Darkglass B7K Ultra Review
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 21 ก.ค. 2024
- With all the hype & intrigue surrounding Darkglass, I had to see what everyone was talking about. Here's what I think of their new flagship pedal.
The background song is a cover I made of Travi$ Scott's "Apple Pie"
Gear list:
-2006 Warwick Corvette Standard (originally burgundy red oil finished, but that has since been removed by a previous owner)
-Darkglass B7K Ultra (split out into both Carvin & 18i20)
-Carvin BX1500
-Eden D410XLT
-Sennheiser MD421-U5 (miking the cab)
-Audio-Technica AT3035 (for voice)
-Focusrite Scarlett 18i20
-Cockos Reaper (as my DAW)
-Canon T3i (primary)
-Sigma 20mm f/1.8 lens
-Motorola Droid Turbo (foot cam)
-Sony Movie Studio Platinum (for video editing) - เพลง
![ตีสิบเดย์ [FULL] | คู่รักแซฟฟิก "หลิงหลิง - ออม" จากซีรีย์ "ใจซ่อนรัก"](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/zs8AfphGn2w/mqdefault.jpg)
Dude, that was an awesome review. I appreciate your clearing up the details on how this thing works. FWIW, I think your criticism is entirely valid.
Something I've noticed from watching reviews and demos is that the B7K imparts some characteristics on the bass that don't always jump out at you when it's solo'd, but in a mix those qualities shine through and it makes a big difference.
+5 points for Karnivool!
Best pedal run through I have ever seen on here!
one of the best reviews ive ever watched. cheers man. great tracks you demo'd with too. Swanny!!!! what a legend
amazing review that answers all my questions! thank you for posting this
very pro review Mitch, congrats!!!
Thanks for pointing out some of the flaws (especially that clean/distorted channel difference). I'm a huge fan of Darkglass products, but it is so refreshing to see a review like this where some actual shortcomings are pointed out.
Great review. Really refreshing to see an unbiased review on an expensive product. It is easy to buy a new shiny toy and only see it for its positives. Keep up the solid subjective reviews.
It's like this guy actually paid for the pedal instead of just getting it for free and being inclined to say only positive things about it
This is a great review dude. I picked up one of these and just wanted to see what other people were saying, and I agree 100% about your gripes regarding the attack/grunt switches, as well as how you have to choose between distortion and clean for the EQ settings. I've solved the clean/distortion issue by running the B7k out into my SansAmp and using that for cleans, then bypassing the SansAmp when I want to use distortion, but it sucks that you can't get two equal sounds out of one pedal.
Very well done review man. You have a new subscriber! I've been trying to decide between the b7k, b7k ultra and fulltone fulldrive 2. This review really helped!
Unreal review man
This was actually a really good, detailed review. Well done, especially with those nitpicky observations!
I don't usually comment, but when I do, it's a video this quality! You're going far, heed my words.
To me it is very important to know such "nitpicky" obsevations... for such an expensive piece of gear the knobs should really be placed so they turn equaly to the left and to the right... now I'm wondering... is it just that the knobs are placed imprecisely on the pots, or are the pots unbalanced... if you know what I mean. this B7K ultra should have totally flat sound with knobs at 12:00. so, do you get "flat" sound with all knobs at 12:00 or is "flat" with all knobs at cca 11:00 then?
Hey dude, just wanted to say I dig the channel! Absolutely killer playing both in the vids and in Beyond The Woods! Our playing styles are similar, and your tones are awesome. Also great pedal review, I personally use one on my pedalboard and love it. Keep up the good work!
Good job brother, I like how you point out the design flaws, Darkglass should listen to you
Thank you for your kindly review!
Brilliantly done, thanks!
Great review Mitch! You addressed my main concern regarding the ultra. I was afraid that the eq would change characteristics when switching between clean and distortion. I think I'll be sticking with my B7K for now.
Very nice sounding bro!
