Clarky Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Just got hold of an EA Doubler for a try-out. It has come with a US kettle lead, natch Can I just swap over for a UK kettle lead, given that it came from a UK supplier? Don't want to blow it up without even playing the damn thing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gareth Hughes Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Yep, it'll be fine - the kettle lead is just carrying the juice from the wall. And AFAIK, those Doubler heads are voltage correcting themselves anyway, so they sort out what they need to run on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franzbassist Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 No! They have a voltage jumper inside you need to check first. It was probably changed before export, but best to check.... See page 10 of the manual [url="http://www.gollihurmusic.com/pdfs/manuals/goll_micro_doubler_manual.pdf"]here[/url] for more info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gareth Hughes Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Oooooops - I hope Chez Clarky doesn't smell of burnt circuit board now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franzbassist Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 [quote name='Gareth Hughes' post='1242220' date='May 23 2011, 08:59 PM']Oooooops - I hope Chez Clarky doesn't smell of burnt circuit board now.[/quote] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted May 23, 2011 Author Share Posted May 23, 2011 Thank you gents - fortunately it worked fine when I swapped for my UK-ended Acoustic Image kettle lead. Phew! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
franzbassist Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 And what do you think of it? I loved the Doubler I had. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted May 23, 2011 Author Share Posted May 23, 2011 (edited) [quote name='walbassist' post='1242322' date='May 23 2011, 09:50 PM']And what do you think of it? I loved the Doubler I had.[/quote] Too early to say - can only play at very quiet volumes due to neighbours! Sounds quite bright with my Shadow pickup. I need to play around with EQ to get a bassier sound .... but I have been instructed by she-who-must-be-obeyed that its too late to be playing it now. I can't believe how small and light it is. Edit: one thing I am less enamoured by is only having one speakon out (I stupidly didn't spot that when researching). Thats fine if you have a good cab that can keep up with the band but in my case I have found the best results with my AI Coda combo with a PA speaker on a stand at head height (for me) as well as the combo cab on the floor (for the drummer). Can probably solve this with my Barefaced Midget as thats mighty loud but even so, an extra speakon out would have been a nice option (which needn't have dramatically altered the miniscule dimensions of the Doubler). Also the DI out is a jack socket, although I had been warned about this in advance by BC'er Fatback so I had a short jack-to-XLR cable made by obbm, as Fatback did. Edit again: I just sneakily tried it at low volume through my Midget T and it sounded a whole lot bassier than through the Mackie C200 PA cab I first tested it with. Promising Edited May 23, 2011 by Clarky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marvin spangles Posted May 24, 2011 Share Posted May 24, 2011 [quote name='Clarky' post='1242345' date='May 23 2011, 10:03 PM']Too early to say - can only play at very quiet volumes due to neighbours! Sounds quite bright with my Shadow pickup. I need to play around with EQ to get a bassier sound .... but I have been instructed by she-who-must-be-obeyed that its too late to be playing it now. I can't believe how small and light it is. Edit: one thing I am less enamoured by is only having one speakon out (I stupidly didn't spot that when researching). Thats fine if you have a good cab that can keep up with the band but in my case I have found the best results with my AI Coda combo with a PA speaker on a stand at head height (for me) as well as the combo cab on the floor (for the drummer). Can probably solve this with my Barefaced Midget as thats mighty loud but even so, an extra speakon out would have been a nice option (which needn't have dramatically altered the miniscule dimensions of the Doubler). Also the DI out is a jack socket, although I had been warned about this in advance by BC'er Fatback so I had a short jack-to-XLR cable made by obbm, as Fatback did. Edit again: I just sneakily tried it at low volume through my Midget T and it sounded a whole lot bassier than through the Mackie C200 PA cab I first tested it with. Promising[/quote] Hi Clarky The EA is a good amp and should be loud enough for most gigs . I alternated between the AI focus and the EA doubler. The lack of an extra speakon out can be solved if you have a speaker with two speakons. I like both these amps. The EA is slightly coloured IME(not a bad thing especially with EB) where as the AI seems more neutral. Build quality the AI wins. I feel the EA is a little on the flimsy side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted May 24, 2011 Author Share Posted May 24, 2011 [quote name='marvin spangles' post='1243289' date='May 24 2011, 07:07 PM']Hi Clarky The EA is a good amp and should be loud enough for most gigs . I alternated between the AI focus and the EA doubler. The lack of an extra speakon out can be solved if you have a speaker with two speakons. I like both these amps. The EA is slightly coloured IME(not a bad thing especially with EB) where as the AI seems more neutral. Build quality the AI wins. I feel the EA is a little on the flimsy side.[/quote] Interesting. I do agree the Doubler is a little flimsy but I guess that the price you pay for such a miniscule, ultralight (2.5 pounds!) amp. Hope to get a quick go on it tonight when back home (been in sunny Frankfurt for the day hence the absence of my usual 278 posts!) The AI is the single best sounding DB amp I have ever heard but its just not loud enough for my band unless I use it (frankly a bit of a waste of it) as a power amp for my Mackie speaker. One of the two will end up for sale on BassChat of course ;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marvin spangles Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 [quote name='Clarky' post='1243330' date='May 24 2011, 07:39 PM']Interesting. I do agree the Doubler is a little flimsy but I guess that the price you pay for such a miniscule, ultralight (2.5 pounds!) amp. Hope to get a quick go on it tonight when back home (been in sunny Frankfurt for the day hence the absence of my usual 278 posts!) The AI is the single best sounding DB amp I have ever heard but its just not loud enough for my band unless I use it (frankly a bit of a waste of it) as a power amp for my Mackie speaker. One of the two will end up for sale on BassChat of course ;-)[/quote] The Focus