Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Guitars, Amps and Effects => Topic started by: blue on February 11, 2013, 04:53:06 PM
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Now this interests me. i emailed them, and they replied inside about half an hour, asking would there be a European version and a 16 ohm version. he said the 240v version is available now, and they're working on a 16 ohm version. i'm definitely keen to try one.
http://www.badcatamps.com/unleash.html (http://www.badcatamps.com/unleash.html)
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Damn you beat me to it! I wanted to be the one to start this thread. I've been following the thread on TGP for months now, and I was so gassed up for it I pulled the trigger. Make any amp a 2 channel, adjustable volume, FX loop, attenuate/reamp fire breathing machine... sign me up! Can't wait to try it with my 100w Marshall and my 1w Marshall! Should be getting mine in any day now, I'll be sure to post a review for y'all.
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Excellent :) i look forward to hearing how you get on. the effects loop is the bit that excited me, specifically for my old Marshalls that don't have one
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It does sound an interesting idea!
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it seems to be pretty much exactly the device i've had in my head, that i wished someone would build! if only it had switchable input impedence, it would be perfect
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it seems to be pretty much exactly the device i've had in my head, that i wished someone would build! if only it had switchable input impedence, it would be perfect
It does take any impedance you know that right? It just peaks at certain volumes and maybe is technically made for 8 ohms. I believe 140w in 4 ohms, 100w in 8 ohms, and 80w in 16 ohms. The one right now still works for 16.
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i know that applies to the output, you can plug it into any speaker from 4 to 16 ohms. but i believe you're supposed to use an 8 ohm output from the amplifier. of course, i could be wrong. they did tell me they were working on a 16 ohm version though
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i know that applies to the output, you can plug it into any speaker from 4 to 16 ohms. but i believe you're supposed to use an 8 ohm output from the amplifier. of course, i could be wrong. they did tell me they were working on a 16 ohm version though
This is very logical otherwise the OT would have a mismatch
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So, essentially, this is an attenuator with 2 different level settings that you can switch between?
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So, essentially, this is an attenuator with 2 different level settings that you can switch between?
It's an attenuator and a re-amping device, meaning you can plug a 100w amp into it and attenuate to 1w, or plug in a 1w amp and re-amp it into 100w. I think they said that it fools the amp into thinking the device is the speaker, meaning alot less squashing of tone when attenuating and giving you the same feel and dynamics your amp would have while at any volume. There's absolutely nothing innovative in this device really, just the first person to take all these components, put them together, and quite possibly perfect them.
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This does seem like an amazing device. Very possibly a future buy, so I am looking forward to the first hands on comments here.
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This does seem like an amazing device. Very possibly a future buy, so I am looking forward to the first hands on comments here.
Indeed. As Blue said, when I got my 100w I wanted a really transparent attenuator to get those cranked tones, a solo boost, and an FX loop. Now I've got it!
When I got my 1w, I wanted a way to get it louder (I realize I could have bought a bigger amp, but not with that tone!) as a backup. Now I've got it!
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I am looking forward to first hand impressions, as Bad Cat's clip on Youtube is awful.
I really do not see the point in taking my amazing low wattage amps and converting them to a SS amp.
As for the effects loop ... meh. Anyone buying an amplifier without a loop should know what they are getting into, and this has been attempted before by other companies and not to great success, imo.
I am having a very hard time seeing how this could possible score as a reamp or recording device over an iso cab.
I do like the idea of having two levels of attenuation, but then, I get the same thing using my single channel amps and a Heavy Electronics Descend.
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I am looking forward to first hand impressions, as Bad Cat's clip on Youtube is awful.
I really do not see the point in taking my amazing low wattage amps and converting them to a SS amp.
As for the effects loop ... meh. Anyone buying an amplifier without a loop should know what they are getting into, and this has been attempted before by other companies and not to great success, imo.
I am having a very hard time seeing how this could possible score as a reamp or recording device over an iso cab.
I do like the idea of having two levels of attenuation, but then, I get the same thing using my single channel amps and a Heavy Electronics Descend.
basically my thoughts also, though I find it interesting. I wish I had a descend.
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I am looking forward to first hand impressions, as Bad Cat's clip on Youtube is awful.
I really do not see the point in taking my amazing low wattage amps and converting them to a SS amp.
As for the effects loop ... meh. Anyone buying an amplifier without a loop should know what they are getting into, and this has been attempted before by other companies and not to great success, imo.
I am having a very hard time seeing how this could possible score as a reamp or recording device over an iso cab.
I do like the idea of having two levels of attenuation, but then, I get the same thing using my single channel amps and a Heavy Electronics Descend.
First off, it's very very very very hard to judge the level of volume on these videos. It's virtually impossible to put up a clip of this thing that will make you want to buy it. It's gonna be a word of mouth type device. It is an SS amp but as I said eariler, it fools the amp into thinking it's the speaker when it's really not. This allows for a very organic tube tone that is supposedly the most transparent attenuating device on the market. Not familiar with Iso cabs so I can't comment on that. Unfortunately, Badcat isn't a major dealer so you won't be able to try one out at your local store, the clips won't do anything for you, and you'll have to buy one to make up your mind. But every single review I've seen so far has touted this thing as the real deal, so I wouldn't be so quick to put it down.
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If you cannot quantify it's godliness in at least a decent sounding clip, then I am inclined to think even less of the product as opposed to being simply baffled. :)
SoundPure might be the only people out there that could do a correct A/B demo, but Bad Cat should invest in getting proper demo clips made instead of the rubbish they have on their their official channel.
