Markbass TA 503 - Manual (Page 18)

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11. tsA500 Product oVerVIeW
The Markbass TSA500 is a high-quality bass amplifier with a dual stage preamp (tube and solid state) and an analog power amp, which delivers 500W of power into a 4 ohm cabinet, or 300W into an 8 ohm cabinet.
The tube preamp includes one ECC83 tube manufactured by JJ Electronics in the Slovak Republic.
11.1 tsA500 front PAnel
InPut
The INPUT JACK (1) can be used for both passive and active basses.
solId stAte gAs, tuBe fIre And mAster Boom (solId stAte gAIn, tuBe gAIn and mAster)
There are three knobs on the front panel of the TSA500 that control the volume of your bass. This head has two preamp stages: the TUBE FIRE (TUBE GAIN - 3) control determines how much signal is passed through a
TUBE preamp stage and the SOLID STATE GAS (SOLID STATE GAIN - 2) controls the amount of signal through a SOLID STATE preamp stage; these two stages are wired in parallel so you can mix tube warm sound with
solid state clear sound. The preamp section includes equalization and the effects loop. The MASTER BOOM (MASTER - 16) volume regulates how much output comes out of the power amp into your cabinet.
If playing through the amp causes the blue ‘TOO MUCH!’ (CLIP - 4) light to turn on at all, you should turn down the TUBE FIRE (TUBE GAIN - 3) or the SOLID STATE GAS (SOLID STATE GAIN - 2) controls to avoid distor-
tion.
When you first plug into the amp, start with the TUBE FIRE (TUBE GAIN - 3), the SOLID STATE GAS (SOLID STATE GAIN - 2) and MASTER BOOM (MASTER - 16) controls set at their lowest levels, in other words turned all the
way counter-clockwise. Then, turn your instrument’s volume up to its full level and play as hard as you do in your most aggressive moments, and turn up the TUBE FIRE (TUBE GAIN - 3) and/or the (SOLID STATE GAIN
- 2) controls until the blue light starts illuminating. Next, back off on the TUBE FIRE (TUBE GAIN - 3) and/or the (SOLID STATE GAIN - 2) just enough so that the light stays off as you play. This method will result in the
optimal gain setting for the bass you’re playing. Different basses have different output levels, mostly depending on their pickups and in the case of active basses, the instrument’s onboard preamp and EQ settings.
Once you’ve set the TUBE FIRE (TUBE GAIN - 3) and SOLID STATE GAS (SOLID STATE GAIN - 2) levels, use your MASTER BOOM (MASTER - 16) knob to control the volume of your bass.
BAsslIne out (lIne out)
This BASSLINE OUT (LINE OUT - 5) knob controls the volume level of the rear LINE OUT XLR (32) and the rear LINE OUT AUX XLR (25), which is connected to the mixing consoles in live or studio situations.
PrIVAte (PHones)
For quiet practicing, plug headphones into this plug (1/4”) input (17). If you plug in headphones, the amp’s speaker will stay on because the headphones out is not linked to the main out. To control the level to your
headphones, use the INTIMITY LEVEL (PHONE LEVEL - 15) knob.
eQuAlIZAtIon
Markbass amps are designed to faithfully reproduce the natural sound of your bass. If you have a good instrument, very little equalization (EQ)—if any—should be required. Bass guitars produce a surprisingly wide
range of frequencies—from extremely low frequencies that are more felt than heard, to extremely high frequencies that pass through your cabinet’s tweeter and are barely audible to the human ear.
As you experiment with your EQ settings, you will notice that all the different frequency ranges play essential roles in making up your bass tone:
LOW frequencies constitute music’s sonic foundation they give power to your sound, physically resonating your listeners’ bodies (and yours!), sometimes even causing people to move and dance!
LOW MIDs (’MF LOW’ or Mid Frequency Low) make your bass sound loud, projecting the sound over long distances, ‘filling the room’.