Ashdown Engineering

We still have a lot of time here for the old Trace Valve stuff for obvious reasons, however the CTM 100/300 are very different to anything we have done in any guise before. They were designed by Dave Green(ex Matamp) with our input of course but they are totally new designs. We wanted to make valve amps that had all those lovely old school warm tones plus more modern ones but most importantly are reliable night after night plus lots of cool modern features that old valve amps never had such as the transformer derived DI, Dual use of the VU meter for output and output valve bias(meaning you can change valves and bias yourself with no need for a tech or multimeter), Low/High gain button on the input stage allows player to keep things very clean, fat and warm or bring in extra gain for that more driven tone and in conjuction with the eq shift buttons the user can find 'their' tone other than valve amps of the past which had one or two great tones but really no versatility. Anyways - glad you guys are liking the CTM's, we love em.

As stated in my email sorry the cabs didn't match, the cab you received was from a run of sealed versions and a few people said they would prefer strap handles so we fitted those. I think we prefer the metal inset handles though so we will be going back to that. We have also said we will build you one the same as your existing cab so there's nothing to be disappointed by really...

[quote name='LukeFRC' timestamp='1413019173' post='2574168'] aww this sort of thing makes me wanna look at Ashdown stuff again Though I'm not naturally inclined to the sound of the ABM preamp for some reason, was struggling with one on monday, which to be fair I don't think is purely the fault of my interactions with the preamp..... Does anyone know what the VU meter actually shows? is that input or output? [/quote] On the majority of our amps the VU measures input gain

[quote name='kevvo66' timestamp='1413012412' post='2574054'] Dear ashdown , I will take you up on your kind offer give me a date and time and I will come down ,I live in south cheshire ,quite a trek but I'm looking forward to it do I need to phone you direct to arrange this? .regards kev [/quote] Hey Kev, good news I'll be in touch and we can sort a date that suits.

[quote name='kevvo66' timestamp='1412963423' post='2573749'] Dear ashdown , I had various cabs can't remember them all sorry eb180 combo now i loved that combo it was a beast just the weight nearly killed me, the little giant series the fans kept failing especially live after several occassions of having these fixed I gave up having my amp shutting down in a gigging situation not good that's why I had a back up ! Now I liked these amps but the fan failing but me off .mibass cabs sorry they never gave me the sound I wanted .maybe fit tweeters with control switches on the back ,problem is I need a more varied sound because my band play from 50s upto modern pop ,what about a revamped little giant head without the fan fail ,now I'd buy one of those as for the root master stuff I can't comment as most music shop around here don't seem to have them or there not set up bit like buying car would not buy without a test drive if I could try them I could give my honest opinion on this range and respect that you have come on here for answers .hats off to you regard kev [/quote] Hey Kev, Sounds like you have had mixed experiences with our gear most probably good but you've been burnt by a tumultuous relationship with a Little Giant... An amp which whilst the majority were fine certainly hasn't been our finest moment as far as we are concerned. Whereabouts do you live? It's a shame you haven't been able to try anything new local to you we shall have to rectify that. In the meantime I would like to invite you to Ashdown HQ(don't get too excited as glamorous it ain't) for a day at some point. You will be able to see the passion, care and attention that goes into everything we do first hand. I would also suggest that you bring your bass and can then pull whatever amps and cabs you fancy from our warehouse and test away in our sound room to your hearts content. There will most likely be hand built amps being finished whilst you are there as well so you could do the final play test and QC on those too. Hopefully you will learn a few things about our amps and company you didn't know before( ie there are only 6 full time staff...) Hey you may try a load of amps and hate them all but at least you can say that 'I went to Ashdown and all their amps were crap' with real authority, I'm confident that won't be the case but if it is then it would be fair at least... Let me know what you reckon...

[quote name='Meddle' timestamp='1412975736' post='2573891'] I'm not sure there is a lot in it, measuring 10Hz difference right at the bottom end of the human hearing spectrum. I would trust Barefaced over Ashdown in this particular race. [/quote] How come?

