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JGR's 1200 watt micro - let the madness begin!!!!!
- Thread starter JGR
- Start date
- Status
- Jun 29, 2006
- 5,148
- 3,217
- Disclosures
- President, CEO, CFO, CIO, Chief Engineer, Technician, Janitor - Reiner Amplification
Ok, just got the rear panel done. Second Jensen for the DI, DI XLR, pre/post and ground/lift switches, 1/4 preamp out, two speakons, cord, and two fuse holders. The channel I used to mount the Jensen transformer and turret strip is cool in that it also provides a cooling tunnel to direct the fan over the output devices and also provides additional shielding. Pretty extensive mechanical fab and assembly. Time to start building the board tomorrow (after I make the donuts).
Hey Jon - congrats on the new baby. And your new daughter. 
Just when I thought I was GAS-free...
As reported elsewhere, I assembled an "old man rig": Aguilar TH500 head, Bergantino CN112 cab (x2). For ease-of-schlep it's hard to beat, and while it sounds pretty good, I have to confess that my ears are completely spoiled by my Reiner preamp (12ax/12au version).
Sigh. Jonathan, please put me on the waiting list for a 1200W micro.
As reported elsewhere, I assembled an "old man rig": Aguilar TH500 head, Bergantino CN112 cab (x2). For ease-of-schlep it's hard to beat, and while it sounds pretty good, I have to confess that my ears are completely spoiled by my Reiner preamp (12ax/12au version).
Sigh. Jonathan, please put me on the waiting list for a 1200W micro.
Just another experience comparing the IcePower 250ASX2 module (in most of the micros including the Puma 900, Minnie,GK800, and most of the other 800/900 watt minis) and the IcePower1000 ASPmodule (the one used here--1200watts). I was comparing the Demeter HBP preamp, the HBP-800 amp (Icepower250asx2) the BOT ,the Sonic Farm, and the Monique. I used the power section of the Puma and HBP. Without exception, EVERYTHING sounded better through the 1000ASP. Not just low end heft, control, and headroom, but also a BIG difference in midrange and high end clarity. Especially the Monique. It sounded veiled and dull through the 250. It sounded punchy and open through the 1000. The BOT sounded noticeably fatter with more thump through the 1000.
JGR's new amp is going to kick some serious butt.
JGR's new amp is going to kick some serious butt.
- Jun 29, 2006
- 5,148
- 3,217
- Disclosures
- President, CEO, CFO, CIO, Chief Engineer, Technician, Janitor - Reiner Amplification
What were you using to do the comparison? Did you just have a stock 1000ASP module, line in from a preamp, speaker out to speakers? Or any other kind of special sauce going on?
- Jun 29, 2006
- 5,148
- 3,217
- Disclosures
- President, CEO, CFO, CIO, Chief Engineer, Technician, Janitor - Reiner Amplification
- Jun 29, 2006
- 5,148
- 3,217
- Disclosures
- President, CEO, CFO, CIO, Chief Engineer, Technician, Janitor - Reiner Amplification
I built a standalone poweramp using the 1000asp with a Jensen front end to evaluate as the basis for my new design. That is the unit Mike has.
- Jun 29, 2006
- 5,148
- 3,217
- Disclosures
- President, CEO, CFO, CIO, Chief Engineer, Technician, Janitor - Reiner Amplification
Just when I thought I was GAS-free...
As reported elsewhere, I assembled an "old man rig": Aguilar TH500 head, Bergantino CN112 cab (x2). For ease-of-schlep it's hard to beat, and while it sounds pretty good, I have to confess that my ears are completely spoiled by my Reiner preamp (12ax/12au version).
Sigh. Jonathan, please put me on the waiting list for a 1200W micro.
Ken, I'll give you a shout when it's up and running - hopefully you can swing by and check it out!
Gotcha. Didn't know you guys were talking about the same unit. That thing is super cool.
There were a lot of discussions about how manufacturers add special limiters and other stuff to the ICEPower, and that it's not just as simple as plucking the module off the shelf and putting a preamp in front of it - but the 1000 sounds like it's almost there. I wish it were easier to just buy one of these to mess around with.
the funny part is that i look at "12-14" pounds and think
"damn, thats heavy"
how quickly things change...
"damn, thats heavy"
how quickly things change...
Jonathan
Looking forward to meeting you next month at the bass event! Can't wait to hear the amp through Mike's cabs and Pete's basses!
