English Manual BH550 / BH800 Product Document Document version / date BH550/BH800 English Manual 2014-10-02
Important safety instructions 1 About this manual / Getting support 4 Introduction 6 Setup Guide 9 Operation – Front Panel 1. INPUT jack 2. GAIN knob and CLIP LED 3. TUNER 4. Intelligent EQ section 5. TONEPRINT knobs 1 and 2 6. TonePrint slot switch 7. MUTE switch 8. MASTER level knob 11 12 12 12 13 13 13 13 13 Protection mode 17 Links and additional information 19 Technical specifications 21 Operation – Rear Panel 14 9. MAINS IN – Power switch & Power input 15 10.
Important safety instructions Important safety instructions BH550 / BH800 English Manual (2014-10-02) 1
Important safety instructions The lightning flash with an arrowhead symbol within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user to the presence of uninsulated “dangerous voltage” within the product’s enclosure that may be of sufficient magnitude to constitute a risk of electric shock to persons. The exclamation point within an equilateral triangle is intended to alert the user to the presence of important operating and maintenance (servicing) instructions in the literature accompanying the product.
Important safety instructions ►► Do not install this device in a confined space. ►► Do not open the device – risk of electric shock inside. ►► Mains ground must be connected. EMC/EMI For customers in Canada This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B Digital device, pursuant to part 15 of the FCC rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in residential installations.
About this manual / Getting support About this manual / Getting support BH550 / BH800 English Manual (2014-10-02) 4
About this manual / Getting support This manual will help you learn understanding and operating your TC Electronic product. To get the most from this manual, please read it from start to finish, or you may miss important information. Getting support Register your product If you still have questions about the product after reading this manual, please get in touch with TC Support: Please register this product so we can inform you about updates and other product-related news.
Introduction Introduction BH550 / BH800 English Manual (2014-10-02) 6
Introduction Now all that’s great about bass… is at your fingertips. Thank you for purchasing this TC Electronic bass head! Now let’s see what we got here… Cabinet configurations More than meets the eye There are countless cab configurations to use with your TC Electronic bass amp. Mix and match what suits your personal style.
Introduction TonePrint This TC Electronic product supports TonePrints. To learn more about TonePrints for bass, go to tcelectronic.com/toneprint/toneprint-bass What are TonePrints? TonePrint technology gives you complete creative control. No longer is your creativity held back by a fixed set of built-in effects! With TonePrint, you become the amp designer.
Setup Guide Setup Guide BH550 / BH800 English Manual (2014-10-02) 9
Setup Guide Unpacking Setting up Unpack your bass head. The box should contain the following items: ►► Connect the power cable to the amp and to PLAY! an outlet with correct voltage. This device accepts voltages from 100 to 240 VAC. ►► Your TC Electronic bass head ►► Connect the amp to one or multiple cabinets. ►► Power cable ►► USB cable For setup examples, see the “Cabinet Configuration” sections on the BH550 and BH800 product pages.
Operation – Front Panel Operation – Front Panel BH550 / BH800 English Manual (2014-10-02) 11
Operation – Front Panel This section describes the front panel ports and controls of your bass amp from left to right. The descriptions apply to both BH550 and BH800 – the only difference between these amps is their power. 1 3 5 6 7 8 2 4 1. INPUT jack 2. GAIN knob and CLIP LED 3. TUNER You can connect an active or passive bass to this ¼” input jack. The input stage of your bass amp is designed to adapt to any type of pickup.
Operation – Front Panel 4. Intelligent EQ section The Intelligent EQ section of this TC bass amp is not your standard bass amp EQ! Ordinary bass, middle and treble controls boost or cut the same frequency area when you turn the controls clockwise or counterclockwise. The tone controls of this amp intelligently address several different frequencies when you turn them, integrating not only tone control, but also contouring your sound.
Operation – Rear Panel Operation – Rear Panel BH550 / BH800 English Manual (2014-10-02) 14
Operation – Rear Panel This section describes the rear panel ports and controls of your bass amp from left to right. The descriptions apply to both BH550 and BH800 – the only difference between these amps is their power. 9 10 17 11 9. MAINS IN – Power switch & Power input The switched-mode power supply of this device accepts voltages from 100 V to 240 V. The ground pin of the power supply unit must always be connected in order to avoid voltage differences between e.g. the PA and your bass amp.
Operation – Rear Panel 12. USB port The USB port can be used to… ►► transfer TonePrints downloaded from the TC Electronic website to your BH550/BH800 ►► update the internal software (firmware) of your TC bass amp. 13. UTIL button TC may provide updates for the built-in software of your amplifier, the firmware. Updating your TC amp’s firmware requires… ►► a computer running Microsoft Windows or OS X with a standard USB interface ►► a USB cable.
Protection mode Protection mode BH550 / BH800 English Manual (2014-10-02) 17
Protection mode This product is equipped with an advanced protection system for both the amplifier’s and your own safety. These protection features will only kick in if you operate this product under extreme conditions. Be sure not to cover the cooling grid of your bass amp! Insufficient ventilation may cause the amplifier’s temperature to increase to critical values.
Links and additional information Links and additional information BH550 / BH800 English Manual (2014-10-02) 19
Links and additional information Support resources TC Electronic on… TC Bass resources ►► TC Electronic service and warranty: ►► the web: ►► TC Electronic | Bass: tcelectronic.com/support/service-warranty/ ►► TC Electronic Support: tcelectronic.com/support/ ►► TC Electronic – product software: tcelectronic.com/support/software/ ►► TC Electronic – all product manuals: tcelectronic.com/support/manuals/ tcelectronic.com/ ►► Facebook: facebook.com/tcelectronic tcelectronic.
Technical specifications Technical specifications BH550 / BH800 English Manual (2014-10-02) 21
Technical specifications Input Input connector Input impedance Gain range Tone control Bass Low Mids High Mids Treble TonePrint (two slots) Tuner Tuning range Mute Master level / Headphones output Recommended HP impedance Mains supply Power module rating Speaker output Balanced output Balanced output maximum Bal.
Technical specifications BH550 / BH800 English Manual (2014-10-02) 23
