Tech 21 SansAmp RBI

Pretty easy to use, knobs are clearly labeled, do what they say.
Similar controls to a standard combo amp or something, drive, bass, mid, treble, presence, blend.

I do like how the XLR level is right on the front so you don't have to mess around in the back to set it.

I am not sold on this item. It sounds OK, not great. It can get the effect of using a Fender Bassman, but it sounds more like a Bassman effect, not a real Bassman. I tried all the settings in the manual, and they all sound terrible. The only way I got a good, usable sound out of this thing was to back off the Blend knob to about 12:00 to allow more of my actual bass instead of all the sansamp effect.

Seems like it will be fine no matter what I do to it. One thing, I don't like how all the 1/4" connections are all plastic in the back.

Have not tried it yet.

I play rock, blues, metal, surf, funk, etc. I need something that has a few good sounds that I can dial in easily. This thing gets some good sounds, but they are more effects and not real good preamp sounds.
I've been using this with a Fender JP-90=>SansampRBI=>QSC PLX 2420=>Schroeder 412R.
This unit sounds better the less I use it.
I like how versatile the sounds are, but they sounds like effects instead of cool bass sounds.
If this were stolen or lost I would buy something else.

Fantastic tones come easily with this unit. Especially if your other gear is great and in proper working condition. I call the active switch the "yes button". I love the way it sounds even with the controls flat. Go ahead and try it, you won't be sorry.

I personally like to bring the dirty up and boost the midrange to get that more "natural" sounding overdrive.

I feel that you can't go wrong with this unit in your rack.

I have two Sadowsky 5 string basses. One is a modern 5JJ, the other is a Standard 5. I use an Ampeg SVT4 PRO and an Ampeg SVT10E bass enclosure. Butter Zone!

The EQ and the drive sound great all the way across. It's fun to twist the knobs and try different things before settling with a tone. As I previously stated, you can just hit the active button and leave the knobs flat for a very friendly tone. Shaping is to your preference.

There is no noise when twisting the knobs and certainly no hissing or anything when you use the drive. It is clear that this unit was carefully put together for studio or live use.

It's easy to get that the sounds you hear by bands like Tool, Rush and Metallica.

It's very simple to get a nice fat clean sound or a nice grindy dirty sound that still sounds great amplified.

I use it without a backup, but I will get a second one at some point anyway.

Even with reliable gear, things can happen. I haven't had a single problem and I've had mine for about five years.

I've never needed to get service, but I've talked via email with Sansamp and they are polite and easy to talk to.

I've played rock, classic rock, oldies, metal and modern rock styles.

I've been playing bass since 2002 and I've had my Sansamp since 2004 or 2005 and it never gets left out of my signal chain.

A feature that should get more attention is the 50/50 button on the back. You can blend your effects loop by 50% to retain some of your unaffected signal. It's super cool to use with my Morley PWB wah. You get that big fat gritty wooshing wah sound while still having that big fat punchy sound. There are no words good enough to describe the awesomeness!

Do I wish it had anything else? It already has the yes button... it already has the 50/50 button for the effects loop... I guess it could only be better if it had a button that makes it make me a sandwich and pour me a drink. Seriously, it's very cool the way it is.

I finally got to use this unit in the studio. I feel it really shines on a song called "just a piece" I did with my band called Versed in Grey. Should be available for listening in October 2009

If you cant use this, you have issues.

I use this with a Fender Jazz and Fender Jaguar which are my two main basses. I have it running through an SWR SM400 which is Bi-amped using the SWRs internal crossover to an Ampeg SVT410 and SVT115. The Sansamp only runs through my 410. I let the 15" cab handle the low stuff on a clean setting. Alot of people say the Sansamp hisses. It will show some high end frequency noise but if you roll off the treble a tiny bit it goes away without effecting tone.

Read a bass magazine and youll find its in almost every pro bassists rack. Its there for a reason. I have no reason to have a backup but I am going to purchase one soon for my backup.

I bought this used, so I skimmed through the manual thats online from Tech 21. Found it easy to understand. I havent had to contact them otherwise.

I wish this was capable of being run through a bi-amp setup like I run but I almost like having my 410 run the effect of the sansamp and having the 15" cab run all the clean low stuff. This way, any low end that might be lost from the Sansamp is put back into my mix. If this was stolen, I would hunt down the POS who stole it and cut his hands off. I play mainly rock and it cuts through perfectly. There is some type of compression in this unit that makes every note you hit audible.

This is an update to my previous review.

After testing it with my full tube gear (Bassman 300 Pro head with 215 cab), I decided to try out with my other gear that is

GK 700RB-II and Avatar 212 neo cab. It's a $529 amp + $ 329 cab = for a total of $858 kit.

GK 700RM-II and Avatar 212 neo cab by themselves sounds great but honestly it sounds a bit sterile and a bit lean in low mids. It sounds awesome with 51' precision (cause it sounds so fat) or modern bass with active electronic, but a bit lean with modern Precision or Jazz bass.

Also since it's full solid state, it's as dynamic as it could be in any situation. Not good or bad, just different from tube rig.

So adding $263 SanSamp to a $858 half stack makes $1121 system made in heaven.

Seriously, when I connected the SanSamp to this rig I was very impressed. Even thou I was able to get the same tone as the SansAmp with the Bassman (and even better) with the GK it's a very different story. I cannot get this tone with the GK alone. Far from there.

Now as for the other review, I have to keep everything flat on the GK in order to get a good sound from the SansAmp.

The GK is very flexible tonewise, but it's really not possible to get the Sans amp tone.

I can get something not so close by
- Crancking the countour to the max
- Slightly crancking the presence and the treble
- Crancking the Low Mid to the max (for more chunck)
- Slightly reducing the high mid

Now this will be very lively and clean but still cold because it is not compressed at all.

The main difference is that the Sans Amp beautifully crancks the higs, but also dramatically compresses the sound, so the highs are very lively and when you play harshly, the sound brutal but not overwelming because the sound is nicely pillowed as tube would do.

It's really a transparent compression.

Now I realized something. Even though I complained on my first review concerning the lack of a pedal to turn the unit on or off, once you have the SansAmp hooked up to your kit, you will never turn it off. Let me explain why.

- First of all, it sounds so good that you will not want to turn it off.
- Since you have to keep everything flat on your preamp in order to use the SansAmp, when you turn the SansAmp off, then you have to tweek your preamp. Not very convenient.

By the way I also did another test, on both the Bassman 300 and the GK 700RB, completely bypassing the preamp and connecting the SansAmp directly on the effect loop return.

In both case I was desapointed. It sounds cold and lean. So it sounds so much better when connected in the instrument input of a preamp. It is just perfectly warm in this way, not too hot as long as your preamp is set all flat.

One little problem I found, the electric wire is very sensitive to RF noise. I did not notice this the first time. I wonder if the DI version is better this way since it's batteries fed.

I'm not talking of noise cought by your Jazz Bass, I'm talking about rather noise from the AC or some RF pollution. When a buzz comes from your single coils pickup, you can hear it change by spinning on yourself and then finding an angle that is more quiet. This time the noise was changing only by moving the AC cable. I could get arround this by reducing the gain on my preamp and boost the level on the SansAmp, therefore drawning the noise with louder signal. Oh well many old fashion good sounding preamp were sensitive to noise.

I sent them an email inquiring about the foot switch and they promptly replied with alternatives.

I was impressed testing it with a full tube head, but I was much more impressed testing it with solid state modern gear.

It makes all the difference in the world and both my GK head and Avatar cab benefit from the Sans Amp tone because not only it really sounds like old fashion tube (actually sounds much better then the lower end Ampeg stuff), it also compensates for the lack of low mid balls of this set.

It really made me discover excellent sound from that rig and I will now enjoy the best old fashion sound even in small club where I can't fit in with my big rig.

I'm keeping it.

I have heard so much about this that I had to give it a shot.

As easy to use as it could be. Started all flat, with Blend pot turned to max.

This is like an old School SVT. Awesome sound right off the box.

Great presence, imposing and deep. Very lively tone.

Great for Blues, Classic Rock, Pregressive, Hard Rock and Metal where tube crunch sound comes handy. If you consider James Gang as Funk, so let's say that this unit is Funcky.

Not suitable for Jazz/Fusion, and on the edge for Motown. You will not be able to get this Old Bassman sound that Peter Cetera had on the First Chicago LP.

Ok I already own an old school tupe head, Bassman 300 Pro, with the 215 cabinet that goes with it. So I could compare them both.

I actually had the SansAmp connected to my head's instrument input, but with all EQ set flat or disabled, all EQ buttons off and all compression off.

When I activated the SansAmp I was blown away. Really. Ok, the signal was still going through many tubes, but in a way to get the sound as natural as possible.

What strikes me the most is the presence. The SansAmp sound is very old school tube mid scoop and highs crancked to the max. So it's very crunchy.

The presence and the Crunch is VERY SVT. It is so SVT like that people that are turned off by the SVT sound will probably not appreciate the SansAmp. Personnaly I love that sound.

I tried it with Jazz 60' Precision 70' Precision 54' and Schecter Studio-5 with Bartolini Electronic,

Now this is a drive tube simulator unit, and it performs very well at emulating the SVT TONE and dept. But when it gets to the point of distortion, it sounds really like cheezy transistor distortion. But keep in mind that distortion is not the porpose of this unit.

Ok, I can get this sound from my Bassman, and much better distortion, but I need to tweek my sound heavily go get this tone. This still just shows how good the SansAmp sounds. Actually the SansAmp seems a bit more dynamic. It's definitely more catchy, because of the awesome tone right out the box.

Like an SVT, you cannot do everything with this unit, but what it does, it does it VERY well.

For the price and the absolute tone you get off this unit, I give it a well deserved 10.

Well, there is no tube in it and no digital parts either, so how better could be. Personnaly it's the chips that worries me not the tube but at least, this unit is as reliable as it could be without maintenance.

Highly recommanded.

This is really a fantastic unit.

If you own modern rig and you crave for SVT tone, get this. It's not as good for distortion but the tone and crunch is definitely there.

