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Trace Elliot is stepping up...By going small.....

#321
BigBasserino said:
The product as an idea isn't a bad one, I just feel the more you pull from a product, wattage, tone tools, etc, the more the player ends up having to supplement. Personally I don't have a graphic EQ myself, just a 3 band with shiftable mid and presence, but I know if I want "more", the only way I'm getting it through that amp is better EQ or a better instrument than what I've got. The basics can do a lot but they're still just the rudiments, theoretically.
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It must be tough being an amp manufacturer. On one side the players that want the simplest unit possible so they can use preamp / EQ / drive pedals to get 'their tone'. On the other side people who like to plug straight into an amp, expecting there will be enough knobs to fiddle so they can get 'their tone'. Can't please everyone...
I bought a GK MB200 a few months back when my main amp got flaky, knowing full well that the GK would be used only as a back-up longer term. Size and cost were the selling points, but it turned out to be a great sounding little amp and worked better then I expected. I can see the Trace filling a similar niche - at least for me - so long as it has a fairly neutral tone.
Trace clearly designed the ELF and the Transit to be complementary (i.e. with 5 band EQ on the pedal, a 3 band on the amp is sufficient). Seems to me that a lot of consideration went into the design of the amp, the cabs, and the pedal pre to have them work well together.
Hopefully the sound quality is equally good - given that they are using Faital and Eminence drivers in the cabs I don't think they're cutting corners. Will be interesting to see how it works out, I'm betting this lineup will be successful, and higher-power amps / bigger cabs will follow...
 
#322
ctmullins said:
So that would mean no more Fender or Gibson, no more Rolls-Royce or Volvo, etc.

Edit - I keep thinking of other examples: Triumph motorcycles, General Electric appliances, Midas mixing consoles, TC amplifiers/pedals, Raleigh bicycles, Budweiser beer, ...
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I happen, as I write this, to be enjoying a nice cup of tea from England in a nice Stainless Steel mug emblazoned with VOLVO in a circle with an arrow head pointing to the upper right.. I was given it by my brother who works for (wait for it!) Jaguar! Names notwithstanding the tea tastes great. :D

As for Budweiser I couldn’t believe how many people were drinking the stuff over in England. I even asked them if real beer was hard to get nowadays! :)
 
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#326
Downunderwonder said:
You guys finished running it down yet? Great.

I have done oodles of gigs with little wattage because cab sensitivity trumps wattage. If you stack two of the 2x8 and hit it with 200w I predict you will be needing earplugs.
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I know you are biased toward Trace my friend, but I would never consider trying to play a gig with 200W and 4x8s. I left that little power back in the Eighties! :)

Truthfully I never got the Trace tone thing. I bought a Trace amp a few years ago that needed work. All of the output transistors were blown. I was disgusted with how the cooling was implemented. A fan blowing on a heatsink with no real “flow” is not how to keep the devices cool. I think we may have discussed this in the past. I can repair the unit - I have all the parts, but I feel it will just blow again. Perhaps a Class D module might bring it back to life and be much more reliable. Again to each his own and I’m glad that you enjoy your Trace stuff. :D
 
#328
I must have missed the bit where Treavy claimed it would be all things to all players.

The 8's in these little cabs move the same amount of air as a regular 10 so the 2x 2x8 vertical stack is punching more like a 410. If that isn't a potential instant classic I don't know what is.
 
#329
BassmanPaul said:
I know you are biased toward Trace my friend, but I would never consider trying to play a gig with 200W and 4x8s. I left that little power back in the Eighties! :)

Truthfully I never got the Trace tone thing. I bought a Trace amp a few years ago that needed work. All of the output transistors were blown. I was disgusted with how the cooling was implemented. A fan blowing on a heatsink with no real “flow” is not how to keep the devices cool. I think we may have discussed this in the past. I can repair the unit - I have all the parts, but I feel it will just blow again. Perhaps a Class D module might bring it back to life and be much more reliable. Again to each his own and I’m glad that you enjoy your Trace stuff. :D
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Have to say I'm curious what kind of gigs you play that require 2kw of power? I've seen plenty of stadium acts with a single SVT 300w head, maybe 2... not just in the 80's, it's still one of the most common backlines today. Including guys who could bring any gear they want. To each his own, clearly this new Trace gear is not for you...
I'm not a Trace fanboy btw, just interested in the direction they are going with this new stuff. Here's a manufacturer that is paying attention to at least one segment of the bass players market and I think that deserves some recognition.
 
