Best DI?

[jkhuri44]

Gday guys,

considering getting a DI for an upcoming project to record bass and guitar, and output later using a REAMP , probably the Little Labs stuff..

I've been looking at :

Avalon U5
A Designs REDDI
Demeter VTB blah blah...u know the Demeter DI im talking about.
Manley Tube Direct Box.

Other options would be using a channel strip/mic pre which is great as a DI

....what do u guys recommend??

my focus is on something that really captures a HUUUUGE , clear, open sound...who wouldnt want that right :P ?

Cheers,

JK.

[tunetown]

I use the Avalon U5 for bass and it works well. Easy to use and sounds good. I then patch it through an API pre and with tone setting 2 the bass sits nicely.

Cheers

Peter

[chris p]

Alanis Morrissette used our very own JLM DIs and pres for acoustic and electric guitars on her latest

[jkhuri44]

Which JLMs?

The babay animals?

[mfdu]

Barney loves his Avalon, and also the Di on the G9 tube pre.

cts
mfdu

[Barney Loveland]

+1 for the avalon. Not sure about guitars, but bass it's great. Sounds a little dry for want of a better term in a shootout but it is a dream to mix. I also have used the Demeter tube bass pre live for over ten years, similar to the di but not the exactly the same. If you're into it the Demeter isn't that hard to diy build and the schemaitc is around the www. Millenia TD 1 is also worth a mention, tube and fet di, has eq, a great mic pre, and reamp outputs.

[Simon B]

[quote="jkhuri44"]Gday guys,

considering getting a DI for an upcoming project to record bass and guitar, and output later using a REAMP , probably the Little Labs stuff..

I've been looking at :

Avalon U5
A Designs REDDI
Demeter VTB blah blah...u know the Demeter DI im talking about.
Manley Tube Direct Box.

Other options would be using a channel strip/mic pre which is great as a DI

....what do u guys recommend??

my focus is on something that really captures a HUUUUGE , clear, open sound...who wouldnt want that right :P ?

Cheers,

JK.[/quote]


Hi JK

in terms of money this would be the best price I can find on a U5 less then $650 au to your door.

http://cgi.ebay.com/AVALON-U5-DI-with-B ... dZViewItem

I am really Intrigued by the reamping process you take, as I plan to do a "Reamp" studio up and running in bout 3 months. if you want after the recording is done I can do a couple of samples for you and see what you think......

[HA_DA_JA]

I know Anguswood has his Avalon U5 for sale at Beerwah on the Sunshine COast. It was at $630 last time I looked. I think I could smell a deal there.
He seems like a nice bloke, you could give him a call or contact him him on these details.
www.woodheadstudios.com
http://www.myspace.com/woodheadstudios

I have no affiliation with him. I just had a quick chat with him last week and he seemed like another derranged passionate GAS syndrome type of guy like myself.
Cheers
Dale

[Barney Loveland]

www.awave.com.au second hand section

[jkhuri44]

yeah, i've been curious RE the Millenia...you used one urself Barney??

[Barney Loveland]

Yes i have a Td 1 as well. I am bass DI whore. I use the TD1 for double bass live work but the pre is great as is all the features. Still prefer the U5 for electric bass as 1st call.

[Kris]

There are cheaper U5's to be had on ebay if you look. Some vendors do a "best offer" thing. I needed to buy one quickly and Mixmasters were out of stock so I ordered one off ebay. Got it for $499us I think from memory.

I also use it for re-amping, although I use it to capture the clean guitar signal for re-amping in waves GTR-3.

[HA_DA_JA]

Excuse me Barry, have you used the Demeter and what was your impression of the unit?
Cheers
Dale

[davemc]

I had a Aguiler Db900 that I really liked. Really depends if you want super clean or colour?

[jkhuri44]

variety would be nice....but if i had to pick one, i suppose clean, open, but still large sound, huge bass, for guitars and bass,,...as ill be outputing those sounds via REAMP....

[anj]

the Aguiler sounds amazing for a bass di , its got a ready to mix sound kills the avalon, but it probably wont be much good for guitar...........havnt tried it though. the avalon has a nice full range clean sound.

