Some Uber Ultra action

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hopkinWFG said:
i just down my deposit for a Uber ultra... but having a dilemma to go with El34 or 6l6? which will accentuate the Bogner Uber amp design more?
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If you go EL34, you can pretty easily get the amp modded to take 6L6 tubes, which means the EL34 version will ultimately allow you to use all three kinds of power tubes if you want. You can't mod the 6L6 version to accept EL34's or KT88's.

If it was my money, I'd get the EL34 version so I could, funny enough, mod two slots for 6L6's and mix them with two KT88's.
6L6 for more low end punch, KT88's for super clear mids and highs.

I spoke to my tech about it and they told me that mixing 6L6's and KT88's in an EL34 amp should work fine as long as the sockets you want 6L6's in are modded with a few bucks worth of parts, and that each bias pot was connected to a push/pull pair as opposed to each pot being connected to the push OR pull side, because there's no way a single bias control is going to get a 6L6 and KT88 anywhere close to being biased correctly together. You don't want one kind of tube pushing and another kind pulling. If you use two pairs of different types tubes, you'll want one of each tube type to push, and one of each tube type to pull. However, even if each bias pot is only connected to a push only pair or pull only pair, it should be easy enough to rewire the two bias pots to connect to a push pull pair, or even to add bias pots for each individual tube slot and just bias each tube individually.
 
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Shredneck said:
Another great demo of this amp! I want one haha

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Good lord that's a lot of gain.

I was thinking about how crazy over-the-top the amp sounds in that video, almost like it's about to blow up. Then I noticed the guy is running both channel volumes and the master volumes at 1:00... fucking 1:00! So he's WAY into poweramp breakup there. No wonder the amp sounds as hyper gained out as it does. That's also why the "clean" channel in this video sounded almost as distorted as the high gain channels. It does sound gnarly though, and the mix in the beginning sounds good.

Still, the fact that he's juicing the poweramp so hard is also the reason the Density control in this video doesn't do anything when he adjusts it. It's also why the Presence and Depth controls do almost nothing as he rotates them. The poweramp is almost completely saturated at almost all frequencies even with a high level of negative feedback applied (negative feedback increases as the Density control moves clockwise) so lowering the amount of negative feedback by turning that knob to the left isn't going to make a difference.

I mean, more power to the guy, if he likes it that way then great. But that's a very unique way to run a modern high gainer for sure.
 
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So Blake, have you set the depth and density to max which is the OG Uber setting? If so what do you think of it?
 
TheGreatGreen said:
If you go EL34, you can pretty easily get the amp modded to take 6L6 tubes, which means the EL34 version will ultimately allow you to use all three kinds of power tubes if you want. You can't mod the 6L6 version to accept EL34's or KT88's.

If it was my money, I'd get the EL34 version so I could, funny enough, mod two slots for 6L6's and mix them with two KT88's.
6L6 for more low end punch, KT88's for super clear mids and highs.

I spoke to my tech about it and they told me that mixing 6L6's and KT88's in an EL34 amp should work fine as long as the sockets you want 6L6's in are modded with a few bucks worth of parts, and that each bias pot was connected to a push/pull pair as opposed to each pot being connected to the push OR pull side, because there's no way a single bias control is going to get a 6L6 and KT88 anywhere close to being biased correctly together. You don't want one kind of tube pushing and another kind pulling. If you use two pairs of different types tubes, you'll want one of each tube type to push, and one of each tube type to pull. However, even if each bias pot is only connected to a push only pair or pull only pair, it should be easy enough to rewire the two bias pots to connect to a push pull pair, or even to add bias pots for each individual tube slot and just bias each tube individually.
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Thanks for the advise but i just thought an El34 design amp as its transformer for the HT will not have enough voltages for higher powered tubes like 6l6 and KT88 for their PV ?
 
looks like old boutique brands of tube amplification are getting their hype up on modern amp sound...... !! who says tube amps are dead? Shuguang is rebuilding its factory i heard !

