Another One For The Board

I've been reading a bunch of the TalkBass forums recently and it seems everyone has a SansAmp Bass DI pedal or similar pedal on their board or use it as a pre-amp with a power amp setup. It sounded like a box that would give me that tube amp sound without having to buy a tube amp. So I gave it a spin to see/hear what the hype was all about. Playing into a solid state amp you could definitely dial in that tube sound and then some. Being able to use it for some dirt in your signal chain, as a pre-amp or DI box really seems to give the pedal value for the price.

Having only used the stock strings on my Carvin bass, I decided to try some new strings and picked up a set of DR high beams to see how much different the bass might sound with some aftermarket strings.

DIY Effects Pedal

I ordered the Big Muff Pi clone kit from General Guitar Gadgets after reading some great comments about it. The kit from GGG allows you build six different versions of the class BMP distortion pedal from Electro-Harmonix. I went with GGG Tuned Version and spent four hours soldier and assembling the pedal. Getting the larger enclosure upgrade was a smart decision and made routing easier. I took my time and it worked the first time I fired it up.

I sold my Double Muff pedal after not being thrilled with it so this pedal is going to fill that spot. Compared to the Double Muff, this version of the BMP is of a much higher quality and is very versatile in comparison. With bass it keeps more of the low end in the signal and can still get nasty some nasty tone.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do about the enclosure. It's still unpainted so perhaps I'll add a sticker to it as paint tends to chip off of molded aluminum. Probably not the best first kit for those who are new to soldiering together electronics, but I'd recommend it for someone who's looking to do an easy DIY project.