Preamp with DI recommendations

[Linus27]

I'm just after a few recommendations really on a nice preamp pedal with a DI.

 

For my fretless pedalboard which is a nice melodic 80's sounding setup (think John Giblin and Pino) I'm using a Sansamp BDDI v2 along with an OC5 Octave, Chorus, Reverbs and Optical compressor and it sounds really really nice. The BDDI v2 add some lovely character to my tone.

 

My new band is more of an Americana type of thing which I will play with a P-Bass with flats. I guess its a bit like Bruce Springsteen, John Mellencamp, Neil Young, Tom Petty, David Grey etc. I guess I'm after a warm, punchy sound, maybe even a bit Motown in places. I don't really want to go and buy another Sansamp as I fancy something different although I'm happy to use the Sansamp if there's a more suitable preamp with DI for my fretless pedalboard. I really like the look of the Ampreg SGT-DI, especially for the B15 sound but I can't see me using the drive and I would probably use a separate compressor pedal. Likewise, I like the EBS Microbass 3, especially as it has a tuner but again, I can't see me using the drive or the compressor so both of these pedals seem a waste and a bit expensive for my needs. I've looked at the Tech 21 VT DI which might be a good alternative and possibly make a nicer B15 sound over my BDDI v2. It's not essential to have the B15 tone but it might be a nice tool to have for some songs. The MXR M81 is a lovely pedal but I think is going to be a bit clean and lack a bit of character for me needs. I did own one before and it didn't really grab me. 

 

Any other recommendations on a nice preamp with DI that will suit my needs or shall I stick with the Sansamp option?

[Lozz196]

If you don`t need all the bells & whistles of the SGT-DI then Ampegs SCR-DI is a good pedal, the drive can be set very low to the point where all it does is takes off the crisp clean part of the note, warming it up but with no noticeable drive. For a natural amp sound I find it better than the Sansamp.

[three]

If you can find one - I wish I could - I'd recommend the Mesa Boogie Subway+ DI.  I really shouldn't have sold mine.  Two DIs (Mic and Line from memory) and real versatility in a well-built package

[dudewheresmybass]

The tech 21 Steve Harris sig might be a good call here.

It's not just for metal tones - It has a Jamerson sound in the manual, and obviously is tweakable from there. 

There's a built in tuner, and a second channel (although it shares eq with the other, the gain and volume are adjustable)

Jamerson tone at around 4:50

 

 

Edited March 18 by dudewheresmybass

[fretmeister]

I really love my Mark Bass Vintage Preamp.

 

 

 

I tend to use the "Old" setting and then tweak from there.

The 2 drive flavours are great and go from subtle to high gain and they don't sound anything like Darkglass!

 

I'm really pleased with it. At the moment it's on my tiny recording board with a compressor and an Audient ID4mkii interface that can be powered from a USB-C ipad.

 

[Linus27]

  On 19/03/2025 at 13:02, fretmeister said:

I really love my Mark Bass Vintage Preamp.

 

 

 

I tend to use the "Old" setting and then tweak from there.

The 2 drive flavours are great and go from subtle to high gain and they don't sound anything like Darkglass!

 

I'm really pleased with it. At the moment it's on my tiny recording board with a compressor and an Audient ID4mkii interface that can be powered from a USB-C ipad.

 

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That actually sounds really good and super versatile.

[fretmeister]

It's lovely. It's really quiet in operation too. I love compression (far too much TBH) and it doesn't get noisy / hissy even then. 

It does need a 12V supply but most pedalboard supplies can do that these days.

[Linus27]

I'm definitely liking the look of this. The two on my list so far are the Tech 21 Sansamp VT Bass DI and now the MarkBass Vintage Pre.

[thisisswanbon]

At risk of being devil's advocate here... I had the MB pre for a while, and enjoyed its basic tone however moved it on as I hated the way it clipped.

 

Being a tube pre I assumed it'd compress and slightly break up as you'd expect from tube gear (without the drive on that is) however it seemed to have more of a digital clipping quality to it that was just awful.

 

The logical thing to do was turn the gain down - but that felt like it lost headroom, and I use some loud effects before the pre that would have a similar result.

 

Better players than me have used this to great effect though so of course YMMV.

 

Ive been on a bit of a DI/preamp journey over the past year or so - Laney Digbeth, Sansamp VTDI, Source Audio Zio bass preamp, Joyo Tidal Wave, Joyo Monomyth, Ampeg SGT DI, HX Stomp, Ampero II Stomp, Mark Bass Vintage pre and more... but landed on the Aguilar Tone Hammer V1. Versatile as you like, has a lovely core tone and a really quality bit of kit. For me it'd be a toss up between this or the laney digbeth 👍

Edited March 19 by thisisswanbon

[Linus27]

  On 19/03/2025 at 21:23, thisisswanbon said:

At risk of being devil's advocate here... I had the MB pre for a while, and enjoyed its basic tone however moved it on as I hated the way it clipped.

 

Being a tube pre I assumed it'd compress and slightly break up as you'd expect from tube gear (without the drive on that is) however it seemed to have more of a digital clipping quality to it that was just awful.