Now I have a problem, I have this tone with my amp already, but I have to tweek it a lot, so I'm tempted to keep the unit just for the sake of having a quick alternative in my tone. Don't know what I'm going to do.

If you plan to use this unit as a preamp, try to match it with a power amp that soun as clean and high end as possible, in order to keep the lively edge of this sound. It's just a personnal opinion.

This is a follow-on review from my earlier one dated 08/22/2005 to update the customer support & reliability ratings.

I now play a Warwick Thumb bass and I'm so happy with my tone it's not funny :)

I posted my review on 08/22/2005 - it's now Boxing Day 2007, and this unit is still going strong. Just the slightest hint of crackle in some of the pots, but that goes away after a few turns. Now that I have my settings dialed in where I want them, most of the controls don't get touched - so it's not surprising that they're a little dusty.

All manuals are available if you contact Tech 21, and they've been very helpful with some questions I had regarding my used Landmark 300 head. Very quick response time too :)

I have to drop this a point - using the Landmark 300 head has spoiled me for fixed mid frequency EQ. If I was buying again, I'd get the RPM instead - of course, that doesn't have the Presence knob, but my Warwick doesn't need much of that. Less agressive basses definitely benefit from it though. If the RBI had a parametric mid I'd never need another pre-amp.

Very easy to use. All analog knobs that can be adjusted for Drive, Presence, Bass, Mid, Treble, XLR output and Level. Pretty straightforward. Manual comes with a lot of sample settings as well.

This unit allows me to get the sound of many of my favorite bass players. You can easily dial in overdrive sounds similar to Geddy Lee, Doug Pinnick, Billy Sheehan or Chris Squire. The clean sounds can help you get nice smooth clean sounds with lots of bass and crisp highs (if you have the right bass of course).

I use a MusicMan Stingray 4 (fretted) and MusicMan Stingray 4 (fretless) and run them though the Sansamp RBI > Ampeg B2RE (only use the power amp) into an Ampeg BXT210M cabinet. The setup is great because the Sansamp sounds good through the PA so I really only need my stage rig to serve as a monitor. You will hear some noise when you boost the presence or treble settings but this is not due to the Sansamp it is amplifying previously un heard frequencies from your guitar. I don't care what people say every bass will put out some noise and this unint will expose it. Regardless it is not nearly as bad as alot of preamps and effects units out there.

It is a rock solid rack unit with no moving parts. I really can't see anything going wrong with it.

I play all types of music but predominately classic rock and progressive rock sounds. Occasionally, I do some jazz gigs and use my fretless through it. This box can literally dial in any sound you want. I have tried nearly everything out there including the Line 6 Bass POD XT (live and regular version), the 3 channel SansAmp, the Sansamp DI, the MXR Bass DI, BBE DI, everything you can think of. This unit, in terms of tone and versatility, blows them all away. This has more capabilities than the regular SansAmp DI box and can be your companion with everything.

I just picked up a used RBI yesterday. Not sure if mine is a newer one or not as I've seen two different sets of cosmetics on them- one has a grey face around the controls, and the one I have is simply a black fact all the way 'round, with white lettering.

The unit allows continuously variable controls, just like a "real" amp. There is no programability here- just plug in, dial up the tone you crave, and get to work playing (irony there!)...

The front panel control layout is pretty straight forward-From left to right-
Input jack, Drive, Presence, Blend, Bass, Mid, Treble, XLR Output level, Standard Output level, Active LED and pushbutton, and finally, a Power switch and old school looking power light... Just about as basic as an SVT or Bassman would be on the front panel...

The rear gets a little tricky! I won't go into all of the ins an outs back there, but suffice, there is also an input jack on the rear with an input level adjustment that lets you select between line level (0db and instrument level (-20). There are outputs for both the Sans amp tone and unaffected outputs. The sans amp outs have the same level padding switch as the rear input. Hopefully, the unaffected outputs are buffered I have no way of knowing at the moment (read on in customer support), and an effects loop with a switch for a 50/50 mix. This feature is one of the only things I haven't had a chance to play with yet (again, read customer support)

This unit is all analog, which to me is the real deal. So what if its solid state (read NO TUBES),It just plain out sounds good to me!!!

I got it home and plugged it into my SWR Stereo 800 power amp (currently bridged to mono) and SWR 4 x 10, hooked up my serious modified Yamaha BBN-4 (bass ass bridge, Grover tuners, Dimarzio Jazz Pickups in bridge and neck), and within a minute, got a tone that not only would make Geddy Lee or Chris Squire proud, but was pretty close to what I have heard in my head, but was never able to produce with my current gear!

You know the tone- that slightly "over the edge" SVT tone where the damn amp is loud enough to take on (or even take OUT) the Marshall and Hi-Watt boys; just at the point of going over the edge into serious grit with all that bottom end doubling and warmth? Yeah, that's the tone! Thats the tone I love and have wanted for years. Now its here! It can be dialed in to be thick (but not ot he point of sounding muddy) and gritty or biting (without harshness). This is what I've wanted from a tube amp (cost) and many speaker systems (cost and car suspension wear!!!). I have finally got it...

I should mention a bit about the gear that the RBI has replaced (for the moment). I traded off a Trace Elliot GP7-SM200 head for this. The T.E., while good, clean sounding head, just doesn't have the tone I was hoping for. In fairness, I lived with it for a year, and tried various EQ settings and such, but to no avail. I've seen guys who play upright use this amp (yes, its that clean), but it doesn't cut it for "balls out" rock.

The other item is an Alesis 3630. Before you go off and say "gee, no wonder he didn't get a good tone", let me tell you THIS 3630 has been modified to the gills, with everything from better op-amps, caps and resistor, to power supply beefing. This is my version of what the 3630 SHOULD HAVE sounded like in the first place! It will not compete against an Urei or Avalon, but its certainly better than every other 3630 out there!

With the RBI, and with the limited use that I have had over the last day, I ALMOST don't need the 3630. I say ALMOST, because while the RBI has a great tone and seems to respond to my bass guitar in a very natural way (emulated tube compression somewhere in there?), Ifind that when I try to slap, the tone just seems to be lacking a little- just not quite as meaty as I'm used to. Sure, the cut through and punch are still there, but things just aren't as even or "leveled" as they are with the 3630 in; or maybe its just my sloppy slapping ability after "only" playing for 20 years. Hehehe...

Put it this way- If I had a gig tonight, and had no chance to reinstall the 3630 into my rack, living with this box for the one whole day that I hvae, I don't think I'd be whining at the show about my tone- it STILL rocks, compression or not...

The thing seems to be built like a tank. I haven't opened it up and seen what's inside yet (I almost always do that- dont' tell the manufacturers, please!!!). The front handles actually match (in geometry, at least, but NOT in colour) the ones on my SWR power amp (the SWR's handles are black, but made from what I assume to be similar stock). All jacks and connectors have a very solid feel to them, even though almost all of them are plastic! This is the first rack with plastic jacks that I actually feel totally comfortable with!

Great look, solidly built, and, well, what else can one say? I don't think I'd consider a back up, unless I brought along my Sans Amp GT-2 just in case...

Here is where I CAN'T give this company a ten out of ten!

Like I said, I bought mine used. It came in the box, with a power cord, but missing two things- the packing material, and most importantly THE INSTRUCTION MANUAL!!!

So I figured I'd just surf over to Tech 21's website, right? Gotta be a PDF section there to DL it.

NOPE!!!
NOTHING!!!
NADA!!!

I have searched the site over about 20 times and found nothing there that even HINTS at instruction manuals for ANY of its products. Thats just plain crappy in this day and age.

In the end, I actually emailed them requesting the thing. While I KNOW how to run basics and set up a decent sound, I don't know things like "is the unaffected output buffered?" or "what is the input impedance?" Some people may not care and just plug in and away they go. I not oly would like to know this, but I'd like to see those sample settings everyone raves (or boos) about...

Shame on Tech 21 for not having this feature at their site. YUCKY!!!

Based on the lacking manual download section, how does one still justify a ten if that is the case? Easy, the product itself is simply a great sounding machine, regardless of whether you use it as an "effect", a preamp, or a full blown "rig" as Geddy Lee does in conjunction with a Palmer Speaker Emulator on some of the latest Rush material/live stuff).

Currently, I play in three different projects- one is called Silmica (www.silmica.com), the other, String Theory, and the third, Lucky-13. As one can guess, each band requires a different style of playind (and IS of course a different style of music in general).

I can see the RBI's use in each of these projects, ranging form power trio (L-13), power pop (ST) and improvised free form music (Silmica). Its range of use is pretty varied, so it most likely will NOT get left at home any time soon!

OK- finally had a chance to thoroughly check out the Tech 21 Bass Sansamp RBI. I found it incredibly easy to get a great sound, but not with any of the factory recommended settings. I apparently like a lot more low end than whoever came up with those. Regardless, this thing sounds great! I am running it as a preamp and I am able to get that big tube rig sound with my amp's eq set completely flat! There are some low-mid frequencies that seem overly scooped, but running through an EQ before it in a chain can compensate for that easily. My only issue with it is that with it being designed to emulate tube distortion and warmpth (both of which it does quite well), it's hard to get a really clean tone. That dosen't bother me in my rig, since we play heavy metal and some tube bite helps it cut through nicely, but for some other forms of music (like jazz, R&B and Raggae) where that super fat clean tone is needed, this might not be the best option. All the basses I tried through this did have active electronics, so maybe an old school passive P or J with some flatwounds would give you that tone, I'm not sure. I'd have to give this a 9 overall, with the limited EQ range and the whole clean tone thing being the only flaws this thing seems to have. Some anal retentive tube purists might be able to tell that it's not a true tube tone, but there are always people who love to nitpick shit and tell you why their $10, 000 rig sounds 5% better than your $300 processor. 99.999% of the people who hear this will just like what they hear. I would HIGHLY recommend this to anyone who wants killer tone and dosen't mind at least a touch (up to a shit-ton- I think that's the technical term they use in their manual) of overdrive bite. The manual is short and easy to understand, too.

