replacing boogie 400+ w solid state, suggestions?

[rawrOOO]

due to an injury, im considering replacing my boogie 400+ (about 85 lbs in a road case) with a solid state head. there's nothing i dont dig about the boogie except for its weight, which is not going to work for me for a little while.

this is to amplify a fender bass VI, played with a pick and distortion, fuzz etc. i play it sort of guitar style sometimes, sometimes more bass line parts..i use the boogie cuz it's kind of a giant tube guitar amp in a way if you know what i mean. it gets me the giant guitar amp thing im looking for. and still puts out lots of low end for when i do basslines. ive been doing this in a touring heavy psych band, making records etc for a few years. not that anyone knows about us or gives a crap haha

ive tried solid state amps from time to time at shows for various reasons. ive used an eden WT300, eden WT800, hartke 3500, GK 2001rb. they all sound fine and would work but none of them really have the feeling of the boogie. it's like they all get the tone EQ-wise but none make that raw, crazed wild feeling that the boogie puts out. but i know if i go solid state there isnt ANY amp that will do that, so i accept it, hesitantly.

im liking how the new batch of lighter amps look, like markbass, genz benz etc. but i dont need SUPER light really. maybe like 40 lbs tops. i know there's a few lighter weight all tube amps now too, like the markbass and the eden. there's the peavey vb-3 too but i dont know if it actually exists or what? either way, theyre all pretty expensive! im hoping to not spend more than $1000

i think id definitely like something with a tube pre, or at least something like it that can give just a touch of muck to round out the overdrive and fuzz pedals i use (fulltone bass drive and ultimate octave, each used about equally). ive been checking out the TC amps but im reading about the lack of high treble, which is a big part of my sound so those wont cut it

for now im using a pair of avatar 4x10 neo cabinets, stack style...

so what would you suggest, given this description of my situation?

[12bass]

Shuttle 9.0?

What impedance are your cabinets?

[nato101010]

Markbass?

The small heads are like 2 pounds.

[rawrOOO]

thanks for the replies...

im hoping to hear first hand experiences about specific amps. for instance, markbass R500 or whatever

[GeneralElectric]

Making get a Fender Bassman tone circuit and a power amp?

[rawrOOO]

Originally Posted by GeneralElectric

Making get a Fender Bassman tone circuit and a power amp?

i dont know what that means. but it does sound interesting. what's it about?

[RockBobby]

Loose the 40lb case! I would get a light 1/4" plywood case by Gundorf that weigs about 3 lbs. The amp weighs 45lbs ( a little more than a SS, but way less than 85lbs)

Keep your boogie!

PS, I thought the GK 2000RB has a lot more punch than the 400+, but I did like the Boogie also.

[Soundstorm]

Mesa Mpulse 600. Tube pre, MOSFET power section. I think it sounds great, although it would be a drop in output compared to what you're used to. Plus it only weighs about 25lbs.

[coreyfyfe]

Originally Posted by rawrOOO

i dont know what that means. but it does sound interesting. what's it about?

I think he was trying to say a tube preamp with a fender tone circuit (the mesa uses a fender-style tone stack IIRC) and a lightweight power amp. Depending on how expensive you want to go, there are a few different ones out there. The only one I can think of by name at the moment is the alembic FX-1.

[NecroticImbecil]

Originally Posted by RockBobby

Loose the 40lb case! I would get a light 1/4" plywood case by Gundorf that weigs about 3 lbs. The amp weighs 45lbs ( a little more than a SS, but way less than 85lbs)

Keep your boogie!

PS, I thought the GK 2000RB has a lot more punch than the 400+, but I did like the Boogie also.

(45 + 3) LBS is probably lighter than the 4X10, which Avatar web site lists as: Weight 65 lbs.

There are plenty of good lightweight amps (a 3 lb amp in a 40 lb roadcase will still probably weigh 43 lbs) but none of them will react like the Boogie does.

