Playing guitar and bass through guitar head + bass cab?

rgjmce

sorry couldn't make it a shorter title :P

but yeah is this ok?

I know it's not good to plug bass through guitar speakers and thats about it

I'm going to buy an bass amp soon but was thinking could i not just get a bass cab. I have a guitar head (tube) and I figured it would be probably sound better then a solid state bass amp that i'd buy for that money.

reniwren

Should be OK but the sound quality Depends on many factors, I don't get on with tube myself and what would your budget be to get an amp?

zafo

What guitar amp have you got? My secondhand knowledge of such things says certain output transformers won't handle if you push the low end too hard on the amp. Personal experience is if you want a dirty mid rangey bass sound then you'll be grand if not great with a guitar head into a bass cab.

rgjmce

zafo wrote: »

What guitar amp have you got? My secondhand knowledge of such things says certain output transformers won't handle if you push the low end too hard on the amp. Personal experience is if you want a dirty mid rangey bass sound then you'll be grand if not great with a guitar head into a bass cab.

Thats what a mate told me. It's a marshal jcm 2000 tsl and my budget is about 300 max

zafo

The TSLs are one of the amps that may not have decent enough trannies for playing bass with but it's really for when you're trying to get more lows out of an amp that's not been designed for massive low end. Especially so if you're playing at volume.

Another idea is to take your 300 quid and get yourself a nice 1x15 solid state bass combo and then use that and your tsl set up to cover both ends of the chart. Something along the lines of old Peavey gear goes really cheap and is great stuff.

rgjmce

zafo wrote: »

The TSLs are one of the amps that may not have decent enough trannies for playing bass with but it's really for when you're trying to get more lows out of an amp that's not been designed for massive low end. Especially so if you're playing at volume.

Another idea is to take your 300 quid and get yourself a nice 1x15 solid state bass combo and then use that and your tsl set up to cover both ends of the chart. Something along the lines of old Peavey gear goes really cheap and is great stuff.

Yeah thats exactly what i'm gonna do, probably gonna go for an ashdown. I've heard good things about them.

nialldabass

rgjmce wrote: »

Yeah thats exactly what i'm gonna do, probably gonna go for an ashdown. I've heard good things about them.

I have an Ashdown EB 180, nice amp, I bought about 5 years ago, I would check out the Gallien Krueger at thomann, good name, probably made in China' as is the low end Ashdowns and a great price at the moment, probably more versatile, try and check out some reviews

http://www.thomann.de/gb/gallien_krueger_bl115.htm

rgjmce

actually thinking might go for something smaller cause i figure with a bass amp i really won't need much power but many i'm wrong, possibly the 70 watt gallien

reniwren

unless you are going through a PA is good to have as much power as you can, all depending on what your playing with of course

rgjmce

chances are i probably will have a pa anyway

zafo

rgjmce wrote: »

actually thinking might go for something smaller cause i figure with a bass amp i really won't need much power but many i'm wrong, possibly the 70 watt gallien

You are wrong, bass signals generally need more power than guitar. I wouldn't go less than a hundred watt if you're going to be gigging..

Rigsby

zafo wrote: »

I wouldn't go less than a hundred watt if you're going to be gigging..

.. and even then, it might not ( probably would not) be enough.

rgjmce

well sure I can still always plug amp through pa or mic it up

CianRyan

D.I.ing a bass amp is the best option for gigging I've found.

reniwren

CianRyan wrote: »

D.I.ing a bass amp is the best option for gigging I've found.

No offense directly, but spoken like a true guitarist

Doc_Savage

my dad used to have the rule of fours. So if the guitarist has X watts of power, the bassist should have 4X watts of power and the PA should be 4x4X watts... Minimum. that was him laying it out to me in laymans terms when i was a kid. He still sticks to this but always said that a guitar amp that is tube is a solid state wattage by four already!

Rule of thumb mind you!

rgjmce

actually found a gallien for €300 which is 200 watt (wasn't really worried about power) but it's a good deal and a decent amp. It's digital (not my preference) but I don't play bass too much so should be grand.

and yeah doc was figuring something roughly like that myself last night

Doc_Savage

digital bass amps are the nuts..... that should serve you well.... and it'll be reasonably light so no worries about carrying it around! not that that'll matter if you're a tone fiend like a lot of regulars here, they can deal with the weight.... i'm getting older and having to look after myself!

my father(i know this sound stupid to keep refering to him but i learned everything i know from him and he has been in a regularly gigging band for about 30+ years) went from a tube bass amp(think it was ampeg or sunn?) with a 2x15 cab, to a peavey amp with a 4x10 and it was literally half the weight... and sounded equally good! he still has the cab, but dropped the amp down a flight of stairs and wasn't able to save it! he has Di'd since the band could afford a good PA!

That's about all of the useful info i can think of at the minute! hope some of it is helpful!

rgjmce

Doc_Savage wrote: »

digital bass amps are the nuts..... that should serve you well.... and it'll be reasonably light so no worries about carrying it around! not that that'll matter if you're a tone fiend like a lot of regulars here, they can deal with the weight.... i'm getting older and having to look after myself!

my father(i know this sound stupid to keep refering to him but i learned everything i know from him and he has been in a regularly gigging band for about 30+ years) went from a tube bass amp(think it was ampeg or sunn?) with a 2x15 cab, to a peavey amp with a 4x10 and it was literally half the weight... and sounded equally good! he still has the cab, but dropped the amp down a flight of stairs and wasn't able to save it! he has Di'd since the band could afford a good PA!

That's about all of the useful info i can think of at the minute! hope some of it is helpful!

It's funny I wasn't too bothered with tone when i first joined here but now i am but I do realise it's what you do with your fingers that count far more then anything else.

But yeah the lightness of it is a big reason i'm going for it and plus a mate has the 15" speaker version so I can have a listen closely to it next time I see him play but I'm nearly positive i'm going for that one anyway.

Oh and don't worry about referring back to what your dad has taught you, it seems to have to served you well, so he obviously is/was a very wise man.

nialldabass

rgjmce wrote: »

actually found a gallien for €300 which is 200 watt (wasn't really worried about power) but it's a good deal and a decent amp. It's digital (not my preference) but I don't play bass too much so should be grand.

and yeah doc was figuring something roughly like that myself last night

Just as a side note , not sure what amp you are going for but my ashdown would only put out 120 watts through the combo speaker and 180 with an added extension, Now I never had no probs with a loud drummer and 2 guitarists and keyboard in the studio or on stage with just the stock 15 inch, never turned up more than 2 thirds to be honest, but just be aware that you may only get the full bang from a combo with added speakers.


Now after saying all that, its a head your getting isn't it?:pac:

rgjmce

nialldabass wrote: »

Just as a side note , not sure what amp you are going for but my ashdown would only put out 120 watts through the combo speaker and 180 with an added extension, Now I never had no probs with a loud drummer and 2 guitarists and keyboard in the studio or on stage with just the stock 15 inch, never turned up more than 2 thirds to be honest, but just be aware that you may only get the full bang from a combo with added speakers.


Now after saying all that, its a head your getting isn't it?:pac:

lol not anymore going for that gallien combo

CianRyan

reniwren wrote: »

No offense directly, but spoken like a true guitarist

Hahaha, Well I played bass in a band for about 4 months and this is what I generally did. Into a ~100w bass amp and D.I. after that.

It always worked for me but then again, I am a true guitarist.

reniwren

does happen alot but it all depends on a few different factors like, type of D.I or if the player used the natural break up of the speakers, if a player turns up with an AMPEG fliptop they dont want to use a D.I box in fairness