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Brutal, brutal, brutal
Ashdown BTA 400
Ashdown bass amplifier comes with a very thick, the BTA 400. BTA stands for Big Tube Amp 400 is the number of tube (s) what he watts of power supplies.
To go straight to the door down to business, it's all a bit exaggerated. The weight is a serious consideration if you would like to buy this amp. 37 kilograms is big here. Maybe I'm a weak papventje, but from my car to the front door I prefer to use a trolley. And 400 watts of tube power is more than someone without hearing needs.
Okay, so far the whining. The thing looks robust. At the top is a metal grid. Here you can see through the eight (!) JJ KT88 power tubes are in a sort of U-shape. In the middle are three ECC 82 tubes (including JJ). On the front we find the characteristic crescent-shaped Ashdown VU meter. This thing actually works like a second mark. Furthermore, the usefulness of it escapes me as I really am honest. Probably to make sure you get the solid state does not have to kick his neck hunting? The BTA 400 is an inverted hybrid. That means no tube preamp and solid state amp. But exactly the opposite, the stage is solid state and tube amp so.
Sub-harmonics and compressor
The rest of the layout of the front is very much in the tradition Ashdown, there is another option on Subharmonic. A built octaver say. Nice, but not really necessary. The tracking goes well until the C on your A-string. Whether he gets lost and the price goes up tone "flip". Also known by other Ashdown bass amps, the board compressor. I do not find good work. I let him fast for what it is.
Cannons
If you put all tone controls set at twelve hours (so the buttons straight up) the amp sounds a bit woolly. But you give Middlesbrough a big button swing and turn the Treble that little bit open then there will be a monster to life. True vintage brutal (end) tube sound. With no pedal to mimic (not really SansAmp fans!). Guns, what a sound!
Just do not
The valve drive button, we also know from the ABM. However, the BTA has a tube amp and using this valve function in the drive stage is thus actually a kind of full tube. But I think it's a "just-not" function. Powered by a pathetic little unnamed "Made in China" 12AX7 tube inside, inaccessible and invisible to normal users. It probably will not be the intention here is that you replace them? The overdrive you with this valve drive makes sounds thin and loud. Why the hell would you use your amp with the tone control has a beautiful sound can get brutal?
Many
Ashdown this makes me in many ways reminiscent of the Ampeg SVT II Pro. The sound emitting, built-in DI, the mute button, effects loop, the selector switch for active or passive bass, extensive tone control through a combination of parametric and graphic equalization, line in and line out.
And last but not least, the weight. Although the Ampeg slightly lighter, and "only" 300 watt supplies.
Do you know what the extra 100 watts? I doubt it very much. Even on the big stages, it is advisable to adjust the volume a bit like the fellow musicians tune, otherwise, before you know it, the whole band are displayed on the monitors and that never works fine.
What is nice is that with this device have headroom ohne income. You will not soon Ashdown this to the end of his can get. Unless you want to conduct a seismic survey ...
The Ashdown BTA400 looks beautiful, very "Sky Captain & The World of Tomorrow" so to speak. And I think the Ashdown particularly good sound and ease of use is very pleasant. I have just last year my SVT II Pro out of the door made it because my back was tired gezeul. Thus this Ashdown BTA400 I let me pass.
