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BBE Sonic Maximizer- the horses mouth

#61
Originally posted by BlakeBass
Anyone know if the BMAX is capable of an overdriven sound or should I keep my RBI and have two preamps in my rack? I'm looking for an overdriven, bluesy, warmer type of sound. Any help/advice would be appreciated. I'm willing to get a pedal or other type effect if that's what it takes.

Thanks ;)
Click to expand...

I bet a BMax and an EBS MultiDrive would sound good together. Maybe you could work out a trade.
 
#62
Hey Dave,

This is from Paul our Vp of Engineering who did the electronic design:

"The ratio, attack time, and release time are dynamically controlled by the signal level. The control sets the threshold. As the signal becomes stronger the compression ratio increases. The attack time isn’t really changed all that much but the release time gets longer as the signal being compressed is stronger. The compressor detector is set to both peak and average signals."

I hope this answers your questions.

Peace
 
#63
Guys,

Thanks for the feedback on my question. I already sold the RBI and am using the BMAX alone. It sounds great but I'm still using my ART Levelar compressor. I think iy sounds better than the internal. I'm going to try a Tubeworks 903 for the OD, I'm expecting Santa to bring one tonight (read:very cool wifey). I'll let you know how it works out. My other dilemma is that my local music store has a brand new Ashdown EVO 500 1x15 combo on sale for 750.00 I'm losing my mind. Should i go for it and sell my pre/power amp??? Stay tuned. Thanks again.
 
#64
Originally posted by BlakeBass
Guys,

Thanks for the feedback on my question. I already sold the RBI and am using the BMAX alone. It sounds great but I'm still using my ART Levelar compressor. I think iy sounds better than the internal. I'm going to try a Tubeworks 903 for the OD, I'm expecting Santa to bring one tonight (read:very cool wifey). I'll let you know how it works out. My other dilemma is that my local music store has a brand new Ashdown EVO 500 1x15 combo on sale for 750.00 I'm losing my mind. Should i go for it and sell my pre/power amp??? Stay tuned. Thanks again.
Click to expand...

Depends on the tone you're after.
To my taste, the Evo's are a little tooo flavorful in a darkish kind of way.
The sound is really good. I just don't think it's what I would want all the time.
 
#65
Judd,

Thanks for your quick response. I like the design ideas of the BMax, and the clips on basstasters.com sounded pretty good to me, so I ordered one last week. We'll see...
I would like to know if I could get a schematic to add the Jensen transformer, or if that is something BBE would do for me.
Also, (warning: opinion ahead)I feel that to go class A/B on the front end of the BMax is (although small) a compromise on an otherwise killer design. I got the impression from the BMax literature that the A/B front end is supposed to offer a tubesque sound, and that's actually a negative for me. I've owned many of the higher end tube pre's (Demeter, Eden, Ampeg), along with several SVT's, and though they do offer a characteristic sound that can be nice (particularly in mid to high registers), I feel the low end tightness and definition pales in comparison to solid state. As far as my feelings on "Class A" solid state all I can tell you is that electrically it produces less signal distortion, and my favorite DI's are Class A solid state.
That's my opinion, and I know everyones got one.
Thanks again,
Dave
 
#66
Well like everyone else in here im a very impressed with the people at BBE being active on here. In fact i just went out to pick up a 482i for my bass rig. Im running an SWR SM900 with a Sterling and Carvin 5 string fretless. Cant wait to drop this baby in my rack and see if im gonna keep it around. I'll keep you posted.
 
#67
howdy DDave,

i appreciate all your comments. i'll address them the best i can:

1) not really possible to simply "add" the jensen. the di that's built into the BMAX is an "active" design and there isn't any way to mod that circuit to add the Jensen xformer. the di employed by the BMAX-T is a "passive" design where the xformer is doing the impedance matching. they are two completely different circuit designs.

2) we found the actual sonic differences between the class a and class a/b designs were insignificant enough that it didn't warrant the extra cost. we use a 5532 opamp which is the same class a/b opamp you'll find in soundcraft and allen/heath mixing consoles. the crossover distortion spec is, like, .001% which is all but inaudible. it's harmonic distortion is rated .0003% thd.

