GK MB210 Vs. MB212

[miketallica315]

Hello bass players,
After a long time of searching for a medium powered combo I am sure that I have finally found the one! I played a GK MB210 at my Guitar Center in Toledo last night. I was completely blown away. I went there to try an Ampeg BA 500. I really liked the GK a lot. How much different is the MB210 from the MB212. I know that the controls and switches are the same and that the MB210 needs an extension cab and the MB212 doesn't. I set the controls on the 210 flat and really liked it as it was. I am fearful that if I get the 212 I won't like it as much. Does the 212 hit the lows at higher volumes better than the 210? Is the sound pretty similar? What do you think? I am interested in your opinion. Thanks much for the help.

[miketallica315]

No one has experience with these amplifiers?

[Stev187]

Originally Posted by miketallica315

No one has experience with these amplifiers?

A number of us do. Search the archives and you'll find lots of info on your question. Start here:

GK Combo Shootout...MB210 vs. MB212

--Steve

[johnnybass01]

I have experience with both, the mb210 is great but takes a little eq to get it to handle a b string well. the mb212 is a stand alone (in other words it has no ability to add an extension cab)The mb212 is a great stand alone and for most gigs, most people don't need any more. the mb210 is nice if say you end up wanting to add a second cab and have 4x10's taking full advantage of the amp.Either way they are they are both a good choice , the 212 is voiced differently and has more of a mid presence so you can easily cut through in a mix.

[tallboybass]

Originally Posted by Stev187

A number of us do. Search the archives and you'll find lots of info on your question. Start here:

GK Combo Shootout...MB210 vs. MB212

--Steve

The answers you seek (and so much more) reside in this thread...^

[pgolliher]

I have an MB210 and have played it for over a year, lots of bar gigs including a few outdoor gigs. It is loud enough to handle most gigs- any louder- you would have/want PA support. I recently added the 210MBE extension cab eventhough I didn't really "need" it.. (got a great deal and let's be honest, the mini stack looks awesome). It is a great sounding portable rig. My MB210 did get bassier/slightly boomy once it broke it. I roll the lows off some and use more mids. Very happy with this rig. I like having the ext cab even if playing lower volumes, just because it brings some speakers closer to ear level.

[philter25]

+1 to reading that entire thread. Ive owned the MB212, MB210, and I ended up sticking with the Shuttle 6.0-12t combo.

Before you get the MB combo, check out the GB combo.

Genz-Benz Shuttle 6.0-12T 600 Watt Lightweight Bass 1x12 Combo: Shop Bass & Other Musical Instruments | Musician's Friend

I know the GB is more expensive, but play it and test it out. You might be able to pick up one used or get a slick amazon deal like I did.

[Sparkdog]

Yup...if you're going to drop the coin, clear your calendar and read the mega thread, lots of info there.

I'll do you a favor though and give you the short version

The MB210 is good, the MB212 is on another level entirely IMO. Buy that one.

I own 2 MB212's and an MB112. Before I bought them I spent a lot of time trying out the MB115 and MB210, mainly because that's all I could find of the GK combos, even in Los Angeles. To this day I've still never seen an MB212 in a store.

The MB210 is a good sounding amp, but it sounds boomy to me. You can correct this to a point by rolling off bass, but it still doesn't get the mid range clarity the MB212 has. The 210 will also fart out when pushed really hard. I don't play 5 strings any more but I've heard guys that do have issues with the B string at high DB levels.

The MB212 sounds HUGE in comparison to the MB210. It has a meaty tonal character and presence that sits unbelievably well in a live mix. I've played mine just stupid loud outdoors with a 2-guitar/keyboards/drums rock band and never hit the limit with it. (I use 2 of them linked together now for that purpose, but honestly, one will get it done for me)

ALL of the MB combos seem to be prone to QC issues...you'll see plenty of that in the mega thread. I attribute this to the unfortunate reality of manufacturing in China. My first MB212 was perfect. I played it long and hard for over a year and then a speaker failed (it began distorting - I don't think I blew it up, rather it had a bad voice coil that eventually died). Even though it was a couple of months out of warranty GK sent me a new speaker at no charge.

My 2nd MB212 arrived with a buzzy speaker right out of the box (this is a common complaint). I returned it to Musicians Friend and got a replacement, the second one is perfect.

The point is you might have to go through a couple units to get a perfect one, and while that may be a little crazy, all I can tell you is it's worth it. This is the best sounding bass amp I've ever played through and that is a LONG list.

And every time I carry that little beast in and out of a gig with one hand I am reminded of how miraculous that is.

There it is dawg, my 2 cents worth. Now read the thread.

[GRAHAM SG1]

The MB212 appears to have quite a high fault rate on this forum, why go through all the hassle and stress repeatedly sending a faulty amp back in the hope of getting one that is right ?
I sent mine back after it failed, prior to that I had an MB210 which was ok but I sold that to get a TC Electronics BH500 .
Shame as the concept of a light weight cab with power and tone is much to desire .

[scottfeldstein]

I had the MB210. Took a bit for me to learn how to EQ it. Man did it have a ton of low end. Ran that thing with the Bass knob at around 9 o'clock half the time. I was playing with some really loud people at the time and I got the 210 extension cab to go with it--but it still didn't cut it in that particular scenario, so I sold it all.

I've heard great things about the MB212, though. If I was in the market for a combo amp, I would definitely take a long look at that one. And if you end up playing big outdoor festival gigs, you could always get a second one