ANY design will have its adherents. It will require more than the 'you have to buy it it understand it' to garner anything approaching interest from me.
As it is now, it smacks more of clever advertising (with precious little technical data on their site and owners manual) and religious faith.
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Well of course they can make a great clip, mic it up nice and all this other cr@p. But that would be a demo of the amp, not the Unleash. The Unleash just makes it louder, something you cannot show on a video clip. It's a transparent re-amping device, not a pedal that colors your tone or adds distortion, something that you can identify in a video clip. An a/b demo would prove this. Clip A at regular volumes would sound infinitely better than clip B that is being reamped louder, because it would overload the mic, your speakers, etc. Just as it did in the clip you're talking about.
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What i dont get about this is.
People buy low wattage amps for low volume applications.
So they then buy this to make that low volume amp quieter to make it louder than it originally was defeating the original point.
Also the transparency thing is very doubtful. It's incredibly hard to make a power amplifier transparent. And in my experience putting a valve amp through a SS amp makes it sound solid state/digital.
However we will see. I don't see why people wouldn't just buy a multi channel 100w amp with a loop in the first place if that's what they were wanting.
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Well of course they can make a great clip, mic it up nice and all this other cr@p. But that would be a demo of the amp, not the Unleash. The Unleash just makes it louder, something you cannot show on a video clip. It's a transparent re-amping device, not a pedal that colors your tone or adds distortion, something that you can identify in a video clip. An a/b demo would prove this. Clip A at regular volumes would sound infinitely better than clip B that is being reamped louder, because it would overload the mic, your speakers, etc. Just as it did in the clip you're talking about.
I am less concerned with the volume difference as I am in them demonstrating the supposed transparency of this unit. A better comparison would be to match the volumes (in dBu, not SPL) to really show what this thing is capable of.
Subjectively speaking, at full tilt, 100W is twice as loud as 1W, not 100x. (Total actual increase of about 18dB)
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If you want to validate the transparency of the unit, I'd check out the demo of the Bobcat on their website. That's the best example I've seen of it so far. It has the Unleash built into it and at one point in the video they show the Unleash, and it seemed to make no difference to me.
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Thanks, will check it out!
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scepticism is always good. i hope it does do what it claims, as it could be a very useful tool in certain circumstances. i am waiting for real world opinions of actual users though. i'm afraid i can't afford to try it on faith at the moment :(
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scepticism is always good. i hope it does do what it claims, as it could be a very useful tool in certain circumstances. i am waiting for real world opinions of actual users though. i'm afraid i can't afford to try it on faith at the moment :(
Mine's just arrived, will put up a detailed review tonight. Anything you guys want me to try specifically to answer any question you might have?
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What i dont get about this is.
People buy low wattage amps for low volume applications.
So they then buy this to make that low volume amp quieter to make it louder than it originally was defeating the original point.
Also the transparency thing is very doubtful. It's incredibly hard to make a power amplifier transparent. And in my experience putting a valve amp through a SS amp makes it sound solid state/digital.
However we will see. I don't see why people wouldn't just buy a multi channel 100w amp with a loop in the first place if that's what they were wanting.
Many people love the sound of a classic Fender Champ (proper tweedy one) and it's a 5w amp. It's probably too noisy for home use, especially when cranked into happy territory and it's not going to have enough wallop at a gig. If this device does work as advertised it sounds great to me.
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What i dont get about this is.
People buy low wattage amps for low volume applications.
So they then buy this to make that low volume amp quieter to make it louder than it originally was defeating the original point.
Also the transparency thing is very doubtful. It's incredibly hard to make a power amplifier transparent. And in my experience putting a valve amp through a SS amp makes it sound solid state/digital.
However we will see. I don't see why people wouldn't just buy a multi channel 100w amp with a loop in the first place if that's what they were wanting.
Many people love the sound of a classic Fender Champ (proper tweedy one) and it's a 5w amp. It's probably too noisy for home use, especially when cranked into happy territory and it's not going to have enough wallop at a gig. If this device does work as advertised it sounds great to me.
I see your point on the live use. I'd like to see a comparison clip of an amp mic'd properly with the unleash and then without at the same volume levels to see truly how transparent it is
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I can't get a real proper mic and setup, but I'd be happy to record it anyways like that for ya.
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So I just played it for about an hour, here are my first thoughts...
This thing does EXACTLY what I wanted it to do and sounds EXACTLY like I wanted it to sound. Transparent to a T, and does an amazing job both attenuating my 100w beast and amping my 1w. It just sounds killer, even after an hour I don't know how I fared before it.
I've already phased my OD pedal off my board and quite possibly my volume pedal, as with the volume and gain in the sweet spot I get such natural, organic crunch with singing sustain, even better than my pedal. Makes it sound like a buzzsaw in comparison. Even with my gain levels at around say a GNR type sound, rolling back on my guitar's volume cleans it up beautifully. I didn't know this was possible before today.
All in all, this is a fantastic device. Anyone thinking of getting it, get it. You will not be disappointed.
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sounds very promising. i was almost hoping you'd say it was no good, would have saved me a few pound! :)
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i've just put a deposit on one of these. unfortunately, they won't be landing in the UK til June, but when they do I should have one of the first to "officially" cross the Atlantic. I'm sure a few people have bought them from US dealers
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i've just put a deposit on one of these. unfortunately, they won't be landing in the UK til June, but when they do I should have one of the first to "officially" cross the Atlantic. I'm sure a few people have bought them from US dealers
Congrats! You'll love it!