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Eden E300T

#21
7 months ago when I openned this thread I was debating on purchasing this new Eden Tube Head or an SVT Classic. I was facing a heavy gig schedual for 4th quarter and ended up buying a full SVT Classic Rig with the 810 cab. My impression was that it sounded much much better than my Eden Metro + 410 XLT rig. In January the SVT head burned up an electical component when I took it off of stand By. (smoke and all) it was not the tubes. on Feb. 5th I took it back to Sam Ash in New Haven CT. and was told it would be shipped back to Ampeg for repair (which it wasn't) and that it would be back in 4-6 weeks. IAt the 6 week mark I followed up with Sam Ash to discover that they had a local repair guy pick it up rather than sending it back to Ampeg. On my 3rd call to Ampeg I was able top talk to a technician at Ampeg who gave me a list of Authorized service centers in CT and told me to call around to see who had my SVT. I found the guy. He said that he replaced 2 of the tubes which did not fix it. We agreed to keep in touch as he progressed, resulting in a second follow up call from me a week later. The technician said. "I Don't Know What the Problem is. I will need to contact Ampeg." The next Day; March 27th, Sam Ash called me to announce that my SVT was repaired. When I tested it at the store, it sounded like a Moog Synthesizer modulating a low pass filter when i took it off of stand by, and it had a loud 60 cycle hum. I refused delivery and I left the SVT at Sam Ash. The Staff was cool with me but would not supply me with a new head. They directed me back to Ampeg to make that request who has not returned my call yet. Its been a solid 8 weeks without an amp. I suspect I should have purchased the Eden....
 
#22
Hey FretlessArt. I am in the same boat as you.

I purchased an E300T to replace my lemon Ampeg SVTII which is in the shop again. I cant speak for the Ampeg Classic but I can say that the SVTII sounds much more grindy-meaty and the eq has more capability.

I just picked my 300T yesterday so I am not ready to give my full report. What I can say is this. Plugging it in at home to my 2x15 cab with a fender P sounded HUGE. It made my pbass sound like an ernie ball stingray. At practice last night I had her plugged into an ampeg 8x10 using my Stingray, She held her better then most of the ss amps I have used in the past.

My grade for this head is 8.5 compared to 9.5 for the SVTII

I may swap out the 12AU7 driver tube for a 12AX7, this should give me more of that edge I am looking for.
I find it a great amp for the value $809 with shipping, and if it holds up to the test of time that will further re-enforce my confidence in Eden tube heads.

:spit:
 
#24
@ Martizmo

+1... Compared to the SVT sound, the E300T sounds more 'clean'. But that's what I like so much about it I guess. The beauty about tube amps is that you can change its character by swapping tubes :cool:

I'll stick with the stock tubes for now - I'm not sure if I got the 12AU7 + 12AT7 preamp tubes or the 12AX7's in mine - because that's the sound I was looking for: warm and growly, and not so much grindy. The good thing is that if I want a bit more grind, I just push the overdrive button on the included footswitch and this appears on my face: :D

@ rodl

I would be cautious when claiming the E300T is exactly the same amp as the Ashton. It’s possible, but no one ever A/B-ed them until now, so we can’t be sure. I did A/B with the Fame version… without claiming that one is better that the other, they sound significantly different! In short: the Eden E300T sounds like… well… Eden. The Fame BVH300L wants to sound more like an SVT, i.e. more grindy and a bit more mid-scooped… Great if you want that kind of sound but don’t want to spend SVT-money. (But to all the Ampeg fans: it’s still not the real deal! Only an SVT sounds like a true SVT :smug:)

Kind regards,
Tom
 
#25
TjD said:
@ Martizmo

+1... Compared to the SVT sound, the E300T sounds more 'clean'. But that's what I like so much about it I guess. The beauty about tube amps is that you can change its character by swapping tubes :cool:

I'll stick with the stock tubes for now - I'm not sure if I got the 12AU7 + 12AT7 preamp tubes or the 12AX7's in mine - because that's the sound I was looking for: warm and growly, and not so much grindy. The good thing is that if I want a bit more grind, I just push the overdrive button on the included footswitch and this appears on my face: :D

@ rodl

I would be cautious when claiming the E300T is exactly the same amp as the Ashton. It’s possible, but no one ever A/B-ed them until now, so we can’t be sure. I did A/B with the Fame version… without claiming that one is better that the other, they sound significantly different! In short: the Eden E300T sounds like… well… Eden. The Fame BVH300L wants to sound more like an SVT, i.e. more grindy and a bit more mid-scooped… Great if you want that kind of sound but don’t want to spend SVT-money. (But to all the Ampeg fans: it’s still not the real deal! Only an SVT sounds like a true SVT :smug:)

Kind regards,
Tom
Click to expand...