or Clarus as it is now is actually more powerful than the EA Doubler ( although I said it is flimsy I think it is a serious piece of kit) . I can see that you are a journey to sort out your sound problems with your band. I have no idea what sound is in your head. I'd imagine you are trying to get the best quality and loudest sound from your onstage amp without getting any feedback. In a loud band situation that's always going to be tricky. I suppose it depends on what type of sound you are after. If you really want the 'sound' of the DB then you will really have to think about the whole signal chain. ie bass , pu, amp and speaker. There are many proven set ups that seem to work well for many pros. I have no idea what the mag pick up is like. I understand it will allow for big volumes but will you have to sacrifice tone? I have played in a Rock based 14 piece using a Hybrid DB, Full circle AI Focus EA 112 CXL . It wasn't a great experience though because the onstage monitors were so loud that I had to constantly dampen the strings on my bass to stop it vibrating . I was guesting so I wasn't brave enough to suggest that the onstage volume was way too loud. That been said I have used the same set up with a 12 piece big band ... with a great onstage sound . I just hope the FOH was as good. Keep us up to speed with your journey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted May 25, 2011 Author Share Posted May 25, 2011 (edited) [quote name='marvin spangles' post='1243766' date='May 25 2011, 02:12 AM']The Focus or Clarus as it is now is actually more powerful than the EA Doubler ( although I said it is flimsy I think it is a serious piece of kit) . I can see that you are a journey to sort out your sound problems with your band. I have no idea what sound is in your head. I'd imagine you are trying to get the best quality and loudest sound from your onstage amp without getting any feedback. In a loud band situation that's always going to be tricky. I suppose it depends on what type of sound you are after. If you really want the 'sound' of the DB then you will really have to think about the whole signal chain. ie bass , pu, amp and speaker. There are many proven set ups that seem to work well for many pros. I have no idea what the mag pick up is like. I understand it will allow for big volumes but will you have to sacrifice tone? I have played in a Rock based 14 piece using a Hybrid DB, Full circle AI Focus EA 112 CXL . It wasn't a great experience though because the onstage monitors were so loud that I had to constantly dampen the strings on my bass to stop it vibrating . I was guesting so I wasn't brave enough to suggest that the onstage volume was way too loud. That been said I have used the same set up with a 12 piece big band ... with a great onstage sound . I just hope the FOH was as good. Keep us up to speed with your journey.[/quote] Thanks for your advice marvin. I am indeed looking for hi-fi double bass sound at volume which may be unachievable! If the new AI heads were cheaper I would have plumped for one of those over the Doubler given their unbeatble sound quality and the extra headroom (800W now I believe). Trouble is the latest list price puts the Clarus+ at just over £1,000 with padded case Edited May 25, 2011 by Clarky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marvin spangles Posted May 25, 2011 Share Posted May 25, 2011 [quote name='Clarky' post='1243855' date='May 25 2011, 08:36 AM']Thanks for your advice marvin. I am indeed looking for hi-fi double bass sound at volume which may be unachievable! If the new AI heads were cheaper I would have plumped for one of those over the Doubler given their unbeatble sound quality and the extra headroom (800W now I believe). Trouble is the latest list price puts the Clarus+ at just over £1,000 with padded case [/quote] PM'd you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
james_guitar Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 I'd love to know what you think of the doubler once you've gigged it. That and the AI Clarus are the only heads I'm considering other than the PJB M300 or D600 to go with my 8b cab. You guys seem to be the double bass amp connoisseurs on this forum, so I'm finding your feedback on each head to be invaluable. I just need to take my upright on a train journey to a decent music shop that stocks some of these options. I hope you've finally solved the sound quality v.s. volume issue! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted May 27, 2011 Author Share Posted May 27, 2011 [quote name='james_guitar' post='1246533' date='May 27 2011, 01:36 AM']I'd love to know what you think of the doubler once you've gigged it. That and the AI Clarus are the only heads I'm considering other than the PJB M300 or D600 to go with my 8b cab. You guys seem to be the double bass amp connoisseurs on this forum, so I'm finding your feedback on each head to be invaluable. I just need to take my upright on a train journey to a decent music shop that stocks some of these options. I hope you've finally solved the sound quality v.s. volume issue![/quote] I'm afraid I've sent back the Doubler. I didn't think the sound quality matched Acoustic Image (at least with a piezo pickup) and I think EA have gone too far in making it lightweight - to the extent it seems incredibly breakable. It weighs a ludicrously low 2.5 pounds and I would have very happily traded another pound or two in weight on it to make it more sturdy. I am sticking with Acoustic Image and will be getting a Clarus+, the new head with double the wattage (800W up from 400W previously). I will put that through an EA Wizzy 12" cab with a Mackie C200 10" PA speaker on a stand for loud gigs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrkelly Posted May 27, 2011 Share Posted May 27, 2011 Good move Clarky, the AI heads are amazing pieces of gear. As you know that company's got the best after sales service in the business too. If you can, try it out with an Epifani UL112, it's a match made in heaven. Sounds glorious with a flatwound strung p bass too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted May 27, 2011 Author Share Posted May 27, 2011 [quote name='chrkelly' post='1247391' date='May 27 2011, 05:54 PM']Good move Clarky, the AI heads are amazing pieces of gear. As you know that company's got the best after sales service in the business too. If you can, try it out with an Epifani UL112, it's a match made in heaven. Sounds glorious with a flatwound strung p bass too [/quote] Cheers Chris - trust you're still loving my old (and your old and now yours again!) 72P? The Clarus+ not only has loads of extra headroom with extr awattage but also has two channels so can be used for doubling - my band is DB-only right now but I am sneakily planning to work on them to include the odd fretless or fretted electric bass song Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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