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Thunderfunk 750 owners unite! round deuce

#41
tommixx said:
Not for this specific test because it was in my studio for some stuff I am cutting. If I had to compare the 6176 to the Neve it actually stands up very well. The Neve is more of a modern, warm, even sounding pre while the 6176 is all about the 610 pre circuit which is really fat sounding and more of a vintage old school type sound. Throw in the 1176 circuit and it is punchy and thick as you want to make it. I LOVE both of them but the Neve works a little better for me on a live bass rig than the 6176 because it is a bit more flexible in terms of EQ. Also the compressor is a little more neutral sounding than the 76 which adds quite a bit of it's own character. If I had to pick one or the other for recording it would be tough but I think I would take the 6176 because it adds that bit of color from the past that you hear on so many records. The Neve is definitely the better live choice because of the added flexibility. Price wise they are actually REALLY close if you can deal with someone you know. I got my Neve special order from my guy at Guitar Center for a little under $2200!! :eek: :hyper: :D

I HIGHLY recommend either of them as they are both fabulous at what they do!

Peace,

T
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dangnab,

now that's some SERIOUS gear...
 
#44
Update: I just got off of the phone with Dave Funk. He assured me that the heat I was experiencing from the TFB750a/ae410/ae210 running at 2 ohms was completely normal, well within operating temperature range, and well under the maximum temp. He said he ran it like this for 24hrs with no problem. He said the amp uses 3 methods of releasing heat buildup, the heat sink is connected to the chassis and is completely isolated from the boards. The chassis is aluminum, so it is designed to heat up and cool off quickly. The chassis is part of the cooling system. He also mentioned that the amp was designed to optimally run at 4 ohms, but 2 ohms was ok too. It just wouldn't run at optimal performance..ie more distortion sooner.
 
#46
dominic54321 said:
Update: I just got off of the phone with Dave Funk. He assured me that the heat I was experiencing from the TFB750a/ae410/ae210 running at 2 ohms was completely normal, well within operating temperature range, and well under the maximum temp. He said he ran it like this for 24hrs with no problem. He said the amp uses 3 methods of releasing heat buildup, the heat sink is connected to the chassis and is completely isolated from the boards. The chassis is aluminum, so it is designed to heat up and cool off quickly. The chassis is part of the cooling system. He also mentioned that the amp was designed to optimally run at 4 ohms, but 2 ohms was ok too. It just wouldn't run at optimal performance..ie more distortion sooner.
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Makes sense, and similar to some other amps that are 'safe but not recommended' for 2ohm operation, it is probably better to run this amp at 4ohms IMO. I would think this head pumping 750 watts or so into the 4ohm AE410 would be wonderful, and the moderate increase in volume you'd get adding the small AE210 would probably be at least somewhat offset by the increase in distortion and reduction in, as Dave mentions, 'optimal performance'. IMO. Extreme heat like that always makes me nervous, even if it is considered 'in spec'.

IMO again there.
 
#47
I may not no what the heck I'm talking about; but Dave seems like a very cautious guy; both in terms of design, and performance spec.

I don't think he'd declare it "2 ohm safe" if he didn't plan for people to run it like that. Even exclusively like that. Cause some folks will.

It's a big part of why I'm considering the move to the new model.

I think any "downgrade" in performance at 2 ohms will likely only be perceptable when pushed hard; which I won't need to do, I don't think...but, thesea re the sort of questions I'll ask Dave directly before purchasing one.
 
#49
jokerjkny said:
2 ohms is taxing for any amp, period. and running any amp that hard at that impedance is gonna be asking for it.
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That's always how I saw it, especially with amps that are 'optimally designed to run at 4, but OK to run at 2ohms'.

I guess there are some heads like the EBS650, the Mesa BB750, and some of the Genz stuff that can cruise along all day at 2ohms, but I've been lucky enough to avoid any need for more than 1 big 4ohm cab or two smaller 8 ohm cabs!

I guess your 902 and the EdenWT800 are another approach to running multiple cabs.... use multiple power amps!
 
#50
Respectfully disagree there.
In my arsenal (currently and past), running at 2 ohms with no problems:
Mesa Walkabout and 400+, QSC 1802, 2402, SWR Super Redhead, SWR Baby Blue II, Eden WT550, Carvin B1500, Aguilar DB750.
I think the WT800B/C models get the ability to bridge at 4 ohms, by running each side at 2 ohms.
 
#51
Chef said:
Respectfully disagree there.
In my arsenal (currently and past), running at 2 ohms with no problems:
Mesa Walkabout and 400+, QSC 1802, 2402, SWR Super Redhead, SWR Baby Blue II, Eden WT550, Carvin B1500, Aguilar DB750.
I think the WT800B/C models get the ability to bridge at 4 ohms, by running each side at 2 ohms.
Click to expand...

I agree there are some amps (I posted some examples, but it seems that the DB750 and Carvin are also good examples) are actually designed to be run hard at 2ohms.

I wouldn't run a WT800c at 4ohms bridged without a backup, and the same for the Walkabout and a few others. That extreme heat generated from the Thunderfunk 750 into 2ohms is just worrisome. The SWR guys always said that the 900 was fine running bridged at 4ohm even though it got hot enough to fry eggs on... and that ended up not being the most reliable head out there.

Again, not saying there is a big problem with the TF, I would just never run an amp that hot period... for a variety of reasons, some of which are posted above.

