Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

T

tab

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Hey guys -
Just starting out on bass here and looking for an amp. I'd like to stick to a combo amp as well.
No gigging planned, home practice and mellow jams with friends.

Any suggestions based on your experience pointing me towards a good starter amp is appreciated.
I don't know how wattage translates into volume or tone with bass amps but I don't think I'll need anything huge.

I have a p bass build in progress so finding an amp before fall hits is the plan.
 
Re: Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

I know I say it all the time, but I really like the Rumble series from Fender. I use a 75, but I think you can get a 50 for around $200.
 
Re: Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

I have two Roland Cube bass amps that are well over 20 years old. I use one of them for practicing with my band. It's compact, rugged, portable, sounds good, and can keep up with most jams you might find yourself in. They have a headphone jack too.

Another amp you might find at a good price is an SWR Working Man combo. They come in 12" and 15". I have two of the 15" versions, and have use them for gigs and for band practice. It sounds like they're bigger that what you want or need right now, but it's something to keep in mind for later when you want something to gig with.
 
Re: Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

I've got a Roland Cube 100W, which works just fine at home levels, though I have no doubt it would keep up with band jams or small gigs if needed.
 
Re: Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

Depends on how much power you want.
If you want a lot of juice check out used stores and places like Craigslist for a second piece.
If you want something new that's loud enough to hear yourself and jam with some songs there's quite a bit out there.

I went shopping around for a small practice amp in that price range recently and tried Fender, SWR, Line6, Peavy and Eden.
For my money the Eden was the best sounding and simplest one I found.
Not a lot on features but very good sounding, especially for a small amp.

Generally with lower priced amps the more they try to put in the amp the lower the sound quality.

Look around at what's offered and look up some customer reviews to see if there's any problems with it breaking down, which can be an issue with lower priced amps.

The best thing is to just get out and try them to hear what sounds good to your ears, after all it's your money so it's your call.
 
Re: Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

Thanks for the replies & links -
The Roland is a popular model I've seen come up a lot. High reliability and 100W.
Reading up on the SWR models now -

The new store models that I've seen priced around $200 are the Ampeg BA110 and Marshall MB30.
The two channels on the Marshall both sound usable, and the Ampegs get great reviews on nearly everything they put out.

Used, there is an Ampeg BA115 100W in my area for $200 which seems like a great price if all is in order.

I wish my bass build was ready to go... I'll have to hit up a local shop and plug into some of these models and give a listen
Online videos only tell 1/2 the story since most all of the demos are using a microphone.

A 10, 12, or 15 speaker setup would all be fine, and anywhere between 30 & 100W would work as long as they don't fart out or get too flabby when turned up a bit.
Any thoughts on speaker size? I'm guessing for practice it may not matter much but when playing with others it becomes more of a valid concern.
 
Re: Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

Bigger speakers will push more air, generally speaking.
Some higher end amps can really pack a punch with smaller speakers, but for the price range you're looking it would be a major score to find one.

Generally speaking the smaller the speaker size the less the low end and the higher the treble response.
But again that's a general statement as exact responses will vary from amp to amp.

So as staring point maybe think of 10" as more treble, 15" as more low end and 12" as in the middle and then start your comparisons from amp to amp there.
 
Re: Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

Back when I started playing, I used to believe if it wasn't 15", it was useless for bass. Then circumstances required me to get a smaller practice amp, my original Roland Cube, with a 12" driver. That opened my mind up. Then came 10" bass drivers, and it seemed like the whole standard changed. A few years ago, I heard some of the best bass sound I've ever heard from an amp coming from a couple of 5" drivers in a Phil Jones amp. So I have pretty much quit equating size of drivers to particular bass sounds.

If I were in the market for a budget practice amp now, I'd probably stick to 10" or 12" drivers. I don't have any experience with 8" drivers, but I wouldn't be afraid to get one in a quality amp. But the kind of quality that would give me confidence with an 8" driver would probably cost quite a bit more than what I would want to pay for a "budget" practice amp. With the bigger speakers, I think there's more room for error in the amp design or sloppiness in the execution.
 
Re: Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

is marshall's bass 12 any good? would visually make a nice match with the lead 12.

What about the pignose 7-300 (hog 30)?
 
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Re: Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

The rumble series sounds great. One of my close friends has a 2x10 (i think) combo that has something like 350 watts, it's super loud and clear.
 
Re: Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

I've got a Rumble 25 that's plenty loud for home use, though I've not tried it with a garage band.

Gets a little loose with a 5-string, but if yours is just a 4-string, and you're not doing detuned Sludge Metal, I don't see why it wouldn't work.
 
Re: Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

Cubes are awesome. For $200 you can get a Fender's BXR200 too if you're lucky. Amazing bass amp.
 
Re: Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

DrNewcenstein said:
I've got a Rumble 25 that's plenty loud for home use, though I've not tried it with a garage band.

Gets a little loose with a 5-string, but if yours is just a 4-string, and you're not doing detuned Sludge Metal, I don't see why it wouldn't work.
Click to expand...

I use my 75 for a 5 string, and the B is tight and articulate. Not muddy at all. The bassist for jazz band at school has a 30 watt and it fills up our 2000 seat auditorium with ease.
 
Re: Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

This past week I played the Ampeg 115, Fender Rumble 75, Roland Cube 100, and the Marshall MB30.
All of them had enough power for practice; the MB30 was pretty punchy for the lowest wattage amp as well.
I liked the sound from the Ampeg & Marshall best. Good low end classic rock bass tones.
I found the MB30 used for $105 shipped so I ordered it on the spot. If it has issues or doesn't hold it's own the Ampeg will most likely be the next model I purchase.
 
Re: Good ~$200 practice amp - Suggestions please.

tab said:
This past week I played the Ampeg 115, Fender Rumble 75, Roland Cube 100, and the Marshall MB30.
All of them had enough power for practice; the MB30 was pretty punchy for the lowest wattage amp as well.
I liked the sound from the Ampeg & Marshall best. Good low end classic rock bass tones.
I found the MB30 used for $105 shipped so I ordered it on the spot. If it has issues or doesn't hold it's own the Ampeg will most likely be the next model I purchase.
Click to expand...

You won't be disappointed provided that it holds up. It's not at all a bad amp that you got.
 
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