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New: Tech 21 VT-500 Bass Amp
- Thread starter CharlieC
- Start date
Guys, I know the volume output has been talked about already but I have a question, actually 2, about loudness compared to my MarkBass F1 head.
The F1 is rated 500watts in to 4ohms, 350 in to 8ohms. The VT is also 500 in to 4 ohms, but rated 300 in to 8 ohms. First, is this just a conservative figure on Tech 21's part or is this a real difference? I thought plugging in a 500watt head to an 8 ohms cab gave the same figure no mater what head, although I admit to knowing hardly anything about this sort of thing.
Anyway, that's not a deal breaker, but my second question might be. Am I correct that to get the VT head sounding anywhere near its full output I'd have to have the drive up quite high? I have the VTBass DI and the drive knob makes a huge difference to the volume. I never really have it past 9 o'clock. I can of course turn the amp up and keep the signal sounding the same, just louder.
What I'm trying to guage is can I replace my F1/VTBass DI with just the head, but still get loud fairly clean tones? Similar to what I already have, or do I need to get dirty to get the full output (not that I want the full output, I just dont want to have to use the drive knob too much to get what I'm already using)
Thanks for any clarification, and I admit i might be a bit confused and have got this all wrong, but I found the above to be true when I got a GK head a few years ago and had to go back to MB.
The F1 is rated 500watts in to 4ohms, 350 in to 8ohms. The VT is also 500 in to 4 ohms, but rated 300 in to 8 ohms. First, is this just a conservative figure on Tech 21's part or is this a real difference? I thought plugging in a 500watt head to an 8 ohms cab gave the same figure no mater what head, although I admit to knowing hardly anything about this sort of thing.
Anyway, that's not a deal breaker, but my second question might be. Am I correct that to get the VT head sounding anywhere near its full output I'd have to have the drive up quite high? I have the VTBass DI and the drive knob makes a huge difference to the volume. I never really have it past 9 o'clock. I can of course turn the amp up and keep the signal sounding the same, just louder.
What I'm trying to guage is can I replace my F1/VTBass DI with just the head, but still get loud fairly clean tones? Similar to what I already have, or do I need to get dirty to get the full output (not that I want the full output, I just dont want to have to use the drive knob too much to get what I'm already using)
Thanks for any clarification, and I admit i might be a bit confused and have got this all wrong, but I found the above to be true when I got a GK head a few years ago and had to go back to MB.
Manufacturers don't always measure their specifications in exactly the same way. I can't speaker for the F1's 350 watt 8Ohm spec. The difference between 300 and 350 watts would not be audible. For comparison, doubling your power from 300 to 600 watts gives you only 3dB more output. Not a huge output difference but more headroom. The reason solid state amps have reduced output levels as the impedance is increased is because unlike tube amps solid state amps don't use output transformers. On a typical tube amp there are taps on the output transformers that allow you to match the output stage for different impedance values.
On the Vt Bass 500 you can achieve full output running the amp totally clean. The Drive control only affects the SansAmp circuit. With the Blend control set at minimum (the Drive control has no effect but the Low, Mid and High controls remain active ) the VT is basically just a 500 watt clean amp like a Mark Bass or SWR style amp. Think of it as two amp's in one. With the Blend control engaged the Drive control sets the overall gain level for the SansAmp circuit. You can go from Clean to Mean. You can run the amp totally clean without the SansAmp circuit, run it with full tube emulation (which can be set clean as well) or have a mix of both via the Blend control.
The internal preamp of the VT Bass 500 runs at 30 volts and has more headroom than our pedal versions which run at 9 volts.
Seems like I remember some TBers talking about the F1/F500 not having a lot of 'apparent' power at 8 Ohm - one company's rating is another company's hyperbole.
Some companies' designs manage the 8 Ohm load with more stones - also, the power rating numbers do not necessarily correlate to any given common ratio between 8 Ohm & 4 Ohm.
- Apr 3, 2003
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Thanks for the replies guys.
I did of course get the 350watts wrong, I meant 300watts, as per the manual.
I'm not saying I feel my F1 is under powered, but just wondered why some 500 watt heads have different ratings at 8ohms. On another thread I've been informed it's to do with the power supply and this makes sense.
I'd love to get the VTBass head but have derived to stick with my F1 and get a VTBAss Deluxe instead. Best of both worlds
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I did of course get the 350watts wrong, I meant 300watts, as per the manual.
I'm not saying I feel my F1 is under powered, but just wondered why some 500 watt heads have different ratings at 8ohms. On another thread I've been informed it's to do with the power supply and this makes sense.
