NAD: Ceriatone Chupacabra 50w (pink & blue)

[TheTrueZoltan!]

Okay, I've now spent a few hours with the Chupacabra and, what can I say, I haven't regretted the purchase one bit. Thanks to @2dor ’s NAM profiles, I already knew what to expect, namely an aggressive high-gain monster with plenty of oomph and lots of kerrang. The high end can quickly become a little brash if you're not careful with the presence control, but as I generally prefer brighter sounds, I don't see this as a problem. The 80s mode already has so much gain that I only have to turn up Gain I to 9:00 with a Tube Screamer in front and Gain II in the centre position to be able to easily keep up in a death metal context. I think with a bit of fiddling I could even do without the Tube Screamer, but I just like the boosted sound. By the way, I haven't noticed a slow response of the low end when chugging so far. Everything sounds tight and fast.

However, I was surprised by the external bias test points. Here I see quite a large deviation from my measurements with a bias probe. Plate voltage is 423V, so I used a bias probe to set both sides to approx. 41 mA in order to achieve a setting of 70%. I then checked the external measuring points, but here I was shown 45mV (=mA, according to the manual) per side, which would be too high. Well, I'll rely on the measurement with the bias probe for now.

 

[2dor]

Okay, I've now spent a few hours with the Chupacabra and, what can I say, I haven't regretted the purchase one bit. Thanks to @2dor ’s NAM profiles, I already knew what to expect, namely an aggressive high-gain monster with plenty of oomph and lots of kerrang. The high end can quickly become a little brash if you're not careful with the presence control, but as I generally prefer brighter sounds, I don't see this as a problem. The 80s mode already has so much gain that I only have to turn up Gain I to 9:00 with a Tube Screamer in front and Gain II in the centre position to be able to easily keep up in a death metal context. I think with a bit of fiddling I could even do without the Tube Screamer, but I just like the boosted sound. By the way, I haven't noticed a slow response of the low end when chugging so far. Everything sounds tight and fast.

However, I was surprised by the external bias test points. Here I see quite a large deviation from my measurements with a bias probe. Plate voltage is 423V, so I used a bias probe to set both sides to approx. 41 mA in order to achieve a setting of 70%. I then checked the external measuring points, but here I was shown 45mV (=mA, according to the manual) per side, which would be too high. Well, I'll rely on the measurement with the bias probe for now.

Good assessment & I can confirm if you use the bright switches and / or the Focus (push-pull) you don't need a boost for it.

The attack is good on the amp; the thing I was going on about was comparing it to the other Ceriatone amps I have, one of them a 50W one like the Chupacabra; could be down to a couple of factors but I'll toy around with stuff and post back.

Enjoy the amp!

 

[TheTrueZoltan!]

After a few more hours of playing, I second what @KyleBull said in his Chupacabra video about choosing the right OD pedal for the amp. Usually the Boss SD-1 is my favourite overdrive, but with this one the Chupa sounds too bitey and lacks punch. Next I tried the Maxon OD-9 - much better, but one has to be careful with the volume control. Too much volume and the amp starts to overcompress. Then I tried the Maxon OD808, which sounds a bit smoother in the highs and slightly fuller in the lower mids compared to the OD-9. Bingo! Tight rhythm chugging, huge chords, singing leads - it's all there. That's exactly how I love it!

 

[gearJunkie]

After a few more hours of playing, I second what @KyleBull said in his Chupacabra video about choosing the right OD pedal for the amp. Usually the Boss SD-1 is my favourite overdrive, but with this one the Chupa sounds too bitey and lacks punch. Next I tried the Maxon OD-9 - much better, but one has to be careful with the volume control. Too much volume and the amp starts to overcompress. Then I tried the Maxon OD808, which sounds a bit smoother in the highs and slightly fuller in the lower mids compared to the OD-9. Bingo! Tight rhythm chugging, huge chords, singing leads - it's all there. That's exactly how I love it!

