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OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS

MAG & Electric Blue Amplifier Heads and Combos

Thank you for purchasing your Ashdown Engineering Amplifier. If you live in the UK, please register yourpurchase by completing this form and return it to the following address:

Ashdown Engineering, The Old Maltings, Hall Road, Heybridge, Maldon, Essex CM9 4NJ, England

(Alternatively you can register online at http://www.ashdownmusic.com)

If you live outside the UK, the local Ashdown distributor may have included a specific registration formfor your country.

Your Ashdown Engineering product details:

Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Colour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Voltage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tested by . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Serial number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Date . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1 YEAR WARRANTY

Your Ashdown Engineering amplifier has been manufactured to the highest standards, using the best-selected materials. To ensure its optimum performance, please ensure your amplifier is regularly

serviced. This product carries a one year warranty, against defects in materials and workmanship, for theoriginal purchaser. Ashdown Engineering will, at their discretion, replace or repair any product or partthereof, which is found by Ashdown Engineering to be defective. This warranty shall not apply to thedamage of covering, fittings or finishes when affected by carelessness, accident or extreme climate

changes. Nor does it apply to normal wear and tear of parts such as valves, fuses, light bulbs, speakers,controls etc.

Please complete the lower section of this warranty and return it within 10 days of purchase to AshdownEngineering Ltd. at the above address. In the unlikely event of any defect, please contact an authorised

Ashdown Engineering dealer. All transport charges are to be pre-paid by the Owner. Unless theregistration card is returned normal country warranty laws apply.

Please complete and return this warranty within 10 days of purchase. Include any comments if possible.

Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Purchased from . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Date . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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Email . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Age . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Comments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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IMPORTANT - REGISTRATION CARD

BASIC PRECAUTIONS

WARNING - When using electrical products,basic precautions should be followed,including the following:

1. Read all the instructions before using theproduct.

2. Do not use this product near water – forexample, near a bathtub, washbowl,kitchen sink, in a wet basement or near aswimming pool.

3. This product may cause permanenthearing loss. Do not operate for longperiods of time at a high volume level orat any level that is uncomfortable. If youexperience any hearing loss or ringing inthe ears, you should consult anaudiologist.

4. Make sure nothing interferes with theventilation of the product when in use.

5. The product should be located awayfrom heat sources such as radiators, heatregisters, or other products that produceheat.

6. The product should be connected to apower supply of the type described inthe operating instructions or as markedon the product.

7. The power supply cord of the productshould be unplugged from the outletwhen left unused for a long period oftime.

8. Care should be taken so that objects donot fall and liquids are not spilled intothe enclosure through openings.

9. The product should be serviced byqualified personnel when:

a. The power supply cord or the plughas been damaged; or

b. Objects have fallen, or liquid has beenspilled into theproduct: or

c. The product has been exposed to rainor moisture: or

d. The product does not appear tooperate normally or exhibits markedchange in performance: or

e. The product has been dropped, or theenclosure damaged.

10. Do not attempt to service the product.All servicing should be referred toqualified service personnel.

11. For continued protection against the riskof fire, replace fuses only with those ofthe same type and rating as indicated onthe back of the product.

WARNINGS USED ON THE EQUIPMENT

The lightning flash with thearrow head symbol within anequilateral triangle is intendedto alert the user to the presence

of uninsulated ‘dangerous voltage’ within thisproduct’s enclosure that may be of sufficientmagnitude to constitute a risk of electricshock.

The exclamation point within anequilateral triangle is intendedto alert the user to the presenceof important operating and

maintenance (servicing) instructions in theliterature accompanying this product.

GROUNDING INSTRUCTIONS

This product must be grounded (earthed). Ifit should malfunction or break down,grounding provides a path of least resistancefor electric current to reduce the risk ofelectric shock. This product is equipped witha supply cord having an equipmentgrounding conductor and a grounding plug.The plug must be plugged into anappropriate outlet that is properly installedand grounded in accordance with the localcodes and ordinances.

DANGER - Improper connection of theequipment grounding conductor can resultin a risk of electric shock. Check with aqualified electrician or serviceman if you arein doubt as to whether the product isproperly grounded. Do not modify the plugprovided with the product – if it will not fitthe outlet, have a suitable outlet fitted.

The wires in this mains cord are coloured inaccordance with the following code:

Green & Yellow - EarthBlue - NeutralBrown - Live

CE MARK FOR EUROPEANHARMONISED STANDARDS

The CE mark which is attached to theseproducts means it conforms to EMCDirective (89/69/EEC), CE mark Directive(93/68/EEC) and Low Voltage Directive(72/23/EEC).

Important Safety Instructions

MAG300, MAG600 and Electric Blueamplifiers share the same front panelfacilities.

INPUTS - There are two choices ofinstrument input, these are marked PASSIVEand ACTIVE. The PASSIVE input is highsensitivity and high impedance to suitPASSIVE bass instruments. The ACTIVE inputis much lower sensitivity and impedance toaccurately match the signal from ACTIVE bassinstruments i.e. those with a built in batterypowered pre-amp.

INPUT CONTROL - The INPUT control setsthe signal level through the preamp inconjunction with the INPUT LEVEL VU Meter.This is adjusted to give a reading of 0VU onthe meter for average playing dynamics withoccasional peaks into the red region. Pleasenote that the setting of this may have to bere-adjusted after modification of the EQcontrols.

