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THE STRINGMASTER AMP
BY
BUDDA AMPLIFICATION
SUGGESTED OPERATING SETTINGS:
Power Tube Attenuator: This 5 position control is used to lower the overall volume of your
amplifier when it is set for hi gain settings. This control works only on the hi gain channel of
the StringMaster. Begin by setting the Attenuator control to the far right position. (o db-no
effect) This 5 position switch attenuates the power section from o to -20db. Adjusting the
control counterclockwise attenuates the power section in the following increments, (0, -3, -12,
-16, -20db.) As you adjust the control to the left, you will notice the volume of your amplifier
gradually decreases. You will find that the attenuator control set at lower attenuation settings
works best with single coil pick ups, (0 to -12db) whereas humbuckers can be attenuated
further without muddying up your signal path. (0 to -16db)
Bass & Treble Controls: Depending on whether or not you use single coils or humbuckers,
2x12's, 4x12's, etc., you will find the treble control likes to sit between 12 o'clock and 4 and
the bass control between 10 O'clock and 2. Feel free to experiment. There are no rules when
finding your tone!
Phat: The Phat control works only on the hi gain channel of the StringMaster. This control is
designed to increase the girth and bottom end of the note. Far left is diminished effect, far
right is maximum boost effect. Adjust the Phat control by setting the control fully
counterclockwise, as you turn the control clockwise you will begin to hear the Phat magic. As
you adjust the control clockwise, you will hear an increase in gain that rounds out the note
with major bottom end Phatness!
Hi Gain Volume: The Hi Gain Volume control adjusts the overall drive for the hi gain
channel of the amp. For a traditional Blues style overdrive tone, ala Bassman/Dumble set the
Hi Gain Volume control until your signal just starts to break up. Make sure that the attenuator
control is set at 0 to begin. For a modern hi gain Plexi Marshall style overdrive tone, set the Hi
Gain Volume between 12 O'clock and 3. You can use the power tube attenuator at this point to
lower the volume of the hi gain channel by adjusting the attenuator control to the left. (0 to 20db)
Hi Gain Boost: To access the Hi Gain Boost control, pull the Hi Gain Volume pot to activate.
This control is used to increase gain and top end bite on the hi gain channel of the amp.
Normal Volume: This controls the amount of gain for the rhythm channel of the amp. Start by
setting this control at around 12 o'clock. Feel the power section start to work with lots of
headroom and punch behind your rhythm chords. As you turn the control clockwise you will
add gain to your signal for great crunch tones. Fully clockwise offers great crunch and lead
tones. Rolling off the volume of your guitars volume pot off between 5 and 7 will clean up the
signal without muddying up the tone of your amp. This channel is equipped with capacitors
that maximize the clarity and brightness of your signal as you roll off your guitars volume pot.
As you turn up the volume incrementally on your guitar, you can essentially go from rhythm,
to crunch, to lead drive. This works on both channels of the amplifier and is considered the
"purist" form of channel switching.
Function Switches: The 3 1/4" jacks on the rear panel labeled (Channel, Loop and Cab) can
be used to override our footswitch when using a midi switching system.
Series/Parrallel Loop: This is where you introduce effects into the signal path of your
amplifier. The series loop is post eq and the parallel loop is pre eq, so that you can tone shape
the signal of your effects by utilizing the StringMasters treble and bass controls. To hook up
an effect to your amp, take a 1/4" shielded mono cable and run the send of the amp to the
input of the effect and run the output of the effect into the return on your amp. Adjust the send
control on the amp so that the signal coming from the amp is showing on the led input of the
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effect. Make sure that the led isn't clipping (going in the red) so that the effect is distorting
your signal. Set the return control for the desired amount of effect.
Footswitch: You will find all your controls neatly arranged on the footswitch. You can access
the Channel switching, Cabinet switching and Parallel Effects Loop switching functions of the
amp simply by depressing the footswitch button. To access the channel and loop switching
functions from the footswitch, install one end of the stereo cable included to the 1/4" jack
labeledChannel/Loop Jack on the side of the footswitch and route the other end to the front
panel of the Stringmaster labeled Footswitch. To access the cabinet switching feature install
one end of the mono cable included to the 1/4" jack labeled Cabinet Jack on the side of the
footswitch and insert the other to the jack labeled Cab on the rear of the chassis. If you want
the amplifier to cabinet switch at the same time that you channel switch to your Hi Gain
channel, set the Lead Link switch to the right. This automatically routes your lead signal to an
external speaker cabinet of your choice. The Stringmaster loves our closed back 2x12 and
4x12 extensions.
Note: Please use only a high quality insulated speaker plug for the auxiliary speaker outputs.
Make sure you set the proper ohmage matched to your speaker cabinet by way of the
switches on the rear of the chassis. You will find a select switch for 4, 8 and 16 ohms. Also,
when using the cab switching feature from either the footswitch or Lead Link , make sure that
you plug your extension cabinet into aux out 1.
Slave: The slave out is an identical replication of the signal coming off the speaker outputs of
your amp with a padded eq circuit. Feel free to experiment by sending the Slave Out signal to
an external stereo power amp feeding a couple of 2x12 or 4x12 extensions for a wall o sound!
Another option is to send the Slave Out signal to a recording console for DI tones to tape, or
send it to a board for a signal feed to the mains for live applications in a club or arena. When
slaving make sure that there is always a load on the speaker out of your amp.
* A note of interest is that the power section of this amplifier is an extremely powerful 30 watts
and we recommend using Budda extension cabinets that are fine tuned to the Stringmaster
electronics for maximum sonic performance. Some cabinets with minimum baffle space may
sound woofy, especially with low wattage Celestions.
**Budda also recommends that you wear ear plugs to avoid the serious complications of
hearing loss. Budda say; Steer Clear of Bad Ear!
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