Back Beat

[DTB]

Anyone here use a Back Beat haptic thing?

I was watching a Kinga Glyk video and she was doing Q&A and it came up in that. 
I had been thinking of building a ‘shaker board’ but this looks like a much better option. 
Would be interested to hear from anyone with any experience and also how they connect up etc. 

thank you. 

[ped]

I have a shaker board (Tecamp pleasure board) and a Backbeat. The board is brilliant, but it stays at home. The BackBeat (G2) is fantastic and I find it really odd playing without it, now. There are lots of ways to connect it depending on your use case but for me it's simply a case of using the Backbeat cable which sends a signal to the unit and provides a 1/4" output to my pedalboard. I have a Boss Katana GO plugged into the send on the BB so if I want to play somewhere other than my office (where I have a dedicated headphone setup) I can use that.

 

Believe it or not, the makers of the Backbeat finally released an app which give you control of the unit. They have also added functionality for some different pre-set response curves which help tune the unit to a sweet spot. Weirdly, however, that can'r be adjusted via the app (yet) but with some trial and error it's a case of set and forget. 

 

The units seem quite reliable, when you consider the beating they get - and the customer support seems pretty good for those who have had issues. 

 

Keep in mind that the pack makes a bit of noise when it's shaking - not a problem live or with headphones but it might be annoying for a suppose trying to watch Place in the Sun whilst you're belting out phat basslines.

 

Finally, the G2 is a significant step up from the original unit. It responds more evenly, it's lighter, lasts longer and has more flexible routing. Overall, I'd say they're well worth the money and the feel is a real game changer.