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Double Bass NEW Euphonic Audio iAMP Doubler

#862
Jazzdogg said:
Thanks, Bob.

I can't think of too many small, lightweight, powerful heads that are suitable for doubling and can handle a 2-Ohm load. This is getting frustrating!
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Don't know if you've already been there, but I took a series 4 two channel Acoustic image Clarus head with me to an electric jam last Sunday afternoon, vs three guitarists + drummer. Plugged it into an old 2x15 bass cab in the rehearsal space. Given the AI's three band EQ I feared I could not get "my sound" (I don't do fifteens), even playing my five string electric Hoyt bass w/three band EQ, but I did, and was complimented on my tone. Go fig.
 
#863
Jazzdogg said:
I love my iAmp800, but want something smaller and lighter that can handle a 2-Ohm load, so I went down to Bass San Diego this morning to try a Doubler.

They were out of Doublers, so I tried the Micro. I was disappointed to find that it had a baked-in presence peak in the upper mids/treble that I wasn't able to dial out. It also felt less powerful than the published wattage would suggest.

Should I expect the same basic sound and power delivery from the Doubler?
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I would like to hear more about this "peak in the upper mids/treble". First of all, I'm curious to know if this is documented, and since people like the sound of this amp, I'd like to know exactly how much peak and centered at what frequency, is it on both channels, etc.

Thanks.

-S-
 
#864
SteveFreides said:
I would like to hear more about this "peak in the upper mids/treble". First of all, I'm curious to know if this is documented, and since people like the sound of this amp, I'd like to know exactly how much peak and centered at what frequency, is it on both channels, etc.

Thanks.

-S-
Click to expand...

I should mention that when I said "Yes" it was not acknowledging the character described, just that the Micro and Doubler have the same EQ and power section as the Micro.
 
#865
SteveFreides said:
I would like to hear more about this "peak in the upper mids/treble". First of all, I'm curious to know if this is documented, and since people like the sound of this amp, I'd like to know exactly how much peak and centered at what frequency, is it on both channels, etc.

Thanks.

-S-
Click to expand...


My comments aren't intended as a slam against the Micro or the Doubler, Steve; they just aren't my cup of tea. Having spent more than 40 years playing music and using woodworking machines, I find some of the upper frequencies intolerably irritating and, if too loud, painful. It doesn't surprise me that others find this aspect of the head's sound to be a virtue; lots of people like the sound of roundwound strings buzzing against the frets of an electric bass, and those kinds of sounds irritate my ears in a similar fashion.

Since I didn't buy the amp, I don't have it here to measure. :)
I found the presence peak very conspicuous, and was unable to dial it out, even when I turned both the bass and the treble all the way down. That said, I did hear a subtle difference in the tonal quality of the peak on each channel. I tried the MB800 immediately after the Micro, and it produced no such peak.
 
#866
Bob Gollihur said:
Don't know if you've already been there, but I took a series 4 two channel Acoustic image Clarus head with me to an electric jam last Sunday afternoon, vs three guitarists + drummer. Plugged it into an old 2x15 bass cab in the rehearsal space. Given the AI's three band EQ I feared I could not get "my sound" (I don't do fifteens), even playing my five string electric Hoyt bass w/three band EQ, but I did, and was complimented on my tone. Go fig.
Click to expand...

Sadly, I am not aware of any place in San Diego that carries AI amps. It could be ideal; I'd definitely like to try one. :D
 
#871
I don't feel that the Doubler has a mid peak. Just my experience. I think that the notes have a decent thickness and if anything a pretty neutral sound. I can't warm up to the AI stuff. It's funny---to me they sound too dark---not enough "pop" Better with upright but I didn't like them on electric.
I do agree that the Doubler (or Micro) don't feel like their rated power. At 2 ohms I was able to go loud enough on 5 string electric with 2 Crazy 88's. But I did feel that I was getting to their limits.
I love my Doubler and think it's the best upright amp out there and very usable for electric. But I am interested in checking out the Tecamps.Nope--just checked---they don't do 2 ohms.
. But maybe you will like the AI amps---my upright is very dark sounding and I use a not very bright sound on electric. Which may be the reason I don't like the AI stuff as much.
 
#872
Mike Arnopol said:
I don't feel that the Doubler has a mid peak. Just my experience. I think that the notes have a decent thickness and if anything a pretty neutral sound. I can't warm up to the AI stuff. It's funny---to me they sound too dark---not enough "pop" Better with upright but I didn't like them on electric.

