Ampeg SVT-3 PRO

Plugin Manual

Developed by Brainworx in partnership with Ampeg Limited and Distributed by Plugin Alliance.

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Plugin Manual

Introduction The main applications for this Plugin are

• Recording DI guitars, then editing and processing them in the DAW
The Ampeg SVT-3PRO combines the classic tone of the SVT with a tighter, completely, using the internal amp simulation, the recording chains and
modern sound and tons of tone sculpting tools, and the Brainworx Ampeg the FX Rack.
SVT-3PRO plugin is all about tone. • Recording hardware preamps through the power amp simulation and
Recording Chains.
In the FX Rack view you can access a noise gate, 26 world-class Recording • Practicing at home with minimal latency, via your studio speakers, a
Chains and a power amp simulation including an onboard power soak. home stereo system, headphones or a real guitar amp and cabinet.
Played through a real bass guitar cabinet (via a standard studio power • Playing live via a real power amp and speaker setup.
amp) this plugin rocks like the real thing. This is certainly not your average • Playing LIVE, plugged straight into a live console and / or an in-ear
amp sim. system.
• Re-Amp less than perfect DI guitar tracks, previously recorded with
other guitar-amp simulations.

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The Basics If you insert the Ampeg plugin into a track in your DAW, you have to decide
whether you want to record processed bass amp sounds or whether you
You can use the amp section of this plugin exactly like you would operate only want to record the dry DI bass signal, while monitoring the processed
the real B15-N tube amplifier. amp sound during tracking, of course.

Plug in your bass (via your computer audio interface in this case), select a The advantage of only monitoring the processed sound is that you can
Channel, adjust Gain, Tone and Volume... and Rock’n’Roll! alter the settings of your amp and FX completely during mixdown! If you
A good producer’s trick is to use a REAL Bass Amp (a small combo, for find out later that less or more Gain or Treble would sound better for your
example) for real-time monitoring in the control room during tracking song you can still make that happen.
while recording only the DI bass signal! Then use the Ampeg guitar amp
plugin when you play back the recorded tracks together with the rest of The advantage of recording pre-processed bass tracks might be that
your music. You will need to split the dry bass signal so it can be recorded you will need fewer plugins during mixdown, as your bass tracks will be
in the computer and routed to the real guitar amplifier input at the same ready to be mixed. All you can do then is EQ and compress the recorded
time. bass tracks, or add effects, just like you would with traditional bass amp
recordings. Once you know ‘your sound’ you may even save some time
To play and record dry DI bass tracks with the lowest latency and the by recording processed bass tracks and using them without further
highest quality possible connect your guitar to the Hi-Z Input of an tweaking or fiddling around... your band mates or your producer may
interface or connect a quality DI Box and Mic Preamp to a line input on even appreciate this. ;-)
your interface.

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Amplifier Section 4 Gain

This varies the amount of signal driving the preamplifier. If a small
1 BRT (Bright) clockwise rotation from minimum leads to overloading and the peak LED
When this switch is engaged, a livelier top-end response [+6 dB at 2 kHz] illuminating, try engaging the –15 dB pad. This will give more usable range
is added to the input signal. with the gain control.

2 15 dB 5 Hi
Press this switch in to reduce the input signal by 15 dB and compensate for This switch, when engaged, enhances the amount of high frequency output
higher output sources. This attenuation is suited for use with basses that by 6 dB at 5 kHz.
have active electronics or high-output pickups. Use this pad if you notice
that the peak/mute LED comes on regularly. It will reduce the chance of 6 Lo
overdriving the preamplifier stage and allow more usable range and fine This switch, when engaged, enhances the amount of low-end output by 2
adjustment of the gain control. dB at 40 Hz and –10 dB cut at 500 Hz.

3 Peak/Mute LED 7 Bass

This red warning LED will come on if: the mute switch is engaged, or if the Use this to adjust the low frequency level of the amplifier. This provides up
input signal is too high, the gain control is set too high, or there is too much to 12 dB of boost, or 12 dB of cut at 50 Hz. The low frequency output is flat
boost from the bass, midrange and treble controls. If it comes on regularly, at the center position.
even when these controls are low, try engaging the –15 dB pad.

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1 Midrange 4 Master
Use this to adjust the midrange frequency level of the amplifier. This Use this to control the overall output level. Use it wisely and turn it down
provides up to 15 dB of boost, or 15 dB of cut at the center frequency when making connections or trying something new.
selected by the frequency control. The midrange frequency output is flat at
the center position. Rotate the control counter clockwise for a “contoured” 5 Tube Gain
sound (more distant, less midrange output) or clockwise for a sound that The tube gain control varies the gain of the preamp tubes allowing for a
really cuts through. variety of tonal response characteristics. At “10” the gain is at maximum,
providing a dynamic, highly responsive tone. At “0” the voltage is at
2 Frequency minimum, offering a thickened, more compressed tone. This tone may
This control allows you to select the center frequency for the midrange also be distorted, depending on volume level. The effect of this control
control, giving you a choice of five “voices” for the midrange. The numbers increases from moderate to dramatic as the power amp is driven harder.
correspond to the following center frequencies: 1=220 Hz, 2=450 Hz,
3=800 Hz, 4=1.6 kHz, 5=3 kHz.

