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Double Bass Power Conditioner??

bassfacer22

bassfacer22

Sep 3, 2011
1,709
445
North America NorthEast area..
#1
Hey guys.. I need your help..

I am going on a cruise ship and thinking of bringing my extremely expensive New Walter Woods amp..

the issue is that I don't trust the power on the ship as I have had/seen experiences with overheating/sparks/ from the outlets..

My question is : what should I buy to help with regulating or helping keep my walter woods from getting damaged by the power of the ship?

(surge protector? power conditioner??) It also needs to be small and light if possible as I will be traveling with it on planes etc..

Also I've been trying 3 different numbers to call Walter Woods himself and ask him what he recommends.. but no answer!
thanks.
 
#2
You want a voltage regulator. When I lived it Saudi we would gig at many places with questionable power quality, and unstable voltage, as well as having some places providing 110V and some providing 220V. I use to use the Furman AR Pro which would recognize the incomming voltage and as long as it was near to 110 or 220 it would regulate and possibly step down to provide nice, clean 110V. A pricey but very slick solution. For the computers onboard ships we supported we would use the fairly cheap Chineese made step-up/down transformer / regulators. roughly $80-$120 for 3000 watts. They work well and you can get them as large as you want. Our band use to use large ones for our PA gear. This is an example [Invalid or Expired Link Removed] . Usually you set the incomming voltage on the back and then it will give you regulated 110V and 220V from the front recepticals. This should work well onboard ship
 
#3
Hi Sowilson,

Thanks for the reply.. Essentially I just want my Walter Woods head to be safe from the irregular current of the ship.. I"m not sure the difference between step-down and power conditioners/ voltage regulators.. maybe they all mean the same thing..

in any-case, I called around a few companies in florida where I will be joining the ship and they said they have furman products..

Just so you know, I won't be going to any places with 220V ( i think..) I will be circling the Caribbean over and over again..

i'm also guessing i may only need a 1500watt regulator.. as the walter woods head is 800-1200 watts..

thanks.
 
#5
I hear you. the ship is 110. Your concern is regulating the voltage. For that you will need a voltage regulator and not a power conditioner. A Furman AR-1215 Voltage Requlator will cost you $550. The units I linked you to will cost $400 less and you can use the step-up/down transformer feature if you ever encounter 220V (i.e. a European registered ship). If you ever use the step-up/down transformer feature then you need to size it roughly 3x the wattage that you need which is why I would recommend a 3000 watt or higher unit.
 
#7
Don't bring your amp on a ship (this is coming from someone who is currently working on Royal Caribbean). There are so many problems with power that it just doesn't make sense to bring your own. Whenever the captain makes an announcement, the power cuts out on stage, and we have general issues with grounding and the like almost all the time; there is almost always power-related noise coming through the cabinet.
 
#8
Alright guys, I appreciate all the replies..

So here is the deal, I totally think everybody is correct.. i shouldnt bring my WalterWoods amp cause the ships power is unstable and it is just causing more for me to deal with, with such an expensive amp....

however, I did end up purchasing a "voltage regulator" (2500watts) from the link above and 1 day shipped to myself..

I think what I'm gonna do is, If the voltage regulator gets to my house before I leave for the airport in 1 day, I probably will bring my amp and use the voltage regulator..

(I mean i really bought the amp to use it, and i'm going away for 6 months with my own acoustic bass and my sound is extremely important to me..) I even bought 2 microphones and a pickup to boot.. which is also why I want to bring the walterwoods amp.. has two inputs and eq settings on both inputs)

So now i have this furman power conditioner.. about to be replaced by a voltage regulator.. (i'm still not quite sure the major difference why i would use a power conditioner if the voltage regulator is the select choice??)

I do think this is a bit much for me to take on the ship but i feel like half a year is a lot and i might as well hone in on my sound and be able to enjoy my sound.. (on the ship they have a hartke 4x10 cab and some hartke-amp 150 or 250 watt head..) also a fender bass amp.. don't remember the model but it was a 15' speaker..

thats why i want to bring my walter woods.. for the clarity of sound of my mic's (amt s26i , and a neumann km mic, and a realist pickup.. I forgot the model on the neumann mic..

you guys have been really helpful so far..
 
#9
A heavy weight solution that would isolate your equipment from bad ac power would be an uninterruptible power supply. Some of these synthesize a 60 Hz sine wave regardless of the input power.
 
#11
bassfacer22 said:
i'm still not quite sure the major difference why i would use a power conditioner if the voltage regulator is the select choice?
Click to expand...
The main difference is the conditioner just protects against some momentary voltage surges, it does not correct the voltage levels.
bassfacer22 said:
i might as well hone in on my sound
Click to expand...
To hone is to sharpen. To home in is to focus your aim. "Hone in" is a common mistaken mashup. :)
 
#12
I spent a month on a cruise boat circa 1985. I brought a GK 800RB because I could but it in a rack briefcase and my BG. There was a DB on-board which no-one had played for months. People were overjoyed to hear the DB and didn't care at all that I was playing it through a bass guitar amp.

bassfacer22 said:
I really bought the amp to use it, and i'm going away for 6 months with my own acoustic bass and my sound is extremely important to me...
Click to expand...
This is a golden opportunity to spend six months working on your unamplified sound.

bassfacer22 said:
On the ship they have a hartke 4x10 cab and some hartke-amp 150 or 250 watt head.. also a fender bass amp.. don't remember the model but it was a 15' speaker..
Click to expand...
At any major jazz festival anywhere in the world you will hear people get a splendid sound from the same gear they have on the boat, if they are able to deliver a splendid sound from their DB in the first place.

bassfacer22 said:
thats why i want to bring my walter woods.. for the clarity of sound ..
Click to expand...
Sorry to be blunt but people are trying to tell you that once your Woods blows up it will sound like a cinder-block. That is something you don't seem to want to engage.

Travel safe and good luck with the experience!
 
#13
"My WW is in the car, but I'm sure it only uses a couple hundred watts AC to produce 450 watts of output."

And here I thought the Walter Woods amp was just a good bass amp. Now I find out it's a perpetual motion machine!

I'll bet you your amp, cabinet, and all your musical gear that you are NOT getting 450W output for 200W input.
 

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