[quote name='solo4652' timestamp='1412952566' post='2573622'] @Ashdown Engineering. This is the first Ashdown product I've owned and I'm still scratching my head about what happened. If it would help you, I'm happy to give you the details of my Anderton order, in case you want to contact them and get your hands on the amp. It should be back with them on Monday (13th). PM me if you want order number etc. Back to more practical concerns; gigging tonight with no back up for my GK MB500. Probably be absolutely fine. Probably. Steve [/quote] Hey Steve, yes I am going to speak to Andertons and get your unit back and give it a check over as doesn't seem right. Good luck with the gig tonight!

[quote name='solo4652' timestamp='1412936095' post='2573412'] Hi, Thanks for your post. I've returned the Mibass to Andertons for a full refund. From memory, the EQ settings I ended up with were; Gain; 3/4 Bass; 3/4 Mids; 1/2 Treble; 1/2 Vol; 2/3 (bearing in mind this was playing at home, trying not to disturb my other half who works in an upstairs office) This still gave a thin-sounding tone, especially in the lower register. Rig: One Tecamp Puma XS 112 (8ohm) tweeter set to "half", Fender MIJ Precision with fresh halfwound strings, tone just rolled back from full on. I didn't try the amp with my full gig rig which would be two Tecamp Puma XS 112 cabs. In comparison, my GK MB500 would be set at something like; Gain; 1/4 Bass; 1/3 Mids; 2/3 Treble; 1/2 Contour, just a smidge No bass boost Vol; 1/4 (Bearing in mind blah blah...) Steve [/quote] Hey Steve, Very strange as I said and sorry the MiBass didn't pan out. It's difficult to give an opinion without seeing and hearing things as maybe there was a fault on the amp but hard to say. Haven't had any other complaints about them being bass shy but hey we are all different eh...

[quote name='kevvo66' timestamp='1412948855' post='2573567'] Dear ashdown enigneering people ,I'm very sorry if this is a very critical statements off average joe public .but as a lot of us are gigging musicians be fulltime or partime we need good dependable rigs which gives us what we need sound wise ,you made some great stuff back the in day ,I know your pro gear stuff is good I am told ,but we need someone to say ,hey I'm off to buy one them new ashdowns they are awsome even if it ment pushing the prices up a bit .balls in your court. Prove us wrong and restore our faith. regards kev [/quote] Thanks Kev, we always want feedback from the guys on the front line like yourself so it's good to hear your views. So what I am asking is what of our current products have you found to be unreliable or lacking tonally? Ie have you used the new Rootmaster range? As for being dependable we pride ourselves on it... All our products have a 5 year warranty and yet we have one guy in service who works 2/3 days a week so confused to how Ashdown is not dependable? Look forward to hearing your thoughts

[quote name='kevvo66' timestamp='1412837398' post='2572456'] Yeap ,the ashdown stuff they are making now just doesn't cut it anymore it lacks power it's very muffled I found it to a one trip pony and I used ashdown for a long time but the new stuff just isn't very good IMHO ,I sold the lot at a loss and bought a mb head and purple chilli cab I would not entertain it ever again . Even my fender rumble 100 watt combo had more bite and left the ashdowns for dead ,they need to sort it out or they will lose a lot of custom .send it back matey [/quote] Seems a bit of a sweeping statement? We feel and general feedback we have from end users and artists is that we are making the best products we have ever made across all price points. Sorry if you've had a bad experience but to say all our products don't cut it any more seems a bizarre statement and is upsetting to read for sure

[quote name='solo4652' timestamp='1412786351' post='2572060'] My main amp is a GKMB500. Feeling nervous about gigging without a backup, I've been looking for a reasonably powerful, cheap, small head. I bought a new Ashdown Mibass 2.0 from Andertons for £209 and it arrived yesterday. I've only tried it at home through a Tecamp Puma 12" cab and I'm not especially impressed. Mids and treble sounded OK but bass is thin and lacks depth. I found myself cranking up the gain and the bass to levels far above what I'd use with the GKMB500. I haven't tried it at rehearsal or at a gig yet but, right now, I'm not sure I even want to. Not sure whether to; Accept I only bought it as a backup, put it in my cables bag and probably only use it once in a blue moon. Wait till I've tried it at rehearsal with both Tecamp Puma amps to see what it sounds like, then decide whether to keep it as a backup. Stop faffing about and send it back for a refund. What do we reckon, folks? [/quote] Sounds strange... How are you setting the EQ?