Don't forget about the Pussy Trimmer control on the rear panel. Lowering it slightly can reduce overall compression and saturation if it becomes to squishy.

 

[TheTrueZoltan!]

Don't forget about the Pussy Trimmer control on the rear panel. Lowering it slightly can reduce overall compression and saturation if it becomes to squishy.

Yeah, I‘m just beginning to learn how to dial in the amp. The controls are quite sensitive and interact with each other. So far I‘m really pleased with the sound, but it‘s a beast that needs to be tamed. The Chupa doesn't have an overly pronounced lower mid-range, so it's particularly important to get the treble just right, otherwise it quickly becomes a little scratchy.

 

[gearJunkie]

Yeah, I‘m just beginning to learn how to dial in the amp. The controls are quite sensitive and interact with each other. So far I‘m really pleased with the sound, but it‘s a beast that needs to be tamed. The Chupa doesn't have an overly pronounced lower mid-range, so it's particularly important to get the treble just right, otherwise it quickly becomes a little scratchy.

Don't be afraid to crank the Resonance control. It can do wonders for thickening the tone. Also, with any of the bright caps engaged, you need to crank the associated gain control past 6 or so to pass the lower frequencies needed to balance the high pass cap. Volume is your friend.

 

[TheTrueZoltan!]

Don't be afraid to crank the Resonance control. It can do wonders for thickening the tone. Also, with any of the bright caps engaged, you need to crank the associated gain control past 6 or so to pass the lower frequencies needed to balance the high pass cap. Volume is your friend.

Thanks! I‘ll try some different settings for the Gain controls and Bright switches tomorrow.

 

[gearJunkie]

Thanks! I‘ll try some different settings for the Gain controls and Bright switches tomorrow.

If cranking the gain knobs past 6 gives you more gain than you want, turn down the Pussy Trimmer to compensate.

 

[2dor]

If cranking the gain knobs past 6 gives you more gain than you want, turn down the Pussy Trimmer to compensate.

Yeah - roughly between 1 and 2 o'clock is where I find its sweet spot is. Full tilt gets it squishy

 

[TheTrueZoltan!]

Yeah - roughly between 1 and 2 o'clock is where I find its sweet spot is. Full tilt gets it squishy

Exactly. After a bit of tweaking, I have now set mine to 1:30.

 

[TheTrueZoltan!]

Now I'm slowly starting to have second thoughts. I am twisting knobs for hours and somehow can't manage to get a satisfactory balance of the various gain and saturation controls, which always change the ratio of bass and treble, too. Sometimes it sounds too muffled, then again too shrill. And somehow I have a feeling that the Tone Stack, as well as Presence and Depth, also have an effect on the saturation.

 

[2dor]

Now I'm slowly starting to have second thoughts. I am twisting knobs for hours and somehow can't manage to get a satisfactory balance of the various gain and saturation controls, which always change the ratio of bass and treble, too. Sometimes it sounds too muffled, then again too shrill. And somehow I have a feeling that the Tone Stack, as well as Presence and Depth, also have an effect on the saturation.

They do let more stuff pass through. Try turning the Presence all the way or close to down and compensate with the Treble. See if that makes a difference.

I've added a parallel 1Mohm resistor yesterday to the V1a 470k one and it's juuuuuust slightly less squishy compared to stock; probably achievable by turning down the Pussy Trimmer on the stock amp.

I'll probably try the NFB resistor and the first 2 cathode stages too (source: https://www.rig-talk.com/forum/threads/ceriatone-chupacabra-mods.248368/#post-2834191)

 

[blackie13]

Now I'm slowly starting to have second thoughts. I am twisting knobs for hours and somehow can't manage to get a satisfactory balance of the various gain and saturation controls, which always change the ratio of bass and treble, too. Sometimes it sounds too muffled, then again too shrill. And somehow I have a feeling that the Tone Stack, as well as Presence and Depth, also have an effect on the saturation.

