1st Generation Hot Cat 30 Channel Inputs

[bcmatt]

Does anyone have instructions for an early Hot Cat 30? Or does anyone have an early version of this amp and know how it is supposed to work?

Does a 2003 Hot Cat 30 only blend between the two channels if you use an ABY pedal? I haven't been able to find an owner's manual for it online. A friend asked me to look at it because he thinks the inputs are messed up and that he should be able to blend in the clean channel when he is plugged in to only the gain channel. It sort of does in a very weak and intermittent way (If the gain channel knob is all the way down you hear it a bit). I assume that this is just some expected sort of internal bleeding between channels that you would never notice if you actually dialing up the volume for the channel you are actually plugged in to.

When I look inside and search for a schematic online, it seems to me that any blending of channels would just be from using an external ABY pedal. Is he just being confused by more modern versions of this amp that do some sort of internal channel blending? I thought I would just check before I explain how he can get everything he wants out of it with just an ABY.

I found this unofficial schematic online, that I suspect is probably true.

Thanks,
Matt

[martin manning]

From the schematic, yes, you would need a Y-cable to drive both inputs, or an ABY pedal for switching on the fly.

[bcmatt]

From the schematic, is there a way to explain why the clean channel bleeds into the gain channel when plugged only into the gain channel?

It's definitely noticeable if you don't have the gain channel too loud, and you turn up the clean knob any significant amount. Do you think this is a problem with this particular amp, or just inherent in the design?

[JazzGuitarGimp]

The first thing I would look at is: make sure that when no cable is plugged in to the Clean Input, the junction of the 1M and 68K resistors is really at GND. If it isn't, then the Clean Input jack needs to be replaced (or possibly cleaned). If that isn't the answer, I would start looking at how and where the two preamps are grounded.

edit: Also look for wires that are carrying signal from the OD Preamp, making sure they are kept far away from the Clean Channel input grid.

[bcmatt]

So, yes, both channels will bleed into each other. If you turn the volume you are plugged into all the way down and the channel you are not plugged into up fairly high, you will get the signal bleeding through. It was probably not something people would normally do on purpose and would not be noticeable until you get the idea in your head that you should be able to blend the channels while plugged into only one of them (thanks to later models with relay switching involved).

Anyways, I think you are right that it is coming through the ground connection. I see that Ceriatone switched the location of the 2 resisters to ground on the Gain channel that both come before the grid. Because it is in red on their layout I imagine it was a later revision. All their other "revisions" in red are actually the same as the schematic already. I really wonder if it makes much difference? Technically, I think this swap should make it harder for the gain channel to bleed as much into the clean channel but easier for the clean channel to bleed into the gain channel.