FAME BS3-125 User manual

ELECTRIC BASS AMP
Owner‘s Manual
BS3-125

2
Congratulations!
We would like to thank you for purchasing the BS3-125 Electric Bass Amplifier.
It has been specially designed and developed for the use with electric basses.
Before using your new amplifier, we advise to read the following pages carefully.
Taking care of your BS3-125
Safety Warnings
We want you to be aware of certain safety aspects,
for reasons of product safety and liability. With
all due respect, please read the following before
operating your new Fame amplifier.
• Do not use or store your amplifier in or near
moist or wet areas.
• Make sure that the voltage shown on the back of
the amplifier is the correct voltage for the
location you are using it. The BS3-125 can
never be used at different voltages than shown.
• Opening the amplifier housing must only be
done by authorized personnel. No user
serviceable parts inside.
• The power amp is configured to deliver highest
tone at normal volume levels. We advise you
for your own good not to expose yourself to
very high volume levels for long periods of
time. It can lead to hearing damage.
Transporting the BS3-125
• The BS3-125 is a solid state instrument
amplifier. The built-in circuits are sensitive to
hits, especially when hot. To avoid damaging
the unit, we recommend using care during
setup and tear down of the unit.
• Allow the amplifier to adjust to the ambient
temperature before operating, 10 minutes
should be sufficient in all cases. Especially the
change between a cold vehicle and, in most
cases, warm stages can cause condensing
fluid inside the electrical circuit. This can lead
to circuit shorts.
• For continued road use, please protect the
amplifier with a professional flight case. Trans-
port only in operating position. Do not trans-
port upside down or on its side.
Daily use
• Never be rough with knobs, connections
or other parts of the amplifier.
• Be careful while pulling out cables. Pulling
plugs quickly can cause damage.
• Disconnect all cables before transporting
the unit.
• Avoid physical shocks, such as hits or drops.
• You should never put any heavy items on top
of the BS3-125.
Cleaning the BS3-125
• Usually it is sufficient to wipe down the outside
of the amplifier with a slightly moist
cleaning rag.
• Do not use any abrasive cleaning chemicals.
• Sometimes a vacuum cleaner can be used to
remove dust and dirt from nooks and crevices.
• Avoid putting any vinyl on top of the unit.
It glues and discolours the surface.
Electric enviroment
• This amplifier contains electric circuits, which
can cause interference when operating near
Radio or TV units. If you notice any abnormal
noise, we recommend to put the amplifier
away from such devices.
• Blown fuses can only be replaced with fuses
of equal values. The use of incorrect fuses is
prohibited and can cause severe injury or
damage the amplifier.
• Only use a grounded power cable in good
condition.

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Content
Setting up the BS3-125.................................................................................................. 4
Peripheral Connections.................................................................................................. 5
Preamp Section ............................................................................................................... 6
Basics Features................................................................................................................ 6
Controls & Switches........................................................................................................ 7
Special Gimmicks............................................................................................................ 8
Specifications ................................................................................................................... 9

4
Setting up the BS3-125
WARNING!
To avoid electrical shock or any other damage, make sure that the BS3-125
and all other devices are switched off before you start connecting them to the
amplifier!
Power Connections/Mains
Before connecting to a grounded power outlet,
make sure the power switches are in the off position
(facing down). The BS3-125 is set up for 230 V of
line voltage. Once the amplifier is plugged in, you
can get started!
Connecting an electric bass
The input jacks on the left side of the frontpanel
receiveyour electric basssignal by meansof a shielded
guitar cord with 1/4” mono style plug. Make sure
the master volume of the amplifier is set to the lowest
position to avoid disturbing noise while connecting.
Speaker protection
The BS3-125 has a built-in 15” speaker. It can be
damaged by heavy feedbacks of the connected
instruments. You should always keep a sufficient
distance to the amplifier to avoid such feedbacks. This
will extend the life of the speaker and the power amp.
Travelling Abroad
If travelling to countries outside the EU, always check
their local voltage before operating the BS3-125.
Mismatched voltages can and most likely will destroy
your amplifier. Should you encounter voltages and
frequencies other than those indicated, a transformer
must be used between the power socket and the
BS3-125.Thistransformermustbeabletotransformthe
voltage and frequency to one of the indicated settings.
Main Fuse
The main fuse is situated in a little drawer which is
part of the power input jack. This sliding fuse holder
also hides a spare fuse. For 230 V, the fuse must be
a 1,6A slow blow. It is crucially important to use the
specified fuse values only.
Maintenance
All checkups and repairs must be undertaken by
authorized service personnel. With the right treat-
ment, the electric circuit and the power amp will not
need any kind of maintenance at all.

