Quilter Bass Block v803

[Hnz]

Can anyone tell me if, with the V803 in "modern' setting, there is a significant difference in sound compared to a BB800?

I now use an external graphic equalizer to finetune my sound with the 800 when playing live, dependent on the venue's characteristics.
The whole concept of the BB V803 appeals to me so much however that I'm considering buying a BB V803. But I very much love the sound of the 800...

 

[gtirard]

Can anyone tell me if, with the V803 in "modern' setting, there is a significant difference in sound compared to a BB800?

I now use an external graphic equalizer to finetune my sound with the 800 when playing live, dependent on the venue's characteristics.
The whole concept of the BB V803 appeals to me so much however that I'm considering buying a BB V803. But I very much love the sound of the 800...

The modern voice of the 803 is the sound of the B800.
Overall, if you take the 803, with "Modern" voice, normal input, and all the EQ at noon, you have a BB800.
Then you can change the voicing, use the "Scooped" input, and the parametric mid… or not.

 

[mikeynets]

LOL. I don't know if any of you has had a chance to experiment in real life this self limiting feature (to 450 or 500w)?
I think I'd be death long before it happens...

Seriously, is there a situation when this even matters? For me, it's nice to see that Quilter is serious about safety, but I think you're all overthinking this.

Not a concern of mine, but I was responding to a previous post from someone looking for 500w heads.

Like you, fully cranking this head (or any) to 800 or 500w is not where I'm at, but I'm sure it is a use case for some owners and if someone needs 500W but not more because of cab limitations, well then the feature set of the Quilter is nice to have.

Of course, having ears is also a nice feature set i.e. not going crazy on the master when your speakers aren't into that kind of party.

 

[Hnz]

The modern voice of the 803 is the sound of the B800.
Overall, if you take the 803, with "Modern" voice, normal input, and all the EQ at noon, you have a BB800.
Then you can change the voicing, use the "Scooped" input, and the parametric mid… or not.

OMG!!!

I just got a severe case of GAS!!!

Thanks, Gtirard!

 

[gtirard]

OMG!!!

I just got a severe case of GAS!!!

Thanks, Gtirard!

I too was loving my BB800, but I still sold it in order to fund the 803, because I thought it would be a "BB800+". It is. I have no regret.

 

[Hnz]

I too was loving my BB800, but I still sold it in order to fund the 803, because I thought it would be a "BB800+". It is. I have no regret.

I'm very tempted to do the very same.
I got to wait till next month though; no money left for it this month.

 

[Jim C]

Stop!
I'm very happy with my 800 and can't store any more amps...

 

[Hnz]

I too was loving my BB800, but I still sold it in order to fund the 803, because I thought it would be a "BB800+". It is. I have no regret.

But, and, eeeehrm, what about if one would hook up a Quilter Bass Interblock45 for more eq possibilities and/or a little gritt to a B800?
Anyone tried that?

 

[mikeynets]

But, and, eeeehrm, what about if one would hook up a Quilter Bass Interblock45 for more eq possibilities and/or a little gritt to a B800?
Anyone tried that?

Definitely an option, but while the IB and the 803 cover a lot of the same tonal ground, there is a divergence when the gain becomes more prominent. I prefer higher (not cranked) gain sounds from the 803 over the IB.

Key to me, though, is what you said — "little grit" — I think the sweet spot for both IB and 803 is in warm, edge of break up tones. Beyond that, I prefer a pedal, in my case a Source Audio Ultrawave. YMMV.

 

[gtirard]

Definitely an option, but while the IB and the 803 cover a lot of the same tonal ground, there is a divergence when the gain becomes more prominent. I prefer higher (not cranked) gain sounds from the 803 over the IB.

Key to me, though, is what you said — "little grit" — I think the sweet spot for both IB and 803 is in warm, edge of break up tones. Beyond that, I prefer a pedal, in my case a Source Audio Ultrawave. YMMV.

