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Post subject: Fender Champ 30 and a Preamp
Posted: Sat Dec 22, 2018 2:27 pm
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I just purchased a floor preamp (as in, placed on the floor, rather than in a rack). I already have a Fender Santa Ana pedal that I have used with the Champ 30 connecting the pedal out to amp input. This has worked fine. I would like to attach the preamp in the same fashion. I am concerned that I might damage the amp using the preamp through the input jack. The Santa Ana has many of the same controls (bass, mid, treble, presence, drive) as the preamp. Can I treat a preamp the same as a pedal?

Thanks,
MattSA


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Post subject: Re: Fender Champ 30 and a Preamp
Posted: Sat Dec 22, 2018 9:06 pm
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In general yes, you can run a preamp pedal into the input of the amp.

But something about your phrasing makes me cautious. Can you be more specific about the brand/model of the preamp?


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Post subject: Re: Fender Champ 30 and a Preamp
Posted: Sun Dec 23, 2018 9:30 am
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AMT SS11A Classic Modern Guitar Amp.


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Post subject: Re: Fender Champ 30 and a Preamp
Posted: Sun Dec 23, 2018 10:17 am
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You should be weary of the volume/gain levels of the preamp-output/amp initially and use the #2 reduced decibel input of the amp to start out(check the amps user guide for reference). Some preamps will overload the amps inputs and could potentially sound terrible. Otherwise, start out w/ levels on 1 and see how it reacts w/ your amp/guitar setup.
from the amp user guide, compare to the output of the preamp you have.
INPUT IMPEDANCE >1MΩ
NOMINAL INPUT LEVEL 100 mV


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Post subject: Re: Fender Champ 30 and a Preamp
Posted: Sun Dec 23, 2018 2:07 pm
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I have very little experience with the science of electricity and speakers, so the following is me trying to make sense of these terms and such.

I checked the AMT documentation and it lists Output Impedance as 10,000 kOhms, while the input impedance of the Champ 30 is > 1M Ohms. Another site says as long as the speaker impedance is higher there will be no damage to the system, so I believe this is safe.

The Champ 30 has a nominal input level of 100mV or .1 Volts. The AMT documentation listed an output signal level for two different modes as +10 dB and -10 dB. So the units are different and I am having a difficult time converting, but I have read that 1 V = 0 dBs. I would think then that the first mode is safe, but how can I determine the second as .1 * 0 is 0?


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Post subject: Re: Fender Champ 30 and a Preamp
Posted: Sun Dec 23, 2018 2:16 pm
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Ok, after looking more closely at the two 'modes', one is to AMP (which I believe is the Champ 30) at +10 dB and the other is to MIX at -10 dB, which would be a mixing board? Sorry for the layman thinking. If this is the case than I would be well over nominal, correct?


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Post subject: Re: Fender Champ 30 and a Preamp
Posted: Mon Dec 24, 2018 8:05 am
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In layman's terms, use the -3DB #2 input and start w/ all gain and volume controls on 1 including the guitar.
Work your way up from there, you will likely find a sweet spot that sounds the way you expect it to. I prefer to keep preamp settings lower to maintain full output control from the guitars volume/tone controls.
I wouldn't expect the amp to handle all of the preamps signal gain.

If the amp doesn't handle the pedals full output, you could always substitute the tubes in the preamp. I would try a pair of 5751's in place of the 12ax7's to start with. You may find going with lower output tubes will tame the gain structure enough to allow you to optimize your amp's output.


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Post subject: Re: Fender Champ 30 and a Preamp
Posted: Mon Dec 24, 2018 9:10 am
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Thanks for the help.

MattSA


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