5
Periphal Connections
Signal In Jack
The BS3-125 features two different input jacks, which
you will find on the very left side of the panel. They
are titled with “Passive” and “Active”, and were in-
stalled to transmit the signal of your bass perfectly
to the preamp of the amplifier. If you play a bass
with high output pickups (i.e. humbuckers or active
systems), you should use the “Active” input. For the
usage with singlecoil equipped basses, we recom-
mend the “Passive” input.
CD
If you would like to play along with your favou-
rite songs or any other playback, this jack allows
you to connect a CD/MP3-Player. Please note, that
the adjusted volume on the connected device will
influence the overall sound.
FX-Loop
On the front of your amplifier you will find both a
send and a return jack. These will be useful if you
want to loop external effects units between preamp
and power amp of the BS3-125. The built-in fx-loop
is serial type. This means that the signal path of
the BS3-125 is interrupted, the signal is sent to the
effect s unit, gets processed and then sent back to the
return of the power amp.
Headphones
For quiet practicing at home you can also use
optional headphones. For best performance and a
brilliant sound, we recommend our Fame DT 790
studio headphones. Please note that the overall
volume of the amplifier will influence the master
volume of your headphones.
Balanced Line Out
Your BS3-125 needs to be connected to a PA-System?
You would like to record the sound directly into your
recording desk or audio interface?
The Balanced Line Out will do just that. All you need is
a standard XLR cable to connect the BS3-125 to
a channel strip of a mixing desk. Please note that
the volume set on the amplifier will be the lev-
el that’s running into the channel strip of your
mixing desk. You should set the volume to the lowest
level possible and increase it step-wise.
CONNECTIONS ON THE BACK
Mains
This jack is used to connect the BS3-125 to a ground-
ed power outlet.
Speaker Out
This jack is connected to the built-in loudspeaker. It is
also possible to connect an external cabinet, but the
plugged-in cable needs to be disconnected first.
Your guitar cord is an important part of our signal chain and its quality and
construction type clearly affect the overall tone of your rig. Try and buy the
best quality cord you can or want to afford for maximum sound!

6
Preamp Section of the BS3-125
Preamp Features
The BS3-125 features a single channel preamp, which means that you
are able to play only one sound at the same time. The equalization
features parametric mids, which allows you to control the lower mids
as well as the higher mids. The presence control rounds it up, by shift-
ing the power amp’s center frequency. This will make the sound either
dark or bright.
Due to the wide variety of sounds that are possible with the BS3-
125, you may take a little while until you reach your favourite set-
ting. We recommend to check the effect of every single knob, while
finding you personal sound.
Another advantage of the BS3-125 is definitely its housing, which is
made in a wedge design. This makes it possible to tilt the amplifier for
the usage as a monitor while connected with a PA system.

7
Controls and Switches
We suggest you start exploring the channels with all controls set to 12:00
o‘clock and the master volume slightly cracked open.
GAIN
This knob controls the preamp‘s intensity. If you play
a bass with an active electric circuit, you should not
increase the level to a higher level than necessary.
This can cause a very high level of distortion, which
has a bad influence on the sound.
EQUALIZER
Bass
Controls the level of low frequencies in the overall
sound.
Low Mid
Controls the level of the lower mid frequencies.
High Mid
Controls the level of the higher mid frequencies.
Treble
Controls the level of high frequencies in the overall
sound.
Presence
This knob shifts the power amps‘s center frequency.
You can turn the sound either dark or bright, while
the equalization will be the significant instrument.
Volume
Controls the overall volume of the BS3-125. Please
note that the power amp‘s maximum level will be
reached at a setting around 2-3 o‘clock. A higher
level can influence the power amp‘s health when
playing over a longer period of time.
GND/LIFT
If you notice a slight hum inside the signal while play-
ing, the electrical environment could have an earth-
ing problem. This feature allows you to disconnect
one of the XLR pins. This will solve the problem and
you will no longer hear any hum.
Balanced Level
Controls the level of the balanced line out. We
recommend you to start with the lowest setting
possible and slowly increase the knob until you
reached the desired setting.
Power
Switches the BS3-125 on or off.

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External Effects
We are convinced that the basic sound of the Fame
BS3-125 will suit the demands of most bass players.
Although, the usage of external effects devices can
provide a variety of new and interesting sounds.
These are divided into:
• Level-related effects are: Compressor, Limiter or
Noise Gate
• Time-based effects are: Delay/Echo, Chorus or
Flanger
• Volume-based effects are: Tremolo, Auto-Volume or
Pan
• Filtering-related effects are: Equalizer, Phaser,
Rotary or Vibe
While the last three effects groups can be inserted in the
fx loop of the BS3-125, level-related units must always be
connected between instrument and amplifier.
A lot of our customers gave us a positive feedback on
using an Auto-WahWah in front of the BS3-125.
How to choose the right device
High-quality effects like a vibrato or time-based units like
delays can round up the sound, when placed in the fx loop
of the amplifier. But the final sound is depending on the
choice of the specific unit.
A multieffects processor i.e. digitalizes the incoming
signal by using an AD-converter and inverts it after
adding several effects. Depending on the used model,
the sound can be influenced in a negative way.
Expensive units contain very capable converters, which
keep the signal in its original value and even improve the
sound quality.
Analogue units will not harm the signal’s quality, but they
are also limited and normally produce only one overall
sound.
Hints & Gimmicks
We came up with the following advice and “wisdom“ according to our
personal experiences. This will help you to improve the performance of your
BS3-125.

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Specifications
Power Output: 125 Watts
Speakers: 1 x 15“ Special Design
Switches: GND/LIFT, Power Switch
Equalization: Bass, Low Mid, High Mid, Treble, Presence
Effects: None
Connection Jacks: Input (Active&Passive)
Headphone Out
CD In
FX Send & Return
Balanced Line Out
Speaker Out
Dimensions: 51 x 61 x 47,7 cm
Weight: 27,5 kg
Accessories: Owner‘s Manual, Power Cable
Optional: /

BS3-125
2007