Bad Caf BLACK CAT 15 EL84 Operating Manual - page 2
OPERATION
If this is your first all-tube amplifier, please become familiar
with a few issues that differentiate your amp from solid-
state or hybrid amp products. Only a few precautions are
required but they will insure that you will get the most of
your new all-tube amplifier. Vacuum tubes are “old world”
thermal devices that require more attention than transis-
tors, but that’s the reason they sound so much sweeter and
more musical than integrated circuits and other solid-state
components. A little heads-up on the following points will
ensure maximum performance from your Bad Cat amp.
1. Place the amp at least 6 inches away from any wall or
obstacle to provide adequate ventilation around the amp.
Good airflow around the amp will go a long way in prevent-
ing the amp from overheating, especially the tubes. Do not
place covers, clothing, or any other materials on or in the
amp that can obstruct the free venting of the chassis to the
outside air. Trapped heat in the chassis may cause a condi-
tion known as thermal runaway. To put it simply, to warm
or cook the tubes is good, to heat-cycle or fry the tubes is
extremely dangerous and will also shorten the life of the
tubes considerably.
2. Vacuum tubes will last longer and sound more musical
when they are allowed to warm up prior to introducing an
input signal from your guitar. A full flow of electrons from
the cathode can only be achieved when the tube is heated.
This requires some time. Please allow at least one minute
of warm-up time before playing through the amp.
3. Avoid long idle periods with no input signal. The vacuum
tubes prefer to see a signal present. When taking a break
between practice sessions or in between sets of a perfor-
mance, use the standby switch or turn off the amp.
4. Avoid unverified impedance loads. In other words, do not
clip on or otherwise attach additional speakers unless you
know the system impedance. Tube amplifiers are very sen-
sitive to speaker impedance matching. This is due to the
relationship between the internal resistances of the output
transformer, the output power tubes and the load that is
required to drive them. Unbalanced loads can cause de-
structive arcing; the transformer and the tubes may actually
burn themselves out. This is not covered by our warranty.
With proper impedance matching, multiple speaker config-
urations will work fine. If you are not familiar with “Ohm’s
Law”, please consult with a dealer or a qualified amplifier
technician. Do not attempt to operate the amp if you can-
not verify system impedance after connecting the speakers.
Never operate your Bad Cat amp at 2 ohms or less.
5. Avoid unapproved “Power Soak” devices or attenuators
that are not recommended by Bad Cat as they can shorten
the life of your power tubes considerably. Attenuators burn
out tubes prematurely because they require the power
tubes to overwork continuously. Also, please note that pow-
er tubes are best replaced as a matched full set whenever
any of them fail.
high-end definition turn this knob past noon. For a warmer and rounder sound,
turn this knob below noon in conjunction with turning up the Bass knob.
Reverb
The reverb circuit is a completely new Bad Cat design that adds spatial dimen-
sion to the tone produced by the amp. Incorporating the very best 3-spring
reverb tank with newly designed reverb tone circuit, the reverb can go from
subtle classic spring reverb effects to rollicking surf reverb to cavernous hall-
like setting with a simple twist of this knob. This reverb circuit was carefully
designed to be useful across the entire sweep of the reverb range. It adds a
wide range of spatial effects that you just can’t duplicate with pedals and digital
effects processors.
Channel 2: Volume
This volume knob controls the output level specific to Channel 2. With the Mas-
ter Volume switched “out” this is solely responsible for the loudness of this
channel. With the Master Volume switched “in” this pot works tandem with the
Master. In that case, the higher settings of this pot will give more gain and the
Master will be used for overall volume.
Tone
This is a 5-position knob used for instant access to your favorite sounds. Turn it
clockwise for increasingly darker, thicker tones. Turning the knob counterclock-
wise gives you more treble and bite. The 5-position switch gives you a distinct
advantage in being able to recreate the tone you want time after time.
Tone Switch
This switch gives you the option of using the 5-position tone knob above or us-
ing the bass and treble knobs that follow. Switch in the left position gives you
the 5-position knob. Switch in the right position gives you the bass and treble
knob. The amp uses either the 5-position or the bass and treble knobs for tone;
they are not used in conjunction with one another.
Bass
The Bass EQ knob has been carefully tailored to cover the critical low-end fre-
quencies in the electric guitar’s sonic range. Whether you need depth in your
sound or low-end punch, this control will allow you to dial in just the right
amount of bass frequencies.
Treble
The Treble EQ knob allows you to control the amount of high-end frequencies
that determine the cutting character of your sound. For more sparkle and high-
end definition turn this knob past noon. For a warmer and rounder sound, turn
this knob below noon in conjunction with turning up the Bass knob.
Cut
The Cut knob is universal to Channel 1 and Channel 2,
meaning it is always in the circuit an always affecting the
tone. The knob is appropriately named because turning it
up gives your tone more cut; turning it down gives a darker,
mellower tone. This is similar to a presence knob on some
other amps.
