Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

Cory_Dylan

Cory_Dylan

New member
I've always wondered about this. I could be completely off... but the only tube bass amp i've ever seen or heard of is the Fender Bassman. Marshall makes bass amps and they're all SS. That's what really got me wonderin about this. What is it? Does it just sound better? Is it that tubes don't put out enough power for a bass?
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

Er...I don't know if you've been under a rock or... ;)
Mesa, Ampeg, Fender...
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

Ampegs make the hybrids. Tube pre with solid state power.

As I see it, back in the later 60's there were lots of tube bass amps, but a large majority of them didnt go much higher than 100 watts, maybe 120. As rigs got bigger and guitars got louder, solid states became more popular because they were able to achive a higher wattage, and being able to cut through the mix of the 70's arena rock.
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

Fresno Bob said:
As I see it, back in the later 60's there were lots of tube bass amps, but a large majority of them didnt go much higher than 100 watts, maybe 120. As rigs got bigger and guitars got louder, solid states became more popular because they were able to achive a higher wattage.
Click to expand...
:fing2: I think that has a lot to do with it.
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

The main reason, in my opinion, is that most bass players use a clean sound, and that can easily be achieved with solid state. Guitarists like tubes for the most part because when pushed they break up and distort in a warmer, more musical way than solid state circuits. Solid state amps on the whole are cheaper, lighter and maintenance-free, so if you don't need tube overdrive for your bass you go solid state. There are a few bass amps on the market (Ampeg for example) that use a tube in the pre-amp to warm up the tone shaping a little, but the power amp is still SS.

Lemmy is another matter of course. :burnout:
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

Simon_F said:
The main reason, in my opinion, is that most bass players use a clean sound, and that can easily be achieved with solid state. Guitarists like tubes for the most part because when pushed they break up and distort in a warmer, more musical way than solid state circuits. Solid state amps on the whole are cheaper, lighter and maintenance-free, so if you don't need tube overdrive for your bass you go solid state. There are a few bass amps on the market (Ampeg for example) that use a tube in the pre-amp to warm up the tone shaping a little, but the power amp is still SS.

Lemmy is another matter of course. :burnout:
Click to expand...

I was hoping your response would be something like "my bass player uses a tube amp." And then you would post another picture of him. He's my hero!
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

Pandemonium said:
Lots of bass players are going straight into the PA these days.
Click to expand...


That is my preferred method. Soooo much less hassle to just have a 20' instrument cable into a (good) DI box.

I think a large portion of the SS issue is that is so much more reliable (how often do good SS amps go down?) and a much more predictable sound. Tubes can fizz out without warning, and they distort as you turn them up. The absolute last thing I want is an unpredictable bass tone.

A lot of the time, the bassist (myself) wants the tone of the instrument itself, not the amplifier. That's why you see so much more direct work, and SS amps give a tone that is much less "colored".
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

The thing I've always noticed is that solid state, while not always preferred by guitar players, is actually quite decent for bass. You get tighter low tones, and since customarily you run with at least twice the power of the guitar player just to be CLEAN (more is better) and a 6L6 or EL34 will only produce about 35 watts, it makes sense to use solid state. My bass rig is SS and does about 450 per side, using a 115 JBL cab and a 410 custom job. A tube amp that produces that much power would be terribly heavy and more of a pain in the ass to tote around than the merely 80 pound rack that I carry for it now. Having said that, Ampeg systems are AMAZING, but I don't have that kind of liquidity to purchase one.
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

Mesa makes a few bass amps with a tube pre and ss power amp.
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

i think a big reason is a lot of bassists just back up the guitarist, with tubes you get a more crisp trebbly sound, which is only useful if you're doin countermelodies. But for straight back-up lines, you need the bland low end of a ss
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

I know Mesa makes tube amps. I think GallienKrueger makes tube bass amps, but I might be mistaken. Most amps are solidstate just cuz clean is the way to go.
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

There's one main reason: weight. Think about it. A 130watt tube bass head (rated at 8 ohms) would wiegh three or four times as much as a solidstate amp. That would be rediculous.... And it would be huge.
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

i always though it was just having a valve output stage took away all your *clean* clean headroom, where most bassists just want the basses' tone a good bit louder - none of the warm breakup stuff

sure, all the gigs ive played *not many* the bass amp has been hooked straight into the P.A via a D.I. out... leaving the amp itself almost as a monitor. means the sound is more spread out over the stage
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

Gallien Krueger is all SS all the time. Ampeg DOES make hybrid amps, but yall are forgetting 2 of the best amps ever - the SVT and the V4. Both are all tube. Fender has the 300 watt model they 'stole' from Sunn when they bought them out.

I've never heard a crisp trebly tube bass amp, unless you EQ it that way. When left flat, a tube amp will be warm, thick, and have a good kick to them. It also depends greatly on the speaker cab you use.

Any more questions on bass amps? Ask someone who actually knows.
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

::crawls out from under rock, sheilds eyes from the bright sunlight:: :cool3: :)
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

My bass player uses an early '60s Gibson Discoverer Tremelo tube amp. Of course he runs clean only but it seems to serve him well. He can be heard but doesn't overpower anyone and has anice clean tone.
 
Re: Why don't you see too many TUBE bass amps?

weight, price. you need lots of wattage for bass. you also need more circuitry and that's expensive. like indiepbass said you dont usually go for breakup with bass also.
 
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