DI bass and guitar

Recording Techniques, People Skills, Gear, Recording Spaces, Computers, and DIY

Moderators: drumsound, tomb

Post Reply
User avatar
Scodiddly
genitals didn't survive the freeze
Posts: 3958
Joined: Wed Dec 10, 2003 6:38 am
Location: Mundelein, IL, USA
Contact:

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by Scodiddly » Fri May 29, 2020 7:40 pm

joninc wrote:
Fri May 29, 2020 3:26 pm
I'll cut a board to seal the cab - thanks for that. I like having the heads on this side of the glass :)
One thing to look out for on various fliptop Ampegs is that they often have some means of keeping the amp in standby if there's no speaker connected. I remember one that had a four-pin XLR to the cabinet, and two of the pins were just used as part of the standby circuit.

The Scum
moves faders with mind
Posts: 2745
Joined: Thu Jul 03, 2003 11:26 pm
Location: Denver, CO
Contact:

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by The Scum » Fri May 29, 2020 8:40 pm

Ahhhh...yes, those funny 4-pin phenolic connectors.

Clearly drawn on the B15-NC schematic (and the NF and XT, and older Ns?):
https://drtube.com/schematics/ampeg/b12nc-jp.gif

The B15S apparently uses the same connector, but it doesn't indicate the standby connection:
https://drtube.com/schematics/ampeg/b15s.gif

That's kinda genius, actually. My pf20t has a switching jack with a giant sandcast power resistor as a dummy load.

Every time I look at B15 schematics, I wind up pricing transformers with the thought of building one myself...
"What fer?"
"Cat fur, to make kitten britches."

User avatar
joninc
dead but not forgotten
Posts: 2100
Joined: Mon Jun 09, 2003 5:02 pm
Location: canada
Contact:

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by joninc » Sat May 30, 2020 10:49 am

The Scum wrote:
Fri May 29, 2020 5:24 pm
That Ext Amp jack is a bit odd - certainly when seen from the perspective of today, with our TRS "insert points" that are an input and an output hidden on one plug.

That Ext Amp isn't one of those. It's just a point in the heart of that circuit between the preamp and power amp. If you plug into it, you can drive a signal into the power amp, or extract the signal that's the mix of the input channels. If you connect two of these amps together at this jack, all 4 inputs are mixed together, and it drives both power sections.

So a standard TS cable should do the trick...Or the signal should be at the tip of a TRS.
I'm not super techy so I don't really get all of this but if you are saying that I should be getting output from the EXT AMP jack - with a standard patch cable - I'm definitely not.

Also plugging in a patch cable to that jack disables the output to the speaker.
the new rules : there are no rules

User avatar
joninc
dead but not forgotten
Posts: 2100
Joined: Mon Jun 09, 2003 5:02 pm
Location: canada
Contact:

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by joninc » Sat May 30, 2020 12:10 pm

Scodiddly wrote:
Fri May 29, 2020 7:40 pm
joninc wrote:
Fri May 29, 2020 3:26 pm
I'll cut a board to seal the cab - thanks for that. I like having the heads on this side of the glass :)
One thing to look out for on various fliptop Ampegs is that they often have some means of keeping the amp in standby if there's no speaker connected. I remember one that had a four-pin XLR to the cabinet, and two of the pins were just used as part of the standby circuit.
Mine has a speaker cable coming out of the head - not the weird 4 pin thing - and has toggles like Fender amps for On and Standby.
the new rules : there are no rules

User avatar
joninc
dead but not forgotten
Posts: 2100
Joined: Mon Jun 09, 2003 5:02 pm
Location: canada
Contact:

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by joninc » Sat May 30, 2020 12:17 pm

Also - i tried the stereo cable thing - still NADA. Starting to wonder if part of the circuit or jack is busted :roll:
the new rules : there are no rules

User avatar
vernier
pushin' record
Posts: 255
Joined: Sun Jun 22, 2003 6:40 pm
Location: USA
Contact:

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by vernier » Sat May 30, 2020 1:25 pm

Btw, I like bass as a bottom support to the song ...and not to especially be heard as an individual instrument.

The Scum
moves faders with mind
Posts: 2745
Joined: Thu Jul 03, 2003 11:26 pm
Location: Denver, CO
Contact:

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by The Scum » Sat May 30, 2020 1:51 pm

I play in a band where electric bass guitar is the only pitched instrument. It kinda has to carry things.

Horses for courses.
"What fer?"
"Cat fur, to make kitten britches."