Master “In” and “Out” Switch and Master Volume
This switch activates and deactivates the master volume
for Channel 1 & 2. When the switch is “In” the Master knob
now controls the overall output level of Channel 1. When the
switch is “Out” the Master knob is now out of the circuit and
does not affect the amp.
Channel 2 Master only works when Bass & Treble is
selected.
BACK PANEL
A/C Plug
Plug your amp’s power cord in here first, then to the wall.
On/Off Switch
This switch turns the amp on or off. Please make sure that
the Standby Switch is in the Standby mode before turning
on or off. This will help increase the life to the power tubes.
Standby Switch
Leave this switch off when turning on the amp and let the
amp warm up for a full minute before turning this switch
on. It’s best to let tubes warm up before playing. Also, turn
the Standby switch to Standby when you will not be playing
for a while (for example, breaks in between sets of your
performances, etc.).
Channel Switching Jack
Plug in your amps footswitch here to allow you to switch
between channel 1 and 2 and also bland channels. The foot-
switch must be used to access the channel blend feature.
Full/Half Power Switch
In the up position this switch allows the use of full power of
your amp. For more headroom, full power mode is a must.
Full power mode also provides a bigger, bolder tone. The
down position of this switch is Half power mode. Half power
is very useful for getting the amp to break into desirable
distortion at lower volumes for home use or use in smaller
rooms. The tone character is slightly different between the
modes and a little experimentation is worthwhile.
Reverb Footswitch Jack
This is the footswitch jack to turn the reverb on or off. You
can use any conventional shielded cable latching on/off
footswitch with this jack.
Speaker Jack
On a combo amp, this jack is for adding an extension
speaker cabinet to be used with the internal speaker of the
amp. The internal speaker runs at 8 ohms for a single 12 or
4 ohms for 2x12 and is parallel with the extension speaker
jack. On a head, this jack is for connection to your speaker
cabinet. Please be sure to select the proper ohms to match
your cab.
Speaker Phase Switch
This switch changes the phase of your amp’s speakers.
When the amp is played by itself, either position will sound
good, but slightly different. Here is another case where a
little experimentation is worthwhile to find what is right for
you. This switch becomes very important, though, when the
amp is used in conjunction with another amp in a dual amp
setup. If the speaker in the two amps are set “out of phase”
with each other your tone could be weakened considerably.
So when you’re running the amp simultaneously with an-
other amp, be sure to check this switch to see if one posi-
tion or the other is giving you a better result.
Front & Rear Panel Controls
BLACK CAT 15
MAINTENANCE
Your Bad Cat amp is a professional instrument that does not require much in
maintenance. Use a clean dry cloth to wipe cabinet as required but avoid sol-
vents of any type as they may tarnish or discolor the vinyl. If you’re going to
store the amp with a cover, please allow the tubes to cool before covering the
amp. A cover cloth or vinyl amp cover will prevent dust buildup in the amp.
Weak or dull tones from your amp may indicate that the tubes are old or tired
and need replacement. The tubes in your amp are like tires on your car. They do
wear out. If you notice change in tone and tactile response from the amp, it’s
most likely that the power tubes need to be replaced. As advised earlier in this
manual, replacement should only be done in complete matched sets. Preamp
tubes will last much longer than power tubes, but these should also be checked
occasionally. Preamp tubes tend to go micro-phonic and also produce unde-
sired results when old or not working properly.
The Black Cat is a 15 watt Class A amplifier. Class A amps have their power
tubes running at full power at all times unlike Class A/B. Class A/B amps are
push-pull amps which essentially means that the power tubes alternate turns
handling current. Many classic Marshall and Fender amps are Class A/B. Class
A or Class A/B is neither better than the other but they do offer differences in
tonal character.
FRONT PANEL
Channel 1: Volume
This volume pot controls the output level specific to Channel 1. With the Master
Volume switched “out” this is solely responsible for the loudness of this chan-
nel. With the Master Volume switched “in” this pot works in tandem with the
Master. In that case, the higher settings of this pot will give more gain and the
Master will be used for overall volume.
Bass
The Bass EQ knob has been carefully tailored to cover the critical low-end fre-
quencies in the electric guitar’s sonic range. Whether you need depth in your
sound or low-end punch, this control will allow you to dial in just the right
amount of bass frequencies.
Treble
The Treble EQ knob allows you to control the amount of high-end frequencies
that determine the cutting character of your sound. For more sparkle and
Dual Master Volume
controls that can
be switched out
of the circuit.
Volume
1
2
Bass
Treble
Volume
Tone
Bass
Treble
Ch-1
Ch-2
Cut
In
Out
CH 1-2
BLACK CAT 15 FRONT PANEL
CH-1
Footswitch
Channel
Switching
On
On
Full Power
Off
Stdby
Half Power
Speaker
BLACK CAT 15 REAR PANEL
Bad Cat Holdings LLC., Made in U.S.A.
16
8
4
120 Volt
AC Voltage
2 Amp