Noble DI: Is It Worth the Hype? | Review after 3 years of use

Taking a look at the Noble Amps DI.
nobleamps.com
All thoughts & opinions shown in this video are mine.
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► Neural DSP Quad Cortex
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► Sony 28mm 2.0
► Shure SM7b
► SE Electronics SE4 Small Diaphragm Condenser Mic
► Logic Pro X

[@MarcAntoineForget]

Worth the Hype? At that price no unfortunately. I've had one for a couple of years. Amazing product, well made and everything. But what bothered me the most is the over-exagerated hype on social media. Yes putting Noble in your post will give you more views!! It's good but wasn't mind blown! I eventually sold it because I found the Noble too boomy on a flat EQ and the bass boost frequency was too large, which did not work in every musical context. I got a Demeter Tube DI box for about 300$ US used and never looked back! Same « sparkle » and « wide » harmonics... Just my two cents. Buy it used to try it out and see for yourself. Before dropping that kind of money try a REDDI, Demeter etc... But in the end the Noble DI MIGHT work on your setup ! ;)

[@leandrohrb]

damn I thought I was getting deaf before reading your comment

[@kevmac1230]

Those are kinda expensive also,no?

[@JB-zg1ub]

Virtually indistinguishable in the mix.

[@minibuns5397]

Thank you for all your efforts. The Noble is nice piece of kit. I’m just not hearing a massive benefit at all.

[@IvanBassist]

To each his own :)

[@Brink1957]

For anyone who doesn’t like the price or long wait for the Noble, I very much recommend the Rheingold BP-2 bass preamp. They’re hand built to order in Germany and I’m very pleased with mine.

[@shapa-47]

I agree, to be honest, the price is too high for Nobleamps, for less money you can take Avalon u5, it sounds no worse, besides, such a Nobleamps preamp is more for recording in the studio, few people will hear its noble sound at a concert!

[@romulomc]

@@shapa-47 they will hear a clean, thick and defined bass sound that Noble deliver.

[@shapa-47]

@@romulomc Musicians with extensive experience in the studio may be heard, but the townsfolk are not!

[@IvanBassist]

Have also heard great things about it!

[@IvanBassist]

The difference being that the u5 weighs 5.4kg and it’s pretty bulky. I wouldn’t want to carry that to a gig unless it’s in a rack.

[@HondoFelder]

100% agreed with everything you're saying here. The feel and harmonics are what make a difference (and a much bigger one than most people think once you include performance), but it's sooooo hard to show that over youtube. Had the same problem with my monique video hahah. Well done brotha!

[@IvanBassist]

Hey Hondo! I know. These nuances are very hard to show 😩 I’ve played through a monique a couple of times and it’s also an amazing piece of gear! Happy new year my friend!

[@Bibblebabbler]

End of the day it’s bass and nobody cares about the bass tone but us bass heads. I’m starting a pre amp di aaa rehab for us bass heads.

[@HondoFelder]

@@Bibblebabbler good call. We need it lol

[@vendettawarcrime]

I’d say the Simone is a better value unit if one is going for that valve sound due to the flexible eq, transformer on the DI and the drive/sensitivity controls. I noticed the difference immediately from using my amp then plugging the Simone into the amp. It was like the bandwidth opened up and the quality of the sound increased. Sure no one cares it’s just the bass but the thing which I think is often overlooked is how we feel using this gear. Playing more confidently or with added swagger because we like the feel is no different than having a favourite pair of jeans/shoes/underwear or when we get a new haircut or have a hot shower. It’s about the feeling we get not about what other folks will or won’t hear.

[@Ralferator]

If you can't hear it, what is it good for?

[@chriscuthbertson]

That Emperor sure has some fancy clothes.

[@IvanBassist]

😂

[@pidong]

i was about to say the same thing... the emperor has no clothes!

[@okaight7248]

The noble sounds a lot tighter in what sounds like really muddy frequencies with just the interface. It’s much more of a defined note. It has closer to that nice rubber band bass sound

[@EricT43]

That G&L sounds fantasic!

[@IvanBassist]

Yes! It’s a great bass :)

[@philmil6597]

Merci! Belle video. Je ne suis pas convaincu par le Noble. Tres peu de difference pour moi entre le direct et le Noble.

[@bwgiddens]

Hey! I’m sure you probably won’t see this, but I use your Noble captures on the Quad Cortex. I was wondering if you are open to making any custom captures with the Noble?

[@mwagliardo]

I'd like to try one, although I have other tube options. Feel is a big deal, and the Noble is certainly not indistinguishable to me. Nice demo!

[@IvanBassist]

Love it!

[@AndreasKreuzer-tc7sm]

Hi Ivan, great video. You mentioned some other DIs in the video, but not the Gnome or the Goliath from WRA. Have you ever had the opportunity to try one of them? I think it could be an interesting comparison especially for bassists in Europe, since the are price tag is rather reasonable and there are no additional taxes and duties.

[@IvanBassist]

Hi Andreas! Thanks for watching! Unfortunately, I haven’t had the chance to try that one, but a couple of my friends use it. Another great option in Europe is the Caveman DI

[@kevmac1230]

The Goliath sounds real nice but isn't it about 8-900 bucks?

[@raytar84]

Im curious how the freq. response looks like.

[@donkeybrains4140]

Nice review. Just for curiosity have you changed the tubes during these 3 years of use? Any tube rolling to change the sound or just new ones because old ones got played out :P

[@IvanBassist]

Haven’t changed any of the tubes, so far. A friend of mine changed them on his Noble and he said he got a nicer treble response out of the EQ section. I might give that a try at some point

[@cheveyo2403]

its is like having fancy underwear only you know what it is like. all these preamp/ di have a very subtle effect that you can notice on good Headphones or monitors that would be lost to most people on a stage and live settings.

[@shapa-47]

I agree, to be honest, the price is too high for Nobleamps, for less money you can take Avalon u5, it sounds no worse, besides, such a Nobleamps preamp is more for recording in the studio, few people will hear its noble sound at a concert!

[@IvanBassist]

It’s hard to pick up from a KZbin video, but sound engineers at shows do notice the difference. At the end of the day it’s our job as musicians to provide them with a good signal

[@mariusgoldhammer]

What he says! I love my Noble and have used it for at least five years now. It’s excellent in every situation, live, in the studio or in a TV setting. I‘ve recorded more than 180 songs during the pandemic alone with it and I enjoy every note since I got it. Sure, it’s pricey. But, for me it’s definitely worth it. Great review, Ivan!

[@IvanBassist]

Danke, Marius! LG aus Hamburg 🙌🏽

[@Romain_Chafore]

I have a Darkglass Vintage Ultra. I play clean bass and like the Ampegy thick and warm sound for funky soul music. I am thinking of getting a better DI box or preamp on my pedal board to play sans amp. The Noble fits all the boxes but I am kind of afraid to buy too much for my needs. Any opinion ?

[@IvanBassist]

I would recommend it If you are serious about your playing and have the cash at your disposal. The Caveman BP1 compact or the Origin Effects Super Vintage are other great DI options

[@Romain_Chafore]

@@IvanBassist I eventually ordered one. Thx a lot

[@cheveyo2403]

got a caveman bp1 compact a couple of months ago. main difference is that that is soldid state no tubes

[@BassMonstrum]

How do you like the BP1? Considering it over the Noble.

[@IvanBassist]

Have heard great things about it! Might get one at some point

[@gindro_oficial]

Sai che mi hai quasi convinto... Metto da parte i soldi. E la pazienza!

[@57precision]

Maybe you have to play this in person to really appreciate it, but I swear I cannot tell a difference if this thing is on or not. Makes me wonder if all the rave reviews are just some kind of massive confirmation bias hive-mind fueled by a positive feedback loop of social media hype. For the price of this thing, I can get a Mesa TT-800 that has real tubes with real tube feel and harmonics and just take the DI out of that. And I can get the Mesa tomorrow and not wait literal years at this point.

[@PaddyLeggBass]

are you wearing decent headphones when you listen to it? Otherwise you probably won’t tell the difference

[@flomali]

Hi Ivan! Did you had to change the tubes so far?

[@IvanBassist]

Hey Florian. Not yet unfortunately

[@colb999]

I'm simply not interested in a DI for $US1300 shipped. I can buy transparent for a fraction of that, I have plenty of EQ already and if I need low order THD I can dial it in from my emulator. Sorry Ivan, I like your channel, but not this piece of kit at all.

[@shapa-47]

I agree, to be honest, the price is too high for Nobleamps, for less money you can take Avalon u5, it sounds no worse, besides, such a Nobleamps preamp is more for recording in the studio, few people will hear its noble sound at a concert!

[@omardogknifemartinez2751]

I had the Noble DI preamp, I liked it, but I ended up selling it and for the Caveman BP-1. I have a friend who builds amps and pedals, and he said, "There's always someone who will figure out how to build an expensive pedal for a fraction of the price" I'm not into tubes, it's just a preference.

[@IvanBassist]

Both are great DIs 😁

[@chasekemp]

isnt that the same price but barely different lol?

[@commandercorndoggakadvs3768]

Tell us more about these "sinus waves"

[@simona4693]

Can you do a comparison between your noble and Origin Effects bassrig? how close do they get to each other?

[@IvanBassist]

Totally different sounds

[@simona4693]

@@IvanBassist would be great to see the comparison of the tube emulation vs the actual tube. :)

[@rockboxbass]

Ivan, How are you now using the Noble with your Quad Cortex?

[@IvanBassist]

You can see it here :) kzbin.info/www/bejne/fWjIiHeeadh9bJo Summarized: Bass -> Quad Cortex -> Noble

[@paolomoretti9291]

I don't know what interface you used (maybe a very good one) but I'd personally think that I wasted 1300.

[@shapa-47]

You can take Avalon u5 much cheaper, and not wait half a year until Nobleamps are made, Avalon U5 sounds no worse than Nobleamps, I worked on both, so I know how they sound!

[@paolomoretti9291]

@@shapa-47 I've seen on their site that if you pay 680 more you can skip the line...lol

[@shapa-47]

@@paolomoretti9291 In 2016, I ordered Nobleamps for myself and paid only $50 for accelerated production, well, then there were probably fewer people who wanted it, to be honest, the price is too high for a preamp, you can buy Avalon U5 for less money, it is not inferior to Nobleamps!

[@57precision]

@@paolomoretti9291 they let you pay to skip the line? That is so scummy. Not that I wanted this meme box anyway, but I want it even less now.

[@57precision]

@@shapa-47 Agree. Geddy Lee used the U5 for years. If it's good enough for him...

[@Rick-pi9zn]

You have such an incredible taste for melody and groove, it looks like it comes so naturally and the fills always fit so nice in the bassline, even tho they are actually pretty complex sometimes, how did you lern that? respect!

[@IvanBassist]

Thanks for the kind words, Rick! A lot of transcribing and practicing lines and fills in 12 keys, I’d say

Nice review but it is not really a big deal. You can still have that sound quality by eq and other mid priced pedals. Especially now line6 has it on its hx line

[@IvanBassist]

Thanks for watching!

[@teacher-sean]

I'm late to comment, but I don't hear any difference. I might even hear a slight muffling with the Noble DI. I'm using mixing headphones. Maybe my ears are not up to par. There's no wild difference for me. Sorry. Cool for people who have extra money to blow :)

[@handsdown5x]

Been having my noble for 4 yrs now and no complaints. Absolutely agree with everything you said ! Have you tried the BAE DMP?

[@IvanBassist]

I havent tried it, but I have heard good things about it. The downside is that it’s pretty bulky. It’s more for studio work than live playing

[@bassman5123]

What I don't like about this unit is that there is no volume for the XLR which means that it's really just a very expensive DI and not a true preamp at all. Yes, I realize that the 1/4" can be used as a pre, but only an unbalanced one. And while that may be great for running to pedal poweramps or the Aux in/FX returns of a bass head that won't help someone who wants to run it into a pro audio poweramp or straight to tape! (the modern day equivalent being an DAW interface without preamps). Sure, most people recording in world class studios with SSL or Neve consoles probably wouldn't care, but I actually still do. Call me weird, but I like to use bass specific preamps even when I get such opportunities. Because I'll split my signal and do both a DI into the console's mic pre and run a bass pre that bypasses the board as well. Why not have the best of both worlds? And for this price point, you should be able to do both!

[@IvanBassist]

Never had any issue with the volume of the XLR out. Either recording or playing live.

[@bassman5123]

@@IvanBassist Hi. I think you misunderstood me. I'm not saying that there would be a volume issue when running this unit into the mic pre of a console, as there shouldn't be. Even a cheap DI wouldn't have that problem because any needed gain will come from the console's preamp. I was talking about using it in more of an unconventional way. I meant that since this product is billed as a bass preamp in addition to a mere DI it should, in my opinion, have the ability to use it as a preamp with a balanced output into a pro audio poweramp (not just a bass head's unbalanced Aux in/FX return) or straight to a tape machine (or interface with no built-in preamps). Otherwise, you're really hearing the sound of the console's pre more than you are the sound of this unit.

[@Bibblebabbler]

Not worth the money jake is charging now in my opinion. Get a quad cortex and download your captures or mine of the noble and get a lot more for your buck.

[@CordScott]

Honestly not impressed with the noble. Set flat I hear no natural coloration (which is good if that's your thing) and I think the EQ is very limited.

[@tome4961]

Noble is such a scam on bassists, huge foot print, dated features, literally no tone impact, outrageous price tag. You can influence tone more by changing playing style and hand position. Half of that money will get you great compressor and parametric EQ. All that money will give you quad cortex or ampeg head. I'd be fine with admitting that's just kind of country club pass and image thing but don't play me with tone impact and "feel" :)

[@IvanBassist]

Ok

[@josefdepovic8495]

nothing beats a 1073 on bass

[@josefdepovic8495]

@@IvanBassist it's a preamp with DI

[@IvanBassist]

My bad! This is what happens when you read comment late at night 😂 Of course you mean a Neve 1073 haha

[@josefdepovic8495]

@@IvanBassist all good 👍

[@mikegreenebass]

It definitely does sit and feel bigger. I love mine . 7 mthn wait, but we'll worth it.

[@publicidador]

no se escucha ninguna diferencia con audífonos

[@HectorGonzalez-qx9nk]

The Noble is genuinely good, but at the price and wait time, I don’t think it’s worth it. I’m more than happy with my JHS Clover.

[@IvanBassist]

Luckily i got mine when the wait time was 4 weeks 😅

[@ruslanshalintsev4793]

hi. I do understand that no one will believe me... but, my hobby is to listen and try to tone match everythink i hear using my cheap pedalboard, my p-bass and my headphones audio-trlechnica m50x. Well what would you say, if ill tell i could have match the sound of noble preamp, only using tone knob on the bass and a cheap Harley -benton bass preamp with built in EQ and compressor? And i lustened to allmost all the reviews and samples of Noble preamp (i do have to watch less YT)). Why am i writing all this? I want to ask you to try is. The preamp cost , idk, 60 euro, maybe. I think you will be surprised. and a lot of people allso. To be specific... i think that you can get allmost every tone, only using EQ. Allmost.... I couldnt get Rick-o-sound, no matter how i tried. Sorry for any mistakes... English isnt my native. Cheers! Great channel!

[@marcelchaloupka]

A lot of money for nothing

[@SHAKAtheG]

If anyone from the UK is selling one, please let me know, thanks!