Bad Cat Black Cat Series User manual

Bad Cat Black Cat/Wild Cat Amplifier
OwnerÕs Manual
Welcome to the Bad Cat Family of Amplifiers
Congratulations and thank you for purchasing a professional tube amplifier from Bad Cat. As
with all Bad Cat products, your amplifier is designed from the ground up to provide the very best
tones possible in a rugged, reliable package. Each one of our pro quality models is constructed
with Bad CatÕs commitment to making the highest quality, hand-made, American-made
amplifiers.
Caution
With a little care and caution, your Bad Cat amplifier should provide you with years of trouble-
free operation and enjoyment. Please avoid damp areas and moisture during operation of the amp
and in storage. This includes placement of beverages near or on the amp that could spill into the
ampÕs chassis. Liquids can easily damage tubes, switches and other parts. Immediately
disconnect the amp from power source should a spill occur and dry the amp thoroughly prior to
switching on the amp again. Drying may require the complete removal of the chassis from the
cabinet and the removal of the tubes for cleaning. Avoid tipping the amp, using it in unbalanced
positions, or lifting it unassisted to awkward heights. A little common sense will go a long way
in making sure the amp does what itÕs supposed to do: provide you with dependable operation
and great tone on a consistent basis.
Grounding
Please check thoroughly that the ground tip on the power cord plug is connected to true ground
prior to operation of your Bad Cat amp. Using unfamiliar junction boxes can cause potentially
dangerous floating grounds. Please do not cut or defeat the ground tip.
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 Òold
worldÓ thermal devices that require more attention than transistors, but thatÕs the reason they
sound so much sweeter and more musical than integrated circuits and other solid-state
components. A little heads-up on following points will ensure maximum performance from your
Bad Cat amp.
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Operation (continued)
1. Place the amp at least 6 inches away from any wall or obstacle to provide good ventilation
around the amp. Good airflow around the amp will go a long way in preventing 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 condition 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 through the
cathode can only be achieved when the tube is heated. This requires some time. Please allow
at least a minute of warm-up time before playing trough the amp.
3. Avoid long idle periods with no input signal. The vacuum tubes prefer a signal load. When
taking a break between practice sessions or in between sets of a performance, use the standby
switch to leave it on standby 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
sensitive 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 destructive self-oscillation; the transformer and the
tubes may actually burn out. This is not covered by our warranty.
With proper impedance matching, multiple speaker configurations will work fine. If you are
not familiar with ÒOhmÕs LawÓ, please consult with a dealer or a qualified amplifier
technician. Do not attempt to operate the amp if you cannot verify system impedance after
connecting the speakers. Never operate your Bad Cat amp at 2 ohms or less.
5. Avoid unapproved ÒPower SoakÓ devices or attenuators as these 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 power tubes are best replaced
as a matched full set whenever any of them fail.
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 solvents of any type as they may tarnish or
discolor the vinyl. If youÕre 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.
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Maintenance (continued)
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, itÕs most likely that the power tubes needs 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 undesired results
when old or not working properly.
Black Cat/ Wild Cat
The Black Cat is a 30 watt Class A and the Wild Cat is a 40 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 CONTROLS
Channel 1:
Volume
This volume pot controls the output level specific to Channel 1. With the Master Volume
switched ÒoutÓ this is solely responsible for the loudness of this channel. With the Master
Volume switched ÒinÓ 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 frequencies in the
electric guitarÕs 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.
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FRONT PANEL CONTROL
Channel 2:
Volume
This volume knob controls the output level specific to Channel 2. With the Master Volume
switched ÒoutÓ this is solely responsible for the loudness of this channel. With the Master
Volume switched ÒinÓ 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.
Bass
The Bass EQ knob has been carefully tailored to cover the critical low-end frequencies in the
electric guitarÕs 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.
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 counterclockwise 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 using 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.
Reverb
The reverb circuit is a completely new Bad Cat design that adds spatial dimension 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 canÕt duplicate with pedals and digital effects processors.
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FRONT PANEL (continued)
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.
BACK PANEL
A/C Plug
Plug your ampÕs 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 ot 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. ItÕs 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 footswitch 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.
