A/DA APP-1 User manual

A/DA PEDAL PREAMP
APP-1
USER’S MANUAL
2
APP-1 Users’ Manual
V.2
A/DA’snewAPP‐1PedalPreampisbuiltaroundournewpatent‐
pending“D‐TORSIONCORE”technology,whichisveryresponsive,
reactingtothesignallevelofthestringstodelivermorevolume
dynamics,timbre,fastertransientsandricherharmonicsthanany
amplifieravailabletoday.TheAPP‐1allowstheguitaristtoexpress,
throughhisorherfingers,dynamicsandtonelikeneverbefore–go
fromcleantooverdrivetodistortionwithoutturningasingleknob
onanyamp,stompboxorguitar.

FOROPTIMALPERFORMANCE,DONOTPLUGTHE
OUTPUTOFTHEAPP‐1INTOTHEFRONTPANELINPUT
OFACOMBOAMPORHEAD.USETHEINPUTTOTHE
POWERAMPORTHEEFFECTSRETURNINPUT.MOST
COMBOSANDHEADSDONOTHAVESUFFICIENT
HEADROOMFORTHE“BLOOM”ANDDYNAMICSOF
THEAPP‐1,ANDWILLDISTORT(INABADWAY)AND
CRUSHTHESIGNALDYNAMICSFROMTHEAPP‐1.

AlwayschecktheA/DAwebsitewww.adaamps.comforupdatesand
currentinformationabouttheAPP‐1.Designedandmanufacturedin
California.

3
Quick Setup
TheAPP‐1isapreampandneedsapowerampandspeakertobe
heardlive.Itcanalsoconnecttoasoundsystemoramixingconsole,
butwerecommendthatyouinsertacabinetemulatorliketheA/DA
MicroCabtobalanceoutthesignalandtosoundlikeaguitaramp
andcabinet.
1. Setallknobsto11o’clock,asshowninFIGURE1below.
2. Setallswitchestothefarleftposition,exceptsetthe
TRUEBYPASSswitchtoitscenterpositionsotheAPP‐1is
inBYPASSmode.
3. PlugintheprovidedACAdapter,ADApartnumber
240005,(orusethepowerfromyoupedalboardpower
supply:12to18voltsDCat75mAorgreaterwitha2.1mm
plugwithcenterNegative).
4. MakesuretheBOOSTblueLEDisoff.Presstherighthand
footswitchtoturnifoff,ifon.
5. PresstheleftfootswitchtolighttheredLEDforChannel1.
6. Connectyourguitarusingashielded¼inchphonecableto
theINPUTjackonthebackpanel.
7. Turnalltheknobsonyourguitartomaximumandselect
thebridgepickup.
8. Usingashielded¼inchphonecable,connecttheOUTPUT
oftheAPP‐1toyourguitaramplifier.Useyouramp’s
“poweramp”inputforthebestresults.Ifyourampdoes
4
nothavethatinput,usetheEffectsLoopReturnjackto
connecttheAPP‐1.Ifyourcomboorheaddoesnothave
eitherjacksonthebackpanel,thentrytheusethelowest
gaininputonacleanchannel.DONOTUSEANY
HIGH‐GAINorCRUNCHCHANNELinputfortheAPP‐1,it
willnotsoundgood.Touseathecleanchannelinput,set
itto“flat”withtheGain(orDrive)setlowandMaster
Gainsethigh,andtypicallyfora3‐bandtonestack,the
BASSandTrebleat7to8o‐clock,andtheMIDsetto5
o’clock.Detailedproceduresarefoundinthismanual
under“SettingupyourCombo,HeadorPowerAmp.”
9. Aftersettingthecontrolsproperly,turnonyouramplifier.
(TRUEBYPASS,topfarrightswitch,setinthemiddle
position.)YouwillbeintheBYPASSmodesoyoucanset
theplayinglevelsofyouramplifierbeforeengagingthe
APP‐1.
10. MovetheTRUEBYPASSswitchtothefarleftpositionto
engagetheAPP‐1PREAMP.
11. AdjusttheCHANNELMASTERcontroltomatchthelevel
yousetwithyourampwhenitwasinBYPASSmode.