When ran through a Carvin BRX1500 head with the eq flat at all 3's running into a Carvin BRX410 and BRX118, nice clean sound. No weird hisses, hums, snaps, crackles, or pops.

Only had it about a week, but it seems tough....

If anything happened to my gear, this would be one of the first things I'd replace. The line out and XLR out level controls are right on the front! That'll make me get along better with a lot of sound guys... If I designed this product, the only thing I would have changes is adding a headphone jack with adjustable level, then this could be your entire at-home practice rig.

The manual explains the controls, their functions and how to use each. Sample settings are a good place to start but I found myself developing my own custom settings based on the sound I liked.

Here's where it gets a little tricky. The Presence knob can create noise..yet it provides upper harmonics so you must decide how much to adjust to suite both your taste and to reduce annoyance. If you adjust the various knobs to integrate with your power amps EQ you can find many great sounds with little or no noise at all, so noise can be a problem but does not have to be. It provides warmth but it is not a true tube type of warmth..it gets very close but if you are a tube truist you may find yourself wanting a tube preamp..I am debating but at this time I am sticking with the unit because it is maintenance free and sounds great!

Tech 21 builds great gear, you won't have any problems.

See previous comments

I won't address all the bullet points as they are not necessary. My overall rating is reflective of it's ability to provide a variety of tones, including an overdriven simulation of a tube preamp. The reason I cannot give it a 10 is it not a 100% emulation for the warmth of a real tube preamp. Please dont misunderstand and take this as a negative because it is a very good simulation, but you know the real deal when you play in front of a real tube amp. The warmth just sounds like that invisable fuzziness that gets the hairs on the back of your neck up and the Sansamp just doesn't quite do th at..

Very easy to get a great sound straight out of the box, even with all the knobs dialed to 12 o'clock. A lot of input/output options, which is where it gets a little tricky. A good read of the (extremely clear and well laid out) manual will see you through.

Here's my setup: Stuart Spector Design NS-4 (neck-through Czech with dual soapbars) > RBI > Carver PM 1.5 power amp > Trace Elliot 1248H cab.

As mentioned, with everything set to 12'o'clock, the RBI has a lovely warm round tone. Like almost anything, if you dial treble or drive all the way up you'll add a bit of noise. The frequency response is great - dial in the suggested 'Reggae' setting and you _will_ shake your house.

The effects loop is brilliant - you can select Series or Parallel operation. I run the RBI's send/return through a Boss LS-2 Line selector pedal, which contains all my effects in two loops. Depending on how I have the LS-2 set, I either have just the basic RBI tone, or up two 3 channels simultaneously. Distorted bass with no loss of tone is a reality :)

I can't rate this yet, but I used the Bass Driver DI box for over 2 years without any sign of a problem at all.

Never dealt with them personally, but their website is nice.

10 out of 10 for bang-for-the-buck. No, it doesn't sound exactly like a tube pre-amp. It doesn't weigh the same or cost as much either!

I play bass for an Australian three-piece called 'idoru' (shameless plug: http://www.idoru.com.au). We define ourselves as atmospheric/heavy/rock. At times I need ungodly amounts of filth in my sound, other times I need it to be clean and simple. With all the options available in the RBI, it suits my style perfectly.

I've been playing for about 8 years, and I finally feel like I've got some pro gear when I take the stage. If it were stolen, I'd replace it straight away.

I love it's warm, round tone and simplicity. I love that I can go from clean to gritty depending on my playing. The only feature missing is the +10 db input boost as found on the Landmark bass heads. This boosts passive basses so you can get stronger levels of drive. As it is, I use effects to get my distortion.

I didn't even bother trying anything else - my experience with the BDDI was enough to make me upgrade. My tone before was good, now people are gob-smacked!

There are a lot of good sounds that can be coaxed from this unit. It can make some VERY convincing reproductions of an SVT, a Bassman, and a lot of other amps. My personal favorite is the Tool sound which is basically the SVT setting with more drive, less treble, and slightly more mids (with my Jazz Bass). Turn a few knobs and you'll have a completely different but still good, sound. I run an ART 441 EQ in the effects loop and it helps to add clarity and punch. In front of the RBI is an Ibanez AD-9 analog delay and an Electro-Harmonix Dlx Electric Mistress. Behind the RBI is a Behringer EP1500 Power amp and a new Mesa/Boogie 2x15.

1U rackmount solid-state bass preamp. Drive, Blend, Presence, Level, Bass, Mid and Treble controls, XLR Output w/Level control. Effect Loop with Mix 50/50 switch (for parallel or series operation). 1/4 TRS and XLR ins and outs. Pretty easy to get some awesome sounds out of with enough features to keep the "knob-turners" busy.

It's as reliable as it gets.

Tech 21 is always quick in responding to emails and has always been a pleasure to deal with for me.

I've been playing for a decade and have been through a couple amps (Crate, Ampeg SVT3, SWR WM4004, Mesa Bass 400+) and after trying this preamp out I'm VERY impressed. The RBI sounds more like an SVT than the SVT3 did. The Bass 400+ was the absolute best sounding amp I've played through but had to sell due to finances. This unit gets a similar meaty, crunchy bass tone I had with the 400+ so I'm happy with it. Plus, after turning some knobs I've got a completely different sound. I love Tech 21 products b/c they're always reasonably priced, sound good, and last.

Pretty easy to use however the manual does help a TON. It's more complicated than the pedal version but a little more versatile too. I'm too lazy to comment on all the features so check out www.tech21nyc.com or read the previous reviews.

It's good at getting very close to all those sounds it says it can recreate...say about 95 out of 100 for a comparison scale. It will never quite be that all-tube Bassman or SVT but for a few thousand less (money, pounds, headaches changing tubes, etc.) it's definitely worth it. The sounds are very musical and it works great as a preamp.

It's as reliable as electronics get. Keep away from flame and water and it'll last forever.

The tone, versatility, portability, and reliability of this unit make it indispensable in a bass rack. Like I said before, it comes really close to getting all those great sounds and although the die-hard tube fans will disagree, the general public will never know the difference. May I suggest the Bass Driver DI foot pedal for those who love the "less-is-more" approach (such as myself). I traded the RBI back in for the pedal b/c it offered pretty much the same sounds in an even more portable version. Just imagine showing up at a show in ANY sized venue with a jazz bass, some chords, and this pedal. Pretty cool huh?

The Sansamp RBI is very easy to use. The controls are simple and the manual is easy to read and it very clearly explains all of the features of the unit. There are no patches to edit since this is a single channel unit. It took me about 2 minutes to get a good sound happening from the unit and after about 1 hour of play it sounded really great all by itself.

The sound quality is excellent and the unit is very quiet. The controls are quite interactive with one another and a great number of tones are possible dispite the rather simple control pannel. I'm using it with an Ampeg SVP-1500 power amp and nothing else. I use it to produce a more classic rock bass tone with some distortion and it does this absolutely great with a big warm sound that's wonderful. The best part is the fact that no other gear is required to get these sounds, no compression or outboard eq is needed, great...

I could not resist removing the cover to have a look at the insides of the RBI. Inside the layout is very neat and there is are actually VERY few components inside, it's mostly one large IC. After looking at the layout and construction I feel that problems will be unlikely under any type of use. I plan on using it for years and I hope that works out because it's replacing a good sounding but less than reliable piece of gear in my rack (SVP-PRO). I'd feel safe gigging without a backup unit.

I have not delt with them directly but their website is packed with lots of good information on all of their products.

For playing classic rock or similar styles with a simple rig this thing would be just about impossible to beat. If you like to get different sounds by using different playing styles this thing is perfect. If you need channel switching or a million presets it's not what you want. It's just amazing how great of a sound it gets from such a small simple package, I don't see how they do it and it's not a 1 trick pony either, great stuff.

This unit, like its little brother the D1, is very easy to use if you understand what it does, and how it works. Take the time to read the manual, and re-read your bass amp manual! Understanding your guitars signal flow and how it is processed in your amp, can lead you to find new way to improve your rig. Many manufacturers include a signal schematic that shows just how your signal is routed through your amp, and what happens to that signal as it is being processed to the power amp. What I have learned will hopefully help others out there, in their quest to find that just right blend! So, pour yourself a cup of coffee, soda, beer or what ever, and sit back because this is going to be an indepth review. A review, that is my personal findings, and a review that just might be an education for some others out there having the same problems. And just maybe, for some of you, an education in signal processing! Enjoy!

Our bass player is using a Yamaha bass 4 string, and a Hofner. His amp is a Ampeg B4R. The speaker cabs are a 4-10 top, and a 15 or 18 bottom. Each cab is rated at 8 ohms. Keep this in mind, because I will explain more on ohms later. When he first purchased this amp about 6 years ago, we hooked it up like the manual said, we choose to run the amp in the bi-amped mode. For those of you who dont know, bi-amping gives you the ability to route the bass signal to two different power amps. The B4R, in this mode, now has two seperate power sections. By running this way,it allows you to determine how much of the low freqs and high freqs go to the cabs. Utilizing the frequecy blend knob on the front of the amp, determines how much, and what freqs get processed by which amp. IE, the low amp, or the high amp. Also, the B4R has a balance knob next to the freq knob which is used to determine just how much of that processed signal will go to the top cab, and how much will go to the bottom cab. Once we fired her up for the first time, we tried everything to achieve some good driving clean bass tones. We twisted all the knobs and eq the shit out of it. Drove the gain up and master in an attempt to get that good old thumping clean clear bass that gets your feet a tapping. Tried this, tried that, tried all of it and guess what? The only way we could get some close sounding bass from this rig was to drive the gain to almost max with the main volume knob maxed also.............and even then it sounded like a hippos butt flappin from a bad graze of dining in the swamp! It was terrible! What did we do? Well, for a totally stock B4R, the only way to get some halfway good tone was to shell the bi-amp mode, and run the rig in the bridged mode, and piggy back the top and bottom cabs together. Running in bridge, diffently had some power now, and like I said not too bad of tone. However, in this mode, you have almost no control of you signal to the cabs. Being a guitar player myself, I would compare that mode, to a Gibson Les Paul. Either all or nothing! Our bass player has played this way ever since until just recently. A side note here! Electronics don't like vibration period. If your running your amp assembly on top of your cabs, and dont have one of those 600.00 vibration cases, you had better put some 2-3 inch thick foam under it! We didn't, the vibration took its toll, and circuits in the amp became loose so it had to go to the shop.

