New Ashdowns anyone?

[FroggyOne2]

If I remember right, a lot of the problem that folks were having with the Ashdown EVO series amps was that there was a run of them that escaped England with european transformers in them not campatable with US standard of electrical use. Am I wrong here?

Randy

 

[naughtry]

Any new standalone 410 sized cabs?

I was going to buy a ABM 414T 4X10 but is there a reason to hold out?

 

[el_Kabong]

...... in most cases no matter what the brand is a lot of players just don't know how to work their amp to begin with and they simply want to do nothing but blame the qaulity of the companies product.

I don't think it's necessarily fair to blame users for amp failures. Quality control and/or marginal design are one set of issues, the ability of amp to survive extreme conditions is another. A professional amp should have the features to detect conditions outside it's operational envelope and at least shut down before damage results. Stuff like temperature sensors and short circuit relays. Going up in smoke is a pretty poor response to conditions brought about by ignorance (or accident or other component failure or...). I'm not refering to ashdown, I don't know what's in their amps (watts in their amps I'll be leaving now), but a good amp should be very hard for a user to kill. If an amp is that susceptable to user ignorance/error then I don't think its actually unreasonable to call it unreliable.

 

[JAUQO III-X]

I don't think it's necessarily fair to blame users for amp failures.

I haven't blamed any one,I'm just stating facts,sometimes a users ignorance can and has caused a perfectly constructed amp to have problems,even a small problem over time can turn into a bigger problem.

The fact of the matter is that it happens,no matter how great an amp is built and to not have basic operating skills of ones equipment can and will always leave to problems,so it's not always on the quality of the product alone to get the best performance from the product.

 

[el_Kabong]

I haven't blamed any one,I'm just stating facts,sometimes a users ignorance can and has caused a perfectly constructed amp to have problems,even a small problem over time can turn into a bigger problem.

The fact of the matter is that it happens,no matter how great an amp is built and to not have basic operating skills of ones equipment can and will always leave to problems,so it's not always on the quality of the product alone to get the best performance from the product.

Well it's the 'will always lead to problems' where we differ I guess. I'm suggesting a quality product should be designed to cope with extreme conditions (aka abuse?). I'm curious, what do have in mind when you're talking about users causing problems with amps. What is it that you believe people are doing?

 

[Low D.]

I haven't blamed any one,I'm just stating facts,sometimes a users ignorance can and has caused a perfectly constructed amp to have problems,even a small problem over time can turn into a bigger problem.

The fact of the matter is that it happens,no matter how great an amp is built and to not have basic operating skills of ones equipment can and will always leave to problems,so it's not always on the quality of the product alone to get the best performance from the product.

Agreed! In my country for example, only 1 Ashdown problem reported! And was the problem? The guy played his amp head (i dunno maybe with headphones!?!) WITHOUT connecting the speaker on! So the amp head burned. ALL other amp heads, ABM, AL, MAG, for 2-3 years now, NOTHING happened! You figure it out...

 

[Zakk007]

Do you know if there s gonna be any new/different features on it? Last night I saw in a threat somebody saying that its gonna have an onboard compressor. Do you know anythin' about that? And if you know, the AL line will remain the same?

And a personal question: How come you are using the ABM 4x10 speakers with the MK500 head, and you didnt get the 4x10 AL cab? I know the AL cabs use Neo speakers right? So it has to do something with the sound if I m not mistaken?

Sorry for pointing you on the wall with all these questions.

From what I've heard all the Ashdown ranges will feature onboard compression next year from the EB's up to the ABM's and the new Klystrons.

 

[ErnieD]

I used to baby my Evo II 500 RC. Just cause I had the option, I would only use my Ashdown at certain clubs and indoor only gigs. I set it on the front seat next to me instead of in back of my SUV with other equipment, just so it would not get jostled or banged around, in its own flight case. I used my GK 1001 RBI at all outdoor and dive gigs. No reason really, I had no background info then as to reliability issues. Maybe cause at 1 month into ownership the meter bulb burned out I started to think the amp could be fragile. So I was giggin it sparingly and always at way less than 50% and effects flat for light, classic rock, dont think I ever abused mine. So when it died at a gig it really disappointed me and then the 10 month wait with phone calls saying it was being sent from one Ashdown repair center to another cause it was being returned to the music store unrepaired, that just turned me off considering it was my first dive into the "higher end" amp pool. Still, I did love the tone and sound of that amp, really great. And I see here that alot of ABM owners still have thiers in good working order, just the luck of the draw I guess.

 

[DMX]

If I remember right, a lot of the problem that folks were having with the Ashdown EVO series amps was that there was a run of them that escaped England with european transformers in them not campatable with US standard of electrical use. Am I wrong here?

Randy

That was always my impression too. It cerainly seems that it's mostly Americans who've reported having major problems with their ABMs. And it certainly doesn't help their reputation that every single Ashdown thread, no matter how it started, ends up being about how unreliable they are!

 

[Low D.]

