Active vs Passive DI Box - Which One Should You Use?
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- čas přidán 30. 06. 2024
- DI (direct input) boxes are typically used to connect instruments to a sound system. Using a DI can provide advantages over using a microphone to pick up a instrument source.
In this video I explain the reason these interfaces are necessary, typical features, and offer tips to help you make an informed choice when selecting equipment.
See my video on the Behringer GI-100 direct box performance measurements
• Behringer GI-100 DI Bo...
Active Direct Box (Behringer) with Guitar Amp Simulator - amzn.to/3xW2Xrk
Active Direct Box (Behringer) - amzn.to/3xX25ma
Passive Direct Box (Behringer) - amzn.to/3u23GGq
Passive Direct Box (Whirlwind) - amzn.to/39YHqGq
SansAmp Bass Driver DI (DI with processing for bass guitar) - amzn.to/3u5b0B1
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a special THANK YOU for NOT having background music! very informative without distractions.
You're welcome! I agree, I've seen good videos that would be better with quieter background music. I do try to keep those production values in mind.
Prob the best DI explanation around here... thanx ! In fact, I didn't need this tutorial because... I'm a professional engineer, but I can still draw some helpful info about how to explain musicians the why's of Active/passive circuitry !
Great to hear!
Been going around the internet for a good explanation on a DI box finally found it. Thanks Barry
Thanks! Glad it helped!
most underrated youtube channel ever
Thanks!
What are the exact ratings?
What do you think they should be?
One of the best DI box explanations ever!
Glad it was helpful!
Excellent tutorial! Very well explained and articulated. Thank you Barry!
Thanks!
This is the most informative and interesting video on DI’s. Thanks for sharing this.
Glad you enjoyed it!
You, are so easy to listen to, Barry.
Great job i watched to the end and i have no more doubts about which DI box i will go for, Thanks Barry you are the best,
I appreciate that!
Great job with your explanation of DI boxes, Very informative.
Glad it was helpful!
Thank you for this free knowledge. Bless you brother
Loved your video and level of technical info. Great work.
Thanks!
Very knowledgeable! Thank you.
Thanks!
A for ever relevant vidéo! thank you Barry!
Thanks!
Excellent thorough presentation. Well done, thanks for this
Thank you! I appreciate that.
Great video....exactly what I needed! thank you Barry
Fantastic! Thanks!
This is really excellently done. Thank you.
Thanks!
Wow! Great clear explanation!
Thank you!
Glad it was helpful!
Excellent. Even I can understand because your presentation and voice are clear.
Thanks a lot!
Glad i looked at this - im getting geared up to have a kive playback rig, which I'm looking to run each playback device (including redundancy/failsafe) into a passive submixer, just to get the levels close as possible, so no volume jumps between devices.... finally into a DI box.
All these will be powered systems (mp3 player, BOSS BR800, USB audio from laptop and Alesis Samplepad pro), so most likely - a passive DI.
But yeah - glad this video exists.
You got a sub 👍
Very nice and clear explanation. Thx for helping out.
Glad it helped!
Well explained, will def b coming back 2 this
Great information. Thank you!
Thanks!
I bought me a active DI box at the moment i dnt hve a guitar amp but like you said i must tune it on the mixer to get my sound better thx for the info now i no what i must do
Yup. Usually just need to enable phantom power on the mixer channel.
Brilliant explanation, thank you.
You're very welcome!
Very educational and informative.
Thanks, i'm glad you found it to be helpful
Thank you for a very clear explanation.
Glad you liked it
Awesome video! Thank you!
Glad you liked it!
Awesome video, thank you for sharing.
Thanks for watching!
thank you Barry!
thanks brother... great video. very informative. your's is the best out there... and I did subscribe...
Thanks! I appreciate it!
This is the most complete material I've ever seen on this topic. Thank you very much for this. I have a question. I use a passive humbuckers guitar. I need to split its signal in order to reamp on computer. I understand that passive guitar mics need Phantom powering DI to strengthen the signal. I want to use a DI box, but I already have an interface providing Phantom Power in balanced mic XLR plugs. My question is : Can I use the interface Phantom Power in order to provide enough power to passive DI for my passive humbuckers?
Sure, I'd expect your interface to provide ample phantom power to operate your active DI.
