Ventilator - overdrive too much!

[MrVegas]

Well I just tried my new Venitlator II with my Kronos 2 at church service today. The Ventilator was plugged into a Roland 600 keyboard amp. The Kronos was being used with a few of the built in CX-23 programs with the rotary speaker disabled. Man did it sound like CRAP!! I mean I have always liked a little tube distortion coming out of a Leslie sim, but this was WAY too much. I reached over and dialed the know all the way back and it was still unacceptable. I don't know if I have a defective unit. Any thoughts, ideas on what's going on?

[Baldwin Funster]

There are secondary hidden functions in the vent 2. Make sure you are set for line level not guitar level.

[jpgxk3]

Check the hi/lo button position on the back panel; try it while rehearsing when u can. Joe

[eric]

You should totally be able to dial that back either using the Vent II menu controls (which are a little tricky on the secondary panel), check the hi/lo button and also your gain stage coming out of the keyboard.

[MrVegas]

I might have set the secondary function to guitar input by mistake. honestly the design sucks because the knobs are smooth dials and yet you have to place the knob at 5 o'clock (dialed far to the right?) for low input like an organ

 

I don't think I fiddled with the far right POT which is LEVEL and I need to make sure that is not set too far to the right

 

I will check these and hopefully get it dialed in correctly

[mate stubb]

[elif]

There is an oveload LED that lights up at about 100 mv input when the HI/Lo is set to LO. The audio starts getting a little fuzzy if increased beyond that point.

[ABECK]

I don't think guitar vs keys setting would make that much of a difference. Sounds like the hi/lo button (obviously easy to check), or maybe the level setting (secondary function). Only other 2 things it could be - Kronos output is SUPER hot, or it's defective. The Kronos should sound good on the Vent, for sure!

[MrVegas]

Thanks for all the excellent suggestions! The help I get on this forum is amazing. Lots of you are pros. I'm a glorified hobbyist with a demanding day job and don't know how I could fumble my way through the nuance and technicality of this stuff without your help.

[Doerfler]

honestly the design sucks

 

not sure I agree with this

 

The help I get on this forum is amazing.

 

we all benefit by helping each other

[MrVegas]

i just noticed that Eric said to check the "gain stage" coming out of the keyboard. What does that mean? How can I check the gain stage of the Kronos?

[Baldwin Funster]

Checking gain generally means that the input of the vent is getting a overly powerful signal. Turn the out

put of the kronos down. Volume of sound now too low? Turn UP a gainstage downstream from the vent.

[Reezekeys]

This may be a little "TMI" with respect to MrVegas's issue, but imo it's essential info we should all know:

 

https://www.sweetwater.com/insync/gain-staging/

 

tl;dr - do what Jr. Deluxe said!

[MrVegas]

OK, now I'm getting in over my head (what else is new?) so I have a few more questions. My setup is Kronos into Vent into a Roland KC-600 keyboard amp. Then there are XLR outs from the back of the amp into the PA snake. I use the keyboard amp as a monitor so I can hear what I'm playing.

 

On the Kronos all of the non-organ programs are routed naturally into the Stereo Left and Right outputs of the Kronos, which are plugged into channels 1 and 2 of the keyboard amp. On the Kronos I have configured the organ programs (patches) to be routed into a separate output jack (channel 1 of four possible "other" outputs on the back of the Kronos). This output is what is plugged into the Vent and then the Vent is plugged into channel 3 of the Roland amp.

 

When I am playing pianos or pads through the Kronos stereo left and right, the volume knob on the upper left of the Kronos controls the volume of those programs. As I recall, it does NOT affect the volume of channel 1 so I control the organ volume using an expression pedal.

 

Maybe the signal coming out of channel 1 is too hot but I don't know how to adjust it.

[CEB]

Turn the organ down and amplifier up. The Vent overdrive is reactive like a Leslie. The more you mash the gas the more the Vent distorts. That is what is great about it. I don"t turn the overdrive up very high on the Vent.

 

Are you running everything in combi mode? You should be able to turn down the gain and output for the zone channel where you have you organ program.

[Doerfler]

[Baldwin Funster]

There is an oveload LED that lights up at about 100 mv input when the HI/Lo is set to LO. The audio starts getting a little fuzzy if increased beyond that point.

On the vent, if this red light is lit the input is driven too hot. Keep the red light OFF.

[MAJUSCULE]

I'm not a Kronos owner, but the master volume should probably still function as a volume knob even with the alternate routing. The organ patches probably aren't velocity sensitive, which is where the expression pedal comes in, but I would be somewhat surprised if the master volume is bypassed by switching outputs or using the organ engine.

[MrVegas]

As it turns out, the main issue was I had the Hi/Lo button set on High. Also turned down the volume on the Kronos and turned up the amp volume, all is good! Thanks for all the help.

[Doerfler]

here's hoping you are liking the design better now