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Post by tonecraft on Mar 26, 2014 22:17:46 GMT -6
Jon Erickson here. I'm here to announce my new company and our product the TONECRAFT 363 Tube Direct Box-Preamplifier  "The Tonecraft 363 is the professional player’s solution for a consistently great direct sound in the studio and on the stage. The 363 has the ability to aggressively shape tones like a vintage tube amp and function as a full frequency, high performance tube direct box for musicians with an appreciation for the sounds, style and build quality of golden era equipment (50′s-70s) looking to vastly improve their 1/4″ sound. This includes electric and upright bassists, acoustic and electric guitarists, keyboard players and electronic musicians."Please feel free to ask any questions. I'm really enjoying this site! Jon Erickson www.tonecraftaudio.comjon@tonecraftaudio.com |
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Post by Johnkenn on Mar 26, 2014 23:19:03 GMT -6
Very cool, Jon! It looks amazing! I bet bass is sick through this thing...
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Post by tonecraft on Mar 26, 2014 23:39:00 GMT -6
Thanks John! Yes bass is the primary target, without a doubt. Our main signal generators were my '62 Jazz with flats and my partner Ryan's 19th century French double bass.
Jon Erickson
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Post by mobeach on Mar 27, 2014 4:37:19 GMT -6
I'll have to check them out.
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Post by henge on Mar 27, 2014 6:54:48 GMT -6
That looks gorgeous!! Price?
Edit:$1250 usd.
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Post by jcoutu1 on Mar 27, 2014 7:10:17 GMT -6
Nice looking box, but no audio samples? Hard to justify a $1200 DI without any samples.
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Post by Johnkenn on Mar 27, 2014 8:51:04 GMT -6
I believe Jon was the designer of the A-Designs Pacifica...so I have no doubt this is a fantastic piece of equipment too.
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Post by jcoutu1 on Mar 27, 2014 8:59:06 GMT -6
I believe Jon was the designer of the A-Designs Pacifica...so I have no doubt this is a fantastic piece of equipment too. Huh. So is this like a Reddi with a tone stack? |
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Post by mobeach on Mar 27, 2014 9:57:20 GMT -6
I need a raise.
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Post by tonecraft on Mar 27, 2014 13:22:17 GMT -6
Thanks for the comments and questions everybody. We're currently working on a set of samples, primarily with electric and upright bass but also with keyboards, acoustic guitar and electric guitars. In regards to the REDDI question, the answer is no. We were going for something very different and the circuitry is miles apart. My partner Ryan Feves and I are both professional bassists and have had the chance to play through just about every great D.I. and preamp out there. Back in 2000 I was playing a lot of sessions and decided I needed to invest in a box that I could use to create a personal sound, like a guitar player does with their amp or a singer does with their microphone of choice. I was sick of the luck of the draw D.I. at whatever studio I happened to be working at. I bought an Evil Twin. It wasn't cheap at $900 but it gave me a huge sound that I could rely on and engineers and artists were always happy. Now the Evil Twin sound is great but like a lot of boxes, essentially has a single clean sound so I would run my '66 B15 on a second track and we blend the tones to get a little more amp grit out of the unit. Over the years I found myself desiring a box that could somehow do both. We started down the design path testing out a lot of classic circuits but ended up landing on a hybrid of studio D.I. and preamplifier that tooks notes from all over the place including studio gear, hi-fi and tube amplifiers. We implemented a James-Baxandall EQ like you would see on a vintage amp but implemented a bit more carefully like you would see in a studio box. There is 40db of clean gain (and quite a few more crunchy dbs) with +22db output so no mic pre is needed. There are dual outputs so it can be used a stage preamplifier and FOH feed. Having great bassists use this live has been very exciting and one of the common compliments we receive is how responsive and fun the box is to play through. Its a pleasure answering questions so please ask away! Jon Erickson jon@tonecraftaudio.com www.tonecraftaudio.com |
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Post by jcoutu1 on Mar 27, 2014 13:53:19 GMT -6
I imagine that the "Thru" on the front passes unaffected signal so that you can use this as a more traditional DI? Tone controls for the send to the control room and the thru to an amp for the amps tone?
