I've never used any of their class D heads, but I've heard good things about the tone of the OriginAL head. I've pondered the same to have an emergency spare.
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OFFICIAL ASHDOWN CLUB
- Thread starter Presto2112
- Start date
I've never used any of their class D heads, but I've heard good things about the tone of the OriginAL head. I've pondered the same to have an emergency spare.
@Murph_Orpheus I don't want to derail the other thread. The versatility available on the ABM600 IV is perfect for me. It's not perfect but it nails everything I want it to. First off the heft and tone from these compared to a DG rig is putting Mayweather in the ring with Mike Tyson. I had the AO900 and MT900 with the pair 212 DG cabs and got to push both. Both my 210/410 ashdown stack and the 212 stack had almost identical voices save for the extra heft and low end slam of the ashdown cabs.
Now head to head the ABM makes the DG heads sound like diet soda when you side by side them. If I were having to haul my rig I would have kept the DG cabs for the weight and ran the ABM through it. But since I'm just a home hobby guy I kept the rig matching and hung onto the ashdown gear. As for taking pedals I run my boss GX100 4CM and I have so many options. The EQ section on the ABM is defeatable so you can run whatever pedals/pre you want and take advantage of the AB power section. The compressor as discussed recently in this thread is to each their own. I don't really use it on the head because I have them in my pedal chain. I've had great luck finding the ABMs used for great prices and they've completely turned me off from Class D amps.
Now head to head the ABM makes the DG heads sound like diet soda when you side by side them. If I were having to haul my rig I would have kept the DG cabs for the weight and ran the ABM through it. But since I'm just a home hobby guy I kept the rig matching and hung onto the ashdown gear. As for taking pedals I run my boss GX100 4CM and I have so many options. The EQ section on the ABM is defeatable so you can run whatever pedals/pre you want and take advantage of the AB power section. The compressor as discussed recently in this thread is to each their own. I don't really use it on the head because I have them in my pedal chain. I've had great luck finding the ABMs used for great prices and they've completely turned me off from Class D amps.
Appreciate the detailed info. The ABM series is definitely on my radar. I'm tempted by en EVO IV 300 as it's a little cheaper but worried it wouldn't be enough in terms of wattage as I mainly run one 8 ohm cab and am rarely in a gigging situation where I need two cabs to get the full 4 ohm load from the head. I can't seem to find what wattage it runs at 8 ohms, does anyone know? Logic would tell me it's in around 150 watts if it's 300 at 4 ohms. Realistically, the 600 is probably the better fit for me though.
I've seen this video a couple of times. Sounds great but still unsure about whether I'd have enough juice at 8 ohms with the 300.
Get the 600 and never wonder if you should have gotten more
I'm not sure, as I didn't engineer or open up any amp circuits in the Ashdown brand of amps. (I have opened the cabinets of my Ashdown combos to get measurements.) It's been my understanding that they use class AB amplifiers, unless specified differently. While less efficient and heavier, they have the nearly the same output whether 4 or 8Ω speaker cabs are used. For more output, you need more efficient speaker(s)and/or more speakers or speaker surface area.
Yeah I understand needing more speaker area. I use a Bergantino HD210 which is 8 ohms and very efficient. For the band I use it in its purely for stage sound for myself. I was in contact with Ashdown and as I thought the ABM 300 puts out 150 watts at 8 ohms. That's 100 less than what I'm currently running. I think I'll just settle on the ABM 600 and not have to worry about it as Nuage420 said above.
- Apr 18, 2008
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The difference between 150 Watts and 250 Watts is pretty minimal. Less than 3dB, and only if you max the thing out.
Any way you have a chance to try and crank the 300? I can tell you that with any decent cab and speaker amount the 600 will be plenty enough for pretty much any gig.
The 300, idk probably, but depends on what you want from an amp. If you like some grind and pushing an amp hard, it'll probably work. But if you need some nice crisp cleans, I'd be hesitant on the 300. @Nuage420 has it right in my opinion
The 300, idk probably, but depends on what you want from an amp. If you like some grind and pushing an amp hard, it'll probably work. But if you need some nice crisp cleans, I'd be hesitant on the 300. @Nuage420 has it right in my opinion
I'm going to drop this here before i post an ad this weekend. I'm moving to an apartment soon and my ABM600 is going to get me into trouble. I'm going to move to an ABM300 and my 210 vs my ABM600 and the 410. Shipping the 410 is very unlikely but if anyone in GA north FL or East Alabama has interest I don't mind driving a little to make a deal happen. The head i can ship. PM me if you're interested in snagging this ABM600 off me or if you have a 300 we can work a trade.
