The preamp came with non solder connections not pictured on the site. No soldering needed for most connections (I kept the existing output jack). It is very transparent and the combination of active tone controls plus a passive tone makes this very cool. All very ‘real world’ controls.

I ordered a Nordstrand 3-band preamp from Fat Bass Tone to replace the Ibanez preamp in my GVB36. They had it in stock and it shipped right away. Install went flawlessly and the result was a major improvement. Thank you Fat Bass Tone for your excellent customer service! My new go to source for everything bass guitar related.

Paired this active preamp with passive Nordstrand PJ pickups. They sound great.

This preamp is very clean and transparent. It allows the sound of the bass to come through without much coloration. The frequencies for bass, mids, and treble are all well chosen and useful. Achievable sounds range from vintage-y to modern depending on the EQ settings, pickups, and playing techniques. The internal gain trim can be set to keep the signal level even when switching between active and passive, or to boost the active signal to super hot. With the EQ set flat, there is hardly a difference between the active and passive tones. The preamp can be ordered prewired in a number of configurations for to fit many different basses and musical preferences. All in all, this is a high quality preamp that should be considered when thinking about upgrading.

This preamp is very clean and transparent. It allows the sound of the bass to come through without much if any coloration. The frequencies for bass, mids, and treble are all well chosen and useful. Sounds range from vintage-y to modern depending on the EQ settings, pickups, and playing techniques. The internal gain trim can be set to keep the signal level even when switching between active and passive. With the EQ set flat, there is hardly a difference between the active and passive tones. The preamp can be ordered prewired in a number of configurations for to fit many different basses and musical preferences. All in all, this is a high quality preamp that should be considered when thinking about upgrading.