I bought an f2b off of ebay to start building my rack system. Will it compare tonally with an f1x? should I have bought that instead?
Epic 5
f2b
peavy stereo power amp (temporary)
hartke 410xl cab
custom made 4x8 subwoofer cab (JL car audio speakers in custom designed box)
I just discovered that the f2b does not have a crossover and i got worried.
buy a cheap cross over then....
the FIX crossover is very good and has a wide range. But if you are using rubber surround woofers, you might want to get the cross over as low as the 4X 10 can go, say 75Hz. Too high a crossover point (your car audio subs don't really go abbove 250hz anyway) and the rubber surround speakers have to do more work and may not return as quickly after excursions - this often results in an audible lag. This is particularly crucial if you are looking to play percussive styles, e.g. slap bass, or if you are looking to get a growly sound.
I don't have an F-2B, but I think the answer is that the circuitry is the same and that therefore tonally they are the same.
They are actually quite different in that the F2B is an all tube signal path and the F1X uses the tube as a buffer for the input and for the FX loop return. The rest of the gain is all solid state. They have a similar tone control setup. I find that the sounds are different, both really good, but different. As far as which one you want to use, well, I say hold out for both and then use the one that works the best for each situation. There is no better.
HTH!
Edwin
On a side note I could mention a person who had played tons of different Alembic gear in his life and he once told me (in his opinion) the F-2b sounds much better. Of course this is a very personal view. Personally, I swapped my F-2b for an F1-x recently because I hardly ever used the two channels and I liked the idea about the DI and the crossover.
The F2b is a great amp. Be proud, not worried.
Edwin, thanks for that - its the clearest statement of the difference in signal paths that I've read - although on rereading the material on the web site it is all there. (And I've been telling customers the signal paths were the same - d'oh.)
david b.
Thanks Edwin! Like David, I've been assuming they were the same. And I too went back and reread the web site info. So, I've learned something new today!