Little Mark III vs GK 700rb-ii

mam1862 · #1 04-12-2011, 07:38 PM

Which one and why?

dannylectro · #2 04-12-2011, 09:45 PM

LM III - good quality, versatile.

GK700 - quality & reliability issues.

If you want true, classic GK sound & reliability, get a used (MIA) 800RB or 400RB.

GrowlerBox · #3 04-12-2011, 09:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mam1862

Which one and why?

Both. Why not?

IronLung1986 · #4 04-12-2011, 10:19 PM

LM III is awesome. i have a LM III 800 and have played the regular 500w version many times in stores. in my opinion markbass amps have amazing responsiveness and clarity. the notes jump right out at you in a unique way that i never heard before playing their stuff. they handle active electronics and the whole "hi fi" sound exceptionally well, but of course passive instruments are going to sound great too.

conversely, and i don't want to offend anyone here, but GK never seemed to have that "lightbulb" effect; i've never been excited by one of their amps. they might have some nicer stuff out there, but i know i've tested out basses on GK700's many times and i never felt that there was much to write home about.

ljazz · #5 04-13-2011, 03:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by IronLung1986

LM III is awesome. i have a LM III 800 and have played the regular 500w version many times in stores. in my opinion markbass amps have amazing responsiveness and clarity. the notes jump right out at you in a unique way that i never heard before playing their stuff. they handle active electronics and the whole "hi fi" sound exceptionally well, but of course passive instruments are going to sound great too.

conversely, and i don't want to offend anyone here, but GK never seemed to have that "lightbulb" effect; i've never been excited by one of their amps. they might have some nicer stuff out there, but i know i've tested out basses on GK700's many times and i never felt that there was much to write home about.

If you're not completely familiar with the 700rbII, then making a judgement on it's tone when testing out basses is not a fair assessment. The gainstaging alone has a big impact on it's tone...... for instance, a lot of folks, even owners, have a hard time understanding that the vol knob is preamp gain and not input gain. And really, the GK shines in the mix.... it's one of those heads you have to jam with in order to fully appreciate it.

IMHO, the 700rbII is the best value out there in bass heads. Versatile, powerful, not too heavy, and not too expensive. It's a bunch more head for the money. Quality and reliability is at least as good as the Markbass stuff..... and if something does blow on it, getting it fixed is fairly straight forward...... By the looks of some of the threads here on TB, I'd say getting a fried Markbass fixed after your warranty is up is darn near futile.

jnewmark · #6 04-13-2011, 06:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ljazz

If you're not completely familiar with the 700rbII, then making a judgement on it's tone when testing out basses is not a fair assessment. The gainstaging alone has a big impact on it's tone...... for instance, a lot of folks, even owners, have a hard time understanding that the vol knob is preamp gain and not input gain. And really, the GK shines in the mix.... it's one of those heads you have to jam with in order to fully appreciate it.

IMHO, the 700rbII is the best value out there in bass heads. Versatile, powerful, not too heavy, and not too expensive. It's a bunch more head for the money. Quality and reliability is at least as good as the Markbass stuff..... and if something does blow on it, getting it fixed is fairly straight forward...... By the looks of some of the threads here on TB, I'd say getting a fried Markbass fixed after your warranty is up is darn near futile.

+1. Not much to add, but I did own a MB LMII for awhile and could not get more than an old school type of tone from it, no matter what I did. The RB 700II is way more versatile in eq, and seriously under rated with that 480 watt rating. It does take awhile to figure out the Gain/Volume/Boost/Master thing, but well worth the effort. And +1 on the repair thing concerning MarkBass, once the warranty expires. I've had zero issues with my GK, and I bought it used. And , at 16 pounds, not that bad of a schlepp.

georgestrings · #7 04-13-2011, 06:10 AM

Yeah, I've gigged the heck out of a pair 700rb-IIs, and never had a problem with either of them - still got one of them, actually.... The LMII and LMIII are great amps in their own right - I don't think you could go wrong either way, although it seems more likely that a G-K amp could be repaired in the event it was needed - a Markbass amp, not so much...

- georgestrings

Tunaman · #8 04-13-2011, 06:10 AM

GK 1001RB I had was stellar

jeff7bass · #9 04-13-2011, 08:39 AM

My impression after playing through both of them is you can get more of a Markbass sound from the GK than a GK sound from the Markbass. The GK gives the impression of immediacy, punch and clarity while the Markbass sounds more tubey or traditional, especially with the VLE filter, which I like by the way. The GK’s EQ is versatile enough to get warm sounds though, like walking bass-lines for blues or jazz, just requires more tweeking.

