Proud owner of Ashdown LB30

[Mr. Foxen]

[quote name='RandomBass' timestamp='1379527274' post='2213771']
Interesting that. I've been mulling over switching to an S15 myself.
[/quote]

Probably should bear in mind my idea of loud enough involves two S15s and two 200w valve amps.

[JapanAxe]

[quote name='mickster' timestamp='1379272869' post='2210717']
I thought the LB had just a single vol control ie not a separate gain & master vol?
[/quote]
You're right, I am mixing it up with the PF500 that I also tried. So, volume was at 2pm. Seems like it was that cab.

[RandomBass]

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' timestamp='1379531953' post='2213884']


Probably should bear in mind my idea of loud enough involves two S15s and two 200w valve amps.
[/quote]
No wonder you found the LB30 lacking lol.

[badboy1984]

I definite find the LB30 is easily gig able depend where you play and how loud your band are.

[Mikey R]

So has anyone been able to compare the Little Bastard to the bigger CTM amps? Do they have a similar pre-amp?

Im pretty certain most of the growl of this awesome little amp comes from the EL84s, so using KT88s would reallly clean the amp up and really change its character. Im surprised they didnt offer an EL34 amp to cash in on the extra grittiness we've come to expect from those valves.

EDIT: Just went to look at the http://www.ashdownengineering.com website, and I got this:



Whats up?

Edited September 19, 2013 by Mikey R

[Mikey R]

Ok, its only the front page of their site thats knackered at the moment, the product pages still work (google is youre friend)

[url="http://ashdownmusic.com/products/1/Bass-Amplification/1/Valve/10/CTM100/"]http://ashdownmusic....alve/10/CTM100/[/url]

Yep, two KT88s rather than four EL34s. Really want to try one!

Edited September 19, 2013 by Mikey R

[franzbassist]

I'd like to see a CTM45 (6 x EL84s) with adjustable gain

[Mikey R]

This explains the differences rather well:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LMp0qw0FYw

[dan670844]

I have LB30 no. 2010065664 a chinese one LB30 no85 uk, love both of them and a LB212 l I will never sell either. They are plently loud enough for me to gig with if you turn the TMB pots down so the preamp doesnt get too excited.....
On really loud gigs I have used the CL610 I have. But for big gigs with Von Fever I use the CTM300 no. 3 also a great amp. I also have a CTM100.... I think I have a problem......

[dan670844]

If any one is interested the CTM tone is rather similar but there is much more low end punch and the bass is tighter and its obviously louder. It has a master volume so its not quite as dynamic as the ctm30, lb30 but compared to other amps it is very dynamic. If you buy a CTM it comes in two flavours a low gain version and a high gain version, mine is low gain. I found the preamp too hot in the high gain, its great for playing rock etc, but I dont....
I run my master volume dimed to give the dynamics. The CTM is so quiet, you can dime everything and it is totally silent, no hum or hiss, totally black, The only thing to watch is the phase invertor ECC99 I have had enormous problems with this valve they just don't make them like they used to. Mine went dodgy soon after purchase, a JJ no less. It took me a few goes to get a decent balanced one that was any good. In the end I bought a stock of Nos from a dealer , but thats not Ashdown's fault. I think new production valve quality seems to be getting worse!! but thankfully there is Langerex and Chelmer valves in this country who will sort you out proper nos valves for reasonable money.
The ctm30 has the same circuit as a lb30 i.e no master volume, it guess its a revamp as the little bastard moniker was too much for some........... the LB30's I have have

[badboy1984]

What valve to put in on my LB30 if i need to replace them? Which one on the pre and which one on the power.

I'm all new to the all valve thing ......... too much addition at the moment.

[Mr. Foxen]

ECC83 in the preamp section, EL84 in the power section. Phase inverter might be an ECC81 or 82, can't remember

[Mikey R]

I cracked open my LB yesterday evening, the valve types are written on the top of the chassis.

