BBE 482 Sonic Maximizer

Quite easy to get very nice sounds out of it.

To me it sounds wonderful a peice i cant do without. use it in my recording rack on everything from vocals to bass and guitar. A BBE 462 with a good compressor is sort of like a poor mans mastering machine for your recordings.

Depend on it, you bet. As far as a back up yes i would i personally never heard of and peice of BBE gear go bad, probley would out last every peice of gear i have.

I would imagine the service dept at BBE are sort of like the maytag people the stuff just never goes bad or breaks. No need to call them well i might send them a card or two to let them know that we know they are there if anyone needs them....LOL

I play everything from A to Z and i have been playing guitar and keybords for about 35 years. I know what i am talking about when it comes to gear. not a kid that uses his alowance to get the latest greatest cheap thing to come along.

easy to use low and high!!

sounds great to me but the thing people get confused with it is when you crank the lows and high youre not cutting mid range at all youre boosting the hell out the ends of the spectrum start at 0!!! not all knobs on 6 or 10 or whatever and ease into youre sound.it conditions low contour and the high end and it definatley sounds better in than out. if you like it it is a 10-- if you dont look elsewhere

it sits in my studio but I've transported it to a couple gigs and well' it is as solid as a house

never tried them

would definately but another one!!! makes more than just guitars sound excellent!!! it isnt a scooped out sound unless you boost high and low ...if you like sound enhancement then get it because you need to read the manual to actually know how to use it.I like mine and I plan on using these until I dont like music anymore (which is impossible)

Very easy to use 2 knobs and an on off switch

Well I am just giving my opinion here but:
My gear is: Various guitars including ibanez rg/fender talon/charvel model 6 into a digitech geq-14 midi eq into digitech gsp-2101 with the other side of the eq in the fx loop. Then from there into the peavey classic 60/60 tube poweramp. I was fairly happy with my sound before i added the bbe...with the bbe on it sucks the tone...it scoops the midrange...the low end is hard to describe...but it lacks definition. Now i do what the manual says and put the bbe BEFORE the EQ. I am going to try it after eq and also in stereo mode inbetween my digitech and the poweramp...if it is not satisfactory then i will be selling this thing...

To my ears it sucks the midrange down quite a bit and in the type of music i play (80's metal) that is not so good. I like midrange so i can hear myself on stage...I hate a scooped sound.
Also it should be noted that i hate most nu-metal and this unit tends to add a nu-metal sound i think...i think disturbed uses these.
So if nu metal is your thing then by all means give this thing a try...

Looks to be built solid...it survived shipping!

I use it for a guitar rig which it says in the manual that it can be used for...maybe this thing is only good for studio use for mixing or something?

It's very useful tool. Only two knobs per channel. Bass booster and Treble Booster. Easy. Better first try bypassing the unit. Then quit the bybass and play with the knobs at 0. Put both knobs at 2 and try. Only keep raising the level at your taste. As simple as that. Don't raise higher than 5.

The sound is pure cristal. The clear tones sound thick and deep. The distortion tones.... this thing seems to have been contructed for metal guitarrists.

I don't think it could break.

I don't know.

If you play prog metal you HAVE TO OWN ONE OF THIS.

My rig:
Guitar: Heart-Art (similar to Paul Reed Smith)
Power amp: Marshall 9000 (50w+50w)
Preamp: Mesa Boogie Triaxis
Fx: Tc Electronic G-Major
BBE Sonic Maximizer
Midi Floorboar: FCB1010
Marshall 1959 Speaker Cab.

This rig, without the Maximizer sounds incredible, but with it... the sound is simply superb.

I think the Maximizer helps for building your own sound.

BBE is the best name in sound prossesors as far as i am concerned. Not only does it look real cool with the blinking lights, it has the best sound inhansment that i have ever heard.

we have a 24 channel Mackie mixer, it is a quite runing board already, but the BBE just made it even quiter.

i would go any where with just one, I have ran sound for my dad at his church for 10 years, and we have had the BBE for about 7 years, it has never been repaired, and has never giving any signs or any threats about giving up. and it still makes our system sound better then ever...... and did i mintion the lights??? i love lights.

