Sunn Beta or Ampeg SVT-350

TeddyBrosevelt · #1 06-13-2011, 05:01 PM

Hello talk bass forums! I've been a long time troll and have finally gotten a real job that pays me real money. With that being said I'm looking to upgrade my bass head.

Right now, I'm playing a Peavey mark III with a Hartke 4x10 and an eden 2x12. I LOVE the Peavey but it's my friends and he's considering selling it so I gotta get my own.

I play a lot of thrash/metal/punk but have started jamming some groovin psychedlic down tuned madness and am looking for an UBER heavy rig to give me a nice thick tone. I've been drooling over SVT's for a while. I'm not that good of a bass player and I'm relatively young so I don't need tubes.

I was also wondering if anyone here has played a Sunn beta head and if it matched up to dueling half stacks. they're only 100w but they're supposed to be really loud. I'm eyeing ebay and there's always a coliseum head up. Considering that too. If anyone has experience with Sunn products I'd love to hear feed back! Thanks a lot!

someparts · #2 06-13-2011, 05:34 PM

If it's power to drive two cabs as a primary issue I'd put the Coliseum way ahead, they are beasts. The Beta is reliable and has decent output for a single speaker cab, but has FAR less power and tone options in my experience. I'm sure the Ampeg is a decent choice also if you are trying to match the power of the Peavey...I've just not had any time with that model.

Down & Outman · #3 06-13-2011, 05:46 PM

I had a Sunn Coliseum 880 back in the day. Pushed 2 JBL 15's and a 18. 320 watts of pure mayhem. Shop around.
Found this on Ebay:
Sunn Coliseum Bass Amp (Silver Face) | eBay
Of course Ampegs are monsters in their own right.
Ampeg SVT 3 Pro | eBay
Or this one:
Ampeg SVT-450H Bass Head | eBay

TeddyBrosevelt · #4 06-13-2011, 08:15 PM

Sunn beta then at 100w pushing smaller speakers should seem full and loud right? I run a sansamp tech 21 bass driver and a boss ODB through it constantly. I've never used a 15" or larger. Man. I'm chomping at the bit.

I've always loved Ampeg but I don't know if I can get one without tubes and I know sunn will last forever. damn.

**garmenteros** · #5 06-13-2011, 08:53 PM

I've got no experience with the sun heads but would like to try one. I did have an svt 350 for a while. I didn't like it, tone felt sterile and would clip when running a 4 ohm cab hard. Its reliable though and never gave me any issues. I traded it for an acoustic 370 and couldn't be happier.

RobJ · #6 06-13-2011, 10:02 PM

I had a Beta combo back when they were new, nice little amp, had its own sound for better or worse, and too small for most gigs with a band that likes to get loud from time to time in my experience. The Coliseum on the other hand has power for days.

tom-g · #7 06-14-2011, 05:14 AM

i was using the Sunn Beta Combo back in the day. It was the first usable amp I owned. For the kind of music you're playing, it's not even close to being lound enough. I was competing with a 30 watt 12" guitar amp in a heavy rock band. I could never really hear myself.