SubPac (personal bass system)

[acronym]

I haven't tried mixing with it on because my set-up is too high up to do it with a chair.

It's not something you wear, it's like a chair back. You're intended to press against it. It's best while sitting in a chair, but also pretty great lying in bed (though they recommend not using it in bed, there's a danger you fall asleep with it there and it overheats through the night). It's quite comfy, too.

I used it all weekend at home, and have just spent the whole day with it at work. If you're not being outrageous with the adjustable intensity level, then it emits no sound. When it's turned up a lot, you can hear a vibration/thumping, but it's not something that seems to disturb others more than general ambient noise in an office/home would. Regardless, at those levels the bass distorts too much. There's a perfect middle zone where everything is defined and clean but still thumps hard. The intensity knob is relative to the input volume, so it lets you really push the bass while still keeping your headphone/speaker system at low volumes.

Also, difference, barely anyone has these. Artists, yes, and several people have tried them at festivals they've toured at, but so far there should only be 20 consumers with it. I was one of the first 20 supporters on their kickstarter campaign, and we were set to receive our SubPacs a full month before anyone else. I've only just got mine Thursday, and I'm in Canada. It might take longer for this first batch to reach the first 20 supporters if they're further out in the world (as it ships from the states). I could make a video review for this, though it's a little hard to communicate it well over video as it's just a feeling.

It runs on AC. The full set-up takes between 2-3 cables. The AC cable for power, the line-in from your audio source to the SubPac, and the headphones (which aren't needed if you're running it out of a sound system).

Hope that answers most of your questions.

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mine is in the mail due to arrive in the next few weeks. i'm trying not to think about it but i am going mad with anticipation. so far, what are your favorite songs to listen to on it? do you plan to mix with it in the future? do any cables come with it? If so, are they long enough to hook to an interface on your desk with some slack to spare?

[acronym]

mine is in the mail due to arrive in the next few weeks. i'm trying not to think about it but i am going mad with anticipation. so far, what are your favorite songs to listen to on it? do you plan to mix with it in the future? do any cables come with it? If so, are they long enough to hook to an interface on your desk with some slack to spare?

I haven't really taken the time to listen to too many songs twice over yet, just because I'm having too much fun listening through everything I own. So far, the songs with the biggest impact have been Swindle - Do The Jazz and Mala - Livin' Different. I haven't listened to nearly enough to say with that those'll remain my favourites, but they're both pretty damn sweet. Really, anything with a bassline that makes you go mad on a proper system will feel great on this. First tune I listened to was Loefah - Horror Show, and I couldn't stop grinning like an idiot the whole way through.

I'd have to drastically alter my equipment set-up if I was to mix with it. Like I said earlier, all my stuff is too high up to play properly while sitting in a chair. I'd need a whole new table. So, for now, I'm not planning on mixing with it. That's really got nothing to do with the SubPac itself though. I have no doubts that mixing with it would be fantastic.

It comes with everything you need to get it running: a 1/4" to 1/4" jack to plug into your audio source, and the AC plug (obviously). The AC cable is nice because it splits in the middle. A short portion of the cable is permanently in the SubPac, and a longer portion extends from the AC adapter. If you're in a chair on wheels and you move too far, it simply detaches, rather than pulling the plug out of the wall or anything like that.

I'd estimate the cable to be about 4 feet in length. I don't know for the AC, but it must be about the same. So far, I've never felt constrained.

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thanks for the feedback

when i said mixing i was referring to mixing a tune down, not DJ'ing. do you feel it's accurate enough to do this? no big deal if you're not that knowledgeable in the production department.

[acronym]

thanks for the feedback

when i said mixing i was referring to mixing a tune down, not DJ'ing. do you feel it's accurate enough to do this? no big deal if you're not that knowledgeable in the production department.

Oh! Yea, I'm absolutely not knowledgeable enough in that department. Sorry. It can be tweaked to be very sensitive and precise, though, so I'd be surprised if it wasn't accurate enough. It's certainly got a lot of support from many big producers in that department.

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any other DSF'ers out there that have one of these? i'm seeing more and more "my subpac came, omg i love this thing!" posts on facebook but still getting the same 2-3 month old reviews on google. i want someone who is a producer to give me an honest opinion as to whether or not this is a serious utility for producing. i've read a few things here and there and there's the obvious support from some scene figureheads like pinch and mala but i just want an honest unbiased review from someone who intends to use it for production. mine probably won't be arriving until the end of this month, and i want to know as much about it as possible before it does. despite the fact a video review might seem redundant, an unboxing and description/review video from a consumer would be so excellent.