DEEP - With this button IN a fixed E.Q. issuperimposed on the pre-amp to give a BASSboost to the sound. This gives +8dB at 50Hz.

BRIGHT - With this button IN a fixed E.Q. issuperimposed on the pre-amp to give aTREBLE boost to the sound. This gives +10dBat 10kHz.

E.Q. - This button switches the Equalisationsection IN or OUT i.e. the Bass, Middle andTreble controls and the two rotary controlsplaced between these.

Front Panel Facilities

MAG300

MAG600

Electric Blue

EQUALISATION - This consists of BASS,MIDDLE and TREBLE controls with two morerotary controls placed in-between. This canbe used in a number of ways:

Firstly as a very simple Bass, Middle andTreble tone control section as found on oldertraditional amplifiers. This is done by leavingthe 340Hz and 1.6kHz controls set in theircentre positions and using only the BASS,MIDDLE and TREBLE controls to alter theoverall tone.

Secondly, If more control is required then the340Hz and 1.6kHz controls can also be usedto tailor the E.Q. in the regions between themain tone controls.

This provides a very versatile Equalisationsection, it is simple to understand andoperate, yet provides a wide degree ofvariation. It retains the simplicity of a threecontrol tone section but provides theflexibility of a graphic equaliser.

COMPRESSION - Adding a small amount ofcompression gives a fat bottom end to thesound and allows a greater volume ofamplification to be used without the playingpeaks distorting the amplifiers output stage.You will also find that this will add definitionto your playing bringing out notes within arun more clearly as it evens out the dynamicsof your playing.

A large amount of compression can be usedas an effect but it will tend to reduce thedynamics in your playing to such an extentthat the volume of the note will be the sameno matter how hard or soft you hit the string.Compression also adds sustain to notesmaking them longer before they die away.

The Compression Level control adjusts thedegree of compression applied to the basssignal. For this to function correctly the InputLevel must be correctly set as described inthe INPUT CONTROL section (left).

When the Input Level is correctly set therewill be hardly any difference in volumebetween Compression IN and CompressionOUT. This is because the amplifierautomatically compensates for the reductionin level that would be apparent whenCompression is added by increasing theoverall gain to restore the volume to its precompression level, because of this you maynotice an increase in background noise withhigh compression settings.

Compression is switched IN/OUT with thepush button adjacent to the CompressionLevel control.

SUB HARMONICS - This section producesSub Harmonics an octave below the notesbeing played. The level of these SubHarmonics relative to the straight bass soundcan be adjusted using the LEVEL control.This is very effective in thickening the soundand you will find in use that only a smalldegree of this lower octave is required toreally fill out the sound and provide acharacter that is not possible by any othermeans.

The degree of Sub Harmonics is alsodependant on the setting of the BASScontrol.

Sub Harmonics are switched IN/OUT with thepush button adjacent to the Sub HarmonicsLevel control.

DIRECT INJECT ( D.I. ) - A balanced D.I. isprovided on the front panel XLR socket. Thisprovides a Post E.Q. Post effects signal.The output signal from this XLR socket is setto a level and impedance suitable forconnecting directly into a BalancedMicrophone input of a mixing desk for eitherDirect Injection into the PA system or forrecording.

EFFECTS SEND/RETURN - A serial effectsloop is provided at a level of 0dB. The EffectsSend and Return sockets for this are on thefront panel below the D.I. socket.The EFFECTS SEND socket can also be usedas a Line Out socket if required. The signalpath through the preamp is only brokenwhen a jack plug is inserted into the EFFECTSRETURN socket. The EFFECTS SEND issituated after the EQ.

TUNER/LINE OUT - This output socketprovides a line level signal that can be usedeither for a permanent connection to a tuneror a line output for connection to otherpower amplifiers and speakers.

OUTPUT LEVEL - The OUTPUT controladjusts the overall level of the amplifier.Adjust this for your preferred overall stageplaying volume.

Everything possible has been done to makethese reliable, minimum service, high quality,long lasting powerful bass amplifiers.

We know you will appreciate the effort thathas been put into the design andmanufacture of this unit and you will berewarded in your choice of bass amplifier bylong life and reliability.

Specifications

INPUTSHigh Input Impedance 3.9M Ohms Input range 150mV to 20V p-pLow Input Impedance 10K Ohms Input range 300mV to 40V p-pEffects Return Impedance 22K Ohms Input level 0dBu nominal

OUTPUTSTuner Output Impedance 10K Ohms Level 0dBu nominalEffects Send Impedance 22K Ohms Level 0dBu nominalD.I. Output 600 Ohms balanced Level -20dBu nominal

Speaker Outputs Minimum Impedance 4 OhmsFrequency Response -3dB at 22Hz and 25kHz

EQUALISATION Bass +/- 15dB @ 100HzLo Mid +/- 15dB @ 340Hz Middle +/- 15dB @ 660HzHi Mid +/- 15dB @ 1.6kHzTreble +/- 15dB @ 7kHz ShelvingDeep + 8dB @ 50HzBright + 10dB @ 10kHz

Signal to Noise Better than 80dB (EQ Flat)Distortion Less than 0.5% THD

www.ashdownmusic.com