5
Some Common Questions
What makes the Valvulator I Vacuum Tube Buffer design
special?
The unique circuitry in the Valvulator I is designed to “feel”
like you are plugged directly into a tube amplifier. The
harmonic warmth and dynamic range of the tube stage vastly
improves touch sensitivity and sustain of the instrument even
when multiple effects and long cable lengths are used. Since
this tube stage is the first link in the signal chain, all of the
other devices down the line benefit from the added warmth of
the Valvulator I Buffer/Line Driver. Even solid state
amplifiers benefit from the added punch and dynamic range
due to the high voltage operation of the vacuum tube circuitry.
How can I use the Valvulator I
TM
to improve the quality of
my home recordings?
Most products intended for direct recording of guitar sounds
lack any tone enhancing vacuum tube circuitry. While some
multi-effects units offer a vacuum tube input stage, this tube is
often operating at too low of a voltage to really make the tube
sing
. Don’t be fooled! Even some of these devices that claim
“High Voltage Tube Circuitry” operate at voltages far below
that which you would find in a normal guitar amplifier. The
high operating voltage of the Valvulator power supply and the
full range frequency response of the audio circuitry insure
excellent dynamic range and a full tonal spectrum that will
give your guitar sound a more realistic amp feel.
Can the Valvulator I
TM
improve the sound of bass or
keyboard instruments?
Yes! Even Vocals! Any signal source that can benefit from
enhanced vacuum tube harmonics will sound better live and
record better with the Valvulator I
in the signal path. Vocals
will sound richer, keyboards will sound fatter and bass
instruments will sound fuller. In fact the Valvulator I
is an
ideal direct box for recording and live sound reinforcement of
bass and keyboards. Just insert the Valvulator I
between the
bass or keyboard output and the amplifier or mixer input (or
both!).
6
Can the Valvulator I
do anything about the hum on my
pedalboard?
Yes! We knew when we designed this product that here would
be a great opportunity to help guitarists and techs build better
sounding, more functional
and quieter
pedalboards. The
Valvulator I has a built-in stomp box power supply that has
four completely isolated and regulated DC outputs. Because
the outputs are isolated, it is easy to hook up several devices
together with NO BUZZ OR HUM CAUSED BY GROUND
LOOPS OR MULTIPLE ONBOARD WALL WARTS! In
addition, any type of battery powered device, modern or
vintage, positive or negative ground, can be operated from the
Valvulator power outputs. Have more than four pedals on your
pedalboard? No problem. These DC outputs have enough
current capacity to operate up to two effects from each of the
four outputs. You can even run 18VDC effects from two
outputs in series.
Is it safe to run my 9 volt effects on a 12 volt supply?
Yes. In fact most power adapters designed for use with 9 volt
effects actually produce 11 to 13 volts DC. Voltage
fluctuations that often occur at the AC wall outlet can cause
the output voltage of these adapters to vary wildly, causing the
DC supply voltage to go as low as 8 volts, and as high as 15
volts DC. You can probably imagine what these voltage
variations are doing to your sound. The Valvulator I provides
filtered, regulated DC to keep your pedal effects operating at
peak performance regardless of varying AC line conditions.
Why do some of the effects on my modeling pedal drop out
after a short time?
Some pedal power supplies do not supply enough current to
operate these devices. Even though some of the effects work
fine, other settings use more processor memory and therefore
require more power. The first (TOP) DC output on Valvulator
I
provides enough voltage and current to power one modeling
pedal regardless of effects setting.