Originally Posted by JAUQO III-X
the new amp model is named Klystron.

Do you know if there s gonna be any new/different features on it? Last night I saw in a threat somebody saying that its gonna have an onboard compressor. Do you know anythin' about that? And if you know, the AL line will remain the same?

And a personal question: How come you are using the ABM 4x10 speakers with the MK500 head, and you didnt get the 4x10 AL cab? I know the AL cabs use Neo speakers right? So it has to do something with the sound if I m not mistaken?

Sorry for pointing you on the wall with all these questions.

 

[Low D.]

Their ratings seem as reliable as their amps.

10" speaker ... 700w of what, 2 Khz? I had an ABM300 1x10 combo that was totally surprising in the volume and low end it could put out, but ... c'mon.

From what I was told, its gonna be a Neo speaker combo 500watts @ 4ohms. But that would be with an extention cabinet. So logically its gonna be something like 250-300watts @ 8ohms (Now I dont know if they managed to do that little thing go @ 2-ohms and put out 700watts though).

 

[JAUQO III-X]

Well it's the 'will always I'm suggesting a quality product should be designed to cope with extreme conditions (aka abuse?).What is it that you believe people are doing?

I agree.

as as far as what some people are doing and can do,the causes are endless.

Do you know if there s gonna be any new/different features on it? Last night I saw in a threat somebody saying that its gonna have an on board compressor. Do you know anythin' about that? And if you know, the AL line will remain the same?

They will be the same power with a 4 way f/s and Compression switchable
plus
a few other changes that I can't mention at this time.

And a personal question: How come you are using the ABM 4x10 speakers with the MK500 head, and you didnt get the 4x10 AL cab? I know the AL cabs use Neo speakers right? So it has to do something with the sound if I m not mistaken?

I use the ABM 410 cabs and not the AL cabs because I've never tried the AL cabs(even though I've had numerous Oppurtunities to do so).I like the solid low end response and the well balanced punchiness that the ABM 410 cabs put out,I was using one of the cabs last night and I was reminded how much I like the 410 cab so much.

I also use the ABM 500 EVO II head and a ABM 500 EVO II RC head(the chrome finished rack mount head).


p.s.
I've been using my ABM 500 EVO II head for close to 10 years and the only problem I've ever had with it was just a couple of months ago when the VU meter bulb went out and I simply replaced it.

I love Ashdown

 

[MattLplaysBass]

i think that some failures can be blamed on user error (there used to be a guy on here who complained about how hot his swr sm900 would get and shut down because he had it stuffed into a 2 space rack with no room for air to circulate (as recommended in the manual)) with anything, and while products should be designed to take some abuse, never changing your car's oil or spilling liquid on your computer (i have done the latter- d'oh!) will kill even the most reliable car or 'puter. I would imagine there are many satisifed ashdown users such a jauqo who have never had a problem, but don't start threads about it. that being said, i doubt i'd ever take a chance on ashdown stuff because the seed of doubt has been planted, and reliability is my #1 consideration when buying anything (of course, my gk 1001rb2 that i've had for less than a week crapped out tonight, so not even the most reliable (or perceived reliable) product works 100% of the time).

 

[el_Kabong]

Agreed! In my country for example, only 1 Ashdown problem reported! And was the problem? The guy played his amp head (i dunno maybe with headphones!?!) WITHOUT connecting the speaker on! So the amp head burned. ALL other amp heads, ABM, AL, MAG, for 2-3 years now, NOTHING happened! You figure it out...

Not only should this be no problem, a professional amp should be able to detect the ultimate load for a SS amp, a dead short, and survive. imo anyway.

 

[el_Kabong]

i think that some failures can be blamed on user error (there used to be a guy on here who complained about how hot his swr sm900 would get and shut down because he had it stuffed into a 2 space rack with no room for air to circulate (as recommended in the manual))

I wouldn't call a shutdown a failure. The amp is doing exactly what it should, protecting itself from damage when asked to perform beyond it's capability, though a gradual reduction in volume would be preferable to sudden shutdown. It's the amp that keeps going until the magic smoke comes out that constitutes a preventable failure in my mind.

 

[Low D.]

...reliability is my #1 consideration when buying anything (of course, my gk 1001rb2 that i've had for less than a week crapped out tonight, so not even the most reliable (or perceived reliable) product works 100% of the time).

lol, no way!

 

[Low D.]

They will be the same power with a 4 way f/s and Compression switchable
plus
a few other changes that I can't mention at this time.

Sounds like its gonna be similar to the SWR's discontinued Mo'Bass head, with the switchable on board effects, including the tube blend/distort thing. M I right or m I right?

 

[JAUQO III-X]

M I right or m I right?

 

[Low D.]

I think I ll stick to the "aggressive" MK500, that would suit my style more. Today its the big phone call/ordering day ...although I would love to see how the new stuff will look like. As for cabs am going with the ABM compact 2x10 & 1x15. Thanx Jauqo for all the help/info (from threats & prv).
Soon review & photos!