• 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.

Genzler Amplification Club

#15,003
Blastard, the timing of your post is perfect. I was wondering the same thing.

I did find my old Genz-Benz Shuttle series "megathread" which I started in 2008. It got up to two parts (thanks, @Kelly Lee) and was last posted to in 2019. I may have to post and wake it back up!

Genz-Benz Shuttle Megathread

Two nostalgic notes: "Megathread" was all the rage back in the 2000's on Talkbass. Hoping that a thread that you started would get up to a million posts was quite an exercise in hubris. Mega- - Wikipedia

Second, the old era of Talkbass where mods would start part 'x' threads when threads got too big (1000+ posts) for the limitations of the forum software.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Pontiac Thrasher and Old Blastard
#15,007
Pelagic said:
I actually originally posted about the Contour 115 combo I was using in the Combo Club. I had been poking around in here when I was considering a new cab for my Magellan, but it never happened for me. I'm still considering my options, though!
Click to expand...

Everytime I save enough for a Magellan combo something happens. It's been like that for a year now, from dog surgery and replacing the roof to car repair. I'm still planning on a new Genzler, but in the meantime I'm getting back into the Genz Benz and really playing witht EQ/Contour to check out the sounds.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Pelagic, Maxi Funkl and Michael Vee
#15,008
Old Blastard said:
Everytime I save enough for a Magellan combo something happens. It's been like that for a year now, from dog surgery and replacing the roof to car repair. I'm still planning on a new Genzler, but in the meantime I'm getting back into the Genz Benz and really playing witht EQ/Contour to check out the sounds.
Click to expand...
The combo is not inexpensive, in fact for most of us, it's a healthy outlay. I hope you get to the point this year where you can take the plunge. The combo is simply astounding in terms of the huge sound to size ratio. It's ridiculously portable too. It's a very practical solution.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: rok51, SteveC and Old Blastard
#15,009
Another testimonial from MVee: I'm currently in rehearsal for a theatre show in the same large auditorium that I performed in, and posted about here, this time last year.

Last night, we did a music-only tuneup before our opening matinee tomorrow. The sound tech had the night off so there was no sound system. The Genzler BA-10-2 S2 combo was at its usual 9 o'clock on the master. Three horns, two winds, cello, acoustic drums, two amplified keyboards.

I checked with the light tech who was programming scenes on the GrandMA3 in the A/V station. The bass was solid in the 2000+ seat house. The voice of my Ibanez AFB200 came through clearly.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: MaxSpinrun, Pelagic, jdhunz68 and 3 others
#15,011
Old Blastard said:
(statement about being able to get something good, but waiting for great..)
Click to expand...

I hear ya. I really wanted the MG350/BA10 combo, but couldn't bring myself to spend the dough. Found a good-as-new-barely-used Acoustic Array Pro for sale semi-locally and picked that up to save some money. I LOVE it. Unfortunately, I love it so much I'll probably end up buying the combo TOO pretty soon. So much for saving money.....
 
  • Like
Reactions: MaxSpinrun, smogg, Maxi Funkl and 2 others
#15,013
Michael Vee said:
Last night, we did a music-only tuneup before our opening matinee tomorrow. The sound tech had the night off so there was no sound system. The Genzler BA-10-2 S2 combo was at its usual 9 o'clock on the master.
Click to expand...
I am still learning how to best set my 350/10-2 combo up. If you have the master at 9:00, where do you have the input gain volume set? I have been running mine around 2:00, then adjust the master to fit the space.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Michael Vee
#15,014
HoHumbucker said:
I am still learning how to best set my 350/10-2 combo up. If you have the master at 9:00, where do you have the input gain volume set? I have been running mine around 2:00, then adjust the master to fit the space.
Click to expand...

Input gain is dependent on the bass. If I were to run the AFB200 directly into the input, I'd have the gain about 2 - 3 o'clock. It's a lower output passive bass. However, for this show that I mentioned earlier, I'm using a pedalboard delivering as much gain as I want. I have the pedals set to deliver a signal equivalent to an active bass, and have the gain set to noon, more or less. It tends to get bumped up a bit in the second act :) All the pedal gains are set to noon, generally.

So yeah, active basses or pedalboard outputs would be 10-noon and passives up in the 1-3 area, just to make a general rule. The general idea is to run it cleaner at lower settings and a bit more harmonics at higher ones (I don't want to call it dirt or grit, because that's not the idea.) So there is no one input setting that is a hard and fast. It's a variable control, so vary it!
 
