Imagine you’re about to wade into the ocean on a windy day. As long as your feet are touching the bottom, you can feel the strength of each wave. But once you reach deeper waters, the experience becomes more diffuse as you lose the connection to the bottom and start floating along with the waves. Simply put, it becomes harder to feel the power of the wave movement. An EBS Reidmar bass amp ensures you stay connected with the bottom to feel the power of the (sound) waves, but that’s not always the case with lightweight amplifiers. Let us explain why.
Why do some lightweight amplifiers lack a solid bass tone?
The type of power amplifiers used in lightweight models is called ‘class D’. They are light and compact because they lack the large transformers, capacitors, and cooling elements that analog power amplifiers require. Instead, they consist of smaller, lighter components that are efficient and don’t generate as much heat. Therefore, they don’t need as much cooling. These factors make the power amplifiers lighter and more affordable than analog amplifiers.
The downside is that when class D power amplifiers are overloaded, they clip (distort) hard. Either they go silent for a short while or sound terribly distorted. An analog power amplifier, with or without tubes, generates a softer distortion that can be desirable in some contexts. This means that a class D stage needs protection from overload in a way analog power amplifiers don’t.
One way to protect class D stages is to install an active limiter that ensures the input signal to the power amplifier never reaches the clipping level. The more you increase the volume, the more the limiter kicks in. You get to a point when you lose contact with the bottom, and the low-frequency notes become muddy and difficult to distinguish. You lose the core of the tone, and the bass has difficulty cutting through the mix with other instruments.
Another solution is to use a powerful class D amp with an undersized mains power supply so you never reach the point where the power amplifier clips. In this situation, the bass can feel bottomless since the amplifier only uses a fraction of the power amplifier’s capacity, and both the definition and attack in its response become dull.
What’s the deal with EBS Reidmar amplifiers?
EBS Reidmar models contain a unique solution, which makes them behave more like analog amplifiers. EBS’s Soft Clip technology offers protection against overload but also ensures you never lose contact with the bottom. You feel the power in every bass tone, even when turning up the volume. If you continue to push the amplifier, you will notice that it grinds a little when you play hard on the strings, but not so that it clips hard or becomes hazy, just a little dirty in the best possible way.
The technology allows us to use optimized class D modules that deliver exactly what you need, and thus generate great-sounding and powerful amplifiers at a reasonable price.
That’s why EBS Reidmar 502 and 752 models can often compete with amplifiers that, according to the specifications, should play louder.
What we have learned:
- Class D lightweight power amplifiers need protection against overload.
- Standard solutions for protecting Class D power amplifiers are not optimal.
- EBS uses its own Soft Clip technology in Reidmar amplifiers, which provides a full-bodied sound with a firm bottom even at high volume.
- Due to the unique construction, Reidmar amplifiers can appear more powerful than competing models which, on paper, should be louder.
- By optimally utilizing the capacity of the power amplifier, Reidmar amplifiers deliver very high sound quality for the money.
EBS Reidmar 502 and 752 can handle a 2-ohm load, which means they can power two 4-ohm cabinets at the same time.