dincz

[i][b][font=comic sans ms,cursive][size=5]Threadkill![/size][/font][/b][/i]

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1343907063' post='1757089'] But what about when you want to play expensive music? [/quote] Plug in the rig and let some of the richness trickle down to my neighbours

[quote name='bertbass' timestamp='1343904567' post='1757028']This is only my experience and opinion but at least I've heard a difference which backs up the science.[/quote] + lots In fact it doesn't take much experimenting to verify the science. Those who care will investigate, those who don't will ignore it.

I think it's time the Behringer thing was put to bed. They make products of a quality matching or sometimes exceeding their price point. The criticisms generally come from people who've never been near them let alone used them, and who simply spout the same old internet Behringer meme. I've owned several Behringer products and had no problems, although to be fair I do treat gear pretty gently. As far as the copying thing is concerned, the technology in an MI amplifier is well short of rocket science - mostly tried and true circuit configurations used by all manufacturers and probably copied with minor adaptations from semiconductor manufacturers' application notes. I'm currently shopping round for a power amp and Behringer is well and truly on the shopping list. I admit there's a bit of herd avoidance and devil's advocacy involved. EDIT: Before anyone mentions "Behringer watts", have a look at the spec sheets for PA power amps on the Behringer website.

Cheap bass > cheap Behringer mixer > cheap headphones

[quote name='BOD2' timestamp='1343658012' post='1753210']But beyond that some people talk of a slight attenuation or loss of brightness from some cables. Well isn't that why we have tone controls on the amplifiers ? If it sounds a little less bright then just turn up the treble a little ? Am I missing something ?[/quote]That works up to a point. The problem is that if you have to turn up the treble to compensate for highs lost in the cable, then you'll also boost any high frequency noise that's present. But in any case, if you hear a noticeable drop in highs, the cable is probably poor quality, too long or faulty.

It's the one that feels like it was made for you - no matter what the price. Then you can tailor the strings and pickups/preamp for the sound you want. In my case it's kept me in the sub £400 category so I don't have any experience with exotic stuff. Keep your eyes closed and save a bundle

[quote name='Ejb' timestamp='1343465871' post='1751099']putting a lower wattage amp into the higher rated cab could damage the amp as the amp will be working to hard?[/quote] It doesn't work like that. The amp's power rating tells you how much (clean) power it can give. The cab's power rating tells you how much it will tolerate - not how much it demands.

This was an interesting listen - episode 1 - Blackfield Studios. Abbey Road and Metropolis still to come. Available on iPlayer BBC Radio 4. "Cultural commentator Paul Morley explores a history of popular music through some of the iconic recording studios in which classic albums were created. In future programmes he revisits some of the classical masterpieces recorded in the 80 year old Abbey Road Studios and cutting edge pop in Metropolis, the studio complex built when the music industry was at its most bloated peak."

I used a BDI-21 directly driving a power amp and couldn't really get a sound I liked - until I tried boosting the low-mids with the parametric eq on my channel strip. The BDI-21 on its own puts a big hole in the mid frequencies but if you can eq your way around that, it really shines. EDIT: Or simply cut the lows and highs on the BDI. That will bring back some of the definition in the mids.

Behringer provide both peak and RMS power figures in the spec sheets on their web site (at least for PA power amps). Unfortunately they name their amps according to the peak power output. The EP series (not EPQ - yet) get great reviews and are supposed to actually deliver at least their rated power with good reliability. The later lightweight stuff - iNuke, EPQ etc - haven't been around long enough to prove themselves in the real world. EP2000 (2 x 650W/2 ohms, 2 x 500W/4 ohms) might do what you want - or a used EP1500 (same amp but with a meaningful name). Next step up is the EP4000 - same as older EP2500. They're not lightweights - around 16Kg.

Looks like a worthwhile project. Just wondering why you decided to use a DC heater supply. EDIT: I just looked at the original design - problems with hum. A bit surprising given that ac filament supplies are the norm and don't cause problems.

Answer from QSC: "The GX Series amps should not be bridged in that way. The channels are not bridged, but the - side of each output is not connected directly to ground. Instead, the current monitoring circuitry is on that side, and so bridging the amp would bypass this protection." It appears that they've designed out something that's normally easy to do - another amp crossed off the shopping list

[quote name='bremen' timestamp='1342774478' post='1740640'] the possibility that it's already bridged, ie it's actually four power amps hard-wired in bridge mode.[/quote] Aha, that's a real possibility! I've asked on the QSC forum but no reply yet.

To bridge the outputs you need to have the same signal feeding both channels but with opposite polarities. Otherwise both outputs track the signal and there's no voltage difference between them to drive the load.

I realise they haven't included that feature but it shouldn't be hard to achieve by reversing the polarity of one balanced input and using the appropriate output connections. Even on an amp with only unbalanced inputs it's a relatively simple mod with an opamp phase inverter. As long as the outputs are ground referenced it should be a simple matter on this amp.

Any reason why it can't be run in bridge mode - linking A and B inputs with TRS cable with balanced legs reversed at one end and Y output cable from A+ and B+?

Yeah, class H so I expect it would run hotter than a class D. I'm a bit concerned about cooling in a rack case because of the side vents.

Not much interest here but it still looks like it might fill the bill. I did find one reviewlet here: http://forums.prosoundweb.com/index.php?topic=137746.20 Quote: "I own and use daily a Behringer EPQ900. I currently run it bridged into 8 ohms and it reproduces my 5 string bass very well and without problems. I will say that it requires a hot signal to operate at full potential. There is no audibly perceivable (to me) lack of lows or highs. I have been using this amp for almost every gig for over a year without problems. It never gets hot and I run it full bore controlling my volume on the bass. Good bang for the buck by me. Good luck"

[quote name='dSix' timestamp='1342430651' post='1734589'] What part of the mid-range should I be eqing out? I was told that a high Q value at around 580Hz would help to get rid of the mud but if I'm boosting the wrong frequencies either side... [/quote]I'm not sure you should be eqing out any part of the mid range. Try a mid boost instead with a medium Q. And get rid of the 63Hz boost. As mentioned, it would be good to start with flat eq and tweak gently to taste.

^^ It probably sounds muddy because you're boosting the mud-range rather than the mid-range.

[quote name='KingBollock' timestamp='1342370014' post='1733863'] Looking at the picture on their website, there are vents on the sides but none on the back, so I would assume that it's left to right cooling. [/quote] Ah, hadn't noticed that. I wonder how it would fare in a rack case.

As the title says. Now that these amps have got past the vapourware stage and are actually available, any feedback from owners would be appreciated (rather than speculation based solely on the Behringer name). EDIT: Behringer's blurb says back-to-front cooling airflow whereas the spec sheet says right-to-left. Which is true?

Looks like a good solution - and only 3Kg heavier than my current 300W power amp.

Probably the two main contenders would be Peavey IPR1600 and Crown XLS1000/1500. I asked for opinions in another thread a couple of days ago but got only one response. Not much interest here in pre/power rigs I guess.