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bamping, refer to above post

[R0WR0W]

Oh shit I tried one of these out at Movement. It's actually pretty neat and you can adjust the intensity of it but overall it feels really cheesy.

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what do you mean cheesy?

[R0WR0W]

what do you mean cheesy?

Like it's gimmicky, feels like a joke.

[johnny_4777]

Actual review of the SubPac. Its amazing.
http://dnbdose.com/2013/07/18/review-subpac/

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<iframe src="/forum/video.php?url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ig_Otz7_TBM" frameborder="0" style="overflow:hidden; height:auto; max-width:540px"></iframe>

video review i made. it kicks ass. definitely feels like a piece of studio gear and not a toy. rugged enough to travel with for sure.

[dsprainman]

<iframe src="/forum/video.php?url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ig_Otz7_TBM" frameborder="0" style="overflow:hidden; height:auto; max-width:540px"></iframe>

video review i made. it kicks ass. definitely feels like a piece of studio gear and not a toy. rugged enough to travel with for sure.

Fucking tripod bro

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<iframe src="/forum/video.php?url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ig_Otz7_TBM" frameborder="0" style="overflow:hidden; height:auto; max-width:540px"></iframe>

video review i made. it kicks ass. definitely feels like a piece of studio gear and not a toy. rugged enough to travel with for sure.

Fucking tripod bro

yeah my cellphone doesn't really have the screw in area for the tripod. was going to use my roommate's SLR (he's a photographer) but he didn't have a tripod either which is odd considering his profession but yeah, did the best i could.

[bezzodempz]

<iframe src="/forum/video.php?url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ig_Otz7_TBM" frameborder="0" style="overflow:hidden; height:auto; max-width:540px"></iframe>

video review i made. it kicks ass. definitely feels like a piece of studio gear and not a toy. rugged enough to travel with for sure.

Finally a decent review from a user, thanks. Its great that its endorsed by so many influential artists but this thing is also very well hyped and marketed so makes me question if they just gettin a fat wedge to big it up. Furthermore, the quotes on the site are a bit vague plus Joker & Bok Bok don't even have comments on it.
I agree that it seems very overpriced for what it is, especially if your ordering from somewhere outside of mainland babylon. If it had the capability of connecting to a 15v Li-Ion battery then the price would be fine but I'd imagine thats probably going to be marketed as the subpac MK II init.
I don't like the way all the cables connect to it either too messy and easy to break something while moving around to fiddle with hardware.

Anyway I'm still interested in buying one but have a few questions for you Difference if you don't mind.
Firstly can you clarify how long it took from order to delivery? Its alot of money to have just floating in thin air for ages although it must be a good buzz when you get it.
Second, can you clearly feel the specific frequencies through it, by that I mean if I played a C1 & B4 sine wave together would I be able to feel/hear that they are out of tune? the main reason I'm looking for sub sonic frequency play back is because I am doing alot of sub pitch modulation. Alot of the time the sub part sounds in tune with the rest of my track through my monitors but then I take the track to my breds and through his 12" sub there are discrepancies in the tuning.

Sorry for the long winded post. I was going to message the guys at subpac but don't want to risk getting a salesman answer.

Peace

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Finally a decent review from a user, thanks.

no problem

Firstly can you clarify how long it took from order to delivery? Its alot of money to have just floating in thin air for ages although it must be a good buzz when you get it.

totally agree.

i placed my order about 6 weeks ago. the way it worked out initially was, on the site it said for pre-orders the shipping would be in april and they had "limited supply". i know bs when i see it, at this price point they would have piles of these things lying around before they all get scooped on the initial first production run. despite the kickstarter success, i knew that the units would only really start to sell once the initial group of consumers gets it and shows it to their friends and so on.

i think as a result of them probably knowing this as well, they pushed it back month by month while they ran around promoting the subpac at various music festivals and getting more bass scene figureheads to rep it. so those of us unfortunate enough to order really early on (luckily not me, i took my sweet time, buying other pieces of studio gear in the meantime to support it) had to wait for many, many moons. i pulled the trigger halfway through june, after they had changed the shipping date on the site for pre-orders from april to may and then may to june. ordered on the 18th of june.

