Attenuator

[WBlues]

Not everyone uses an amp and for whatever reason plays directly into the DAW.

For those who play with an amp and who also want to bring them to the sweet spot without flying their ears, I can highly recommend the Tone King Ironman Mini II (up to 30 watts, there is also up to 100 watts). I’ve tried a lot, this one does a really good job with no sound loss. It’s really fun opening up your amp and playing great sounds at room volume.

Have you had any experience with this?

Wilfried

Topic

[GnLguy]

Wilfried

Thanks for posting this. I’m considering either the Tone King Ironman II or a Two Notes Torpedo Captor Reactive Loadbox so its good to have the thoughts of an owner other than a review on a website

The Universal Audio OX is the primo model that people are raving about but I don’t have $1300 laying around so….

I love the sound of my Blackstar Artist 15 and I can play fairly loud when the family isn’t here but I’m sure I’m nowhere near the amp’s sweet spot. You can get cheaper attenuators that are passive boxes but those are nothing more than an 8 ohm resistor; an 8 ohm rating on a speaker is only t nominal load as the “resistance” that an amp signal is pushing against is constantly changing as the speaker moves in & out – thus the need for a reactive load box that will “react’ just like a speaker.

Tone King makes great sounding amps and includes the Ironman loadbox in many of their models

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/TorpedoCap8–two-notes-torpedo-captor-reactive-loadbox-di-and-attenuator-8-ohm

[charjo]

Thanks, Wilfred, this is something that has caught my attention lately, also. My interest was peaked by seeing the Universal Audio Ox. It’s great to get a recommendation of a more affordable option.
John

[GnLguy]

charjo wrote:

Thanks, Wilfred, this is something that has caught my attention lately, also. My interest was peaked by seeing the Universal Audio Ox. It’s great to get a recommendation of a more affordable option.
John

Hey John

Maybe we can get our rich Uncle Bryce to buy the UA Ox for us 🙂

[Bryce-AKguitar]

Uncle Bryce now only offers high interest loans for gear purchases. 😊

-Bryce
Anchorage, Alaska

[Canada Moose]

I checked out the UA Ox online but honestly i can’t figure out what it is or does. And then it needs an attenuator (to quiet it down?)

Is UA Ox an amp/gear simulator like Helix or Axe-FX or Brian’s Kemper profiler? (Kemper is definitely the coolest looking with all those green lights blinking away.)

Just asking because you guys seem to understand and appreciate this UA Ox thing.

[WBlues]

GnLguy wrote:

Wilfried

Thanks for posting this. I’m considering either the Tone King Ironman II or a Two Notes Torpedo Captor Reactive Loadbox so its good to have the thoughts of an owner other than a review on a website

The Universal Audio OX is the primo model that people are raving about but I don’t have $1300 laying around so….

I love the sound of my Blackstar Artist 15 and I can play fairly loud when the family isn’t here but I’m sure I’m nowhere near the amp’s sweet spot. You can get cheaper attenuators that are passive boxes but those are nothing more than an 8 ohm resistor; an 8 ohm rating on a speaker is only t nominal load as the “resistance” that an amp signal is pushing against is constantly changing as the speaker moves in & out – thus the need for a reactive load box that will “react’ just like a speaker.

Tone King makes great sounding amps and includes the Ironman loadbox in many of their models

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/TorpedoCap8–two-notes-torpedo-captor-reactive-loadbox-di-and-attenuator-8-ohm

I tried the Two Notes Torpedo Captor. It has a static reduction of -20dB. This has to be taken into account;
I find variable reduction more pleasant.

The big brother of the TK Ironman II costs twice (that’s okay too), but I don’t need these other options. Such as: 4/8/16 Ohms, DI output with speaker simulation (I have a DI BOX). If it weren’t for the “Mini”, it would be my choice; great device.
And, the Tone King engineers have taken reactive load technology into account when developing their devices.
The difference in quality compared to the Two Notes Torpedo Captor should also be noted here, which is important to me.

Thank you for your considerations.

Wilfried

[WBlues]

charjo wrote:

Thanks, Wilfred, this is something that has caught my attention lately, also. My interest was peaked by seeing the Universal Audio Ox. It’s great to get a recommendation of a more affordable option.
John

John, the Universal Audio Ox was my reference when searching. This is certainly a great device. But I have no experience with it. I did not order it because the device has capabilities that I would not or cannot use.
I also don’t think I would deal with the related software.
Here I once had the software of the Two Notes Torpedo when trying the device on my DAW. Sure a great thing, but not for me.

