Di?

[d-basser]

i know i'm gonna sound like a complete pillock but what exactly does DI do and why would i need one. i know my laney R4 has a DI socket but i was had also been looking at the behringer BDI21 (only £35) which is is a DI box.

[kilian]

We need a FAQ..

A DI is a Direct Input device. This will send the signal you put into it (most of the time, just the bass) directly to the board. The Behringer DI is also a pre-amp (pre-amp and DI in one unit), this device will colour your sound before sending it to the board.

:smoke:

[d-basser]

thanks. when would i really need one?

[kilian]

When your own amp doesn't have enough power and you need to use the house PA. You could either put a microphone in front of your cabinet (therefore also sending the cabinet's sound to the board) or use a DI.

Any other questions? :)

[sinister]

How much does DI through the PA sound different from mic'ed cab through the PA or just using a really big head/cab?

[kilian]

Well.. the job from a DI is to get the sound as accurate as possible to the board. That means no colouring or whatsoever. If you use a mic, the sound will go through your amp (colouring) and through your cabinet (colouring). The DI will (mostly) be placed before the amp, even before your effects. To get the sound as transparant as possible to the board.

Am I clear here? :)

[doodooking]

Well.. the job from a DI is to get the sound as accurate as possible to the board. That means no colouring or whatsoever. If you use a mic, the sound will go through your amp (colouring) and through your cabinet (colouring). The DI will (mostly) be placed before the amp, even before your effects. To get the sound as transparant as possible to the board.

Am I clear here? :)

mics color the sound as well

[Spencer]

so your saying i tlooses the amps tone? Thats really stupid. If im paying extra for a tone I love whats the point if it won't be heard... Is that the only way to hook up to a P.A.? Can I use the direct out thing? Like for headphones and recording?

[godzillarator]

so your saying i tlooses the amps tone? Thats really stupid. If im paying extra for a tone I love whats the point if it won't be heard... Is that the only way to hook up to a P.A.? Can I use the direct out thing? Like for headphones and recording?

You can use a mic with very tranparent sound pickup

[Shinobi_sniper]

....pillock?

[super deluxe]

Y'all haven't really got the definition of what a DI box does down right.

What it does is convert the high impedence, unbalanced signal coming from your bass into a low impedence balanced signal that can then go through the sound board.

[AlmightyPancake]

Y'all haven't really got the definition of what a DI box does down right.

What it does is convert the high impedence, unbalanced signal coming from your bass into a low impedence balanced signal that can then go through the sound board.
Beat me to it.

If your amp has one, there's not really any need for an external, except as a backup.

[edgebass5]

super deluxe nailed it.

Oh, and in regards to people that are saying that they want "their" tone to hit the board... that's actually a bad idea. In a studio setting you want your tone to hit the board, and then you adjust it after the fact to make it fit into the overall sound of the band. However, in a live setting, you're working with a sound guy who has to deal with a couple of different problems. First-off, he likely doesn't know what your band is going to sound like, or what you're supposed to sound like. Second, he has to deal with room acoustics, and for those of you who have done any sort of touring, you'll know that most rooms out there were not designed with acoustics in mind. So, if your tone has tons and tons of bottom end, or happens to be very heavy in a frequency that resonates with the room, he's not going to be able to turn you up loud enough to be heard without drowning out the room with booming bass.

The ideal thing is to send the sound guy in a live situation a completely flat signal. That will allow him to do his job of EQ'ing and mixing the live sound to get the best sound out of the room. If you give him enough to work with and let him do his job, you'll likely sound a lot better than if you give him some heavily colored signal that allows him very little to work with.

[AlmightyPancake]

super deluxe nailed it.

Oh, and in regards to people that are saying that they want "their" tone to hit the board... that's actually a bad idea. In a studio setting you want your tone to hit the board, and then you adjust it after the fact to make it fit into the overall sound of the band. However, in a live setting, you're working with a sound guy who has to deal with a couple of different problems. First-off, he likely doesn't know what your band is going to sound like, or what you're supposed to sound like. Second, he has to deal with room acoustics, and for those of you who have done any sort of touring, you'll know that most rooms out there were not designed with acoustics in mind. So, if your tone has tons and tons of bottom end, or happens to be very heavy in a frequency that resonates with the room, he's not going to be able to turn you up loud enough to be heard without drowning out the room with booming bass.

The ideal thing is to send the sound guy in a live situation a completely flat signal. That will allow him to do his job of EQ'ing and mixing the live sound to get the best sound out of the room. If you give him enough to work with and let him do his job, you'll likely sound a lot better than if you give him some heavily colored signal that allows him very little to work with.
I have the problem of a poor soundguy on campus. I gave him a flat tone once, and he pretty much ruined my sound with the band. In this situation, I usually give him my tone after SOME modification.

Also, in a studio setting, you generally do want your tone to hit the board, but not a whole lot of processing/eqing. It's much easier to add stuff then remove it after it's been recorded.

[d-basser]

....pillock?
OMG do you not know what pillock means. a truely great insult, it essentially means idiot. thanks guys for all your help btw.:)