Little Mark III or Little Mark Tube?

Soundstorm · #1 08-07-2010, 12:37 PM

Hey guys. I just sold my Mesa M-Pulse 600 and plan on buying one of those two amps. I couldn't get along with the Mesa, so after a few gigs of fighing with it (that's my 5th Boogie, both bass and guitar), I decided to go with something punchy that doesn't color the tone of my wick Thumb Ltd too much.

I plan on running it through an Orange 115 that I'm ordering soon. Does anyone have comarisons of both heads?

Also, I wonder if the regular LM is enough wattage. It seems the Orange cab is in 8ohm only. With the M-Pulse 600, I ran it into a 4ohm 4x10 cab and the volume never went above 10 o'clock on the master with the gain at 1oclock.

Will the LM 500 into the 8ohm cab be too much of a drop in volume that I should get the LM 800?

Thanks in advance. Anyone that can compare the tonal qualities of these amps would be greatly appreciated.

Soundstorm · #2 08-07-2010, 07:26 PM

One more try...

MarTONEbass · #3 08-07-2010, 07:55 PM

I'm no expert, but I've been doing a ton of reading here on TB. It sounds like no matter which amp you choose, you will not achieve nearly the same volume with the single 8ohm 15 as opposed to the 410. To squeeze maximum wattage, go for the 4ohm multi-speaker cab or two 8ohm cabs.

As far as the heads go, more folks seem to like the LMIII over the LMT, which has this inherent boominess on the bass frequencies that is hard to tame. It also depends on your tonal goals.

Use the search feature and read what some TBers have to say. There is a wealth of info already posted about those heads.

Good luck!

JimmyM · #4 08-07-2010, 08:00 PM

tube. always. even if it does nothing, it's better.

i don't know, a lot of folks have talked about how the tube does nothing in those heads, and i haven't tried the 500w heads but i have tried the 800w lm tube 800's, and i consider it quite an improvement. others disagreed with me, but i could easily tell a difference.

lbwdog · #5 08-07-2010, 08:02 PM

I'm liking my LMTUBE 800 just fine.

MarTONEbass · #6 08-07-2010, 08:32 PM

Even with the preamp on my bass set flat I would still have to dial the bass back on the LMT800 I had. I suppose it could have been the cabinet, but I am enjoying my SA450 a whole lot, which is similar to the LMII/III.

Jimmy, the tube blend knob on the LMT800 is supposed to warm up the signal, but I never really like what it did to the sound of the cabs I connected. It made the bass frequencies a bit unmanageable IMHO and IME.

JimmyM · #7 08-07-2010, 08:41 PM

fair enough. i'm not big on markbass' class d amps anyway. but the 500w lms and the sa450 are class ab, which for some reasons makes a positive difference in tone. don't know if it's just the type of amp build that does it, but they sound way better to my ears.

Mike Shevlin · #8 08-07-2010, 08:58 PM

I've got another idea for you~ the Markbass SD1200. I'm one of those guys that loves the LMIII but did not care for the LM800Tube. The SD1200 sounded nothing like the SD800 and much more like a super loud LMIII/F1 hybrid.

Marginal Tom · #9 08-07-2010, 09:01 PM

I have the LMT. I can hear the difference between the tube pre and the ss pre, but it isn't very substantial. If you decide to go with either 500W Little Mark, you should consider getting the Orange 115 at 4 ohms, if that's available. If you need more volume, then get two 8 ohms cabs and/or an LMT 800.

Soundstorm · #10 08-08-2010, 10:40 AM

I guess I'll just try the amp that started it all: the regular LM 500 model. I hear mixed opinions on all the other models, but everyone seems to like the LM.

I'll sit that on the Orange 115. If I need more volume, I'll try sitting the Orange 210 on top, which will double the LM's output.

As far as the boominess goes, that is the LAST thing I want, since that's the reason I got rid of the Mesa.

**juriscon** · #11 08-08-2010, 10:49 AM

You might consider the new Markbass Little Mark Rocker 500. It should be available in the US sometime this month. Here's a little sample:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6iqwo828es

bigfatbass · #12 08-08-2010, 10:52 AM

I'd vote Shuttle 6 or 9

pbass-pbass · #13 08-13-2010, 05:28 PM

I see that the Little Mark micros only have one speaker output while micro amps from other brands have two. How much of a pain is this for those who have personal experience?

JimmyM · #14 08-13-2010, 11:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pbass-pbass

I see that the Little Mark micros only have one speaker output while micro amps from other brands have two. How much of a pain is this for those who have personal experience?

the lm's have two speaker outs. one is 1/4", one can be used either speakon or 1/4".