- Aug 3, 2009
- 1,602
- 14
- 38
Hello everyone
A bit over 2 years ago I got an e580 from a local distributor- actually not a distributor, just a reseller guy from some e-bay like site. At the time there were not much reviews on ENGL pres (unlike now) so, not knowing any better, I decided to bite the bullet and 'get the expensive one'.
The guy who sold the pre to me asked for an advance (75% or so I think) and I never heard from him in the following 3 months. Finally after much stalking and sourness he showed up with the pre.. The box had the ENGL logo but it was open already (he said he had to 'check things' first before receiving it at the airport).
He then proceeded to excuse himself telling me something about how the pre had fallen off a UPS truck in the States and how the pre arrived dead here (woudn't even turn on), so that he had to ship it back and order another one, ask for some reimbursement from the insurance company he had paid for, and then have the new unit shipped from the States.
Of course by then I was already furious, but couldn't do/say much as I thought I was gonna be depending on the guy for any possible problems (especially after hearing such a colorful story)-
So, before even turning the thing on, I was already expecting the worst, thinking the guy got a cheaper faulty unit, or that he swapped the tubes for an amp of his, or had it 'fixed' by who knows who..
The guy (a salesman more than anything else) then connected the pre without PA or cab IRs nothing (I didn't know much more at the time), so right there I'm thinking 'aww, shit'..
Nowadays I'm not such a noob anymore (at least I'd like to think so) I've had my share of experience w sims and amps and I've also tried the 580 in every possible way, the result always being a watered down weak overdrive-kinda thing.
So anyway, bumping this from another thread from a few days, I've made a comparison of the X30 and what I'm getting out of the 580, both through the FX send, and through the line output of the unit (this last one with the level knob maxed out):
-DI through X30:
-DI through the E580's fx loop send (input gain knob at max, then dialed back to noon so you can hear how lame that sounds):
-DI through the E580's frequency corrected line output (input gain knob at max, then dialed back to noon; boxy sound, and lame again):
For all these bounces I used a single track - Jeff's DI (Gtr L 1 DI) and Gregs impulse in Boogex (no filters or anything).
All the files were bounced in exactly the same way, and the 580 had all settings at noon, just like the X30:
(in the pic you see the input gain on the left as well as effect, volume and master -on the right- at max, but for the comparison I dialed them to noon)
Just to be sure it wasn't a tube gone bad, I exchanged all 4 for brand new JJ's right before making this test, although the original ones have not had any use, obviously(?).
So, either I'm doing something terribly wrong, or the pre is definitely fucked up
I was thinking about either getting me a 530 JUST for comparison ($600, so that's def a possibility) or, perhaps better yet, having the pre sent to a repair center in USA. A bit more difficult this one, but at this point, I feel like I've got nothing to lose.
Do you have any opinions or any word of advice for me?
Any help would be extremely appreciated
A bit over 2 years ago I got an e580 from a local distributor- actually not a distributor, just a reseller guy from some e-bay like site. At the time there were not much reviews on ENGL pres (unlike now) so, not knowing any better, I decided to bite the bullet and 'get the expensive one'.
The guy who sold the pre to me asked for an advance (75% or so I think) and I never heard from him in the following 3 months. Finally after much stalking and sourness he showed up with the pre.. The box had the ENGL logo but it was open already (he said he had to 'check things' first before receiving it at the airport).
He then proceeded to excuse himself telling me something about how the pre had fallen off a UPS truck in the States and how the pre arrived dead here (woudn't even turn on), so that he had to ship it back and order another one, ask for some reimbursement from the insurance company he had paid for, and then have the new unit shipped from the States.
Of course by then I was already furious, but couldn't do/say much as I thought I was gonna be depending on the guy for any possible problems (especially after hearing such a colorful story)-
So, before even turning the thing on, I was already expecting the worst, thinking the guy got a cheaper faulty unit, or that he swapped the tubes for an amp of his, or had it 'fixed' by who knows who..
The guy (a salesman more than anything else) then connected the pre without PA or cab IRs nothing (I didn't know much more at the time), so right there I'm thinking 'aww, shit'..
Nowadays I'm not such a noob anymore (at least I'd like to think so) I've had my share of experience w sims and amps and I've also tried the 580 in every possible way, the result always being a watered down weak overdrive-kinda thing.
So anyway, bumping this from another thread from a few days, I've made a comparison of the X30 and what I'm getting out of the 580, both through the FX send, and through the line output of the unit (this last one with the level knob maxed out):
-DI through X30:
-DI through the E580's fx loop send (input gain knob at max, then dialed back to noon so you can hear how lame that sounds):
-DI through the E580's frequency corrected line output (input gain knob at max, then dialed back to noon; boxy sound, and lame again):
For all these bounces I used a single track - Jeff's DI (Gtr L 1 DI) and Gregs impulse in Boogex (no filters or anything).
All the files were bounced in exactly the same way, and the 580 had all settings at noon, just like the X30:
(in the pic you see the input gain on the left as well as effect, volume and master -on the right- at max, but for the comparison I dialed them to noon)
Just to be sure it wasn't a tube gone bad, I exchanged all 4 for brand new JJ's right before making this test, although the original ones have not had any use, obviously(?).
So, either I'm doing something terribly wrong, or the pre is definitely fucked up
I was thinking about either getting me a 530 JUST for comparison ($600, so that's def a possibility) or, perhaps better yet, having the pre sent to a repair center in USA. A bit more difficult this one, but at this point, I feel like I've got nothing to lose.
Do you have any opinions or any word of advice for me?
Any help would be extremely appreciated
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