[dan670844]

mr foxen is right
two ecc83 in the preamp a ecc82 phase inverter and 4 El84's
the phase inverter ecc82 must be balanced.
The best output valves i have found are philips el84 from langerex they are powerful and clean
russian ex mod el84 are also good. I use my lb30 the chinese one, a lot probably 20hrs a week for at least a year. The valves are still good. I have a valve tester so check them regularly. The main thing is to find a reputable valve supplier, that doesnt send you duff valves in the first place. I am a serious valve nutcase, all bass amps, home stereos etc are valve powered, even the telly and computers are fed into valve amps.... i like the sound. The best thing i did was get hold of a valve tester, i think one of those orange divos will do an good enough job. My tester was a real eye opener, I can now tell if the valve is good before it goes in. Can tell if someone has sent a pile of crap to me. I touch wood now dont get any problems. The key to using valve stuff is getting good valves under the hood and checking them, then they are reliable. The quality control on modern valves, is not good and there is a lot of variation. There is also a lot of NOS crap about.
I can't recommend Karltone enough for modern production valves and Chelmer and Langerex for Nos. The last two supply the MOD, who I guess is rather demanding.... Can't believe they still use valves in amplifiers and transmitters. But someone told me a valve is EMP resistant, just what you need if the big bomb goes off!

[RandomBass]

+1 to Karltone. Not had a bad valve from them, and good service at the right price.

[badboy1984]

Not like i need to replace them right now but if I do, which ones is good for more clean headroom?

[RandomBass]

[quote name='badboy1984' timestamp='1380026719' post='2219682']
Not like i need to replace them right now but if I do, which ones is good for more clean headroom?
[/quote]

I believe that replacing the ECC83 pre tubes with ECC81 will give you more clean headroom before the grind sets in. It's on my list of things to try with mine at some point. The only way I can get pretty clean with my Yamaha BB is to use the High input (lower gain), but I'm convinced this input does not give such a sweet tone as the Low input. It definitely has a 'darker' sound to it. Mind you, who wants clean?

The ECC82 valve is the inverter which drives the power section, prob best to leave this alone.

Cheers

Geoff

Edited September 24, 2013 by RandomBass

[dan670844]

If you want to clean up the preamp distortion just turn down the TMB controls in equal measure. I have tried all sorts of valves in the pre but it messes with the balance of the eq. Its a passive tone stack so it needs a few beans going through it to get some control of the tone. Its a 30 watt amp. It as they say is not going to rip your head off. It can get loud enough as a stand alone through a big sensitive sealed cab like a cl610 810 or barefaced 69er. But thats really pointless. Its a studio amp, practice amp etc on its own. But the trick is the di which is run out from the output transformer. This allows you to get that special tone into the FOH and monitor set. If the pa at the venue is QT then you can really impress people with the tone and dynamics.
If the valve path is your way you need to look carefully at the speaker cabs as well. A lot of modern cabs on the mid to cheap side will simply not put up with the low end chucked out even by a tiddler like a lb30 or not be sensitive enough to get loud with a valve amp, sensitive in the very late 90 or 100db range is needed. Some ported cabs also really mess up a valve amps karma and it can get a little agro, as tube amps dont have a very good damping factor, to control the speaker.

My lb is used for light rehearsals, recording and di gigs. thats the purpose intended. If you want to go valve with no monitoring the CTM100 is more up your street, with a sensitive 15, 4x10 or whatever. Its quite small and light in the scheme of valve stuff. The CTM300 will rip your head off its a very powerful amp, it has a lot of low end to rattle the ribs, its huge in size, but not as heavy as an svt. The transformers are massive This amp I would think is overkill kill for 99% of applications. Its a big stage amp, The 100 is more than enough. They are expensive but brilliant made to last an amp for life!

[RandomBass]

Yep the CTM100 would be my next choice if I had the available funds. For now the LB30 does very well indeed. It's definitely giggable for the average Dog and Duck, and use the DI for anything more. Or one of my Trace heads lol.

[mickster]

Great thread. thanks to all, esp Mr Foxen & Dan for all the advice re valves...priceless info. Have taken delivery of an LB30 last week and am absolutely gobsmacked with how great it sounds with my Pbass & Jazz. With the P & flats, its just chocolatey rich & smooth; with the J & rounds its bright, edgy and deep. Love this amp!

Just one Q - haven't checked but am sure mine has Ruby branded EL84s in the power section (Chinese amp). They sound lovely to me, but is there any point in me swapping them out for something fancier? I'm gonna buy a set of spares anyway so any advice on what to get for this specific amp greatly appreciated.