Totally IMO....
 
#52
I haven't (obviously) done this with the TFB750, so, I dunno how warm/hot it gets.
But, I can tell you the amps I have done this with recently:
Walkabout, WT800B, Metro, QSC...
none of those get hot, or even warm, period, much less hot enough to be worrisome.
 
#53
Look what I started! :hiding: I'm just trying to get unbiased information out there due to my experiences with this amp. I thought it was unsafe at first, but Dave reassured me it was ok.

Just to note, Dave also mentioned that even if I use it on a 4 ohm load, the amp would "probably" get to almost the same temperature internally, but externally, I wouldn't notice it. So there really shouldn't be any worries. In otherwords, the heat sinks get hot, no matter what ohms you run it at. Since the chassis is also part of the cooling system, it is essentially another heat sink, which will will get hot if it "needs" to. At 2 ohms, the amp is drawing twice the amps, or something like that. All those amps running through that head generate heat, which needs to dissipate first in the heat sink, and if the heat sink can't keep up, then onto the chassis, which is like a backup heatsink. It was designed to do that. I feel uncomfortable running it like this as well. It was designed 'optimally' for a 4 ohm load, so it's best to use with a single 4 ohm or 2-8 ohm cabs. Therefore, I IMHO don't "feel" this amp is the right application for my ae410/ae210 2.67 ohm load for extended periods of time and at high output levels. This is just my personal opinion.
 
#54
since no one in seattle either has or sells TF's, i was wondering if anybody could answer two questions about the 750.

1)anyone run a dingwall ABII (not the I or the II in passive mode) into the TF 750? results? can it handle the p/u's (i think fd1's and the aggie obp 1 preamp) in series? i ask because some amps can't.

2)is anybody running their TF750 into avatar cabs? if so, which ones and how does it sound?

i have to ask, b/c if i get the 750, avatar are the only decent cabs i will be able to afford. if i do go that route, i am thinking about running it into a neo 210 and 212. or maybe a 4x10, but i love me some 12's and i'd rather run it at 2ohms and get the most out of it.
 
#55
The chassis is a heat sink on thunderfunk amps. If you run any amp hard then reach around and grab the heatsink (normally on the back of the amp), then you can expect it to be hot. Perhaps painfully so. In light of that, it does not bother me that my thunderfunk (tfb-550A) gets hot when run hard. Every time I touch the chassis I just remind myself that I am in effect grabbing the heat sink. I think that I remember reading somewhere that the chassis will actually be hotter than the interior of a thunderfunk. I'll leave that to Dave to address though.

I've noticed that leaving the amp on between sets with the fan running instead of powering it down goes a long way to cooling the amp. I don't really think that it NEEDS that, but still it can't hurt.
 
#58
KJung said:
Should be 200 more watts at 4ohms I think.
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OK, so you guys have my interest up a bit. I followed the original Thread on the TFB-750 (several months ago) and I still thought that the 750 would only produce 750 @ 2 ohms. I goggled a search yesterday and I found some update spec's ([Invalid or Expired Link Removed])
that stated that the TFB-750 produces 750 @ 4 ohms. I doesn't list the output @ 2 ohms....:hmm: Does the output increase @ 2 ohms or does the amp just run safely @ 2 ohms?

Is the sound of the 750 so much better than the 550 that it's worth selling my mint TFB-550B and adding another $600 to get a 750? What is the actual price of the TFB-750? I don't see it on the Thunderfunk site.

I've been a TFunk user on and off for about 5 years. I've heard the original AMP version, TFB-420, TFB-550A & TFB550B and they all sound very similar (outside of new features). Should I really expect the new 750 to sound significantly better than the predecessors?
 
#59
JOME77 said:
OK, so you guys have my interest up a bit. I followed the original Thread on the TFB-750 (several months ago) and I still thought that the 750 would only produce 750 @ 2 ohms. I goggled a search yesterday and I found some update spec's ([Invalid or Expired Link Removed])
that stated that the TFB-750 produces 750 @ 4 ohms. I doesn't list the output @ 2 ohms....:hmm: Does the output increase @ 2 ohms or does the amp just run safely @ 2 ohms?

Is the sound of the 750 so much better than the 550 that it's worth selling my mint TFB-550B and adding another $600 to get a 750? What is the actual price of the TFB-750? I don't see it on the Thunderfunk site.

I've been a TFunk user on and off for about 5 years. I've heard the original AMP version, TFB-420, TFB-550A & TFB550B and they all sound very similar (outside of new features). Should I really expect the new 750 to sound significantly better than the predecessors?
Click to expand...

Yes! I think it is about $1695? Give Dave a call to be sure though.

Peace,

T
 
#60
I would run my 550B into 2.6 ohms many many times.. lets say 150 times.. on real hot days while outside sucking in 90+ degree air.....without even a whimper..... the amp still sounds great.. internally and externally it looks fine.... I only wish that if it did get too hot that it would shut down.. just in case.. but that amp is way overbuilt in my opinion..
I did not notice a difference in outside chassis temp when running hard at 2.6 or 4 ohms...

Disclaimer: "Kids dont try this at home.."


Wayon said:
So I'm wondering how many people are running these at 2 ohms? I know I will be, as soon as I get it, (hopefully next week), not exclusively, but on stage for sure.

I'm going with Chef on this one and trusting that Dave knows what he's talking about and all will be good.
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