Recording your bass guitar can be tricky. You often can’t get a great amp-to-track sound without it being muddy. I like to go direct; you get a much cleaner sound that can be mixed to blend well. In this article, I go over the best bass di box for recording.
Below we put together a comparison chart of the direct boxes.
How this guide can help you is, we already did the homework and put together our top 10 for recording and live applications.
Further on, you can read specific reviews for the related DI boxes.
BEST BASS DI BOX REVIEWS
Our reviews are strictly based on overall customer satisfaction. Based on their reviews and our reviews, we put together ours in the best di box.
The boxes are priced anywhere from $30 to $300. Read further to see what we have to say about them.
THE REVIEWS
Live Wire SPDI
[easyazon_image align=”left” height=”160″ identifier=”B00172CJ9K” locale=”US” src=”http://funhomerecording.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/516Kp4fq7EL.SL160.jpg” tag=”musiclaptop-20″ width=”160″]A solid straight forward DI box for reasonable price. For around $40 dollars you could get this 4-star worthy box that will get the job done and keep on getting the job done for years after.
This is the one you want for those road gigs where you might drop them, spill beer on them or whichever. But they are also great for the church band as well. It’s a simple set-up using 1/4″ high impedance input and a balanced XLR output. Ground lift switch to reduce noise interference.
Whirlwind IMP2
[easyazon_image align=”right” height=”160″ identifier=”B0002DUQ72″ locale=”US” src=”http://funhomerecording.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/51xUfp7QsoL.SL160.jpg” tag=”musiclaptop-20″ width=”160″]This one got 4.7 stars out of 5, and here is why. It’s a great DI for a great price that is built solid from a reputable company.
When I say a DI is solid, what I mean is that it can probably take the abuse of being dropped, which is possible if you put the box on top of an amp and it vibrates off. In some boxes, you can feel the guts getting loose on the inside after a while. Not going to happen with this one, for around $40, you get that solid built DI box, with a ground lift. It also comes with a 3-year warranty and free shipping, what more could you ask for. Works well for Bass and Keyboards.
Whirlwind pcDI
[easyazon_image align=”left” height=”131″ identifier=”B0002OKGNK” locale=”US” src=”http://funhomerecording.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/417gEuUJh2L.SL160.jpg” tag=”musiclaptop-20″ width=”160″]For the musician’s or Dj’s who use a Computer to perform, or iPod, mp3, etc. This is our favorite di box dedicated to getting that great sound from your device to the PA system.
This DI may be the reason why you’re next gig will sound the way it should sound. Instead of using the standard passive DI box, this one is designed to take your stereo sound and keep it that way all the way to the mixing board with the switch of a button. Using this box is like magic, it is quite and sounds the way it sounds through your headphones. I can’t imagine having one if you use any A/V equipment.
Radial Pro DI
[easyazon_image align=”right” height=”160″ identifier=”B000A8J3N2″ locale=”US” src=”http://funhomerecording.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/516MeoGdW2BL.SL160.jpg” tag=”musiclaptop-20″ width=”160″]This one is great quality Passive Di Box. Ideal for live and studio sounds. I can’t say how many times I’ve heard people say, what a difference they could tell once they switched to this DI.
Radial makes nice products such as this one. It’s another solidly built unit that is compact. Nice for just stuffing in your gig bag. This DI uses a high-end 100 dollar Jensen Audio Transformer that is the engine that performs the impedance conversion and the isolation. It’s things like this that make this DI stand out for us. We got this one for under $100.
BEHRINGER ULTRA-DI ACTIVE
[easyazon_image align=”left” height=”155″ identifier=”B000CCSWPQ” locale=”US” src=”http://funhomerecording.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/51wIk5nwL.SL160.jpg” tag=”musiclaptop-20″ width=”160″]For under $40 and 4.8 out of 5 star reviews this Behringer ultra di is worth mentioning for sure. And here is why.
First off, we liked the body, and we liked the price. For an active di, you don’t see these at that price. So let’s go over some of the features for this Behringer.
- High-end components
- Phantom power
- Ground Switch
- Gold-plated 1/4″ TRS and XLR connectors
- Input attenuation for 50Db levels
- Ultra-flat response using Behringer OT-1 transformer
- Multi-use direct box for live or studio use
- Internal battery (automatically shuts down when you apply phantom power)
- Solid body
For the price, you get a great functioning/sounding active Di box. I would recommend this to someone who is new to DI’s or is on a budget. You can’t find another this good for the cost.
