[Update: problem resolved] Why does my Sansamp BDDI sound muddy?

#22
Seems broken, I've had a Sansamp programmable BDDI, it was awesome and not muddy. Then like some others have said I also switched to the Sansamp VT Bass DI and it was somehow even more awesome and less muddy. The lack of a mid control on your BDDI may be what makes it sound muddy to you. tone is highly subjective, sometimes what sounds muddy to one person sounds fine to someone else so find something that works for you.
 
#23
Darkglass makes my go-to pedals these days, but I still love the BDDI.

From the OP's description: unless there's something off about the bass, or he's running other devices in front, sounds like the pedal is faulty. Yeah, the BDDI is relatively low gain, but it's weird that distortion doesn't happen until he cranks Drive that high (and Presence is boost-only, so it should add some bright grit given that it's set to 10 o'clock).
 
#24
blindrabbit said:
Rusty Box.

I've never been able to wrangle a good sound out of any Sansamp pedals. There are SO many options out there to accomplish what you want, but the Rusty Box would be a really nice fit for what you are describing. Once you've got this taken care of, come back and we'll talk about that Deluxe Muff you are suffering with and get you into something nicer there too. :)
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That was the other thing besides Darkglass I thinking of. After owning a Rusty Box, a TS60B and a TS25, I decided there was something about the Traynor mids I didn't like. But it definitely came the closest to my B3K.
Funny thing is I now run a B3K into a VMT and can cop a Jesus Lizard/Shellac Tone pretty well.

Definitely another good choice for crunchy tones (the Rusty Box), though.
 
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#26
Zooberwerx said:
Need to know more about the BDDI, where it sits in the signal chain, and how / where you're plugging into the amp (bass head?). First thing I would do is move the "output" switch to inst (instrument) if plugging in to the front end of a conventional bass amp. Suggested settings for mild OD: blend - 2:00, treble - 11:00, bass - 12:00, drive - 10:00, presence - 9:00...vary EQ to taste. IME, you won't get any over-the-top distortion from this do-dad, it does a better job of emulating a soft tube break-up.

http://www.tech21nyc.com/support/manuals/sansamp/BassDriver-OM2.pdf

Riis
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My chain goes Bass -> Tuner -> Sansamp -> deluxe Bass Muff -> Delay -> Chorus -> Amp

I'm currently using a Fender Rumble 40. After reading most of the replies I've received I think I'm just going to contact Tech 21 and find a separate pedal for OD. Probably a B3k
 
#27
With the Blend control up full if there is very little Drive to be had until the control is maxed there may be something wrong with the pedal. We would need to test it. The Bass Driver DI is not a typical stompbox and was designed to be used with the parallel output feeding your amp and the SansAmp output going to the mixing console. Many players do have great results using it like a stompbox but much of it comes down to what you are trying to do.

If you want to have the pedal repaired you should contact our support dept:

Tech 21 USA, Inc.
Tel: 973-777-6996
Fax: 973-777-9899
email: [email protected]
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#28
I would also check your pickup height, and see how hard your playing style is. It's possible that if your pickups are really low and you happen to play with a light touch or very close to the bridge, the signal could be pretty low. Bringing up the presence knob will also highlight any overdrive that is present. As well, if your eq on your amp has the treble lowered, it might be covering up the subtle overdrive. I know that when I use my setup into a full range cab vs an ampeg 810 there is a pretty good drop off in the overdrive that I hear. Same exact knob settings. Once you do get the overdrive that you want, backing off the bass and treble or dialing back the blend will help clean up the sound if it does still sound muddy.

If all you want is overdrive, you may want to check out samples of other pedals to try to find one that fits the sound in your head. Be prepared to do a lot of listening. The B3K is great for what it does, but it does not have all of the features that a BDDI has. For me that was ok, it had the sound that I was trying to get.
 
#29
Depending on budget consider a DHA VT1-EQ-Bass-Drive. The real tube sounds awesome, and goes from just warming up your tone a little to full on fuzz and everything in between. That said, it's a vintage-style tube dirt/fuzz, not a distortion - and by the description of what you're going for, the Darkglass B3K is the answer. It just doesn't have the DI out unless you get the deluxe one I think which obviously costs more... I use the DI on my DHA all the time.
 
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#30
We used to use one at church (in ears) but switched to a TC Electonics head (DI only) which I love. I didn't like the BDDI, so I modded my cheap Behringer knockoff (which worked as well as the Sansamp) with a switch to take out one mid notch filter and the a switch and control to take out the hardwired mid cut. Far better. The inherent mid cut might have been the style when this pedal came out, but times have moved on. Mid control is very necessary today.

I used to use the BDDI knockoff with my GK1001RB. I didn't like the character of the low end of the GK and the Behringer helped a lot. With the PF500 I use now, the low end (and everything else) is fine, so no pedal necessary. I may start using it as an overdrive pedal.
 
#34
Sorry, no hard feelings...!
Try moving all the sliders to the RH position.

upload_2016-2-24_16-1-29.png
 
#35
Drewcifer704 said:
Ok, I turned the blend knob all the way to the right and played an open E while turning the drive knob up. Where you see the drive knob is where I first get any kind of drive at all. It just sounds like my clean tone until that point. Broken pedal?

lffjb9a.jpg
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Yeah, something definitely is not right.

I never run my blend or drive anywhere near full, and both usually less than noon, and there is a massive difference when bypassed.

However, if you're looking for a distortion pedal, the BDDI is not what you want in the first place.

For "bright, crunchy and metallic", I can't think of anything better than a Darkglass B3K.

Also, if you're running the BDDI into your amps inputs, you need to switch the top slider from line to instrument level output; otherwise you'll completely overload the preamp section of your amp.
 
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#36
Coke Kane said:
Your BDDI is not faulty, just make sure you run it into the effects return of your amp, or set your amp eq flat if you want to run it in front. The name Bass Driver can be a misnomer, because it was designed to emulate the compression of a power amp, not a beehive sound of preamp distortion. Lower the blend knob to 2-3 o'clock, lower the gain to 11-12 o'clock, and turn the presence past noon to regain some of the treble that is attenuated from the LPF and you will have a great sound to build from there. Run your other dirt pedals into the BDDI they will sound better than ever.
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Check his post above yours, something is definitely wrong with the pedal.
 
#38
Drewcifer704 said:
I'll give that a shot when I get home from work. I'm hoping that fixes it.

This is the last time I take a recommendation from Reddit for a pedal. I'll definitely be buying a B3K next
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The BDDI is an incredible pedal, I'll never be without mine, but there is definitely something wrong with yours.

Reach out to Tech21 about getting it fixed, and look into a B3K; running them both together sounds absolutely massive drool
 
#39
Drewcifer704 said:
I'll give that a shot when I get home from work. I'm hoping that fixes it.

This is the last time I take a recommendation from Reddit for a pedal. I'll definitely be buying a B3K next
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Ah, ya can't be too upset...the BDDI has been proven and works for a lot of things. When you say you want a metallic crunch, that's not what most people think of when it comes to good bass tone. As a guy who likes Billy Gould, Paul D'Amour, and tons of post punk/new wave...it's all I think about when it comes to bass tone!

The B3K works for that tone, but don't be fooled - it work for warmer tones as well. I use it all around.

B3K:
Dropbox - B3K.mp3
Dropbox - faroffsynth.mp3

Softer tones with B3K:
Dropbox - bad sebastien bass cover.wav
Dropbox - OMD bass playalong.wav

And my favorite, is the B3K+VMT:
Dropbox - 13016b.mp3
Dropbox - 021316ab3.mp3 - Shortcut.lnk
 
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