400 for a distortion pedal is absolutely INSANE.

They have become 'the' distortion tone for more metal/heavier tones....and personally I think it just makes all basses sound very very similar. It sounds almost metallic and processed. 

The craze is: fanned fret bass, shed loads of Darkglass distortion, normally some sort of dual pickup bass....then the bass riff almost sounds like a djent style guitar riff.

I still prefer Tech 21, if I'm honest.

Also, you can get a Helix Stomp and probably get exactly these tones or close and thousands more. 

 

 

I would pretty much agree. In terms of bass drive pedals the Darkglass are getting as ubiquitous as the old Boss ODB3-3 was about 10-12 years ago. 

I love metal and hard rock, but my brain and my ears get a bit tired of the combination of triggered drums, heavy distorted Darkglass bass and highly compressed, multiple tracks of BIAS FX guitar distortion that I tend to listen to on Youtube 'reviews' and demos.  

I do  rate my Darkglass pedals, but I think that the best sounds on the B3K are actually when the drive is on very low settings with the 'grunt' switch engaged. I actually prefer it to the sound of my old Tech 21 Bass Driver. I frankly just don't like the higher gain settings of the B3K.

I haven't really managed to find 'my' sound on the Alpha Omega yet. It might be that I am just not overly fussed on the drive tones of the Alpha or Omega sides, but I really need to spend more time with it. 

[Lozz196]

22 hours ago, Cuzzie said:

But it’s Ultra....

Very Spinal Tap methinks 

[dannybuoy]

2 hours ago, Cuzzie said:

Go for it

Spend the £400 smackers on it, and i’ll be generous and give you £200 for it when you realise your DP3X and TH pedals give you what you need already

No way I'm spending that much on it though. I'll either buy used or from the US. I recently scored a Geddy YYZ pedal from US eBay for £170, which is less than I'd expect a used one to sell for over here (£250 in most shops and out of stock everywhere).

[dannybuoy]

1 hour ago, Kev said:

Interesting, I didn’t realise the was anything out there that really did parallel bass processing in a multi effect unit.  What model?

I can vouch for the B7K model in the Helix being very close to the real deal having A/B'd it against my M900 with decent headphones.

Even the 2 generations prior (X3 and HD line) did parallel processing but no Darkglass sim of course.

Edited August 2, 2019 by dannybuoy

[fretmeister]

Just now, Kev said:

Oh yeah I’m sure, but the way the X works is very different and I didn’t know there were decent digital models for this on the Helix.  

In the full fat helix / LT / rack you can split 4 paths if you want. EQ / compress / whatever them all separately and even send them to 4 separate outputs (2 XLR and 2 1/4) as well. Or combine them.

 

I like running the B7K model without a cab at all, but with a parametric EQ, in parallel with a Rat into a GK amp with a cab, and then a third underneath being the brand new SVT4-pro model for deep low cleans.

 

And then with the beauty of Snapshots I can change multiple parameters on everything with just 1 press of a footswitch.

[Kev]

1 hour ago, Cuzzie said:

Any time anything bass related gets released, we talk about it, it’s basschat......

Dont think there’s a special Darkglass club on here, but by all means get one going.....

Unsure if you are being facetious or not, but I was just making the point that it becomes a little tiresome to hear the same complaints over and over with some small successful manufacturers, as opposed to at the very least fresh criticism or feedback on new features etc.  Barefaced is the same and many others.  Nature of the beast I guess as you say!

 

[Musicman20]

34 minutes ago, fretmeister said:

In the full fat helix / LT / rack you can split 4 paths if you want. EQ / compress / whatever them all separately and even send them to 4 separate outputs (2 XLR and 2 1/4) as well. Or combine them.

 

I like running the B7K model without a cab at all, but with a parametric EQ, in parallel with a Rat into a GK amp with a cab, and then a third underneath being the brand new SVT4-pro model for deep low cleans.

 

And then with the beauty of Snapshots I can change multiple parameters on everything with just 1 press of a footswitch.

This is why I need a Helix again. 

[Kev]

35 minutes ago, fretmeister said:

In the full fat helix / LT / rack you can split 4 paths if you want. EQ / compress / whatever them all separately and even send them to 4 separate outputs (2 XLR and 2 1/4) as well. Or combine them.

 

I like running the B7K model without a cab at all, but with a parametric EQ, in parallel with a Rat into a GK amp with a cab, and then a third underneath being the brand new SVT4-pro model for deep low cleans.

