Recommend me a bass rig

Sanford

Sanford

New member
I'm looking into getting a bass amp/speaker cab. It must be small enough to carry around in my two door hatchback. It must be gig worthy (meaning enough power & headroom to keep up with banging hard on the strings as well as sturdy enough for bouncing around in a car). Varying musical styles, something that'll provide good tones from ambient to rockin'.

I'm thinking 300 watts and up.

I'm not hung up on brand and we'll narrow down price as we go. Solid state or tube keeping in mind the size and ruggedness parameters.

Would prefer head + cab, but open to combo ideas that make sense.

Who's got suggestions?
 
Re: Recommend me a bass rig

talkbass.com
Those guys speak a whole nuther lingo..Markbass, Aguilar, 4x10's w/ horn.
 
Re: Recommend me a bass rig

I just read a good review of the new 21st-century Portaflex amps from Ampeg. They're flip-tops like the old B-15s, but they have modern Class D amplifiers, 350 and 500-watt models.

With your space constraints, Class D is the way to go; small, light, and powerful.
 
Re: Recommend me a bass rig

I got the gallien krueger ultralight 2x12 500w combo cause its the best!

weighs 37 pounds and is very loud, good tone. I like my epi thunderbird bass as a best value.

my head and cab weigh a ton, but sound way better, I have an ampeg 410 svt for downtuned hard rock, and a cheapo peavey tour 450 I got used for $150, and I have a line 6 lowdown 400 head that sounds wicked killer like the bass in my recordings. tube heads weigh 80lbs!
 
Re: Recommend me a bass rig

I've been checking out some of the class D amps at various stores. I keep waiting for someone to get the newer heads from TC Electronic in, the 750 watter in particular.

I'm torn on the speaker front: 10? 15? Never played bass through a 12.
Was also hoping for another demo of the Phil Jones stuff, but the locals don't carry them anymore.
 
Re: Recommend me a bass rig

A couple of yearas ago, I was the "bass player du jour" at a small local club and they plugged me into a "new generation" Fender Bassman. It had one 10" speaker in it and it was loud enough to compete with the guitar player's 50 watt Marshall. And it was this little mini-brute of an amp, which would fit very nicely into your hatchback (it would have fit very nicely into my Z-28), and I thought briefly about stealing it, but it would have looked bad.
 
Re: Recommend me a bass rig

I might have to revisit some of the Fender stuff, my only experience with their bass amps involved a blown speaker type sound every time I hit the strings a little too hard. Couldn't EQ the fartiness out of it.
 
Re: Recommend me a bass rig

Acoustic has a 450 watt 2x10 combo that takes an extention speaker to make 600. That'll thump ya good.
 
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Re: Recommend me a bass rig

Aguilar GS212, Gallien Krueger 1001RB-II. You can blow faces off with it, and with good tone to boot!
 
Re: Recommend me a bass rig

Sanford said:
I keep waiting for someone to get the newer heads from TC Electronic in, the 750 watter in particular.
Click to expand...

I hate the RH750. Mainly because I already blew my money on the Staccato '51. This head and one RS210 cabinet pack plenty of Ampeg-esque punch.
 
Re: Recommend me a bass rig

Both of those look good (from the videos on the TC site). I dig those cabinets, too.
 
Re: Recommend me a bass rig

If you can, check out Ashdown amps. I own the ABM 500, which has a single 12ax7 in the preamp, but it sounds sweet.

this guy plays very good and makes a great demo of the amp.
 
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Re: Recommend me a bass rig

If was looking at getting a bass rig, I'd be looking at the Markbass stuff. One of the 500 watt heads and a 2x10 cab. At most places around here though, a majority of the bass players can get away with running DI with no amp. A good bass, preamp and DI box.
 
Re: Recommend me a bass rig

Our bassist uses an Aguilar 500w head and 1x12 cab which just sounds great, does have a second cab but he doesn't really need it.
Not the cheapest gear around but most definately compact and rugged
 
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