5
FIGURE 1
Startwiththissetup!
6
Power Supply
Plugintheincluded12VDCto18VDCACadapter(A/DApartnumber
240005)ora12Vto18V(75ma)sourcefromyourpedalboardpower
supplytotherearpanelpowerjack.

Notethattheconnectorisa2.1mmwiththecenterpinnegative,the
mostcommonconfigurationforeffectspedals.Thereisno9V
batteryintheAPP‐1,andtheAPP‐1willnotworkwitha9VDCpower
supply.

= NEGATIVE

7
Setting up your Combo, Head or
Power Amp
3waystoconnectyourAPP‐1toyourCombo,HeadorPowerAmp
1. Tothepowerampinputorinsert
2. Throughtheeffectsloopreturnjack
3. Throughtheclean(normal)channelinput
Donotusethehigh‐gainchannelinput,itwillruinthedynamicsof
theAPP‐1.
TheAPP‐1bringsmoretoneandversatilitytoyouramp,soifyouplug
itintoyourcomboinputchannel,firstsetthecombochanneltoas
cleanandflatinfrequencyresponseaspossible.Thiswillallowyou
togetyourtonefromtheAPP‐1.Itisnotrecommendedthatyoudial
inyourAPP‐1distortionandsendittotheheadorcombowhenthey
arealreadydialed‐infordistortion.Youcantrythatlater,ifyou
want,butfornowlet’sgetagoodsetoftonesfromtheAPP‐1.

IfyouplugtheAPP‐1intoacomboamporhead,youmayhavea
choiceofwhichjackyouuseontheamp.Thebestjackistheone
thatbypassesthecombo’spreampsandgoesstraighttothepower
ampsectionofthecomboamp.Thisisusuallylocatedonattherear
oftheamp.Ifthatjackisnotavailabletothepoweramp,thecombo
orheadmayhaveaneffectsloopwithareturnjackthatwillwork
alsoasaninsertpointfortheAPP‐1.Finally,youcanconnectthe
8
APP‐1totheinputofyourcombo’snormalornon‐highgainchannel’s
inputjack.Besuretosetthetonecontrolsasflataspossibleand,
mostimportantlyformastergaincombos,setthedrivelevellowand
themasterlevelupsoyourcombowillnotdistortandcompetewith
theAPP‐1’sdistortion.IntheAdvancedSectionofthisManual,we
willshowyouhowtoustheAPP‐1’sBOOSTtogetcomboamp
distortionindependentoftheAPP‐1’sdistortiontoadda“third
channel”ofamplification.

Manycomboampsandheadsuseatonestacksthatcanbesetfairly
flat,butwithseeminglystrangesettings.Wehaveprovidedachart
ofEQandtonestacksettingsofsomepopularampsinachartatthe
backofthisManualtohelpyoufindthe“flat”EQsettings.

WhenusingtheAPP‐1forthefirsttimewithanynewrig,startwithall
theknobssetto9o’clockandalltheswitchessettotheleftposition,
excepttheswitchonthetopright,the3‐positionBYPASSswitch,
whichissettothemiddleposition.ThiswillestablishyourBYPASS
playingvolume,whichshouldbematchedwiththeAPP‐1whenitis
engaged.

