Signature model from one of rock's great bassists.
As a bass legend for the past 30 years JJ Burnel is no ordinary bass player and his bass amp of choice is just as special as the man himself. The Ashdown AL-JJ500 was developed in conjunction with The Stranglers bass icon with the objective of creating a versatile, rack-mounting bass amp head with a thrilling dynamic range and an ultra-clean fast-response 575 Watts RMS output section. The resulting JJ-500 head has been JJs’ weapon of choice for the past decade.
Suitably equipped instruments can be plugged in via a balanced, low impedance XLR input for the ultimate low-noise connection, with a conventional jack provided to accommodate standard instruments. The optimum input level is set by an input gain control, operated in conjunction with a classic, illuminated Ashdown VU meter. Precision tone shaping comes courtesy of a 12-band graphic equalizer, which can be switched in and out from the front panel. Unique to Ashdown Labs is a revolutionary Harmonic Emphasis circuit that actually synthesizes new harmonics which combine with the originals under variable level control to create a stunning extra top-end ‘zing’ – like permanently playing with new strings. The balanced DI output on the front panel can be switched pre and post EQ, and a tuner output with mute switch is provided for silent tuning.
The massive, shielded toroidal transformer is custom designed for the Ashdown JJ-500 and ensures a continuous, regulated supply to power huge transients across a wide frequency response.
Preamplifier features include low impedance and conventional instrument inputs, illuminated VU meter, Harmonic Emphasis, 12-band graphic EQ, switchable pre and post EQ balanced DI output, tuner output with mute switch, line output, effects loop and speaker outputs on jack and Speakon connectors.
