Checked out an Alchemist

[axslinger]

I was diddling with a dirt pedal at the local GC and decided to plug into a 20/40 watt Alchemist. I have to say, it sounded pretty damned good. I'm thinking it was the 1x12 as the price was only $599. That seemed like a hell of a good price for that amp. It was in one of the "rooms" so I'm thinking it was brand new, but then $599 seems too low.

I liked it so much I have pondered trading a couple of my existing amps for it. It's an amp I could actually play without any pedals! The over-driven tone of the overdrive channel is nice and smooth. About the only thing I can say negative about it is the clean channel is voiced so much different than the overdrive channel. Now I'm also hearing that the FX loop is parallel. Not sure that would work for me. What are the limitations of a parallel FX loop?

Anyway, pretty impressive amp..

Brian

 

[middy]

I believe the alchemist has a built in delay with spillover. Could be mistaken. A parallel effects loop is quite effective if it is done well and has level controls. The biggest limitation is the quality of it. A really good parallel loop should work like plugging your untouched sound into a good board and blending the effect into the untouched tone thereby not losing the true tone. Two tones the untouched and the effected are blended to taste. Some effects like analog flangers for instance really sound great dug deep into the tone in series for a thick effect that doesn't hover around the guitar tone but really becomes part of it. This can also be achieved with a really good parallel circuit. Reverb and delay work great in parallel. It all really depends on how much quality and how much control it gives with regards to signal strength. They both have there benefits.

 

[alexb17]

nice tone report. It is probably new. There have been some posts on this forum about GC blowing these out for about 600 bones.

 

[rjwilson37]

There was a new one on the Floor at my GC as well for $599.

 

[axslinger]

nice tone report. It is probably new. There have been some posts on this forum about GC blowing these out for about 600 bones.

If that's the case, then assuming they don't have serious quality issues, they should have a winner on their hands. As much as I like the Tweaker, for about the same price, this thing is 10 times the am a Tweaker is, for around the same price...I speak of the 15 watt Tweaker combo. And, it's a full 40 watt amp with ability to play at 20 watts. I think I have amp GAS.

 

[axslinger]

There was a new one on the Floor at my GC as well for $599.

Must be new then. I think I'm in trouble...

 

[alexb17]

If that's the case, then assuming they don't have serious quality issues, they should have a winner on their hands. As much as I like the Tweaker, for about the same price, this thing is 10 times the am a Tweaker is, for around the same price...I speak of the 15 watt Tweaker combo. And, it's a full 40 watt amp with ability to play at 20 watts. I think I have amp GAS.

Yeah, I think they originally came onto the market at $899 of something?

 

[axslinger]

Yeah, I think they originally came onto the market at $899 of something?

That's what I was thinking and that's why I thought this might be used. That's a helluva good price considering the Tweaker 15 watt combo is still at GC for $599. The lowest I've seen a Tweaker, new, at GC was $575...that's what I paid for mine.

I think I might have to do this...

 

[dearlpitts]

Yeah, I think they originally came onto the market at $899 of something?

yep

 

[Gridlock]

I tried an Alchemist when I bought a Strat a couple of years ago and really liked the amp.

 

[SelLuap]

This makes me want to try one once again (never get round to try it out the first time), I got put off from what I was hearing about it (didn't hear very good things about it) hoping I find one to try out in a shop this time around...

 

[axslinger]

This makes me want to try one once again (never get round to try it out the first time), I got put off from what I was hearing about it (didn't hear very good things about it) hoping I find one to try out in a shop this time around...

Well, if we compare it side-by-side with a 15 watt Tweaker, I'm afraid the Bogner would win hands-down; no comparison. For the money, it is just a fuller sounding amp and the over-drive is smoother and heavier, if you need it. It's foot-switchable for effects, boost and channel, which is a huge plus.

The first time I plugged into an Egnater Renegade 1x12 I was blown away that it was just a 1x12; I thought it was a 2x12, it was that full sounding. Well, the Alchemist is voiced similarly; very full sounding for a 1x12. Furthermore, it's a better speaker. Don't get me wrong; I'm an Egnater fan and would love to have a Renegade and the Tweaker is a perfect Grab-n-Go amp but for my playing habits and my limited space, the Alchemist just looks like it can cover a lot of ground.