9
Modes of Operation
1. PREAMP+BOOSTwiththedualbufferedFXLOOP
2. PREAMP+BOOST
3. BOOSTwiththedualbufferedFXLOOP
4. BOOSTonly
5. TUNERMUTE‐thissilenceseverythingexceptthesignal
toyourtuner,whichispluggedintothebackpanelofthe
APP‐1
6. TRUEBYPASS(Hardwirebypass)Thisalsodisconnects
theTUNERfromyourguitar’ssignal.Theguitar’ssignalis
bufferedandthensenttotheTUNERjackisonly
connectedintheINmodeandTUNERMUTEmode.
ByswitchingtheFXLOOPinandout,theusercanadjustanygain
lossfromtheeffectsinhesignalchainwiththeFXLOOPRTNLEVEL
pot.AlsowhentheFXRETURNjackisunplugged,thesignalpathis
normalized,meaningtheFXLOOPRTNLEVELpotisoutofthepath
andthepathgainisequalto1.
TheBOOSTcircuitispostMASTER,sotheleveloftheMASTERis
alwaysboostedproportionallyupto+16dBofadditionalgain.
Optimizing Signal Levels

Today’spedalboardsareheavilypopulatedwithallkindsofeffects
byplayersseekingtosculpttheirspecial,oftenuniquetone,and
10
typicallyachainofahalfdozentoadozenstompboxes.Havingso
manypedalsusuallyresultsinalossofsignallevelandintegrity,and
mostoftenasignalpathfarfromoptimized.TheA/DAAPP‐1’s
effectsloophasalowimpedancebufferdrivingtheeffectsloopand
ahighimpedancebuffertorecoveranylossesintheeffectschain.
Therecoverybufferwon’tcoloryoursignalandhasanadjustable
leveltoreturnthesamesignallevelthatdrivestheeffectschain.
UsingtheFXLOOPIN/OUTswitch,youcan“A‐B”youreffects
individuallyorinachaintochecktheirsignallevelsand,usingthe
APP‐1’sFXLOOPRTNLVL(ReturnLevel)trimpot,balanceand
optimizethesignalcomingfromyoureffectspedals.Thiswill
increaseheadroom,lowernoiseandprovideseamlessswitchingof
yourindividualeffectswithoutjumpsinsignallevels.Astep‐by‐step
procedureisavailableonlineunderAPP‐1TipsandSettings.

11
Dialing in the D-Torsion Core

A/DA’sunique“D‐TORSIONCORE”restoresandputsdynamicsinto
yourplayingandcanbesettoyourplayingstyletogetanorganic,
naturalbreakuporoverdrivetooccurwhenyourpickthestrings
harder.Whensettotheproperlevel,theDYNAMICSinteractswith
theDRIVEtoselectthelevelthattheoverdrivekicksinandthe
intensityandharmonicsofthedistortionwhenitdoes.Anotheruse
oftheDYNAMICScontrolistosetithighsothattheguitar’ssignal
levelisemphasizedverymuchlikeanall‐tubecombodoeswhenit
“blooms.”Thesedynamicsarewhatitisallaboutwhenitcomesto
expressiveplaying,butwiththeAPP‐1,yougetmuchmorebloom
andexpressionthaneverbefore.Bluesplayerscanpickthenotes
andchordstheywanttoemphasizebysimplystrikingthestrings
hardersothey“grind”or“bite”alittlemore.

IfyouwanttousetheD‐TORSIONfordynamics,setthecontrolat
leastthe12o’clockorhigher.DONOTSENDTHEOUTPUTOFTHE
APP‐1TOAHEADORCOMBODIALLEDINFORDISTORTION–THIS
WILLDEFEATOR“SQUASH”THEDYNAMICSOFTHEAPP‐1.
12
Voicing

LiketheAPP‐1’stonestacks,theVOICINGswitchesareindependently
selectableforeachchannel.TheVOICINGfeatureallowsyouto
contourorshapeyourguitarsignalbyequalizingitbeforeitgoes
intotheoverdriveanddistortioncircuitryoftheD‐TORSIONCORE.
ThewidestbandwidthistheCLEANpositionandthenarrowestand
mostbasscutisintheDISTORTION(DIST)position.Inthemiddle
position,thecontourismuchlikethepopularmodsdonetothe
BlackFaceFenderamps.
True Bypass

