GBE 1200 Rack Case

At least 1" clearance on the fan side. Use hard sided cases, not rack bags. Probably one space above it open would help, but I don't think it is necessary. Also, don't use a power conditioner, just plug it straight into the outlet.

 

NO need to worry about top clearance... the top of mine almost stays ice cold.... and i run it at 2 ohms often..
Like previous poster says, leave at lest 1" on the fan side to allow ample air suction.... and dont block the rear where the heat sink spits out warm air...
The amp is nearly bulletproof and im hard on my stuff....

 

What was the reasoning behind "not" using a power contidioner or voltage regulator with the GBE 1200 again? I remember seeing some dialog in another thread about it but can't seem to locate it...


Note - I have my GBE 1200 in a 6-space rack, with a blank above and below for better airflow (whether it's nessessary or not). Inside the rack, there is a little more than an inch of clearance on the fan side. I also use the Furman AR-15 voltage regulator in the rack. I've had problems with power in the past, and this product definately helps.

 

There is no reason at all to have an extra rack space or use a 'power conditioner' with a well designed bass head. And from what I know about GB, this is a well designed unit.

I don't think the poster above was suggesting that a power conditioner would hurt, only that it would waste a rack space and some cash!

 

Oh ok thx KJung...

Another reason I have the voltage reg in my rack is we play a few places where there are limited AC outlets in the wall. So the voltage reg not only provides a stable source when needed, it also acts as a high dollar extension cord...lol

 

I remember reading a comment from one of the engineers from Genz where he stated that you shouldn't use a power conditioner. I think it was in the big Genz thread a month back or so. Something to do with the way they supply power to the head. Here's the thread. It's post #305.

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=305674&page=16&highlight=conditioner

I have a super heavy duty extension cord that I use. Has three inline input plugs and it works well. I think it was $10 at Home Depot...

As for the rack space above, I will agree that neither my GBE 750 or GBE 1200 (when I had it) ever got the least bit warm on top. I'm just paranoid.

 

One of the GB engineers said.. at least I think he said.... by using the power conditioner it may impair the performance of the amp.. That the Power conditioner may in fact cause early or premature current limiting... And that most amps these days already have just about the same protection that you would get from one of those rack surge protectors.
No i am only pulling from memory of what he said...
I think it was in the article where fishtx was having an issue when using his amp with the power conditioner.. And it may have been agedhorse that clarified better... I hope i am right in what i remember, i don’t want to be leading anyone in the wrong direction here.

 

Correct, for high power dynamic loads like (real) bass amps the nature of the load changing causes the voltage regulator to change as well, upsetting the source voltage (when the voltage drops on the incoming line the voltage regulator tap changes which causes more current to be drawn which increases the voltage drop) which can cause "hunting" which is a form of instability. This hunting can cause overshoot and ringing to be passed on through to the amp itself. It's also one cause of the high failure rates of some of these regulator devices. They can also cause intermittent tripping of the source power breaker/fuse.

The Genz Benz amps specifically do NOT need a voltage regulator (I do NOT recommend one) and are protected against all typical line disturbances that a "power conditioner" would protect against. The same applies to many of the high quality amps on the market but of course it's up to each manufacturer to support this fact on their product.

A blank space above or below is not needed and will not provide any benefit. The thermal design of the product (cooling path) makes this unnecessary.

 

Is this also true of the 3.5 amp? I have a Furman in the rack and like another poster, use it for plug and play convienence...

 

In general, it's true for all highly dynamic loads. The 3.5 is a much smaller amp, so the effect will not be as severe but it's still a distinct possibility.

 

The typical 1U Furman (and other brand) power "Conditioner" is NOT a voltage regulator (unless you get the very expensive model, marketed as a voltage regulator). It's a surge suppressor/line noise filter, which does not contain the mechanism(s) built into a multi-tap transformer line-conditioner (featuring voltage regulation).

 

The AR-15 is a voltage regulator, a solid state tap commutating auto-transformer w/ zero-voltage switching. This is what I was referring to with my comments directed to voltage regulators in general. My comment about "power conditioners" was referring to all the crap that's sold as a magic cure to whatever ills and noises your amps may make, regardless of the cause.

All quality amps do not require such devices to operate properly as the necessary protection features are designed into the amps themselves so they can meet the required safety tests (transient withstand surges). Check with your specific manufacturer to be sure that your amp has this built in. Our products all do.

 

just received a 1200 that I love. She is on her first gig tomorrow ( been dying to use it but all the venues since I got it have had in house backline.
My question is this... seems like a 1 in clearance is quite a bit and I am not sure I have ever seen a rack with that much clearance on the side.
I have a 4 space skb that is going to waste because of the recessed handles.
I followed a link suggested by agedhorse, i believe and found this:

http://www.audiopile.net/products/Cases/RUE-16/R3UE-16/R3UE-16_cutsheet.asp

would this be a suitable rack case for the 1200? Just need it for local work. I won't be letting any airline gorillas throw my amp around.

 

Yeah, that will work great in terms of cooling. I however prefer Anvil cases that have the locking mechanism on the lids. IME, the locks tend to vibrate loudly when they are on the case. If you've used mostly SKB cases, you've probably taken this for granted. But most standard road cases have the latches on the case, and they make a lot of noise when you get one of these big amps cranking on top of a rig.