Active electronics?? Real differences?

[EBS_freak]

[quote name='alexclaber' post='480646' date='May 6 2009, 08:37 AM']do cellists and classical guitarists need EQ to sound good or give them a range of sounds? So why should we?[/quote]

...but those instruments are acoustic and don't use pickups...

[rmorris]

[quote name='umph' post='483839' date='May 9 2009, 03:58 PM']it doesn't cost a grand to design and make a good simple buffer ;<[/quote]

+1

sticking with having normal 'high Z' pickups with a buffer internal to the bass (rather than lo Z EMG type pickups ) -
an active buffer/driver circuit has the simple but important advantage of improving the electrical interface in terms of impedance matching / line driving which has advantages wrt frequency balance and noise pickup.
Your pickups sound the same except they are not loaded by the cable capacitance ( = treble roll off ). It's essentially taking the 'use a short lead' approach as far as you can.
And even allowing for manufacturer / retail mark up a good buffer circuit isn't an expensive item.

Everything else after the buffer can go anywhere in the chain - bass / fx board / amp etc. - and it sounds the same.
Just a case of where you want it.
You may want/need an eq box in addition to the eq etc on your amp / desk but soundwise it won't matter if it's in the bass itself or not.
Practically, electronics in the bass is more likely to be battery powered so the more in there the shorter the battery life (all other things being equal )

[BigRedX]

Surely if you need more eq than that offered by your amp, you've got the wrong amp for the sound you want?

[JanSpeeltBas]

[quote name='rmorris' post='485732' date='May 12 2009, 11:54 AM']+1

sticking with having normal 'high Z' pickups with a buffer internal to the bass (rather than lo Z EMG type pickups ) -
an active buffer/driver circuit has the simple but important advantage of improving the electrical interface in terms of impedance matching / line driving which has advantages wrt frequency balance and noise pickup.
Your pickups sound the same except they are not loaded by the cable capacitance ( = treble roll off ). It's essentially taking the 'use a short lead' approach as far as you can.
And even allowing for manufacturer / retail mark up a good buffer circuit isn't an expensive item.

Everything else after the buffer can go anywhere in the chain - bass / fx board / amp etc. - and it sounds the same.
Just a case of where you want it.
You may want/need an eq box in addition to the eq etc on your amp / desk but soundwise it won't matter if it's in the bass itself or not.
Practically, electronics in the bass is more likely to be battery powered so the more in there the shorter the battery life (all other things being equal )[/quote]

Well said! Though I've used a lot of EMG's (and like them) this is the way to go.
I've got a little box with a buffer preamp with the Don Tillman design. This circuit is out on the Internet and very easy to make (six or seven inexpensive parts) and it sounds real nice. You can order it in a slightly adapted version from dutch piezo-pickup maker Rebel Pickups. That version has a higher input impedance (10M, for better interface with piezo's) and a 20dB boost switch, a variation suggested by Tillman himself on his website www.till.com.

[Guest]

[quote name='alexclaber' post='480639' date='May 6 2009, 08:31 AM']You really do need to try a GOOD passive bass!

Alex[/quote]


Totally agree, i went through a period of swapping/selling a lot of basses and during this time i discovered Fred's Darkstar pickups. My favourite set up is one darkstar wired to a has sound varitone. This set up is very versatile and extremely responsive, so much so that you discover a lot of your mistakes that might have gone unheard before. The darkstar seems to be less popular over here, i know the price is steep and some people worry about noise from single coils but they really are special.

[funkypenguin]

[quote name='Crazykiwi' post='483877' date='May 9 2009, 06:00 PM']Because they don't have sound engineers eq-ing the FOH to be bass heavy?! EMG record OK but live they do lack something.[/quote]

+1 on the first bit Kiwi

Im surprised you find that with EMGs. i love the live sound of my DC pickups (but yes they do record extremely well)