Hartke Kickback 12 on the backline...

Russell L · #1 11-10-2011, 06:12 AM

Ok, so this wasn't a large outdoor venue, but rather a medium-sized club. I had packed my Markbass rig in the truck just in case there was nothing up there when I got there. This was a birthday party for a local sax man, and there would be tons of local musicians show up, but the club isn't big, and the PA was a Bose system (one of those tube designs, I forget the nomenclature---which really did a great job, btw). Well, one of the guitar players showed up with this little Hartke for all the bass players to use. I was skeptical. I mean, it's a 112 with only 120w RMS, small kickback-style box, etc. (It's also called an HA1200).

So, the first bass player came up and we started to scope it out. He was carrying a '67 P-bass, nice. Anyway, he played and I turned some knobs until he liked it. I was glad someone else would play it before I got up so I would have some idea of what to expect out front. It wasn't mic'd or lined out, but had to stand on its own. I didn't know how loud the gig would get, but I figured it would get loud as usual over time---and it did. But, this wasn't metal, but blues. Still...

First tune was an easy walking thing, and I'll just be damned if the bass didn't sound really good out front toward the back of the room, or anywhere else (I was cruising, with so many friends to talk to). How could it be? The band wasn't that soft, and there were two horns and two guitars, too (ya know how that can get). The tone of the bass was spot on, and the volume fit perfectly. As I remember, we had set it flat on the eq knobs with the shape knob rolled counterclockwise to also be in the mids. Volume was around 12:30 (no gain control). I didn't really hear the mids distinctly out front, but the tone was fat. Really, it was.

Things got much louder as the set progressed, but I could always hear the bass. When my time came I left it pretty much with the same settings, but boosted the volume a hair to make up for my Jazz pickups (I assumed that the '67 P put out a bit more volume than my Jazz). I kept tweaking until it sounded like gig volume for my group (two guitars and harmonica plus me and a reasonable drummer). Heh, we played pretty hard, actually, and the little amp did its job. I got a lot of compliments on my playing, so folks must've heard it out there.

Just wanted to share this with yas. A $400 120w 112 did the gig, sho' nuff. had it been a bigger venue I'm sure it would've been lacking. But, I was surprised. Would it compete with my Markbass 121H combo, heck no. But for this gig it put out enough to get the job done. So, I think that for anyone looking for a smallish combo for smallish gigs this thing is a good buy. It's not neo, though, and weighs 42 lbs., they say. My 121H combo is much bigger and weighs only 39 lbs. But, it also cost more than twice as much.

Anyways, it was fun. Thanks for reading.

fhm555 · #2 11-10-2011, 06:19 AM

No surprise here.

I've been using a little 10" SWR cube for a number of years for small rooms and it cuts just fine against drums and 2 guitars. Just have to get it up off the floor in a chair or on a stool.

My current small room rig is an Avatar 112 with my old SWR Basic 350 and it does a great job as well.

Russell L · #3 11-10-2011, 06:22 AM

Yeah, I still have a Workingman's 12 that can do some small gigs. It weighs 45 lbs.! I'm thinking about keeping my Markbass CMD 121H combo for that role now.

[EDIT: the PA "tube" is what I'm referring to above.]

biobass · #4 11-10-2011, 08:02 AM

I used my Hartke KB12 with the paper cone speaker for years doing theater pit and relatively low volume jazz and light rock gigs. It has paid for itself many, many times over. I will say that I am now enjoying my Shuttle 6.0 or NeoPak 3.5 into one or two Berg 12s more, but the Hartke certainly was a good bang for the buck.

Cheers,
Dennis

Russell L · #5 11-10-2011, 08:08 AM

Oh, and this one had the metal cone, something I have no experience. Sounded good, though.

jaywa · #6 11-10-2011, 08:15 AM

Those little Hartke kickbacks can do a pretty decent job.

To me they sound a little tinny and sterile plugging straight in so when I'm faced with one of those I usually pull out my SansAmp BDDI and run it in line and that "tubes up" the sound real nicely.

You don't want to push those puppies too hard though. I've seen more of those amps with shredded aluminum cones than I care to remember.

will33 · #7 11-10-2011, 08:15 AM

I used to have a kickback15 I used for an easy carry to rehearsals/small bar gigs, I too was surprised at how much output it had, played many gigs with it similair to what you're describing in an (old, real) R&B band. Sometimes wish I would've never sold that one.

HMZ · #8 11-10-2011, 08:20 AM

I have done a few classic rock gigs in small bars with my GK MB112 and its handled it well.

jeff7bass · #9 11-10-2011, 09:04 AM

I’ve been using a single 12” setup for rehearsals + small gigs (3 piece rock band) and it works fine. I love the sound actually. It’s focused, clear, tight, yet plenty warm.
Great for recording too (mic’d).

MNAirHead · #10 11-10-2011, 09:07 AM

it does have a very clean DI... you could have used it for a bigger venue

tjh · #11 11-10-2011, 11:05 AM

... One of the players that I was alternating with at a church left his there for me to use on the off weeks, and I was very nicely surprised by it, and as Tim just mentioned, a very usable DI to play at lower volumes on stage ... a very nice offering from Hartke, who I believe was the first to come out with the 'kickback' designed cab ...

Russell L · #12 11-10-2011, 11:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeff7bass

I’ve been using a single 12” setup for rehearsals + small gigs (3 piece rock band) and it works fine. I love the sound actually. It’s focused, clear, tight, yet plenty warm.
Great for recording too (mic’d).

Yeah, I've played some classic rock gigs with my Markbass 121H combo. It did fine til we got too loud (no PA support). But, that rig is 300w at 8 ohms, and with a bigger box than the Hartke.

I'm still surprised the Hartke carried as well as it did. We had it on top of another amp, so that helped, I guess. Didn't wanna run it through that PA because I wasn't sure the PA would handle it well enough. That tube sure did sound good for the vocals and horns.

parsons · #13 11-10-2011, 02:06 PM

My old band had a Hartke Kickback15 that was there when I came to try out. I opted to bring in my 410 and head but after joining the band, I messed around with it from time to time or when we were feeling to lazy to unload our gear from the van. In a smaller room, with two 50w tube guitar amps and drums, it will hold its own for sure.