You must treat the amp as a 1 channel amp...
Depth plays a great role...don't overdo it...

 

[TheTrueZoltan!]

You must treat the amp as a 1 channel amp...
Depth plays a great role...don't overdo it...

Well, it is a one channel amp. But that channel has a lot of knobs and switches.

And the knobs are quite sensitive and highly interactive. I tried to raise the mids just a little bit from 5 to 5.5 and suddenly all low end punch was gone.

 

[2dor]

Don't think I posted back with the PT that arrived. Pretty heavy beast though not as tall as the one in the Chupa; I assume it has to do with the one Ceriatone had fitted in has additional primary winding for 120V.

Screw spacing seems to be the same as the one in the Chupa which is good as I'm not a fan of having to drill the chassis if I attempt the swap.

 

[2dor]

@TheTrueZoltan! if you're running the Amp into the Suhr Reactive Load, try using one of these IRs I cooked up.

It's going to adjust the frequency response of the signal coming from the Suhr RL to either a Mesa 2x12, ENGL 1x12 or Mesa 4x12 OS Straight cabs.

You'll still need a regular "mic-on-cab" IR after - see if these do anything for your use-cases; the Suhr RL does have a hairier high-end.

Ceriatone Chupacabra 50W - loadbox (Suhr Reactive Load, St. Rock React:IR) to real cabinet (Mesa 4x12, Mesa 2x12, Engl 1x12) frequency curve compensation IRs | ToneHunt

Ceriatone Chupacabra 50W - loadbox (Suhr Reactive Load, St. Rock React:IR) to real cabinet (Mesa 4x12, Mesa 2x12, Engl 1x12) frequency curve compensation IRs is a model by 2dor. Ceriatone Chupacabra 50W - loadbox (Suhr Reactive Load, St. Rock React:IR) to real cabinet (Mesa 4x12, Mesa 2x12, Engl...

tonehunt.org

 

[Mongillo19]

Now I'm slowly starting to have second thoughts. I am twisting knobs for hours and somehow can't manage to get a satisfactory balance of the various gain and saturation controls, which always change the ratio of bass and treble, too. Sometimes it sounds too muffled, then again too shrill. And somehow I have a feeling that the Tone Stack, as well as Presence and Depth, also have an effect on the saturation.

PB time?

 

[gearJunkie]

Now I'm slowly starting to have second thoughts. I am twisting knobs for hours and somehow can't manage to get a satisfactory balance of the various gain and saturation controls, which always change the ratio of bass and treble, too. Sometimes it sounds too muffled, then again too shrill. And somehow I have a feeling that the Tone Stack, as well as Presence and Depth, also have an effect on the saturation.

Stick with it. I know what you are feeling. It took me several weeks to get a handle on my King Kong 50. I eventually had to turn off my brain and just use my ears.

Some of the knob positions seemed extreme and "wrong". When I ignored that feeling, I was able to dial in excellent tones.

 

[2dor]

Stick with it. I know what you are feeling. It took me several weeks to get a handle on my King Kong 50. I eventually had to turn off my brain and just use my ears.

Some of the knob positions seemed extreme and "wrong". When I ignored that feeling, I was able to dial in excellent tones.

Absolutely agreed.
Funny enough, I learned this from having owned a Fractal unit: don't be afraid to make drastic EQ moves on the knobs. For instance, I'll run the Presence down to 1 / 11, Mids up to 8 / 11 and treble down to 2 / 11 if it sounds good.
Sometimes closing your eyes and just fiddling with knobs is best for "tonez"

 

[TheTrueZoltan!]

Thanks for the encouragement, guys!

I was getting a little overwhelmed and frustrated today, will try again tomorrow with fresh ears.

And I have just tried to dial in the amp with the Bright 2 switch disengaged. Much less saturation and less tight, but with the P Trimmer off and my Boss SD-1 in front I got some really promising results. Much easier to control, with less of that overcompressed and shrill-but-muffled-at-the-same-time character.