Carvin DCM L series

[Finaldo]

that could actually be your problem.

I've talked to a carvin rep and was told to always keep the power at 0 db (all the way up), and control the volume with the output on the axe.

He told me that if you are running it anything lower than 0, you can possibly fry your speakers, because they will start drawing power from the electrical outlet or something like that....

I always run it on 0 db, and its working out great for me, i just usually run the axe master at around the equivalent to 2 and a half or 3 on a conventional amp volume knob.

-dan

Huh? That makes no sense. If running the volume at anything less than 100% would mess up the speakers, why would they put volume knobs on it and not make any mention of it in the manual? I don't know. Nothing personal toward you, but I have trouble believing that.

I've heard this before... SS power amps should be run at their max, and you regulate the volume by changing the level of the signal feeding the power amp. I've been told it's the best way to keep the speakers from getting damaged. I'd like to hear a definitive answer on it though. I heard it from a salesman, and I tend to take everything a salesman says with a grain (or boulder) of salt.

 

[Tom]

I had always figured that the volume knobs on power amps were basically level attenuators stuck into the signal path before the actual amp stage.

 

[Tom]

I set up my Axe-FX rig on the other side of the room running from a different outlet, and a lot of that fizzy nonsense seems to have gone away. Normally, this would lead me to immediately blame a bad outlet as the source in the first place, but everything in my rack is powered from a Furman PL-Plus C that I'd think should be cleaning up that kind of thing. I guess I need to do more testing to see what's really going on here.

The amps are still a lot brighter than they probably should be, though. Running a 5150 amp sim, for example, I have the treble at 9:00 and the presence at 0, and it's still kind of overpowering on the high end. This is with no EQ active. Just the amp and a gate.

We had a gig on Friday, and I had to use my POD rig. We have another show on Tuesday, and I'd really love to be able to use the Axe-FX. :|

 

[Tom]

I walked away from my rig for a while, and when I tried it just now, the harsh crappines was back. I didn't change anything from how I was running it earlier. I am thoroughly confused.

 

[dbmusicstudios]

You should definitely try it with a diff cab

 

[Jay Mitchell]

I've heard this before... SS power amps should be run at their max, and you regulate the volume by changing the level of the signal feeding the power amp.

You heard wrong. There is no "best" setting for power amp level controls.

 

[Tom]

I think I'm getting the issue narrowed down. I now believe the problem to be with the Carvin, which sucks because it's just as new as the Axe-FX. This is a clip I recorded of my rig earlier today with an Audix OM 2 mic. The signal chain is an Ibanez basswood-bodied 7-string with a Blaze bridge into the Axe-FX just running a 5150 sim and a gate into the Carvin into my V30 Avatar 4x12. The only advanced tweaking I did was changing the tonestack to active. I don't have the exact settings anymore, but the bass was turned up a little, mids scooped just slightly, treble a fair bit into the negatives, and presence up just a hair past 0.

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_songInfo.cfm?bandID=680336&songID=7492589

Hear how crappy and brittle that sounds? It sounds a lot brighter and harsher in the room, but the mic tones it down significantly. A short while ago, I turned the power amp sims off and ran it through the power amp of a Crate Powerblock. It sounded kind of meh compared to the Axe's power amp sims, but it was functional. It's a dark power amp, so I actually had to turn the treble up quite a bit more. When I purposely turn the treble and presence up too much, it sounds too bright, but not harsh. It just sounds like I need to turn the treble. Because of this, I think it's probably the power amp. Any ideas?

 

[Finaldo]

I've heard this before... SS power amps should be run at their max, and you regulate the volume by changing the level of the signal feeding the power amp.

You heard wrong. There is no "best" setting for power amp level controls.

No, Jay, I didn't hear wrong. The salesman may be wrong, but I heard him correctly.

 

[rectifier]

yea ,that didnt sound too good...sounded like a peavey triple x instead of a 5150......got me worried again... do those amps have the crossover switch or is it built in ? hi-pass

 

[Tom]

yea ,that didnt sound too good...sounded like a peavey triple x instead of a 5150......got me worried again... do those amps have the crossover switch or is it built in ? hi-pass

It's not just a matter of the EQ being skewed. There's a horrible noise added to the sound. I emailed Carvin, and they're going to to an exchange for me. I need to call them up tomorrow. For now, I'm running the Axe-FX through the power section of a Crate Powerblock. It's far from ideal, but it's actually usable.

 

[rectifier]

ohh ok... hope carvin can get it worked out for you...

 

[Tom]

So it turns out I've been getting the same crackly bullcrap no matter what power amp I use. Some power amps just cover it up a bit more than others. I've tried to pinpoint the source by switching out effects processors, power amps, cabs, cables, power conditioners, and guitars, and it's always there. I finished my testing by changing everything out and basically setting up a second rig with none of the same components, and it's still there. This is incredibly frustrating. No matter what guitars I play through what equipment with which cables, I have the exact same problem. I've tried everything I know to try. I really don't know where to go from here.

 

[Porkchop Xpress]

What speakers/monitors/cabs are you guys using with the Carvin amps? I'm thinking of setting up a stereo rig with the Carvin DCM amp driving the Ultra (once I get it!), but I am not sure which way to go with the monitors/cabs.

 

[Sixstring]

I've heard this before... SS power amps should be run at their max, and you regulate the volume by changing the level of the signal feeding the power amp.

You heard wrong. There is no "best" setting for power amp level controls.

No, Jay, I didn't hear wrong. The salesman may be wrong, but I heard him correctly.

I've read in the Carvin manuel for the DCM series that they recommend their amps be run at 50% in order to achive best performance and headroom. Weather it's BS or not I don't know. It's there product so they should know what's best.

 

[dbmusicstudios]

I'll say it once more....

did you try a diff cab?

 

[Tom]

I'll say it once more....

did you try a diff cab?

I thought I already responded to that, but I guess I didn't. I have five threads on different forums going to try to figure this out, so I guess I forget what I've said where. Yeah, I've tried a different cab. I've tried switching out each individual component (even including cables, guitars, and power conditioners), and that sound distortion is always a problem. I set up a second rig with no gear common to my Axe-FX rig, and it had the same problem. Yesterday, I did some experimenting with my old Marshall combo, and it's doing the same thing. Basically, every amp I own right now is doing the same crap. That would lead me to think that it's bad power, but if that's the case, why did I spend something like $230 on a power conditioner if it's not taking care of this stuff?