Bass amp shopping

kawaii

Me and a friend are going to town tomorrow to find a bass amp for his little brother. Knowing very little about bass amps I thought I'd ask on here for a few reccommended brands/models and some things to look out for. Not sure what budget he's looking at, but I think he wan'ts spomething pretty decent that he might get some use out of aswell. He says he's looking for a tube stack, prefrerably vintage sounding.

Obviously we're gonna go around and try as many amps as possible. Basically wondering what we should defo stay away from..

Any advice much appreciated.

Sorry for any typos btw - the light in my laptops display is gone, so I can't see what I'm typing.

Yakult

How much is he looking to spend?

Off the bat I will say ampeg. but expensive stuff.

unclebill98

Well without knowing your budget its going to be hard.

If you looking for the vintage all tube stack, then thats a Ampeg SVT with a 8x10 or 1x15 & 4x10 stack. Thats over 3k worth of gear!

Try some Hybrid heads for the best of both worlds.

If its Dublin you going out to, your choice is limited. Your stuck with Ampeg(If you can find it), Trace Elliot(great solid build), Ashdown(Good cheap stuff), Mesa Boogie(Again is you find it) and the rest! I'm not naming shops here either.

I'd stay away from Crate, Ashdown(Mag Series), Line 6 stuff.

Come back with your budget.

Fleaman08

well im doin the same now and hav settled on Gallien and Krueger head and cab.... the best bass stuff u will get... i would recomend looking into it...

68 lost souls

unclebill98 wrote: »

I'd stay away from Crate, Ashdown(Mag Series), Line 6 stuff.

Come back with your budget.

What issues do you have with the MAG series? I love my MAG 210. Sounds beautiful to me and got it at a good price too.

unclebill98

Ok, when you have to gig a rig 3/4 times a week in and out of venues, vans, house, studios etc a ****e rig will show its true colors. Ashdown = one of those rigs. I speak from experience nothing less.

There customer service is very poor, other here would say its not. Also buy cheap buy twice.

Ger8150

Would definetely recommend either a Trace Elliott or a Laney half stack. Looking at the bones of €1500. Money well spent tho. As the previous poster said, buy cheap buy twice.

Patricide

Id recommend Ashdown, The mag series if hes on a mid budget and the klystron on the odd chance that he has a rake o money to spend. Also recommend orange if he is loaded to the gills.

Id steer clear of ampeg at the moment unless you were going for the absoute top notch stuff.

Fleaman08

I played an ashdown stack lately but didnt like it... So far the best are the gallien and krueger or trace eliot.... Serious stuff... U would get a savage rig for about a grand and a half... If ur willing to spend that much...

unclebill98

There are concerns about Ampeg stuff due to there relocation. If you can find some of the older USA made gear you can not go wrong.

GK are great stuff. Good bang for you buck there!!!

Patricide

Would agree there a great brand, but you need to spend the money. I find there backline series dreadfull!! Yup find an old ampeg and your sorted!!! As for trace elliots, im not a fan of there new head but there older stuff is great.

Fleaman08

no I'm talkin about the artist series... Very nice stuff...

Dord

Stay away from Ampeg, at least the newer stuff. I've heard nothing but bad things about the new ones.

basshead56

Here, Here!
The build quality of the new Ampeg stuff is dire. the speakers are cheaper and cabs are poorly wired-and they dont sound like Ampeg!.
I bought American BSE 410 HLF and SVT Classic 15E cabs two weeks ago from a bloke in Cork- both brand spanking new (used at home twice) around 500 quid for the pair! Couldnt believe it. But having tried out new Ampeg cabs in Dublin a few days before, NO comparison- AMERICAN (SLM-made) Ampeg will beat ANY bass amp.
I have Trace Elliot, Laney and Ashdown rigs and the next best would be Laney-great value for money and packed with features.
The Trace I have is old. So old in fact, its a prototype,an 8x10&GP11 combo never put into production. Used to belong to Guy Pratt.Its a serious rig and cost me nothing, but far too big to use at the gigs I´m doing. should be playing Donnington or somewhere like that.
Ashdown- Had a mag series head and 8x10 cab- nothing but grief from day one, and customer services were non-existent!I have another Ashdown stack that works great- the mini 65 watt one I use for evening practise. Thats all they´re fit for IMO.
Go get an Ampeg or a high-end Laney.
Stay away from new Trace Elliots and Ashdowns and that new line of things with Marshall written on them- disgrace!.
Expenive SWR and EBS (if you can find them) are also good.
P.S. Musician Inc were always good to me, try there.
Hope that helps some bit
All the best