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Gallien Krueger Club. GK Rules !

#1,301
B-string said:
No the NEO412 always had the metal grill. I have the original (series I) it is a little larger and about 26lbs heavier. Must have been a custom grill or a different series cab like an 810 that had grill cloth.
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There is one in the classifieds here claiming to be a Neo and I saw one in Guitar Showcase here in San Jose with identical vintage grill on consignment also labeled as a Neo. Heavy as heck. Trying to unravel this mystery....

TB sale thread
http://www.talkbass.com/threads/gk-neo-412-priced-to-sell-now-300.1105876/
 
#1,302
My friend jelwood, to quote his ad " It has a vintage fender style grill cloth over the metal grill."
The NEO series started the metal grill, I believe his is the series I also and is 118lbs, the series II is 92 lbs. He added the grill cloth. The cab is really easy to move on the tilt back wheels. There are neo speakers (same cone drivers) in the MBE and MBP, they are newer cabs that have black cloth. If the local cab is heavy then it is not a true NEO cab. The NEO, MBE and MBP cabs have lightweight NEO speakers (cone drivers) and lightweight but strong 1/2" poplar ply.

It has to be breaking his heart to sell that cab. If I was still in CA, I would be at his place tomorrow!
 
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#1,303
steve_rolfeca said:
Perhaps it works like the B channel on my MB800:

Channel A is like a rack preamp with no master volume. The gain knob is the only volume control on that channel, so if you crank it, it will get stupid loud. Keeping the channel A gain down, gives you lots of clean headroom.

"Channel B" doesn't exist as an actual second channel. Gain B and the B channel master, are just the two halves of a foot switchable overdrive circuit.

It shares the same tone control section as channel A, but it has an extra volume control just before the output to the power amp. This lets you boost gain B for dirty sounds, but still control the overall output relative to channel A.

You have to dime the B master, in order to bring it up to unity gain with channel A. It's just an attenuator for the B channel, not a master volume control for the whole amp.

The Master Volume control is after both channels, like the power amp volume control in a rack rig- it controls the overall level fed to the cab, independent of all the preamp controls.
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Thanks for your explanation Steve, I appreciate it. I guess in my case, with the architecture being a little different, not having adequate control over the boost master control makes it impossible to achieve that "unity" gain when switching between the boost and normal channel. If I try to use aggressive boost and pre-gain adjustments the volume is already really loud, and this is with the master level closed.

I've had a chance since my post to call GK's customer support, and spoke with very nice lady, Christine. She contacted the tech guys, and they said it just sounds like I have a bad master pot. I took it down to a local authorized service center, and they seemed to concur, based on my description. It sounds like it shouldn't be too expensive to fix. Fingers crossed as it looks like the guy I traded with is giving me the cold shoulder when I let him know that it looks like he traded me for an amp that is not 100% operational. I bummed I didn't spot this on initial inspection, but stuff happens. On the other hand, it seems like GK's customer support is very good for there products, as many have stated before.
 
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#1,304
Minor tweaks to my EQ = major differences! I'm always amazed by my 700RB-II's flexibility and ability to wow me whenever I tinker. Here's my current EQ on the clock.

Treble 10 (stayed the same)
Hi Mids 1 (from 2)
Lo Mids 2 (from 1)
Bass 11:30 (from 12)

That little bass reduction made me sound nice and tight down low, and the slight low mid boost made up for any perceived loss of bass. The hi mids reduction tamed some slight honkiness I've been fighting in the mids, but still enough to cut through. Overall, beefed up my tone a bit, but still sits nice in the mix. And grindy with my pedals. Lovin' it more every time I tweak!
 
#1,306
steve_rolfeca said:
Interesting. You ended up pretty much flat, except a slight low mid boost.

Flat on the G-K preamp is about 10/1/1/11, treble/hi mid/low mid/bass.
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I knew I was close to flat before, didn't realize I got even closer! Maybe it's my genre: metal. Lead guitarist has the typical scoop, so my mids come right through, and rhythm plays with fingers for a pick (don't ask how!) on a 7 string, so he's got lows covered (well, not ALL the lows) , but again plenty of room for my mids to punch through. Mids have been my focus for a while, now, and it's paying off!
 
#1,307
steve_rolfeca said:
Perhaps it works like the B channel on my MB800:

Channel A is like a rack preamp with no master volume. The gain knob is the only volume control on that channel, so if you crank it, it will get stupid loud. Keeping the channel A gain down, gives you lots of clean headroom.