Bogner - Pandora, Uber ultra
Diezel - Herbert MK3,VH2
Mesa Boogie - Mark VII
Wizard - Hell Razor
Fryette - (Still busying with his Malcontent on Utube ?? LOL)
 
hopkinWFG said:
looks like old boutique brands of tube amplification are getting their hype up on modern amp sound...... !! who says tube amps are dead? Shuguang is rebuilding its factory i heard !

Bogner - Pandora, Uber ultra
Diezel - Herbert MK3,VH2
Mesa Boogie - Mark VII
Wizard - Hell Razor
Fryette - (Still busying with his Malcontent on Utube ?? LOL)
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I know it’s not an old brand but mezzabarba has the devastation coming too- lots of exciting new stuff this year
 
I got my Uber Ultra yesterday. Got to admit, it was not a great first "ride." I'm sure it can sound awesome and I'm going to play around with it more today but my initial impressions are documented in this video, when I turned off the standby for the first time. (Warning: there is a lot of noise.)



First impressions:
  • The clean channel is surprisingly great
  • Crunch mode sounds a lot like the blue channel on my old XTC 20th EL34
  • The Uber mode sounds great with the gain straight at noon
  • All the option switches are very cool and greatly impact the feel and tone
  • The Metamorph control and the associated switch is kind of confusing
  • The Ultra mode is almost unuseable; it has so much gain and noise
  • The amp is very noisy: the noise floor is very high and the feedback is out of control
  • The amp is overall very bright and does that modern "clanky" thing some people hate
  • The amp is easy to make very piercing -- there's a lot of harsh top end frequencies in this amp
  • The left channel is completely different from the right channel (much brighter overall except for Uber mode, which is much darker)

I'm going to try some different guitars and settings today and see what happens. I'm not ready to give up on it or anything but it was not one of those amps you plug into and go "hell yeah!" I don't want to make comparisons but I got my Omega Granophyre the same day and I am surprised to admit that I like it a lot more.
 
Sorry it didn’t go well at first… what cab were you using?
hellzington said:
I got my Uber Ultra yesterday. Got to admit, it was not a great first "ride." I'm sure it can sound awesome and I'm going to play around with it more today but my initial impressions are documented in this video, when I turned off the standby for the first time. (Warning: there is a lot of noise.)



First impressions:
  • The clean channel is surprisingly great
  • Crunch mode sounds a lot like the blue channel on my old XTC 20th EL34
  • The Uber mode sounds great with the gain straight at noon
  • All the option switches are very cool and greatly impact the feel and tone
  • The Metamorph control and the associated switch is kind of confusing
  • The Ultra mode is almost unuseable; it has so much gain and noise
  • The amp is very noisy: the noise floor is very high and the feedback is out of control
  • The amp is overall very bright and does that modern "clanky" thing some people hate
  • The amp is easy to make very piercing -- there's a lot of harsh top end frequencies in this amp
  • The left channel is completely different from the right channel (much brighter overall except for Uber mode, which is much darker)

I'm going to try some different guitars and settings today and see what happens. I'm not ready to give up on it or anything but it was not one of those amps you plug into and go "hell yeah!" I don't want to make comparisons but I got my Omega Granophyre the same day and I am surprised to admit that I like it a lot mor
Click to expand...
 
hellzington said:
I got my Uber Ultra yesterday. Got to admit, it was not a great first "ride." I'm sure it can sound awesome and I'm going to play around with it more today but my initial impressions are documented in this video, when I turned off the standby for the first time. (Warning: there is a lot of noise.)



First impressions:
  • The clean channel is surprisingly great
  • Crunch mode sounds a lot like the blue channel on my old XTC 20th EL34
  • The Uber mode sounds great with the gain straight at noon
  • All the option switches are very cool and greatly impact the feel and tone
  • The Metamorph control and the associated switch is kind of confusing
  • The Ultra mode is almost unuseable; it has so much gain and noise
  • The amp is very noisy: the noise floor is very high and the feedback is out of control
  • The amp is overall very bright and does that modern "clanky" thing some people hate
  • The amp is easy to make very piercing -- there's a lot of harsh top end frequencies in this amp
  • The left channel is completely different from the right channel (much brighter overall except for Uber mode, which is much darker)

I'm going to try some different guitars and settings today and see what happens. I'm not ready to give up on it or anything but it was not one of those amps you plug into and go "hell yeah!" I don't want to make comparisons but I got my Omega Granophyre the same day and I am surprised to admit that I like it a lot more.
Click to expand...