When we got the amp back from repair, our bass man hooked it all up again in bi-amp mode. Said he wanted to try it again that way...........Jeeeeeeeeeezzzz why? Same result as before, no difference. Thats the million dollar question. Why? Why does this amp not sound good in this mode? Whats wrong? How in Gods name can we get this amp to sound like its got some butt, and what is holding it back?

I am not claiming to be an expert here, and I certainly am not a electrical engineer, all I can do is relate what I did, and what I think happens with the amp running in this mode.

First, remember ohms? We have 2 cabs, each at 8 ohms. The B4R is rated at 1350 watts mono-bridged into 4 ohms. Thats a bunch of power to drive the signal to drive the speakers. By piggy backing 2 8 ohm cabs, your ohms now is down to 4. Forget addition, 2 8s when it comes to ohms, does not equal 16. It equals 4. So, we had plenty of power in the bridged mode to make things sound half assed good. However, in bi-amp mode, this amp is rated at 2 X 255 watts into 8 ohms. That means each cab could get 255 watts to push it! You would think that 255 watts would be enough to push things, but its not............believe me! In the back of my mind, I feel that the preamp section of this amp is nothing short of horse shit on the trail.............and I truely feel that the B4R has a combination of an inherently weak preamp section and a weak power amp section running in the bi-amp mode. Especially running 2 8 ohm cab

Cant say much here, but if it lasts as good as it sounds.........well?
Would I use it without a backup..............would have to if it shot craps..................but would we want to.....Hell no!


Only givin a 5 here cause I dont know.........too early.

Haven't used them yet, but one heck of a web site.....thanks Tech 21

Style: Classic rock, blues, some newer rock, some Jazz.

No LCD, no menu, all knobs. Easy.

Not my choice for a bass preamp. I own a Tubeworks Blue Tube and an Ampeg SVP-Pro, both are tube preamps. The Sansamp claims to get those vintage tube sounds - I don't think so. The distortion sounds like a fuzzbox to me when it overdrives. I like the preamp to peak into distortion when I slap-n-pop - the Sansamp is too ratty, not as warm and punchy as real tubes and it doesn't have that natural compression of tubes.

I didn't care for the EQ either, they're not as effective as the preamps I own. The stompbox bass DI is even worse than the RBI.

Not my style, but they work for other folks namely any style other than slap-n-pop. But it gets a 3 for falsely claiming to get that vintage tube sound - not even close.

If you want a tube sound, buy a tube preamp.

If you don't want the hassle of replacing tubes and you're playing basic styles, check out the Sansamp it will do the job.

The front knobs need little explanation. All the sockets and switches on the back need some explanation. This is also meant to be a recording studio tone tweaking tool.

VERY GOOD SOUND QUALITY. Heard on many recordings. Used by more than bassists. It makes an excellent heavy metal guitar preamp as it can get very distorted and dirty if need be.

I never heard of them having reliability problems.

Good so far. They answer all your questions and help with setup issues.

I just couldn't go the real tube preamp route as they were too expensive. I didn't want future retubing issues either. More importantly, I think this preamp has more tonal range than just about any tube preamp out there at twice the price. You need to bypass the preamp section in any combo amp or amp head you use, however. The tone control sections can sometimes interact and really kill your sound. It works great into power amps like a Crown, etc. For just bass, you could buy the Bass Driver DI, but for guitar I like this better because of the midrange control and gain control on back. This also gives much more hookup versatility and a separate XLR output volume control. Classy little preamp. Worth the money, every cent.

For ease of use, this rackmount unit is very similar to the stomp box version. That is, it's very easy to dial in a good sound, and the default sound is pretty good. I bought it to do a decent simulation of a cross between an SVT and a Bassman and it does that very easily.

I use this with the power amp of an SWR SM-400S head through an Ampeg 4x10 cab. I was never satisfied with the tone I got out of the SWR preamp, and this unit really makes it sound like an SVT. (And I owned one for a while and sold it because it was too heavy, so I know what an SVT is supposed to sound like.)

It can be a bit noisier than the stomp box version (Bass Driver DI), but the output of the stomp box isn't really enough to be a preamp all on its own like this rackmount unit is. (The BDDI behaves more like a DI box than a preamp.) I'm not big on a ton of high end in my bass tone, so dialing the highs and drive down a little bit from wide open was not a big deal to me.

I suspect if you want your sound to have a lot of highs in it or like a very overdriven sound then the noise might get to you. If you're going direct into a studio sound board, you might be better off going with the stomp box version instead. However, as a preamp, the RBI is certainly the better way to go, because of the different output levels of the two units.

I played around with the recommended slap and reggae sounds, and they sound pretty nice. And of course, the SVT and bassman sounds are great.

When you power it up, you get a pretty big boom if the sound's already on. I typically power up the RBI first, then my head/power amp.

I gave it an 8 mainly because of the noise in some possible settings, but be advised that this thing does the SVT or Bassman sound very, very well. If that's all you need (as is the case with me), you'll be very happy with the sound.

I've only had it for a couple of months now, and it seems reliable enough. It's basically a solid-state preamp, so I don't expect much to go wrong with it.

Since I'm using only the power amp of my SWR head, I always have a built-in backup. However, I don't expect to ever really need it.

Never dealt with the company, so I have no opinion on this category.

I play roots music (blues, cajun, celtic), rock, funk, soul, etc. so the SVT/Bassman sounds I get out of this thing are absolutely fabulous for those styles.

I'm playing mostly a ten-year-old Fender '75 Reissue Jazz bass (with Dimarzio replacement jazz pickups and an EMG BTC preamp) through this unit, an SWR SM-400S head, and an Ampeg 4x10 cab (500W@4ohm).

I really love that I'm getting a decent SVT-like tone out of a 35-pound rackmount unit instead of the 85 pound SVT-II I lugged around for a few too many years.

I wish it were less noisy in some of the other settings, but that's a minor consideration to me, because I typically just set it and forget it. And watch out for the boom when you turn it on if you already have your power amp on.

VERY EASY TO USE RIGHT OUT OF THE BOX. THE MANUAL IS FINE, BUT YOU'LL MAINLY USE IT FOR CONNECTION OPTIONS(D.I. ETC...). CONTROLS ARE ALL STRAIGHTFORWARD.

I USE THIS UNIT WITH A QSC POWERAMP, READ TUBE PREAMP(NICE),AND A KORG TUNER THROUGH 2 BAGEND CABS. I RUN THE READ THRU ONE SIDE OF THE QSC AND THE SANSAMP THRU THE OTHER. I CAN GET THE SANSAMP TO SOUND JUST LIKE THE READ, OR HAVE EACH CAB SOUND DIFFERENT. I'VE MANAGED TO COME UP WITH SOME GREAT COMBINATIONS. I COULD'VE BOUGHT 2 OF THE SANSAMPS FOR THE SAME PRICE AS THE READ. IT'S A QUIET UNIT THAT SOUNDS GREAT(SOUNDMEN SEEM TO HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH THIS UNITS D.I.). MY BACKUP BASS IS A SPECTOR WITH PASSIVE PICKUPS AND THE SANSAMP IS REALLY USEFUL IN FATTENING PASSIVE PICKUPS. IT CAN BE NOISY(NOT MUCH) WITH THE GAIN OR THE PRESENCE KNOBS UP TO HIGH. FOR ME, IT SOUNDS GREAT. THE SALESMAN WHERE I BOUGHT IT SAID IT DIDNT HAVE THE WARM SOUND OF A MORE EXPENSIVE TUBE PREAMP, BUT THIS IS A MATTER OF TASTE AND THE QUALITY OF THE REST OF YOUR SETUP(AND HIS COMMISION).

I'VE HAD THIS UNIT FOR 2 YEARS, NEVER HAD A PROBLEM. WELL BUILT AND LIGHT.

NEVER HAD TO CALL.

I PLAY IN A BLUES-ROCK-FUNK BAND WITH HORNS AND A KEYBOARD PLAYER. THE SANSAMP IS QUIET, RELIABLE AND EASILY ADAPTABLE. I RARELY USE EFFECTS, SO I CAN'T SAY HOW THIS UNIT WOULD WORK WITH SOME OR ALOT OF EFFECTS. COMMON SENSE TELLS ME THAT IT WOULD ONLY ENHANCE ANY SETUP. FOR $300, YOU CAN'T GO WRONG. ALL IN ALL, GREAT JOB, TECH 21.

Thi sunit is so easy to use you don't even need the manual to get started.

With a 6x10 GK rig pushing 1200 watts, this piece will blow your mind. For direct or micing through cabinets you will get a great tone. It's very versatile in the range of tones you can get from it. Effects will always sound great(depending upon your tastes) but the effects themselves may require a little tweaking.

had it for over a year and have never needed anything.

Have dealt with them once and they were extremely helpful.

Overall this unit will rock for anything or any style that you play. With infinite tone and awesome sounds you could just buy it without hearing it and be very pleased

The sound that somes out is raw, and dirty, and distorted. it sounds grungy. sounds great with bass, but i can make it change to make it sound very soft and sweet sounding. very clean.

This little tool kicks. It has amazing tone for a tube emulator.
The features are pretty basic.
(Drive-Presense-Blend-Bass-Mid-Treble-XLR-Volume)
Has the active in it, which boost up bass and treble.
Sounds great with my set up.