"Channel B" doesn't exist as an actual second channel. Gain B and the B channel master, are just the two halves of a foot switchable overdrive circuit.

It shares the same tone control section as channel A, but it has an extra volume control just before the output to the power amp. This lets you boost gain B for dirty sounds, but still control the overall output relative to channel A.

You have to dime the B master, in order to bring it up to unity gain with channel A. It's just an attenuator for the B channel, not a master volume control for the whole amp.

The Master Volume control is after both channels, like the power amp volume control in a rack rig- it controls the overall level fed to the cab, independent of all the preamp controls.
Click to expand...


This is interesting. I wrote a long review on the Mb800 fusion on sweetwater's review section when I had time to experiment with my new Mbf. I found that the B channel didn't do what I wanted. I was hoping to use B as a little higher gain channel with a little more volume but I found that the level on it didn't really work like I thought it was intended. It was almost as if I'd have to use A as my high gain channel and B as my lower setting, but I'm going to try this when I get it back. I mailed it off today for a warranty issue with the contour's double pot not activating.
GK's support has been awesome so far.
Gives me a good break from the MBF800 though. I can go back to my 1001rbii in band practice tomorrow and see if I notice the tone difference between the two. I've been jamming with the Mbf for a good couple of months so I'm used to it.
 
#1,313
kevink said:
Thanks for your explanation Steve, I appreciate it. I guess in my case, with the architecture being a little different, not having adequate control over the boost master control makes it impossible to achieve that "unity" gain when switching between the boost and normal channel. If I try to use aggressive boost and pre-gain adjustments the volume is already really loud, and this is with the master level closed.

I've had a chance since my post to call GK's customer support, and spoke with very nice lady, Christine. She contacted the tech guys, and they said it just sounds like I have a bad master pot. I took it down to a local authorized service center, and they seemed to concur, based on my description. It sounds like it shouldn't be too expensive to fix. Fingers crossed as it looks like the guy I traded with is giving me the cold shoulder when I let him know that it looks like he traded me for an amp that is not 100% operational. I bummed I didn't spot this on initial inspection, but stuff happens. On the other hand, it seems like GK's customer support is very good for there products, as many have stated before.
Click to expand...

You probably spoke to Christine Simpson. Yes, she's very nice, as I talked to her when I worked for the dreaded GC. I went to NAMM back then, and met her at the GK booth...again, very friendly.

Forest Gallien is a great person, too, btw!
 
#1,315
voodoobassist said:
Well, after doing some A/Bing with the help of TB's Tallboybass, I guess I'm gonna stick with my 2 NEO 212II's. I had thought about trading him one of my 212's and some cash for his NEO 412. After playing both the 212 stack and the 412 side by side, to my ears, the 212 stack seemed louder with better low end response. I guess the slightly bigger combined size of the 212 stack contributed to the difference in sound? I'm no amp genius, so I really don't know why the perceived difference was there, but to my ears, there definitely was a difference.
In truth, I really don't NEED a second 212, or a 412. The single 212 can cover a fairly loud gig on it's own pretty well. But we all know that with amps, cabs , basses,...it's rarely about what we actually NEED. Usually it runs more to what do we WANT! ;)
Anyway,...thanks to Alan for letting me do the shootout. It was fun , and fairly enlightening. BTW, the shootout head was a GK MBF800. Both configurations sounded GREAT!!!!
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BIG +1 and thats pretty cool.

Honestly the NEO 212 II I find IMHO the ultimate modular cabinet. You really can play any large venue with 2 of these and in smaller controlled environment 1 will do.
 
#1,317
AciDBatH666 said:
....I found that the B channel didn't do what I wanted. I was hoping to use B as a little higher gain channel with a little more volume but I found that the level on it didn't really work like I thought it was intended. It was almost as if I'd have to use A as my high gain channel and B as my lower setting, but I'm going to try this when I get it back.....
Click to expand...

I had same experience with my MB800. Steve rolfeca' explanation makes so much sense of the MB heads. I know what to try next time I use my MB800. I did RTFM, twice, but I guess it didn't sink in as well as steve ro's description in this thread. Very helpful, looking forward to applying this next time I use the MB800.
 
#1,318
Strange humming issue today. About 30 min into noodling, I tweak a knob on my 400RB and it scratches. Whatever, pots have always been scratchy and I rarely adjust them. After that, however, my amp starts to hum. It seems to relate to the position I stand in relation to the amp. Some spots no hiss, others plenty. Tried my MB200 just to make sure, same problem. What's going on here?
 

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