Sage, Advice indeed.
I reached Ampeg and told them about my issue. They were happy to send me a new head which I will have in about 2 weeks.

Regarding changing Pre-Amp tubes; what can I do to improve my Eden Metro? It has a tube pre-amp on one channel but I dont know what kind it is. Its was made in 2001. Any suggestions?
 
#26
...after reading as much as I can find about the E300T I've come to the conclusion that with some possible/probable minor differences, mainly re-badging, the E300T is in fact the same as the Fame/Ashton/Smarvo(?)...

...so the question for me becomes, not is it some sort of really excellent amp/head that's close to being on par with a Mesa/Ampeg/Aguilar/Trace/(whatever other name you want to add), but is it worth the price that it is going for?...

...and the answer that I have reached is that yes, it probably is (although the last part of the equation is how well it holds up & that's still an unknown)...actually, I think if you press the point I believe that the Eden can be had for a decent bit less than even the prices it's going for currently...

...so now it's, do I want to spend my money on this decent/good (but certainly not great) deal?...or do I want to spend more money on a better tube amp/head?...and, lol, I haven't made a final decision...but at least if I do pick up an E300T, I'm going into it with my eyes wide open...
 
#27
iualum said:
...after reading as much as I can find about the E300T I've come to the conclusion that with some possible/probable minor differences, mainly nothing more than re-badging, the E300T is in fact the same as the Fame/Ashton/Smarvo(?)...

...so the question for me becomes, not is it some sort of really excellent amp/head that's close to being on par with a Mesa/Ampeg/Aguilar/Trace/(whatever other name you want to add), but is it worth the price that it is going for?...

...and the answer that I have reached is that yes, it probably is (although the last part of the equation is how well it holds up & that's still an unknown)...actually, I think if you press the point I believe that the Eden can be had for a decent bit less than even the prices it's going for currently...

...so now it's, do I want to spend my money on this decent/good (but certainly not great) deal?...or do I want to spend more money on a better tube amp/head?...and, lol, I haven't made a final decision...but at least if I do pick up an E300T, I'm going into it with my eyes wide open...
Click to expand...

Hi iaulum

Based on what you write, I'd say you'd better spend more money... you don't really stand behind the purchase of a Eden E300T so you probably won't get very happy with it, I think.

Or... indeed, press the point 'till you reach the price you think it's worth. If it works, you will have a really great amp for even less money! :)

Good luck with your decision. I really hope you find the amp you are looking for.

Kind regards,
Tom
 
#29
Martizmo said:
Power tubes are KT88's and all tubes are manufactured by Russain made electro harmonics.

If you have an extra $600 then drop it on the Ampeg SVT. 40% more money for 10% better sound.
Click to expand...
...thanks for the tube info, actually after I posted that question I reread posts & saw you earlier mentioning of this...

...for me, the valve amp option would likely be a used 400+ in excellent shape for around $200-250 more, but I suspect an equal % improvement in tone & tonal shaping abilities...
 
#30
FretlessArt said:
Sage, Advice indeed.
I reached Ampeg and told them about my issue. They were happy to send me a new head which I will have in about 2 weeks.

Regarding changing Pre-Amp tubes; what can I do to improve my Eden Metro? It has a tube pre-amp on one channel but I dont know what kind it is. Its was made in 2001. Any suggestions?
Click to expand...

So do any of you TUBE Pros have advice on upgrading the Pre-amp tube in my Eden Metro?
 
#31
FretlessArt said:
So do any of you TUBE Pros have advice on upgrading the Pre-amp tube in my Eden Metro?
Click to expand...

IME, the 'standard' Eden tube preamp (not sure about the E300T) is rather insensitive to tube rolling - meaning, you can put just about whatever you want in there, and it will sound pretty much the same.
 
#34
tombowlus said:
IME, the 'standard' Eden tube preamp (not sure about the E300T) is rather insensitive to tube rolling - meaning, you can put just about whatever you want in there, and it will sound pretty much the same.
Click to expand...

