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ACG Filter based pre-amps - the difference!


GreeneKing
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[quote name='6stringbassist' post='396298' date='Jan 31 2009, 06:09 PM']I fitted one to my Sei 6 last year, it originally had a normal John East pre fitted to it, the change made an already fantastic bass something that really can't be bettered, and I mean that, I've tried many basses since, and my Sei is by far the best.

I'm having a new Sei built at the moment, a fretless 6, that's going to have an East/ACG pre fitted to it too, possibly with Q-tuners.[/quote]


I thought the J-Retro Deluxe was the way to go, and having waited ages to get one, I now find out about the ACG. Now I'm confused! You've had 'em both, which way should I go?

Have to say that the blurb for the ACG makes it sound fairly confusing to use, is it easy to dial up a great sound, and more importantly, is it easy to dial up a bad sound?

I would be looking to get the 4 knob Jazz plate ACG to fit to a Warmoth Jazz with Nordstrand NJ4SE's.

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If you read this very thread and others on the subject of using the ACG02 you will see your questions answered several times.

Once you get 'your head around them' I'd say its easier to create your tone with a filter based pre than it is to tweak your tone with 2/3 EQ.

Peter

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[quote name='SisterAbdullahX' post='413743' date='Feb 18 2009, 11:17 PM']Oh Jesus, and there I was just about to order a J-Retro Deluxe to fit to my Warmoth Jazz (with Nordstrand NJ4SE's). Now this has just thrown me completely! Anyone tried them both?[/quote]

Yup me. I've had two Laklands with J-Retros in (one a Deluxe) - I sold one bass pretty quickly and took the J-Retro out of the other preferring the passive sound of the bass. I now have the ACG02 in my Spector and yes, it takes some getting used to but it's worth it.

They're both excellent products that use different approaches but I'm now saving my pennies for another ACG02 for my other Spector - says a lot really.

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I'm loving mine now after a bit of a shakey start.

When I bought it from Alan a while ago, I thought it would be a competitor to my Wal circuit, but in reality it doesn't come close.

However, when approached as a preamp in its own right, I now find it works extremely well and I wouldn't change it for the world.

Believe it or not it's in a £100 no name jazz bass, with Bartolinis and a BadAss II and an action so low you'd struggle to get a teenage pube between the strings and the fretboard. I love this bass!!!.

I really don't think this preamp is for everyone, but I'd say if it stirs your interest, then give it a go. You never know............

D.

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[quote name='deksawyer' post='415892' date='Feb 20 2009, 11:50 PM']I'm loving mine now after a bit of a shakey start.

When I bought it from Alan a while ago, I thought it would be a competitor to my Wal circuit, but in reality it doesn't come close.

However, when approached as a preamp in its own right, I now find it works extremely well and I wouldn't change it for the world.

Believe it or not it's in a £100 no name jazz bass, with Bartolinis and a BadAss II and an action so low you'd struggle to get a teenage pube between the strings and the fretboard. I love this bass!!!.

I really don't think this preamp is for everyone, but I'd say if it stirs your interest, then give it a go. You never know............

D.[/quote]


Ordering mine next week!

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  • 3 weeks later...

[quote name='SisterAbdullahX' post='413767' date='Feb 18 2009, 11:45 PM']I thought the J-Retro Deluxe was the way to go, and having waited ages to get one, I now find out about the ACG. Now I'm confused! You've had 'em both, which way should I go?

Have to say that the blurb for the ACG makes it sound fairly confusing to use, is it easy to dial up a great sound, and more importantly, is it easy to dial up a bad sound?

I would be looking to get the 4 knob Jazz plate ACG to fit to a Warmoth Jazz with Nordstrand NJ4SE's.[/quote]

It's really easy to get a good sound from them, I have one sound that I really like and find very useful and use 98% of the time, I just use the controls to 'tweak' that sound to suit.

There is a whole array of useful sounds available, both sets of controls have marks on them making it easy to keep track of how they're set, I just look at them as hands on a clock, my bass control is set at 20 to 4'ish, and the treble control is set to max for the filter and flat for the gain knob.

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  • 1 year later...

[quote name='alexclaber' post='346781' date='Dec 5 2008, 08:46 PM']Indeed we were!

I'd really recommend anyone looking to use an ACG preamp on their bass to consider Q-Tuner pickups. The Q-Tuners have a much higher resonant peak than any other passive pickups so you can then use the ACG filters to simulate the sound of any pickup you want without having to fight the sound inherent to most pickups. Another approach would be to use a low impedance low output pickup like Alembic ones which have a similarly high resonant peak but need a suitable high impedance buffer and then voltage gain to drive an amp (which the ACG can probably do) but the Q-Tuners achieve that response whilst also being powerful enough to run totally passive (due to some kind of Dutch black magic in them - or possibly air coils and neodymium magnets...)

Alex[/quote]
I've recently had the ACG filters added to one of Alembic basses that originally had one filter circuit. The ACG has really livened up the bass sound and it sounds more flexible tonally than before. However I do find it quite difficult to add warmth to the sound. But maybe that will come with more experience of the way that tone is produced by these filter circuits. The great thing is it still sounds like an alembic.


Jazzyvee

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  • 9 months later...

hallo,

I'm interested in buying subject preamp, and since by the end of october I should travel to London I'd like to know if there are music shops selling ACG preamps or in the negative if should I order one online!

Thanks,

M.

ps - I'd like to install it in a MM stingRay; what model of preamp would you suggest? the 1 pickup wired to both coils of the MM humbucker or the 2 pickups version wired to the 2 coils separatedly?

Edited by MC1970
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Hi
They are only available through me I am afraid not in any shops.


I don't know of anyone that has wired each coil to a separate input and don't know if that would be worth the effort so I would suggest the single pickup version. Should you want to change the single pickup version to a dual input version further down the road this can be done quiet easily. It would require buying a blend control which I can supply.

Alan

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Thanks Alan,

I did not expect YOU to answer to my question, but it's defintely a plus and you've been very kind to do it.
In the past you posted pics of a prototype stompbox with the pre built in..... did it make it's way onto the market? I found it very useful for bassist with a "quite" large arsenal :)

Alan, you'll receive mail in a few days,

thanks again,

M.

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