Attn: Hartley, Robert, Larry, et.

[sanderic]

After having read a recent thread (How old are you and how long have you been playing), I noticed there are many of us in the TB community between the ages of 45 and 65. Since we all are beginning to suffer the symptoms of our age, bad back etc I have dreamed up the "Nicest Rig in my Town" for us older guys. AND since were the age demographic with the most expendabel income, the manufacturers should take notice of our wants.
TB COMMUNITY: PLEASE CHIME IN ON THIS ONE, THE MORE POST WE CAN MAKE, THE MORE CHANCE OF BEING NOTICED.
Combo, class D power amp, built in tuner, built in dolly (both Peavey and GK have done this), non detachable power cord that recesses into the amp = minimum 20 feet, auxillary AC outlet on the back of the amp (Everyone used to do that), and finaly,a vinyle cover.
Older guys please chip in and maybe we can make this a reality.

[fuzzy beard]

auxillary AC outlet on the back of the amp ? What do you use it for pedals?

[gjbassist]

What about weight and watts? I think those are two main factors you should include.

At 45 I'm on the low end of your scale, but I've already downsized from a nearly 100 lb rig to one that weighs around 50 lbs.

[Muttleybass]

Not sure I agree with a few things... Non detachable power cords? I kinda like the generic plug in cord. If it wears out, or the ground plug breaks, it's a cheap and easy fix. I always have a spare or two. Same power cords for all powered speakers, rack effects...

An AC outlet on the back of a combo amp would be for what? A 9v adaptor probably wouldn't fit back there.

I think there's a shift in the industry taking place anyway. Neodinium speakers, micro-bass heads, shuttle systems... Like you said, Peavey and GK have started with the built in dolly. That usually means others will follow suit. It's coming.

A built in tuner with a bypass button would be a good idea.

[sanderic]

AC outlet on the back of the amp, I wouldnt use it, but I figured a few of you guys with pedals would want to be able to plug your multiplug into it. As far as non detachable power cord, the want here is that the cable stay with the amplifier, less to lose, etc, and with the length, not to have to worry about extension cords.

[HolmeBass]

Originally Posted by sanderic

AC outlet on the back of the amp, I wouldnt use it, but I figured a few of you guys with pedals would want to be able to plug your multiplug into it. As far as non detachable power cord, the want here is that the cable stay with the amplifier, less to lose, etc, and with the length, not to have to worry about extension cords.

I am with the others in disagreeing with you on this. The detachable/interchangeable power cords are great, but ship your amps with some longer versions.

A power outlet on the amp is fairly useless for effects, those need power downstage where the effects/pedal boards live. For a racked head I could see running the racked tuner off of it, so you don't need a power strip in the rack, but I'd rather they spent their money elsewhere.

I'd like to see 4 Ohm speaker cabs that go deep, handle 600 watts, and weigh 50 lbs or less. My Genz 212 UB almost meets this, but weighs 62 (or is it 63?) lbs. I know I'm asking for a lot there, but ask for what you want and see if someone can build it.

The heads already seem to meet this, although I will say: all speaker output jacks should be Neutrik combo jacks, supporting both Neutrik and 1/4" connections. If you have a footswitch for the amp, it should include a mute button (I'm looking at you, Genz Benz- this is the only "miss" I've seen on my new ShuttleMax 9.2, but I understand most people use stompbox tuners that mute the signal... still I stand by my request).

[BassmanPaul]

Originally Posted by sanderic

Combo, class D power amp, built in tuner, built in dolly (both Peavey and GK have done this), non detachable power cord that recesses into the amp = minimum 20 feet, auxillary AC outlet on the back of the amp (Everyone used to do that), and finaly,a vinyle cover.
Older guys please chip in and maybe we can make this a reality.

Sixty five here and no thank you!!! I prefer lighter equipment I'll agree but a COMBO???

I'm using a tube pre-amp of my own design and build, a Carvin DCM1000L power amp and a pair of Acme B2s. The amp in its rack is a two finger lift. At a but over fifty pounds the cabs could be lighter with neo drivers but one at a time no big problem. A dolly moves all the stuff in one trip.

[sanderic]

Originally Posted by BassmanPaul

Sixty five here and no thank you!!! I prefer lighter equipment I'll agree but a COMBO???

I'm using a tube pre-amp of my own design and build, a Carvin DCM1000L power amp and a pair of Acme B2s. The amp in its rack is a two finger lift. At a but over fifty pounds the cabs could be lighter with neo drivers but one at a time no big problem. A dolly moves all the stuff in one trip.

Maybe I have not communicated what I am looking for.
I play in a 17 piece jazz band, I'm looking for a roll in/roll out/one trip/easy to lift and place in the back of the car/taking up a minimum of room. Ideally the amp should have the SPL of an SVT, weigh less than a pack of Cigarettes, and cost less than $100.00. But that reality will never happen.
A Dolly takes up space in the back of the car that could be eliminated. There will always be the need for separate heads and cabinets (I use a MB200 with a 215 cab), but there could be better on the market than what we have.
To bassman Paul, thanks for the input, I have read many of your other posts, and have the utmost respect.

[BassmanPaul]

Originally Posted by sanderic

To bassman Paul, thanks for the input, I have read many of your other posts, and have the utmost respect.

To THAT I can only say: Thank you Sir! It's so nice to be appreciated. This is the first time I've used this little guy:

[gjbassist]

Originally Posted by sanderic

Maybe I have not communicated what I am looking for.
I play in a 17 piece jazz band, I'm looking for a roll in/roll out/one trip/easy to lift and place in the back of the car/taking up a minimum of room. Ideally the amp should have the SPL of an SVT, weigh less than a pack of Cigarettes, and cost less than $100.00. But that reality will never happen.
A Dolly takes up space in the back of the car that could be eliminated. There will always be the need for separate heads and cabinets (I use a MB200 with a 215 cab), but there could be better on the market than what we have.
To bassman Paul, thanks for the input, I have read many of your other posts, and have the utmost respect.

Have you looked at the Ampeg PF series stuff? I have a PF-115he cabinet and a PF-350 head. The head attaches to the top of the cabinet which is removable. The top flips so the head can be stored inside along with power and amp cords. The setup weighs about 50 lbs and has built in casters. The PF-500 is a few pounds heavier but puts out 500 watts instead of 350. With the size of the band you are in it may be necessary to have two cabinets or run through the PA to be heard though.

[Vanceman]

I remember when almost everything had an AC outlet on the back! I think that went away when the ground prong was added, took too much space.

How about having the power cord roll itself back inside like the old vacumn cleaners.

Neo speakers, aluminum chassis.

[JTE]

Originally Posted by Vanceman

I remember when almost everything had an AC outlet on the back! I think that went away when the ground prong was added, took too much space.

How about having the power cord roll itself back inside like the old vacumn cleaners.

Neo speakers, aluminum chassis.

Nope, it was removed for safety (an
d likely UL lusting approval) reasons. While being handy for some things, too many people used them as extension cords and Daisy chained everything on stage together. Underwriters' Lab assumed if people could be stupid they would. They led to the courtesy AC outlets going away.
John

[someparts]

Any of the new ultralite heads in one of those nifty gig bags and a couple Bag End cabs should do it. Not my thing at this point but that's pretty easy going in my estimation.

[chubrocker]

I was hoping this was going to be a "move production back to the USA" thread...

[thumpbass1]

I'm digging my new Ampeg PF500 head and PF210HE cab. It does the job for moderate volume gigs by it's lonesome, plus I added vintage style side handles to make it's under 60lbs of total weight a pretty easy haul. I may buy another PF series cab to have a matched stack option for when I need to move more air. As far as current trends go, I'm liking the light weight to fly weight amp head concept a lot. I do know a lot of bass players in our elder age group have also gone modular in the speaker cabinet department, instead of lugging fridge sized cabs around. I still love the big traditional rigs, but having lighter weight options these days, that can actually deliver is wonderful.

[bigfatbass]

2x12 straight vertical array, 600-900w streamliner or equivalent built in, with tilt-back wheels, and a tuner. I've been saying this for almost 20 years, and with the new tech you would be able to bring that cab in at well under 50lbs. Heck, put a Shuttle Max 12 in there, and you could even run an extension cab for bigger stages.

Bring it in at under $1000 and I could sell 50 of them for you next week.

410s suck it, and a 2x15 is often overkill. Give us an intelligently designed, high wattage, 212 combo and we will buy it. Really.

[jumbodbassman]

Originally Posted by bigfatbass

2x12 straight vertical array, 600-900w streamliner or equivalent built in, with tilt-back wheels, and a tuner. I've been saying this for almost 20 years, and with the new tech you would be able to bring that cab in at well under 50lbs. Heck, put a Shuttle Max 12 in there, and you could even run an extension cab for bigger stages.

Bring it in at under $1000 and I could sell 50 of them for you next week.

410s suck it, and a 2x15 is often overkill. Give us an intelligently designed, high wattage, 212 combo and we will buy it. Really.

+1 on the 12's......

[sanderic]

Originally Posted by bigfatbass

2x12 straight vertical array, 600-900w streamliner or equivalent built in, with tilt-back wheels, and a tuner. I've been saying this for almost 20 years, and with the new tech you would be able to bring that cab in at well under 50lbs. Heck, put a Shuttle Max 12 in there, and you could even run an extension cab for bigger stages.

Bring it in at under $1000 and I could sell 50 of them for you next week.

410s suck it, and a 2x15 is often overkill. Give us an intelligently designed, high wattage, 212 combo and we will buy it. Really.

This is the kind of reply I was looking for What do you guys want in a highly portable lightweight amp?
I really would like the amp to come in at around 30 pounds.

[JimmyM]

The Ampeg Micro VR stack weighs in at around 35 lbs, but it's not a true combo since the head is separate. There is such a thing as going too small to do the job, though. That's about as small as I can go for most gigs, although I do have one little light jazz gig I do with an Ampeg BA108, which is a little 25w practice amp. But for anything else, that's about as small as I can go, and frankly, I prefer having two of the cabs.

So this old man is still going to lug too much stuff most of the time

[HertzWhenIPlay]

what about a powerful micro-head that is stable down to 2 ohms
and a trio of 8 ohm cabs?

i have considered going this route due to ease of setup, flexibility,
and modular stacking options with the three cabs.