 

The logical thing to do was turn the gain down - but that felt like it lost headroom, and I use some loud effects before the pre that would have a similar result.

 

Better players than me have used this to great effect though so of course YMMV.

 

Ive been on a bit of a DI/preamp journey over the past year or so - Laney Digbeth, Sansamp VTDI, Source Audio Zio bass preamp, Joyo Tidal Wave, Joyo Monomyth, Ampeg SGT DI, HX Stomp, Ampero II Stomp, Mark Bass Vintage pre and more... but landed on the Aguilar Tone Hammer V1. Versatile as you like, has a lovely core tone and a really quality bit of kit. For me it'd be a toss up between this or the laney digbeth 👍

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Thanks for your input and interesting you liked the Tone Hammer. I watched a shootout video tonight and to my ears, the Tone Hammer was one of the best sounding. I also had a look at the AG Preamp and that also sounded really good.

 

As for the Sansamp VTDI, what were your thoughts on it?

[3below]

I rate both my VT Deluxe and MXR M80, plenty of control available and phantom power is a great thing imo.  Beyond that in a live setting I do not get too bothered about what DI/pre I am using, most effort is expended on managing how the room. the audience and the pa impact on getting a reasonable bass tone in the room.  Today, we did some live video recordings in our rehearsal hall, the light was way to bright so we pulled the blinds down.  Sound was ok no more than that.  Afterwards we lifted the blinds up, played same stuff again, no changes to the kit/settings (less mistakes though lol), the sound was way better - go figure.  Recording otoh is a totally different matter.

[JPJ]

Pro bassist and tutor Phillip Mann has been making some noise recently about the Genzler preamp pedal that he’s currently gigging. He knows his onions so it might be worth checking out?

[stewblack]

  On 19/03/2025 at 21:23, thisisswanbon said:

At risk of being devil's advocate here... I had the MB pre for a while, and enjoyed its basic tone however moved it on as I hated the way it clipped.

 

Being a tube pre I assumed it'd compress and slightly break up as you'd expect from tube gear (without the drive on that is) however it seemed to have more of a digital clipping quality to it that was just awful.

 

The logical thing to do was turn the gain down - but that felt like it lost headroom, and I use some loud effects before the pre that would have a similar result.

 

Better players than me have used this to great effect though so of course YMMV.

 

Ive been on a bit of a DI/preamp journey over the past year or so - Laney Digbeth, Sansamp VTDI, Source Audio Zio bass preamp, Joyo Tidal Wave, Joyo Monomyth, Ampeg SGT DI, HX Stomp, Ampero II Stomp, Mark Bass Vintage pre and more... but landed on the Aguilar Tone Hammer V1. Versatile as you like, has a lovely core tone and a really quality bit of kit. For me it'd be a toss up between this or the laney digbeth 👍

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I was about to make a similar post. The Digbeth probably tips the balance for me, but the Tone Hammer is a great option too 

[thisisswanbon]

  On 19/03/2025 at 21:35, Linus27 said:

 

Thanks for your input and interesting you liked the Tone Hammer. I watched a shootout video tonight and to my ears, the Tone Hammer was one of the best sounding. I also had a look at the AG Preamp and that also sounded really good.

 

As for the Sansamp VTDI, what were your thoughts on it?

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I love the look of the AG, but couldn't justify it when I'm content with my tone hammer... i love that it's capable of both Amp sim, and sweetened clean tone.

 

I didn't like the EQ on the Sansamp. A well made bit of kit, I just found it a bit bloated on the low end.

 

I could easily go with either, @stewblack.The Digbeth sounds fantastic with an unbeaten feature set at its price point. Not sure why it's been slept on the way it has... I tried to buy mine back before committing to the Tone Hammer 

[Quatschmacher]

Shift Line Olympic MKIIIs, Origin BassRig 64. (Origin currently have a nice discount when buying direct using the code show2025.) 

[Linus27]

  On 19/03/2025 at 21:23, thisisswanbon said:

At risk of being devil's advocate here... I had the MB pre for a while, and enjoyed its basic tone however moved it on as I hated the way it clipped.

 

Being a tube pre I assumed it'd compress and slightly break up as you'd expect from tube gear (without the drive on that is) however it seemed to have more of a digital clipping quality to it that was just awful.

 

The logical thing to do was turn the gain down - but that felt like it lost headroom, and I use some loud effects before the pre that would have a similar result.

 

Better players than me have used this to great effect though so of course YMMV.

 

Ive been on a bit of a DI/preamp journey over the past year or so - Laney Digbeth, Sansamp VTDI, Source Audio Zio bass preamp, Joyo Tidal Wave, Joyo Monomyth, Ampeg SGT DI, HX Stomp, Ampero II Stomp, Mark Bass Vintage pre and more... but landed on the Aguilar Tone Hammer V1. Versatile as you like, has a lovely core tone and a really quality bit of kit. For me it'd be a toss up between this or the laney digbeth 👍

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I'm liking the look and sound of the Laney Digbeth. The reviews and videos I've listened to are all really positive. Cracking price as well for a lot of functionality.