Great review!
nice review thanks Mitch
Hey, man.
Awesome review! Awesome design nitpicking!
I use good ole' p-bass and found I like the sound best with low-mids, high-mids and treble at 9 o'clock. With this setting switch between distorted and clean sounds nice and gets the effect I want.
otoh, following your review I realize how those low and high mid selectors are supposed to work...
Very helpful review, especially noting some of the layout inconsistencies. Wonder if there's something in the guts of the pedal that necessitated them putting the attack and grunt switches where they did.
He did a good job playing devil's advocate. Dark glass is so popular now, that it's good to see some of the drawbacks. But on the other hand, I am using a MXR di 80
I actually only wanted a distortion with extended tone controls (using a Tech 21 dp-3X as the main/clean), and am actually relieved that the EQ applies to both settings, as I'll be leaving the distortion on, and bypassing the whole pedal when I want a clean tone - this review helped sort that out for me.
Good review. Made obvious my biggest concern about getting the ultra. That even though the dirt can be added that you can't really get the most ideal clean and dirty tone with the same eq setting.
Nice review! Definitely answered the questions I have prior to checking it out for myself. Also, I found it funny that we have close to the same rig, except my bass is the 5 string version and my cab is the 2x10! Lol! (I use the Warwick WA300 head though.)
Great review. I don't think I'll have a problem with clean tone vs dirt tone, but it is worth mentioning. It seems like darkglass should release a eq pedal. I'm considering the ultra so I could use my fuzz with the eq section.
thank you so much man!
Nice playing
u playin Karnivool made me instantly like this video ;)
Excellent review. I also don't understand why the tone changes so much when the distortion is engaged. Defeats the purpose of having the ability to turn it on and off. You can only use this pedal with the distortion on tone or off tone.
Great review. What is the riff you're playing at 50seconds in?
Hi mitch, first of all i wanted to say that this review was flawless. I live in argentina and things over here are pretty expensive so i might be pretty conscious before i get some new gear. So, a used b7k (standard) runs about 440Usd, the sans amp vtbass DI used is about 250usd. And those are my primary options since i do not like much the standard sans amp BDDI. What would your recomend me? It will be my primarly bass preamp for my studio. I know you spit the truth so i wanted your opinion, the b7k is pretty tempting and i am leaning toward for it. Hope you red this before i bought something. Cheers
Hi Mitch, what's your opinion on the alpha omega ultra and the microtubes X ultra. Would be great to see you review them.
Hi Mitch, with the new Alpha Omega Ultra out, would you be in position to give the AOU a review and possibly an honest comparison to the B7K Ultra or your personal favourite bass distortion pedal.
Waiting in anticipation...
Thx
I second this
I was considering replacing the SCR DI with the B7K Ultra, but not sure I don't have the better and cheaper preamp. what are your thoughts about that?
Hi Mitch! It seems like our plugin has amended the main gripe you had with the B7K Ultra pedal. If you’d like to check it out just let me know.
I'd love to! Been meaning to try it out, and I'd be happy to make a video on it
What're your thoughts on just pairing b3k and b7k instead? I think this video definitely helped me feel confident that having those two pedals instead of the ultra is a better choice! Great video.
+Jimmy McClanahan Thanks man, glad I could help!
I can't speak from personal experience, since this is the first Darkglass I've ever owned or played through, but I'm pretty sure the Ultra was made in response to people doing just that (pairing the B3K with a B7K.) For one, the Ultra is MUCH cheaper (by about $200) and saves space over having two pedals, plus you can select which midrange bands you want to cut or boost. To me, that makes the Ultra worth it. That's totally up to you though. I've never used a B7K and a B3K together so I'm not sure if there's some sort of magic that happens there or what haha
+Jimmy McClanahan There is a darkglass you tube clip that shows all of the darkglass products being paired it does have the B3K & B7K paired and you can hear the effect - it also covers the darkglass Vintage as well - Synergy - Pedal mixing Demo by Jyri Helko
Thank you for actually talking about the negatives. There's a cult following behind Darkglass so you rarely hear about any issues in reviews. For the asking price you have every right to nitpick.