Some computer interfaces provide an "instrument" switch that adjusts the gain and loading of the input so you can plug a guitar directly in, and that may work well for you (with no need for a DI box).
Alternatively you could connect your guitar to an active DI, then the output of the DI (on XLR cable) to your interface, (in mic input mode, not instrument), with phantom power engaged.
If splitting signal, my preference would be to split after the DI, or the interface, or a effect pedal, to reduce loading on the guitar itself.
Thanks!!
Thorough Explanation
Thanks!
Good stuff!
Thanks!
thank you for your time
You're welcome!
Thx for sharing. Great video tutorial about DI boxes. My Q is, can I use an XLR to 1/2 TRS cable from a DI box's out to a line level input of my sub compact mixer to preserve mic channels for mics alone, thus maximizing the mixer's overall inputs. I don't want to lug around another mixer to sub mix to the main. Thx in advance for any inputs on this matter. Happy, and safe New Year.
Yes you can with a passive DI. Most passive DI boxes are simply a transformer, so you can run them "backwards". This is not the case with an Active DI, where you must respect the input/output.
However the DI isn't designed to boost a mic level signal up to line level, so your mixer may (or may not) have the gain you need on a input intended for a line level signal. If the input signal is pretty high, for example a kick drum mic, or a signal output from a keyboard or bass guitar amp etc, you might be okay. Try it and find out...
If you do this, remember the 1/4 side is unbalanced, so try to keep that cable relatively short to avoid picking up too much stray noise/buss/hum etc.
Thank you
Good video. Thx.
Thank you! Glad you liked it!
Nice!!!!!!
Great video Barry, well explained. I’ve got a question though. I’m using a RC600 looper and the way I have it setup is that the guitars sound goes through to the amp, and the loops I produce are routed straight into my mixing board so they’re played separately. Problem is, the output seems to be lower than expected. There is volume control for loops, but I have to crank it to get any real volume. I was wondering whether a Passive DI box my elevate the signal that little that’s needed. Or any other advice would be greatly appreciated. Thx!
I think the RC600 is designed to drive a instrument amp input (hi-z), not a mixer (low-z), so I would go through a DI box into a mic input on the mixer. You may need to engage the PAD switch on the DI or mixer channel to scale the signal level. The passive DI won't boost signal level, but it might help the RC600 have the ability to drive signal into the mixer. It's possible that the load of the mixer is reducing the signal level from the RC600. An active DI may provide a little more signal level than a passive DI.
@@Barry-Watson thanks so much for the quick reply, it’s exactly what I was thinking. I’ll give it try and see if it works.
Hi - great info, thank you ! I’m just slightly worried re: plugging in an electronic keyboard to (I assume) a passive DI box, to feed up to a mixing desk. The concern is that the desk applies phantom power across all inputs so, if I connect the TS L/Line Out to a passive DI box, is the keyboard protected from that 48v? It sounds like it’s isolated but I’m wary of damaging equipment. On a shorter run, of course, I assume I can simply plug the keyboard LineOut directly into the LineIn at the mixer, but it’s the correct use of a DI box over those longer runs that I’m trying to address. Many thanks, in advance, & bless you.
Thanks! No worries, the DI box (active or passive) provides isolation, and does not pass phantom power through to the instrument.
If the instrument is powered and uses active electronics to drive the output, like a keyboard, you could probably plug it directly into a line input on the mixer if the cable run is short, and you'd be okay.
I still like the idea of using a di for isolation just in that remote case that some piece of equipment has a problem that might damage the mixers input, or conversely could cause damage to the instruments output stage. This is pretty unlikely, but when I was working with bands I was never super keen about plugging random people's equipment of unknown condition directly into my mixer without a DI.
But, ideally, and especially for longer cable runs, I would use a DI box to convert the output to a balanced signal to properly drive the mixer's preamp. This may make the mixer preamp work better, getting a proper signal plus a balanced signal will be more immune to picking up noise on longer cable runs.
Gracies amigo ❤
You are most welcome!
My guitar has a very high output passive pickup so I have to turn the gain knob all the way down on my focusrite to avoid clipping. But it's too much because it's almost zero (Around 2-3) But you said that active di box is for lower output passive source. So what will be the best option for me? I only record direct so don't need anything fancy.
Most DI boxes, and preamps (on your mixing board or interface) offer a PAD switch, which is used to reduce the gain to accommodate higher-level signal sources. So, I would probably use an active DI box with the PAD enabled, which then feeds into your Focusrite mic input preamp. This is assuming you don't have a PAD switch on your Focusrite (my Scarlett 2i4 has one). The PAD typically drops the gain by 15-20db or more, which should offer ample headroom for any sane signal levels.
Thanks Barry, useful explanations! I have a Telecaster with 6 or 7 rather standard pedals (RAT, basic Boss and MXR ones, etc.). I'm beginning to record stuff with a friend who uses a Maschine prod system. Would a good passive DI be OK given that I use powered pedals? What would be the advantage of an active DI in that case? Thanks!
Sure, since your are driving the DI input with a active device with a strong output (for example an active guitar, pedal output, keyboard etc) the DI shouldn't have much effect on instrument tone. I tend to prefer active-DIs if phantom power isn't an issue for you, but any I'd expect decent DI box should work fine. If you play a lot of shows with various bar-band level soundguys, I might opt for a passive DI just to keep things a teeny bit simpler.
There are some guitar effects that provide balanced output (typically XLR outputs), and in this case you could directly use those without the need for any DI. For example, I worked with a guy using a Line6 Pod HD500 efx board that had XLR outputs, and it was nice that I could just directly plug the lines into that source.
@@Barry-Watson thank you. Just to be sure, when you say you tend to prefer active DIs, can you elaborate on that? What are their advantages knowing that the source is active?
@@fabricedubois3060 I would expect an active DI, with it's internal line amplifier driving the cable to the mixer to be able to provide more consistent performance on long cable runs. Maybe more importantly some active DIs offer tone control, or tone modeling which may be a nice feature. But, especially coming from a source with a strong signal, I would expect any good quality DI (active or passive) to work well.
Many thanks Barry! I once knew and forgot! and now...I know again !! lol
Happy to help!
If I Have a guitar Pedalboard, which do you prefer to use? I have a cabinet simulation pedals on at the end of the pedalboard.
The pedals are active electronics, so I'd expect that you have plenty of signal and drive, and they are not too load dependent. If your pedalboard offers XLR/balanced outputs you can just connect directly, otherwise I'd expect any DI box to work well in that situation.
What about thos Palmer speaker sims? Might be other flavours out there too. Do they make your job easier?
Yeah, powersoak loads are a good way to run a real amp without creating a ton of sound. Real loudspeakers can present complicated dynamic loads, and impart a sound of their own which is hard to exactly duplicate, but I've had great results from players who use a powersoak load box to get great tone at modest level, or to provide a fat-sounding DI guitar tone.
Probably best used during winter, when you can use a little extra heat in the house.
@@Barry-Watson Thanks barry. You remind me of the guy whom held my first PA course when I was about 14. Absolute gent.
I'm wondering which type of DI box to purchase in my situation. I have an Alvarez MD60EBG acoustic guitar with active pickup. I'm going to be performing mostly small acoustic gigs with the mixer near me onstage, no long cable runs. I'm assuming a passive DI would be my best choice?
In your case I would say that either type of DI should work about equally well for you. Since your guitar has active pickups, it should be able to drive signal into any reasonable equipment without affecting instrument tone.
Generally my preference is an active di because I feel they are better able to drive long cable runs to the mixer. But, an active DI will require power in the form of batteries, or the mixer needs to have phantom power turned on on that input. If that's not an issue for you, personally I would lean in that direction.
On the other hand, a passive di is very simple, and does not require power, so that might make it slightly more failure proof or a better choice if you're going into a little mixer (like a powered mixer) that doesn't offer phantom power on the mic inputs, and you don't want to rely on batteries.
In my experience most DI boxes work pretty well and sound similar. You probably won't get dramatically better sound character by buying a extremely expensive unit, unless it offers more than just DI functions. I'd look for a quality unit that is built rugged enough to survive being kicked around on stage.
But, the bottom line is that I think either would work just about equally well for you. Good luck!
@@Barry-Watson thank you so much!
You're welcome!
I'd like to thank you for not wearing your hair in a bun like some sort of fanny bandit. I appreciate that.
Thanks! At the age of 50 I decided to stop cutting my hair.
I just let it do what it wants, and my hair has no sense of fashion.