Quick questions about DI/Re-amp box (Little Labs Redeye 3D)

[ilikegrindcore]

Hey folks

I have some quick questions about the DI/Re-amp box known as the Little Labs Redeye 3D.

I want to buy this DI in conjunction with a Line 6 POD HD Desktop. I want to establish the following signal chain

Guitar -> LL Redeye -> XLR into Focusrite Saffie Pro 40 (recording dry signal)
Guitar -> LL Redeye -> 1/4" into POD HD -> 1/4" into Saffie Pro 40 (recording wet signal)

This signal chain will allow me to record both a dry and wet signals at the same time. Now, I'm aware that I could also record the dry signal through the POD's SPDIF output and the wet signal through the POD's 1/4" output at the same time into the Saffire Pro 40. However...

1) Will the Saffire Pro 40 be able to handle this? In the Saffire's MixControl you can either select SPDIF or Internal as the Sync source. Would it be possible to record both the dry and wet signal at the same time without any sync issues? I've read about some users having sync issues when using SPDIF with Macs (but i have Windows 7), see
http://line6.com/support/message/363016#363016
http://line6.com/support/thread/76924

This thread, however, shoots down the necessity of having a DI
http://line6.com/support/message/389702#389702

So if I can record dry signal using SPDIF and wet signal using the Saffire's mic pres, do I even need the DI?

2) Will there be a loss in dry signal fidelity as a result of running it through and recording it from SPDIF output of the POD?

3) Would I get a higher fidelity signal (esp for recording bass) by using the DI as opposed to plugging straight into the Saffire's preamps? This is what gets me concerned;

The DI plays a HUGE role in the sound of the bass. The difference between my UA 610, GAP Pre-73, and stock RME instrument input is quite unbelievable to be honest. The UA is smooth, tubby, and almost synth-like, whereas the pre-73 is incredibly honky and agressive, while the RME ins. in is pretty lifeless and lame... but not as crappy as the Sansamp.

The Sansamp really just ruins the DI even when using the DI Thru on it. Actually, it completely destroys the DI in all aspects. I hated it so much, I sent it back and haven't missed it. If you want the sansamp sound, you should reamp later with it - don't track through it.

4) The POD HD has a high impedance headphone output (for good sound they call for a pro headset with an impedance of 150-600 ohms). Could I plug this headphone output into the high impedance input of the LL Redeye 3D, then plug some headphones into the low impedance output (e.g. XLR) of the Redeye, to listen to my playing? This would avoid the necessity of having to buy high impedance headphones if I want to use the POD with headphones.

Well I think that's all of my questions. Essentially I'm trying to determine what kind of utility I would gain from the purchase of a LL Redeye 3D. Let me know. Thanks!

 

[MarcusGHedwig]

I'm really confused by your setup, but more importantly why would you buy a Pod? TSE X50 and Lecto are the greatest ampsims I've ever used (I like 'em through Greg's ASEM impulse), nothing on the Pod can come close, so I vote Guitar -> Redeye 3D (or Countryman Type 85 to save some money if you don't need to re-amp) -> Saffire -> ampsims/impulses

 

[ilikegrindcore]

I'm well aware of the killer amp sims out there - and I will probably end up using them, that's why I'm interested in recording the dry signal. But the POD would allow me to just dial in a semi-decent tone and get to work... Then I could track the dry and wet signal at the same time, with no delay when monitoring the wet signal as it is processed by the POD's CPU and not the PC CPU. I find that by the time VST sims have been dialed in to sound right, there tends to be some latency while tracking due to the TS808, Amp, EQs etc being used which tend to hog the PC CPU cycles = increased latency. And this is the that bothers me most about VSTs; as powerful as some people can make them sound, it seems that more time is spent tweaking them, and not playing.

The POD has other advantages that I favor, such as effects (I know about VST effects, but again, downloading plugins, tweaking tweaking tweaking takes away from playing time) and the ability to just plug in and play without having to turn on the PC.

I've read up on some other threads that say as far as the Focusrite Saffire Pro 40 is concerned, a DI will not bring much due to the high quality of the instrument preamps in the Saffire, and there's even a video on youtube of re-amping through the Saffire Pro 40 without the use of a reamp box. Go figure.

 

[MarcusGHedwig]

I hear ya on wanting to "plug in and go" and not tweak endlessly, but that's where willpower comes in I have my presets that I always use in Reaper, just like I did on my old Podxt (which, by the way, was quite awful for raw DI tracks, so be warned), and the latency using plugins shouldn't be any more than what your buffer size is set for - in my case it's 128 samples (the lowest my computer can handle), which is quick enough for me, though I'd of course prefer lower, which is possible with a faster CPU.

However, the Pod, being digital, naturally has to have latency as well, and I would be surprised if its CPU could handle latency any lower than 128 samples; the FX is a valid point though. I gotta say though, from my extensive comparing of DI boxes (and a few inst ins) I very much doubt the Saffire's inst in will be as good as a Redeye 3D or Type 85, but it'll probably get you like 85-90% there (the real differences I've found come in brightness and a more "alive," dynamic feeling)

 

[MarcusGHedwig]

And I really would not sweat the "high impedance headphones" bit, they all should work

 

[006]

I would not use the/any POD for DI. Use a dedicated DI box.

My setup is guitar/bass > Countryman 85 > 1) podxt pro > interface (for monitoring) / 2) XLR out > interface (to record DI).

 

[ilikegrindcore]

I gotta say though, from my extensive comparing of DI boxes (and a few inst ins) I very much doubt the Saffire's inst in will be as good as a Redeye 3D or Type 85, but it'll probably get you like 85-90% there (the real differences I've found come in brightness and a more "alive," dynamic feeling)

There's this thread that mentions Saffire Pro 40 users selling their DI boxes because they couldn't tell the difference between using the Saffire's instrument inputs and a DI box.

http://www.ultimatemetal.com/forum/backline/705539-saffire-pro-40-di-box.html

So I take it the Redeye is unnecessary in my case? I'm not even sure how much I'll be reamping in the future, but I guess it'd be lovely to have that option. And let's say the POD's not worth my time, are there any other investments you would recommend in the $400 range for home recording?