DI Suggestion / J48 Certainty…

[SamPlaysBass]

I’m looking to run a clean DI to the FOH in combination with a mic’d cab and/or DI from the head. I’ve been borrowing various venues’ DI boxes which vary in quality from Behringer silver boxes to Radials and ancient Countryman units which look ‘well loved’. This is at the suggestion of our sound guy who uses a two channels for bass: one dirty/effects/EQ’d signal and another for a clean DI to blend in and fill out the lower frequencies. 
 

Speaking to the sound guy, he likes the Radial J48 as it gives the signal a little boost (passive P bass and a Ric 4003) but he’s said there’s lots of options. He’s even run an Aggie Tone Hammer pedal with the EQ flat for a good clean tone in the past.
 

As I’m waiting for responses from said sound guy, anyone got any good experiences with straight DI pedals? I don’t need EQ options and already have a SansAmp/SVT CL for heavy lifting. 
 

I’ve tried an Acme Motown DI in a studio and that was lovely, but it’s passive. And expensive. Same for a REDDI and Noble, though I’ve not tried them. 
 

So, suggestions for a ‘buy once, buy right’ clean DI to go after my tuner to give my sound guy a clean signal to be blended with the dirty? 
 

Acme Audio, J48, Countryman 85, RNDI feedback all welcome! 

Edited April 15, 2023 by SamPlaysBass

[itu]

I would divide this into two: boxes that reproduce directly what's put in, and those with adjustments.

 

DI box can be passive, transformer based, or Phantom/battery operated with or without output transformer (like Countryman Type 85). Which is better is a bit of semantics. I might say that a battery operated is surely a match, especially if your signal is sometimes of very high impedance, like piezo.

 

If you want to include some signal tweaking, then a unit like SansAmp, or nearly any preamp with DI out could be your choice.

 

If money is not an object buy a Jule Monique. Otherwise visit Thomann.de and check which unit is sold in numbers.

[SamPlaysBass]

Thanks, itu. It’s literally a clean, non-EQ DI that can provide a pure clean signal to FOH. I’ve got a SansAmp and the big amp for the good sound. I just need a solid, reliable and slightly pleasing clean signal to combine with my buggery of FX and EQ shaping! 
 

Thomann suggestions is a shout 👍🏻 

[LukeFRC]

Orchid DI for the cheap but good option 

[tayste_2000]

I found the RNDI too clean, to the point it was bland.

 

I primarily play a Ric with flats, for years I used a countryman type 10.

 

Recently had the opportunity to try the Motown Di and directly compare it to the Neve, Countryman and a Radial Stagebug (passive).

 

I’d bought the stagebug as the cheap, smallest high quality di I could find with a view to have it in a gigbag for emergencies.

 

I bought the neve and wholly expected to sell the stagebug and countryman, maybe buy a Acme.

 

Results of my shootout:

I sold the neve

Bought 2 more stagebugs (one in each gigbag)

Kept the countryman

 

The stagebugs sound shockingly close to the Motown di.

 

The countryman is more open and clear without being boring.

 

I can pm you the Dropbox link with my very rough playing if you want to compare and decide for yourself.

 

But in short you do not NEED an active di for a passive bass. It does provide more headroom and a stronger signal but no Soundman will struggle with a passive instrument into a passive di.

 

Everything I found in my shootout was instantly wiped out as soon as they started turning on neve eqs and studio compressors etc.

 

There is a secondhand stagebug on bassdirect for £60 I would suggest you get that and see if you are left wanting on a gig.

[Happy Jack]

And that's a Plus One on the Stagebugs. 

 

My Radial JDI and Radial J48 are wonderful bits of kit, but they sit in a box gathering dust while my SB2 and SB4 (piezo) are there at every gig, even when not intended for use that night.

 

Any difference in sound quality between the high-end gear and the SB series is small enough to be non-existent except under utterly ideal conditions, whereas the difference in size and weight is completely obvious every time you pick up your ready-bag.

 

[Elfrasho]

To be honest, a passive DI box of any sort will do the job. I;d be astonished if anyone could hear any difference between a £30 behringer and a £300 'specialised' brand. I bet if you bought a £30 behringer one, you'll still be using it in 30 years.

[knicknack]

Another vote for Orchid Electronics... stunningly good value and always come out top whenever I shootout DI boxes for reproducing exactly what is put into them, low end all intact with a strong signal level. The oldest one in my case must be 17 years old by now and still delivers perfectly.

[Matt P]

i use a stagebug passive and really like it (as have a number of sound techs that i've encountered), I also have one of the pro-di boxes which sounds identical to my ears, but i needed the smaller box of the stagebug to fit in my micro pedalboard.

 

I'm on the loookout for another stagebug passive to add to my other pedalboard, the pro-di is in my emergency kit as a backup/spare

 

the combination of great sound and tank-like construction just work for me, i'm expecting it to easily outlast me.

[jimmyb625]

On 16/04/2023 at 17:34, LukeFRC said:

Orchid DI for the cheap but good option 

That's my go-to one as well.

[pn_day]

Depends what you are running into it. 

Rough rule of thumb - passive bass needs active DI

Active bass (or anything with buffer like effects pedals) needs passive DI.

 

However, as with all these rules of thumb,  it depends what you want.  

 

I like the slightly warmer sound of a passive DI containing a transformer, but am too tight to buy a Radial JDI. Instead, I went the local route and get a pre-loved transformer DI from Canford (EMO 520). Quite a few touring PA companies in the UK use them, so you might find one on ebay. https://www.canford.co.uk/EMO-PASSIVE-DIRECT-INJECTION-BOXES

 

I've also used the active Orchid electronics DI as well and was impressed if you want something without any colouring. I purchased a muting version, but have also used the basic one as well. http://orchid-electronics.co.uk/classic_DI.htm

 

Phil