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DHA VT2 Twin EQ custom shop REVISED REVIEW!!


billphreets
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PRODUCT : Dave Hall Amps VT2 Twin EQ Bass

PRICE PAID : £249.99

EASE OF USE :9: This is one of Daves latest products, basically its a VERY striking looking (to say the least) 2 channel valve overdrive and distortion pedal with a host of other functions : active EQ, DI out , headphone out , line in , seperate channel outs etc... pretty easy to get great warm valve tones as soon as you plug in, but with options for a LOT of sonic flexibility.. be prepared to spend a fair bit of time with this unit and you wont be dissapointed with the palette of sounds it has to offer..
its a pretty straightforward layout with CLEARLY (lol) marked inputs/outputs (idiotproof bass and amp illustrations) an i/p control for both channels and independant eq and gain controls for each respective (blue(clean to crunch) and red(clean to overdrive)) channel , with an overdrive control for the red channel.
some tweaking is required admittedly, the eq can make vast differences to the drive sound.. i also found that the red channels gain and o/d if pushed past 2 o clock will slightly alter the drive character of the blue channel (excuse my ignorance with valve technology but im pretty sure that this is down to sharing gain stages ??, although please correct me if im wrong.....?) not ideal if you want to change quickly between a mega clean blue channel and a mega dirty red channel but np
there are bright and boost switches on each channel ,the bright switches (which i found to be subtle but effective)will never get turned off and i doubt the boost switches will ever get turned on(it is QUITE some boost!!))
the DI out offers a 3 position toggle switch should ground hum occur and there are further idiotproof (lol) illustrations to point out the seperate red and blue channel outs for running 2 amps or for recording (absolutely INVALUABLE feature in my opinion!!)

SOUND QUALITY :9: If you want to add valve warmth/grit to your sound than this pedal is for YOU!! when Dave states in the product description that this pedal has to be heard to be believed he was`nt joking believe you me!
I play a jazz with emg`s and the tones i get from this are nothing short of incredible!!
what word can i use to describe the sound??? fat? warm? natural? organic? any one of these!!
the blue channel is clean to crunch and can add just a subtle amount of warmth , a spoonful of grit when you dig in or give you a nice grinding sound when you push it a bit more..
the red channel starts where the blue channel leaves off and things start can getting a bit dirtier ; ) this channel is the perfect bigger nastier brother to the blue (although with a friendlier cleaner side too!)
the settings i tend to find myself using constantly are :

blue channel gain 2 o clock , blue treble maxed , blue mid 3 o clock , blue bass 3 o clock , bright switch on , no boost
(this gives me a lovely warm tone with grit when i dig in)
red channel gain 2 o clock , red o/d 2 o clock , red eq all maxed
(this gives me a gorgeous fat organic distortion that stays deep and doesnt fizz on the high end)
it has to be said again , that this unit is capable of some truly incredible clean sounds too!! experiment!!!

the DI seems quiet, headphone out is a little noisy but actually states this fact in the accompanying literature so cant complain.

RELIABILTY :8: i had a slight problem with the first unit that Dave sent me.. nothing major just a fault with a ribbon cable..
the problem actually re-occured soon after i received it back at which point Dave INSTANTLY offered me a brand new unit , which i received within days (bear in mind that these pedals are hand built to order, so i applaud you Dave for rectifying this situation as quick as was humanly possible!)
i hasten to add, that this unit in my posession now has presented no problems WHATSOEVER

CUSTOMER SUPPORT :10: as stated above^^^^TERRIFIC customer support..

OVERALL RATING :9: i wanted a twin channel valve overdrive/distortion with some character.. thats exactly what i got (if you have`nt seen a pic of one of these babies i suggest you do!!).. jaw droppingly lush valve tones!!! all in all a very versatile, great sounding pedal with a lot of great features that should meet any gigging /recording situation..
hand built by a very knowledgeable guy who knows how to treat customers well... nuff said

Edited by billphreets
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  • 1 year later...
  • 7 years later...

wow, I've just come across this after 7 years, forgot all about it. Suffice to say, this is still on my pedalboard, never, never let me down, done over 300 gigs with it plus 100's of rehersals. Ive only changed the 2 valves once and had it serviced, its still brilliant with my full fat Ampeg stack or straight to the desk, DI & PA only use or with a D class head or combo. Its the one pedal I'll never sell, amazing warmth added to anything solid state and real grit to valves. Thanks Dave, RIP mate.

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