Sturdy, enough said.

haven't called them back since i bought it. great preamp.

been playing 3 years now. perfect for any rig that wants to rock out with heavy guitars.
rackmount case 8u and a 6u
furman pl-pro 20 amp conditioner
korg DTR-1000 tuner
sansamp RBI preamp
DBX 215 EQ
DBX 166 compressor
BBE 482i sonic maximizer
Crown xs 500 power amp (1600watts bridged at 4ohms)
Avatar B410 cabinet

It's an analog tube emulation preamp. Sold as a bass preamp, but just as well used for guitar or any stringed instrument. I would have preferred round knobs, but you can go to the Rat Shack and get colored knobs of various sizes that customizes it to your taste.

OK, it can get a bit noisy when the treble is turned up, but since you'll never turn it that high without creating even worse finger noise on the strings, it's probably not an issue, especially for bassists that want to sound like bassists. You can own a truckload of tube amps, or you can own one of these 5 pound boxes. It will also emulate solid state bass amps if that's what you want, because that's what it is. If you want better, you had better think on paying more. If you want just as good sound without as much tonal range, try the BBE MAX for about the same price.

It will probably be working long after your power amp craps out. However, I did not take it apart to examine the internal build quality, but expect it to be good.

These people remind me of Yorkville Sound, which is one of the best companies in the business.

If you have a particular style, then one of the premium tube preamps at a much higher cost will be better for that particular style. If you want value and versatility, this will probably be the best you can do. This is a good preamp to compare the expensive preamps against, because if they can't beat it, you shouldn't buy it.

Simple. A couple of knobs. The only tough part is figuring out which side of the switch puts you on phantom power and which is the ground lift. Other than that, the knobs are very sensitive, both individually and to each other (think mesa: you turn one knob, you might have well just turned them all)

Fender American Deluxe P bass and Warwick Corvette Fretless 5. This thing actually kicks the shit out of the preamp in my SVT4PRO! It cant be described what it does to the tone. Clear, deep bass, and clean treble if you want. Or, if you want distortion you've come to the right place. The presence brings out so many harmonics, and the drive so effectively simulated a clipping tube power amp, that i was scared that my rig was melting down. You can basically go from victor wooten like clean, sensitive feel to the raging snarling glory of an svt that's about to explode. Beware the Kings X Preset if you have a horn loaded cab!

Seems Pretty tough and solid. I'd hate to be without it on a gig, but it seems reliable enough to use it without a backup. Spare 9 volts are a plus, though

never tried

I am truly into all styles of music, and listen to anything. This box takes me into hi fi clear land where harmonics abound and the slightest touch is picked up, all the way to a moan that sounds like satan himself. I wish it had a dedicated mid (although you can get that on the rbi) and maybe just maybe another output so i could send a colored signal to my amp and also a recorder (or additional power amp) without needing extra hasstle. If you play bass, if you play any stringed instrument, buy this! NOW!

IF NOT FOR ANY OTHER REASON, TRY THIS: I PLUGGED IT INTO MY SHITTY ROGUE 20 WATT AMP, WHICH SOUNDS LITERALLY LIKE A FARTING DUCK, AND IT BROUGHT THE TONE BACK TO LISTENABLE. ITS A MAGIC BOX I TELL YOU!
ask me any questions about this product or bass in general.

What could be easier? Turn a few knobs and get your sound.

Our bass player had a couple of these, so I borrowed one and started singing through it. I do a lot of hard rock screaming vocals, and I need something to help me get a lot of sounds for different songs, and for cool vocal hooks. The nice thing about analog knobs is that you can turn them at different speeds and vary the sounds as you are singing, for really unique sounds.

It seems very well made, especially for affordable gigworthy gear.

They were surprised that I sing through it, but they were very helpful with suggesting suitable power amps. I bought a Crown PA amp.

I sling it over my shoulder with a guitar strap and tie the strap to the two front handles. That way, I can turn the knobs while I'm singing. I always missed having an instrument on stage like the rest of the band. Now I have something that looks like an instrument, and nobody else plays one of these like I do. I changed some of the knobs to round ones so that I could turn them back and forth more quickly for better control. I use a Shure SM57 or SM58 microphone most of the time, depending on what's available. They are tough and put out enough voltage to get serious output from the unit. The power cord needs to be tied to the unit to keep it from falling out, and I had to replace mine with a longer one. I think these work much better than the digital units because of the smooth and continuous way you can turn the knobs and control the sound as you are singing. I don't think anybody has ever gotten some of the sounds that I do from this black box distortion thing.

Pretty simple analog interface . . .no complicated digital menus or anything . . just plug it in, dial the knobs, and start playing. since it doesnt have any patches or banks like most digital processors do, its a bit more difficult to recall patches and settings unless you write them down or memorize them - but i usually only use one all-around tone, so it works for me. has 2 outputs so that i can send one out to monitors and one out to recording interface. great for live and studio.

I use this mainly in the studio as a DI for recording bass, and it gets me exactly the sound i want. Its amazing to think that with only a few knobs that you can get a lot of different tones ranging from really modern metal bass tones to vintage-y tones as well. I dont think this precisely emulates other specific amps and sounds really well, but regardless, the tones from just turning a few knobs are quite exceptional and should be enough to cut any gig.

Have only had it for a month in the studio, and has not failed yet. seems very solidly built and even has 'tough' looking rack handles as if it were meant for abuse on the road.

have not had to deal with yet

I own and operate and home studio and this provides all the bass tones i could possibly need for sessions ranging from pop to metal to jazz. Overall, this ia versatile piece of equipment in terms of sound and uses and has a simple interface. I run a modified fender jazz deluxe bass straight into it and from it into my DAW. doesnt need much tweaking to get a great sound. i havent even used it live yet but i have no doubt that it will perform exceptionally there as well.

Really versatile. Easy to get a lot of different tones. Lots of features for the price.

For what you pay, this is about as good as it gets. Since it's solid state, the sound doesn't change with age as much as tube gear. Works best through clean amps rather than bass or guitar amps, since the amp tone is built into the RBI. I play mine through an old B&K 200WPC stereo power amp with the rack handles for easy transport. Works great atraight into the PA system, but I prefer a dedicated bass amp setup.

As good as you can expect for the price. Using really expensive components would up the reliability a bit, but not in relation to the increased cost. I've had mine for over 7 months, and no problems yet.

The tech rep was very helpful when I called for info before I ordered muy unit.

The best bargain in a wide ranging and rugged preamp for cover band players. A studio musician might want something a bit more high class like an Aguilar tube preamp, but the light weight and ruggedness and low maintenance nature of the RBI will appeal to a lot of working musicians as an affordable gigging preamp that gets the job done with no fuss.

Piece of cake to use. Analog, big knobs. Suggested settings provide a tutorial. I hate complicated stuff, I like this.

I bought the RBI to see if it would help me record (direct) slap tone from my wenge bodied Curbow Petite. It does. I'd tried hard to get the tone direct from my Eden WT400, can't. No amount of parametric/semiparametric eq worked. I tryed hard. I need this sound live too, so I put it after the Eden in a rack...with the uneffected out going through my fx's to a Hartke kickback 10. (the Hartke sucked at recording too) Great slap tone, and a buffered line out...helps with 60 cycle. The RBI gives me the slap tone I need (live and recorded)...and I think I can dial it in a bit better with time. I tried it with my fretless Warrior...doesn't seem to work for this, the RBI seems to kills harmonics too (chimes)...but whats good for my slap tone ain't good for my other stuff....and it's easy to turn the Sans Amp off live, and I use a second rig for reenforcing singing tones, and double/triple track recording. Slap tone works for me (but not the suggested setting, carful with it's highs)...good for hard driving rock sound too. I like what it does to the mids...lets me leave more in for my slap tone...but I think that's what kills the chimes/ fretless tone, though I might could dial that in if I had to. I'd give it a 9 or maybe a 10 for what I use it for...but it doesn't seem to be for everything. What is?

If I took a backup for everything I'd have to take a backup van. I've two other Sans Amp things, and my buddies use their stuff. I can't recall one breaking. One of my buddies can break anything...always complains stuff ain't made like it used to be. It's heavy duty.

I called and talked to a fellow named Lloyd before I bought it. Guess it helped, I bought it.

I do a solo act, singing and playing bass, record, and do bands from time to time...playing whatever. I'm into Jaco, Stanley Clark, Percy Jones, the Beatles and Sid Vicious. I have a lot of cool stuff and have been playing a long time. The important thing is the RBI gives me something I need, in a convienient package, from a reliable manufacturer.

Not much said, wont take you more than 5 minutes to figure out

For of all I bought this for my recording studio, in which I record other bands. A large amount of people that come to me have average equipment, so its up to me to either try to make there stuff sound good. Or to buy my own stuff for them to use, Ive gone with the second option, and have a large supply of Vintage amps (including Marshall mesa boogie Hiwatt and so on), also a very large supple of drums new and vintage, plus countless other instruments and amps and so on. So Ive been searching for the great all around get any sound you can imagine Bass amp. I checked them all out Ampeq, Aguilar, Eden, SWR, Ashdown, Mesa-Boogie, and so on. Looking only at there top of the line stuff usually $2,500+ in price for the head and cab. My favorite being Ampeg, and Aguilar, tracked through a $1,000+ Microphone, through either an API, Neve, or Telefunken Mic Preamp, to my 2" 24 track analog machine. Ive heard of the Sansamps, and have even used them in the past (pedal version), but never really gave them the time of day. Until a few months ago When I was tracking with a Gun's N' Roses type band. We used an American Jazz Bass, thought an Ampeg SVT-2PRO, with a 8 10 cab (I think I used a 414 and a d112 Mic on the cab but I cant remember), we also split the bass with a sansamp, when we got down to the mixing stage the sansamp sounded better than the Ampeg did. Which was sort of ironic as the bass player just dropped $2,500 for the ampeg setup at a local Guitar Center, only for the reason that we were going to use it for recording then bring it right back there for a full cash refund (don't you love guitar centers policy for the free 30 rental plan). Needless to say I was very impressed with how a $150 pedal could sound better than the $2,500 amp..... So I went out and bought a RBI for myself, brought it back to the studio for some testing plugged in an old piece of crap Mexican P bass with a bent neck that in any other circumstance sounded terrible, but to my surprise it actually sounded good. Anyways I went right back to the store where I bought the RBI from and immediately bought another one, so I could run a Bi amp set up. Let me tell you this sound completely amazing, I run the Hi's and the mids on one RBI and the low end on the other, and just run them DI right into my console. I love them it takes 5 minutes to get any sound you can think of I wouldn't trade it for anything. The one and only problem which I never need to use anyways, but some of you out there will. Is the drive, when plugged DI it sounds like a 10 dollar distortion pedal strait to a DI, well I guess you cant have everything. Regardless of this one set back I am still giving this unit a perfect 10

Never had a problem

Called them up before I bought the unit to ask some questions, and they were very helpful.

If you looking for something for the studio look no further, but remember the drive wont work correctly through a DI www.aroomstudios.com

it's got a lot of options, but anyone reasonably familiar with audio equipment will find it a cinch. it took me 5 minutes to tweak this with my 3-band active eq on my bass into a good sound. the manual gives suggestions for finding the sound of other bass rigs (ampeg, etc.) and applications (slap, distorted, etc.). the manual should be taken as just that -- a suggestion that you must then build from. it's good for getting ideas but i wouldn't use any of their pre-sets probably. the xlr output is great for clubs and recordings, so that's a plus

i have 2 basses: some peavey bass with active pickups, and a music man stingray 4. it then runs into the sansamp preamp, a carvin ht750 power amp running on bridged into an ancient sunn 6x10 cab with modern speakers (3 ampeg, 3 eminence).

it's not noisey at all to me

the eq is pretty powerful, the distortion is... eh, it's good, but it's not the end-all of distortion effects. i suspect a lot of people looking for a certain tone (overdriven ampeg specifically) will find they can't get it very well from a distortion point-of-view. they'll probably say this sucks. eh, whateva. i like it. the prescence is killer, i think. sansamp stuff usually does a good job with that

since i play modern punk, emo, alternative, whatever music, i find that this amp can't get that overdriven ampeg sound very well, but it does have a host of useable bass tones that i can't beat for the price. i don't realy need to sound like everybody else. i like it, even if it can't do everything particularly well. people who don't like at least one setting on this need to learn how to work an eq

yeah, it seems really reliable. i don't have a backup for it right now, other than a 1x15 combo i keep in case my rig breaks down. i just can't see it breaking; there's nothing on it that would be affected by something i'd do to it as long as i keep it out of constant sun exposure and water

i don't have a warranty, so *shrug*

yeah, i love it, for reasons mentioned above. just don't hold it to the high standards many people hold these to of being able to copy and rig's sound

Dialing in your desired sound is very simple and fast. The manual was informative, easy to understand, and helpful with the sample settings.

I have been succesful with acheiving awesome sound quality through my setup. I am currently running through an Alvarez 6 string bass, Ampeg B4R bass head, and an Ampeg BSE 410 HLF cabinet. I even have the SansAmp Bass Driver DI running through the effects loop on my bass head for solos and tapping licks. The only hiss coming out of my signal is typical gound loop noise. The RBI is remarkably quite. However; if hiss does come out of your signal, you may want to try turning down either the treble our the presence on the RBI. I have been able to duplicate bass sounds from Tool, Metallica, Cannibal Corpse, and Dream Theater. If your gonna use the distortion be advised that the Devil may show up.

I can depend on the RBI without hesitation, and regurlaly use it for gigs. I trust the RBI so much that I do not have a back up.

The customer support is very helpful and informative. I e-mailed them with questions concering the RBI and they surpisingly responed the same day with the ansewers to my questions.

I play in a thrash metal band but also gig with bands of different styles, and have come to the conclusion that the RBI will work with any style. After eight years of playing the RBI is a welcome and permanant addition to my bass rig. I would defintly replace it if it were stolen. I love the sound quality that is made possible through the RBI. There is nothing that I hate about it but I do love the fact that there is a dedicated mid control. I see no reason to compare it to other products; it's a SansAmp. A whole new realm of inspiration has been opened for me, and my band mates could not be happier.

very straightforward, classic (old) looking dial pots..3 band tone controls . ..dial in your tone... dial in growl with the drive pot and brightness with the presence pot.. main level out ... and xlr level out(handy) ...manual has a couple of pages of settings diagrams (kings x,funk,svt,etc) but its easy to get a feel for the thing ...now heres the only down side,... presets would have been nice ...it takes a bit of dialing to change sounds ...i suppose it has something to do with it being analog but im not sure ..

from 4 string f bass or ibanez sr 480 she splits through an A.R.T 341 e.q... ,mdc comp-limiter ... yorkville A.P.800 (monster) into fender 4x10 atop 15 stack ...bring da noise ! i hover near the svt setting(in the manual) with a little extra drive .. seems to lend itself nicely to slappy funky stuff (though i dont) or classic clean (very warm bottom) ..add some drive to the clean and watch out ...

seems pretty sturdy, my rack took a tumble off of a 5 foot stack only once and she works fine still ....a pretty nasty fall though, bounced off of some concrete onto the floor...this should be an ad for skb cases..mine gets a 10 ....

i hope i dont have to talk to them .....havent so far ......

i would buy another in a minute, heck id buy 2 if they had a preset feature.. really warm, tube-like, can sound like what you want or damn close... for that price nothing touches it ...it replaced an svt tube pre-amp and i never looked back, and who wants to mess with tubes any more when you can get this warm without em ..try one out ..if its good enough for geddy lee then its good enough for me !!

extremely easy. the tone knobs are very sensitive,which is great for adding a little more bass or alot more bass. manual is very helpful but it is doubtful you would need one.

I use this behind a korg rackmount tuner and in front of an Ampeg SVT3 pro. I already had the sansamp for my practice amp which made an incredible difference. then when I bought the awesome sounding SVT I was amazed at how much versatility the sansamp gave me. I could dial in a think tone with my ampeg that suits my Ibanez srx505 great and then dial the sansamp up for a little more added highs and mid punch (this is where have a footswitch comes in handy) I also have a 86 yamaha bb450 that is a little thin on the bottom end compared to the Ibanez, but I dont like messing with the ampeg since its set where I want it, so I'll mess with the sansamp and get more bottom end and even more clarity. the drive function is execptionaly awesome on a passive bass like the yamaha it doesn't overdrive it to the point where it just sounds bad it simply makes your bass growl with authority. I like the presence knob for the Ibanez. since it has great bottom end but lacks the highs the presence knob alows you to get more clarity on the top end without dialing in en excessive amount of treble and mid. I can also get new tones out of it faster then the ampeg but with it being run in front of the ampeg changing the tone before it gets to the ampeg and then run through the ampeg I can always get a loud and powerful tone that isn't their when you run it direct. I'm sure if you run direct you can find the tone im looking for but I have always been a fan of miking the cab.

no problems so far. use it all the time with no backup. (well I guess the ampeg is backup)

dealt with the company and they answer all your questions no problem and make helpful suggestions to boot

I play all styles for baroque Bach suites and inventions to slap funk, hard rock-metal, smooth jazz and r&b it can find the tone you for your style. I was actually thinking of getting another one to get two channels that could be mixed or setup seperate. (this would give me an insane amount of preamps active preamp on my bass, 2 sansamp preamps, the ampeg preamp and 9-band graphic EQ) only problem is I would need a bigger rack and I like the size of the four space and wouldn't want to deal with a six.

You could use it without the manual, but there are enough knobs and switches that most people would need to read the manual to understand the fine points. It's as simple as possible for the versatility it provides.

I tried to get it to sound like my Marshall bass amp, but never could get a VERY close copy. I did, however, get an approximation that was good enough. This is not a digital modeler, instead it's an analog emulator. None of the presets in the manual would sound very close to the original amps they are trying to emulate. The major point that needs to be understood is that you can get a wide range of amp tone that is very pleasing. It doesn't need to sound just like anything else. It's hard to see how anybody could fail to get great sound out of this preamp.

It looks like it should last several decades at least. These are very popular right now and should be repairable for many years to come. I expect it to become a classic bass preamp. Too soon to tell for sure.

The company is very helpful when talking on the phone. I have never sent them e-mail or had a warranty issue yet.

Even in an absolute sense, it rates a 9. It should rate a 10 for the street price you can get a new one for. I would buy a new one again for sure, but might go with the Bass Driver DI if I were just going to use it with a bass amp. I play mine through a 200 WPC high end audiophile amp and audiophile speakers in my home. I also play it through my Marshall bass amp for increased tonal capability, although the Marshall does not need it to get a good tone. The RBI just allows a wider variety of tones. If you are looking for the widest variety of tone, play it through a clean system rather than a dirty bass or guitar amp. Most good stereo systems will work well for home use as long as you don't get boneheaded with the volume control. Your stereo should never be driven into clipping. Use the drive control on the RBI for your distortion. I use a Rickenbacker 4004L bass, one of the earliest models built in 1993. It sounds fatter than the 4001 and 4003 Rick basses.

I see no need to lug around a heavy bass rig for live gigs as long as there is a good PA system for running the RBI through. The huge variety of tones possible should make this unit very attractive for musicians in a studio setting. It is great fun to practice with the RBI and conjure up different sounds to fit the mood. An ordinary bass amp just doesn't have the tonal range of this preamp.

Pretty straight forward and intuitive unit to use. Rear panel is well thought out and gives user a variety of options to integrate with other systems and gear. The manual is straight forward and simple, if none were provided, you could easily operate without one.

I'm using the RBI as my main bass pre-amp. I go straight into a bridged (600 watts@ 8 ohms) QSC 850 power amp. Then I plug both these into a Furman line conditioner to chill that 60 hz hum that clubs love to annoy musicians with.

I'm currently using the new Genz Benz XB2 410 cab with horn. My bass is a 30 year Donnell Bass with Seymour Duncan passive vintage jazz pickups. While I was waiting for RBI I was using a friend's Eden World Tour 800. I don't think a better bass rig is made for what do. I really feel in love with the Eden. However I must say I like my RBI better.

