Christmas Preamp

[Bridgehouse]

Mrs B outdid herself this year - she go me a Mono M80 for gigging duties. Very Chuffed.

However, as a complete surprise she also bought me an Electro Harmonix Battalion Preamp/DI pedal. 

I swapped out my Ampeg SCR-DI on my nano board for it today. Plugged straight into the K10.2 via DI. 

Compression is pretty good. I'd say as good as onboard amp compression. 

EQ stage is very good. Responsive, adds some nice colour, and gives a really nice preamp boost. I'd say it's not quite Ampeg SVT, but it has shades of that vintage sound about it.

However, the distortion/drive section is so much better than the Scrambler on the SCR-DI that it's actually a bit comical. More control with Level/Blend/Tone/Drive (and a selector so you can set it pre or post EQ or Dry with blend) and a proper level control for the DI out - it's usable. No, scrub that - that's doing it a disservice - it's very very usable. I really liked the warm tone I was getting with about half drive and 50/50 blend and 50% level. Really nice. 

I actually wasn't expecting much as they are one of the cheaper Preamp/DI pedals but I was more than pleasantly surprised by it. It does what it's supposed to do, and it does it really well. Thumbs up from me - it's staying on my board for now instead of the SCR-DI. I'll rehearse and gig with it and let's see if it stays on!

[rOB]

Excellent. Enjoy.

[Bridgehouse]

1 hour ago, rOB said:

Excellent. Enjoy.

Thanks!

I'm surprised more ppl aren't interested tbh. I think it's a genuinely good alternative to some of the more expensive preamps out there..

[MrTea]

Although I picked up a tone hammer recently I’d be interested to know how you get on with it.

No Christmas presents for me from Mrs Tea but I can’t really complain - the elves have been delivering surprise parcels all year :-)

[Lozz196]

Looks like a nice bit of kit from the website, and looking at the frequency settings imagine it to be a more old-school sound, no modern low-lows. Looks well thought out to me.

[The59Sound]

I think it's a sleeper pedal. Not many people have these. 

[Raggy]

I’d just logged onto here to post a SansAmp or EHX Battalion thread, but I really like the idea of kicking in and out a bit of grit, so the EHX might suit my needs better.

Will be interested in your thoughts after a bit of use..

[bj_rocke]

I've recently bought a battalion, and I have to say it's fantastic, does everything I need it to do. Can't fault it! 

[Bridgehouse]

Tried this at rehearsal last night. I was right - it's got a good solid eq section, the compression is good enough and the drive is excellent. 

It has a flavour of GK about it, with a touch of vintage vibe but not overly so. Great pedal.

[la bam]

I was tempted by these. I know pmt are now doing its older sibling the ehx metaphors at £39.99 on special offer - just wondering if thats any good, it seems to have a few similar things on it.