skej21 Posted January 15, 2022 Share Posted January 15, 2022 (edited) Probably a little late to the party but I managed to get my hands on an EBS Valve Drive DI and I quickly realised that it was the breakup/dirt I’ve always been chasing. From slight breakup using the manual’s ‘Crunch’ setting to a heavier dirt using the manual’s ‘Vintage Overdrive’ setting, it’s got quite a lot of range and a tonal quality that’s hard to find. I must admit, I still can’t work out why the ‘flat response’ setting requires the EQ knobs to be maxed out to get the correct frequency curves (I certainly wouldn’t have known it just by messing around), but all in all, it’s an absolute winner! Here’s a quick 2 minute demo with some snapshots of the settings if you’re interested. Let me know what you think! Edited January 15, 2022 by skej21 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulo m Posted January 15, 2022 Share Posted January 15, 2022 Once again matt excellent little demo with great sound quality & clarity. I've owned a microbass II for years & it's a unit I simply wouldn't part with for its multitude of applications' the valve drive is of an equal quality if' a more rarefied taste for myself.. The Crunch' Drive' Distortition' is not something I would find myself using on a frequent basis but' it is most certainly convincingly audiophile quality. Your choice of P Bass is ideal for this demo... From the Jamerson motown grit' to the full-on rock-metal face melt. Hours of endless sound sculpting... & may I say with exceptional results. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skej21 Posted January 15, 2022 Author Share Posted January 15, 2022 18 minutes ago, paulo m said: Once again matt excellent little demo with great sound quality & clarity. I've owned a microbass II for years & it's a unit I simply wouldn't part with for its multitude of applications' the valve drive is of an equal quality if' a more rarefied taste for myself.. The Crunch' Drive' Distortition' is not something I would find myself using on a frequent basis but' it is most certainly convincingly audiophile quality. Your choice of P Bass is ideal for this demo... From the Jamerson motown grit' to the full-on rock-metal face melt. Hours of endless sound sculpting... & may I say with exceptional results. Thank you for the kind words. Micro bass III is definitely one I need to try. I have a Noble preamp on the way and I’m thinking the combination of the two will cover all of the classic tones I need! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulo m Posted January 15, 2022 Share Posted January 15, 2022 The Noble is reassuringly expensive indeed & a tool of studio & live applications ( I've never tryed-one) but I have played the Microbass 3.. of which I was a little disappointed... Not the same quality of its predecessor... More aimed @ the Metal Bassists for myself.. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jus Lukin Posted January 15, 2022 Share Posted January 15, 2022 (edited) - Edited March 16, 2022 by Jus Lukin 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Musicman666 Posted January 20, 2022 Share Posted January 20, 2022 Just got this pedal, …it seems to be a one trick pony but it’s a good trick, just makes everything sound better. For me it doesn’t readily overdrive rather than just give it a bit of tube breakup which is just perfect. It’s one of those pedals that you need to turn on and off to fully appreciate what it’s doing. I’m pairing it with a cali76 which I think could be the end of my quest for better tone….for the foreseeable future anyway. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skej21 Posted January 20, 2022 Author Share Posted January 20, 2022 14 minutes ago, Musicman666 said: Just got this pedal, …it seems to be a one trick pony but it’s a good trick, just makes everything sound better. For me it doesn’t readily overdrive rather than just give it a bit of tube breakup which is just perfect. It’s one of those pedals that you need to turn on and off to fully appreciate what it’s doing. I’m pairing it with a cali76 which I think could be the end of my quest for better tone….for the foreseeable future anyway. Totally agree. I think if you like that kind of dirt, it’s a winner! I find if I have my bass in a mix, and subtle break up it’s just magical! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thodrik Posted January 20, 2022 Share Posted January 20, 2022 Great demo. I have had the V1 for about ten years and haven't used it in about eight! I recorded an album with it to help give my EBS Fafner a more valve-like tone (so basically two pre-amp tubes rather than one). Sounded great but it was far too big, fragile and inconvenient (12v ac supply requiring a separate adapter) to stay on my board for longer than a couple of years. It is a good studio toy now. Personally, I would prefer a cut/boost EQ section than the passive tone EQ it has on the pedal. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewebow Posted May 23, 2022 Share Posted May 23, 2022 I picked one up after watching Matt's video. I love it for what feels like natural compression in the breakup. I have it infront of a PJB - Session 77. Makes the whole experience feel far more organic and alive. Also picked up an old black Label EBS octavabass. Any recommendations whether I go for BassIQ, Comp or Chorus/Vibrato next? At the moment I am mainly playing Pbass or Fretless (P & Jbass) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merton Posted May 23, 2022 Share Posted May 23, 2022 I was saying to @eude just this weekend that I fancied me one of these. This thread isn't helping 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewebow Posted May 23, 2022 Share Posted May 23, 2022 See attached. