DI box with mixer?
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Posted on Apr 22, 2010 12:52 pm
pipedreams
Marijuana Czar
Member Since: Oct 01, 2009
ok so today i went and bought a rockin fender jass bass, and for some reason i decided i needed a di box to pick the sound quality up, honestly idk why i did this because i rly have no idea what they do, i just saw that it could let me connect my guitar up to the xlr pre amps on my mixer and jumped at buying it, its not doing anything good.
i hook it all up and there's like a airy noise that sounds WORSE than if i hadnt had it, whats the deal with that? am i not connecting it right?
should i not plug my guitar into di box trs input, then the xlr output of di into my mixer's xlr pre amp? coz i did, because i thought its better than pluggin the guitar straight into a line
this is what happens when i roll a joint before goin to the music store lol
what do they do??? what am i gonna use this for now? was i right in thinking it would bring sound quality up?
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Apr 22, 2010 07:50 pm should i have connected the xlr outputs of the DI, into the mic xlr preamps on the mixer? using an xlr-xlr cable?
or was i meant to use xlr to trs and plug the DI into the line in?
im taking this di back later today so id appreciate any help
Dematrixhttp://www.reverbnation.com/2ndgMember
Since: Nov 27, 2007
Apr 23, 2010 03:56 am Deleted By Deon
Apr 23, 2010 08:04 am thanks deon theres some good info in there i never knew
it was a buyer's adrenaline rush thing lol, i just instantly thought i needed one
"If you must, then find out if your mixer has pres on your line ins and then go direct.
if there's no pres on the ins, then use the DI."
how would i find this out? ive searched n searched, is there some way to tell if they have preamps on em? sonically?
Dematrixhttp://www.reverbnation.com/2ndgMember
Since: Nov 27, 2007
Apr 23, 2010 07:31 pm hey mate, na im not sure there's anyway to tell sonically or not. Your manual should tell ya.
i think generally line ins dont have em, as line in, means "line level. which is only that. (whatever is on the other end of the cable)
so your guitar will be at line level (not much at all.)
Are you using amp sim software? Or just trying to go straight in??
oh, and dont worry about jumping the gun about buying anything and everything, weve all been there i think. In fact im probably still doing it and dont even know about it. hahaha.
Apr 25, 2010 11:54 am Hey pipedreams, just to let you know, A DI is a way of taking a line level device, such as a bass, or CD player, or even Ipod, and taking that level to a mic level.
Typically a line level device is rated at +4 dB. Which is 1.23 volts. And takes it to a mic level which is around -30 to -50 dB. Which is about 50 millivolts.
In other words, a DI takes a hot signal to your preamp, and brings it down to a usable level for your pre.
Now, there are two different types of DI's. Active, and passive.
Active, have a active component in them. Such as a transistor. And they need Phantom power to make them work.
Passive are just that. They have a transformer in them to knock down the level. And they do not require Phantom power.
All of them have some effect on the sound. They add what we call color to your sound. And this just means that the sound is changed when it passes through the DI.
And the price difference is huge between them. Active is going to be more expensive then passive. And not always, but, most of the time, active sounds better then passive.
One of the biggest things about DI's, is the fact that they have a ground lift switch on them. So, if your getting a buzz in your sound coming into the board, or even your rig, you can hit the ground lift switch and make it disappear.
For bass, there is one DI that I just love! It has a hefty price tag to it. But, in my opinion...... It's worth every penny!
www.avalondesign.com/instrudi.html
Hope this helps you understand what DI's are. And how they can help you.
pjkPrince CZAR-mingMember
Since: Apr 08, 2004
Apr 26, 2010 12:02 pm Thanks Rob, for putting that info up. I was thinking that Deon's info was suspect. (no offense Deon, I've been wrong countless times)
[quote]A DI is for a mixer "line input" that has no pre amp.
a DI just gives you a bit of drive if youre lacking a pre amp on anything.
not needed for most mixers.[/quote]
As Rob posted, quite the opposite. Takes Higher signals and drops them down to what a XLR PREAMP wants to see (little voltage, as stated above).
