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November 2005
Posts: 1126
Location: Omaha, NE | I'm not sure. In the last year or so I've had the VIP I've probably replaced it two or three times when it "died of natural causes". The rest (at least eight or ten times) it died from me leaving the dummy plug in overnight.
Its really not a big deal. I bought a monster pack of batteries at Costco. I keep a spare in my case, the rest in my desk at home.
Just guessing here, but I'd probably expect to replace one every three or four weeks maybe. That's based on playing plugged in for maybe ten hours a week, and dummy plugging for the tuner a few nights a week also. |
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June 2006
Posts: 5
Location: Netherlands | I got another message from adamas, also confirming the VIP-5 doesn't run on phantom power. However, if I understood it right, they also told me that with XLR cable they provide (ground to shield, probably yet a different wiring than a common XLR cable? not realy into exact XLR wiring) you don't need to use the dummy plug when plugged in via XLR. |
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September 2004
Posts: 777
Location: East Wenatchee, WA | Originally posted by RobertDorn:
I got another message from adamas, also confirming the VIP-5 doesn't run on phantom power. However, if I understood it right, they also told me that with XLR cable they provide (ground to shield, probably yet a different wiring than a common XLR cable? not realy into exact XLR wiring) you don't need to use the dummy plug when plugged in via XLR. Robert, this is correct and I think what I was trying to say in a prior post I made. The proper XLR trips the switch so to speak and does NOT require the dummy plug. I found this out by trying several mic cords until a new Carvin cord I recently bought activated the power, where my older cords would not. Now this XLR acts just like the 1/4" plug. But, as you also pointed out, the VIP does not use phantom power. I typically make it about two months on a battery. That includes about 4 to 5 hours plugged in practice and another 4 to 5 hours of playing in worship services. So let's say about 10 hours, maybe more from a Costco Duracell 9V (I think it's a that...gold/black battery?). |
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January 2006
Posts: 5881
Location: Colorado Rocky Mountains | 10 to 12 hours on a battery sounds about right. Could be a litle more. As far as tripping the preamp switch, besides the Ovation XLR cable (Al has them), the Planet Waves swivel cable also works. |
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November 2004
Posts: 4413
| This is a Marketing Dept problem. Nobody is allowed to say anymore that "we have a really good preamp that we don't need to improve". Something new has to be added, something has to be tweaked so that marketing can do their thing. In this case adding stuff into a preamp that should, for a whole variety of reasons, be best done outboard.
IMHO most people here didn't know they needed anything else when all they had wre Optimas - just about everyone was happy. The OPs were just as good and probably easier to use than the Optimas and were almost certainly good enough for anybody. And the battery life was/is excellent in my experience.
The Op-Pros and the VIP are development for the sake of it. I don't want an onboard compressor. I don't want onboard mic imaging.
There is just no need to put this kind of hassle into a GUITAR. |
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May 2008
Posts: 4996
Location: Phoenix AZ | A good marketing tactic might be to sell the guitars (at a lowered price point) withOUT pre-amps and let the customer purchase the pre-amp of their choice. ie, notice that a lot of drum shell kits come withOUT snare because drummers are very particular about their snares and want to mix and match their own choice.
1. Sell the guitars with the pre-amp can only, and just have a solid removable cover on it. Great place to store your weed, by the way. This would also satisfy those like me who pre-fer acoustic only guitars.
2. Sell the pre-amps seperately, thus allowing the purchaser to get exactly what he wants and no more than needed. Like a computer monitor, which one do you want with your new pc and they are all compatible.
3. Side benefit is that it positions the pre-amp in the mind of the buyer/owner as an upgradable and replacable item possibly fostering later spinn-off sales.
Yes, you can think of all kinds of technical and logistical issues that would have to be worked out, but I think the basic premis is sound.
Dave |
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November 2005
Posts: 1126
Location: Omaha, NE | That's a pretty good idea.
And from now on, its not a "pre-amp can". Its a "weed box". Perfect. |
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November 2004
Posts: 4413
| Dave - isn't this what Takamine pretty much do? |
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May 2008
Posts: 4996
Location: Phoenix AZ | Originally posted by schroeder:
Dave - isn't this what Takamine pretty much do? No, not exactly. On some of the models they offer a CoolTube version and a Non-CoolTube version. But they don't go as far selling the guitars sans-preamp and let you buy your own p/a among the 4-5 that they offer.
Dave |
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February 2005
Posts: 11840
Location: closely held secret | Originally posted by Gallerinski:
1. Sell the guitars with the pre-amp can only, and just have a solid removable cover on it. Great place to store your weed, by the way. This would also satisfy those like me who prefer acoustic only guitars. Dave, how is having the empty can in there different from having a can with a preamp? Isn't the goal of acoustic-only to recover the internal space taken up by the can?
Maybe a removable cover on the hole without having the can in would be better. Then you could either store a whole lot more weed in there (although I think the muffled tone might give that away), or open it up and have a 'sound port' ala John's LX experiment. |
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May 2008
Posts: 4996
Location: Phoenix AZ | Originally posted by The Wabbit Formerly Known As Waskel:
qb] Dave, how is having the empty can in there different from having a can with a preamp? Isn't the goal of acoustic-only to recover the internal space taken up by the can?
Yeah I thought of that. I guess if you don't smoke weed you would just remove the can and cover the hole with Duct Tape.
Dave |
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January 2006
Posts: 5881
Location: Colorado Rocky Mountains | I'm merely speculating from a theoretical perspective, but I would think that the amount of record-keeping required to track production inventory married with customer information and customer defined specs would be increase costs. The preamp interchangeability feature might be an effective means of increasing after-market profits by allowing for factory-approved upgrades at customer discretion, but trying to incorporate this at the production level might be cost prohibitive. I know it works for the Adamas corner, but they have become a small-volume entirely custom shop. As was posted in another thread, Al seems to be able to coordinate one-off customs from the Ovation floor on occasion, so maybe Ovation could develop a "custom corner" for its primary line as well. |
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March 2005
Posts: 12761
Location: Boise, Idaho | I think the cynic Schroeder is right. They are in the business of selling guitars and people buy the latest things. Having a bunch of new gizmos in the preamp may be a selling point for people to buy a new guitar. Having interchangeable preamps might cost guitar sales to those who would just buy the new preamp to put in the guitar they already had.
If you're looking for weed storage, you're on your own. I knew a few guys who were really only into photography so they could carry bunches of film cannisters. I don't know what they do now that all the cameras have gone digital. |
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November 2004
Posts: 4413
| Cynic? Moi? |
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April 2008
Posts: 2985
Location: Sydney, Australia | I like the basic idea of the VIP. I still don't see any reason (other than someone screwed up) why I have to plug a cable in to use the tuner.
Maybe, as has been suggested, the imaging needs to draw power from the battery. Why oh why do we need to plug in a dummy plug (and then forget to remove, draining the battery) just to operate the tuner for 60 seconds.  |
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Adamas 2008 VIP5 question