[SumOne]

Perhaps something else to consider:

 

I like having a separate DI,  I have this £10 SubZero one that works fine, but you can spend more on things like the Radial ones. 

 

It is passive (no need for power), small, cheap, tough, has ground lift, pad (with 0, -20 and -40db), and line through, they are things that a lot of expensive 'all-in-one' preamp and DI boxes don't have.  It also means that you don't have to have your preamp and DI combined in a fixed position in your effects chain (although some preamp/DI pedals to have pre/post and effects loops, but a lot don't) and it opens up the possibility for using all sorts of other good preamp pedals that don't have DI e.g. Solid Gold Beta, Xotic BB, Origin DCX, One Control 360/Crimson red etc. 

Edited March 20 by SumOne

[dudewheresmybass]

  On 20/03/2025 at 09:22, Linus27 said:

 

I'm liking the look and sound of the Laney Digbeth. The reviews and videos I've listened to are all really positive. Cracking price as well for a lot of functionality.

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The Digbeth is great. Super versatile and solid, especially at the price point

[MichaelDean]

The Digbeth heads don't get enough recognition either. I was in the studio a few weeks ago and the engineer brought out an SVT for me to go through. I did use it in the end, but I was A/Bing my Digbeth and the SVT and I was getting very similar tones from both. The guy was very surprised. I'd really like a Digbeth preamp to go on my board.

[Linus27]

Does anyone have any views or experience of the MXR M80 DI+? It seems to get good reviews and seems to be a good price.

[fretmeister]

I really want to try the Digbeth - the demos are excellent.

 

  On 19/03/2025 at 21:23, thisisswanbon said:

At risk of being devil's advocate here... I had the MB pre for a while, and enjoyed its basic tone however moved it on as I hated the way it clipped.

 

Being a tube pre I assumed it'd compress and slightly break up as you'd expect from tube gear (without the drive on that is) however it seemed to have more of a digital clipping quality to it that was just awful.

 

 

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I can see what you mean - I think it's more that the gain control is really sensitive and going from clean to tiny grit to unpleasantly overdoing it can take only a 2mm move on the knob.

 

  On 20/03/2025 at 12:44, Linus27 said:

Does anyone have any views or experience of the MXR M80 DI+? It seems to get good reviews and seems to be a good price.

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I've tried the smaller one - the M81 - and it although it was perfectly efficient I did find it very clean - lacking in character. Felt more like transparent onboard EQ in a way. I don't know if the M80 is the same on the clean sound.

 

Of the others mentioned above, I've also had the Tech21 Steve Harris and I do regret selling that one but I think T21 missed a trick by not having an Aux in and headphone out for silent practice. I would never have sold it if it had those features.

[Tech21NYC]

  On 20/03/2025 at 13:06, fretmeister said:

...Of the others mentioned above, I've also had the Tech21 Steve Harris and I do regret selling that one but I think T21 missed a trick by not having an Aux in and headphone out for silent practice. I would never have sold it if it had those features.

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Since a good majority of our customer base have home studios and recording interfaces, the need for an aux in and headphone function would not be needed and make the product more expensive. 

 

The problem with adding a headphone amp to a pedal product has to do with the newer switch mode power supplies. The older analog copper wire based power supplies that we originally used provided a ground reference for the pedal. When we started using the universal voltage switch mode supplies (that most of the industry is using) we found that those power supplies don't provide a ground reference for the pedal. That means you will get a noisy headphone signal. The workaround for this is to plug the pedal's XLR output into a mixer so what's the point. The other way to ground the pedal is to plug it into a grounded amplifier which means we would have to add another output which would make the pedal bigger and more expensive. 

 

 

[3below]

  On 20/03/2025 at 13:29, Tech21NYC said:

Since a good majority of our customer base have home studios and recording interfaces, the need for an aux in and headphone function would not be needed and make the product more expensive. 

 

The problem with adding a headphone amp to a pedal product has to do with the newer switch mode power supplies. The older analog copper wire based power supplies that we originally used provided a ground reference for the pedal. When we started using the universal voltage switch mode supplies (that most of the industry is using) we found that those power supplies don't provide a ground reference for the pedal. That means you will get a noisy headphone signal. The workaround for this is to plug the pedal's XLR output into a mixer so what's the point. The other way to ground the pedal is to plug it into a grounded amplifier which means we would have to add another output which would make the pedal bigger and more expensive. 

 

 

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Nothing is simple, as one problem is overcome another one appears as a consequence  

[3below]

  On 20/03/2025 at 12:44, Linus27 said:

Does anyone have any views or experience of the MXR M80 DI+? It seems to get good reviews and seems to be a good price.

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Yes, I used it for a lot of recording and live work with a fretless Warwick.  Dead easy to get a good (enough for me) tone.  Well built.

[fretmeister]

  On 20/03/2025 at 13:29, Tech21NYC said:

Since a good majority of our customer base have home studios and recording interfaces, the need for an aux in and headphone function would not be needed and make the product more expensive. 

 

 

 

 

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I have all of that too.

 

But sometimes I travel and I can't take my studio with me. Not even just into the garden to play in the sun.