3 Treble
Use this to adjust the high frequency level of the amplifier. This provides
up to 14 dB of boost, or 19 dB of cut at 5 kHz. The high frequency output is
flat at the center position.

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Graphic EQ 3 Level
This slider is the output volume control for the Graphic EQ and only affects
When this switch is engaged, the 9-band graphic EQ is enabled. A foots- the signal when the EQ is engaged. If the EQ’d signal is too soft, slide the
witch overrides this switch. level control up; if it’s too loud, slide this control down. This is very useful
for correcting for differences in level generated by graphic EQ settings.
1 Active LED
This LED illuminates when the EQ is on. 4 On LED
This LED illuminates when the plugin is active.
2 9-Band Graphic EQ
These sliders control the output frequencies indicated above each control. 5 Power Switch
The center position of each control is flat [no boost or cut]. Use this switch to engage or bypass the plugin.

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FX Rack 3 Threshold
The Noise Gate will dim the output signal of the amplifier as soon as the
Noise Gate input signal (your bass signal) falls below a certain level. This level is
called Threshold. Adjust the Threshold so the noise of the overdriven amp
1 Closed LED will be reduced, but make sure you don´t cut fading notes or chords.
When lit this LED indicates that the Noise Gate is CLOSED. This means the
THRESHOLD setting is higher than the incoming bass signal and the noise 4 Range
gate dims the output signal of the amplifier by the amount adjusted with The output level of your amplifier will be reduced or muted when the input
the RANGE control (e.g. 15dB in the picture above). signal is lower than the Threshold setting. You may dim the output level
only by a few decibels (dB), or completely mute the output in pauses by
2 Noise Gate On/Off setting the RANGE to its maximum.
Enable or disable the Noise Gate completely. Switch up (‘on’) means the
Noise Gate is activated.

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Amp Filters 2 Smooth Filter

With the SMOOTH filter you can cut HIGH frequencies of either the DI bass
1 Tight Filter signal (PRE) or the processed amp output (POST).
With the TIGHT filter you can cut LOW frequencies of either the DI bass
signal (PRE) or the processed amp output (POST). Pre: If your pickups catch a lot of hiss or noise you can filter the high end
before the DI sound even hits the amplifier.
Pre: If your pickups produce an unintentional rumbling bass sound you
can filter the low end before the DI sound even hits the amplifier. Post: If you want to cut some of the high end of your amplifier setting
(maybe even only temporary) you can use this studio quality low pass
Post: If you want to cut some of the low end of your amplifier setting filter to reduce treble.
(maybe even only temporary) you can use this studio quality high pass
filter to reduce the bass. Off: When set to OFF the SMOOTH filter is in bypass mode.

Off: When set to OFF the TIGHT filter is in bypass mode.

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Input Gain 2 Internal Power Soak

In the real world, power soaks are being used to reduce the volume of a
1 Input Gain bass power amp. This way you can crank up a (tube) power amp to drive it
If you want to drive the input of the Ampeg preamp harder or softer you until it starts clipping, and still record at a volume which will protect your
may adjust the input gain to your liking. Some single coil pickups from hearing and keep the neighbors friendly.
older or vintage basses may deliver low level output that can be compen-
sated with the INPUT GAIN. A clipping tube power amp adds distortion and harmonics to the bass
amp signal. A fully cranked up tube amp tamed in volume with a power
The opposite goes for a lot of heavy metal style humbuckers. If you have soak will sound different than the same amp with the master volume
recorded the DI signal too hot or if you are using other Plugins before turned down.
entering the Ampeg amp Plugin you may want to dim the input signal.
We have modeled the behavior of the Ampeg power amp, so you may
With most standard bass guitars you can and should leave the INPUT experiment with different settings of the Master Volume of the amp and
GAIN at 0 (zero) though. the internal POWER SOAK. We recommend a setting of roughly -10dB for
most scenarios.

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Rec Chains Many bass guitar amp simulations give you some captured impulses of a
selection of cabinets and microphones, then they leave it up to you to EQ
Simply select a speaker and a complete studio setup by browsing through and further process these incomplete setups by mixing different micro-
the REC CHAINS pull-down menu! phone setups, adjusting phase and EQ, and so on. But this really is not an
easy job; it takes years of experience to get it right.
In the past two decades Brainworx owner Dirk Ulrich has produced and
recorded with members of DREAM THEATER, TOTO, MICHAEL JACKSON, Now all you have to do is select the Recording Chain that sounds best for
and with many more famous and infamous acts. The Brainworx Studio in your amp channel and setting, adjust the Tone Stack and Gain and you´re
Germany (www.brainworx-studio.de) is equipped with one of only nine good to go! Recallable, reliable, flexible and fast.
NEVE VXS 72 consoles ever made, and it also hosts some of the finest
outboard EQs and mic pre-amps available. And if for any reason you should not like any of the Recording Chains
the Plugin offers, you may use the very last setting (labeled CABINET
Using this impressive setup Dirk has produced a huge variety of BYPASS) and use your own mic’d cabinet. This setting will give you the
customized ‘Recording Chains’ for the Ampegs amplifiers, which you can sound of a tube amp wired straight into a console, which also may be a
apply to your Plugin amp settings. Imagine a selection of 26 perfectly nice effects sound.
mic’d and EQ-ed cabinets that you can select and use instantly with a
single mouse click!

