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EHX Bass Microsynth Question...


GazWills
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I’m after a bit of feedback from anyone who has extensively used both the new (XO) [u]and[/u] the older bass microsynths. I have used an old microsynth several times in the studio and utterly love it. The thing is, the old units are pretty rare these days, the bypass is terrible and they’re really big, with awkward power requirements. I know everyone says the new ones don’t sound as good, but how true is this really, is it a bit of the ‘cool’ factor of the older unit coming across, or is there a really [b]noticeable[/b] difference?

I want one on my board, and if the new pedal gets 90% of the way there sonically, then for live use that should be fine, right? (there is a vintage microsynth in the studio I use, I can still use that for recording!!)

I may just pull the trigger on a new one from somewhere with a nice returns policy, in case I don’t get on with it, but just wanted to fish for some feedback if anyone has spent some reasonable time with both…

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Having had the chance to compare both directly, I think there's absolutely no discernible difference!

A lot of people think the change from the big unit's 24v psu to the small unit's 9v makes a difference to the tone, and that the big unit's "juicier" sounding...The big one is so much noisier though, I think that it's just this playing with people's heads! ;-)

Worth noting that some units kept the 24v psu when they moved to the XO version, as it was necessary for operation, so I'm sure that Mr Matthews would've done the same for the BMS if it was really required!

Edited by bakerster135
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See I only bought a big-box recently because I had one around 8 years ago and stupidly sold it......so technically I had one before it was cool to have one ;)

I've not tried an XO, but you're probably right, any tonal issues that might be obvious in a studio are rarely noticeable mid-gig (unless it's really awful). Having said that, I have heard of the construction quality of newer EHX units being called into question compared to older units. Again, no experience of this, but something to bear in mind I guess.

Si

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I think I might've started that rumour that the XO BMS isn't as good. Importantly though, I'm right.

Quite apart from the overall sound of the thing (and the older model does have a generally thicker sound), the rate slider on the XO model is more difficult to use than the old one, like it's got a different taper on the slider or something. Not only is the slider smaller but only about a third of it does most of the work. Also I found that loud low notes can cause the XO BMS to distort, whereas the 24v model copes with them just fine. The XO model is also much lighter and the sliders feel scratchy, making the whole thing feel a bit cheap.

I sold my 24v BMS when the XO came out because I wanted to save a bit of pedalboard space and get rid of the 24v wall wart, but within weeks I sold the XO model and bought another old one.

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