 

[Syn]

I own the Alchemist Head. And while my Marshall DSL and Peavey 6505+ are my main amps for the type of stuff I currently do, the Alchemist covers a lot of ground on it's own. I used it in an instrumental band over the other two as it cuts through well and the lead sound is strong and smooth. With the built in delay and reverb I didn't find it needed any help from pedals at all.
The 20W mode provided great saturation at about half volume with the gain at 3 o'clock. It has quite a unique tone that I son't think I'll ever sell it.
The only thing I would recommend is to use a better quality XLR lead for the footswitch, rather than the one that's included. This has caused problems for people (LED's not lighting etc.). But I've never had a problem with a good XLR lead.

 

[Hairless_Ape]

The Alchemist 2x12 is the one that's going for $599...the 1x12 is $549.

 

[gem12]

The Alchemist 2x12 is the one that's going for $599...the 1x12 is $549.

Where did you see these prices?

 

[Hairless_Ape]

Where did you see these prices?

Musician's Friend, which is owned by GC, so their pricing is probably the same. I made a mistake though...the 40w 1x12 is $499.

 

[BigAl]

What are the limitations of a parallel FX loop?

Here's a very basic rundown on serial and parallel loops:


Serial loops will only sound as good as the quality of the effects that you put in them, because the "entire" signal goes through whatever gadgets you have in between.

Parallel loops have an advantage over serial loops in this regard because they have the ability to mix the original "dry" signal with the processed "wet" signal.

Here's where it can get tricky though... Digital effects necessarily delay the signal by milliseconds when they convert analog signals to digital/binary code and back to analog again. As a result, when mixing the dry and wet signals back together, the peaks and troughs of the signals don't line up exactly, resulting in unwanted sonic artifacts (milliseconds, minuscule as they are, WILL affect the sound you hear). For this reason, serial loops are generally better for using digital effects. Some parallel loops allow you to use a 100% wet signal, which in theory would allow you to use digital effects without a hitch, but many parallel effects loops don't actually use a 100% wet signal, even though they say they do.

The advantage parallel loops have over serial loops however is that in using a less transparent effect, the levels of dry and wet signal can be mixed hence keeping the original tone of the amplifier relatively intact, whereas even an amp with the best of serial loops would have its tone become deteriorated with a low quality/non transparent effect.

For this reason, many amplifiers offer both serial AND parallel effects loops and allow you to select which one you'd like to use.

Myself, I prefer a serial loop because of the digital effects I use and its simplicity, but each type has it's advantages and disadvantages - different tools for different jobs as it were.

 

[hipofutura]

Here's a very basic rundown on serial and parallel loops:


Serial loops will only sound as good as the quality of the effects that you put in them, because the "entire" signal goes through whatever gadgets you have in between.

Parallel loops have an advantage over serial loops in this regard because they have the ability to mix the original "dry" signal with the processed "wet" signal.

Here's where it can get tricky though... Digital effects necessarily delay the signal by milliseconds when they convert analog signals to digital/binary code and back to analog again. As a result, when mixing the dry and wet signals back together, the peaks and troughs of the signals don't line up exactly, resulting in unwanted sonic artifacts (milliseconds, minuscule as they are, WILL affect the sound you hear). For this reason, serial loops are generally better for using digital effects. Some parallel loops allow you to use a 100% wet signal, which in theory would allow you to use digital effects without a hitch, but many parallel effects loops don't actually use a 100% wet signal, even though they say they do.

The advantage parallel loops have over serial loops however is that in using a less transparent effect, the levels of dry and wet signal can be mixed hence keeping the original tone of the amplifier relatively intact, whereas even the an amp with the best of serial loops would have its tone become deteriorated with a low quality/non transparent effect.

For this reason, many amplifiers offer both serial AND parallel effects loops and allow to select which one you'd like to use.

Myself, I prefer a serial loop because of the digital effects I use and its simplicity, but each type has it's advantages and disadvantages - different tools for different jobs as it were.

Great explanation. The best designed FX loop is parallel buffered with Level and Mix controls. This allows you just about infinite flexibility and the ability to use any pedal. The problem is you can just about count on your fingers the number of amps that utilize this complex design.

 

[BigAl]

Great explanation. The best designed FX loop is parallel buffered with Level and Mix controls. This allows you just about infinite flexibility and the ability to use any pedal. The problem is you can just about count on your fingers the number of amps that utilize this complex design.

Is it a pricing issue?

 

[hipofutura]

Is it a pricing issue?

Probably. Even Mesa uses the simple design as you described and it makes no sense to me given the price of the amps.

Dumbles use the design I described. But they put the loop buffer in an external box that costs more. Ceriatone sells it for $275.

I use this complex design on my builds but incorporate it into the chassis. I also include a FX loop bypass so you can completely remove the loop from the circuit. 9 out of 10 loops are tone sucks, much like reverb.