TheAPP‐1hasaTRUEBYPASSswitchwhichhard‐wiresthesignal
fromyourguitartotheOUTPUTjackoftheAPP‐1.IntheTRUE
BYPASSmode,nothingisconnectedtoyourguitar’ssignal.The
reasonthatthisfunctionisnotactivatedbyafootswitchissimply
becausetheAPP‐1isapreampandnotaneffectsprocessorandfor
thesamereasonthatyouwouldneverwanttobypassyouramplifier
whenplaying.
Boost

Thefoot‐switchableBOOSTfunctionaddsadjustablegaintothe
MASTERoutputoftheAPP‐1anddoessowithouteffectinganytone
ordynamicsoftheAPP‐1.Itcanbeusedtoincreasethesoundlevel
forsoloingortooverdrivetheamplifierthatisconnectedtotheAPP‐

13
1’sOUTPUTjack.Ifyouwanttojustdrivetheamplifier,youcandoso
byswitchingthePREAMP+BOOSTswitchtotherightandtheFX
LOOPswitchtotheright,sotheonlyfunctionoftheAPP‐1isthe
BOOST.IfyouwantBOOSTandtheFXLOOPengaged,settheFX
LOOPswitchtotheleftandthePREAMP+BOOSTswitchtotheright
position.
Effects Loop (FX LOOP) Setup

Theeffectsloopisadual‐bufferedloopsothesignalfromtheAPP‐1
islowimpedancecapableofdrivingmanyeffectsboxeswithoutany
changeinsignalintegrity.Thereturnsignalfromyoureffectschainis
alsobufferedwithahighimpedancebufferthathasagaincontrolso
youcanbalanceorbringbackanysignallossfromyoureffectschain.

TohelpsetuptheFXLOOPproperly,theAPP‐1hasswitchlabeled“FX
LOOP”toswitchtoswitchinorbypassthesignalthroughyour
effects.Thisisusedtotrimthelevelwiththe“FXLOOPRTNLVL”
controlinordertooptimizeyoursignalpathandtobalancethelevels
ofthepreampandyoureffectsboxes.
Tuner Out and Tuning

TheTUNERjackontherearpaneloftheAPP‐1allowsyoutoconnect
yourTunerthroughanisolationbuffersothatitnevercolorsorloads
downyourguitarsignal.Italsoallowsyoutotuneatanytime,and
14
byswitchingtheTRUEBYPASSswitchtothefarright,youcantune
whileyourstageandhousesoundismuted.

15
Combo and Head Amp Flat and
Clean Settings
Fender Combo Amps with 3-knob
tone stacks
MostFendercomboswith3‐knobtonestacksareflatwhentheMID
isatmaximum(fullclockwise),theTREBLEissettominimum(full
counter‐clockwise)andtheBASSissettoabout8o’clock.
Older Marshall Heads
Pre1965Marshallheadscanbeset“flat”whentheBASSisat4.5(9
o’clock),theMIDisatmaximum(fullclockwiseandtheTREBLEisat
3.5(8o’clock).LaterMarshallheadshaveslightlydifferent“flat”
settings.
Vox 2-Knob Tone Control Combos
VoxAC30canbemadeclosetoflatbysettingtheBASSto0.5(8
0’clock)andtheTREBLEto1.0(8:30o’clock).

Technical Support
1. Whataresomequickteststotroubleshootmyunit?
16
Sometimesafewquicktestsathomecanbethedifferencebetween
thinkingyourunitisbrokenandgettingitworkingproperly.Hereisa
listofquicktrouble‐shootingstepstotestyourgearandunit.As
basicasthesesoundpleaserunallthetests.
1. Checksimplesignalchain:Plugyourcablefrom
yourguitarintoyouramp.Ifyouhaveadirect
connecttonegotostep2.Ifnotyouhavea
badcable,guitaroramp.
2. Check2ndcable:Takeyour#2cableandswitch
itwiththefirstcable.Ifyouhavesound,we
nowknowbothcables,yourguitarandamp,
work.
3. Checkpower:Plugyourampintothesame
outletthatyou’reusingtopoweryourA/DA
product.Iftheampturnson,thentheoutlet
works.Ifnottryanotheroutlettopoweryour
unit.
4. ChecknativeA/DASignalChain:Plugthe#1
cablefromyourguitarintoyourA/DAproduct
(input).Plugthe#2cablebetweenyourA/DA
product(output)andintoyouramp.Makesure
theA/DAispluggedintoaworkingpower
source.DONOTinsertitinapedalchain,i.e.,do
notintroduceanyotherpedalsintothesignal
chain.IfyourA/DAproductworks,yourpedal
chainmostlikelyhasaproblem.Ifyouhear
nothing,thentheirmaybeaproblemwithyour
individualunit.PleaseseetheFAQonhowto
getanRAnumber.

