What's bigger than an Elf?

[Stub Mandrel]

The TE Elf has built in compression and like most TE solid state heads sounds best with the gain well up. The compression light SHOULD be coming on. It ends up putting out as much power as a more highly rated amp as it controls transients via the compression rather than handling them with headroom.

 

If the is rotated into the last part of its range an overdrive effect is also applied.

 

You can easily compete with an uncompressed 500W amp through the same speaker cabs, and can set the gain to get a good clean sound, dirty or on the cudp so it's pretty clean and gets dirty as you dig in.

 

Very clever and much misunderstood.  The designers really knew what they were doing. People who think it's a glorified practice amp and complain about fan noise gave missed the point of the Elf.

 

It's as if it was designed specifically to spread the myth of Trace Elliot Watts

[Stub Mandrel]

1 hour ago, BassmanPaul said:

If I may point out that the physical position of the volume control has no bearing on the power the amp id putting out. It may well be producing its maximum output at 2 on the scale. All depends on how hot the input signal is.

 

 

Not quite true of the Elf because of the complex compression/overdrive behaviour I just described.

[stewblack]

2 hours ago, Stub Mandrel said:

The TE Elf has built in compression and like most TE solid state heads sounds best with the gain well up. The compression light SHOULD be coming on. It ends up putting out as much power as a more highly rated amp as it controls transients via the compression rather than handling them with headroom.

 

If the is rotated into the last part of its range an overdrive effect is also applied.

 

You can easily compete with an uncompressed 500W amp through the same speaker cabs, and can set the gain to get a good clean sound, dirty or on the cudp so it's pretty clean and gets dirty as you dig in.

 

Very clever and much misunderstood.  The designers really knew what they were doing. People who think it's a glorified practice amp and complain about fan noise gave missed the point of the Elf.

 

It's as if it was designed specifically to spread the myth of Trace Elliot Watts

Yep. It's a beast. I had a brain fart and went ampless into the void last week. Second gig was in a field first in a large pub. 

The Elf popped out of my cables bag and saved both days. It's a brilliant piece of kit 

[JoeEvans]

How about adding an Elf 1x10 combo? Then you can do small gigs with just the combo, medium gigs with the head and cab, bigger gigs with both, and huge gigs using just the Elf amp as a preamp into the PA?

[BillyBass]

I sold my Elf and have often regretted doing so.

 

I used to use it as a rehearsal amp when I played in a studio with no bass head, just an Orange 4x10.  I gigged it a few times through a Barefaced Super Compact, but only when we played a certain pub in Watford that was so small  the guitarist used to prop his combo on top of my Super compact and my GK Legacy didn't fit.

 

They get nice and warm when pushed.

[neepheid]

10 minutes ago, BillyBass said:

I sold my Elf and have often regretted doing so.

 

Easily solved...

[BassAdder60]

I think into a 4ohm cab they sound incredible and loud enough for a loud band, 

A word of warning as being so light they can easily move on top of a cab.

Put a rubber mat down on top of cab to save pulling it off or amp walk 

[JoeEvans]

I've got the Elf 10" combo which I love. I'm currently planning a louder band and looking forward to adding a TE 1x10 speaker to make a cute TE mini stack.

I was a huge Trace Elliot fan back in the 90s and it's nice to see the brand doing well. It's also mildly ironically amusing to see the brand doing well with tiny, lightweight amps and cabs...

[BassmanPaul]

On 05/07/2025 at 06:44, Jackroadkill said:

 

I'm running a 4ohm 2x15, so I think that should be sufficient!

Depends on the cabs impedance. If it is 8Ω the amp will be giving much less than it's 4Ω capability.

 

[BassmanPaul]

Y'know I find Basschat somewhat bizarre! I remember all the gigs I played in England and Wales using 50W amps. I was never at a loss for volume! Now here are you guys saying that you need 500W in order to be heard in an average British pub. I find that incomprehensible. Back in the day I would have died for an amp as powerful as an Elf!

 

If an Elf is not enough for your needs add a second one with its speaker system to increase your volume. I can only imagine how loud your band must be.

 

 

Edited July 22 by BassmanPaul

[Mickeyboro]

Don’t bring pugs into it… let’s concentrate on diminutive humanoids!😂

[BassmanPaul]

8 minutes ago, Mickeyboro said:

Don’t bring pugs into it… let’s concentrate on diminutive humanoids!😂

Fixed!