[Chinagraf]

Ross Giles, Melbourne Tube Guru, makes a valve DI that will blow your mind. It is however, around $1500 last time I heard.

[jkhuri44]

thats cheaper than a Millenia TD-1 going for 1500 US

[Linear]

I've used lots of DI's. And to be honest, I reckon the difference between a hugely expensive DI and a so-so DI is less than 5%. Seriously, I think DI's are seriously overrated.

I used the DI in a RNP last session, and to me it sounded (after all is said and done in the mix) just like dedicated expensive DI's. I don't think they're worth the attention, mic pre's and mics should be where dollars are thrown.

Just my opinion though.

Cheers

Chris

[Barney Loveland]

Being a bass player i'm a little picky, plugging an average bass into a great di/pre will sound a LOT better than plugging an amazing bass into a b@#$%^. An amazing bass into good gear is the ultimate aim. But there's nothing wrong with chasing the flame on bass though. I have a prototype custom DI I and my partner are working on using an Octal tube and a Cinemag transformer so will see how it compares.

[wez]

hey barney, i'm reminded of our little bass DI blind listening test we did down at atlantis a couple of years ago, it was really interesting. chris is probably right about the 5% thing, but i actually think it's the most important 5% ;-)

we tried everything from a be!@#$%^& to neve to calrec and some custom stuff. the be!@#$%^& was the easiest to pick - technically absolutely nothing wrong with it, but just had no magic, no mojo. the others, well it was all pretty much down to which colour you liked for the style. just tonight i've been doing some fooling around at home, Fender P bass with bartolinis, direct into Mbox pres, and then via UA LA-610 (no compressor, just the DI). to the casual listener, no, there is no real difference, but with the UA it just comes to life, and is the difference between a demo sound and a record sound. and really isn't that what most us are after?

i'll go on the record to say that barney will have built and marketed a bass DI that will become a classic, within the next ten years.

[jkhuri44]

sup wez...

jeez..how much did barney pay you?? LOL


That said, would be sweet to check it out!! :) Espcially after a rap like that!



In regards to what Linear was sayin, i've only been "engineering" for 3-4 yrs now..and as a musician first, engineer later...i have to say....EVERYTHING sounds 5% different to me...hehhe...but i am working on it!! To me if its a good take, i just enjoy it and stop caring how muddy it is or how honky it is...hehe

That said....so far the Millenia looks like the best piece of kit for my purposes...as a studio tool.

My needs are basically to start getting creative with guitar recording, in experimental music....the guitarist in my band bought a Palmer Cab Simulator Rack unit too.....so was gonna try out recording guitars, and processing with EQs, Comps, and FX, then reamping with diff amps, into the palmer to do some cool stuff.....same goes for bass.

Peace,

Jamil.

[Barney Loveland]

Hey Wez,
Wow thats some work ahead of me. The DI is just a prototype at the moment. But the High Voltage Class A pres you tried are in the works, manufacturing for the 1st time takes a while. Our opamp is ready to go


And here's the low down -

The GWP Audio Class A FET Opamp uses a high current FET input stage to maximise transconductance and hence, lower the noise. A discrete design makes high current operation possible since it not plagued by the thermal issues of a monolithic (IC) design. FET's inputs are generally quieter than BJT's for source resistances more than 1k which makes this opamp ideal for preamps which use mic input transformers (like the Jensen twin servo designs). The low phase shift of the opamp results in a smooth top end with amazing extension, without any graininess or harshness. The ultra-high bandwidth differential voltage amplifier ensures the opamp is free of slew induced distortion artifacts ensuring that each instrument maintains its separation in a mix. The high-speed, high current output stage ensure a clean and punchy low end which makes other opamp sound thin by comparison. The opamp runs on rails of +/-12 VDC up to +/-24 VDC and uses the standard Jensen 990 footprint making it a plug and play upgrade to systems using this opamp. The opamp draws 25mA with a +/-18 VDC voltage supply and is supplied encapsulated in a 27mm square, 19mm high potting box with 1mm gold PCB pins. (well actually this is an unpotted test board but the real ones will be potted)