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BACK PANEL (continued)
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 ampÕs 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 Òout of phaseÓ with each other your tone could be weakened
considerably. So when youÕre running the amp simultaneously with another amp, be sure to
check this switch to see if one position or the other is giving you a better result.
Speaker Impedance
On a combo this rotary selector knob comes set at 8 ohms for a single 12 or 4 ohms for a 2x12.
The selector knob can select between 4, 8 and 16 ohms. Check OhmÕs Law if using an additional
extension cabinet to select the right ohm setting. Example: 8 ohms + 8 ohms = 4 ohm setting.
On a head, please be sure to select the proper ohms to match your cabinet.
TROUBLE SHOOTING
Your new Bad Cat amplifier designed for many years of professional trouble free operation.
Common sense will tell you that if you notice any sever abnormalities in operation like burning
smell, smoke, etc.; you need to shut down the amp immediately. Always consult your Bad Cat
dealer if you are unsure of the problems that you are dealing with; i.e., take your amp to where
you purchased it.
No Power
Check the power source from the wall first. Make sure the power cord is properly seated at both
ends. If there is still no power, check the fuse and replace if necessary with the correct rating
only.
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TROUBLE SHOOTING (continued)
Weak Output Level
Verify the signal output from your instrument first. Check guitarÕs controls and that the cables
are working properly. Also, check any effects pedals that may be connected in between the guitar
and the amplifier.
Adverse Sounds-Hum, Whistle, Loss of Dynamics, Feedback, Howling
Check loudspeaker cones, frayed guitar cables, controls on your instrument, the guitarÕs pickups
and any other devices that many be connected to your amplifier such as effects pedals or rack
processors. Some of these devices are ÒamplifiersÓ in their own right with gain and boosted
volume levels and they may cause hissing and unwanted feedback if set too high in front of the
amp.
Shut down the amp and check the tubes. Wait for the amp to cool down. Remove the back panel
of the amplifier. Avoid handling hot tubes as they can cause sever burns. Check the larger
output power tubes first by carefully removing the tube shields or by loosening the clamps, and
then unseat the tubes from their sockets but note from which socket you removed the tubes.
Inspect the integrity of the filaments in the tubes. If one or more of these tubes are bad, you will
need to replace the entire set of the power tubes. If all the tubes are OK, you can eliminate the
adverse sounds by swapping the location of these tubes. If this fails to fix the problem, you may
need to replace the entire set of power tubes with a new matched set. Use of inferior quality
(untested and no-rated) tubes may cause damage to your amplifier.
You should also check the preamp tubes, especially the first input stage tube (far right if youÕre
looking at the amp from the back). Micro-phonics (feedback noise that cannot be controlled by
turning down the volume pot on you guitar) indicates a bad preamp tube(s). You may want to
swap the position of preamp tubes to see if this will fix the micro-phonics problem. Preamp tubes
can go bad without warning but can also last many years without any problem whatsoever.
As you can see when handling tubes, they are sensitive, fragile and somewhat prone to
inconsistencies. Please handle your amp with care when transporting it. Although your Bad Cat
amp is sturdily built and designed to take years of rugged use, the tubes are not. ItÕs always a
good idea to keep extra tubes (both preamp and output power tubes) handy, especially for
performance situations. An overwhelming majority of minor problems on tube amps are tube-
related and itÕs just a matter of swapping one or more out to have your amp performing like
brand new again.
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Limited Lifetime Warranty
Bad Cat Amplifiers warrantee our amps and cabs against workmanship or defect for life. The
warrantee does not cover tubes or cosmetic damage, or wear and tear or abuse. This warrantee is
transferable. Modifying or altering the amp in any way voids the warrantee. Shipping to and
from the warranty repair center is the responsibility of the customer.
We have a new Lifetime Warranty on all new amps leaving the factory. We are extending the
Lifetime Warranty to all of our pre acquisition amps for $195. Simply send the unit back to us
and we will have one our technicians go through it from the ground up. And to top it all off, we
will pay for the shipping back to you. For more information please contact us at
[email protected] or directly at 714-630-0101
Bad Cat and all model names are trademarks of the Bad Cat Holdings LLC. Specifications are subject to change without notice.

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