It emulates the tube thing quite convincingly. I dailed a sweet SVT sound right away with just a hint of overdrive. The only thing I change from room to room is the presence. I do agree with other reviewers, this unit has plenty of top end. So if you bass lacks in the punch department it won't once you plug into this preamp. I love the old school analog front end, but with active tone stack. I play blues, blues/rock and heavy doses of swing and jump style. I get all the fat and thunder I'm looking for. But there is plenty of snap and bite too. This is the perfect preamp for controlling your sound in a live room. I really think the 410 cab assists me from getting a muddy and mushy tone. This is the best defined and articulated tone I've had in years.

I intend to use it this fall in the studio on 3rd album.

I haven't had any problems with it at all so far. I don't use a back up. I am aware of Tech 21's customer service is pretty good. So I think if there were an issue it would be resolved quicky

See reliability...

As a American roots player, this perfect! I am not a slapper and thumper style bassists, but if you are you're going to find this to be a serious choice as a preamp. My choice for this unit was originally based on the budget I had available... the 2nd is Sans Amp's reputation. As it turned out, it was the best choice for me.

Tube amp purists can stick with there heavy heads and expensive tube maintainence, to tell the truth I couldn't tell any remarkable
difference between the two. This unit does everything Tech21 says it will. After playing and touring for 25 years... I pay more attention to the artform and less on the gear form.

Very easy to use. The manual really has "Bassman" and "SVT" settings which are a good place to start. A manual is not otherwise required but helpful.

Now the good part. Buy it. Buy it now before everyone finds out. The reason I held off for awhile on this review is because if everybody gets this thing then everybody will sound as good as me and I don't need the competition. Let me admit I haven't had experience with preamps except some single tube preamps (blue tube, Etc.) I have been playing part time pro for over 20 years. Since day one I have been put off by tubby inarticulate sound even as an amateur. I don't slap and pop. Fingers only, no pick. I use a Warwick FNA Corvette 5 string, controls flat, contour off, volume full (new strings). And then forget the bass. My big rig was not running when I got this so I found an old guitar amp (yikes) sitting around unused for practicing. Using any setting in the manual, except for turning up the bass knob on the RBI to compensate for it being a guitar amp, yeilded super solid bass tone. I was really happy because I knew this would really crank on ANY! real bass rig. If I have a soft speaker I turn up presence and drive until it bites. If a small speaker back off the same and maybe mids and voila, good tone. So now I have something I can take anywhere with ANYTHING and KNOW I will get great tone! So just to be sick I went out and bought a Hartke Kickback 10 (used) with some replacement speaker inside. I positively can't wait to get to a practice or gig with this small-butt amp and blow. I'll try to be laid back, and I've practicing saying things like, "Oh, is that O.K.? I may be out of tune." and stuff like that, and generally keep a straight face. The Hartke has a rating of 120 Watts, even into their 10 inch model. Unreal! ( I think they discontinued this model because it would kill their aluminum cone speakers.) Yes the RBI is noisey on treble. Turn treble down and crank presence or drive and it's good to go. Please hold off buying one of these so I can have a rep at least for a short while. I would rate this a 15!

N/A

N/A

Rating? If you want good SOLID, SOLID bass tone this is it, even fingers. The price isn't bad also.

10
So easy to get any, and I mean any, great sound out of this thing. It's kept me pretty busy turning knobs since I picked up a few months ago.

I run this through my Hartke in the effects loop. Without this plugged in my Hartke would sound way to weak for my tastes(extreme styles). When I plug my old PJ Spector through this, wow, it just pounds on your skull. But, in the best way possible.

Without a doubt, this thing is great. Can I say any more? As a backup, just bypass your pre-amp in the fx loop, plug it directly into the return. I used mine this way when I first got it on my Ampeg B2 when the pre-amp fried. It was probably the best equipment failure to every happen to me. The Sansamp simply blew the Ampeg out of the water. Plus, the XLR output has it's own volume knob, sound guys will love for this option alone.

Not a problem, except the footswitch is sold seperately. Kind of sucks. I doubt if I every could play without this piece of equipment every again.

Pretty basic setup. Everyone else's description pretty much sums it up. The only point of confussion for me is the "blend" knob. It blends the 'effected' signal with the 'uneffect' on. On my rig the uneffected sound is pure crap. Why the knob then?

I had been looking to find an SWR Grand Prix to replace my ailing SWR Bass 350 head. I wanted an SWR sound with a bit more power and the ability to run multiple cabs. I kept missing auctions on ebay for the Grand Prix then I found some reviews on the RBI that were just glowing. It's not exactly an SWR sound, but it does come close, especially with some tweeking and an outboard aural exciter and some slight compression. But I can also get a few other very usable sounds. I found some really nice "bluesy" tone sounds with my jazz bass and some great funky sounds with my stingray. I also love to dime out the "drive" knob and play up on the dusty frets. Nice convincing drive sound. Still looking forward to recording with it. I used the BDI on my last project and was floored by it, so I'm assuming this will be even better.

Time will tell.

Haven't talked to them yet.

I play in a Storyville/Arc Angels type band and we're playing pretty large rooms lately. Sound guys love it when you can send them a good sounding direct signal and the onstage sound is killer too. I'm running a Carvin DCM1000 power amp, and a DBX286a that has my compression and a decent aural exciter. I run a SWR Triad cab and a Goliath. If it were lost or stolen... I'd still be interested in checking out an SWR Grand Prix, but they're hard to find lately at a decent price so the RBI would probably get replaced. For $300, it really is a great unit. I'd suggest one for just about anybody looking for a range of sounds out of their preamp. It might also ad some life to dryer sounding rigs.

If you are familar with the Sansamp Bass Driver this thing should be a piece of cake...but if you are not don't worry. This was my 1st Tech 21 product and I can say getting the hang of this thing wasn't bad at all. Tried each knob to see how it affected the sound, then started dialing in what I liked. Within a short amount of time I had a very nice tone! Much easier to use than the Carvin R1000 I had!

Playing through different brands of amps like SWR, Ampeg, Crate, Peavey, and Carvin I can say I have finally found a piece of equipment that gives me "my tone." The one thing Tech 21 does best is tube emulation so you can dial in some good tube distortion on this thing...but I haven't even got past the awesome clean sounds it has to even see what the distortion sounds like.

No problems yet...only had it for about 2 weeks though. With that in mind I won't give a rating for this category.

Believe it or not, this is the 2nd RBI I've owned. The 1st one I got had to be replaced as I heard something moving around inside the unit (like a screw or something). I had contacted Tech 21 on the issue as well as Musician's Friend (which is where I purchased the RBI). MF contacted me first and said they'd send me a new one if I send the old one back...so that leaves me with the current one I've got now which apears to operate just fine. During this pocess of exchanging the "broken" RBI for a new one, Tech 21 responded (within a day or so) and seemed very friendly about the issue. I emailed em back saying that the issue had already been resolved with MF and that they were sending me a new RBI. Tech 21 was understandable throughout the whole situation.

While this is the 1st Tech 21 product I've owned I doubt it'll be the last. Like I said, it's so nice to finally have a product that can give me "my tone." I chose the RBI over some of SWR's preamps for a couple reasons: 1 being cost (SWR Interstellar Overdrive runs about $500 whereas the RBI runs around $300), the other was that many people highly recommended it...and now I see what all the fuss was about. I think SWR is probably one of the best sounding amps I've came across...but they still always lacked really good bass and warmth to me. The RBI on the other hand, covers it all, clarity (SWR-like) to the warmth and sweet bass of an Ampeg...and some thunderous overdrive in there as well. =) Versatility in tone is what the RBI offers. If it were stolen, I'd buy another one. Highly, highly recommended!!!

This is a follow-up to my previous entry on the RBI. I previously commented that the footswitch for the RBI is a ripoff at $100. It turns out that I had the FSWA footswitch (for the RBI) confused with the BFSW footswitch (3 switches on a stompbox) which is for the monstrous Landmark 600 bass head. The FSWA is only ~$25. I still feel that for what the FSWA footswitch is, the RBI's price justifies inclusion of the footswitch. As far as the comments I made about the footswitch being a complete rip-off, they still apply with the $100 BFSW. Probably even more so since it is intended for a product that on it's own costs ~$1,700 at Musician's Friend. At that price, the BFSW should be included. The following is a message I received from Tech21 in response to my first entry:
Dear JC,

Thank you for your review of our SansAmp RBI on Harmony Central and for
taking the time to elaborate your opinion in such detail.

I write only to clarify the footswitch issue. The BFSW is actually for
the
Landmark 600 bass amp head and lists for $94.95. The FSWA is an
alternating footswitch designed for the SansAmp RBI and lists for
$24.95.
I checked the Musician's Friend website, and do not see the FSWA listed
by itself or as an accessory for the SansAmp RBI (which it should be).

I am confident you will be able to rectify the situation with Musician's

Friend and get the proper footswitch for your unit.

Sincerely,

Dale Krevens
Vice President
Tech 21, Inc.
Tel: 973-777-6996
Fax: 973-777-9899

Don't get me wrong. I love Tech21! I love their products and I am always impressed by their customer service. This e-mail sent to me demonstrates that they care about communicating with and staying close to the people who will make them or break them. Let's hope they never go the way of Fender and other big entities who just don't care about their musician's anymore.

Great for inexperienced users, because it's very difficult if not impossible to get a bad sound out of this thing.