User avatar
markjazzbassist
tinnitus
Posts: 1050
Joined: Mon Apr 25, 2011 11:33 am
Location: Cleveland

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by markjazzbassist » Sat May 30, 2020 5:53 pm

i would recommend popping on Talkbass.com forum and asking for help there. there are more than a few ampeg b15 nuts over there who are very knowledgeable and helpful. Beans_on_toast, JimmyM, and others are very helpful and know their stuff on the ampeg b15 amps. a post there might yield some results, i'm a member over there (have been for years). just a thought.

User avatar
vvv
zen recordist
Posts: 10139
Joined: Tue May 13, 2003 8:08 am
Location: Chi
Contact:

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by vvv » Sat May 30, 2020 7:57 pm

vernier wrote:
Sat May 30, 2020 1:25 pm
Btw, I like bass as a bottom support to the song ...and not to especially be heard as an individual instrument.
Blasphemy! Bet yer not much into playing bass, eh?

And, yep, as markjazzbassist said, I'm confident you could get a answer at talkbass, mebbe even by doing a search.
bandcamp;
blog.
I mix with olive juice.

Dubmaniac
gettin' sounds
Posts: 121
Joined: Fri Jan 05, 2007 8:08 pm
Location: Denver

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by Dubmaniac » Sun May 31, 2020 2:09 pm

I've been using an ART TPS for my bass tracks as a DI. It's totally useless as a mic pre, but not terrible as a bass DI. But just last night, I thought I'd try a little something different on a bass track. I set up my Ampeg B2R head, ran out the XLR into my interface and got what I think is a better tone- deep, solid and punchy. I think this will be my default bass recording rig from now on. If you want to hear the B2R, this is the track I recorded last night. https://soundcloud.com/dean-nye/baggs-p ... amnesia-me By comparison, I used the ART on this track from my band. https://soundcloud.com/dean-nye/christinas-world I hope this helps, and I'd be curious to hear what you think of the bass tones on the different songs.
"Stare with your ears"- Ken Nordine

User avatar
winky dinglehoffer
buyin' a studio
Posts: 811
Joined: Wed May 07, 2003 12:08 pm
Location: ATL

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by winky dinglehoffer » Sun May 31, 2020 8:25 pm

This thread inspired me to dig out a homemade DI I bought at a yard sale years ago that uses the A-11J transformer used in the Wolfbox. I did my best to address the issues that made me put it away in the first place, & I've got to say, it's pretty nice. Noticeable improvement over the DI in my interface.

User avatar
markjazzbassist
tinnitus
Posts: 1050
Joined: Mon Apr 25, 2011 11:33 am
Location: Cleveland

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by markjazzbassist » Mon Jun 01, 2020 6:04 am

winky dinglehoffer wrote:
Sun May 31, 2020 8:25 pm
This thread inspired me to dig out a homemade DI I bought at a yard sale years ago that uses the A-11J transformer used in the Wolfbox. I did my best to address the issues that made me put it away in the first place, & I've got to say, it's pretty nice. Noticeable improvement over the DI in my interface.
Nice! i made one with an UTC A-10 and it sounds fantastic on bass. wonderfully thick bass and midrange and a soft top end. no EQ needed :)

User avatar
A.David.MacKinnon
ears didn't survive the freeze
Posts: 3819
Joined: Wed May 07, 2003 5:57 am
Location: Toronto
Contact:

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by A.David.MacKinnon » Mon Jun 01, 2020 6:58 am

I've been looking for those transformers for ages but the price is crushing.

User avatar
markjazzbassist
tinnitus
Posts: 1050
Joined: Mon Apr 25, 2011 11:33 am
Location: Cleveland

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by markjazzbassist » Mon Jun 01, 2020 7:23 am

A.David.MacKinnon wrote:
Mon Jun 01, 2020 6:58 am
I've been looking for those transformers for ages but the price is crushing.
yeah the wolfbox ones go for around 300-400 a pop, the Triad A-11J or A-12J. that's why i went with UTC. You can find them on ebay for between 100-150 a pop, parts for DI are 25 tops, you're paying about the same as you would for a Radial JDI new, which is reasonable IMO

The Scum
moves faders with mind
Posts: 2745
Joined: Thu Jul 03, 2003 11:26 pm
Location: Denver, CO
Contact:

Re: DI bass and guitar

Post by The Scum » Mon Jun 08, 2020 8:32 pm

So here's a tune with my nu-style flip-top (pf20t + matching 115 cab) featured prominently.

Probably had a safety track from a Radial DI (likely unused on the mix), I think the amp was mic'd with an MD-609 (I can check my logs if anyone is curious), and there's some sort of pedal adding a bit of dirt.

https://www.facebook.com/vampiresquidsf ... 764710408/
"What fer?"
"Cat fur, to make kitten britches."

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 34 guests