I'm considering buying a RM500 EVO II, and I'm wondering about the XLR out. Is it post EQ only? Is it post master volume? I don't mind the former, but the latter is a deal breaker for me, so I want to be sure.
It is post EQ only, but the Master volume doesn't affect it. I must say that the DI of the RM is pretty good. I have used this head for recording a lot of times.
I'm makin' a thing!
When I got it it came in a very nice road case. Unfortunately, it is very big and cumbersome and it's covered in rat fur. Since I mostly use it at home I wanted something not quite as large and awkward. I had the Birch plywood and the know how and tools to make it. I do have some small gaps on my finger joints than need to be filled and sanded before I put the Tolex on it. As for the Tolex, I have about one yard of Black Elephant that should do well on this cab. I have the corner protectors, but I will put them on after I apply the Tolex.
I like this much better, as I can carry it around a little easier and it sits on top of the speaker cab without overhanging the front and back of the cab.
The original road case:
When I got it it came in a very nice road case. Unfortunately, it is very big and cumbersome and it's covered in rat fur. Since I mostly use it at home I wanted something not quite as large and awkward. I had the Birch plywood and the know how and tools to make it. I do have some small gaps on my finger joints than need to be filled and sanded before I put the Tolex on it. As for the Tolex, I have about one yard of Black Elephant that should do well on this cab. I have the corner protectors, but I will put them on after I apply the Tolex.
I like this much better, as I can carry it around a little easier and it sits on top of the speaker cab without overhanging the front and back of the cab.
The original road case:
I finished my thing I was working on.
The cabinet for my MAG-300.
I had a few spots to fill and sand to level the surface for the Tolex. I covered it in the Black Elephant Tolex and installed the corner protectors.
I think it looks much better. Much classier looking. Looks like what it could have come in. It is much easier to carry and handle in general. I wasn't needing the heavy duty road case, because I'm not a touring musician, just a hobbyist who only plays out once in a great while.
The cabinet for my MAG-300.
I had a few spots to fill and sand to level the surface for the Tolex. I covered it in the Black Elephant Tolex and installed the corner protectors.
I think it looks much better. Much classier looking. Looks like what it could have come in. It is much easier to carry and handle in general. I wasn't needing the heavy duty road case, because I'm not a touring musician, just a hobbyist who only plays out once in a great while.
So I found a used Ashdown RM-C210T-500 EVO II COMBO in good condition for about 500 dollars after tax, so I figured why not give it a try. I've never used Ashdown and would normally go with either GK or Ampeg, but the price was good enough to be worth a shot.
Initially I was pretty disappointed in the "flat" sound with he EQ disengaged. I've heard people describe the RM series as brighter than the ABM series, but to my ears when flat it's remarkably muffled and lacking detail. Of course that's why the 5 band EQ exists, and I realized that the only way this amp is usable for me is with the upper mids at 2-3 o'clock, with a bit of a high boost as well depending on the bass. Adding a bit of a dip in the mids, and it gets pretty close to a default ampeg sort of sound, to my ears. I still have to try it with the band, which is the real test. Considering it's not a ported cab, I'm curious to see if i hear it as lacking any low end in the mix, or if it can get as loud as I need.
As an aside, I like that the XLR out is not post master volume like with the Ampeg Rocket series, and the built in handle is nicer than a majority of combos. I do think that the 1K price these tend to go for in the USA is a bit high for what it is and where it's made. To me 800 to 850 dollars is where it seems it should be priced, compared to the competition.
In short: thank goodness for that upper mid dial.
Initially I was pretty disappointed in the "flat" sound with he EQ disengaged. I've heard people describe the RM series as brighter than the ABM series, but to my ears when flat it's remarkably muffled and lacking detail. Of course that's why the 5 band EQ exists, and I realized that the only way this amp is usable for me is with the upper mids at 2-3 o'clock, with a bit of a high boost as well depending on the bass. Adding a bit of a dip in the mids, and it gets pretty close to a default ampeg sort of sound, to my ears. I still have to try it with the band, which is the real test. Considering it's not a ported cab, I'm curious to see if i hear it as lacking any low end in the mix, or if it can get as loud as I need.
As an aside, I like that the XLR out is not post master volume like with the Ampeg Rocket series, and the built in handle is nicer than a majority of combos. I do think that the 1K price these tend to go for in the USA is a bit high for what it is and where it's made. To me 800 to 850 dollars is where it seems it should be priced, compared to the competition.
In short: thank goodness for that upper mid dial.
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This is the old Klystrom settings for my Precision and Fretless Stingray basses
flatwound strings
Diamond Bass Comp EQ
sometimes very light OD as well
Nice for walking, blues etc
flatwound strings
Diamond Bass Comp EQ
sometimes very light OD as well
Nice for walking, blues etc
