In this article, we’re going to see how two different Sansamp plugins stand up next to the real thing and enable you to decide for yourself, which is best. 

The Bass Driver DI is Sansamp’s all-analogue bass overdrive stompbox that has found a home with many players over the years. There are a number of plugins providing similar sounds, but how do they compare with the hardware pedal?

Why Use A Pedal?

Players love to record with pedals because they can find their sound easily and commit to it, which I personally prefer when either playing myself or recording someone else. If the dialled-in sounds are overcooked or otherwise not right for the mix the Bass Driver DI has a permanent pre-circuit output that can be DI’d as well for a backup.

If your cue setup allows, the artist always has their sound “with them” even if you need to restart your system or session. On slower systems, it can provide a sound that has no latency whatsoever.

For these reasons, my own pedal has become a permanent tool in the studio, which bass players love.

So Why Use Plugins?

You can have as many instances as you like(!), and your favourite settings can be recalled. Some plugins, such as the two options I’m going to use, are free or included with the DAW. Their convenience is all-conquering, but can they sound the same as a hardware bass overdrive pedal?

The plugins used in this article are Avid’s Sansamp PSA-1 and BOD from TSE. PSA-1 is bundled as a stock plugin with Pro Tools and BOD is a free plug-in from TSE.

Getting A Sound

Although the recorded bass sound was a more contemporary, unmuted sound, I felt the track could do with a noticeably overdriven treatment for some Motown-style warmth. This drive sound has its roots in a custom DI wall box developed in-house by Motown themselves, and I find that the Bass Driver pedal is great for this. While some bass overdrives can sound a bit “stuck on”, I would describe the Bass Driver sound as being more amalgamated into the source. I started by dialling in my sound on the pedal and then tried to match that sound as closely as possible using my clean safety DI with plugins.

Which One Do You Prefer?

Below are three examples of exactly the same performance. In no particular order, one is through TSE Audio’s BOD Bass Overdrive plugin, one is through Sansamp PSA-1 plugin, and the other is through the Sansamp Bass Driver DI hardware pedal. 

Matching sounds can be a difficult task, however, I did manage to get quite close, which is testament to the quality of the plugins’ authenticity. With all variables taken into account, it's not surprising that the differences between the position of the controls for their final settings were quite pronounced, but it goes to show that our ears are the ultimate judge of where a control should be. In any case, I would recommend taking any control that is labelled “Punch” with a pinch of salt!

Julian has commented in the past that “Something which can be confusing when using this plug-in is the sheer number of controls, compounded by the names of those controls which while intended to be helpfully descriptive, I for one have never found helpful.” You can find out more about how best to approach these oddly named control in our premium tutorial Understanding Buzz, Punch And Crunch In Sansamp.

Below are the final settings, again in no particular order:

It's worth mentioning that I could have ended up with a different sound altogether had I started with a plugin, as the tool does tend to send you on a certain trajectory. That said, matching hardware sounds to their plugin equivalent would be just a bit weird!

Which To Use?

As always, the sound you get is paramount above any other consideration including cost or workflow. While the budget may dictate the choices available to us, the good news is that the differences can be barely discernible in the mix. Which would I go for? In the end, I preferred one of the plugins over my own pedal! That said I would not be without the hardware.

Which Is Which?

• Example A is Sansamp PSA-1

• Example B is the pedal

• Example C is BOD Bass Overdrive (my favourite)

Special thanks to Mark Griffiths for his help in lending his playing for the making of this article.