[Merton]

29 minutes ago, BassmanPaul said:

Depends on the cabs impedance. If it is 8Ω the amp will be giving much less than it's 4Ω capability.

 

He literally said a 4 ohm cabinet 😀

A sensitive 8 ohm cabinet will be equally effective in my experience

[prowla]

9 hours ago, BassmanPaul said:

Y'know I find Basschat somewhat bizarre! I remember all the gigs I played in England and Wales using 50W amps. I was never at a loss for volume! Now here are you guys saying that you need 500W in order to be heard in an average British pub. I find that incomprehensible. Back in the day I would have died for an amp as powerful as an Elf!

 

If an Elf is not enough for your needs add a second one with its speaker system to increase your volume. I can only imagine how loud your band must be.

 

 

According to the general rule*, 500W is twice as loud as 50W.

 

(*all other things being equal)

[Downunderwonder]

3 minutes ago, prowla said:

 

According to the general rule*, 500W is twice as loud as 50W.

 

(*all other things being equal)

Half of that extra loud is sucked up with modern drivers being half as sensitive as the vintage ones old BMP was using with his 50w amp.

[Stub Mandrel]

12 hours ago, BassmanPaul said:

Y'know I find Basschat somewhat bizarre! I remember all the gigs I played in England and Wales using 50W amps. I was never at a loss for volume! Now here are you guys saying that you need 500W in order to be heard in an average British pub. I find that incomprehensible. Back in the day I would have died for an amp as powerful as an Elf!

 

If an Elf is not enough for your needs add a second one with its speaker system to increase your volume. I can only imagine how loud your band must be.

 

 

 

In the 90s I used to gig with a 150W Laney Probass and two 2x12 cabs... one a guitar cab the other with two Mackenzie PA twin cone) speakers (the original FRFR cab? 🤣). And a pair of piezo horns on top!

 

 

[BassmanPaul]

Sorry Stub but I find Piezo tweeters harsh and unmusical. I would never use them.

 

[Stub Mandrel]

16 minutes ago, BassmanPaul said:

Sorry Stub but I find Piezo tweeters harsh and unmusical. I would never use them.

 

 

I will immediately return to 1990 and instruct my past self to amend his ways.

 

TBH, most people who write off piezo never encountered properly designed PA horns rather than the tatty little cheap ones.

[Baloney Balderdash]

A goblin?

[mcnach]

On 01/07/2025 at 23:48, Jackroadkill said:

Hi all, I had a thought (steady!) at rehearsal tonight and now I can't stop thinking it.  I usually play through a David Eden amp and I really like it, but apropos of nothing, I've used my Elf the last two weeks.  Now, at present there's just me and my mate on guitar, so volume's not been an issue when using my 4ohm 2x15 cab, but I think adding a drummer, possibly another guitarist and at least two vocals might be a bit more than the wee Elf can cope with in the volume stakes.

 

So, here's the thing - do/did Trace make anything that sounds similar (because I love the toanz) but that will kick out about 500w into that same 4ohm cab?  At the moment it looks like the Elf and the TE-1200 are their only offerings.

 

Any thoughts etc gratefully received.

 

Cheers,

 

JRK

 

 

Use TWO of those Elf amps?

[Stub Mandrel]

On 01/07/2025 at 23:48, Jackroadkill said:

Hi all, I had a thought (steady!) at rehearsal tonight and now I can't stop thinking it.  I usually play through a David Eden amp and I really like it, but apropos of nothing, I've used my Elf the last two weeks.  Now, at present there's just me and my mate on guitar, so volume's not been an issue when using my 4ohm 2x15 cab, but I think adding a drummer, possibly another guitarist and at least two vocals might be a bit more than the wee Elf can cope with in the volume stakes.

 

So, here's the thing - do/did Trace make anything that sounds similar (because I love the toanz) but that will kick out about 500w into that same 4ohm cab?  At the moment it looks like the Elf and the TE-1200 are their only offerings.

 

Any thoughts etc gratefully received.

 

Cheers,

 

JRK

 

While there is a gap in the price range for something around £500, power wise the TE1200 is only about 7dB more powerful than the Elf, something in between doesn't make much sense as the differences up and down would be so small. Indeed, the difference between Elf into 4R and TE-1200 into 8R is only 6dB.

 

So, in practice, 500W and 1000W amps are both adequate for pretty much any situation meaning a 500W version, while  probably having a market, isn't really 'needed'.