Help with bass rig!!! PLEASE

[AndrewDaBassist]

Hello,

Recently me and my band have decided to step up and start gigging. The only problem is me and my crappy Marshall MB30. I have my eyes on a Hartke LH500 AND 410XL. I love the highs from that. The only problem is I dont know about this Ohms law and stuff. Would this head and cab be good to gig in a club with about 300-400 people? Sound wise and quality wise. Also we do funk e.g Rhcp so as a bass player, I need to be heard.

Thank you in advance,
Andrew

(Sorry I'm a noob to talk bass)

[JimmyM]

Should be fine.

[Gearhead17]

Grab the LH1000 head if you can swing it. More watts can be very helpful. As for one Hartke 410 carrying a big room, I highly doubt it for a rock band. A Jazz ensemble on the other hand, that would be plenty.

For hearing yourself on stage - good choice. If you a PA system to run through, you should be alright with that rig.

Keep in mind that the "flat setting" for that amp is Mid at 10, Bass and Treble around 2.

8 ohm 410 - whatever the amp can put out at 8 ohms, that is how much power this cab will receive. Put two 8 ohm cabs together on your rig and you create a 4 ohm load. Whatever the amp can put out at 4 ohms is the wattage you will get. There is more to it than that, but this is a decent start. Kepp reading on here and you will learn everything you need to know.

[JimmyM]

Gearhead, you don't think the LH1000 would be too much for a single 410? I mean, yeah, I know they come with volume knobs, but he said the key words: "I need to be heard," which translates to me as "I'll likely blow a cab if given the opportunity"

[bassplayer8953]

JMO, but if you (or "they"...the venue) are trying to provide sound for a place that holds 300-400 people, and don't want to sound like a little band in the corner, then a full pa is a must. If the venue doesn't provide one, then the band has to...at whatever the going rate is, usually $300+ to rent one, the last time I checked. For stage sound and as a backdrop the rig you're proposing should do ok. But without pa support for the whole band, you'll need a wall of SVT's to be heard.

[1954bassman]

Originally Posted by JimmyM

Gearhead, you don't think the LH1000 would be too much for a single 410? I mean, yeah, I know they come with volume knobs, but he said the key words: "I need to be heard," which translates to me as "I'll likely blow a cab if given the opportunity"

+1

[Gearhead17]

Originally Posted by JimmyM

Gearhead, you don't think the LH1000 would be too much for a single 410? I mean, yeah, I know they come with volume knobs, but he said the key words: "I need to be heard," which translates to me as "I'll likely blow a cab if given the opportunity"

Ha! Good point. Just setting him up to upgrade to that Ampeg 810e some day.....

To the OP, what model Hartke 410 are you looking at? The brand new prices of those are right around what an Ampeg 810e would cost used on craigslist.org. If you need to be HEARD, a LH1000 and Ampeg 810e would crush!

[DiabolusInMusic]

Good translation Jimmy. I'd hire you to be a guide among bass players haha.

[Imaginos]

Almost all venues that can hold 300 - 400 people will put your bass through the PA so I guess the only real function of your soon-to-be rig would be to act as a stage monitor. Alone it would be enough for bigger bar gigs, but even bars I've been to have often mic'd my bass. Your back will thank you if you can keep your rig as light and portable as possible.

[Nightlyraider]

Just about ANY head/cab unit is going to be a big step up from a practice combo. I'd hesitate from buying the first thing you see at your local music store.

Watch the classifieds here and you'll be able to snag a full rig that someone is selling off in no-time for a reasonable price.

[JimmyM]

I've done plenty of gigs without PA for instruments in a 300-400 seat room using a 410 and 300w. These were not quiet gigs, either. He'll likely be fine.