Hughes & Kettner Bassforce XL User Manual
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BEDIENUNGSANLEITUNG
MANUAL
200-WATT BASS COMBO
illustrations
technical data
HOME
FUSE
230 V~ T 2 A
100 V~ T 4 A
117 V~ SB 4000 mA
Max. power
consumption 360 VA
CAUTION!
TO PREVENT THE RISK OF FIRE AND SHOCK
HAZARD DON´T EXPOSE THIS APPLIANCE
TO MOISTURE OR RAIN.DO NOT OPEN CASE;
NO USER SERVICEABLE PARTS INSIDE.
REFER SERVICING TO QUALIFIED SERVICE
PERSONNEL.
MADE IN ST. WENDEL / GERMANY
50 - 60 Hz
LEAVE ENOUGH SPACE FOR PROPER VENTILATION!
REAR PANEL MAY BECOME TO HOT TO TOUCH!
HEAD
PHONES
EXTERNAL
SPEAKER
EXTERNAL
SPEAKER
INTERNAL
SPEAKER OFF
BAL.
LINE OUT RETURN SEND
FX-LOOP
FX Devices
Mixing Console
LINE OUT SEND
RETURN
SPEAKER
OUT
Phones
EQ MATRIX: Main
GRAFIC
EQ
GRAFIC
EQ
GRAFIC
EQ
EQ MATRIX: Slap
EQ MATRIX: Finger
TECHNICAL SPECIFICAT I O N S
PREAMP SECTION
Bass frequency: 70 Hz, +10/-10 dB, active
Mid frequency: 1 kHz, +6 / -6 dB, passive
Treble frequency: 15 kHz, +16/-10 dB, passive
I N P U T S
active +6 dB; 1 M ohms
passive -6 dB; 1 M ohms
FX Return -10 dB; 47 k ohms
O U T P U T S
FX Send: -10 dB; 220 ohms
Line Out: 0 dB; 1 kohm, balanced
POWER AMP
“Dynaclip” bipolar solid state power amp:
200 Watts (DYNACLIP) into 4 ohms
Slew rate 5.3 V/µ s
Frequency response 20 Hz - 20 kHz (-1dB/+ 0 dB)
Phones 500 mw into 4-600 ohms
Internal Speaker
200 Watts, 4 ohms, 15” Hughes & Kettner Custom
Dome Tweeter 16 watts, 4 ohms
GENERAL FEAT U R E S
Voltage: 230 V (for Europe)
117 V (for North America)
100 V (for Eastern Asia)
Max. power consumption: 355 VA (4 ohms)
Mains fuse: slo-blo 2000 mA (230 V-model)
slo-blo 4000 mA (117 V-model)
slo-blo 4000 mA (100 V-model)
Internal fuses: 2 x slo-blo 3150 mA
Dimensions, L x H x D: 555 x 560 x 428 mms
Weight: 28 kg., 61.6 lbs.
We reserve the right to modify specifications in response
to new technical developments.
HOME
1.0 CONNECTIONS AND CONTROLS
ACTIVE INPUT: Use this jack to connect basses with high output
levels, notably active instruments or basses equipped with humbucking pickups.
PASSIVE INPUT: Connect standard basses with passive pickups
and tone controls to this jack.
EQ MATRIX: Use this rotary knob to dial in several different basic
sounds.
GAIN: Controls the input sensitivity of the BassForce preamp. Use it
to dial in a level suitable for the output level of the bass you have
connected. Higher gain settings produce punchier tone well-suited to rock styles.
BASS: This active voicing control defines the bottom end. At a setting of 12 o’clock, the signal remains completely unaffected.
MID: Determines to what extent the mid-range frequencies are
boosted or cut.
TREBLE: Use this control to adjust the high end, i.e. dial in overtones or add a cutting edge to the tone. To give your BassForce a
warmer tone, we placed this pot in the circuit right after the input
stage, so it also has some influence over preamp saturation.
MASTER: Controls the stage volume of the BassForce. It does not,
however, influence the output level of the LINE OUT jack. When
you crank this knob, be sure to keep on eye on the POWER AMP
CLIP LED!
MAINS: AC power switch.
---------------------
MAINS SOCKET: Connect the Euro-norm mains cable to this
socket. The fuse bracket is integrated in the socket; ensure you
use specified replacement fuses only!
