Read the review: http://bit.ly/TCElectronicSpectraDrive
It doesn’t take a lot of effort to find a solid bass tone. While our guitarist compadres rack their brains trying to find the perfect relationship between instrument, amp, and effects, we bassists often just plug our trusted axe into an amp and—with a few tweaks of the preamp—voilà! It’s low-end gold. Numerous bass-gear designers have acknowledged this resourceful approach in creating portable devices loaded with essential components for the working bassist. TC Electronic is one such designer, and their latest pedal, the SpectraDrive, marries function and form. It’s a combination preamp, DI, effects pedal, and practice tool, all packaged into a sandwich-sized stompbox.
TC Electronic has worked with a lot of bassists over the years, and it’s clear the SpectraDrive is a product born of these relationships. The front panel contains a 4-band preamp that’s voiced similarly to the EQs in TC’s amps. Along with the gain and level controls, the six knobs surround two of the standout features of the pedal: the TubeDrive and SpectraComp controls. Although the pedal has built-in effects, these controls function with TC’s proprietary TonePrints technology, which allows players to fine-tune the drive and compressor effects by downloading different TonePrints from TC’s website or app.
Many preamp boxes provide DI functionality, but the SpectraComp contains a couple extra goodies. Accompanying the ground/lift and pre/post switches around back is an instrument/line switch, which extends the sonic quality of the signal to the mixing board. Meanwhile, the company’s Bonafide Buffer circuitry mitigates tonal degradation due to long cable runs.
The SpectraDrive also transforms into a practice amp. A pair of mini jacks are located on the left side for headphones and audio playback devices. TC uses speaker cabinet simulation to deliver a live feel through the headphones.
Continue reading the review: http://bit.ly/TCElectronicSpectraDrive