Good first amp for gigging?

[Kaleidescapist]

So, I'm in the market for a half-decent amp to play small gigs with. Nothing really loud, just contra-dance type settings with mostly acoustic instruments, but it'd be nice to find something with a really nice "bass" sound. All I have at present is the amp which came with my fretless, and that's a Fender Bullet 150. Not bad for practising in my living room, but it's a guitar amp and really sounds it.

Sorry to be asking what must be the ten thousandth stupid "what amp should I get" question, but I'm a bit new at this and could use the advice. How many watts? Good size for cabinets? Budget will probably be a few hundred; what will give me the most bass for my buck?

[Phalex]

I have recently converted to a combo amp. If you go combo get something with a decent amount of power. (400W or so) If you're going Cab/Head, you don't need more than 200W or so with the right cab. (I'd go with a 4x10) I've gigged with a 130W head and a 410, and it works just fine. I think a tad more headroom would be nice though.

[Downunderwonder]

What's contra dance? Acoustic instruments as in unamplified? How many? You don't need half of bugger all wattage to keep up with a couple of guitars, a violin and a djembe. A 15W practice amp may do the trick.

[Kaleidescapist]

Originally Posted by Downunderwonder

What's contra dance? Acoustic instruments as in unamplified? How many? You don't need half of bugger all wattage to keep up with a couple of guitars, a violin and a djembe. A 15W practice amp may do the trick.

Contra dancing is a sort of folk dancing people do in the northeastern US - kind of based on English country dancing, I think. Lots of old fiddle tunes, a little bluegrass. Around here the band usually ends up being an ungodly mix of instruments - accordion, a couple of electric guitars, a handful of fiddlers, a boogie-woogie type pianist or so, mandolin - most of them amplified so as to be heard over the people dancing and whooping it up.

I don't need a huge amount of wattage, but the thing about my 15-watt amp is that I can't turn the volume up past about 4 or it starts reminding me that it's a guitar amp and hates low frequencies... And while I'm getting an amp, I want something I can do small rock gigs with as well as the dances, so I assumed that around 150-200 watts would make a lot of sense to start with. Is that a faulty assumption - and is there a better way to be thinking about this?

Thanks for the responses

[Pollinator95]

Check out the amp FAQ at the top of the amp forum. Basically, it seems you need 300W into a 4x10 for a rig that will last you.

[Phalex]

Drummers are your friend, but with an underpowered amp, drums are your enemy.

[AwkwardLoudness]

Gallien Krueger MB200 micro bass amp

with

Avatar TB153 cab (4Ω version) with 15" woofer + 6.5" mid + tweeter

[Kaleidescapist]

Originally Posted by AwkwardLoudness

Gallien Krueger MB200 micro bass amp

with

Avatar TB153 cab (4Ω version) with 15" woofer + 6.5" mid + tweeter

Oh, yeah - I've been looking at those little GK heads and admiring the portability - so they sound good, then?

[Kaleidescapist]

Originally Posted by Phalex

Drummers are your friend, but with an underpowered amp, drums are your enemy.

Oh! Yeah - I probably ought to have mentioned that I'll be playing with a drummer sometimes (one who is very young and enthusiastically loud). So I'll need enough power to show up well next to that.

[AwkwardLoudness]

Originally Posted by Kaleidescapist

Oh, yeah - I've been looking at those little GK heads and admiring the portability - so they sound good, then?

I personally prefer a roaring loud heavy iron vacuum tube amp, but that rig should certainly suffice for an acoustic Contra dance gig.

Originally Posted by Kaleidescapist

Oh! Yeah - I probably ought to have mentioned that I'll be playing with a drummer sometimes (one who is very young and enthusiastically loud). So I'll need enough power to show up well next to that.

Oh. Well, in that case, I suggest something like this: Ampeg SVT-VR through Ampeg 810E.



It depends on what you meant by "enthusiastically loud", however.

[Downunderwonder]

So really the question is the same question but with a cute preamble.

300W amp, two 8 ohm cabs if you're a loud rock band with no bass in the PA.

[Downunderwonder]

Most bass for buck is an old Peavy combo amp. Heavy as a dead cow. Strangely you don't hear about extension cabs with them but they are supposed to do 2 ohms with another 4 ohm cab.

Cheapo rig, sansamp (used) into old power amp into used speakers.

[evilt70]

You can get the old Peavey combo's cheap too, still have mine and still use it when I don't need to haul "The BEast"