How do you think this compares to the Ampeg SCR-DI? The Scrambler circuit seems to be more of an extension of the EQ component, unlike the B7K Ultra, where you indicate that the Distortion does not seem to be an extension of the EQ, but has it's own sound.
I don't know personally, I have no experience with the SCR-DI. A while back I was considering picking one up and making a comparison video, but I decided against it. I instead made one between the B7KU and the Two Notes Le Bass, since they seem like more direct competitors in my view.
Great review, and I think the most honest. I was considering replacing the SCR DI with the B7K Ultra, but after viewing the video you made, and your points, I'm not sure that I don't have the better and cheaper preamp.
I do completely understand your point about the EQ. not trying to justify but it would be one messy pedal if you had seperate eq's and the appeal is more mid shaping possibilities so sacrificing control options to have seperate eq's is not an option. the thing about the attack/grunt swithes with the different positions is kinda stupid ye.
How this pedal will sound with my Ibanez SR 505 BM 5 stings bass? You think the pedal worth it ?
I currently use the Darkglass Alpha Omega Ultra on an Ibanez BTB455QM. With the Bart MK1s, and the vari-mid 3 eq. The tone shaping potential is phenomenal. Though, I am using it with the gain always on, but very low gain settings. I am always reluctant to drop serious money on gear, when I can get reasonably comparable quality for significantly less. I would buy another in a heartbeat, and probably will.
I think you're absolutely right about the product it's way overpriced though the knobs the placement does that make any sense at all
what are you using to edit your videos . im a noob
Great review, my only gripe is that as you mentioned, your bass is super midrangy (I have a similar warwick) which can lead to some sound bias as midrangy basses tend to play better with distortion pedals than other basses. Is this pedals distortion too overbearing to be used as a subtle accent, can it be dialed in like that or is it really all or nothing when you activate distortion? Have you played around with the aguilar agro? I've seen some agro demos where it seems like a subtle distortion color can be dialed in that doesn't completely take over the basses original personality (thats what im going for, a distortion pedal that adds a little bite and attitude to my original sound). Also I agree with the knob issues you mentioned, for $400 this pedal should come with a butler.
+F ab I think the distortion alone is so aggressively voiced that the personality of your particular bass sort of gets lost, but I think that's why a lot of people like blending in the dry signal with the B7K. The B7K is capable of more "tame" tones, but they're still voiced differently from the natural bass' sound.
I've never tried an Aguilar Agro, so I can't comment. Perhaps the Darkglass Vintage Deluxe would be up your alley? Haven't played through one yet, but it sounds like that could fit the bill.
+Mitch Baker Its a tough choice, I do think the EQ on the ultra B7K sounds incredible. The vintage deluxe sounds great but $400 is a lot of quiche for just a distortion pedal. At that price range id expect to get both a kickass DI/preamp and a distortion/drive combo. I guess ill have to demo in person, thanks for the feedback!
+Mitch Baker Btw, have you used a one spot 9v adapter on this pedal, just wondering if it plays nice with it and doesn't introduce additional noise.
+F ab In my most recent video I used a One Spot extender cable to power the B7K Ultra and an ABY pedal, but not the One Spot adapter. I didn't notice any additional noise; this pedal doesn't have an unusually high mA draw so you should be OK.
You mension the EQ affects both clean and overdrive channels, but I don't think that is the case, at least on the b7k. The EQ section is tied to overdrive section only and it's post overdrive I want to believe.
Nope, the EQ definitely affects both channels. You can hear the EQ being kicked in on the clean channel at 4:30.