Thanks for your post.

Wilfried

[WBlues]

Canada Moose wrote:

I checked out the UA Ox online but honestly i can’t figure out what it is or does. And then it needs an attenuator (to quiet it down?)

Is UA Ox an amp/gear simulator like Helix or Axe-FX or Brian’s Kemper profiler? (Kemper is definitely the coolest looking with all those green lights blinking away.)

Just asking because you guys seem to understand and appreciate this UA Ox thing.

The Universal Audio Ox Amp Top Box is an analog silent recording box and at the same time a complete recording system for every tube amplifier up to 150 watts. You can record here with audio microphone, room and speaker simulation. The device is very compatible due to the choice of 4/8/16 ohms and up to 150 watts. Anyone who can use this is certainly well served with the part.
My performance ends at 25 watts with 8 ohms. For me, it would be like driving a racing car to go shopping, LOL.

Yes, the Kemper is cool; definitely. But he can only do what you teach him. But then he does that perfectly. You control the sound quality via profiling. Or you can buy your favorite sounds. The device offers you endless possibilities.

Thanks Roger

Wilfried

[Mark O]

I recently bought my first attenuator and opted for the Mini Mass by Ted Weber. Super affordable at around $150. It’s rated for amps below 30 watts. I use it for my Marshall SV20H. Attenuators tend to lose treble frequencies as you increase attenuation levels. A nice feature of the “Mass” series of attenuators is they have a three position toggle that allows you to add 3db/6db of treble boost or none at all. I find that 3db gives me a perfect amount of bite to my tone. It also has the option (must choose at time of order) to include a foot switch to bypass the attenuator. At the time when I ordered mine, I didn’t see the value in this. Now I’m kicking myself but Weber said they’d install one for me for roughly $25. This attenuator really works wonders for getting that tone at “bedroom” volumes. Granted much of the “feel” of an amp involves air movement from the speaker but the tone still sounds great.

I also more recently bought one of their Mass 100 attenuators (meant for amps up to 50 watts… Weber suggests a 2-1 ratio attenuator rating/amp wattage to ensure any spikes in output due to variables like speaker efficiency don’t damage your amp). Similar features as its little brother, roughly $100 more.

Mark

[WBlues]

Mark O wrote:

I recently bought my first attenuator and opted for the Mini Mass by Ted Weber. Super affordable at around $150. It’s rated for amps below 30 watts. I use it for my Marshall SV20H. Attenuators tend to lose treble frequencies as you increase attenuation levels. A nice feature of the “Mass” series of attenuators is they have a three position toggle that allows you to add 3db/6db of treble boost or none at all. I find that 3db gives me a perfect amount of bite to my tone. It also has the option (must choose at time of order) to include a foot switch to bypass the attenuator. At the time when I ordered mine, I didn’t see the value in this. Now I’m kicking myself but Weber said they’d install one for me for roughly $25. This attenuator really works wonders for getting that tone at “bedroom” volumes. Granted much of the “feel” of an amp involves air movement from the speaker but the tone still sounds great.

I also more recently bought one of their Mass 100 attenuators (meant for amps up to 50 watts… Weber suggests a 2-1 ratio attenuator rating/amp wattage to ensure any spikes in output due to variables like speaker efficiency don’t damage your amp). Similar features as its little brother, roughly $100 more.

Mark

Then the Mini Mass does everything it should and that also well.
I heard about the damping rate, but I didn’t care. My amp produces 25 watts and I use an attenuator that is designed for up to 30 watts. My speaker has 30 watts. Then I use the possible settings of the attenuator as required; I didn’t really care about the recommended damping rate.
Let’s assume that I have my amp in the sweet spot (or wherever) and I set the attenuator to -25db, which gives me a pleasant volume. Then I didn’t care about the actual damping rate. I have reduced an unknown volume by 25db; I do not know more.
My attenuator has a max. -38 db.
The sensitivity of my speaker is given with 100 db sound pressure.
Accordingly, I have (theoretically) a max. Attenuation of 2.6: 1 > 2: 1 and I am in the recommended range.
Or do I have a mistake there?

Wilfried

[Mark O]

I don’t think dampening rate plays into why Weber recommends a (roughly) 2:1 attenuator rating to amp wattage. They just don’t want to see anyone blow up an amp transformer…

[Author]

Replies