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1 Horn On/Off 3 Auto & Bar Selection

The Ampeg 8x10 speaker cabinet included a piezo horn which contributed If you are trying to find the best sounding REC CHAIN for your actual song
that classic attack tone. We’ve created a separate impulse response for it can be tiring having to play a few chords, then grabbing the mouse to
the horn and added this on/off switch so the sound of the horn can not select the next REC CHAIN, playing a few notes again, grabbing the mouse
only be added to the impulse responses of the 8x10 cabinet, but any of the again, etc.
provided cabinets whether the original had the horn or not.
For this reason the Ampeg amp plugin offers you the AUTO mode
2 + / - Switches (Plus / Minus) Just select a pattern (1 Bar, 2 Bars or 4 Bars) and the Plugin will activate
Browse through the REC CHAINS by either using the pull-down menu of the available REC CHAINS automation, following the actual tempo setting
the REC CHAIN text box (see above) or just click through the settings using of your DAW. You can now play uninterrupted and simply listen to the
the + and - symbols. sound of the various REC CHAINS as the Plugin switches through all of
them every single bar, every two bars or every four bars, depending on
your setting.

As soon as you hear the speaker setup you like best just stop AUTO mode
by clicking the AUTO button again and manually select the desired REC
CHAIN. Afterwards, just fine-tweak the TONE STACK and GAIN and there
you are.

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Top Toolbar 3 Copy / Paste

To set up variations of similar sounds you don´t have to dial in all the
1 Undo / Redo parameters several times. Let´s say you like your setting A and want to
You can undo and redo changes you made to the controls of the STD-1 use the same sound, just without delay, as setting B.
plugin at any time. The Undo / Redo will work for as many as 32 steps. • Simply press Copy while you are in setting A.
This makes experimenting and tweaking knobs easy. If you don´t like what • Switch to setting B by pressing ‘B’ in the settings section.
you did... just undo it. • Press Paste, now setting B is identical to setting A.
• Reduce the Tube Gain. Done.
2 Settings (A/B/C/D)
The Ampeg amp plugin offers four internal settings (A/B/C/D) which will Now you can switch between A & B and play the same sound with or
be stored with every preset. So, one preset can contain up to four amp and without delay.
effects settings. You may use similar amp settings with more or less delay,
different delay times, etc., to quickly switch between different sounds, or 4 Regeneration Limiter
you can switch from clean to crunch to lead within one setup / preset. The Applies a soft clip limiter to the Regeneration signal.
Settings can be automated in your DAW. This way it´s possible to switch
from a dry rhythm sound to a lead sound with tons of delay, for example. 5 Noise
When turned up, this control applies a simulated noise floor to match that
of the original hardware unit. It ranges from -∞ to -60 dB.

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Bottom Toolbar 4 Key (Icon)

Clicking on the key icon brings up the activation dialog, allowing you
1 PA Logo to manually reauthorize a device in the event of a license upgrade or
Clicking the Plugin Alliance logo takes you to the Plugin Alliance website addition. You can also use this feature to activate additional computers
via your web browser, that´s if your computer is online. or USB ash drives.

2 License Type 5 ? (Icon)

The toolbar displays information about the type of license you’re running: Clicking the ? icon opens up a context menu that links to the product
Trial licenses will be displayed along with the number of days until manual PDF, as well as other helpful links, e.g. to check for product
expiration; there is no note for full licenses as these are unlimited. updates online. You must have a PDF reader installed on your computer
to be able to read the manual.
3 $ (Icon)
If you are using a demo / trial version of our products, you can always click System Requirements & FAQ (Links)
this icon to open a browser that redirects you to the respective product
page in the Plugin Alliance store. This is where you can easily purchase a For latest System Requirements & Supported Platforms
product without having to look it up on our website. https://www.plugin-alliance.com/en/systemrequirements.html
Particular details for your product
https://www.plugin-alliance.com/en/products.html
Installation, Activation, Authorisation and FAQ´s
https://www.plugin-alliance.com/en/support.html

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Factory Presets Creating your own Sounds & Presets

These presets are only intended to give you an easy start and to demo When you start to create your own sounds the most important elements
some of the tones you can get out of the Ampeg amp plugin. to adjust are the DRIVE, TONE SECTION and the REC CHAINS.

• Dial in as much GAIN or Distortion as you like.

• Play through as many REC CHAINS as you like and pick the one that
sounds closest to what you are looking for without altering the TONE
SECTION.
• NOW start tweaking the TONE SECTION to fine-tune your amp settings.

Experiment, be creative. We are confident that the numerous presets and

huge selection of REC CHAINS will offer you many possible combinations
that will sound great on a big variety of musical styles and genres.

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