It's awesome! I took it out of the box, plugged it in, set every knob flat, and started playing. Just set flat, this thing sounds wonderful. I could even see everything flat as being one of their sample settings. Anyway, this thing makes a very wide range of sounds that all sound very good. Now, time for my critique. I have extensive experience with the SansAmp Bass Driver DI. I was very apprehensive about purchasing the RBI fearing I would be spending a lot more for it than I would on a Bass Driver DI and that there would not be any sound difference. Rackmountability alone was not enough of a reason for me. I tried many of the sample settings in the manual (all of which are very good), and many of them sounded a bit more refined than the sample settings of the Bass Driver DI. My main question was will the added mid control of the RBI make much of a difference? To my ears, the answer is yes. In many situations, I would say the difference the mid makes is subtle. It's possible that the mid control is what added a bit of refinement to the sample tones. I do feel that having the mid control makes tone shaping a bit more intuitive than tone shaping with the BDDI. If you have a great deal of experience, you may be able to manipulate the exact same tones out of the BDDI without the mid control (e.g. lower the high and low eq and raise the overall level, etc.). I'm a big Geddy Lee fan (incidently, I'm seeing him tonight in Columbus...YES!). When I am playing with my main band, I am using my own personal sound, but when I'm jamming with some fellow Rush fans, I try to copy his sound as much as possible. I am wanting to run two channels, one clean with lows and mids and one overdriven channel with mids and high-mids. I attained a fairly authentic overdrive sound with the BDDI when I pushed it with the mid-eq of my active bridge humbucker. The big question was, would the RBI get me any closer with that added mid control? The answer is a very strong YES. The RBI allows me to push more mids which are a bit more authentic to Geddy's dirty channel and it allows me to back off a little on the highs that I had on the BDDI which could be a bit obnoxious (sp?) when using the G-string. Anyway, the mid control was helpful for what I wanted to accomplish, but I could easily see it being a waste of money for other's who are looking for other tones where the mids are not a big player. I have one glaring disappointment I must mention. The RBI was fairly noisey. The BDDI was noisy until I backed my active treble down to flat. That resolved it. Even with my active eq set to flat, the RBI was noisey. Now, unlike the BDDI, the RBI is plugged into the wall and not battery powered. I live in a fairly old house and that may be a major contributing factor. Some outlets in this house don't even have grounds. If I find that this is a problem elsewhere, it's worth it to me to get a noise gate in order to keep this tone machine. I'm very happy with it. When I get another preamp for the clean lows channel I spoke of, it will probably be a BDDI because the mids will not be a big player in that sound, the BDDI gives me a very portable preamp if it's a small gig that doesn't warrant my full rack, and it's half the price of the RBI if I buy the BDDI on EBay.

Oh yeah, I forgot. I received a brand new Tech21 FSWA footswitch along with the RBI. These are almost $100 at Musician's Friend. That is an absolute rip off! There's nothing to it. It's just a black box with a switch and an LED. That's it! I'm very disappointed in Tech21 for not including the footswitch with the RBI. The price of the RBI warrants it and $100? Gimme a break! Anyway, if your interested in getting the deal I did (if they have anymore or are still offering such a deal), try www.blackrosecustom.emerchantpro.com. They were offering on EBay the RBI and the footswitch for $295

If this turns out to be like other Tech21 products, it'll be very reliable. Since I just received this unit, I won't give this category a rating.

Have always been very helpful and responsive. Just go to their website and e-mail them. Quick and honest responses. I was talked out of buying their most expensive product (the Landmark 600 - $1,200) because after describing what I wanted to do, they told me that the Landmark 600 wasn't for me. Honesty, not sell sell sell at any cost.

I just received it, so I may have a more accurate critique later on, but I was never disappointed with my friend's BDDI that I borrowed for quite some time, and I don't expect that I will be disappointed with the RBI either.

Great unit that has given me the best sound out of my bass rig ever! I am able to dial in whatever sound I want and am happy with it all. Unfortunately, I bought mine used, so I didn't get a manual. I wish I could get one for it. I'd like to look through it.

I'm playing through SWR enclosures with a QSC power amp using a Pedulla bass and the RBI just gave me just a little sweeter tone to an already great combination of gear. It can be a bit noisy, but it's very easy to control.

I haven't had it very long, but so far, it works without a hiccup. It seems like I could depend on this thing for whatever I asked from it.

I sent e-mail asking about a manual and got no response. No reply to my e-mails. I guess I'll need to call them. All I was asking is for a manual and they haven't written back. So far, the customer service is the only part I'm not happy with.

This things is giving me tone for any style I want. I play mostly rock and it's got great rock bass tone. In the 17 years I've been playing bass, the RBI has helped me find tone I can finally be happy with. I would definitely buy another one, I'm actually thinking about it to have a second one around. I have the SansAmp Bass Driver DI for recording and because I love that thing so much, I knew the RBI would give me what I needed.

Lots of knob, outputs, a few buttons. In the end it adds up to a versitile sound.

The overdrive is not "monstous" like it's advertised. It's rather weak. Turn down the tweeters on your cabinets if your gonna overdrive it or you're gonna turn up the presence and treble.

It gives a nice crunch without thes. It gives a raw sound for a clean sounding solid-state amp.

A nice SVT presence.

A little noise. If you have a parallel effects loop, perfect. Turn down the volume on the effects loop and turn up the volume on the RBI.

Don't drop it. The casing does'nt feel TOO sturdy.

Perfect to crunch your bass amp next to distorted guitar amp. It's capable of nice, clean sounds with sweet highs.

Single-and-a-half channel bass preamp. Button on the front panel to turn the SansAmp affected signal on and off without killing power, and it's footswitchable. The footswitch can also be used to toggle between units if you own more than one. Effects loop, direct 1/4" out for use most often with a tuner, XLR out to board. Inputs on front and back, with rear input sensitivity switch. Solid state, but ask anyone who's touched one -- you'd never know. The only, ONLY solid state preamp that sounds like a true tube preamp when you want it to. Front rackmount handles. There's not a feature on this thing I wish it had that it doesn't have. It looks gorgeous as well. The settings are easy to read from any point on the stage. Internal power supply means no huge adapters using space in your power strip. No patches to mess with. Manual is good for what it does, but the real beauty of this thing comes out when you just start playing around with it! No menus, no digital readouts -- just like a good amplifier.

Running through an Ibanez EDA-900 Ergodyne bass, this unit sounds absolutely perfect. The sound in my head gets translated without a problem to the sound coming out my speakers. The unit adds a good amount of treble with the presence knob anywhere over 50% and the blend all the way, so it's typically a good idea to roll back the volume/tone on your bass's piezo pickups if it has them. I'm currently running the preamp through a Peavey 2000 watt poweramp and a Carvin 4x10 cabinet. As stated above, this is the only solid state unit you'll ever hear and be totally convinced it's tube.

I have played quite a few shows with this. I have no need for a backup. The thing's built great, it's got a strong metal casing. The knobs don't fall off every time you move it. Everything is clearly labeled in the back, so even if you have a "friend" set up your stuff, there's a good chance it won't get screwed up that way, either! The most dependable unit in my rack, hands down.

Have not dealt with the company directly except through emails asking questions concerning the RBI, the PSA, and the old SansAmp Rackmount. They were quick to respond (we're talking under a day here) and they were immediately helpful, instead of going through the typical customer service runaround (you know, 'uh, I don't know, I'm forwarding your email to my supervisor'). Although it's not much to rate them on, they were indeed incredibly kind and helpful.

I play alternative rock with the band I'm in, and heavier stuff on the side. I've been playing guitar for about seven years, but bass for only six months or so. There is no chance this unit could be stolen. It's screwed into a rack case that weighs more than the speaker cabinet it rests on. However, were something to happen to it, it would be the first thing I replaced, no contest. It's impossible to pick a favorite feature when the entire unit is perfect. If you want other opinions, visit the bass forum here at Harmony Central and mention the word "SansAmp". Hell, look through these reviews. They couldn't get any better. There's a reason for that -- they're perfect, and everyone should own one.

Very straight forward - not a lot of nobs to confuse or that are worthless. Easily understood manual that even includes a list of "sample tones" in the back. This was nice to get you started but experiment with it! It will suprise you!

Holy Crap this thing sound tremendous! I am playing this through an SWR bass 750 w a Hartke 410BXL and a Hartke 1x15BXL cabinets. I currently have 2 Peavey Cirrus basses (4-string and a 5-string). One thing that the SWR was missing was the ability to emulate different tones that other bassists were using (tool, rage, etc). Well lemme tell you this, the sample "slap-tone" is dead on Tool! I mean, it's the exact tone for Schism. Also, it's so clean you have to back off some of the Highs so that you aren't hearing every slide of your fingers across the strings....anyway, words alone cannot describe this thing. Good Job Tech 21!!!

I have no opinion to give since I just got it. However, the switches and Pots (potientometers) all are solid, very clean, and smooth when turned. I don't expect to have any problems with this. Would I gig without it? Hell no! Unfortunately, I paid 300 bucks for it and can't afford a second one. If it was stolen, I would definately replace it.

Another no opinion since I've never had to contact them....

Following the list on the rating's page, I've been playing everything from Rush to Rage...I'm almost able to get Geddy's tone with this but can't since I'm not playing with a Rick. I've been playing for (OMG) 20 years. As I stated earlier, if it were stolen, I'd most definately replace it (God willing, and permission from my wife!). What do I love about it, lemme see..the fact that I'm able to dial in tones closely resembling those that other bass players use. I've yet to find anything that I hate about it..maybe that the output from the Sans Amp is located on the back, and the input for my SWR is in the front (looks sloppy!). I was looking for a decent distortion pedal and was thinking about the Boss...However, after reading the reviews on the Sans Amp bass driver DI, I decided on this one - the rackmounted version. Okay, I've been pretty much long-winded about this but it really is a very nice product (sorry for the glowing review). I've already had several bass players that I know decide on getting this unit. Also, I guess that it can't be too bad since it was on back order from AMS....

very easy to use. great manual included with diagrams of good setting. Cut to the heart of the matter controls only not a bunch of crazy junk.

now this is up to everybodies feelings. I love this unit as I finally got a rackmount bass distortion unit. Turn your bass cab(s)horn down OR off before you turn this bad momma on(~Feedback~). Overdrive sounds good. I'm still learning this unit so as of now I have no complaint and doubt I ever will.

I have depended on it many times now. There is nothing else close to this unit in its price range which works as well as it does. floor pedals are good and could get close but after breaking them and stepping on cables I wouldn't trade this unit for any other. I put it in my rack with my wireless and boom no more floor cable ! No more tripping on stage. lol

I've had no problems yet so this is a N/A question

I play metal so this unit is a great help in keeping almost all my gear in one rack for easy transport. This does have a floor pedal in/out option which works great in a studio or on stage.