Count Bassie's "Freedom-of-Choice" Sale

[Count Bassie]

EDIT: MK IV head is no longer for sale.


I need to generate a down payment for a (string) harp for my daughter. She's an intermediate student, and at the tender age of 12 she got offered her first professional gig (a wedding in June) after she played at my wife's church organist gig last Sunday. She's currently playing a borrowed instrument, but if she's going to be getting gigs then I'm going to have to get her an axe of her own.

So to generate the bread for a down payment on a harp we've found, I'm offering up my small-but-potent Trace Elliot short gig-stack:

1) Mid-90s Trace Elliot AH250SMX, recently gone over: It's had a couple solder joints repaired, a couple new caps, all pots and toggles cleaned up. It's a smooth-running, booty-kicking little monster, lots of tone-shaping ability, and powerfully loud. Comes in a well-used soft rack-bag. Note: It needs two of the little green fluorescent lights that go behind the front panel- I'll get 'em in there asap, before you pick it up/I ship it.





The SMX is being offered here along with a Trace 1153-T single 15 cab:



It's in good condition, only a tad of dingage here or there, and the plastic feet-holder cups have been moved around. But it looks fine and sounds like deep, dark gold, with a nicely balanced mid-range and a good smacking dose of highs. Well-balanced cab all around. I've used both heads at a gig with the cab, and it's a sweet set-up both ways.

So for the AH250SMX head/1153 cab combo I'm looking for $600. Plus shipping, if that's involved.

If I didn't have a very good reason for doing this, I'd never have done it! I dig, and use my amps- older Trace Elliot is all I'm using to play out these days (besides a Hartke A100 for rehearsals). I don't mind letting go of stuff though, as long as it represents gain and not loss. We got a young chopper here that needs a harp!

Thanks for reading, and for your consideration.

[ddbassGA]

A harp! That is really cool!

[Count Bassie]

Originally Posted by ddbassGA

A harp! That is really cool!

Heh. Yeah, she picked it, and she can play the dang thing! 12 years old, getting her first paying gig... poor kid has a sloppy hack bass player for a dad!

[My name is Mudd]

Oh man...if it were me, I'd keep the GP11.

You're a good dad.

[Count Bassie]

Originally Posted by My name is Mudd

Oh man...if it were me, I'd keep the GP11.

You're a good dad.

We do what we gotta do! My kid is better than that amp any day...

[Downunderwonder]

What's the gp11 got in tone that the smx hasn't?

I have nearly the exact same smx, only difference is mine came in a sleeve case minus racking ears, a la the gp11. Yours is the only one I've seen like it.

Mine has only post EQ DI, guessing yours will be same. The compressors work really well and the EQ balance control has to be the quickest draw in the west when you want to go extra fat bottom. Boost basswards and add compression, go hard.

[Count Bassie]

Originally Posted by Downunderwonder

What's the gp11 got in tone that the smx hasn't?

I have nearly the exact same smx, only difference is mine came in a sleeve case minus racking ears, a la the gp11. Yours is the only one I've seen like it.

Mine has only post EQ DI, guessing yours will be same. The compressors work really well and the EQ balance control has to be the quickest draw in the west when you want to go extra fat bottom. Boost basswards and add compression, go hard.

My SMX originally came in a sleeve. I had to remove the sleeve by cutting it away actually, as one of the captive nuts in the amp's steel chassis had come loose and you couldn't remove the sleeve in the conventional way, via the bolt-head that's counter-sunk into the sleeve.

The SMX had its tube floating around inside the chassis when I bought it, and (now all this comes to mind, glad you brought it up!) there was a pressure-type dent in the bottom of the steel chassis. But it functioned without a hitch, except for the absence of a tube at the input.

I brought the amp to a locally famous amp guy here in RI and he put it aright, gave it a going-over. I had some old rack ears form an SMX preamp I once had, and they fit right onto the amp- there were holes there to accept rack ears. The construction seems to be the same as the GP12SMX preamp case...

Anyway I ran into another issue or two with the amp, and the last guy to see it was the fellow Dave at B-Sharp Music here in Providence. He's an enthusiastic amp tech, and has a good bit of vintage-type heads in his shop. Since he's had it it has had no issues at all, and I feel very good about the head.

As far as tone, the GP11 seems to be noticeably more "transparent" sounding, very, very clean. I think the SMX offers a little more 'push', sounds like it has a little more apparent volume. It's also a more complex gain structure with the added, and agreeably advantageous (to a point), blend-ability between stages in the amp's signal chain. And of course there's the dual-band compressor... yep, it's a nice head alright.

But the GP11 is an older-school, simpler design, which I tend to like. Still, there are loops for slaving a power amp, inserting a preamp, an fx loop and yes, a choice between pre or post-eq DI for your FOH.

There are other no-longer-present features also on the GP11 which are their own fun, like the "ECI" ground indicator LED, and a Noise Reduction toggle... so a Trace Elliot Museum Curator can reminisce- AND haul it's 47-lb ass to a gig and impress their friends! For me though, a real plus is the fact that it was built when Trace Elliot was still a new company- and it was real important that there were no screw-ups or failures. It was all locally built, by hand, and all high-quality components.

Spiel over... sorry you asked?

[Count Bassie]

Bumpage.

[Socalef9]

Free bump, also, where did you find replacement florescent bulbs for behind the panel?

[Count Bassie]

Originally Posted by Socalef9

Free bump, also, where did you find replacement florescent bulbs for behind the panel?

One of the amp guys around here can get them. I don't know his source... pm me and I'll hook you up with him if you want. In fact I need 2- how many do you need?

Thanks for the bump!

[Count Bassie]

Going to be looking at the Bay of Evil pretty soon here. Meanwhile, morning Bumpies...

[My name is Mudd]

Originally Posted by Socalef9

...where did you find replacement florescent bulbs for behind the panel?

If nowhere else, check with British Audio Service.

[Count Bassie]

I'm editing the post, and pulling the GP11 MK IV head. In my zeal to pull together funds for my kid's musical endeavors I had forgotten all about this... it's just re-occurred to me, and now I'm here to rectify what I see as a mistake I've been making...

I've posted about this head on TB before (not in the classifieds), and had a short conversation about it with another TB'er. I think I even mentioned that I'd got it for danged-dirt-cheap; So I, suddenly, think it a bit unseemly to be posting it for the price I'm asking now (even though I do believe it's probably actually worth it). I feel a bit like an over-reaching opportunist, and I'd rather maintain a reasonable and more or less "above-board" relationship with the general population here. I already do that by the skin of my teeth, and don't need to push it by selling old gear at an inflated price!...

So the head is pulled from the block. I'll probably just put the SMX up instead, or maybe go over to ebay, where evil market-abuse is more commonplace. Or I'll just keep this old tank. It's a good amp, and I don't want to sell it unless it's really to my advantage! But this isn't the way to do it, I don't think. Besides, it looks pretty cool on a stage...

I appreciate all the bumps, and the kind words. Unfortunately, I'm a heel!

Anyway, thanks to all. And I'll still get the harp done, but better to do it without contributing to the gouging of used gear prices... which I hate...