dub Posted August 20, 2008 Share Posted August 20, 2008 (edited) After listening to several of the valve preamps on basstasters I decided I liked sound of the Demeter VTDB-2B Valve DI the best. I tracked an old one down on ebay and got it sent from the states. It does what valves do very nicely, slightly rounding the attack of notes and lifting the sustain of the harmonics. This gives the impression that the sound is somehow thicker, without reducing the dynamic range in a way that a compressor would. It's a very subtle difference but the nice thing is that you can increase this effect by switching in the boost which sends the signal through the valve again. I had to buy a voltage converter as it runs on 120V. Aside from anything else, it's a quality low noise DI, you can ensure that you'll get a good recorded or live sound. Edited August 20, 2008 by dub Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassBod Posted August 20, 2008 Share Posted August 20, 2008 Sounds like a good one - I know one local pro who swears by his Demeter preamp, and I think he'd tried a few beforw he settled on it. May be worth an email to the company - you might be able to convert it to UK voltage by a simple change to the transformer connections. Many companies that make an export version use the same components (but not always..) Enjoy BB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve-soar Posted August 20, 2008 Share Posted August 20, 2008 I'm suprised that it doesn't have a switch on the back, which selects the voltage, then jusr change the fuse for one with half the value. Valve preamps are great and you described what they do brilliantly. My Ampeg SVT IIP sounds gorgeous but it is a bit poorly at the mo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
synaesthesia Posted August 21, 2008 Share Posted August 21, 2008 (edited) Send an email to diane at said company dot com, or send it to james (himself) at the company dot com; but if you expect a reply call them first and make contact, tell them who you are and tell them to expect your email. Otherwise you'll wait till the twelfth of never. The newer models usually have multitap transformers and the older ones don't. If yours is a multitap you can wire it yourself for UK usage. I've had two Demeters one old and one newer, the only difference is the tranny inside. That said, your DI may be high voltage but it does not draw much current, and a small step down will work. I had a US version triaxis that was fed off a Dick Smith inline step down, when I was living down under. Dick Smith is the Ozzie Maplin. Edited August 21, 2008 by synaesthesia Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dub Posted August 22, 2008 Author Share Posted August 22, 2008 (edited) I had a look inside and it does appear to be a multi tap transformer so I might install a switch to make voltage changes easy when I'm travelling. I'll just have to remember to select the right voltage! [quote name='synaesthesia' post='266769' date='Aug 21 2008, 01:46 AM']Send an email to diane at said company dot com, or send it to james (himself) at the company dot com; but if you expect a reply call them first and make contact, tell them who you are and tell them to expect your email. Otherwise you'll wait till the twelfth of never. The newer models usually have multitap transformers and the older ones don't. If yours is a multitap you can wire it yourself for UK usage. I've had two Demeters one old and one newer, the only difference is the tranny inside. That said, your DI may be high voltage but it does not draw much current, and a small step down will work. I had a US version triaxis that was fed off a Dick Smith inline step down, when I was living down under. Dick Smith is the Ozzie Maplin.[/quote] Edited August 25, 2008 by dub Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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