I have a new tuner on order. It’s a genuine Peterson strobe tuner in pedal form with a big display. It’s called the StroboStomp HD and I think it’s going to be epic. Or at least as epic as a tuner can get. For one thing, it think I’m going to use it in an always-on mode where it is continually reading the pitch of my bass. You can still step on the switch to mute while tuning, but it is always tracking your pitch, muted or no.
But what about the trusty old PolyTune Mini? Be a shame to sell it. Then it hit me. I should make a mini pedal board, an alternate board, the kind you use when you don’t want to lug around the big one, or don’t need it, or have to have two rigs set up at the same time. So it would have to have a tuner, and now it does have, but what else would it need? What would be the essential stuff I’d need to survive a gig without all the bells and whistles?
Well, I could do without the C4 synth. That’s just for one song in the set right now anyway. And probably I could lose the Aftershock that I use for big overdrive. (Again, just one song usually.) If I also ditched the HPF, what’s left? A tuner, some compression, and an ampy tube sound that I now get from the YYZ pedal.
So I shopped. What’s out there that could get me most of that stuff in a single, inexpensive unit? Behold the Electro-Harmonix Battalion Bass Preamp and DI. $127 used off Reverb. I’m sure I’ll review a detailed explanation of what it does, but for now… It can take the place of my YYZ using EQ and some dirt. It can take the place of my compressor because it has a single-knob one built in. On top of that it’s a DI so I can go direct to the FOH or the mixing desk (handy if my amp does not have one or if I have no amp at all).
To ensure project success, I quick snapped up a used Gator Mini Bone pedal board. It even comes with a little bag. The seller was even bundling in a 1Spot power supply. Sold. All in, $68 shipped.