I would say no matter what the case wether it be christian, live band, or keroake, or any thing music related it is the product you need, and if you dont have one, well...... you never have heard true crystal clear sound.

Two knobs and a by-pass switch. It looks easy, but it takes time to taylor your sound.

It is not noisy in either my guitar rack or hooked up to my home stereo. On my home stereo it is very cool. It really helps sharpen everything.

The guitar is kind of 50/50. I use it sparingly. I don't really like what it does to my clean tone. For overdrive it is much better. I am running a Traynor 2-12 and my rack of a TC M300 and BBE runs through the FX loop. It is ok, nothing great with the guitar. I could live without it, but it is useful.

Very reliable as with most rack equipment.

Never called them

I like it for jazzing up my home stereo sound. I am in the middle of the road as far as guitar use. It works excellent with my RainSong acoustic. Not real great with my electrics clean. Better for cleaning up hard overdrive.

I chose it because it was a 2 channel unit with RCA and 1/4 ins and outs. I compare it to a parametric EQ. In fact if it was stolen, I would replace it with a parametric EQ. It kind of gets in the way sometimes.

A piece of cake. Two knobs per channel; doesn't get much easier than that does it?

I'm using the 482 in a typical DJ setup; I record a weekly mixshow here at home and use the unit mostly for playback. Running audio out from a Pioneer DJM-3000 to the 482, the sonic result has been nothing short of wonderful, even through the old pair of Yamaha monitors I currently have. The sound quality coming off the Pioneer board is good to begin with, but the 482 just gives it that extra little something. Spinning both vinyl and CDs, I get a nice robust low end and a sharper high end with each. No more tinkering with individual EQ bands; simply move the 482's contour and process controls to where you want them as needed. Simple as that!

Bought mine in 2001 and haven't had a single problem with it.

Never had to contact BBE in regards to the 482.

I'd recommend the 482 for any DJ or playback setup. As most DJ mixers these days have an integrated EQing system of some sort, I opted to skip buying a seperate rack EQ in favor of the 482, and I'm very glad I did. It's a simple and affordable sonic tool that's really put a shine in my sound system, and for what it costs, you can't really beat it.

Very few knobs. You don't need the manual

I'm using it on guitar. I use a Les Paul thru a Marshall JMP-1 Preamp and Marshall 9200 modded poweramp with other various effects into Marshall and Mesa/Boogie cabs. I loved my original sound but I thought if something could make it sound even better, I'm all for it. I don't agree with the people that said the 482 made their original setup sound like crap. Without the BBE I still love my sound. Basically, it does make the bass more clear and punchy and the highs clearer and crisp. It is NOT a significant difference though. I didn't notice much of a difference with the cleans as I did with distortion.

I haven't had it long enough to tell but it seems sturdy enough.

Haven't had to deal with them.

Overall, I think it's a good addition. I would not pay $200 like the 482i new models, which are the same as the old models just made to look space age. It's just not a $200 improvement from your original sound. If you can get one cheap go for it. I'd imagine this unit is better for recording, mixing, and bass, but that's just an assumption.

Very easy to use, only two knobs per channel.
You only have to taste to find a good sond.

I'm using a DXMG Jackson guitar with Emg 81 pickups in bridge and neck position, then a cry baby and a rp-7 digitech connected to the BBE 482 and finally a Vs230 Marshall combo.
It isn't a good rig, but the 482 makes it sound better than it is.
I can obtain a full and very clear clean tone and distortion becomes alive with this unit.

I've been using it for 6 months and everything is fine.
It's made of metal, just don't droop it and it will work ok for a long time.

Good costumer service they always answer my questios by e-mail

An excellent improvement to your sound.

How hard can it be? It has two knobs per channel, a defeat button, and a power switch. If you can't figure this out on your own you need help. I find it funny that it actually came with a manual.

I am using this with a Line 6 Podxt through a Tube works poweramp and in to a marshall 1960A cab. It is a definate improvement in sound quality. In a matter of 15 seconds I had my setting which sounds unbelievable.

I am going to rely on it, though I really have no reason to. I have never even heard of BBE untill I heard of this product.....

I play mainly hard rock, alternative, some metal, R&B, punk and jazz. I would definately recommend this to anyone who wants to improve their tone. Even if you don't think you need to, check this out anyway.