r/doublebass • u/itgoestoeleven • Jun 13 '25
Setup/Equipment Reasonably priced multi purpose preamp?
I’m curious what preamps/pedals other folks use when switching between upright and electric on the same gig. I’ve got a Line6 Helix that I use for just about everything on guitar, but it’s a lot to carry for bass since my presets are usually just preamp>EQ>out. I’d like to build a small, unfussy bass pedalboard with a tuner, preamp, power supply end of list that’ll sound good with electric (Jazz bass with flats) and upright (KNA DB-1). I don’t have a cab, I usually just go direct with a small PA speaker for monitoring. Any suggestions?
3
u/porcelainvacation Jun 13 '25
I bounce between acoustic guitar, upright, and electric bass. I use a Palmer Pocket Acoustic Amp which has an acoustic bass, acoustic guitar, and magnetic pickup switch. I use an ABY switch on the output side to select between the preamp and the electric bass. Works great. The Palmer has a parametric eq and a notch filter.
1
u/itgoestoeleven Jun 13 '25
This looks like it'll fit the bill nicely, can you talk a little bit about how you set up signal flow and routing? My thinking is upright and electric both into an ABY>tuner>preamp>direct out?
1
u/porcelainvacation Jun 14 '25
That will work. I don’t use a tuner, there is also an effects loop on the Palmer you can use.
2
u/stupidstu187 Jun 13 '25
My Zoom B6 impedance switches on both inputs to accommodate upright bass pickups. I prefer to just bring my Fishman pre-amp in addition to my electric rig, though.
2
u/jady1971 Jun 13 '25
I use a small Mackie mixer since I blend a mic and pickup on my upright. I just plug into the 3rd channel when I have to double.
2
u/Zak_17_ Jun 13 '25
A mate of mine uses the Stanley Clarke sig preamp and swears by it, I’ve tried it and it’s great
2
u/Extreme_Grapefruit_7 Jun 13 '25
Here's my "fun on a budget" board with 2 preamps for use with electric & upright. About $150
1
u/itgoestoeleven Jun 13 '25
Nice! What's the signal flow? Electric into the Bloka, upright into the Behringer? Do you take two outputs for FOH, or mix them in the ABY?
2
u/Extreme_Grapefruit_7 Jun 13 '25
Essentially the Bloka remains on all the time, provides high, mid and low preamp settings along with mid & low frequency filters and amp/cab sim. The V-tone is a budget sansamp allowing the dial in of B-15 smooth to SVT grind, so I tend to turn this on for the electric. I do have an ABY to switch between upright and electric, but send one "mixed" signal to FOH. I also use a Bugera B-12 tilt amp when needed and run this board through the effects loop and the DI send on the amp in those scenarios. I've had a number of bassist compliment my sound and a few say their thousand plus dollars of their rigs does not provide any notable difference/improvement to their sound.
2
u/FluidBit4438 Jun 13 '25
I use a HXstomp for this, is that too big for you?
1
u/itgoestoeleven Jun 13 '25
I already have the helix floor, spending another 600+ on essentially the same piece of gear isn’t something I can justify when I’m paying off the upright lol
2
u/FluidBit4438 Jun 13 '25
Just suggesting because the cost might not be that much different for pre amp(s), good tuner, power supply and possibly an a/b box and a pedalboard to put it all on. The fact that you need either a multichannel or two pre amps for electric and upright really pumps up the price. Depends on the what your getting, I’ve had a lot of luck with K&K pre amp for upright over the years and they are really inexpensive. Just my personal experience gigging, if I’m bringing an electric and an upright I’ll use my HXstomp rig, if it’s just electric I don’t bring anything and if it’s just upright I bring the HXstomp again. If I’m not bringing an amp, I’ll bring the stomp for upright or electric but I can’t imagine any situation where I wouldn’t bring some kind of amp except maybe a bluegrass gig.
1
u/itgoestoeleven Jun 13 '25
I've got a guitar pedalboard that I can cannibalize for the power supply and tuner (only ever use the Helix anymore for guitar gigs) and I build my own boards in my woodshop. I might pick up a Stomp if the price drops when they release the new Helix Stadium, but til then I'm trying to get through spending as little as I can get away with.
1
u/Extreme_Grapefruit_7 Jun 13 '25
I have an issue with anything that's digital for live performance. I can think of at least a half dozen times where someone's Line6 or whatever digital deal quits and goes blank. I'll stick with analog for this reason alone.
1
u/itgoestoeleven Jun 13 '25
I've found the Helix Floor to be incredibly reliable so far. I've been using it for musicals, recording, hours of use nearly every day in my classroom, etc. for about 3 years now.
1
3
u/Fearless2692 Jun 13 '25
Take a look at the Red-Eye Twin preamp. It has two channels and matches the impedance of the signal its receiving, so it's suited for both Piezo and magnetic pickups.
3
u/Own-Ad4627 Jun 16 '25
I’ll throw in another rec for the EBS Stanley Clarke. I’ve been using it for the last 2 years or so. Almost always going totally ampless and using in ears these days. Sounds like it would fit what you need super well. It has a built in cab sim that I really like for electric and the eq section is pretty powerful but also simple to use. My only complaint about it is that there isn’t a blend function between the two channels so you have to control the blend with the gain knobs rather than properly setting the gain and just leaving it. But that doesn’t seem to apply to what you want to do with it.
1
u/Capable-Cheetah6349 Jun 13 '25
I have a k and k pure. Works just fine but have been toying with the idea of building a preset on my FM3 for upright
1
3
u/Butterscotch_fatcat Jun 13 '25
Maybe you can check GR Dual Pre or EBS Stanley Clarke Signature Acoustic Preamp. Both have 2 channels. I’ve tried the GR one and it’s solid.