Alembic Guitars Club
Connecting => Miscellaneous => Topic started by: Glynn on November 17, 2010, 09:17:19 AM
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Does anyone use/adjust the trim pot inside Alembic basses? I have had my Orion 4 since June 2000 and just left it as it was - I think about half-way from memory. Is it best to leave well alone?
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Trim pots can be used to adjust the gain of your pickups. They are frequently adjusted by people who try to match the output levels between two instruments, etc.
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The trim pot doesn't change the tone from the instrument, it only changes the amount of signal sent from the instrument to your amp. For some amps, too much signal from the instrument may overdrive the amp's preamp stage.
As Kevin stated, you can use your trim pot to adjust the output of your Orion to match the output of some other bass you play on the same show. Thus you can set your amp up to expect the same amount of signal from both basses.
Like the Essence, Persuader, Epic, and Excel, the Orion has one preamp, and thus one trim pot. The other models have two preamps, one for each pickup, and thus two trim pots. With two trim pots the outputs of each pickup can be adjusted relative to one another.
I tend to think that in order to minimize the amplification of noise in your signal chain, it's a good idea to send as much signal as possible from the instrument to your amp, as long as your amp can handle it. I'm thinking that it makes more efficient use of your amp's power. But I would imagine that the relationship between instrument output and preamp tube saturation is probably a bit more complex than that. So you may want to experiment with adjusting your trim pot and seeing how that effects your amp. You may find a sweet spot that works well for your rig.
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Many thanks for your explanations. I understand the purpose of the trim pot now. Glynn
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Ooops i thought this thread was about trimming flora.....;-)
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Yes, it's a budding business.
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Especially if you are into heavy petal music or anything by Rose Royce, Gladioli Knight and the Pips or Florists and The Machine. Better stop now or I never will.
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I like heavy petal ,
Is that a phrase you just coined?
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A good many years ago I played piano for De Bloeiende Maagden, but that's a floral pun that only the Dutch can appreciate.