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1200W Forte HP

#321
kevk said:
Had some time today...demo’d the entire HP 2.5 firmware suite. A-m-a-z-i-n-g improvements! Gain matching of the clean with the drive is ridiculously balanced, smooth...low noise-floor, too!

Just when I thought this amp can’t get any better...it’s better! Going with the OFB (Overdrive/Fuzz Blend)... Thanks, Jim and Lee! :thumbsup:
Click to expand...

Glad you are enjoying it! We made some great strides. OFB is my go to as well. ;) It just captures that vintage vibe that I crave.
 
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#324
bass_69 said:
Reading all this it seems that D class amps have finally arrived. What are the best matched cabs for this ? Like 212 config.
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I've been getting a fantastic sound out of D class amps for 10 years. The current Berg offerings seem to be at the leading edge of bass amp development. I'd put one of the Berg 212 cabs under it, like an HDN212, or even an HDN or REF 112/210 for a great modular rig.
 
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#325
bass_69 said:
Reading all this it seems that D class amps have finally arrived. What are the best matched cabs for this ? Like 212 config.
Click to expand...

speaker selection is entirely subjective, so trust YOUR ears! That being said, you really can not go wrong pairing the hp with Bergantino cabs. Being an old buzzard, I prefer a pair of 1x12 to split the weight up. I use mine with a pair of hdn112’s.
I also am very pleased with the results using Barefaced and Audiokenesis cabs.
 
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#327
husky123 said:
Zero tonal differences between the ohm toggle on the HP.
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Thanks for the quick turn around. Saw that there were other amps that had some changes with that regard.

Shopping around for a new amp, and the forte hp is one that I've not had the chance to check out yet, so digging through all I can. Hoping in the next week or two to get a chance to try it out.

Any tips on things to check out specifically on the hp (aside from the obvious basic knob tweaking)?
 
#328
Chaputa said:
Thanks for the quick turn around. Saw that there were other amps that had some changes with that regard.

Shopping around for a new amp, and the forte hp is one that I've not had the chance to check out yet, so digging through all I can. Hoping in the next week or two to get a chance to try it out.

Any tips on things to check out specifically on the hp (aside from the obvious basic knob tweaking)?
Click to expand...

One great tonal asset of the amp is the Jekyll and Hyde personality the amp can have with the drive switch. It can go from clean and mean to gnarl and snarl with a quick push of one button/footswitch.
 
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#329
just wondering if anyone has played this amp thru the Bergantino NV115 cabs. I have two of these cabs which I use with my Reeves 225 Tube amp. Thinking about getting this amp as I'm getting tired of lugging the heavy Reeves amp and hoping the venues have I play at has ample 120 voltage to satisfy my Reeves, as anything less, the amp doesn't perform well. Suprisingly, alot of places don't have steady 120 wattage at their stage outlets.
 
#331
Rockbobmel said:
Can you please elaborate? Performs well? Thank You.
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the tone of the tube amp lacks clarity if it isn't receiving a constant 120 wattage of power from the outlets its plugged into. I have a Furman power conditioner that has a voltage read out. If it is below 116 I don't use the tube amp and have to use my solid state GK amp. The lack of tone is very noticeable. Some places I play have read outs of 109.
 
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#332
Have you tried running your tube amp without the power conditioner? Often those will cause more trouble than good.

Dave For Real said:
the tone of the tube amp lacks clarity if it isn't receiving a constant 120 wattage of power from the outlets its plugged into. I have a Furman power conditioner that has a voltage read out. If it is below 116 I don't use the tube amp and have to use my solid state GK amp. The lack of tone is very noticeable. Some places I play have read outs of 109.
Click to expand...
 
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#333
frankie5string said:
Have you tried running your tube amp without the power conditioner? Often those will cause more trouble than good.
Click to expand...
When I first got the Reeves tube amp I didn't use the power conditioner and noticed the problem on a gig we did at a camp ground with minimal power. Even the guitar players tube amp was acting up. Thats when I started using the power conditioner, mostly to check the voltage of the places we play. Cause when the Reeves has the proper voltage, it sounds wonderful! Thats why I thought
I could use the Forte HP amp in its place at certain gigs to get close to the tube amp tone. If that makes sense.
 
#334
Dave For Real said:
When I first got the Reeves tube amp I didn't use the power conditioner and noticed the problem on a gig we did at a camp ground with minimal power. Even the guitar players tube amp was acting up. Thats when I started using the power conditioner, mostly to check the voltage of the places we play. Cause when the Reeves has the proper voltage, it sounds wonderful! Thats why I thought
I could use the Forte HP amp in its place at certain gigs to get close to the tube amp tone. If that makes sense.
Click to expand...

I see what you mean. I don't think you'll get exactly the same thing out of the Forte HP, but you'll probably like it for what it can do. I've experienced something similar with bad voltage/current feeds at a trailer park - it wreaked havoc with our keyboards and some of our Midi devices. But our computers worked fine - switching power supplies, perhaps?

Power conditioners don't really help when you have poor quality power, unfortunately. It wouldn't just be voltage which could affect a tube amp, but also the available current it can draw. If it's somehow broken up the line, a conditioner will actually make things worse. Best solution is to pull a three-phase feed and not rely on the 120 Volts from the wall plug.

Maybe Mr. Bergantino himself can chime in on how tolerant the HP is of low-voltage/low-current situations.
 
#335
For those of you who use 5 string basses with your Forte HP?
Do you mostly slap, pick, or finger?
How deep does it go?

If I am looking for an amp that can go very deep - reggae, 70's synthesizer funk bass lines, the last two decades of country music - will the HP give me the clean, Low B depth, fullness, and volume like an Aguilar DB751 or Mesa M9?
 
#336
frankie5string said:
I see what you mean. I don't think you'll get exactly the same thing out of the Forte HP, but you'll probably like it for what it can do. I've experienced something similar with bad voltage/current feeds at a trailer park - it wreaked havoc with our keyboards and some of our Midi devices. But our computers worked fine - switching power supplies, perhaps?

Power conditioners don't really help when you have poor quality power, unfortunately. It wouldn't just be voltage which could affect a tube amp, but also the available current it can draw. If it's somehow broken up the line, a conditioner will actually make things worse. Best solution is to pull a three-phase feed and not rely on the 120 Volts from the wall plug.

Maybe Mr. Bergantino himself can chime in on how tolerant the HP is of low-voltage/low-current situations.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the input Frankie
 
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#339
Shopped around for a while, and finally bit the bullet on the HP, as it just was perfect from a sound perspective vs weight. Still love my DB659, but the HP has so much more flexibility and is 1/10 the weight of my rack. One curiosity I have is, in 2-ohm mode, does the power output shift down @2.67, 4, or 8 ohms? Just curious how careful I have to be with a 4 ohm 2x10 :-)
 

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