Silent Fly

I would like to suggest you a different kind of device. Something a little bit more "lateral". On my pedalboard I have a pedal that I called "The Box". It is an interface between the pedalboard and the outside world. It has input (from bass), output (to amp), send (to the first pedal of the chain) and return (from the last pedal of the chain). It also has a mute switch that kills the output signal no matter what happens. It also has DC in (from power supply unit) and 2 DC out (to daisy-chain cables). Internally, it performs a few hidden functions: - Electrostatic protection. It kills the electrostatic charges that often we carry on our body and we end up discharging on the pedals through the jack. I have seen more than one pedal fried this way. - [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radio_frequency_interference"]RFI[/url] filtering. It stops radio signals. - Overvoltage protection. It protects the pedals if the power supply regulator stops working and it delivers a voltage higher than it should. - The unit can also be buffered if the bass is passive and the pedalboard has a lot of true-bypass pedals at the beginning of the chain. Mechanically it protects the first and last pedal of the chain where the jacks are constantly under stress. Moreover, it simplifies the life of stage engineers (if you have someone that connects your pedal board for you one stage). SF

[quote name='cm261' post='712525' date='Jan 14 2010, 01:26 PM']£100 posted sounds good to me.[/quote] +1 Especially considering that your pedal is good conditions and you have the original box and instructions.

These connectors look similar to the ones in the BM. You need stereo connectors. If the PCB dosn't have holes for the central set of contacts (I doubt it) you can cut them for the connectors.

I suspect that for the sound of the video, you need a keyboard. You can go in that direction with a compressor, a little bit of chorus and playing with a pick. A good octaver can help.

If you never modded a pedal in your life, I would recommend you start with something simpler. Unless you have at least some experience in analogue electronics, I wouldn't start with a Black Russian Big Muff rehousing. Especially, if on top of that you plan to add true bypass. Accordingly to the schematics all the pots are 100k linear. You cannot directly replace the 1/4" sockets of the BM with the Maplin BW79L. The BM uses socket for PCBs, Maplin sockets are for wires.

As far as I can remember the TS-9 is buffered and Tonebender isn't. Either way adding a preamp to your bass will not increase the risk of damaging the pedals. If this was the case, Bartolini wouldn't sell many of his preamps.

I really like the MXR M-188 (aka Bass Auto-Q). The Maxon AF9 is also a good pedal but I found it sounds much better with guitar than bass.

[quote name='TGEvans' post='699335' date='Jan 3 2010, 11:29 AM']Intermittent cutting out with my monster bass lead. How good is their after sales? I know they promise a Lifetime warranty or whatever but will it be more hassle than its worth to send it back? T[/quote] I suggest you contact the supplier. If the problem is in the cable core, the only way to fix it is change the cable.

[quote name='JD1' post='698619' date='Jan 2 2010, 11:29 AM'](...) I just can't understand why companies like Warwick and Orange could get this wrong - do they not test stuff?[/quote] They do but the problem is not in the signal produced by the amp. The majority of the DI outputs of the amps are at [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Line_level"]line-level[/url]. Mixing desks XLR inputs are at microphone level. Microphone level is up to 60 dB lower than line-level. In other words, mixing desks amplify 60 dB more than required by a line level connection. The problem you are experiencing is a signal level matching issue - it is not related to the amp or the mixing desk. In practical terms, the fact that the amp DI delivers a line level signal instead of a mic level signal is a good thing. If you need a line level signal (e.g. for a recording interface) it is already available. If you need to connect the amp to a mic-level device, you just need a simple attenuator. If the amp was delivering a mic level signal, in order to amplify to line-level you would need a preamplifier - a much more expensive device that inevitably would introduce noise. [quote name='Stewart' post='698648' date='Jan 2 2010, 12:21 PM']The only really sensible approach is to have a variable output DI, as Gallien Krueger do with their RB heads...[/quote] +1 Which is why I put a variable XLR output in my preamps.

I prefer a good quality DI. If the sound lack of mids or the natural compression of the cab it can be added later.

Very cool! I am a big fan of the Ad3. I built [url="http://www.maxgreco.com/fun/microfoot/index.html"]my MIDI controller[/url] a while ago but this looks a much simple solutions. Thanks for the link.

[quote name='umph' post='696526' date='Dec 30 2009, 05:47 PM']or stick a 15k resistor in front of the input of the circuit to make it work with active basses.[/quote] It should to the trick Or even better connect a 50k trimpot and find the right value for you bass.

As has been said above, you need a cross-over to split the signal between low and high frequencies and a mixing circuit to recreate a mono signal containing the two components. You may find difficult find a cross over that splits at 800Hz-1kHz. X-overs often split below 200Hz. I think Behringer produces a couple of unit that can go up to 9kHz. They are affordable but they are not small (1U) - you also need a mixer. If you need a small unit that can do what you are looking send me an email (address on the [url="http://www.sfxsound.co.uk/mainpage.asp?page=about"]web site[/url]) - I should be able to help you.

[quote name='throwoff' post='677400' date='Dec 8 2009, 12:34 AM']Im looking for a decent DI box to put in the back of my rack case as a back up for a S.H.T.F. situation with my head. I have used a behringer one for a few years and just want to upgrade to something that will give me a better tone if needs be. I have narrowed it down to a two choices- The first is that im boring and buy the sansamp bass driver which is solid compact and reliable, plus its simple so anyone would be able to work it out if I couldnt get to the amp for any reason. The second is that I try to hunt down an Ampeg SVT DI box which I dont think they make anymore, I remember trying one when they came out and being blown away but was a poor student and couldnt afford it. [url="http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/product/12355-ampeg-svtdi-tube-enhanced-di-box.html"]http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/product/1235...ced-di-box.html[/url] Its a hell of a thing but then do I really want a valve knocking about in the case in the back of my car?[/quote] The Behringer DI and the [i]Sansamp Bass Driver[/i] are quite different. Behringer DIs (DI100/GI100) are clean DIs (as clean as a Behringer DI can be) and the SansAmp, as the name suggests, is an amp simulator with DI output. I never tried the [i]Ampeg SVT DI[/i] but I suspect it is a DI that introduces some coloration. Either of them might work very nicely for you but if look for a clean DI to replace your Behringer I would look somewhere else. I build a couple of nice clean DIs plus the DIs that I integrate in the custom shop devices. Please feel free to send me an email (address in the [url="http://www.sfxsound.co.uk/mainpage.asp?page=about"]web site[/url]) I'll be happy to help you.

[quote name='dirtystatic' post='674053' date='Dec 4 2009, 11:51 AM']Thanks for all the info guys, I think I'm gonna have a crack at building one (what I mean is - I'm going to force my mate to do it for me). I was wondering about the active/passive issue as my main bass of choice is active... ...so if i build the pedal and it doesn't agree with my ATK300 I could this might be a possible fix? (...)[/quote] I am not 100% sure but it might help. I would suggest you try before drilling holes in the box. If it works you can add an extra knob to control the input impedance.

[quote name='dangerboy' post='673531' date='Dec 3 2009, 06:54 PM'](...) but it hates active basses.[/quote] I never tried but a 50k-100k potentiometer in series with the input should help control the input inpedance. It might be worth trying. [quote name='dangerboy' post='673531' date='Dec 3 2009, 06:54 PM']I don't understand Toasted's comment.[/quote] I don't either.

[quote name='umph' post='673765' date='Dec 3 2009, 11:19 PM']its the way the negative feedback works, it's very easy to overload and active basses tend to have higher input signals and lower impedance and thus overload the circuit alot easier[/quote] ???