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My band, Red For Dissent
FWIW, I also bought mine 2nd hand, but it was originally bought through a UK dealership, I had the original receipt and it was still in warranty. JHS were good enough to swap it out even though they knew I wasn't the original purchaser and didn't have to.
My usage is probably different to yours. I actually don't use the boost as a boost, but as a tonal difference. I like the extra 'shimmer' it gives you when it's turned on, but I try and keep it as close to unity gain as I can. I use a pedal for true volume boost. One of the reasons for that is I use other amps as well as the Amp1, but only have one pedal board - so I need to make the board work with all my amps.
My band, Red For Dissent
The risk with Amp1 for those of us outside Germany is that the technology used is different enough that the importers don't know how to repair them. Every problem is "return to manufacturer" just like a PC board. If you're out of warranty, then you're in trouble because it might get expensive.
However, for me, mine is currently reliable and works well. I bought a used FatCab off here recently and rather like that, too. It's a decent cabinet for other amps as well as the Amp1 (to my ears, but we're all different about tone, aren't we?). I wouldn't like it if a feature I cared about stopped working, though.
Not for nothing is there a phrase called "the bleeding edge"! :-)
I've emailed JHS. Got to be worth a go.
My band, Red For Dissent
My band, Red For Dissent
A straight replacement would be good
My band, Red For Dissent
My band, Red For Dissent
My band, Red For Dissent
It was one of the reasons I sent it back.
It was absolutely horrible. Nasty dynamics - stiff and unresponsive when playing gently, then sounding like it was brick-wall limited when playing hard; nasty tone - very nasal and clangy, which could not be dialed out completely even with extreme EQ settings; impossible to balance the channels completely even using the massively annoying fiddly little trimpots; and required a total change of settings for different guitars.
I didn't even get round to using the FX loop or trying the MIDI… no point when it sounded that bad. Incredibly disappointing after it sounded pretty good in some demo clips.
No idea about the reliability - it wasn't with me to be repaired, just checked over - but I've heard enough that it would put me off, given that it looks like it would be very difficult to repair other than by a factory board replacement.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
I'm a happy AMP1 user who had MIDI working well after a little bit of work. The problem was with me, not the unit. I was able to program the AMP1 to change channel/boost/reverb settings and change the Power Soak, 2nd Master Volume and Gain settings. The "toggle" functions listed in the manual (the reverb/boost/effects loop on/off commands) aren't available on "MIDI Learn" AMP1s, because you can't "learn" them.
I believe there are two issues to be aware of.
1: Very early versions of AMP1 were sold with MIDI support "pre-programmed" and did not have the "MIDI Learn" capability. You need to know which version you own.
2: Many people (like me) didn't have much practical experience with MIDI before trying to control an AMP1. You might, you might not. They don't yet understand their MIDI controller that well.
How to check if your AMP1 is "MIDI Learn" capable... Connect the AMP1 to your controller using the MIDI1 cable. Press and hold the Boost switch. Does the Reverb switch flash on and off? Your AMP1 has "MIDI Learn".
MIDI Learn worked fine for me to set up the PC commands and the unit responded to my CC changes when I moved faders sending the CC values. My MIDI controller was an M-Audio Code49 keyboard, BTW. I was only testing functionality and don't actually use MIDI on my board. For the AMP1, I use the programmable switches on the unit, plus a 2-button foot-switch to change between clean and overdriven, plus toggle the boost on/off.
But I am interested in how you get on with MIDI on your MS3, because I'm starting to buy MIDI-controllable pedals. I'm currently struggling with the Boss documentation for MIDI support on the MS3 (but I don't own one) to see if that will work for me.
For me, MIDI Learn worked exactly as documented. Like this...
1. Connect your MIDI controller and MIDI1 cable to the remote socket on AMP1
2: Select the combination of channel, boost and reverb setting you want to program
3. Press + hold Boost switch on AMP1
(Reverb switch should blink on and off)
Release Boost switch - you now have approx 10 seconds to...
4: Send the PC command from your MIDI controller that you want to use for this setting
(The Reverb switch should stop blinking, which means it's programmed)
Repeat steps 2-4.
For me, CC commands just worked.
Direct support from BluGuitar is patchy. I think they expect the importer to do first line support, but the UK importer doesn't have much knowledge (or didn't - I haven't needed to speak to them for a year, now).
Good luck!