Epifani UL502 help please!

[___---___]

Hey.

I'm thinking of getting an Epifani UL502. The only downside to this amp, so it seems, is that one channel isn't quite as tweakable as the other. If I wanted to use two basses, could I plug both basses into a Radial Bassbone, and the Bassbone into the amp? That would mean that I would be using the Bassbone to achieve the two channel thing, not the amp. Would this work?

Thanks in advance!

X

[alexclaber]

It seems a little crazy to get a two channel amp and then use something else outboard to give you the second channel! You've still got three band EQ on each channel, plus whatever you have on your bass, and then you have your hands - should be more than enough tweakability. However nice the Bassbone is it strikes me as compromising the very pure 'studio quality' preamp on the UL502.

Alex

[lozbass]

I have a couple of ul502s - a head and a ul112 combo - and would suggest you could drop the Radial (unless there's something that you particularly like about what it can do for your sound). The 502s pre is very impressive indeed, in my opinion, and I tend to use the less tweakable channel most of the time. You should find that you have a great deal of control over your tone with either channel - the shaping is very powerful and sophisticated - the aim with the design was to provide something like a very high-end channel strip (and it worked). I'd just be a little careful - if you're looking for an ultra-clean, articulate, airy and hi-fi amp, then the 502 has no peer in my experience. The 502 can also do a very solid thump with plenty of power. If you're looking for a bit of grit and drive, then you might want to look at alternatives. On the question of two basses - the switching is super quiet - you'll just need to be a bit careful with gains if you're using two passive or two active basses. Oh, and there's a 502 for sale on BC at the moment - the seller is extremely trustworthy too!

[chris_b]

Isn't the point of these high end amps that you're buying the "house" sound and tweaking is minimal? It's about running the amps "flat" and a lot of us seem to do that.

[lozbass]

[quote name='chris_b' post='525727' date='Jun 27 2009, 09:42 AM']Isn't the point of these high end amps that you're buying the "house" sound and tweaking is minimal? It's about running the amps "flat" and a lot of us seem to do that.[/quote]
I'd agree almost entirely and tend to run my 502s fairly flat - sometimes it's useful to have the eq for a particular room/space. I also tend to play a few different basses at any one session so it's good to have the facility to tweak (to bolster mids or bottom end etc.) In general though, I don't tweak too far and the 'house' sound is always present.