Same. I have the Interbass too, and I've never thought of putting it into the v803. I don't think it would really add more EQ options, and I don't see the point of stacking 2 layers of "light grit" - I also prefer using a dirt pedal. I should try though, just for the sake of "science".

 

[Hnz]

Same. I have the Interbass too, and I've never thought of putting it into the v803. I don't think it would really add more EQ options, and I don't see the point of stacking 2 layers of "light grit" - I also prefer using a dirt pedal. I should try though, just for the sake of "science".

WHOAAA! Hold your horses folks!
I am not talking about hooking the IB to the 803 but to the 800!

In order to get more refined eq options. That's what I'm after.
In doing so, one also has the possibility of using a bit more 'grit' coming from the IB's vintage settIng.
To be clear: I am not after adding grit to my sound.

Instead of going for the 803, I might give the IB a try.
There's a 30 day no questions asked return policy at Thomann's where I'd buy it and try it.

 

[TomB]

There's a thread about what amps are made in the USA today, but I can't find it.
Mesa Subway amps are still made in the USA.
Fuchs Audio too.

Add GK to that list

WHOAAA! Hold your horses folks!
I am not talking about hooking the IB to the 803 but to the 800!

In order to get more refined eq options. That's what I'm after.
In doing so, one also has the possibility of using a bit more 'grit' coming from the IB's vintage settIng.
To be clear: I am not after adding grit to my sound.

Instead of going for the 803, I might give the IB a try.
There's a 30 day no questions asked return policy at Thomann's where I'd buy it and try it.

That sounds sensible. One has to wonder how much of the 803's front end was developed from the IB (which I've never tried). The Q-tube gain has to be pushed pretty hard to get gritty with finger-style playing, so a dirt pedal will still be in order for lots of folks' purposes.

 

[mikeynets]

Same. I have the Interbass too, and I've never thought of putting it into the v803. I don't think it would really add more EQ options, and I don't see the point of stacking 2 layers of "light grit" - I also prefer using a dirt pedal. I should try though, just for the sake of "science".

You inspired me to try that as well for "science"!

On a related note, I have a Source Audio Zio Bass that I really like but when I got the V803, after a lot of experimenting. I felt I was getting pretty close to my preferred Zio tone with the 803 alone and so I stopped using it and was getting ready to sell it.

Over the last few days though, I decided to put the Zio back in front and it's been incredible.

The Zio has a switch that explicitly tries to cop the Pultec trick and while Quilter doesn't say this anywhere, I think the scoop inputs is doing something similar, just a little less pronounced.

I know my explanation is probably not technically correct, but My understanding is the Pultec trick is not just a mid scoop, but also a bass boost emanating from two eq "controls" which broadly overlap, but importantly are slightly different.

This is a long way of saying if the "out of phase" or different frequencies, different q or whatever is going on in the Pultec is nice, why not try two of those eq options stacked, also slightly "out of phase" to each other and see what happens? That's what I did and I dig it.

Interbass into 803 might be the biz, could be terrible or just a big nothingburger.

We need more "scientists" … and also more scientists.

 

[mikeynets]

WHOAAA! Hold your horses folks!
I am not talking about hooking the IB to the 803 but to the 800!

In order to get more refined eq options. That's what I'm after.
In doing so, one also has the possibility of using a bit more 'grit' coming from the IB's vintage settIng.
To be clear: I am not after adding grit to my sound.

Instead of going for the 803, I might give the IB a try.
There's a 30 day no questions asked return policy at Thomann's where I'd buy it and try it.

I don't think @gtirard was suggesting to you to get both , but since he already has both, he's gonna check it out. I have both also and never thought of running the IB into the 803, but I'm gonna give it a try now!

 

[homerhands]

From the v803 page: " User Convenience: Features ... an FX Return that can be used as a stealth input for backing tracks."

From the manual: *"STEALTH INPUT": To practice or play with backing tracks, insert your signal into FX RETURN. The preamp signal level will drop about 4dB to provide some headroom for tracks. After dialing in your preamp level, use the external device's volume control to match the track volume to your bass volume. The Master will control the combined mix as usual."

