Countryman DI

[Bob's Mods]

Is the Countryman and other DIs of similar quality worth the cost? I plug my bass into my preamp using an impedance matching xformer and I was wondering if the difference is in the "way huge in your face only a deaf man couldn't hear it" catagory or would I have to strain my ears to hear the difference? Please try an describe the sonic difference between the passive xformer and the active DI box?

thanks all,
Bob the Mod guy

 

[mrface2112]

Bob, you ask a lot here, so i'm gonna give you my thoughts. take them FWIW.

all i can tell you is that i was previously using my SP VTB-1 for a bass DI. i got a usable tone out of it--but it really emphasized the mids. the "toob" was nice to get a little distortion going, as i've found that a little crunch helps bass cut through a busy mix.

using the VTB-1 as a guitar DI was just about unusable with regards to tone, but it got signal into the computer. suffice it to say, i never DI'd a guitar.

then i got a Countryman and it totally changed the sound i was getting out of the bass. it was more full, and felt more like a bass should. the low-end on my recordings improved dramatically.

then i plugged my Tele into the Countryman and i got a twang out of that thing the likes of which i'd never heard from that particular guitar before. talk about "worth the money" right there. it works quite nicely with my ibanez hollowbody, too. DI'd guitars have now become something i do on a regular basis--and i'm happy with the way the "fake" guitars sound.

can you get by without one? absolutely. but will it add another incredibly usable tone to your arsenal? you bet. i'd love to get my hands on a couple of those Radial DIs as well, just to have a couple differing tones at my disposal.

needless to say, my VTB-1 doesn't get used as a DI at ALL anymore.....


cheers,
wade

 

[CoolCat]

Di

Bass SansAmp DI (plus extra)...
it's on my want to have list.

I've had the 6string Guitar version and it's one of the very few gadgets,
that has been a keeper over 10-15yrs.
(i sold it once to my brother and bought it back!
...great unit and quality).

the Bass unit gets the same reviews. $190 ish.

 

[boingoman]

Please try an describe the sonic difference between the passive xformer and the active DI box?

thanks all,
Bob the Mod guy

Sonically, it depends on the DI. But, in general, the better the DI, the better it will sound. The Countryman is just about always a safe bet. It is a quality DI.

Common wisdom (and technical theory) says this:

Passive instruments (magnetic/piezo pickups)- use an active DI
Active instruments/line level gear- use a passive DI

Why?
Active DIs have much higher input impedance than passive DIs. Passive pickups like to see very high input impedance, or they may suffer high-frequency rolloff and other tonal issues.

Passive DIs (generally) can handle hot input signals and transients better than active DIs, as instead of harsh electronic clipping, the transformer overloads in a smooth way.

That being said, sonically, it depends on the DI.

A cheap passive DI has a crappy transformer, which may not have full range response, and saturates with only modest signals, which further restricts it's range, and affects sound quality.

A cheap active just sounds like crap, and will overload at very low levels. Even decent actives can overload with a hot signal, if the battery is weak or the phantom power is lower than 48V.


Most of this stuff is pretty accepted info, but I have definitely seen cases where a passive DI sounds better than an active, on a passive source, where by theory an active DI should be used.

Electric bass, for instance, is very forgiving. As are some acoustic instruments.

 

[sweetnubs]

the countryman is a good cheap DI.