[quote name='Meddle' timestamp='1398466284' post='2434541'] The Nate Mendel model looks similarly bizarre. Two masters, two drive controls and an input control. Give me some tone controls and a blend knob!. [/quote] It's what Nate wanted... Spent a year producing different control configurations and prototypes until he had exactly what he wanted, may not be for everyone but thats the nature of signature products. Sounded good in London last night to us ;-)

[quote name='Anders' timestamp='1410556579' post='2550861'] If by better cab you mean a cab that actually works better I would not go with Ashdown that's for sure,from the ones i've tried.I would wait for the right one which may be a bit more expensive to come up. [/quote] Have you tried the CL Range of cabs?

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1410535743' post='2550541'] There you go...that ^ explains a lot. generalisations like Ashdown is crap might not apply to whole range [/quote] Phew ;-)

[quote name='doctorbass' timestamp='1403599259' post='2484200'] I'm considering one of these and would like to hear from anyone who uses, or has used the JJ 500. I cant find one anywhere to try and while I'm not after sounding like Mr Burnel, I like the idea of the 500 EVO with a graphic EQ. Any experiences appreciated, particularly comparing the two. [/quote] FYI PMT's Birmingham store have a JJ 500 in stock

If it gives the sound the player is after...

[quote name='TheRockinRoadie' timestamp='1405449163' post='2502019'] All I can say is buying a CTM 100 is one of the best decisions I have ever made. I turned up for a gig at a beer festival on Saturday and some guy shouted 'holy s*** he has a CTM' so their reputation is preceeding them [/quote] Ahh thanks that means a lot ;-) message me your address and I'll get a t shirt sent to you to go with it

Lol well JJ seems to rate the cabs... ;-)

[quote name='BruceBass3901' timestamp='1403872117' post='2487294'] Curious to know who this is... I'm guessing either Lee or Dan... Leaning slightly more towards Lee Great guys at Ashdown! [/quote] Yup Lee ;-)

[quote name='LukeFRC' timestamp='1403868263' post='2487240'] welcome to basschat! Anything new is good, the newer the better - unless it's old enough to be one of the things that was better in the old days. A new version of the old thing will have been improved in some was so isn't as good as the original - unless its expensive enough, then it will be better than the original. A thing made in America or UK will be better than a thing made in the far east , except Japan who confuse us. German made things also confuse us as being too foreign and maybe so well made its not cool. We like new things made by people in their shed/small workshop even if they take ages, and look like they are made in shed. We don't like when they get the same thing and make it in a shed big enough to be a factory - then it's bad. Unless it says fender on it and any old crap will do. [/quote] Ha - just spat coffee everywhere reading this! ;-)

[quote name='Kevin Dean' timestamp='1403813168' post='2486812'] Thanks for the reply, the invoice has ABM NEO 400 RC on it but on the box it says ABM NEO 400 RC LITE ? . [/quote] Hey Kevin, Yes it seems as though a sleeved version was sent instead of the standard rack one doh. This is easily rectified though as once out of the sleeve its the same head it just needs a lid and rack ears which we do as a kit. I can get a kit sent to you asap and its a very simple 10 min job to convert it then you should be sorted. As an apology for the hassle I would like to send you an Ashdown T shirt and a free Dr Green or Ashdown FX pedal of your choice... Let me know if this is ok and apologies once again, gremlins in the warehouse!

Can only speak regarding the CTM-100 but that should be certainly loud enough

Gotta laugh sometimes(or cry maybe in this case) Loads of threads regarding amps and tone etc, favourite live sounds etc and GAS for 'insert boutique brand of the month here' but a couple of people say they were impressed by the live sound of an Ashdown rig and suddenly the amp is actually irrelevent and its all the PA... Off to bang head into wall.

Hey Kevin, this is odd, we did do a run in sleeves recently for a distributor order so I am thinking one of these must have been sent to Soundslive in error, I will look into this now and get back to you asap, we will get it sorted, if you ordered an RC then you should have gotten an RC! The amp is of course the same instrinsically but thats not the point

[quote name='badboy1984' timestamp='1403708855' post='2485518'] No prob with that. Just want to clarify, I like Ashdown product and I even own a LB30 from brand new myself. No way on earth I will sell that amp. [/quote] The LB 30 is a special little amp - glad you like it!