I agree with pretty much everything you said. I got mine a few weeks ago and it took forever to dial in. I assumed the Uber mode on channel 1 and 2 would be the same, but like you said, they sound totally different. I’ll post pics of the settings I finally settled on when I get a chance.
 
loganflynn294 said:
I agree with pretty much everything you said. I got mine a few weeks ago and it took forever to dial in. I assumed the Uber mode on channel 1 and 2 would be the same, but like you said, they sound totally different. I’ll post pics of the settings I finally settled on when I get a chance.
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Cool, thanks. Very interested in your settings. I’m going to use some darker guitars today and see how that goes.
 
hellzington said:
I got my Uber Ultra yesterday. Got to admit, it was not a great first "ride." I'm sure it can sound awesome and I'm going to play around with it more today but my initial impressions are documented in this video, when I turned off the standby for the first time. (Warning: there is a lot of noise.)



First impressions:
  • The clean channel is surprisingly great
  • Crunch mode sounds a lot like the blue channel on my old XTC 20th EL34
  • The Uber mode sounds great with the gain straight at noon
  • All the option switches are very cool and greatly impact the feel and tone
  • The Metamorph control and the associated switch is kind of confusing
  • The Ultra mode is almost unuseable; it has so much gain and noise
  • The amp is very noisy: the noise floor is very high and the feedback is out of control
  • The amp is overall very bright and does that modern "clanky" thing some people hate
  • The amp is easy to make very piercing -- there's a lot of harsh top end frequencies in this amp
  • The left channel is completely different from the right channel (much brighter overall except for Uber mode, which is much darker)

I'm going to try some different guitars and settings today and see what happens. I'm not ready to give up on it or anything but it was not one of those amps you plug into and go "hell yeah!" I don't want to make comparisons but I got my Omega Granophyre the same day and I am surprised to admit that I like it a lot more.
Click to expand...


Just curious, have you ever played an original Uberschall, and if so what did you think about it? Can you compare it to the Uber Ultra?
 
TheGreatGreen said:
Just curious, have you ever played an original Uberschall, and if so what did you think about it? Can you compare it to the Uber Ultra?
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Never played an OG Uberschall. I have owned two Bogners: a XTC 20th EL34 and a Cantrell-modded Fish Preamp (used with a VHT 2150 power amp).

This amp is much brighter and noisier than either. It is difficult to dial in like the Fish. The XTC was much easier to get a variety of tones out of.
 
TheGreatGreen said:
Just curious, have you ever played an original Uberschall, and if so what did you think about it? Can you compare it to the Uber Ultra?
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I’ve got an old Rev2, serial 220 from around 2002, been meaning to do a review comparing it to the Ultra I got a few weeks ago. The old one is way easier to dial in for sure, just put all eq knobs around 1:00 and it sounds great. It’s hard to describe the sonic differences, I’d say the Rev2 has a wider, more room filling sound compared to the Ultra which is way tighter and more immediate and in your face. I can get the Ultra close to the old one, but it’s still got its own thing going on. The Rev2 is a little squishier, needs a boost to get really tight for thrash kinda stuff whereas the Ultra gets so damn tight without boosting. I love them both, they’re similar but still different enough for me to justify keeping them both. One of these days I’ll get around to doing a more in depth review and post some clips of both amps to compare.
 
