Difference in sound between UK Voltage and USA voltage.

[Bluesgeetar]

Hey I am getting ready to buy a TLA audio/HHB Radius Fatman Stereo compressor.  There are two versions.  The UK voltage one which is exclusively hard wired for UK no universal switcherroo gadget and the circuit designed around the UK 220 I think.  Then there is the USA/UK one made for HHB by TLA audio which has a universal switcheroo gizmo inside and can run on both voltages.  I've have heard and read other people saying that stuff using UK voltage has a special lively sparkleness due to the higher voltage.  Read plenty of articles by famous guitar players from the 60s who prefered their UK voltage amps to ones made for America voltage.  Read an article where Jimmy Hendrix said he prefered his UK Voltage Marshalls over the USA voltage Marshalls due to the better sound.  SO should I order a UK voltage Fatman compressor or just get the one with the Universal switcheroo.  I'm going for sound quality here not convenience.

[AL]

Bluesgeetar,

How do you plan on using the UK version in the states? I don't have any experience with this company so I don't know what the effect sounds like but if it only runs on UK voltage you won't have any luck using it here unless you get a converter which is already built into the USA model.

AL

[Ammscray]

Hey I am getting ready to buy a TLA audio/HHB Radius Fatman Stereo compressor.  There are two versions.  The UK voltage one which is exclusively hard wired for UK no universal switcherroo gadget and the circuit designed around the UK 220 I think.  Then there is the USA/UK one made for HHB by TLA audio which has a universal switcheroo gizmo inside and can run on both voltages.  I've have heard and read other people saying that stuff using UK voltage has a special lively sparkleness due to the higher voltage.  Read plenty of articles by famous guitar players from the 60s who prefered their UK voltage amps to ones made for America voltage.  Read an article where Jimmy Hendrix said he prefered his UK Voltage Marshalls over the USA voltage Marshalls due to the better sound.  SO should I order a UK voltage Fatman compressor or just get the one with the Universal switcheroo.  I'm going for sound quality here not convenience.

Yes, it's true about the amps sounding better on the correct voltage, I use step-up trannys with my Marshall, Vox, and Orange amps and wouldn't run them on US voltage again now that I know the difference...although the difference is greater in the higher wattage amps...

Since you're using the entire PT primary on UK voltage as opposed to half on the US voltage, this makes the difference...of course you're still on 60 cycles and not 50 cycles like the UK, but the difference is still great enough for me to do it...

With the compressor though, I don't know exactly what the switch is doing in there when switching for the voltages...being such a small transformer, it may be a very negligible difference at best IMO...

If you still need to do it for your own head, get a 100 watt rated step-up at the least, to use with the UK version...

[Bluesgeetar]

Yeah, I think I'll go ahead and buy the UK one.  Damn!  ZZounds is having a sale on the USA compatible one for $199!!  I guess it is better to go ahead and buy the UK one with the proper voltage for the proper sound. :wink: