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-   -   New Product in the Wings! (http://www.smithbassforums.com//showthread.php?t=1024)

Ken Smith 04-12-2009 10:40 AM

New Product in the Wings!
 
For the past few years we have been toying with an idea that I'm going to share with you now. Although it is not yet ready for Market, it IS in the final stages of Design.

The Product is an outboard B.M.T. Preamp with a Practice Amp feature built in as well.

It is the exact same Preamp as used on our Basses but has been physically re-designed to fit in a small Box that can be clicked on and off with a foot switch.

With so many passive Fender type Basses on the market today, this will give you a Smith Preamp without needing any modifications to the Bass. Currently when a person installs a new preamp (ours or some other) it is IN the Bass. When you sell that Bass for whatever reason, taking it out might not be a good thing to do especially if it leaves unused holes that were added for the modification. In addition, the Bass you sell may not fetch any higher higher price due to the modification done to the instrument. With the Preamp outboard, you can sell the Bass and KEEP the Preamp to use with any other Bass you like.

With the D.I.P. switches inside the Box, this can also be used for the Double Bass that has a Pickup on it or even a Guitar. Actually, you can probably play Trumpet thru it as well as anything else you like since the EQ frequencies span such a broad range.

Taking a trip by Car, on a Bus or Train somewhere? Sit in the back seat (of the Car, recommended ;)) and plug your instrument in, hook up your head phones, use the PreAmp/Practice Amp on batteries or plug it into the DC charger (normally used for phone, GPS or lighter.. 'don't smoke':o) and practice while the other person Drives... Even with a Smith Bass, you can use this product if for nothing else but to practice with on a trip or late at night at home, in your Dorm room or even back stage on your Gig Breaks because it has the headphone feature.

So, do you guys think this is something you can find a use for?

Your thoughts? Questions?

The name of the Product? Well, it has a name but you will see it printed on the box when it comes out..:cool:

ED LOZANO 04-12-2009 11:46 AM

Excellent Idea Ken!
 
Genius again Ken. I don't believe there is anything comparable on the market. Any thoughts on weight, dimension, and cost that you would be willing to share with us? I realize that it is only in the planing stages, but if you did design such a wonderful tool, I'm sure the other manufactures would scurry to follow suit, as usual. It sounds too good to be true for all the Fender owners dying to achieve your trademark sound!

Ken Smith 04-12-2009 12:07 PM

well..
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by ED LOZANO (Post 12143)
Genius again Ken. I don't believe there is anything comparable on the market. Any thoughts on weight, dimension, and cost that you would be willing to share with us? I realize that it is only in the planing stages, but if you did design such a wonderful tool, I'm sure the other manufactures would scurry to follow suit, as usual. It sounds too good to be true for all the Fender owners dying to achieve your trademark sound!

Weight? .. Haven't completed one in the actual box yet but normal/average 'stomp box' weight if there is such a thing.

Dimension? .. Stomp Box on the medium to smaller size. It has a few knobs and stuff so it's not tiny but can be held in your hand. A belt-clip feature is on the table as well but not sure on that yet.

Cost? .. It will probably cost more than our 18V B.M.T. Preamp in Bulk that we sell now due to the fact is is that plus a Practice Amp and it's in a box so it's just more stuff.

I can say this, I think it looks pretty as far as the color I chose and the name is or will be 'catchy' to say the least.

Copied? Well, the market is not that huge for high end 'boxes' but we do expect some copy-cat action to occur.

Allan Todd 04-12-2009 04:11 PM

I think this would be a hot seller, my dad for one would probably buy one for recording as he loves the sound of my smith over his jazz bass.
as for running it from the mains would it be possible to have a voltage selector switch on it Ken?

Michael Wilson 04-12-2009 09:03 PM

Stomp Box
 
Bravo Ken!!! I would buy the 1st proto type for my other non-Smith bass. This is great............

Mike

Bob Faulkner 04-13-2009 11:56 AM

You mention this will have dip switches. It would be much more convenient if the features they provide were available without having to open the box. Are you planning on putting external switches in place of the dip switches so the user can easily adjust the settings on the fly?

Would a rack mountable version be possible?

Ken Smith 04-13-2009 02:12 PM

Voltage..
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Allan Todd (Post 12147)
I think this would be a hot seller, my dad for one would probably buy one for recording as he loves the sound of my smith over his jazz bass.
as for running it from the mains would it be possible to have a voltage selector switch on it Ken?

Currently it has a 110v adapter to charge or run it thru the wall or as an 18v unit without line power. Adding a 110/220 converter internally would raise the production cost.

Ken Smith 04-13-2009 02:18 PM

extras..
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob Faulkner (Post 12164)
You mention this will have dip switches. It would be much more convenient if the features they provide were available without having to open the box. Are you planning on putting external switches in place of the dip switches so the user can easily adjust the settings on the fly?

Would a rack mountable version be possible?

The switches are inside and intended for discrete changes and not as an 'on the fly' mixer.

Rack mount is not on the menu for this.

This is a stomp box 3-band preamp/practice amp!.. To keep this affordable and for the main purpose intended, these suggested additions would put it way of the current price point and the extras only usable to a small percentage of consumers. There are many possible features than can be added including making coffee but that idea as well has been scraped..:p

Bob Faulkner 04-14-2009 10:09 AM

The rack mount option is the biggie for me as I plan on ditching my bass head in favor of a discrete preamp/poweramp setup with a rack mount power amp in the 1.5KW range. It's hard to find a good yet simple rack mount preamp these days.

Tim Bishop 04-14-2009 10:27 AM

Hard to find?
 
Hard to find??? It's simple to create your own rack mounted set-up. You just have to step out and decided to do it. In the end, you get what you pay for. ;)

Ken Smith 04-20-2009 11:35 AM

Testing completed..
 
I just finished the last basic test with the headphones. Everything up to that point had been tested and approved.

I hope to have a working proto-type to show in early June at the upcoming Double Bass convention (ISB) being held at Penn State (June 8-13) which is only about 3 hours drive from my shop.

Those of you that are attending the show are welcome to come by, say hello, try whatever we have on display (DBs for DB players only, lol) and even visit the shop the following week if you are still in the area.

After the first few units are completed, I will post some pictures as well as a full listing of all the features and specs.

Although I have had a few requests or suggestion as to what to put in this box, we will have to stay with our original plan to keep the board designs and box size originally planned as well as to keep the cost down.

Robert Kramer 04-30-2009 11:39 PM

aux input?
 
Ken, will your headphone amp also have an aux input? Such as practicing with an external source like a metronome, CD player, etc.? :cool:

Ken Smith 04-30-2009 11:43 PM

ahh..
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Robert Kramer (Post 12724)
Ken, will your headphone amp also have an aux input? Such as practicing with an external source like a metronome, CD player, etc.? :cool:

No.. I can make it fry Bacon as well but that will inflate the price to the other 99.99% buyers..

Don't metronomes have silent lights as well?

There is an input for a headphone (1/8th") for practicing. You can however use the 'phones as a monitor and still play thru the Amp like in the studio to heard yourself better. Both the Amp input and H'phones work at the same time.

Jason Mendelson 05-03-2009 12:01 AM

Hey sounds really neat! I would get one!

I would think price range would have to be in the $89 - $129 range for a foot pedal...

I remember back in the day, I had a little jam box thing that you plugged your bass into and you listend to it through head phones... I cant remember what its called, its in a drawer in my parents house in florida though...

As far as a name, keep it simple...

Ken Smith BMT Pre-Amp Foot Switch

Label on the thing would be:

Ken Smith
BMT Pre

Ken Smith 05-03-2009 01:19 AM

how much??
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Jason Mendelson (Post 12797)
Hey sounds really neat! I would get one!

I would think price range would have to be in the $89 - $129 range for a foot pedal...

I remember back in the day, I had a little jam box thing that you plugged your bass into and you listend to it through head phones... I cant remember what its called, its in a drawer in my parents house in florida though...