  • Like
Reactions: MaxSpinrun and Loring
#15,015
I will get a picture of the pedal and amp setup at one of the performances, today or tomorrow. I've swapped a few pedals in and out this morning to better match what I'm needing. Currently it's StroboStomp > Origin DCX > Broughton Omnicomp > Broughton Low+High Pass Filter > LBA 2020s. I decided against the Empress ParaEQ Deluxe because I am wanting to send the house an uneq'ed PRE signal (other than the high and low pass) and adjust the monitoring from the amp using the Magellan 350 tone controls. They work great for me. The AFB200 bass does not have any feedback or wolf tone tendencies, so I don't need the parametric EQ.

Spent some time setting the pedal controls this morning earlier and running some of the hard spots in the show. For this home practicing, I'm using my other BA-10-2 and my Quilter BB800, as the combo is out at the venue. It's nice to have to have the second cab so that element is constant for practice. Lovely sound. I'm getting my low/high balance from the DCX and running it with a bit of drive in the EQ mode.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: MaxSpinrun and Maxi Funkl
#15,016
Michael Vee said:
Input gain is dependent on the bass. If I were to run the AFB200 directly into the input, I'd have the gain about 2 - 3 o'clock. It's a lower output passive bass. However, for this show that I mentioned earlier, I'm using a pedalboard delivering as much gain as I want. I have the pedals set to deliver a signal equivalent to an active bass, and have the gain set to noon, more or less. It tends to get bumped up a bit in the second act :) All the pedal gains are set to noon, generally.

So yeah, active basses or pedalboard outputs would be 10-noon and passives up in the 1-3 area, just to make a general rule. The general idea is to run it cleaner at lower settings and a bit more harmonics at higher ones (I don't want to call it dirt or grit, because that's not the idea.) So there is no one input setting that is a hard and fast. It's a variable control, so vary it!
Click to expand...
Thanks. I am not currently running through pedals, but I can totally see that having a big effect. I am running my AGB200 straight into the MG350. 2-3:00 on the gain, 9:00 on the master. So that jives with your settings on a similar instrument. I expect if I pull out my active Spector or Sterling, the gain could be dialed back.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Michael Vee
#15,017
When gain staging (which is what you're doing), you want the input gain as high as it can be without causing distortion and then use the master volume for your output. That gives you the best signal to noise ratio. The easy way to do that is slowly turn your input up until you get a little distortion, then back off. Then, use your master to set your volume. It won't hurt to be too low on the input, but too high can cause real ugliness.
My Stingrays would never get to 2:00 without overloading the input.
 
#15,018
Djadja said:
When gain staging (which is what you're doing), you want the input gain as high as it can be without causing distortion and then use the master volume for your output. That gives you the best signal to noise ratio. The easy way to do that is slowly turn your input up until you get a little distortion, then back off. Then, use your master to set your volume. It won't hurt to be too low on the input, but too high can cause real ugliness.
My Stingrays would never get to 2:00 without overloading the input.
Click to expand...
I'm glad you wrote that, because it gets to the root of something I've been struggling with. I've done a lot of recording work, and am very familiar with gain-staging for lowest noise floor and cleanest/undistorted signal, but some of the literature I've read that comes with instrument amplifiers just seems counter-intuitive.

For instance, the manual for an Acoustic Image Coda (the first series, prior to there being "series") states...

"The input level controls the level of the signal at the input stage of the preamp. The master volume controls the level of the signal at the output of the preamp (at the input of the power amp). Set the master control at “12 o’clock” and the input level at zero. The input level should then be used to control the overall output of the unit."

When setting up a channel on a board or mic pre, I adjust the initial gain so that there's enough headroom to handle any unexpected transients without distortion or overload, and then add whatever amount of that signal I need down the line with the fader and eventually the mains to the power amps or recording devices. The directions with the AI Coda seem to suggest the allegory to bringing the faders/mains up to unity (sort of), then adjusting the volume of the channel with the initial gain stage. Makes no sense to me... especially if intentionally overdriving the initial stage for a certain tone is desirable (I always play with a clean signal, so I admit I don't know what I'm talking about in terms of creating intentional distortion).

Is the AI advice weird? If not, and it IS standard practice with bass and guitar amps.... why?
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back