From what I've gathered, the E300T doesn't share much in terms of design with the WT/Navigator units. In my own experience, changing tubes does make an audible difference in the WT preamp; but due to the design, it is probably less noticeable than in most tube circuits. I've got a Tung-Sol 12AX7 in there (WT-500) right now which seems to sound good.
 
#36
For what it's worth, here's my experience with the E300T. I bought mine locally in VA about two weks ago and while I loved the tone, was having preamp distortion problems, even at low levels. Litany of cab configurations, cables, basses, etc. switched out and all showed this preamp distortion. Turns out that the input pot needed cleaning and the preamp tubes needed replacing either because of (1) design, or (2) a bad tube-not sure which case. I contacted Tim McCarthy at Eden early on and mentioned my problem and that my preamp tubes were (1)12AU7, (2)12AT7, and (1)7205/12AX7A. He responded by saying that early units had a preamp problem and he said he was sending me (4)new 12AX7 tubes for free. They turned out to be 7205/12AX7A tubes and I tried them. Seems to have fixed the problem. Tim was very supportive and quick to respond to my questions. Kudos to Eden, err, I mean US Music CS department. Anyway, the amp sounds great through a 4x10 and 1x15 combination. Curious to here it through a 2x15 or 8x10 set up. Bottom line is that at 800, you can't beat the Eden tube head. get it if you can. Fairly easy on the wallet AND the back.
 
#37
12bass said:
From what I've gathered, the E300T doesn't share much in terms of design with the WT/Navigator units.
Click to expand...

Agreed, but the post I was responding to referenced the Metro, and I am definitely not saying that this would hold true for the E300T.

In my own experience, changing tubes does make an audible difference in the WT preamp; but due to the design, it is probably less noticeable than in most tube circuits. I've got a Tung-Sol 12AX7 in there (WT-500) right now which seems to sound good.
Click to expand...

I have not tried rolling tubes in my WT-550, but man, in my Navigator, nothing I tried made an audible difference. Of course, YMMV.

Tom.
 
#38
tombowlus said:
I have not tried rolling tubes in my WT-550, but man, in my Navigator, nothing I tried made an audible difference. Of course, YMMV.

Tom.
Click to expand...

I've tried it in a WT550, and you won't hear much of anything. The tube is running at such a low voltage it's not much but window dressing.
The 550 isn't the only model, either.

The red LEDs you gotta wonder about (clipping diodes, maybe? ;)).
 
#39
While I tend to agree that changing tubes in the WT-type amplifiers does not make much of a difference to the tone, I have still heard some differences between tubes, though the change is admittedly subtle. Up until recently I was using the original Eden 7025 in mine, as it sounded a bit clearer than all the other 12AX7s I have around (Sovtek, Mesa-Boogie, Sylvania, etc...). Unfortunately, that 7025 is now microphonic, so I wanted something to replace it. The new Tung-Sol 12AX7 sounds pretty good too, IMO.

Perhaps it might be worth noting that I've replaced all of the grungy original TL072 op amps in my WT-500 with high performance/low noise OPA827, OPA211, and AD825 units, removed a number of coupling capacitors, replaced remaining coupling electrolytics, etc... to clean up the signal path. Eden used a lot of cheap capacitors between the various amplifier stages. My guess it that all of these modifications probably make it easier to discern the subtle differences between tubes because there's much less signal coloration/degradation in the circuit now. On a side note, I'd be rather curious to have some of the amp aficionados listen to it now and see what they thought compared to other amps.....
 
#40
12bass said:
Perhaps it might be worth noting that I've replaced all of the grungy original TL072 op amps in my WT-500 with high performance/low noise OPA827, OPA211, and AD825 units, removed a number of coupling capacitors, replaced remaining coupling electrolytics, etc... to clean up the signal path. Eden used a lot of cheap capacitors between the various amplifier stages. My guess it that all of these modifications probably make it easier to discern the subtle differences between tubes because there's much less signal coloration/degradation in the circuit now. On a side note, I'd be rather curious to have some of the amp aficionados listen to it now and see what they thought compared to other amps.....
Click to expand...

Oh, that is definitely worth noting, and very interesting! I'd love to hear an A/B between a stock unit and your modified unit. :cool:
 

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