How good is the load on the captor?

bluedog25

New member
I've been thinking about getting the captor for my vintage vibrolux when its available. A few quick questions. Will the load on it be better than the live and studio? Or exactly the same?
There are obviously a lot of load boxes on the market right now, so want to get the best one.

Also, I have a 60's vibrolux that is a 4ohm amp. I've been using the Suhr reactive load with it. I've been told it will work totally cool with it, but may not be the best sonically compared to a 4 ohm loadbox. Not actually sure how it would sound different. Wondering what I can expect in difference between the 2? Characteristics and sonic quality.

Thanks in advance!!
 
Hi bluedog25,

the load on the Captor is the same as the Torpedo Live. The one in the Torpedo is different because it is a switchable 4/8/16 Ohms load.

if your amp only has a 4 Ohms output it's always best to try and match that with the cabinet/load. It's usually no big deal to use a 8 Ohms load on a 4 Ohms output, but it may change the way the amp works and sounds.

Comparing what we do to other loadboxes on the market, well, I'd say the principle is pretty much always the same, we just try to design them so they do not tint the amp character too much, and we count on the digital simulation to take care of that aspect. Some people will find them transparent and it's cool, other will find them transparent and it's bad. ^^

Another aspect which is pretty much never discussed, is that we implemented since day one a security system that will protect both the torpedo and the amp in case of overheating. That should help you try to push the system to the limits without worrying about taking too much risk. This being said, remember that most (recent) amps are not really designed to run full blast for too long. ;)
 
Thanks for the response!

Just curious, what would be the difference in characteristics of plugging in a 4ohm amp to an 8ohm load vs plugging in a 4ohm amp to a 4ohm amp?

Basically wondering if it's worth having an extra load box, because I already have the Suhr RL which is an 8 ohm loadbox...and overall have been pretty happy with it. I don't mind spending the money if it's worth it, as it's a very fair price. But just wanting to know the difference of sonic sounds I should expect?
 
It all depends on the amp.

A loadbox (at least, our loadboxes) is just that : a load. Electronically speaking, this means it doesn't affect the sound by itself, but only because of its effect in conjunction with the output impedance of the amp (it forms a voltage divider with this output impedance).

The higher the output impedance, the higher the effect. If the output impedance of the amp is zero, or close enough, like in a good transistor amp, the loadbox won't have much (if any) effect. Transistor amps have a "4 ohms min" specification, instead of "4 ohms", "8 ohms" and "16 ohms" outputs : it doesn't matter what impedance you use. The impedance has an effect on the max power the amp can output, but not much on the sound.

Tube amps have a higher output impedance, so the load will have an effect on the sound. But every amp has its own output impedance, so this effect will be different for every amp. In any case, it could be something like "more/less trebles" or "more/less scooped sound", and this in turn becomes a matter of personal taste.

The simple fact that a proper load will allow the amp to behave more like expected by its designer is a good enough reason, in my opinion, to go for a 4 ohms loadbox. But I couldn't say if the changes from your current setups will be important or not, or if you'll like them or not.
 
Power is required only for the XLR DI output and speaker simulation.
-> So I'm able to run it without power via the TRS out and don't have to worry it will get too hot?
Just wondering, because there is a fan, so maybe it's still better to run it powered all the time? (although running it passively would be awesome of course)
 
Don't mix up the power coming from the amp and the power needed to make the Spkr Sim work.

The former can't be avoided, the whole heatsink/fan/thermal security is here to handle it. The latter only powers the op-amps of the Spkr Sim and XLR output.

What makes the unit go hot is the power from the amp, so the unit will get hot even is "unpowered" by an external power supply or phantom power. The fan is powered by the amp, so the unit can be used passively.
 
Thanks for the response! :)

If I turn the speakersim on, will it be only on the XLR out and the TRS out is still the raw signal?
 
If I turn the speakersim on, will it be only on the XLR out and the TRS out is still the raw signal?

For example you could send the jack line out to a soundcard or a Torpedo CAB, and at the same time get the analog speakersim on then XLR out.

Great setup for a unique guitar on stage willing to achieve a kind of stereo.
 
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