bass amp

Shazbot · 25-10-2004 6:14pm #1

hi i have been playing bass for nearly 2 years now and sadly im still using a poor 10watt practise amp.

i have bought new basses over the years but a good bass into a 10 watt amp sounds horrible. i need advice on a new rig , i was told to stay away from combo amps because u have less control over the sound.

so i was thinking of a peavey mark III with an ampeg cabinet , 4 10" speakers

could anyone else give me more info on a new rig

Doctor J · 25-10-2004 8:25pm

Why not get a Mark VI? The Mark III is almost twenty years old. Aim for a 300W head if that's the way you choose to go. I'd suggest maybe having a look at the Ashdown MAG series too. As for the cab, it makes sense to get something that is designed to work with your cab, ie - Ashdown MAG speakers, though it's not that important. What is important is to get cabs with an ohm rating that your head can cope with. You should aim for a head which can handle a four ohm load and then seek two eight ohm cabs. The Peavey Mark VI is a very decent head, nice sound, it should be able to handle four ohms, I'd guess.

Personally, I think a 4x10 is a bit of overkill, four speakers which put out the same frequencies, plus they're insanely heavy. I'm getting a 1x15 and 2x10 (with a tweeter) rig together. That will cover a greater frequency range than a 15 or a 10 setup exclusively.

Shazbot · 25-10-2004 9:00pm

thanks for the advice doc.

one more thing , if i buy an amp from the states would it be to operate here?

i have been told there is a difference in voltage and it wouldnt work

Doctor J · 25-10-2004 9:05pm

Yep, it's 110V over there and 220V over here, you should be able to get it converted but you wave bye bye to the warranty straight away. Plus, it'll cost a ****ing fortune to get shipped over, given the weight of amps. If anything goes wrong you're buggered. Just not worth the gamble IMO.

Have a look at the Ashdown stuff in Musicmaker, I got an ABM head and cab from them and it's pretty much as cheap there as it is anywhere else in Europe, I've found. If it's within your budget, the ABM stuff is just sweet. All Ashdowns have a bit of power to spare, meaning the sound doesn't break up or distort when you give it some. A lot of other amps (Trace Elliott especially in my time) just turn to runny poo when they have to work hard.

Waltons do Ampeg gear but it's stupidly expensive there. Besides, if you're going to get anything by Ampeg, get an SVT head, don't worry about their cabs unless you can afford (and have a van to transport) an 8x10.

ferdi · 26-10-2004 11:05am

ashdown are teh whinner!

John · 27-10-2004 12:48am

I also recommend the Ashdown amps. Looking at picking up a MAG combo for college practise room. Want to get a nice set up for myself at some stage too.

ferdi · 27-10-2004 10:55am

JOhn2 what college are you in !!?????

John · 27-10-2004 6:56pm

I'm in TCD ferdi. I'm treasurer for the rock society

Karl Hungus · 27-10-2004 7:03pm

Personally, I don't think you can beat a nice Trace Elliot.

John · 27-10-2004 7:11pm

I have a Trace Elliot and although I like it I find the sound just a little bit dead

daram · 28-10-2004 9:41am

I like the SWR goliath range. They're all fairly sweet. Traces are nice too. And you cant go wrong with ampeg.

But Im not a bassist so...

Mr. CooL ICE · 28-10-2004 1:52pm

Ill be going on work placement next year, so i just want a rough idea of what to actually get myself when i eventually have the money. What exactly would i look for in a rig, and would a budget of €2000 be limiting my choices?

daram · 28-10-2004 1:54pm

You can get anything you want for that much. 8 x 10 ampeg cabinet and all

Shazbot · 28-10-2004 1:57pm

i was talking to a buy in musician today and he recommened the Laney Ritcher rig

laney R4H head , R115 cab ( one 15" speaker ) and R410 ( 4 10" speakers ) all for under €1500

anyone know anyone about laneys or could i get a better deal ?

Doctor J · 28-10-2004 9:57pm

Shazbot wrote:

i was talking to a buy in musician today and he recommened the Laney Ritcher rig

laney R4H head , R115 cab ( one 15" speaker ) and R410 ( 4 10" speakers ) all for under €1500

anyone know anyone about laneys or could i get a better deal ?

I'd go for Ashdown over Laney anyday.

ktoal · 29-10-2004 4:23pm

I had a bad experience with the Ashdown MAG series. I bought the MAG 250 head last August and pluged it into a Peavey 8ohm 4x10... The head was 4 ohms, so it should have been able to driver the cab... Everything was great for a couple of hours in band practise, then I smelt smoke and the amp died. I could still turn the amp on and the needle window (nice feature on the amp) would light up, but no sound. To took it back to the shop and got it replaced. This time I also bought the Ashdown MAG 4x10 Deep Cab (the perfect partner) and it sounded great, until the same thing happened again. Before anyone suggests I was drivering the amp too hard, the levels were sat to 6&6 on the input and output pods. I ended up leaving it back to the shop, got my money back and bought the Peavy Firebass 700 (The Beast, as my band calls it). I also bought the Trace Elliot 1x15 in the same shop. So now I have the Peavy Firebass with the Ashdown MAG 4x10 and a Trace Elliot 1x15..... Life could get any sweeter... They have never left me down in over a year of solid gigging....

Doctor J · 29-10-2004 11:44pm

Aye, there was a design flaw with the first series. Tis well sorted out now.

It wasn't me! · 31-10-2004 2:33pm

I have a little Ashdown After Eight 15w combo and it's quite nice. I'd love to try some of their bigger rigs.

eoin5 · 01-11-2004 12:00pm

ive played on ashdown amps a couple of times and theyre very clean, too dry imo.
You have the right idea with the peavy, but if you dont want to spend too much then a desent combo with a good preamp (bass pod, bass vamp etc) will give you all the tonal variation you need. main point: shop around ebay, buyandsell, whatever just dont get ripped off

bass amp

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