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Nordstrand Audio

3B-3

Nordstrand Audio 3 Band Bass Preamps

good bullet iconVERY TRANSPARENT AND MUSICAL

wave form bullet iconNOT OVERLY AGGRESSIVE

configuration bullet iconSEVERAL CONFIGURATIONS TO CHOOSE FROM

wrench bullet iconOUTPUT CAN BE ADJUSTED VIA TRIM POT ON PREAMP MODULE

empty box iconFREE SHIPPING IN THE USA
configuration iconEXPERT TECHNICAL SUPPORT
checklist iconIN STOCK MEANS IN STOCK

DESCRIPTION

With an ideal feature set facilitating their great sound, these units have become popular with high end bass builders who love to install them as standard OEM preamps on their top level instruments. Given that they are available in multiple prewired configurations, these preamps have become extremely popular upgrades for basses at all levels of quality.

Artists: Vivian d'Souza, Fernando Vallin, Paulo Roberto Diniz Jr, Will Birckhead, Travis Carlton, Scott Pazera


LAYOUTS

3B-3 (1 Pickup - 3 Band -- 3 Knob, 1 Switch):
Volume w/Active-Passive Push-Pull -- Push-Pull Mid -- Treble/Bass Stack

3B-4a (2 Pickup - 3 Band -- 4 Knob):
Volume/Volume Stack -- Tone w/Active-Passive Push-Pull -- Push-Pull Mid -- Treble/Bass Stack

3B-4b (2 Pickup - 3 Band -- 4 Knob):
Volume/Tone Stack -- Blend -- Push-Pull Mid -- Treble/Bass Stack

3B-5a (2 Pickup - 3 Band -- 5 Knob):
Volume w/Active-Passive Push-Pull -- Blend -- Treble -- Push-Pull Mid -- Bass

3B-5b (2 Pickup - 3 Band -- 5 Knob):
Volume w/Active-Passive Push-Pull -- Blend -- Tone --Push-Pull Mid -- Treble/Bass Stack



TECHNICAL

Overall gain is 0 to 15db by a trim pot on the circuit board.
Bass +/- 12db @ 50Hz
Treble +/- 12db @ 4khz
Midrange +/- 12db @ 1k and 400Hz

3B-3 wiring diagram

3B-4a wiring diagram

3B-4b wiring diagram

3B-5a wiring diagram

3B-5b wiring diagram

Customer Reviews

Based on 9 reviews
78%
(7)
22%
(2)
0%
(0)
0%
(0)
0%
(0)
T
Tonemannz
Nordy preamp rocks my world

Put in a Nordstrand 3 band with the passive option, loving it. So many tonal options and best of both worlds. Love how you can set up a great EQ with the active preamp, then blend the passive tone just like you would on a fully passive bass, but with so many more options.
I added pickup splits and now I have no excuses for not having an amazing sound to the desk.

D
D.B.
Nordstrand 3B-5A was perfect to lift some low volume pickups

This preamp replaced a well known brand that lacked the adjustable output level to compensate some low volume, but great sounding pickups. Bonus is the modern tones and adjustability to really bring out the natural sound of a phenomenal bass......definately worth the price of admission.

J
Jarvis
Clean, aggressive sound

I bought the preamp for my Warwick Rockbass Robert Trujillo, which I‘ve had since 2012. Great bass, very well built but the sound was rather boring to say the least. Definitely not my idea of a metal bass. After I briefly considered selling the bass I decided to give it a try with this preamp and the result is absolutely amazing. I now have a really aggressive sound, perfect for metal but clean, without distortion (unless I want to dial it in, which I usually don’t). And it doesn’t turn my valve amps into fart machines (like the Aguilar OBP-2 for example). So if you are not looking to get a completely distorted, muffled sound but you actually want to be able to hear what notes you are playing, this is the preamp to go.
P.S. You will need knobs with a slightly larger diameter, the pots have a somet thicker shaft than the original MEC preamp.

J
J.J.
3B-5a

It is a very good preamplifier, it sounds very clean and transparent, the option to adjust the gain with the trim pot is great, something to consider is that in passive mode the volume is very low for me, luckily I use it in active mode almost always, The equalizer frequencies are quite nice. I like it because you can Boost the low, mid or high frequencies to the maximum and it does not distort like others. In general, it is a very usable preamp.

D
Dave B
Great Preamp, tone for days

Smooth responsive preamp with adjustable output gain for low volume pickups.

Customer Reviews

Based on 9 reviews
78%
(7)
22%
(2)
0%
(0)
0%
(0)
0%
(0)
T
Tonemannz
Nordy preamp rocks my world

Put in a Nordstrand 3 band with the passive option, loving it. So many tonal options and best of both worlds. Love how you can set up a great EQ with the active preamp, then blend the passive tone just like you would on a fully passive bass, but with so many more options.
I added pickup splits and now I have no excuses for not having an amazing sound to the desk.

D
D.B.
Nordstrand 3B-5A was perfect to lift some low volume pickups

This preamp replaced a well known brand that lacked the adjustable output level to compensate some low volume, but great sounding pickups. Bonus is the modern tones and adjustability to really bring out the natural sound of a phenomenal bass......definately worth the price of admission.

J
Jarvis
Clean, aggressive sound

I bought the preamp for my Warwick Rockbass Robert Trujillo, which I‘ve had since 2012. Great bass, very well built but the sound was rather boring to say the least. Definitely not my idea of a metal bass. After I briefly considered selling the bass I decided to give it a try with this preamp and the result is absolutely amazing. I now have a really aggressive sound, perfect for metal but clean, without distortion (unless I want to dial it in, which I usually don’t). And it doesn’t turn my valve amps into fart machines (like the Aguilar OBP-2 for example). So if you are not looking to get a completely distorted, muffled sound but you actually want to be able to hear what notes you are playing, this is the preamp to go.
P.S. You will need knobs with a slightly larger diameter, the pots have a somet thicker shaft than the original MEC preamp.

J
J.J.
3B-5a

It is a very good preamplifier, it sounds very clean and transparent, the option to adjust the gain with the trim pot is great, something to consider is that in passive mode the volume is very low for me, luckily I use it in active mode almost always, The equalizer frequencies are quite nice. I like it because you can Boost the low, mid or high frequencies to the maximum and it does not distort like others. In general, it is a very usable preamp.

D
Dave B
Great Preamp, tone for days

Smooth responsive preamp with adjustable output gain for low volume pickups.

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