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Post by tonecraft on Mar 27, 2014 15:43:58 GMT -6
I imagine that the "Thru" on the front passes unaffected signal so that you can use this as a more traditional DI? Tone controls for the send to the control room and the thru to an amp for the amps tone? Exactly, the Thru works in the conventional way feeding an amp. You can also use one of the outputs instead of the thru to feed the amp using the power amp input/effects return. This lets the 363 become the amplifier's preamp. Its perfect for backline amps with good power but so-so sounding preamp sections. Since there are dual isolated outputs, the second output feeds FOH. |
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Post by jcoutu1 on Mar 27, 2014 15:46:57 GMT -6
I imagine that the "Thru" on the front passes unaffected signal so that you can use this as a more traditional DI? Tone controls for the send to the control room and the thru to an amp for the amps tone? Exactly, the Thru works in the conventional way feeding an amp. You can also use one of the outputs instead of the thru to feed the amp using the power amp input/effects return. This lets the 363 become the amplifier's preamp. Its perfect for backline amps with good power but so-so sounding preamp sections. Since there are dual isolated outputs, the second output feeds FOH. I saw the picture feeding the Solid State SVT in that fashion. Can you get different levels of drive with the two rear outputs? IE using the tone stack to feed a clean signal and a dirty to the daw? Breakup is similar to a B15? |
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Post by tonecraft on Mar 27, 2014 15:53:57 GMT -6
The two outputs are identical in tone since they are coming from the same output transformer. The overdrive characteristics can be very close to a B15, but can also be more extreme. The volume(gain) and output controls can be balanced for clean>dirty in same way you would with a master volume amp.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 27, 2014 16:40:23 GMT -6
Yikes it sure looks like a cool product, 1250 though.
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Post by Johnkenn on Mar 27, 2014 18:51:51 GMT -6
If you're a serious bass player, that's pocket chain for a serious tone...
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Post by tonecraft on Mar 27, 2014 19:04:53 GMT -6
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Post by jcoutu1 on Mar 27, 2014 19:13:25 GMT -6
A handful of the pros that come through my venue are using Walter Woods amps, which go for $3200 or something. At $1250, this DI/pre isn't cheap, and is our of reach for most players, but I don't think it's outrageous if it sounds as described. |
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Post by tonecraft on Mar 27, 2014 19:21:00 GMT -6
My partner Ryan has a Walter Woods, so that was always in the comparison mix. He now just uses the WW for the power section. We're selling to some great upright bassists that are really digging it...probably some guys that have been through your club.
Time to get some samples together.
Jon Erickson
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Post by Johnkenn on Mar 27, 2014 20:50:08 GMT -6
yeah - love to hear some samples...
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Post by nico on Apr 1, 2014 16:01:53 GMT -6
Hi Jon, your product looks awesome, sturdy, inside & out, congrats!
Question: you say it might be good for upright bass: do you mean in concert or in studio as well?
Recording quite a bit of jazz ensembles here, and almost always try to avoid the DI, is your product in some way an upright bass_pickup enhancer, in other words, could it make the DI sound of the typical nasal highmid sound rounder and more useable without heaps of postprocessing?
Can't wait to hear samples!
regards, Nico
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Post by tonecraft on Apr 2, 2014 19:13:57 GMT -6
Question: you say it might be good for upright bass: do you mean in concert or in studio as well? Recording quite a bit of jazz ensembles here, and almost always try to avoid the DI, is your product in some way an upright bass_pickup enhancer, in other words, could it make the DI sound of the typical nasal highmid sound rounder and more useable without heaps of postprocessing? Nico, The 363 works great for both concert and studio. My design partner Ryan Feves is a world class upright player that is obsessive about his bass sound. He plays a 19th century French Bass with either a David Gage Realist or the Fishman Full Circle and getting a natural direct sound out of the upright was a primary goal. Many of our first users have been upright players. It was even used in a symphonic setting for an electrified upright piece with the Pacific Symphony here in southern California. |
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Post by nico on Apr 3, 2014 4:29:39 GMT -6
Hi Jon, impressive! thanks for the info  |
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Post by wiz on Apr 3, 2014 5:19:42 GMT -6
That is art ! Really beautiful.
Send one to australia and I will demo it for you 8)
Cheers
Wiz
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Post by tonecraft on Apr 3, 2014 19:04:47 GMT -6
That is art ! Really beautiful. Send one to australia and I will demo it for you 8) Cheers Wiz Thanks Wiz! |
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