• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Bergantino B/Amp at NAMM

#181
Low Class said:
It plainly states 4 ohm minimum on the back of the amp.
Click to expand...
You are right it does. The minimum factory is 4ohm. If you dig into the menu there is an option for 2.67 and 2ohm as well. I have personally run it on the 2ohm setting with 2 (4ohm) CN212 cabinets and I can honestly say it may be one of the best sounding bass rigs. Jim gives you an even foundation to sculpt your tonal masterpiece with his profiles. If you have a chance to try one yourself you will see what I mean. Also, Jim will be here at the store to explain in more detail. Date is TBA. We will keep everyone in the loop though. -R
 
  • Like
Reactions: Slaymus, soxhats, Rodger Bryan and 1 other person
#187
BassinCT said:
The ability to optimize the output for different speaker impedance- is this something that is new to the MI amplification world, or are there other examples?
Click to expand...

There are literally hundreds of examples in the tube amp world, going back many decades. Current limiting in solid state amps is nothing new either. Hard to say if this amp's approach is something new until we know how it actually works.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Rodger Bryan
#189
I just got a pre-production sample to try yesterday. My one word review would be "WOW!"

It's hard to pick a favorite feature... the cabinet profiles do a great job of bringing clarity to the party. The variable high pass filter is quite a treat as well, that almost makes me anxious to gig in a bad room just so I can experiment a little. And if I were an upright guy, the notch filter would probably be pretty high on my list, too.

The interface is very well designed and quite intuitive. It can be as simple as you want, everything you "need" is right there on the surface. Gain, Master Volume and a 4-band EQ. If that's all you ever want/need, then you need look no further...

But if you dive one layer deeper (with either short or long presses on the various knobs), you can totally tweak this thing out. You can vary the frequencies where the 4 EQ filters operate, you can vary the frequency and the dB of boost used by the "bright" switch, there's a notch filter with similar tweaks (choose the frequency and amount of cut). Then there are the system sort of features like choosing your cab profile and impedance setting. It also has two memory slots for saving everything, so you can have different settings for two basses and quickly switch between them.

This amp seemingly lets you control everything you ever might want to control, all without being overly complicated. Oh, and did I mention it also SOUNDS GREAT? Bonus! LOL
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jefenator, tombowlus, rodl2005 and 9 others
#190
Disclaimer: fanboi.

I got a chance to play with one today at BSD for a half hour or so, outside the din of NAMM. WOW is right. The amp has a huge feature set, but the sound is what really shines. It is clean, clean, clean and full-range. With the specific cab presets, it extracts the most from Jim's already great cabs. I can't get over how every frequency is present and clearly audible. I had it set "flat" (which sounds flatter than most) through an HD212 then a CN212, each with its internal EQ preset selected. You can still hear the character of each cab, but there are no big bumps in either one. The controls are comprehensive but intuitive. Chris and I ran through them in about four minutes. If and when any firmware changes come out, you can download them off the internet and load them into the amp on a thumb drive. My decision is made - when my name comes up on the list, I'm down. I'll play it a bit more over the next few days and post any new revelations here. See Greg's review above for more details.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jefenator, tombowlus, RocketMusic and 3 others
#192
I really liked it, and it's quite an interesting amp. Really high quality form factor, if a bit unorthodox. Reminds me of a piece of test lab equipment or something.

You can see and hear the thought that went into it. Bass San Diego (great store, plug plug!) is in the early stages of stocking the amp, and they have the means to switch the amp through all the Berg cabs (which they also stock).

You can definitely hear how the presets complement each Berg cab. The amp is plenty loud. Very flexible, but it's probably more fiddling than I prefer to do. Clean/flat/full.

But I am sticking with my GK MB800 with my Berg 12 cabs. I'm just hooked on these MB800 rock tones, man.

I reckon the Berg amp will be a big seller though.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Munjibunga
#194
CaptainWally said:
I really liked it, and it's quite an interesting amp. Really high quality form factor, if a bit unorthodox. Reminds me of a piece of test lab equipment or something.

You can see and hear the thought that went into it. Bass San Diego (great store, plug plug!) is in the early stages of stocking the amp, and they have the means to switch the amp through all the Berg cabs (which they also stock).

You can definitely hear how the presets complement each Berg cab. The amp is plenty loud. Very flexible, but it's probably more fiddling than I prefer to do. Clean/flat/full.

But I am sticking with my GK MB800 with my Berg 12 cabs. I'm just hooked on these MB800 rock tones, man.


I reckon the Berg amp will be a big seller though.
Click to expand...
There's no need to fiddle with it if you don't want to. The default screen is 4-band EQ, so it's no more complicated than your MB800 in that regard. Just set the EQ the way you like it. Then, if you want, you can just press and hold one of the two mid-frequency knobs and it will save that setting for you. As you get more adventurous, you can adjust the center frequency of each of the four EQ bands ... but you don't HAVE to if you don't want to.

BTW, I like my MB800, too - it sounds great through a CN212.
 
  • Like
Reactions: bass nitro
#195
Munjibunga said:
There's no need to fiddle with it if you don't want to. // As you get more adventurous, you can adjust the center frequency of each of the four EQ bands ... but you don't HAVE to if you don't want to.
.
Click to expand...

Yeah, quit true.

Can we still be rock 'n roll if we have to update our amp's firmware with a thumb drive before the gig? ;-)
 
  • Like
Reactions: Fred312b, soxhats, dukeorock and 1 other person
#198
Peredur said:
Someone who has actually messed with one needs to carry on talking about this! I never buy kit new, but I think this will be the exception.
Click to expand...
I've been doing some beta testing on the amp and had an interesting experience that demonstrates its versatility. Two days ago, I let Jim know that I thought it would be a good idea to have the amp remember the state of the mute button at shutdown. That way you would mute the amp before you shut it down if you wanted to pull out the instrument cable, then when you powered up next time, the mute would still be on in case you forgot to plug in your bass before power up. The mute switch on the amp is not a mechanical toggle. So Jim thought it over and agreed, so when I dropped into BSD this afternoon, Jim had sent George at BSD a firmware change, and George loaded it into the amp with a thumb drive.

Now, this is not something for customizing each individual amp (so don't swamp Jim with emails requesting custom mods), however, if someone came up with an idea that would improve the performance or versatility of the amp overall, firmware upgrades would be available online.

So here's another cool feature of the amp. Let's say you're have trouble with feedback at a particular gig. All you have to do is find which note is feeding back, go to the amp's filter feature, and select that note (E1 to G3 in half-step increments). Then set how many dB you want to reduce that note by. You can also set a specific notch frequency and reduction level rather than choosing the offending note. It also has a variable high-pass filter for which you can set its lower cutoff frequency in 2 Hz increments starting at 32 Hz.

As a reminder, if this all sounds too complicated for you, no worries. When you turn the amp on, the default screen is 4-band EQ. The amp sounds great in its original state, and you can still do a little tweaking to get "your sound." As I go through the amp, I'll post more features.

Note to mods: I am not being compensated for testing the amp - no, I'm not getting a free one ... I have my war chest built up and am anxiously waiting to purchase mine just like everyone else.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: kevk, tombowlus, GregC and 2 others
#200
Thanks! As a doubler I find the programmable eq etc very exciting. Sometimes I bring DB/plank/uke to a gig so more than two memory slots would be great. Even if I am just doubling then more than two slots would be great just for different EQ/FX blends. It would also be superb to have them footswitchable. I realise that this is an ever expanding feature set, but it does not hurt to ask.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back