Countryman DT85
[easyazon_image align=”right” height=”140″ identifier=”B00BBVXW16″ locale=”US” src=”http://funhomerecording.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/41D9TkZD76L.SL160.jpg” tag=”musiclaptop-20″ width=”160″]The Countryman Di box gets voted often as the best di box among seasoned bass players. It sounds good on bass, acoustic guitars, and keyboards.
Somethings we noticed when using this di was that it added a bright and maybe punchy bass tone when we plugged in, I liked that. I know they advertise as if it won’t change the tone, but I noticed a difference for good.
This provides a super clean signal from your input to the mixer. However, one thing is, it doesn’t have phantom power so you will need that to use it. Otherwise, a great DI if you’re in the higher end market around $160.
Rolls DB24
[easyazon_image align=”left” height=”160″ identifier=”B001032GK8″ locale=”US” src=”http://funhomerecording.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/513VnXkLTfL.SL160.jpg” tag=”musiclaptop-20″ width=”158″]This is the Rolls DB24 that is a 2 channel completely passive DI. It can take a few different kinds of inputs, which is helpful including stereo and mono 1/4-in, stereo RCA, and stereo 1/8-in (3.5mm).
This is great for running equipment like your computer, CD players, MP3 players, Phones, DVD players, etc. They connect to the PA through this box, pretty simple to use, just plug-in and adjust a few inputs and you’re good to go.
This is a great stereo DI box. As you can see in the picture that it has a left and right gain knob to equal balance your mix. A solid body that produces a great sound, this box is in the $70 price range.
Art Dualxdirect Active Di
[easyazon_image align=”right” height=”160″ identifier=”B004EJIFHS” locale=”US” src=”http://funhomerecording.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/31Exo4LEPwL.SL160.jpg” tag=”musiclaptop-20″ width=”160″]I have been a fan of Art tube preamps for years now, so when it comes to a DI box I know they really couldn’t let me down.
This DI is a dual channel active unit. Easily connect your instrument on from the front panel using the combo socket of 1/4 inch guitar cable or XLR. The Attenuator has a ground lift and DB gain per input
The DualxDirect has a wide/flat frequency response capable of handling high signal levels. Overall this box has very clean natural sound. Nice Di for under $60.
Radial JPC
[easyazon_image align=”left” height=”160″ identifier=”B000A8J3KA” locale=”US” src=”http://funhomerecording.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/51Ms5R7K49L.SL160.jpg” tag=”musiclaptop-20″ width=”160″]If you’re a musician who makes music on your computer and also performs and records with it, this might be the DI box you’ve been looking for.
It was designed to for electronic gear and interfacing with computer sound cards. You know you get that ground loop buzz you get. Have your tied new cables, ground boxes, etc.? This is your answer to solving that problem!
This is a two-channel hybrid DI box MADE for electronics especially Computer audio.
It has multiple inputs like stereo RCA and 1/4″. It does have two channels of Phantom power as well. This di works well for isolating your sound and not picking up any interference. I know lots of happy DJ’s own this very DI.
Radial J33
[easyazon_image align=”right” height=”160″ identifier=”B000N27D78″ locale=”US” src=”http://funhomerecording.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/514tIfFub3L.SL160.jpg” tag=”musiclaptop-20″ width=”160″]The J33 makes working with vinyl records WAY better for live and studio applications. You’ll be very happy with the sound.
Do you play vinyl records or are you a DJ in some capacity that records, plays live, scratches, mixes, etc.? Then let me first start off by saying, I have a turntable, and I use this for it. Turntables and how you get the sound out are way different from back in the day. This helps give your records the preamps it needs to boost that sound.
Onto the musician side of it, yes this is a direct combination box that has a choice of balanced mic-level and -10db consumer line outs. Because of this, you can connect a record player straight to the soundboard, either live or in the studio. This gives DJ’s a better interface to getting that natural scratch sound in the mix vs. the standard mixers the DJ uses.
This box has a “rumble filter” and what that does is eliminates bass resonance. Comes with remote 48Volt phantom power or you could use a DC plug-in.
CONCLUSION
There are three types of direct boxes available. Passive, active and USB (media) DI’s. You can read our article all about direct boxes here if you aren’t sure which one suits you the best. But assuming you’ve read that article or you already know which one you need, then we can review the best bass DI box for the money.