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dood Posted May 23, 2022 Share Posted May 23, 2022 On 15/01/2022 at 06:12, skej21 said: I must admit, I still can’t work out why the ‘flat response’ setting requires the EQ knobs to be maxed out to get the correct frequency curves (I certainly wouldn’t have known it just by messing around), but all in all, it’s an absolute winner! It's a funny one and as I understand it, it's to make the 12 0'clock setting on the knobs sound nicer - especially in the case of older amplifiers where speaker cabinets were way less capable than the type of high spec PA drivers we have today. All knobs facing upward would give you a nice bit of bass and treble boost and a mid cut. Classic "smiley face" EQ on three knobs! The actually circuit itself is what's known as a passive tone stack and requires few components. There are different types but most are like or based on the Fender tone stack circuit. Alembic, Trace Eliot and many other brands have utilised this layout too. Interestingly this is one of the reasons that I think some folk find D Class amplifiers "bland" and "sterile". Obviously the whole signal path of a D Class amplifier is cleaner anyway, but all controls at 12 O'Clock is pretty much a flat response from start to finish. All controls at 12 O'Clock on other amplifiers like valve types have a response with colourful EQ bumps and troughs making the sound more exciting. More "heft-y". Oh gosh, I used that word. 2 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skej21 Posted May 23, 2022 Author Share Posted May 23, 2022 7 hours ago, thewebow said: I picked one up after watching Matt's video. I love it for what feels like natural compression in the breakup. I have it infront of a PJB - Session 77. Makes the whole experience feel far more organic and alive. Also picked up an old black Label EBS octavabass. Any recommendations whether I go for BassIQ, Comp or Chorus/Vibrato next? At the moment I am mainly playing Pbass or Fretless (P & Jbass) Glad you’re enjoying it! Just to be clear, this wasn’t a “sales” attempt, just an attempt to be as objective and transparent as possible so people could get their own idea about whether it works for them or not. Always nice to hear when it works out 🙂 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewebow Posted May 23, 2022 Share Posted May 23, 2022 3 hours ago, skej21 said: Glad you’re enjoying it! Just to be clear, this wasn’t a “sales” attempt, just an attempt to be as objective and transparent as possible so people could get their own idea about whether it works for them or not. Always nice to hear when it works out 🙂 i just appreciated having someone showing me what it could do in a clear and concise video with decent sound and good production 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dood Posted May 24, 2022 Share Posted May 24, 2022 9 hours ago, thewebow said: i just appreciated having someone showing me what it could do in a clear and concise video with decent sound and good production It's a thumbs up from me too! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skej21 Posted May 24, 2022 Author Share Posted May 24, 2022 1 hour ago, Dood said: It's a thumbs up from me too! That means a lot coming from a demo-God such as you! (Especially considering my YouTube has a lowly 300 subs) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewebow Posted May 24, 2022 Share Posted May 24, 2022 Only just realised Dood is the man behind that great EBS 802 amp review I have watched many a time! Probably a bit overkill for my back and light weight needs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweeneythebass Posted May 29, 2022 Share Posted May 29, 2022 Recently sold my Valvedrive, an excellent bit of kit much like all EBS pedals I’ve tried. I used it just to add some valve/tube warmth and was excellent for that. I don’t really use overdrive so I can’t comment on that and I had the eq flat (but not flat as mentioned above 👆😂😂) whenever I used it. I did a session with it where we we going for an Amy Winehouse- Valerie sort of tone and it nailed it along with some eq’in Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewebow Posted May 29, 2022 Share Posted May 29, 2022 How do/ did people power their EBS valve drivers? I bought mine used and it didn’t come with any power. any recommendations? Should I splurge on the EBS pro AD-9power wart so I can power other pedals as well? Or do I go for dunlop or similar power brick? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweeneythebass Posted May 29, 2022 Share Posted May 29, 2022 1 hour ago, thewebow said: How do/ did people power their EBS valve drivers? I bought mine used and it didn’t come with any power. any recommendations? Should I splurge on the EBS pro AD-9power wart so I can power other pedals as well? Or do I go for dunlop or similar power brick? I used my Warwick Rock power block, I had the 9v version so it worked well. I’d use the ebs 9v power supply which came with it when I had many pedals on the board as it’s quite a big power drain Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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