SWR 300 (I think it was re-nameed 4004)

[jwinton]

My guitar player has an old SWR 300 bass head. He says it was re-named the Workingman's 4004 in later production years but is essentially the same as the WM's 4004. However, I understand that the 4004 has a tube pre and he tells me his amp is all solid state. Does anyone have this amp or know anything about it? He only wants $100 for it and I'm considering it but I can't find much of anything about the amp online. Anyone know anything? Any/all help appreciated!

[RCCollins]

100 bucks is a real good deal. tube preamps are overrated anyway.

[nickelseye]

WORKINGMAN'S 300
The second Workingman's rack mountable amplifier introduced in 1994. The Workingman's 300 was upgraded and renamed (Workingman's 4004) in 1999. Features include: Discrete solid state front end Hi and low sensitivity 1/4" inputs, Gain control with LED peak clipping indicator, Aural Enhancer Control, 5 band EQ section, 80 Hz (Bass), 160 Hz (Low Mid), 400 Hz (Mid), 800 Hz (Hi Mid), 3KHz (Treble), Footswitchable Mid Range, Variable Limiter, Speaker on/off switch, Effects Blend Control, Headphone Jack, Sidechain effects loop, Balanced XLR Output, (2) 1/4" Speaker Outputs.

Power Output:
340 Watts RMS @ 2.6 Ohms
270 Watts RMS @ 4 Ohms
160 Watts RMS @ 8 Ohms
Weight: 18 lbs
Size: 19"W x 3.625"H x 10.625"D

Production Period: 1996 to 1999
Final Retail Price: $649.00

[jwinton]

Have you played the amp? Is it a good sounding amp? At 270 watts/4 ohms, it's plenty powerful for what I do. I have a Hartke 7000 now and am looking for something a little different sounding than the Hartke.

[nickelseye]

I briefly messed around with the Workingman's 300, it's a great little amp. I've also played the Workingman's 4004, which has a little more power. On their own, they are a little too clean for me in a rock band setting. However, add a sansamp or similar pedal for some color, and it comes to life. IMO.

I will say the 300 seemed to be well built, $100 for the amp you're looking at seems reasonable if it's in good working condition.

I found the info on SWR's site.

http://www.swrsound.com/support/vintage.php

[AciDBatH666]

I have a Workingman's 4004. Works well for what it is. 400w @4ohms, 260@4ohms.
Great clean power, but like mentioned, I had to add some distortion from a Sansamp BDDI to really cut thru the mix of two high gain guitarists and a drummer playing with half stacks. That was at 260w with a 4X10.

Being that that 300 is a lower wattage, you might wanna figure out how many watts you really need for what you're aiming to do, and then decide. But $100 for it sounds like a good deal. Just be sure you don't need more wattage. I know I needed it. Which is why I keep my WM 4004 as a backup to my 700 watt Gallien Krueger1001RBII

[Flatbass]

Originally Posted by jwinton

My guitar player has an old SWR 300 bass head. He says it was re-named the Workingman's 4004 in later production years but is essentially the same as the WM's 4004. However, I understand that the 4004 has a tube pre and he tells me his amp is all solid state. Does anyone have this amp or know anything about it? He only wants $100 for it and I'm considering it but I can't find much of anything about the amp online. Anyone know anything? Any/all help appreciated!

The 4004 does not have a tube preamp.

[NKUSigEp]

Originally Posted by jwinton

My guitar player has an old SWR 300 bass head. He says it was re-named the Workingman's 4004 in later production years but is essentially the same as the WM's 4004. However, I understand that the 4004 has a tube pre and he tells me his amp is all solid state. Does anyone have this amp or know anything about it? He only wants $100 for it and I'm considering it but I can't find much of anything about the amp online. Anyone know anything? Any/all help appreciated!

The Working Man's 4004 definitely did not have a tube pre! I think the newer WorkingPro Series might but I've been off the SWR train for over a decade. I owned three 4004's and while they were a great bang-for-your-buck kind of amp, it was the most sterile and lifeless amp I ever played and seemed quite weak for a 400 watt rating. The only reason I kept going back is because after the first one I got new, the others I got used for $175 and $150.

It had a decent mid range and treble response, but in all honesty it had ZERO ass to it! No bottom end at all and not even a bass boost feature.

[nightcityburn]

Originally Posted by NKUSigEp

The Working Man's 4004 definitely did not have a tube pre! I think the newer WorkingPro Series might but I've been off the SWR train for over a decade. I owned three 4004's and while they were a great bang-for-your-buck kind of amp, it was the most sterile and lifeless amp I ever played and seemed quite weak for a 400 watt rating. The only reason I kept going back is because after the first one I got new, the others I got used for $175 and $150.

It had a decent mid range and treble response, but in all honesty it had ZERO ass to it! No bottom end at all and not even a bass boost feature.

I find this to be true of all SWR amps. I owned a Bass 750, 750x, and a 550x and they all seemed at least a little underpowered for their ratings and needed a lot to add to their bottom end

[Texan]

I used the Workingmans 300 for 2 years with a prog rock band in the late 90's. I ran it at 2.6 ohms with 2 Ampeg cabs, ART Nightbass for effects and had great tone and never an issue. $100 is a steal, take it. This is pre fender and probably right before Steve Rabe sold the company. I had tons of low end. The Fender era stuff is lacking to my ears, but still sounds better than most on the market today.

[NKUSigEp]

Originally Posted by Texan

I used the Workingmans 300 for 2 years with a prog rock band in the late 90's. I ran it at 2.6 ohms with 2 Ampeg cabs, ART Nightbass for effects and had great tone and never an issue. $100 is a steal, take it. This is pre fender and probably right before Steve Rabe sold the company. I had tons of low end. The Fender era stuff is lacking to my ears, but still sounds better than most on the market today.

I got off track ranting about the 4004...the 300 was definitely a much better sounding amp and seemed like it had better low end. But the 15 mins I spent trying one out at GC definitely didn't leave me wanting to play through it more than I already had. It was hooked up to an Ampeg 410HLF cab so it was at 4 ohms and going through a seemingly respectable cab. I just think that it was seriously overrated power-wise.