L.R. Baggs Para Acoustic DI

Riaan

I've been intrigued by these ever since I read about them on their webpage. It seems like a kind of DI where you can plug almost anything in and connect it to anything else.

It seems to have a particularly high impedance input also. So I was wondering if using something like this would improve the sound from electric guitar pickups noticably compared to plugging it directly into an amp or the Hi Z input on my Edirol FA-66 soundcard? Apparently it shines when used with L.R. Baggs active piezo's on electric guitars, but once again, will this be a noticable improvement over the already nice sound I get without a DI box, i.e. piezo's straight into the soundcard?

Or am I falling for advertising hype?

Squonk

Always wanted to try one

The March Guitarist reviewed the Venue DI

http://www.lrbaggs.com/html/products/preamps_venue.shtml

Goes for about 300 pounds in the UK

Although this would be a live setup DI box!

Bob-Dubery

Riaan wrote I've been intrigued by these ever since I read about them on their webpage. It seems like a kind of DI where you can plug almost anything in and connect it to anything else.

It seems to have a particularly high impedance input also. So I was wondering if using something like this would improve the sound from electric guitar pickups noticably compared to plugging it directly into an amp or the Hi Z input on my Edirol FA-66 soundcard? Apparently it shines when used with L.R. Baggs active piezo's on electric guitars, but once again, will this be a noticable improvement over the already nice sound I get without a DI box, i.e. piezo's straight into the soundcard?

It's designed for use with acoustic guitar pickups.

The name tells us what it does....

"Para" (keep it down in the back!) tells us it has a parametric EQ function - this includes a notch filter for dialling out feedback.

"Acoustic" tells us it is intended for use with acoustic guitars (which doesn't mean that you CANNOT and MAY NOT use it with anything else, but that's what it's intende for)

"DI" tells us that it functions as a DI box. It can be powered by internal battery or by phantom power from the desk. You don't have to use it as a DI, it has a regular jack plug output as well and you can use it just as a pre-amp and EQ.

Baggs kit is very good, but everything they do is focused on amplification of acoustic instruments. I have the Baggs "GigPro" which is a sort of "Para DI lite". It doesn't do the DI function, and it has a simpler EQ - treble and a tunable bass. It retains the gain control and the phase inversion function. It does a very good job.

A friend of mine uses the GigPro when he does solo gigs. He has a National Tri-Cone fitted with a lace sensor pickup. He takes the pickup straight into the gigpro and the sound guy gets the output from the GigPro. It doesn't sound particularly electric, but in this case he gets the sound he's looking for.

You might also look at their new "Venue" D.I which has an effects loop, a built-in tuner and a mute button.

AlanRatcliffe

They are nice, one of the top acoustic oriented DIs. However, I don't think You will get much improvement over what you already have - the Godin is preamplified, so it's probably already low impedance. The other benefits like the notch filter you don't need with a solidbody and you already have lots of different EQ. So I suspect all you'd be doing is putting another device in the signal chain with no benefits.

The electric guitar is fine into the HiZ input on the Edirol. Anyway, if I'm not mistaken, the magnetic pickups run through the onboard preamp anyway (so the output is probably also loZ) - otherwise it wouldn't be able to blend them with the piezos. As a matter of interest, are you running the piezo and magnetics into the interface separately or as a mono signal?

matta

I have had once since 2001, gigged it in over 86 cities worldwide, and it is still standing!

I had a guy pour a glass of water into it at a gig a few months ago, immediately turned it off once it started yowling as the water started shorting things. I dried it out and it is STILL going... built like a tank and sounds great!

It is matched with my acoustics preamp which is an LR Baggs RT System, the precursor to the current Element system.

Riaan I had it at Graeme's place at the last get together as it is permanently part of my acoustic floorboard set-up, I'd be happy to bring it along this weekend if you are around and you can play with it and see what it does for your Godin?

Cheers

Matt

Riaan

As a matter of interest, are you running the piezo and magnetics into the interface separately or as a mono signal?

Alan: that depends, for clean settings I use the combined mono output and add the piezo's just for that crispy edge, but what I also like to use is the two outputs seperately, with the piezo's into one track with a nice clean setting as the main sound of the riff, and a distorted sound from the magnetics into the high Z - mostly turned way down, but can be increased for effect. GR presets like "Prince's Purple Rain" combined with the "Brian May" humbucker sound is my current favourite!

You're right, I also think the Godin's pre-amp makes the magnetics a low Z output if the two are combined.

Riaan I had it at Graeme's place at the last get together as it is permanently part of my acoustic floorboard set-up, I'd be happy to bring it along this weekend if you are around and you can play with it and see what it does for your Godin?

Matt, I wish I'd taken a proper look last time but I definitely liked your acoustic sound a lot! Unfortunately I can't make it this weekend, gotta work but I'll definitely be there next time for Graemestock 3.