Darkglass Microtubes 900 Class D Amp

[Whippet]

Does anyone know if this amp has a voltage selector? On the back it seems like it says 100-240v

 

[a-37]

Does anyone know if this amp has a voltage selector? On the back it seems like it says 100-240v

Yes it has (on the left panel).

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

 

[Whippet]

Yes it has (on the left panel).

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Thanks for the confirmation.

 

[Darkglass]

Is there a Mod in this thread that can change the title to 900 instead of 700?

Yes please! Actually many of the differences between the prototypes showed at NAMM and these lay in how we control the power amp module, the guys at Bang Olufsen were so incredibly patient with us, there are dozens emails sent asking about specs that weren't mentioned in the datasheet and they were very generous with their time and knowledge.

Regarding 900 instead of 700: given that input voltage stays within the operating specifications, what actually limits the output power of the module is not directly the current but the thermal effect of said current has on the transistors, so a lot of the hacks in terms of increasing nominal RMS power output have to do with keeping temperature down while pushing the module to the max: A fan and a big heatsink physically attached to the all aluminum chassis help a lot.

A very similar principle was used when lowering the minimum rated impedance to 2 Ohms, we did burn a few modules in pretty spectacular fashion during all this tinkering but we also now know exactly how hard can we safely push them.

I'm also curious, is this an FX loop?

It can certainly be used as one! The prescribed purposes are using the preamp with an additional poweramp (or console) and vice versa.

The footswitch is beautiful as well!

Thank you! Actually the Foot switch was another of the things that took an immense amount of time and sweat: we wanted to have a versatile Footswitch that could do more than one thing with a single stomp switch, so we started working with microcontrollers: there is one in the Footswitch sending commands to another in the Amp.
Believe it or not the trickiest part was to make it work with a standard mono cable: using a TRS would have saved us couple of months of R&D because then you have 2 wires for voltage and ground plus a separate wire for message, but who carries a spare TRS cable in their gigbags?

Using a mono cable had the challenge of figuring out how to send 3 pieces of information (Voltage, ground and message) with only 2 wires.
When that's all you have one wire is usually used for ground while the message is embedded into the voltage.

Each device (Footswitch and head in our case) has to then filter out message from supply voltage. Doing this reliably and silently ended up being tough as it was very new for us, but I think some of you guys will appreciate it if the Footswitch cable breaks mid gig and your tech can swap it with any spare cable in seconds.

Thanks guys for the questions, keep'em coming! I have to get running now, I'm already late for work!

Greetings!
Doug.

 

[Daz JP]

Not quite as bad as you expected:

Invalid Link Removed

Yeah - impressive. I'm sure there's a catch

 

[DerekW]

Yes please! Actually many of the differences between the prototypes showed at NAMM and these lay in how we control the power amp module, the guys at Bang Olufsen were so incredibly patient with us, there are dozens emails sent asking about specs that weren't mentioned in the datasheet and they were very generous with their time and knowledge.

Regarding 900 instead of 700: given that input voltage stays within the operating specifications, what actually limits the output power of the module is not directly the current but the thermal effect of said current has on the transistors, so a lot of the hacks in terms of increasing nominal RMS power output have to do with keeping temperature down while pushing the module to the max: A fan and a big heatsink physically attached to the all aluminum chassis help a lot.

A very similar principle was used when lowering the minimum rated impedance to 2 Ohms, we did burn a few modules in pretty spectacular fashion during all this tinkering but we also now know exactly how hard can we safely push them.



It can certainly be used as one! The prescribed purposes are using the preamp with an additional poweramp (or console) and vice versa.



Thank you! Actually the Foot switch was another of the things that took an immense amount of time and sweat: we wanted to have a versatile Footswitch that could do more than one thing with a single stomp switch, so we started working with microcontrollers: there is one in the Footswitch sending commands to another in the Amp.
Believe it or not the trickiest part was to make it work with a standard mono cable: using a TRS would have saved us couple of months of R&D because then you have 2 wires for voltage and ground plus a separate wire for message, but who carries a spare TRS cable in their gigbags?

Using a mono cable had the challenge of figuring out how to send 3 pieces of information (Voltage, ground and message) with only 2 wires.
When that's all you have one wire is usually used for ground while the message is embedded into the voltage.

Each device (Footswitch and head in our case) has to then filter out message from supply voltage. Doing this reliably and silently ended up being tough as it was very new for us, but I think some of you guys will appreciate it if the Footswitch cable breaks mid gig and your tech can swap it with any spare cable in seconds.

Thanks guys for the questions, keep'em coming! I have to get running now, I'm already late for work!

Greetings!
Doug.

I was actually going to complain about the foot switch, as it would be nice to be able to select the VMT or B3K from the pedal, but I see where that would be difficult, especially with using the mono cable. Which in itself is awesome as they are cheap and you can select your own length.