I’m kind of surprised that some people think the GK700rb is not reliable, mine was a workhorse and never had a blip. Both of my GK’s were VERY reliable and my old 400B was nearly indestructible. On the same note, Markbass amps seem quite reliable also. I’d say the reliability issue is a wash. GK probably moves a ton more amps than Markbass so you’re likely to read about more problems than you will of Markbass.
Since both amps are available at GC, try them both with a cab similar (if possible) to the one you’ll be driving. If you have active and passive basses, try them both also because one bass might sound better through one and the passive through the other. Then weigh in the options and the decision should be easy from there.

mam1862 · #10 04-13-2011, 10:02 AM

Good stuff. Thanks for the info. I have a gk mb fusion that I use, but I was looking for a amp to practice at home with as well as a backup. I like gk, but I thought I would get some opinions on the markbass.

jeff7bass · #11 04-13-2011, 10:35 AM

I like variety so if I already had a GK I probably get the Markbass!!

impactwrench · #12 04-13-2011, 10:39 AM

I think I will always have a GK amp in my stable. Even though I am testing the waters on other brands. I have owned 4 different GK heads and never had any quit on me. However I have bought 2 of them that were already blown. Ive only tried MB stuff at GC, usually the 1x12 combo (berlin?). It sounded fine but nothing memorable.

Mola Ram · #13 04-13-2011, 11:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jnewmark

The RB 700II is way more versatile in eq, and seriously under rated with that 480 watt rating. It does take awhile to figure out the Gain/Volume/Boost/Master thing, but well worth the effort.

I really love my 700RB but I still feel like I haven't figured the relationship between these knobs yet and what to do to get certain sounds.

Can anyone point me in the direction of a good thread that fully goes over this aspect of these heads?

**Freddels** · #14 04-13-2011, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by impactwrench

I think I will always have a GK amp in my stable. Even though I am testing the waters on other brands. I have owned 4 different GK heads and never had any quit on me. However I have bought 2 of them that were already blown. Ive only tried MB stuff at GC, usually the 1x12 combo (berlin?). It sounded fine but nothing memorable.

The Jeff Berlin Combo is a 15 with no tweeter. It's a very good sounding combo.

Kenner · #15 04-13-2011, 01:20 PM

Almost 400 gigs played on my GK 700RB/112 and zero issues. (just replaced a dust dome this week)

It made me recently buy a 400RBIII/210 and I am buying the first good quality 1001RB/210 I can find...

**pacojas** · #16 04-13-2011, 01:51 PM

GK is so yesterday. loved their stuff for the last 20yrs.

these days i fly the yellow & black!

Ewo · #17 04-13-2011, 01:59 PM

Here's the URL for Markbass's US repair center. My out-of-warranty F-1 needed a new volume pot; having it fixed wasn't any big deal.

https://www.vstservice.com/t-markbass.aspx

MikeCollatos · #18 04-13-2011, 02:06 PM

I've been playing through a GK 700rbii for a year and loved it for the most part. I have never had an issue with the GK head it did what I wanted and needed it to do but I was never quit content with the actual tone with the music I was playing. It would be good for one type and not for the other which caused me to have to tweak it between songs sometimes.

However I just bought a Markbass and love it more then the GK. The Markbass head with the same bass and cab I used with the GK 700RBii just sounds cleaner and punchier then the GK ever did. I play on 6 string basses and use the B string a lot. I never totally got the exact sound I was after with the GK but the Markbass with little adjustment and the exact sound I was really after.

First time at practice and everyone complimented me on how much cleaner it sounded over my GK rig. First show with it will be on the 23rd and I can't wait!

TripleDouble · #19 04-13-2011, 02:14 PM

GK sounds better to me, but just a bit. Use your ears, guitar center should have both.

MycooLeeyun · #20 04-13-2011, 02:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mola Ram

I really love my 700RB but I still feel like I haven't figured the relationship between these knobs yet and what to do to get certain sounds.

Can anyone point me in the direction of a good thread that fully goes over this aspect of these heads?

Calling on All GK Gallien-Krueger Owners. What are your settings?

I'm in the same boat as you.. trying to find a good tone that I love with this head but I'm not quite there yet. Check out that thread, people have their settings posted up and you can get an idea of what other people are doing with their GKs.