I understand, but your blend knob is at 12. The way to test would be position the blend on the clean position only and activate the EQ and see what happens. Blend being at twelve will always have the overdrive section of the circuit being affected by the EQ. Could you test it and let us know? I've contacted DG because I'm curious about that anyway. Cheers
The blend knob only works on the distortion channel, and it blends in completely unaffected dry signal with the distortion. When the right footswitch is engaged, only the 4 EQ knobs and the master volume are in effect. I go over this at 1:24.
EDIT: Essentially that means you can't blend in dry signal on the clean channel, you can only do that on the distortion side. The blend knob was at noon because that's how I had it set on the previous tone, it has no effect on the clean channel.
Finally, an objective review. You need to be picky, especially with Darkglass, at least due to the fact that they indeed have set very high standards for the whole bass pedal segment. It seems like just nobody gets it right but Darkglass. With that said, the awesomeness of these pedals got the heavy bass player community a little bit blind and biased, so we can let them get away with minor inconveniences. Which is not necessarily a right thing.
Hi man, amazing review! I have a 5 strings fretless bass and i'm searching a good preamp pedal to go out directly with DI, skipping the amp. Do you think this is a good one for that job? Thank you
Well in live situation if you are having trouble with hi mid toggle switch then simply put it in middle as neutral. Control hi mid rather than keep it all way down. I'm basically trying to say use this pedal as B7k and B3k separately but at the same time. Dial the clean and distorted tone separately. Use it as two in one pedal only for live situation. You can't give negative review by using so called mid rangy bass and that frequency! Try different bass and explore more!
Do you seriously have the two mid knobs to zero all the time? Good luck with the band...
+Alex Barner With a bass this midrangey, yes. Dial in tones using your ears, not your eyes :)
Given that the high and low mids are adjustable at 3 different freq's...i mean.
@@MitchBakerMusicI play a fender pbass religiously with flat wounds and these switchable mids are incredible, best pre amp I’ve ever used. You’re right it’s all about your ear… so well said brother 👍🏻
sansamp with a muff... or like me a programmable sansamp and a deluxe muff
A bit picky, but good stuff anyway :)
this isn't an accurate representation of what this pedal can do. my main issue is you completely disregarded the both mid frequencies throughout the whole video! and that is where this pedal really shines in mine and many others opinion.
I can see where you're coming from, but I scooped out the mids completely because the particular bass I'm using has a LOT of midrange to it. You can hear that when all the knobs are at noon. So I took out the mids. However, just because I didn't boost the mids at all doesn't mean I'm not using them, because cutting uses the mid knobs just as much as boosting does. As I said in the video, it's all dependent on your tastes and the gear you're using.
darkglass emphasizes that mid range is of great importance for company's production. It's illogical to cut all the mids. Bass is not only about treble and bass, mate
The bass I use is very very midrangey, so I like to cut that much. Doesn't matter how it looks, it matters how it sounds.
Then I would say that your review is not the best representation of the pedal, as few people are likely to use a bass as midrangey as yours. The pedal is fantastic sounding on all three basses I've used with it, both clean and distorted, so I think the whole "two channels sharing an eq" criticism is misleading, and a criticism of your bass itself is more warranted than one of the pedal. My humble recommendation for future reviews would be to use a more neutral bass so that people aren't inherently discouraged from buying it because of your choice of bass.
That said, please, keep being appropriately critical of the gear you review, we appreciate the honesty. Just let it be a fair honesty.
Егор Детинов Actually this review is extremely pertinent for people using mid-rangey basses, like the Musicman Stingray / Sterling for example. These basses and the entire darkglass family definitely don't mix easily.
Can hardly agree with you. Really like how my MM Sterling sounds with B7k Ultra, and I do not cut mids on the pedal, i cut them 1/2 on the bass.
The fact that you have to cut the mids by a half, which is a lot, means that the darkglass and the MM Sterling do not mix well. Also, what's the point of cutting mid range output at the bass preamp just to raise them over again with the DG? It doesn't even make sense.