Rec Guitar: DI Box versus reg Preamp with HiZ jack?

[EveningSky]

Can someone explain to me what the advantages of each device are when directly recording guitar.

Is one better than the other.

Do I need a DI box if I have preamps with HiZ inpluts?

Thank you,

ES;

[TBush]

Usually a preamp with XLR's will give you the option of either a true direct signal or some type of speaker emulation.

So if it's loud rock and roll guitar tones with distortion then use the speaker emulation. Personally, I feel that there's nothing like the combination of the right guitar/cabinet/mics and pres/moving air to capture a guitar's essence, but going direct can be cool for some apps.

[where02190]

Need, no, want, that's up to you.

[EveningSky]

Thank you TB and Where for your information, but my question is not di versus micing, but di through amp versus di through a dedicated direct box.

I often find that I have trouble with my room acoustics, mic placement, etc, etc.... .

I can bypass such variable factors by DIing my signal.

My question is, is there an advantage to using dedicated DI products on the market versus a Preamp with Mic/Line/HiZ inputs.

Thank you,

ES;

[where02190]

IF you mean electric guitar through an amp mic'd vs direct, IMHO there's no contest. The emulation plugins are ok for preproduction or the apartment dweller, but nothing sounds like a mic'd amp.

 

Try placing an sm57 or a Sennheiser e609 silver where the cone meets the surround about an inch back. Better yet, use both mics, both on the same speaker, in basically the same position, one just above and the other just below the center line, wher ethe cone meets the surround. Take time to visually align the diaphrams as best as possible, and before mixing time align them in your DAW. I love doing double track rhythm guitars this way, panning the two mics hard left for one track and hard right for the other. Thick yet definied sound.

[TBush]

 

Originally posted by EveningSky Thank you TB and Where for your information, but my question is not di versus micing, but di through amp versus di through a dedicated direct box.

 

 

That's what I was addressing- and it depends on the quality of speaker emulation of either the DI or the preamp out.

[Kiwiburger]

I thought the question was more about the differences between conventional DI boxes (that don't usually have speaker emulation) and conventional preamps (which often have a hi-z Instrument input, and usually don't have speaker emulation).

 

Passive DI boxes are just a transformer that converts a hi-z unbalanced input into a low-z balanced output. If your A/D converter or interface has a low-z balanced input you can try connecting your guitar/bass to a passive DI box and into the converter. Transformers have an effect on audio that is basically a distortion that favours the bass end. You might like the sound a good transformer.

 

However - unless your guitar is active, you probably don't have enough gain to drive the A/D converter hot enough with just a passive DI.

 

Active DI boxes use solid state amps instead of transformers - so you don't get the transformer sound, and you do get some added hiss. The quality of design and construction is important, which is why an Avalon U5 will sound much better than a Behringer ripoff.

 

A mic preamp with an Instrument input is essentially the same as an active DI box, except of course for the actual mic preamp stage which you wouldn't be using.

 

Some DI's sound better than others. Some preamps sound better than others. Big factors like whether they use tubes, FET's, transistors or IC's - whether they use transformers.

 

This is all assuming that you just want to record a clean, full-range dry sound into your PC, so you can shape and process it later.

 

A guitar preamp or processor is a different thing altogether, and that's where stuff like speaker emulation is necessary. You simply don't need speaker emulation until you get to the end of the chain - certainly after distortion.

 

Most speaker emulation is just a low pass filter, to emulate the way typical guitar cabs rolloff the highs (they don't have tweeters or horns). A few add resonance or delays to try to sound more realistic, but i'm never convinced. The best cab emulator by far is a convolution reverb with an impulse taken from a good cabinet. You use it as a Pipeline effect - in other words you use the 100% wet sound, instead of layering it like you normally would.

[EveningSky]

Thank you Where, TB and Kiwi,

Your answers are much appreciated.

Why do some BB respondants chating about Preamp DIs rave about how great the guitar sounds.

I agree, that a straight DI amp of an Eguitar sound is not particularly pretty.

Yours,

ES

[Kiwiburger]

For some things, a simple DI electric guitar can sound great. Clean funk or country stuff maybe. Plenty of classic guitar songs were done with DI guitar. I'm fairly certain that the Byrds jangly 12 string stuff was done DI, and plenty of Beatles guitar parts were done DI. I believe Led Zeps Black Dog guitars were done DI (with a couple of tube limiters, apparatly). Obviously the distortion characterisics of the gear they were using was a big factor in the sound they got.

[scapier]

And, of course, favourite di's would include:

 

 

Avalon U5

 

Radial JDV or JDI

 

Others?

[TBush]

I have used the Sansamp bass preamp for an electric guitar preamp- but it's pretty rare.