Ashdown CTM100 EQ settings

[Quilly]

Any ctm users out there that could offer some tips in getting a fairly clean punchy tone from this amp with a smidgen of highs? The passive controls are strange, for example if you turn up the treble you lose the lows? Been struggling a little while to get a consistent tone from this amp. When it’s good it’s sweet 

[dannybuoy]

Not all passive tonestacks are the same and I know nothing about the CTM100, but the one in my old Orange Terror Bass is flat with the mids maxed and bass/treble at minimum. Sounds totally unintuitive and therefore a setting you might not have tried, so give that a shot to see how it sounds and adjust from there!

Edited May 14, 2019 by dannybuoy

[Phil_T]

my CTM 30 is a bit baffling in that regard. I spoke to Dave Green (the amp's designer) when I first got it and he advised that 12 noon on all the dials was pretty much flat so that's how I ran it for a while but always felt it was very bright. Eventually I did a bit of knob twiddling and found much more pleasing tones with some very wierd settings. The eq knobs all seem to affect each other to quite a large degree so I can only suggest playing about with it and not being afraid to try settings that might seem 'wrong'

[Quilly]

43 minutes ago, Phil_T said:

my CTM 30 is a bit baffling in that regard. I spoke to Dave Green (the amp's designer) when I first got it and he advised that 12 noon on all the dials was pretty much flat so that's how I ran it for a while but always felt it was very bright. Eventually I did a bit of knob twiddling and found much more pleasing tones with some very wierd settings. The eq knobs all seem to affect each other to quite a large degree so I can only suggest playing about with it and not being afraid to try settings that might seem 'wrong'

Funny , my amp seems a bit dark. I tried using an eq pedal at the effects loop stage and this is a workaround. But I’d prefer to be able to get it from the valves themselves. My valves maybe getting a tad old 

[Lozz196]

From what I’ve read on here there’s a mod that can be done which really increases the eq flexibility. Why not contact Ashdown and get this sorted?

[Woodinblack]

2 hours ago, Quilly said:

Any ctm users out there that could offer some tips in getting a fairly clean punchy tone from this amp with a smidgen of highs? The passive controls are strange, for example if you turn up the treble you lose the lows? Been struggling a little while to get a consistent tone from this amp. When it’s good it’s sweet 

I think the idea is that you randomly turn them a bit until you get the sound you want, then write down the setting!

Honestly there doesn't seem to be an immediate correlation between the knob positions and the tone, although the switches above the knobs have a bit more of an effect.

[Reggaebass]

Speak to Ashdown, they are really great and will answer any questions you have, I went to see Dave green last week , his knowledge is amazing 🙂

[thodrik]

Sounds like a similar pre-amp to my Trace V6. On that I find that 2 - 10 - 2 is around about 'flat'. With a passive bass my usual settings are around  5 on bass, 6-7 on mids and around 4 on treble. With a high powered active bass the bass and treble controls on the amp rarely go above 3. Also try playing around with the gain and master settings as that can have a massive effect on the tone as well. 

I find that with a passive three knob control, don't be afraid to try settings that would seem completely ridiculous or 'wrong' if you were using +/- active pre amp filter where 'all knobs at 12 o'clock = flat or close to flat'. In my opinion ,you can really lose out on a lot of the fun experimentation of different tones if you take an 'all knobs must be set at 12' o clock' approach when using a Valve amp. 

 

[Quilly]

1 hour ago, thodrik said:

Sounds like a similar pre-amp to my Trace V6. On that I find that 2 - 10 - 2 is around about 'flat'. With a passive bass my usual settings are around  5 on bass, 6-7 on mids and around 4 on treble. With a high powered active bass the bass and treble controls on the amp rarely go above 3. Also try playing around with the gain and master settings as that can have a massive effect on the tone as well. 

I find that with a passive three knob control, don't be afraid to try settings that would seem completely ridiculous or 'wrong' if you were using +/- active pre amp filter where 'all knobs at 12 o'clock = flat or close to flat'. In my opinion ,you can really lose out on a lot of the fun experimentation of different tones if you take an 'all knobs must be set at 12' o clock' approach when using a Valve amp. 

 

I'm finding that 'up to 10 or 0' seems to be the best way with this amp. My inner 'solid state' instinct screams 'you're gonna break something' 🤣

[VTypeV4]

The old Fender design is also similar - my Bassman 135 is somewhat 'interactive'..

My advice is to keep twiddling and see how you go plus contacting Ashdown to ask about the EQ mod may be a good move also.

I tried a CTM100 in Brighton a few months back and found the EQ quite gentle but managed to dial a useable sound (in the shop at least) reasonably quickly. I rather liked it and would probably work quite well for me but  I don't need another valve amp..

Best of luck.

[EliasMooseblaster]

On 14/05/2019 at 20:08, Quilly said:

Any ctm users out there that could offer some tips in getting a fairly clean punchy tone from this amp with a smidgen of highs? The passive controls are strange, for example if you turn up the treble you lose the lows? Been struggling a little while to get a consistent tone from this amp. When it’s good it’s sweet 

The secret might well be in the Mid-Shift button!

I gave this a prod while playing around with the EQ and found it did exactly what I wanted it to with the mids. I think I'm right in saying it raises the centre frequency (it certainly sounds like it); in any case it gave me a much clearer tone.

Nowadays I tend to have the bass around 9 o'clock, and the mids and treble at noon. I've started going easier on the input gain and pushing the master volume instead, but then I've typically been plugging in Gibson-style basses (T-bird, Epi EB-3) with big humbuckers; a bass more akin to a Precision or Jazz might warrant a bit more gain to maintain similar levels of oomph and heft.