#330
cavemanbass said:
Have to say I'm curious what kind of gigs you play that require 2kw of power? I've seen plenty of stadium acts with a single SVT 300w head, maybe 2... not just in the 80's, it's still one of the most common backlines today. Including guys who could bring any gear they want. To each his own, clearly this new Trace gear is not for you...
I'm not a Trace fanboy btw, just interested in the direction they are going with this new stuff. Here's a manufacturer that is paying attention to at least one segment of the bass players market and I think that deserves some recognition.
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And?
 
#331
My speaker cabinets of choice are fairly inefficient and require more power than most. I run one 4Ω box on each channel of my Carvin HD 2000. That gives me up to 500W for each cabinet. Should I require more I have the option of doubling up on my cabinets so 1KW per side into all four cabinets. I never come close to using all that I have available but the control of my sound is wonderful. The amp cost me $399 BTW.
 
#335
Downunderwonder said:
The usual tradeoff for extra cone travel is lousy mid extension but the Faitals are supposed to be pretty flat up to 5khz.
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I should probably look at the specifications for sensitivity. I've seen car audio speakers (small surface area) with high Xmax but low sensitivity. I presume there the presumption is that there is limited area for a speaker, but there is space for a high power amp to make up for the low sensitivity per Watt, and drive them to that Xmax and produce the intended SPL. But then the suggestion that some car audio amps are '2kW' or similar seems... optimistic. I have to wonder what the THD of some of the cheap high excursion speakers must be, but then the occupants of the car are probably deafened :)

Anyway, I digress. I only ever listen to Radio 4 in the car so high loudness reproduction is not required
 
#336
Downunderwonder said:
I must have missed the bit where Treavy claimed it would be all things to all players.

The 8's in these little cabs move the same amount of air as a regular 10 so the 2x 2x8 vertical stack is punching more like a 410. If that isn't a potential instant classic I don't know what is.
Click to expand...

I like the idea of that, really more of a 4x8 line array. Tempting.
 
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#339
BassmanPaul said:
My speaker cabinets of choice are fairly inefficient and require more power than most. I run one 4Ω box on each channel of my Carvin HD 2000. That gives me up to 500W for each cabinet. Should I require more I have the option of doubling up on my cabinets so 1KW per side into all four cabinets. I never come close to using all that I have available but the control of my sound is wonderful. The amp cost me $399 BTW.
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Hmmm, is 500W into an inefficient cab louder than 200W into an efficient one?
 
#340
Interesting... With what's on the market today, anything less than 500-800 RMS is considered anemic.
Couple of my thoughts: First, not ALL engagements require massive power and headroom; there are "unplugged"/acoustic gigs where the Bass guitar should be understated; heard of course but not gut-punching. That, and a small room the 200W Trace would be fine.

2nd, the majority of engagements I've done, even coffeehouse size rooms and local bars- Have FOH, even if minimal. In a bigger room, a good system and soundman are most often there. Then, your rig is a monitor of sorts, and your bass would be in the mix from the board.

I had a Trace-Elliot AH-500, the last ones made in England, but owned by Peavy. I thought it was a great head with a terrific eq, and sound. One of the best compressors I've heard. So I'm glad to see TE back in the game.

And I'm also reminded of a cab I wish I still had: An Ampeg SVT-48HE; 4x8- It sounded very tight, and I paired it with a 100W V4BH; it handled many gigs, including an outdoor engagement with no FOH;
Reggae-based Funk & R&B at a fairly decent volume.

Good luck to the peeps at Trace, and yes, I too would like to see a higher-powered version of this head follow.
 

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