Direct Box for Bass into PT - Recommendation?
 

Hi guys,

I’ll be recording an album soon and for bass and am wanting recommendation for a direct box for bass going directly into Pro Tools.

I’m wanting to capture two sounds simultaneously: 1) the sound of my amp miked (more of a dirty tone) and 2) the sound of the bass direct into Pat (cleaner tone). I’m using Pro Tools 12.5 on an older Mac OS.

The amp is an Orange Terror bass head through a 4x10 Orange cab, going through a bass big muff pedal for a dirty overdriven tone.

Which direct box would you recommend, and how to set up so that both sounds can be recorded at same time, on two separate channels?

Thanks!

Re: Direct Box for Bass into PT - Recommendation?
 

Focusrite ISA1


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Re: Direct Box for Bass into PT - Recommendation?
 

Recording 2 sounds is easy. Create 2 MONO AUDIO tracks, set the inputs for your setup and start recording. I would go a bit further and make a group of the 2 tracks right off the bat and add .1 to the track names(so BassDI.1 and BassAmp.1). The reason for that is so if you do several takes on playlists, each time you create a new playlist, they will get named in succession(next Playlist will be BassDI.2 and BassAmp.2 and so on).

As to what DI, it depends a bit on your budget. The Fat Mo' is great but pricey. The Ampeg SVT tube DI is also great and a little less. I used KT's active DI and never had a complaint about from session players over several years. Of course, a Radial JDI is a solid choice(its got a really nice Jensen transformer). This thread will likely see several other recommendations:-)

Then you need a mic on the cabinet, but since that's going to be a gritty sound, you can probably get by with most anything, down to the old "standard" SM-57:D You will probably(after recording and comping) need to slide/nudge the DI track a tad later to align with the mic track as they will be slightly offset.

I am also a fan of having both clean and gritty, but I go about it a bit simpler. I track the DI to an AUDIO track and that track has a send feeding a MONO AUX track where I insert IK Multimedia Amplitube SVX. A few tweaks to the amp and add a stompbox overdrive or distortion pedal inside the plugin gives me pretty much the same thing as you(but I don't have to nudge anything);)

Re: Direct Box for Bass into PT - Recommendation?
 

SM57 is okay but if you want a really good one try a ribbon mic like Royer 121

But as said, it all comes down to your budget

Re: Direct Box for Bass into PT - Recommendation?
 

Thanks! I’m using a fender p bass made in Mexico. I like what I looked up on the Radial J48. Any idea how it would compare with the similarly priced Warm Audio wa-di-a?

Re: Direct Box for Bass into PT - Recommendation?
 

Never used that, but I have had several pieces from Warm and was happy with every one of them:o

Re: Direct Box for Bass into PT - Recommendation?
 

First off, what interface do you have today?

Does it have a DI input? No? are you sure?

How many preamps does it have? Or are you using outboard preamps? do they have a DI input?

the cab mic and DI will each need one preamp.

And if you really like the sound of the Tiny Terror... be careful that is not just the volume effect. Compare recordings at the same SPL through the same pair of monitors.

You might want to mic the cab with more than one mic. And as Dave suggested try an amp/cab sim, or use both.

Re: Direct Box for Bass into PT - Recommendation?
 

I’m using a Motu 828 Mkiii which is connected to a Motu 8Pre. The bass will be coming in throughthe 8Pre. Not sure if either has di input per se.

Re: Direct Box for Bass into PT - Recommendation?
 

8 Pre has 8 DI or mic combo inputs. So start there. No reason to be buying anything else unless you are unhappy with the results, and especially if you have hum issues then try a transformer based DI.

Re: Direct Box for Bass into PT - Recommendation?
 

Avalon U5 if your budget allows: https://avalondesign.com/instrudi.html (tone setting 3). Never ever any of my basses did sound better. I'd use an U5 even live if I could manage the setup ...
On a lower budget I'd recommend the Mesa Subway DI (the normal one not the "plus") https://www.mesaboogie.com/amplifier...amp/index.html


Of course you'd need a decent audio interface ...