So the FX return is a true pre-amp bypass?

 

[pisces_bass]

TL;DR the Tone Hammer pedal plays well with the v803. Try your favorite AGS settings with the scoop input and warm voice. Results of science below.


I have a science report for you all. Similar to @mikeynets , before I got my V803, I had a favorite preamp. And I had quit using it because the V803 sounds very good by itself, especially using the scoop input and warm voice. But for the purpose of science, I wanted to see what my Tone Hammer pedal would bring to the party.

I started on the TH's clean side and set it up as a clean boost to see if it would push the qtube setting into breakup. Answer: yes, but I had to really crank the gain on the TH and that introduced extra noise. On the warm voice I really couldn't hear any improvement by engaging the TH.

My usual setup on the TH is AGS always on and @eublet's magic mid scoop settings. The AGS adds a lot of gain (tameable with the gain knob), fatness, and HPF/LPF. So I tried it…and it's great with the V803. On the warm voice, my usual settings were enhanced. More fat. More depth and character. And I can keep it clean or go into breakup at will by digging in.

On the modern voice and flat input it sounds just like my BB800…but the scoop and warm settings on the V803 are the secret sauce for me. I tried running the AGS setup into qtube and it got really woolly. I'll have to try it in a loud mix but it may be a bit sloppy for my needs.

I'll take my experiments to rehearsal next week and see if it holds up in the real world.

 

[mikeynets]

TL;DR the Tone Hammer pedal plays well with the v803. Try your favorite AGS settings with the scoop input and warm voice. Results of science below.


I have a science report for you all. Similar to @mikeynets , before I got my V803, I had a favorite preamp. And I had quit using it because the V803 sounds very good by itself, especially using the scoop input and warm voice. But for the purpose of science, I wanted to see what my Tone Hammer pedal would bring to the party.

I started on the TH's clean side and set it up as a clean boost to see if it would push the qtube setting into breakup. Answer: yes, but I had to really crank the gain on the TH and that introduced extra noise. On the warm voice I really couldn't hear any improvement by engaging the TH.

My usual setup on the TH is AGS always on and @eublet's magic mid scoop settings. The AGS adds a lot of gain (tameable with the gain knob), fatness, and HPF/LPF. So I tried it…and it's great with the V803. On the warm voice, my usual settings were enhanced. More fat. More depth and character. And I can keep it clean or go into breakup at will by digging in.

On the modern voice and flat input it sounds just like my BB800…but the scoop and warm settings on the V803 are the secret sauce for me. I tried running the AGS setup into qtube and it got really woolly. I'll have to try it in a loud mix but it may be a bit sloppy for my needs.

I'll take my experiments to rehearsal next week and see if it holds up in the real world.

EVERYTHING you said about the TH in front of the 803 applies to my experience with the SA Zio. And I also need to try out qtube with my band. So far, at home, it's a little much but it might work in the mix for more rockin songs.

A footswitch for the 803 voices would be pretty cool though, huh?

 

[pisces_bass]

I liked the TH + v803 even better with the band. The AGS tightens up the lows, thickens the mids, and gets a nice pick grind. The qtube setting never got mushy, which I thought it might. The extra gain makes the passive tone knob very interactive. Roll it down for thud, roll it up for bite.

 

[patzilla83]

Does anyone have experience with the 803 versus the Ampeg Venture V7? How do they compare? If you had to choose one, which would you choose? Would it be worth it to trade in the V7? I like my ampeg, but my cab (1x15) is kinda dark sounding and doesn't always pair well with the "ampeg sound". Thanks!

 

[pisces_bass]

@patzilla83 I considered a Venture amp. The demos and reviews are generally good. I would like to try a SGT-DI sometime.

The features on the v803 are better for my uses. Specifically, the Quilter has NL4 Speakon connections, limiters built in to the modern and warm voices, and a cabsim for the DI and headphones when using the warm and qtube voices. Also, I didn't know that I would prefer the scoop input. It's great.