loganflynn294 said:
I’ve got an old Rev2, serial 220 from around 2002, been meaning to do a review comparing it to the Ultra I got a few weeks ago. The old one is way easier to dial in for sure, just put all eq knobs around 1:00 and it sounds great. It’s hard to describe the sonic differences, I’d say the Rev2 has a wider, more room filling sound compared to the Ultra which is way tighter and more immediate and in your face. I can get the Ultra close to the old one, but it’s still got its own thing going on. The Rev2 is a little squishier, needs a boost to get really tight for thrash kinda stuff whereas the Ultra gets so damn tight without boosting. I love them both, they’re similar but still different enough for me to justify keeping them both. One of these days I’ll get around to doing a more in depth review and post some clips of both amps to compare.
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Appreciate hearing your throughs on the comparison. I have myself a first version OG Uber that I’m extremely curious about comparing to the Ultra when mine finally shows up. Based on the Ultra clips I’ve heard I’m getting the exact same impressions you mentioned. It seems like it’ll be way tighter, more modern and cutting than the my OG, but not as wide, thick, warm, chewy or wild sounding. Will find out soon for myself hopefully. My OG has been the only keeper Bogner for me so far fwiw
 
hellzington said:
I got my Uber Ultra yesterday. Got to admit, it was not a great first "ride." I'm sure it can sound awesome and I'm going to play around with it more today but my initial impressions are documented in this video, when I turned off the standby for the first time. (Warning: there is a lot of noise.)



First impressions:
  • The clean channel is surprisingly great
  • Crunch mode sounds a lot like the blue channel on my old XTC 20th EL34
  • The Uber mode sounds great with the gain straight at noon
  • All the option switches are very cool and greatly impact the feel and tone
  • The Metamorph control and the associated switch is kind of confusing
  • The Ultra mode is almost unuseable; it has so much gain and noise
  • The amp is very noisy: the noise floor is very high and the feedback is out of control
  • The amp is overall very bright and does that modern "clanky" thing some people hate
  • The amp is easy to make very piercing -- there's a lot of harsh top end frequencies in this amp
  • The left channel is completely different from the right channel (much brighter overall except for Uber mode, which is much darker)

I'm going to try some different guitars and settings today and see what happens. I'm not ready to give up on it or anything but it was not one of those amps you plug into and go "hell yeah!" I don't want to make comparisons but I got my Omega Granophyre the same day and I am surprised to admit that I like it a lot more.
Click to expand...


Maybe try a noise gate in front, see if that calms things a bit with that much gain. I mean this with all due respect, because I do like the videos and reviews you do. I don’t feel like your style may be the best fit for this amp from what I’ve seen and my experience with the old uberschalls. When they’re at their best is with chugging down tuned stuff in my opinion. But hey to each their own!
 
Bram576 said:
Maybe try a noise gate in front, see if that calms things a bit with that much gain. I mean this with all due respect, because I do like the videos and reviews you do. I don’t feel like your style may be the best fit for this amp from what I’ve seen and my experience with the old uberschalls. When they’re at their best is with chugging down tuned stuff in my opinion. But hey to each their own!
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No offense taken. I agree with you. I talk to that a bit at the end of the video. I feel like the UU is a real metal amp. Like METAL metal. The furthest I go into that is dark hard rock like A Perfect Circle, Tool, Alice In Chains, et. I feel like this amp is made for Arch Enemy and At The Gates and whatnot. Black/Death/Grindcore etc.

Good news is I have a 30 day return policy from Sweetwater so if I don’t like it I can send it back.

Regarding noise gates, I just have never found one I’ve liked. They always choke amps and dynamics. Some of the noise on the Ultra channel was even present between pick strokes, which is nuts. No noise gate will prevent that. But I feel you and you’re right.
 
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hellzington said:
No offense taken. I agree with you. I talk to that a bit at the end of the video. I feel like the UA is a real metal amp. Like METAL metal. The furthest I go into that is dark hard rock like A Perfect Circle, Tool, Alice In Chains, et. I feel like this amp is made for Arch Enemy and At The Gates and whatnot. Black/Death/Grindcore etc.

Good news is I have a 30 day return policy from Sweetwater so if I don’t like it I can send it back.

Regarding noise gates, I just have never found one I’ve liked. They always choke amps and dynamics. Some of the noise on the Ultra channel was even present between pick strokes, which is nuts. No noise gate will prevent that. But I feel you and you’re right.
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Have you tried the Fortin Zuul? Only gate I’ll touch anymore. That is pretty wild how over the top that is. I’m sure some people here would take it off your hands too!
 
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