I do agree that the Doubler (or Micro) don't feel like their rated power. At 2 ohms I was able to go loud enough on 5 string electric with 2 Crazy 88's. But I did feel that I was getting to their limits. <the amp's limits, or the speakers?>

I love my Doubler and think it's the best upright amp out there and very usable for electric. But I am interested in checking out the Tecamps.Nope--just checked---they don't do 2 ohms.
Ea is coming out with a replacement for the Iamp pro that should be very nice. Not featherweight (maybe 8 lbs) but a ton of power. But maybe you will like the AI amps---my upright is very dark sounding and I use a not very bright sound on electric. Which may be the reason I don't like the AI stuff as much.
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Maybe the "Pop" you've described is the "upper-mid peak" that my ears dislike.

Here's where I'm coming from:
Roundwounds on electric bass hurt my ears and produce overtones to which I'm oversensitive - to me, the overtones emphasized by most rounds sound like flies buzzing; listening to someone slap an electric bass feels like I'm being stabbed in the ear with an ice pick. That's probably why I've been using flats for more than 30 years. :hmm:

Before I got the Crazy8, my go-to rig was a VL208 pushed by an iAmp800 with the deep switch engaged for fullness, and an FDeck HPF/Pre cutting the boom to suit the room.

I like to hear myself clearly enough to have no doubt about my intonation, but prefer to have no more high-mids or treble than necessary to achieve that objective, and certainly no buzzing, gank, finger noise, or other extraneous high-pitched sounds.

OK, I'm weird. I admit it. :hiding:

I'm hoping the Doubler and EQ3B will do the trick. :)
 
#873
Jazzdogg said:
Maybe the "Pop" you've described is the "upper-mid peak" that my ears dislike.
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That's the $64,000 question in a nutshell, isn't it?

It's plausible that a lack of "pop" is a lack of something familiar we like, be that a non-linearity in the frequency response or a bit of distortion or something else. It doesn't seem likely that "pop" is actually something more accurate but it could be if, e.g., the AI heads are lacking in transient response or something else. All this being why I'm curious to know if someone with an amp modeler or fancy EQ could duplicate the sound of the Doubler with a signal processor and the AI head.

In the end, accurate isn't what everyone is looking for in their gear. We want what sounds good.

-S-
 
#874
SteveFreides said:
That's the $64,000 question in a nutshell, isn't it?

It's plausible that a lack of "pop" is a lack of something familiar we like, be that a non-linearity in the frequency response or a bit of distortion or something else. It doesn't seem likely that "pop" is actually something more accurate but it could be if, e.g., the AI heads are lacking in transient response or something else. All this being why I'm curious to know if someone with an amp modeler or fancy EQ could duplicate the sound of the Doubler with a signal processor and the AI head.

In the end, accurate isn't what everyone is looking for in their gear. We want what sounds good.

-S-
Click to expand...

Most of us have had the experience of playing through gear that had a "baked-in" sound. Some we like, some we don't.
 
#875
"...a VL208 pushed by an iAmp800 with the deep switch engaged for fullness..."

Wow! That's a lot of low end. I played a handful of gigs after I first got a VL208, using this exact set-up. Each time, I thought it sounded great on stage - fat, thick, etc., but was told by several different sound guys that the bottom coming off the stage was overwhelming everything. Disengaging the deep switch made everyone much happier and got me rave reviews (at least for the sound).

Here's a doubler question for those in the know: Does the HPF affect both input channels or just the mic input channel?
 
#877
MLysh said:
"...a VL208 pushed by an iAmp800 with the deep switch engaged for fullness..."

Wow! That's a lot of low end. I played a handful of gigs after I first got a VL208, using this exact set-up. Each time, I thought it sounded great on stage - fat, thick, etc., but was told by several different sound guys that the bottom coming off the stage was overwhelming everything. Disengaging the deep switch made everyone much happier and got me rave reviews (at least for the sound).

Here's a doubler question for those in the know: Does the HPF affect both input channels or just the mic input channel?
Click to expand...

Did you read the part where I said I use a high-pass filter to tame the low frequencies?
 
#879
I am considering buying an EA doubler. I have used EA for years, first with a Iamp600 until it blew up on a gig (loved this amp) and then after that an Iamp 800 which I sold to my regret for a TC rh450. I am going to sell the TC soon and want a great up right amp. My evil plan is to fix the Iamp600 for use on electric only gigs as it was a rock n roll machine, much more so than the Iamp800 I replaced it with. 50% of my gigs are upright, and the other 50% electric, and some gigs might use both.My questions is, are you guys who have a couple of years with the doubler still loving it? Or have you been eying Genz or Markbass or other options for a micro amp? My ONLY concern is that the doubler won't be loud enough for rockn electric gigs...
 

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