 

[Darkglass]

I was actually going to complain about the foot switch, as it would be nice to be able to select the VMT or B3K from the pedal, but I see where that would be difficult, especially with using the mono cable. Which in itself is awesome as they are cheap and you can select your own length.

We actually thought about that with a double tap but the uC debouncing subroutines gave the other switching operations (mute, overdrive) a very awkward latency, unfortunately no matter what we tried coding wise it never felt natural and smooth with a double tap option.

 

[AciDBatH666]

I can't wait for Sweetwater to start carrying them. I'm glad to see you guys being carried by more and more vendors Doug. Part of the reason I got my GK MB800 Fusion with Sweetwater was because I have an account with them and they have 0% APR for nearly 18 months, which is killer.
Now my next choice is how much to strip my pedal board down. There was a little talk on Reddit about this being a little high priced, but I chimed in with info saying that with the Microtubes included as part of the amp, that saves me money plus floor space. I think I can strip the B7K and B3K off my board and run just pure effects. I just have to figure my tone selections in my head first.

 

[Sandman64]

Love the looks, features and of course the 900 watts of power. My one issue is that I'll never be able to read what those controls do on a dark stage. Perhaps make them a tad larger or even a black amp with white lettering as an option.

 

[azwhofan]

Pardon my ignorance for not reading all 37 pages of this thread ... are there plans to make the amp rack-mount-able at some point in the future?

 

[Darkglass]

Love the looks, features and of course the 900 watts of power. My one issue is that I'll never be able to read what those controls do on a dark stage. Perhaps make them a tad larger or even a black amp with white lettering as an option.

Thanks! It would actually be great to hear what you think after seeing one in person.

The lettering is very clear and easy to read and the layout very sequentially logical.

The markings for the Mid Frequency switches are small but if you think about it an SVT doesn't even have the frequencies specified on the front panel for theirs and I don't see that being an issue for anyone when it comes to getting great tones and enjoying those great amplifiers .

We had quite a few beta testers: Brian from Devin Townsend Project and Billy Gould from Faith No More among others and difficulty of usage or interpreting the graphics live was never even mentioned when they gave us feedback.

 

[Earwaxsculptor]

I'll be in the studio recording in a month or so for the first time in over ten years.

Perfect timing!

 

[bebass]

Pardon my ignorance for not reading all 37 pages of this thread ... are there plans to make the amp rack-mount-able at some point in the future?

I believe there was a post in this thread about that where Doug mentioned they had plans to release rack ears. I hope I am remembering correctly.

 

[bjelkeman]

Love the looks, features and of course the 900 watts of power. My one issue is that I'll never be able to read what those controls do on a dark stage. Perhaps make them a tad larger or even a black amp with white lettering as an option.

Regarding the colour black for the amp case, I was thinking that too initially when I saw the prototypes the first time. But when I saw it for real I changed my mind. A lot of bass amp tops are black. This would just be another small black box.

But the distinctive look, with the rounded corners, the crisp black lettering (improved from the prototypes), the brushed aluminium, really makes a statement in itself. You may like it or not, but I think it is a bold aesthetic choice, and I like it.

The nobs are clearly marked. I think this will work well.

 

[mmbongo]

Part of the reason I got my GK MB800 Fusion with Sweetwater was because I have an account with them and they have 0% APR for nearly 18 months, which is killer.

Not on Darkglass though.

I'd suggest getting Darkglass stuff from www.bassstringsonline.com as he will work with you more than Sweetwater and he directly supports the TB community.

 

[Lammchop93]

Checked a couple websites and the expected ship date is Oct 21st. 1 month everyone!

 

[bathnapkin]

Not on Darkglass though.

I'd suggest getting Darkglass stuff from www.bassstringsonline.com as he will work with you more than Sweetwater and he directly supports the TB community.

They dont have the amp listed yet but the rest of the Darkglass line on Sweetwater is 0% for 24 months at the moment.

 

[mmbongo]

They dont have the amp listed yet but the rest of the Darkglass line on Sweetwater is 0% for 24 months at the moment.

I stand corrected! I simply missed it because they dont have a graphic for Darkglass!
Sweetwater Musician's All Access Platinum Card | Sweetwater.com

 

[DerekW]

Man I wish they offered that in Canada.

It's actually a pretty sweet setup if you like the DG sound, not a steal, but you are getting the equivalent of about $400 in pedals along with the $600 amp.

 

[Darkglass]

Many of you Amp freaks can probably relate. I've wanted a unit to select between several amps/cabs easily for a while.

We built this nice Amplifier Switching System using Arduino.

Besides being super useful for QC it will come in handy when comparing several cabs as you can also connect 8 cabs onto a single amp. We even left room for small dummy loads on the PCB in case we ever feel like testing tube amps.