The 400+ I used to own never travelled in a road case, but it never had to fly. It did fine placed carefully in the car. Of course I do not know what your stage show is like either, if you have large fast moving things colliding with your equipment on a regular basis the road case is pretty important.

[rawrOOO]

Originally Posted by NecroticImbecil

(45 + 3) LBS is probably lighter than the 4X10, which Avatar web site lists as: Weight 65 lbs.

There are plenty of good lightweight amps (a 3 lb amp in a 40 lb roadcase will still probably weigh 43 lbs) but none of them will react like the Boogie does.

The 400+ I used to own never travelled in a road case, but it never had to fly. It did fine placed carefully in the car. Of course I do not know what your stage show is like either, if you have large fast moving things colliding with your equipment on a regular basis the road case is pretty important.

we tour in a van, stuff gets beat up constantly

[johnk_10]

i finally achieved getting a 'tube head sound' using a tube channel strip and a crown xti2000, the only problem is, it took a pretty big bite out of my wallet to do it .

i was going for the tone and response of one of my Ampeg SVT heads, and i feel that i've nailed it, and the new rig will go alot louder clean before distortion if i want it to. and if i do want a little grit at any level, i just use a VT pedal in front of it, or adjust the settings on the channel strip. it ended up cutting the SVT's weight of 85lbs (+ a 20lb ATA case) to having two 2U racks that weigh 22lbs and 15lbs, so now my back only has to deal with about 1/5th of the weight (making two trips instead of one 105lb one).

BTW, i'm using a UA 6176 for the preamp and the crown for the poweramp (2K watts).

so, i replaced schlepping this rig (but i'm still keeping it):



with this:

[GeneralElectric]

Originally Posted by rawrOOO

i dont know what that means. but it does sound interesting. what's it about?

The 400+ is the best amp I no longer own. I'll have another someday. I got rid of mine because it was too loud for my needs at the time. My two favorite bass tones I've ever gotten were from the 400+ and a 60s Blackface Fender Bassman. Little did I know they had the same tone circuit. (This is the long winded way of me telling you that the 400+ is the Bassman on steroids)

If you get the tone circuit (someone might sell one online or get an amp tech to make you one) its essentially the preamp. Get a lightweight digital power amp and voila!

[johnk_10]

for the preamp, you can get an alembic F2B or F1-X (both use an actual fender tube preamp/tone stack circuit) and a high powered SS power amp (like a crown xti2000, Peavey IPR1600, or a QSC etc.......

[rawrOOO]

it's more the power amp side of the boogie im gonna miss. power tubes...mmmm i love you power tubes

[B-string]

I have no truble missing tube output with the G-K Fusion 550 (28lbs and 500 watts).

[johnk_10]

for me, the 1176 comp/limiter in the UA 6176 does a very nice job of replicating an output tube section's response and 'squish' when they're being pushed, so i don't really feel like i'm missing/lacking anything either

[rawrOOO]

Originally Posted by B-string

I have no truble missing tube output with the G-K Fusion 550 (28lbs and 500 watts).

the fusion 550 and the MB fusion both look pretty cool. i was already considering an 800RB. i think the boost knob on there might help me a bit

your sig says you play a b string bass. im looking for an amp to do bass VI with fuzz, more like a guitar amp that can put out all the lows too. would you say the fusion 550 does that in your experience?

[B-string]

Originally Posted by rawrOOO

the fusion 550 and the MB fusion both look pretty cool. i was already considering an 800RB. i think the boost knob on there might help me a bit

your sig says you play a b string bass. im looking for an amp to do bass VI with fuzz, more like a guitar amp that can put out all the lows too. would you say the fusion 550 does that in your experience?

The boost knob is not needed with the Fusion (you just increase the input gain). The 800RB is a brighter sounding amp than the Fusion (my 800RB is my practice amp at home). I also have a 4 string with EMG actives I play once and a while and it loves the Fusion. Guitar like I don't know it the Fusion will do, I've never tried but the EQ is there. The MB Fusion has not been released yet.

[rawrOOO]

very helpful B String, thx
you use the MB500?