 

And then with the beauty of Snapshots I can change multiple parameters on everything with just 1 press of a footswitch.

That does sound pretty impressive.  How easy would it be to knock up an X type preset?  Ie setup a sweepable low and high pass filter with the compressor effecting anything below the LPF Threshold?

My guitarist uses a Helix, maybe I should borrow it from him...

[fretmeister]

2 minutes ago, Musicman20 said:

This is why I need a Helix again. 

It's the only bit of kit I've never thought about selling.

 

[Cuzzie]

7 minutes ago, Kev said:

Unsure if you are being facetious or not, but I was just making the point that it becomes a little tiresome to hear the same complaints over and over with some small successful manufacturers, as opposed to at the very least fresh criticism or feedback on new features etc.  Barefaced is the same and many others.  Nature of the beast I guess as you say!

 

Bit at faecestiousness from us both in all truth, or just light hearted digs all around I reckon, I doubt any of us are severely wounded and I doubt DG are either!

I will maintain though that like or loathe the products, appearance, launch strategy of DG (in this example) I do not think anyone can criticise his customer service or passion for the product and bass guitars, any conversation I have had with him as been top notch and not at all generic - they will look after you whether you bought it new or second hand - that is Gold dust.

So far as marketing/release strategy - well we all know how it goes - if Ultra is what you want in a product, be patient and wait a few months, if you buy X, then sell and buy X7 them sell and buy X ultra because ‘you have to have it’ that’s your choice!

My real gripe with the DG products is that they can do so much more than the generic metal we always hear, but this is never showcased - that’s my only real issue with them, and that is to their detriment IMHO.

Tried a truckload of their stuff, I know it’s not my bag, but no offence meant

[fretmeister]

1 minute ago, Kev said:

That does sound pretty impressive.  How easy would it be to knock up an X type preset?  Ie setup a sweepable low and high pass filter with the compressor effecting anything below the LPF Threshold?

My guitarist uses a Helix, maybe I should borrow it from him...

I've not tried that approach as I've tended to use EQ rather than filters, but I might give it a try this weekend. The filters in the Helix are very good so it will just be a matter of sketching out the signal path.

 

Assuming 1 input to Helix I'd probably split the signal straight away, then on 1 path into the filter and a compressor, and the other path for dirt. Then combine them. That would allow 1 big long chain with double DSP.

 

Or have the 1 input go to both paths entirely separately. 1 for filter / compressed low and the other for everything else. Then send them to the same outputs to combine or keep them apart for more FOH control, or 2 FRFR cabs etc.

 

 

What freqs would you set the filters at?

[Cuzzie]

16 minutes ago, Kev said:

Unsure if you are being facetious or not, but I was just making the point that it becomes a little tiresome to hear the same complaints over and over with some small successful manufacturers, as opposed to at the very least fresh criticism or feedback on new features etc.  Barefaced is the same and many others.  Nature of the beast I guess as you say!

 

On the other point about fresh stuff, their neural DSP will be good, and they are slowly moving towards modelling, but essentially each pedal is a distortion engine, with or without an EQ, which now incorporates silent playing to tracks and building on PC/Mac modelling.

What I would like to hear is the Ultra’s in a fist fight against each other, just to really see how different each of these engines do sound, from clean, to just breaking up to cranked.

Are they vastly or subtly different?

If they are subtly, barely discernibly different, then maybe, just maybe you can say it’s a bit naughty.

[Al Krow]

1 hour ago, Osiris said:

...but that is exactly the same experience I had with the Dark Glass amp. Loved the clean channel but the drive section isn't for me, but then again I'm not trying to sound like Noddy whatshisname with the daft jumpers 

Haha! Me and other DG amp owners don't always gig in daft jumpers.

IIRC Osiris you did try the DG M900 for like 23 mins in a store, so didn't really put it through its paces?

Clean channel really is very good: I've come to appreciate that when 'clean' means 'clean' I can hear what my bass sounds like underneath. The power on tap is immense - you're never going to lack for headroom.

Wiser folk have been rabbiting on forever about how a touch of 'always on' dirt adds to the sound - I'm finally (18 months in) starting to appreciate what they have been getting at. With the B3K at 2/10 and P or PJ pups it adds a bit of compressed harmonic complexity (with built in hpf) to the bass tone which just lets the bass cut through a bit more in a band mix. 

I guess I've gone from skeptic about this amp to concluding that it's actually a very very good piece of kit.