Matamp GT200 In Action

[bassboysam]

For anyone that's interested, someone shot this at our last show. Played the GT200 with a 4001 Ric and an OCD V3 through a mid 70's Ampeg 810.

http://vimeo.com/17308092

[Andy Walhor]

Nice sound.

[Rumblefisher]

sweet.

[JoshuaTSP]

classic stoner rig!

[bassboysam]

Originally Posted by JoshuaTSP

classic stoner rig!

Well, if you're going to do it you might as well do it right \m/

[DosiYanarchy]

just bumping this to say - great tune, great sound.

Just got rid of my Orange Bass Terror. Getting in a Simms-Watts PA 100 MKII and then im saving for the GT200.


Then its time for the old cab compromise: I got 2 aggie gs212nts, which sound great and I can actually carry them about but dont really measure up to the rig of doom that the GT200 deserves!

[mikeddd]

Nice tune and tone! Very Sabbath-y sounding. Really dig your tone; fat and in your face.

[bassboysam]

Originally Posted by DosiYanarchy

I got 2 aggie gs212nts, which sound great and I can actually carry them about but dont really measure up to the rig of doom that the GT200 deserves!

Yeah I don't think the Aggies would be a good match. The GT200, like most Matamps, is all about the low mids. The Aggies are usually described as scooped sounding so they may take away the character of the amp. Matamp makes a nice 4x10 the might be a better match.

[bassboysam]

Originally Posted by mikeddd

Nice tune and tone! Very Sabbath-y sounding. Really dig your tone; fat and in your face.

Thanks! I do have a little more high end in my sound than what the camera picked up but it's fairly close.

[smo]

Nice tone. Really like the sounds I've heard from this amp in the youtube clips I've seen so far!

Very curious about the GT200.
What made you GT200 owners get it - and not an Orange or an Ampeg etc.?

[bassboysam]

Originally Posted by smo

Nice tone. Really like the sounds I've heard from this amp in the youtube clips I've seen so far!

Very curious about the GT200.
What made you GT200 owners get it - and not an Orange or an Ampeg etc.?

Personally I liked the sound of the GT200 more than the Orange AD200. It stays cleaner longer, and the overdrive was more natural. I also felt the GT200 was better built, with higher quality components. It is 100% handmade the customer service was phenomenal when I had an issue with it earlier on. I also like the fact that Matamp is a small company, 6 employees I believe, and they stand behind their products.

I do own a vintage SVT though, and they are very different animals. I love both and eventually I would love to run both amps at the same time through 2 810s. Still need the Matamp 810 though

Lastly, would Orange do this for you?

[bassboysam]

Originally Posted by smo

Nice tone. Really like the sounds I've heard from this amp in the youtube clips I've seen so far!

What YouTube clips by the way? I have not seen any.

[TyKao]

Do you find the lack of a mid-eq control limiting at all?

[vincenzomauer88]

Cool sounding bass rig. I would definitely get one if I wasn't in love with my SVT. Down the road I'd like to get a Hiwatt/Reeves though.

Also to answer the previous post, I believe the DEPTH knob acts as a mid frequency knob. The mids are boosted in the amp right away and focused accordingly with the DEPTH. My guitarist has an OR120 with a similar lay out.

[bassboysam]

No mid control has not been a problem. The amp has lots of mids on it's own. I usually leave the EQ "flat".

The depth knob does not add mids, it acts as a bass cut. Each position selects a different input capacitor the specifies how much low end enters the preamp.

The Presence knob is also not your typical presence knob. It acts more like a mid boost. It makes the bass more present in the mix. But all the controls function a little differently depending on your volume. Everything is very interactive depending on how loud you are playing. The presence knob really has minimal effect at low volumes for example. But once the master is around noon, it adds some volume and grind.

[bassboysam]

I have some better clips that I can post later.

[bassboysam]

These were all recorded at one of our rehearsals.

Cab was mic'd with an SM57 and recorded on a TASCAM 4 track tape recorder. Used an OxFuzz Bass for the distortion/fuzz and a cream pie deluxe for the a slight boost to push the amp a little.

http://soundcloud.com/the_brow/0212-...hermann-nelson

http://soundcloud.com/the_brow/0212-...triangle-blues

http://soundcloud.com/the_brow/0212-...-holodecks-and

http://soundcloud.com/the_brow/0212-...igh-in-transit

http://soundcloud.com/the_brow/0226-dee-flat-yam

[chanson]

So let's talk about dirt. How does the Matamp with the Drive cranked? Does it sound like the apocalypse?

[bassboysam]

Depends on your definition I guess. I think there is this misconception with Matamp, because they are often associated with doom bands, that they are fuzz machines. I find that is not the case at all. In fact i tried a few matamps with guitar and bass and they stay fairly clean, especially the preamps.

With the GT200 and the gain on full the preamp gets a mild overdriven sound but nothing over the top. To get the power amp to distort requires some serious volumes too, so unless you are able to turn it up you are not going to get anything like this at sane volume levels:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oeoj8HGatYk

at least not without some sort of dirt pedal. Having said all that, the GT200 is not like a Sadowsky SA200, it will grind and get some awesome power tube grit but its not the dirt monster people expect. I think the US made Electric Amp models have a lot more gain and distortion, at least from the demos I have seen. They seem to have taken the Matamp + Fuzz pedal sound and built it right into the amp.

All of my clips I have the gain set on level 3 of 4 and the master is just under 12 o'clock. A lot of the distortion is coming from my cab too as the speakers are being pushed to their limits.

Edit: I found the same to be true with Sunn amps. Very clean and controlled in the low-end

[reddi]

I've been listening to the songs on your website and totally dig it. Is this the same amp you used on those recordings?