Using a Mark Bass II Little Mark in the US

[barneyboom]

Hello people.

I'm new to the forum, it looks very good, I need a question answering if anyone could be so gracious.

For the last few times I've been over to the US, I've used my trusty old Trace Elliot that has a voltage switch so I simply had to switch that and I was in business.

However, now I have a Mark Bass Little Mark II and I would like to know would I be able to use this with the US electricity?

Here's the power specs...

INPUT
impedance 500 Kohm, max. voltage 15 Vpp
BALANCED INPUT (XLR)
impedance 22 Khom, max. voltage 25 Vpp
EFFECT RETURN
impedance 22 Kohm, max. voltage 25 Vpp

If I've missed anything, it will be on here...

[url="http://www.markbass.it/products.php?lingua=en&cat=1&vedi=69"]http://www.markbass.it/products.php?lingua...t=1&vedi=69[/url]

I hope I've not put this in the wrong forum. Basically I need to know if I need to buy a converter or something!

Thanks in advance!

Barney Boom x

[franzbassist]

Well, their website says this, for what it's worth:

[i]Markbass amps/combos are manufactured to be sold and used in the country of purchase, and they are factory preset to that country’s voltage.
Due to homologation issues, the voltage may not be changed.[/i]

[franzbassist]

And under their FAQ section:

[i][b]Can the voltage be changed if I move to another country? [/b]

Unfortunately, due to homologation issues, the voltage may not be changed without having the amp reapproved for electrical safety. If you're just traveling internationally with your amp, we recommend using power transformers, which are generally available from backline companies and can also be purchased inexpensively.[/i]

[barneyboom]

Hmmm, yeah, I saw that but I wondered if that was basically a legal thing so that they don't end up getting complaints from anyone daft enough to just plug it straight in. I don't know if Ampeg for instance advocate using one of those voltage converters that American bands always seem to bring over but obviously they work.

Thanks for the response, it might well be hopeless and I need to beg steal or borrow! What a way.

[barneyboom]

[quote name='walbassist' post='666130' date='Nov 26 2009, 12:23 PM']And under their FAQ section:

[i][b]Can the voltage be changed if I move to another country? [/b]

Unfortunately, due to homologation issues, the voltage may not be changed without having the amp reapproved for electrical safety. If you're just traveling internationally with your amp, we recommend using power transformers, which are generally available from backline companies and can also be purchased inexpensively.[/i][/quote]

Cheers, then I need a power transformer.

Can anyone recommend one?

/Goes off and Googles/

[barneyboom]

Just as I thought, it's not as easy as just picking one out...

[url="http://www.maplin.co.uk/Search.aspx?criteria=UK%20-%20US%20Voltage%20Power%20Converter%20Energy%20Transformer&source=15"]http://www.maplin.co.uk/Search.aspx?criter...r&source=15[/url]

I'm really not sure which one I need.

[tombboy]

You need a 'Step-Up' voltage converter.
Most are 'step-up/step-down' by switching a jumper switch on the back.
Make sure you get at least 2000 watts to cope with the amp.

I found [url="http://www.voltageconversion.co.uk/store/product.php?productid=16178&cat=261&page=2"]this[/url] which appears to be the only one they have in stock. Don't go for the flimsy plastic 'wall-wart' types.... you amp will fry them within the hour.

Edited November 26, 2009 by tombboy

[barneyboom]

Thank you very much. I guess I've just got to decide whether I want to spend nearly a hundred quid on this when I know I can borrow and Ampeg for over half the gigs and wing it on the others...

Decisions, decisions!

[tombboy]

Contact the venues.... if they have bands from europe, they may well have their own voltage converters or even a separate ring main running 240v.

[LawrenceH]

Hi,
I'm sure I've read online about modding them internally to do this. It involves changing a fuse as well as changing some jumper settings IIRC.

Obviously depends on how daring you feel! And how competent...

Just had a search - have a look here:

[url="http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=422716"]http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=422716[/url]