timloudon Posted January 18, 2009 Share Posted January 18, 2009 I'm a bit of a noob when it comes to the complex world of electronics, and I have a question for those in the know. I know that pre-amps amplify the low level signal to line level, with the added benefit of some tone shaping in the form of EQ. If I'm doing some home or even studio recording, what's the real difference between a pre-amp and a DI box (apart from the obvious EQ)? I was interested in getting the old Sadowsky pre-amp pedal, because I've heard good things about it, but I don't really understand what it will do for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stewart Posted January 18, 2009 Share Posted January 18, 2009 DI is basically about converting to a balanced signal - usually to run a fair distance to a desk channel. Traditionally they have lots of attenuation (Pad) options so that you could use (say) the speaker feed of a rig as an input. Your preamp might have a balanced output (or an option for one) in which case you could view it as a DI with-bells-on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timloudon Posted January 18, 2009 Author Share Posted January 18, 2009 [quote name='Stewart' post='384142' date='Jan 18 2009, 04:53 PM']DI is basically about converting to a balanced signal - usually to run a fair distance to a desk channel. Traditionally they have lots of attenuation (Pad) options so that you could use (say) the speaker feed of a rig as an input. Your preamp might have a balanced output (or an option for one) in which case you could view it as a DI with-bells-on.[/quote] Cheers for the answer! I thought it would be a DI with bells on - which would be very useful! I suppose I'm asking whether the circuit inside adds something other than just a level boost, like a certain tone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stewart Posted January 18, 2009 Share Posted January 18, 2009 [quote name='timloudon' post='384183' date='Jan 18 2009, 05:33 PM']I suppose I'm asking whether the circuit inside adds something other than just a level boost, like a certain tone.[/quote] Many older (and some current) models use just a transformer (no active electronics at all) - and some of those are highly sought-after (they're inherently non-linear but potentially flattering I'd imagine). But generally (these days) the answer is probably no. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silent Fly Posted January 18, 2009 Share Posted January 18, 2009 [quote name='timloudon' post='384104' date='Jan 18 2009, 04:08 PM']I'm a bit of a noob when it comes to the complex world of electronics, and I have a question for those in the know. I know that pre-amps amplify the low level signal to line level, with the added benefit of some tone shaping in the form of EQ. If I'm doing some home or even studio recording, what's the real difference between a pre-amp and a DI box (apart from the obvious EQ)? I was interested in getting the old Sadowsky pre-amp pedal, because I've heard good things about it, but I don't really understand what it will do for me.[/quote] A preamplifier is a device that, in general, amplifies a low-level signal to line-level. A DI is a device that converts a high impedance line level signal (usually received via an unbalanced jack connection) to a low impedance balanced signal (usually via a XLR connector). Both devices may include an equalizer or other frequency-related functions but these functions are not necessary to qualify the device as preamplifier or DI. There are devices that can deliver both functionalities. Some preamplifiers have a XLR-balanced output (in other words they are also DIs). Some DIs can also operate as a preamplifier if they amplify the signal to line level (e.g. the Avalon U5). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toasted Posted January 21, 2009 Share Posted January 21, 2009 Just and FYI to the other good advice in this thread, there's an old Sadowsky preamp/DI for sale over at the ishibashi ubox. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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