2. WhatdoIdoifmyproductisnotworking?

17
IfyourproductisnotworkingweSTRONGLYsuggestthatyouruna
seriesofquickteststotroubleshoottheunit(seeabove).Theymay
soundverybasic,butitcansaveyoutimeingettingyourunit
workingandyoubacktoplaying.Ifyouareaninternational(non‐
USA)customer,youmustcontactyourlocaldealerand/oryour
nationaldistributorforrepair.IfyouareintheUSAandtheunittruly
doesnotwork,email[email protected]togetaReturn
Authorization(RA)numberfromus.

3. WhatdoIdoafterreceivingmyRAnumber?
Youwillneedtoboxyourunit,writeyourReturnAuthorization(RA)
numberontheoutsideoftheshippingboxinalargeboldlettering,
andsendittotheaddresssuppliedwiththeRAyoureceivedfromus.
YouareresponsibleforshippingtoandfromA/DA,sopleasetrack
andinsureyourparcels.A/DAcannotbeheldresponsibleforparcels
thatarelostordamagedintheshippingprocess.A/DAcannot
acceptyourshipmentifthereisnoRAnumberwrittenontheoutside
ofthebox.
SERVICE
Ifyourunitrequiresservice,pleasegotoourwebsite’sSERVICEpage
forinformationtohelpyoufindasolutiontotheproblemyouare
havingwithyourAPP‐1.Wehaveprovidedyouwithastep‐by‐step
troubleshootingproceduretogetyoubackupandrunningifyouare
experiencingasimpleproblem.
18
RETURNING UNITS FOR SERVICE
IfyoustillneedtosendinyourADAproductforservice,YOUMUST
FIRSTGETARETURNAUTHORIZATIONNUMBER(RA)BEFOREYOU
SHIPTOOURSERVICECENTER.ItemsshippedtouswithoutanRA,
willnotbeacceptedbyourServiceCenterandwillbereturnedto
youbytheshipper.YoucangetanRAnumberbyfirstcontactingus
onlineat:www.adaamps.com/service.DONOTSHIPYOURAPP‐1TO
OURSERVICECENTERBEFOREGETTINGANRA(Return
AuthorizationNumber)FROMUS.

Shipto:

A/DAAmplification
1543ThirdAvenue
WalnutCreek,CA94597

19
WARRANTY
Your A/DA APP-1 is warranted against defects in material
and workmanship for a period of three-hundred and sixty
five (365) days from date of purchase. This warranty is
to the original owner and is non-transferable. During the
warranty period, A/DA or its agent will, at its sole option,
repair or replace defective parts and make necessary
repairs to the product which is defective at no charge. If
the failure is the result of misuse, abuse, accident or
misapplication, A/DA has no obligation to repair or
replace the failed product. A/DA retains the right to
make such determination on the basis of factory
inspection. A/DA will not be responsible for any speaker
or device damaged by the APP-1. This warranty remains
valid only if repairs are performed by A/DA or its agent
and provided that the serial number on the unit has not
been defaced or removed. This warranty is expressly in
lieu of all other warranties either expressed or implied.
This warranty gives you specific rights. You may have
other rights that vary from state to state in the U.S.


PARTNUMBER:701416rev02