I'd love to get the VTBass head but have derived to stick with my F1 and get a VTBAss Deluxe instead. Best of both worlds
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I have an interest in this amp but would it just make more sense to keep my crest prolite 2.0 and find a used VT Rackmount Preamp or is their a considerable difference between the amp and VTRM?
I have both... they are voiced slightly differently in that you dial in the same tones with different settings.
The primary difference is that there is no power section, since it's just a pre-amp.
On the back end, the difference is a little more noticeable. There are a ton of routing options. Check the online manual for all the options.
I think I can get the same tones when I A/B the sounds.
The primary difference is that there is no power section, since it's just a pre-amp.
On the back end, the difference is a little more noticeable. There are a ton of routing options. Check the online manual for all the options.
I think I can get the same tones when I A/B the sounds.
I figure I can get a little more headroom with the Crest than I could the power section of the VT500. I see there is no speaker sim defeat switch with the VTRM, is the Speaker Sim still present in the VT500?
If I read the manual correctly, the speaker sim is only on the XLR out. Since you won't be using this on the Crest, it shouldn't impact your tone.
The same holds true for the VT500... speaker sim only works with XLR out.
Cool thanks. I mostly practice with the XLR out but I can't see it keeping me from enjoying the product. Worse comes to worse I could probably flip it pretty easily. I'll def hold onto my RPM just in case.
- Sep 3, 2006
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I agree; I have a RBI pre and power amp as well as the VTB-500 and can get similar sounds and the VTRM should be a bit closer than the RBI although still different. Any one of those pres will give a person the Tech21 Sansamp tube-emulation sound. The VTB-500 has the added convenience of being an all-in-one lightweight solution.
There is no speaker sim defeat on either the VT Bass Rackmount or VT 500. The speaker sim was designed with a mild EQ curve to enable you to use it for direct recording as well as through your bass amp's speaker system. The SansAmp XLR out responds to the Blend control on both units. If you want more of your Direct signal turn the Blend counterclockwise. If you want more SansAmp signal turn the Blend clockwise.
I liked having that option on my old VT Deluxe but the Blend option on the 500/VTRM/DI appeals to me in the sense that I can dial in more of the natural tone of my Bass with the effect. The VTD didn't seem to do that as well to me. That's not a bad thing by any means, the VTD is a great product but I like having the option for a clean blend.
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I was interested in this amp from its announcement and after the excellent review by Acoustic356 I bought it. Having owned the VT Bass and VT Bass Deluxe pedals, combining that pre with a 500w amp was very appealing. I'm a very satisfied customer. The amp is really nice run clean and the blend feature is cool when you want subtle effects added to your tone.
My initial concern was that not having foot-switchable presets, like the VT Bass Deluxe, would result in going back and forth to the amp to change the sound. What I found is that I really only use 2-3 favorite sounds and they're just a slight tweak away on the Character and Drive knobs - I think Acoustic356 had a similar comment. The tube emulation is especially nice given its small size, weight, and cost. Mostly I set it somewhere between tube and funk.
My initial concern was that not having foot-switchable presets, like the VT Bass Deluxe, would result in going back and forth to the amp to change the sound. What I found is that I really only use 2-3 favorite sounds and they're just a slight tweak away on the Character and Drive knobs - I think Acoustic356 had a similar comment. The tube emulation is especially nice given its small size, weight, and cost. Mostly I set it somewhere between tube and funk.
Curious as to how the clean tone on the VT500 compares to your Demeter head (I'm a big fan of the Demeter 201 older preamp)?
Also, how do they mate up with your Big Baby II?
The clean tone isn't anywhere near the Demeter tone, it's more in line with other quality Class D lightweight amps. And though I checked out and appreciated the clean tone of the VT Bass 500, 95% of my playing through it has been with some level of effects ... just 'cause it sounds so good.
I played it through a couple of Barefaced cabs, a Super Midget and One10, and it sounded great with both. I won't be able to check it with the BB2 until next week. As good as the VT Bass 500 sounded with the Super Midget, the Demeter took the Super Midget to another level.
I played it through a couple of Barefaced cabs, a Super Midget and One10, and it sounded great with both. I won't be able to check it with the BB2 until next week. As good as the VT Bass 500 sounded with the Super Midget, the Demeter took the Super Midget to another level.
PSA - Musican's Friend is taking pre-orders on the VT 500 that are supposed to ship this week, and they're running a 20% holiday coupon. That's < $400 to your door.