Quote:
You need to use "line in" only for direct instruments unless you wanna kill something.
I've plugged my bass directly into LINE inputs, and it's worked well. Had to turn up the gain, but it worked pretty well. An INST input would be better, but I didn't have one on my mixer. I think INST level is between MIC and INPUT, so you can plug INST into a LINE input without problem, as you're under powering the circuit, not overpowering.
Dematrixhttp://www.reverbnation.com/2ndgMember
Since: Nov 27, 2007
Apr 26, 2010 07:22 pm @pjk no offense taken brother,
i didnt know that about DI's. I was always taught not to stick instruments thru an xlr. but yeah makes sense seeing as though DI's have an xlr.
i have one, but only used it once, and now i think of it, thru an xlr. (blushes)
if you have an INST line in then yeah obviously you would plug into that.
you couldnt ask for more really.
Apr 26, 2010 11:45 pm ok so ive found out that my mixer DOES have preamps on the line in's. and that the xlr preamps are xlr MIC preamps
how do i connect my BASS to the di, to the mixer, now?
i did xlr from di into xlr MIC preamp and i got a bad uhh tornado-y wind-y kinda noise. as i said in first post
Apr 27, 2010 01:05 am If your getting noise from the DI, then hit the ground lift switch on the DI, and it should go away.
Apr 27, 2010 01:41 am it does nothing lol.
just to clarify, i plug the out of my bass amp into the DI right? not the out of the bass itself?
Apr 27, 2010 01:41 pm Guitars are typically not gonna work directly into a DI, but I do take them post pedals and effects. If there is a line out of the guitar amp that works too. For bass guitar I try to get the bass play to plug into the DI and the 1/4" of the DI into the bass amp. That way I've bypassed the EQ for the bass amp that is usually not needed for the PA. I find the Radial JDI to be about the best high quality for the buck. But do love the Avalon too!!
www.livesoundaudio.com
Apr 27, 2010 05:30 pm Well, if you plugged the output of the bass amp into the DI, and if you didn't have it set to speaker level. Or, it doesn't have a speaker level. You may have damaged the DI.
The signal path is as Sound Rental described. Bass to the DI, Then from the output of the DI to the bass amp. And the XLR of the DI to your board.
Unless the DI has a switch that says speaker level........ Don't plug an amp into it. That would be bad!
And yeah, I do like the Radial JDI's and the J48's as well. But it does knock the signal down more then most. They are set to -35 dB. And on some basses, that just kills the signal.
Apr 27, 2010 10:20 pm ah k thanks guys
im understanding now
i think i may have damaged the DI when messing around with the guitar though lol, ill just take it back for another one its all good
one last thing, ive been told NOT to plug the xlr output of the DI into the xlr mic preamps on my mixer, but those are the only ones i have?
or should i go from the DI into the line in's preamps?
Apr 27, 2010 10:26 pm ?
Who told you that? That is where the XLR of the DI goes! You put it into the XLR of your board, because that is what you want to hear is your pre.
Apr 28, 2010 01:46 am Deon did lol.
Alrighty, everythings sounding good, i got my amp hooked up properly and im gettin the freq that i missed using a mic, DI IS KING 4 BASS FOOL
thanks for replyin everyone
Dematrixhttp://www.reverbnation.com/2ndgMember
Since: Nov 27, 2007
Apr 28, 2010 02:16 am pipedreams quote:
one last thing, ive been told NOT to plug the xlr output of the
DI into the xlr mic preamps on my mixer, but those are the only ones i have?
or should i go from the DI into the line in's preamps?
thats has already been clarified a while ago.
I meant dont plug your guitar into the xlr mic input directly, thru a pedal or whatever.
wasnt sure with DI. they do have an xlr out.
dint mean to give you a bum steer though.
i deleted that post so as not to confuse any more.