then after 2 weeks of chomping at the bit, ($375 is a lot of money for me and i was hoping to receive it within 2 weeks) i'm starting to go "wtf". messaged them and got a tentative response along the lines of "we'll be shipping them out in the coming weeks". then the date on the site changes from june to july. i maintained patience and resisted the urge to seriously bug them because they are a new company and with a new business comes a lot of first time problems, especially when producing advanced technology is involved.

trying to push it out of my mind, i waited all of last month, checking their twitter and facebook often for any potential shipping updates. the closest thing i got was other people like me going on their page and whining about how they are lagging on shipping the units and them responding with "please email _____@studiofeed.com with questions"

i shot them a few emails when i started seeing others go "my subpac is in the mail!" on the subpac FB, and they said the date for my delivery was going to be pushed up to last friday, and that i would receive it by wednesday (yesterday). it's here now and i love it.

because they have been shipping this order out, i would expect your unit to arrive within the next 2 weeks if you were to order one now on their website. i got mine on the tail end of their first production run, which was supposedly individually inspected for defects and hand made with what is honestly a lot of love. you can tell a person put it together, but it's still very uniform and well constructed. you might get in on that initial run if you order one soon, but i'd think that by the end of this month the first production run will be all sold and their will be a short delay until the next one. who knows though.

if you're thinking about it, i'd advise making the plunge. it's a fantastic addition to a studio or just a listening environment, the vibration it shoots through your body is accurate and intense, and could only be achieved by cranking a large subwoofer to a high level and sitting right where it hits the hardest. and you get that feeling when it's on a medium setting. thing definitely has some horsepower.

Second, can you clearly feel the specific frequencies through it, by that I mean if I played a C1 & B4 sine wave together would I be able to feel/hear that they are out of tune? the main reason I'm looking for sub sonic frequency play back is because I am doing alot of sub pitch modulation. Alot of the time the sub part sounds in tune with the rest of my track through my monitors but then I take the track to my breds and through his 12" sub there are discrepancies in the tuning.

from what i can tell (and as i showed in the video, you can actually put your head down and listen to the vibration) it sounds extremely accurate frequency wise, and feels the same as well. you can listen to the track i mentioned (Youngsta & LX-ONE - Responsibility) on youtube and then listen to that part of my video and you can tell it's on point.

another thing i'll mention is that when the sub actually lags behind the synth because the sub has a longer attack, this thing will make you notice it like a neon sign. there are a lot of tunes out there with a slow sluggish sub that isn't firmly attached to the synth line and while in some songs that's intentional, on songs where the sub follows the synth more or less every note it's a lot more pleasing if the sub is very tight and not lagging, that way everything is in unison. initially i thought maybe the subpac actually has some lag of it's own, but the kick drums have zero lag so it has to be the attack on the sub in the track.

so far the most enjoyable song for me is the new tempa release (killawatt & ipman - darkplace) the sub in that song is just fucking mint. the 2nd part of the first half of the track (right after the brief female vocal sample) where the higher frequency sub sweep comes in is soooo awesome haha.

also i think this was mentioned in THuuN's DnBDose review but the lower frequencies hit lower on the units surface (near the top of your tailbone), and vice versa for the high which hits you right in the solar plexus. this makes long and well-crafted bass sweeps extremely enjoyable because it vibrates the subpac from top to bottom.

sorry for babbling on, bit faded and i'm gushing over this thing. i like it a lot

[bezzodempz]

Cool thanks for the reply man. It sounds too good to be true but contrary to popular belief sometimes some things actually are! Hope this is one of them!

the sub actually lags behind the synth because the sub has a longer attack

This is another thing I've noticed with my own beats when played on mi mates sub.

i got mine on the tail end of their first production run, which was supposedly individually inspected for defects and hand made with what is honestly a lot of love

I had thought about this before and I would imagine that if sales are good they will probably start to have them made in china/korea at some point and I wouldn't mind getting one before this happens, not just for quality assurance but also the moral aspect too.
I have 2 MV8800's so will sell one to fund this, hopefully it will sell in time.

an yeah I've heard darkplace on youngz show. Its a baddy for sure! Its the perfect time for a product like this I think.

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just popping in to say that after having this for a week and getting used to it, the illusion of sub bass is so good that i find myself wanting to turn down the music at night thinking the bass is keeping my neighbors up..

then my dumbass remembers it's just a vibrating pad lol. it's that good. highly recommend this thing if you have the cash to spare and live in a small place w/roomies or neighbors.

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