3) the reference to the "tubesque" front-end really relates to two things; it has an input impedance of 1meg ohm which is the same as a tube preamp would present to your pickups and, secondly, the front-end EQ is a passive design, similar to the BMAX-T (and the Alembic F2-B and any vintage Dual Showman, Twin Reverb, Bassman) but, since there is no tube circuit, the sound is very different in the ways you would expect; faster transient response, tighter bottom and less of the overall "roundness" of tone that is particular to tube designs.

that's all i got, i hope it helps. please let me know how you like your BMAX.

peace
 
#68
Just got my BMAX-T back from BBE repair. Memmo in the service dept. is the best. For such a big company, BBE has excellent service. The guy was all over my problem amd got the preamp back to me ASAP. Couldn't be happier. If I was trying to decide on which preamp to buy this would definitely sway my decision. I'm sure now I made the right choice after this experience.
 
#70
Sorry to dig up an old thread, but it beats starting a new one.

I have an old BBE 411 Sonic Max and I don't think my settings are optimal. The 411 has 3 knobs:
"Gain", "Lo Contour" and "Definition". It also has a "manual/auto" switch.

My setup is as follows:
Ashly BP41->(effects loop)DBX compressor->BBE 411 Sonic Max(/effects loop)->Trace Elliot power amp.

Here's my deal: I'm finding that it seems to be a bit too bright in that it really accentuates any string "clicking". When I disengage it, the problem goes away. I have all three knobs set to 50%.

Other then the above stated problem, I find that I really like what the unit does for my sound. Someone on another similar thread stated that it's like "lifting a quilt from over your ears" when engaged, and i agree.

Are my settings the issue here? If so, can someone tell me what I'm doing wrong? Also, is it better to run it in the effects loop or after the preamp/before the power amp. I've read conflicting opinions.

Thanks in advance.
 
#73
Sanctum said:
I agree ... and I run mine in my effects loop with no problem.
Click to expand...


of course, the effects loop is fine. many folks run it that way with great success.

typically we recommend that you get it as far downstream as possible so try it between the preamp/power amp and see if that works for you.

thanks
 
#74
Judd, I've been considering getting a compressor for awhile now and thought I had it narrowed down to a RNC or a JoeMeek. Now I see that BBE is offering the MaxCom and it throws in the Sonic Maximizer as a bonus.

Can you tell me a bit more than is available at the BBE site? Is it bass friendly or do the lows distort as in some Brand-X compressors. Is there a lot of flexibility or are you limited with the settings. How musical is it? Will I have to sell my firstborn to bankroll it?
 
#75
typically we recommend that you get it as far downstream as possible so try it between the preamp/power amp and see if that works for you.
Click to expand...

I think that capability is one of the unique aspects to the BBE. It can reside in the signal path between the pre and power where the output of the pre varies without it causing any input problems to the BBE.

Try that with most other devices and you can end up with a less then ideal signal to noise ratio or an over-driven input causing distortion. The BBE doesn't mind!
 
#77
Jon R said:
Judd, I've been considering getting a compressor for awhile now and thought I had it narrowed down to a RNC or a JoeMeek. Now I see that BBE is offering the MaxCom and it throws in the Sonic Maximizer as a bonus.

Can you tell me a bit more than is available at the BBE site? Is it bass friendly or do the lows distort as in some Brand-X compressors. Is there a lot of flexibility or are you limited with the settings. How musical is it? Will I have to sell my firstborn to bankroll it?
Click to expand...

hi jon,

our new MaxCom is friendly to anything that's put to it. it will not distort when used as a bass compressor.

the sound of the thing is really nice, i've demo'd it in many different applications and it's about as transparent of a compressor as i've ever used.

it is quite flexible and has a similar feature/parameter set as a dbx 266xl, the VCA's we're using, however, are the same as have been used in the dbx 166 which is their more upmarket piece. these are high headroom, extremely low noise VCA's.

the street price will be around 200.00, our retail price is 329.99

just for a value comparison, the dbx 166 sells for around 250.00 and our 882i balanced Sonic Maximizer also sells for around 250.00...so that's 500.00 worth of processing for around 200.00

we've just started shipping so let me know if you need to find a dealer.

thanks for the interest.

peace
 

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