As far as a name, keep it simple...

Ken Smith BMT Pre-Amp Foot Switch

Label on the thing would be:

Ken Smith
BMT Pre

I have seen preamps going from the $200-$400 range on the Market. This one IS the BMT unit currently in our Bass plus other features and it's in a Box. The Preamp currently goes for much more than that figure and that's just in a bag in bulk!

Jason Mendelson 05-03-2009 01:21 AM

yeah thinking about it more... it is a pre-amp... not an effects box...

My BBE Sonic Maximizer (which I bought like 12 years ago), was a few hundred dollars... and its a rackmount...

A rack mount / studio option would be killer with XLR out ;)

Ken Smith 05-03-2009 05:13 AM

rack?
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Jason Mendelson (Post 12800)
yeah thinking about it more... it is a pre-amp... not an effects box...

My BBE Sonic Maximizer (which I bought like 12 years ago), was a few hundred dollars... and its a rackmount...

A rack mount / studio option would be killer with XLR out ;)

This is a portable version, not a rack mount. Can you practice with a rack mount in the back of a car? Can you throw a rack mound unit in your gig bag and use it easily with any bass or amp, setting it up in seconds?

This is the current version of the Smith 18V BMT circuit that can be used active or passive and has the internal DIP switches as well. Also, you can use it for practice with head phones or use the headphones while you play thru an amp or studio board as a monitor in your ears directly without turning up the amp volume. The Practice amp/headphone function has its own volume control as well.

You can use this for Bass Guitar, Double Bass, elec/acc Guitar.. and just about anything that has a pickup, even horns I guess as well as keyboards. The EQ range with the DIPs is just about endless in range.

Do you know of another product on the market yet as versatile and as portable as this one?

For those of you with non-Smith Basses that have thought about upgrading your circuit, why bother. Get the Box. Use it as long as you keep your non-'S' Bass and when you sell that Bass and get another non-'S' bass, keep the Box for the new bass. If you had spent money to buy a Smith circuit or any other circuit plus the labor to modify and install it, when you sell that bass, there goes your investment along with a possibly de-valued altered xyz brand bass that might have fetched a better price if left original.

This Box has been in the works for years now. We were just too busy to get it completed. The recent slower economy has freed up the time to get it done. I just might have a working unit on display at the ISB show next month. Currently, I just have the test unit in a box about 3x the size it will be when all done.

This will be the unit to get a EQ Smith sound without doing the work to modify your non-Smith bass. We are talking about a size that is less than 4"x5"x2" deep. Less than those numbers.

Yes, there can be many other features added and custom versions made but at what price to the consumer? What percentage of the buyers would want all those extras verses the more portable/transferable unit I have described?

Personally, I am quite excited about it. This is the most versatile user-friendly product we have ever produced.

Jason Mendelson 05-03-2009 06:07 PM

I know exactly what it is you are making.... and think its gonna be grreat I agree with that too! I know its portable and not a rackmount... just saying in the future that would be cool too...

Is it going to have a seperate headphone out as well as a line level 1/4 out?

Ken Smith 05-03-2009 09:54 PM

2 outs..
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Jason Mendelson (Post 12811)
I know exactly what it is you are making.... and think its gonna be grreat I agree with that too! I know its portable and not a rackmount... just saying in the future that would be cool too...

Is it going to have a seperate headphone out as well as a line level 1/4 out?

I thought I just mentioned that above, 2nd paragraph.. no?
Quote:

Also, you can use it for practice with head phones or use the headphones while you play thru an amp or studio board as a monitor in your ears directly without turning up the amp volume. The Practice amp/headphone function has its own volume control as well.
The answer is yes. Both the 1/4" out to the Amp and the 1/8" headphone outs work at the same time if you wish. I tested this last week and it was like I was in the studio. The Amp for the room and the Bass in my head.

sam atkinson 05-03-2009 11:29 PM

Ken, I want one. My current rig doesn't have a headphoe jack and this would be perfect for my use.

I can't wait to see some sexy pictures and specs of it.


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