Looking forward to meeting you next month at the bass event! Can't wait to hear the amp through Mike's cabs and Pete's basses!
Going off Mike's post, I heard the BoT, the Sonic Farm, and the Demeter through the JGR power amp. I haven't heard Monique through it (though I'd be curious to). Heard the BoT and the Sonic Farm through the effects return on the Demeter. Can't recall, at the moment, if I heard the SF and the BoT through the Puma as well.
One neat thing about the HBP-1 800D is that it lends itself better to being used as a poweramp than a lot of standalone amps. Seems more neutral, running into the effects return, at least compared to my Markbass, Genz, and (former) Aguilar amps (and the effects loop is switchable, with adjustable send and return levels -- handy!). I emailed James Demeter about this awhile back. You've got two EQ sections on that amp: LOW, MID, HIGH, and PRESENCE and a two-band, fully parametric EQ that you can switch in and out of the signal chain. When you run into the effects return, the low, mid, and high controls are bypassed. If you switch out the parametric mids, the only thing that's left active is the presence control. I've run Monique through the Demeter amp this way and I find the presence control useful. It's possible that the signal's still going through some sort of voicing circuit, but the tube front end is, as far as I know, bypassed. I've compared it to my Crest Pro-Lite 2.0, running Monique and the Demeter preamp section through both. They sound different, but the Demeter's closer to the supposedly neutral Pro-Lite than running into the effects returns of any of my other amps. I actually prefer the Demeter to the Pro-Lite... seems slightly quicker and punchier (a testament to the Demeter) though I'm sure the Pro Lite will get louder when bridged (2000W).
So... The Sonic Farm and the BoT did sound both more solid and more open through the JGR poweramp than through the effects return of the Demeter. To play devil's advocate, though, there could be other factors at play besides the power sections: Are we matching levels optimally? Is there (as mentioned before) some other tone-shaping circuitry we're running through? The telling moment was when we used the HBP-1 800D as a pre and ran it through the separate poweramp. It's an integrated unit, so should be well-matched to its internal power. Still, it was more open up top, more cohesive down low, and just a little more clear overall through the JGR amp than through its internal power. This isn't a knock on the Demeter. It's not a veiled-sounding amp by any means, and it kicks hard -- noticeably harder than my Markbass F500 or the Aguilar TH500 I had 'til recently. Maybe not quite as hard as my big, ol' GBE 1200, but hard. Running it through the separate power-amp just took it up a notch.
One neat thing about the HBP-1 800D is that it lends itself better to being used as a poweramp than a lot of standalone amps. Seems more neutral, running into the effects return, at least compared to my Markbass, Genz, and (former) Aguilar amps (and the effects loop is switchable, with adjustable send and return levels -- handy!). I emailed James Demeter about this awhile back. You've got two EQ sections on that amp: LOW, MID, HIGH, and PRESENCE and a two-band, fully parametric EQ that you can switch in and out of the signal chain. When you run into the effects return, the low, mid, and high controls are bypassed. If you switch out the parametric mids, the only thing that's left active is the presence control. I've run Monique through the Demeter amp this way and I find the presence control useful. It's possible that the signal's still going through some sort of voicing circuit, but the tube front end is, as far as I know, bypassed. I've compared it to my Crest Pro-Lite 2.0, running Monique and the Demeter preamp section through both. They sound different, but the Demeter's closer to the supposedly neutral Pro-Lite than running into the effects returns of any of my other amps. I actually prefer the Demeter to the Pro-Lite... seems slightly quicker and punchier (a testament to the Demeter) though I'm sure the Pro Lite will get louder when bridged (2000W).
So... The Sonic Farm and the BoT did sound both more solid and more open through the JGR poweramp than through the effects return of the Demeter. To play devil's advocate, though, there could be other factors at play besides the power sections: Are we matching levels optimally? Is there (as mentioned before) some other tone-shaping circuitry we're running through? The telling moment was when we used the HBP-1 800D as a pre and ran it through the separate poweramp. It's an integrated unit, so should be well-matched to its internal power. Still, it was more open up top, more cohesive down low, and just a little more clear overall through the JGR amp than through its internal power. This isn't a knock on the Demeter. It's not a veiled-sounding amp by any means, and it kicks hard -- noticeably harder than my Markbass F500 or the Aguilar TH500 I had 'til recently. Maybe not quite as hard as my big, ol' GBE 1200, but hard. Running it through the separate power-amp just took it up a notch.
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