[dan670844]

[quote name='mickster' timestamp='1380042677' post='2220036']
Great thread. thanks to all, esp Mr Foxen & Dan for all the advice re valves...priceless info. Have taken delivery of an LB30 last week and am absolutely gobsmacked with how great it sounds with my Pbass & Jazz. With the P & flats, its just chocolatey rich & smooth; with the J & rounds its bright, edgy and deep. Love this amp!

Just one Q - haven't checked but am sure mine has Ruby branded EL84s in the power section (Chinese amp). They sound lovely to me, but is there any point in me swapping them out for something fancier? I'm gonna buy a set of spares anyway so any advice on what to get for this specific amp greatly appreciated.
[/quote]

Nothing wrong with the ruby's (in this case shugang) they sound great in this amp. Someone with a Vox AC30 may disagree with me on their fidelity but in a lb30 they are great and cheap, its a bass amp! Just pay particular attention to where you get your valves from and you will be fine with rubys or any other modern valve. Its a modern design so it designed with modern valves in mind. Its not hard on the valves like older amps like a deluxe reverb or older design AC30. I would strongly suggest buying from Karltone. I think they really do a good job on sifting the crap out of what they get in. They probably use a digital tester and burn in machine like a maximatcher, they must also have a great big rubbish skip of not up to spec valves. How they make money I dont know!
Trying different types of valves in your amp is all part of the fun and is a rite of passage, its up to you to find the best combination
The level of gain of the preamp the two 12ax7 ecc83 in my book!! affects the eq so different brands of 12ax7 produce different tones subtle, but different also fun! The eq is passive and extremes of setting produce interesting results. Your cannot get a crap sound out of this amp and really its all you need if you are near a decent PA and monitors, you can gig anything. Its the future, you don't need 900 watts let the pa do the work then you wont go deaf, its all about tone!

[badboy1984]

I really don't get sometimes when i lugged my big ampeg in the past then i get DI to the PA for a bigger sound. Now i can just bring the LB30 and a BC212 cab and use that on stage as monitor and DI the bass out from the LB30 ......

I tend to go less these days now.

[dan670844]

[quote name='badboy1984' timestamp='1380114473' post='2220982']
I really don't get sometimes when i lugged my big ampeg in the past then i get DI to the PA for a bigger sound. Now i can just bring the LB30 and a BC212 cab and use that on stage as monitor and DI the bass out from the LB30 ......

I tend to go less these days now.
[/quote]

Yep thats the long a short of it, i dont even bother with a 212 these days a 112 shining in my face does the trick. The tone arrgh!!

[badboy1984]

I really like the idea of 2x VS112. I need to save up to replace that. I like the Ashdown cab better then my TC cab on the LB30 actually.

Edited September 25, 2013 by badboy1984

[spaners]

+1 for the VS cabs, I have a 1x12 and the 1x15. I do think you will have trouble finding them though as they have now been discontinued. I searched high n low for a second VS1x12 and couldn't find one. There are still a few places that have the 2x12 and 1x15 in stock though. There was a 1x15 on ebay and in gumtree. Last time I looked PMT still had a 1x15 and a 2x12. I think academy of sound had a 2x12 too, I had there last 1x12. Got my 1x15 from PMT in Bristol. Love these cabs with my CTM15 sound is so much better than it was with my TC RS112, they seem to suit valves better. They look awesome too. I think the 1x12 +1x15 work really well together and I'm loving the sound. I tried a 2x12 too, IMHO my two cabs sound better.
Had a m8 over on Sat, he's a fair guitarist he plugged his Strat into the CTM and with the gain cranked up full it sounded unreal, better than through his metal muff. And so so SO LOUD
As for valves, I replaced mine strait away as the stock valves were unbranded Chinese jobs (amp was harsh and disappointing fresh out of the box). I went with JJ el84's, valves are graded on a scale that indicates how clean or dirty they will be. The higher the number the cleaner they are, lower the number the higher the gain and more dirt. I got a pair of 10s. I replaced the 12AX7 (ECC83) with a GroveTubes 5751 ( a 12AX7 derivative with about 30% les gain )the net result was a softer rounder fuller sound, mellower, fatter bottom and more defined softer top end. I felt that the amps response to pedals was improved too.
I have had the amp and the 112 about a month and the 115 for about 10 days, this thing just sounds better every time I plug in.