Uk Ant
New member
Yesterday I decided to lug my TC Electronic BG500 combo downstairs, all 70lb of it. I have a gig next weekend, so it had to come out from it's storage hole.
After I'd recovered and decided that my back was not actually permanently damaged, I decided to start looking at more compact bass amps on line.
Must say there is a good selection of stuff out there these days. The Fender Rumble 500 combo (2x10) is a cracking amp, you can pick it up in one hand, it's plenty loud enough, a pretty big sound and good not bad value. I was not quite the tone I like.
The shop in question also had a returned Mark Bass 1x12 combo, 400w, which they were selling at cost. Really great sounding amp, and a good deal, but it was just a bit bigger than I really wanted, and also more money than I ideally wanted to spend, but I was very tempted.
There was also an Ashdown amp that I didn't try that had two 6" or 8" drivers, very funky, but I have known too many people have problems with Ashdown amps down the years.
So the amp I was most interested in was the Ibanez Promethean P3110.
300w, one ten inch driver, roughly one foot cubed in size and a scrawny middle aged bloke like me can pick it up in one hand without even thinking about it.
Tone wise it is tending more towards the modern, but with a solid state amp at this price point you can't expect everything. It does sound good mind. Ok, the mark Bass sound loads better, but that is almost three times the RRP. I would the Ibanez has more character than the Fender, and that's almost twice the price, but the Fender does have more headroom, and a more flexible tone control.
The winning thing with the Ibanez is flexibility.
For practicing with a rock band it should be loud enough, with an acoustic folk gig, blues band or jazz (all three are gigs I do get occasionally) it will be loud enough, and anything bigger will tend to get in the way.
If I was playing on large club, or concert hall stages it wouldn't be good enough, but I tend to play in the corner of pubs and bars, and space is a premium.
It is a pity that the amp is not detachable like on the first Promethean 500w amps, that was a great idea.
I shall let you know how it copes in the real world of band practice and an actual gig in the next week or so
After I'd recovered and decided that my back was not actually permanently damaged, I decided to start looking at more compact bass amps on line.
Must say there is a good selection of stuff out there these days. The Fender Rumble 500 combo (2x10) is a cracking amp, you can pick it up in one hand, it's plenty loud enough, a pretty big sound and good not bad value. I was not quite the tone I like.
The shop in question also had a returned Mark Bass 1x12 combo, 400w, which they were selling at cost. Really great sounding amp, and a good deal, but it was just a bit bigger than I really wanted, and also more money than I ideally wanted to spend, but I was very tempted.
There was also an Ashdown amp that I didn't try that had two 6" or 8" drivers, very funky, but I have known too many people have problems with Ashdown amps down the years.
So the amp I was most interested in was the Ibanez Promethean P3110.
300w, one ten inch driver, roughly one foot cubed in size and a scrawny middle aged bloke like me can pick it up in one hand without even thinking about it.
Tone wise it is tending more towards the modern, but with a solid state amp at this price point you can't expect everything. It does sound good mind. Ok, the mark Bass sound loads better, but that is almost three times the RRP. I would the Ibanez has more character than the Fender, and that's almost twice the price, but the Fender does have more headroom, and a more flexible tone control.
The winning thing with the Ibanez is flexibility.
For practicing with a rock band it should be loud enough, with an acoustic folk gig, blues band or jazz (all three are gigs I do get occasionally) it will be loud enough, and anything bigger will tend to get in the way.
If I was playing on large club, or concert hall stages it wouldn't be good enough, but I tend to play in the corner of pubs and bars, and space is a premium.
It is a pity that the amp is not detachable like on the first Promethean 500w amps, that was a great idea.
I shall let you know how it copes in the real world of band practice and an actual gig in the next week or so