PHONES: Connect headphones to this jack. The BassForce speaker output circuit is automatically muted when this jack
is used.
SPEAKERS: Use this output to connect external speakers/cabinets.
You have two options for connecting additional cabinets to the
BassForce XL. For one, the amp is equipped with a serial speaker
circuit that lets you do just that—drive the internal speaker in
series with a connected external speaker. Although this increases
resistance and thus decreases power output, the surface area of
the speakers is enlarged several times over. For the other option,
the amp is equipped with an external speaker jack that deactivates the internal speaker, letting you connect a set of speakers
with a total load no lower than 4 ohms.
LINE OUT: Output of the BassForce preamp. Connect it to a mixer
or power amp. This output is post-voicing section—in other words,
the tone knobs influence this signal; the MASTER volume knob,
however, does not.
HOME
FX SEND: Connect this output to the input of your effects
device.
FX RETURN: Connect the output of your effects device
to this jack.
2.0 STANDARD SETUP / CABLE CONNECTIONS
3.0 OPERATING THE BASSFORCE XL
3.1 THE EQ MAT R I X
The EQ MATRIX is a new type of filtering system that lets you
dial in several different basic tonal settings while ensuring the
frequency response is always of an eminently „musical“ character. In addition, it enables you to quickly and conveniently
access these fundamental sounds.
As depicted, this is how a 31-band graphic equalizer’s settings
would look if you were trying to emulate the EQ MATRIX’s basic
sounds. In practice, though, the EQ MATRIX will always sound a
bit better, as it shapes the sound in such a way that it deliver
more harmonic, coherent results with lower noise.
BASSFORCE XL SOUND I:
The contemporary all-round sound, suitable for
all playing styles.
BASSFORCE XL SOUND II:
The typical slap sound, well-defined and precise.
BASSFORCE XL SOUND III:
This sound delivers the warmth and tone necessary for fingerstyle playing, especially when used with fretless basses. Slight
preamp overdrive adds to the „fretless“ flavor. (see Section
3.2, ”Finding the Right Gain Setting”!).
Deactivate the EQ MATRIX by turning the rotary knob to OFF.
The BassForce voicing section remains active at all times.
3.2 INPUT SECTION AND VOICING SECTION
While the EQ MATRIX enables you to quickly and effectively
call up radically different sounds, the BassForce XL voicing section is primarily designed to let you adapt the amp to the
venue and/or stage as well as the instrument you are using.
1. Finding the Right Gain Setting:
The response of the BassForce preamp depends entirely on the
instrument you are playing, its pickups, signal level and to
some extent your playing style. Use the GAIN control to dial in
a suitable level. Play as you normally would and gradually turn
the knob up until you hear soft, warm overdrive much like the
sound produced by tubes. From this point forward, use a light
touch so you don’t induce clipping in the BassForce preamp—
this produces generally undesirable harsh distortion. Please
note that the higher you turn the TREBLE knob up, the greater
the likelihood of saturating the BassForce preamp.
2. Fine-tuning the Voicing Section
The mid-range frequencies are responsible for shaping the
overall tone of a bass instrument! The MID knob lets you drastically alter the tone. For example, cutting back these frequencies will help produce snappy slap sounds. Turning them up will
conjure up growling rock sounds. When you’re trying to shape
the tone of your instrument, the middle frequencies are a
great place to get started—they give your sound a „backbone“ which you can flesh out as you please. For the next step,
your best bet is to dial in the required amount of bottom end
via the BASS knob. It also enables you to make allowances for
the conditions of a given room, for instance to eliminate those
dreaded „drone“ frequencies. Finally, adjusting the high end
via the TREBLE knob is simple. The knob particularly affects the
frequencies reproduced by the tweeter and consequently
defines whether the tone is more „silky,“ „punchy“ or „fat“.
3.3 THE TWEETER OF THE BASSFORCE XL COMBO
The BassForce combo is equipped with a 15“ woofer and a
dynamic tweeter. The tweeter is precision-tuned to enable
distinctive reproduction of the sparkling overtones that
modern, crystal-clear bass sounds demand.
We set the TREBLE control’s center frequency so you can
adjust the tweeter’s response as efficiently as possible. You can
also activate and deactivate the tweeter as desired via the HF
HORN ON/OFF button.
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