TC electronic BH500 thoughts?

rataplan · #1 03-27-2011, 02:28 PM

I don't find much thoughts about this head... If you played with one, what were your thoughts? I need something to perform live and to use in the studio. Or do you know a better alternative for this price? Grazie!

henfjel · #2 04-03-2011, 04:50 AM

i'm getting my BH500 in two or three days so i'll tell you what i think when i've tried it for a while!

CAW · #3 04-03-2011, 08:48 PM

Discussion of all the TC heads is in the TC mega-thread, despite the topic suggesting it is really for the RH/RS series only. The most recent version of this thread can be found here: TC Electronic RH450, RS210, RS212 Review Thread (Part V)

It's a lot to wade through, but a lot of the info that pertains to the RH/RS is the same for the BH series.

henfjel · #4 04-13-2011, 02:15 PM

very versatile amp! i have tested it a little now, and i'm extremely happy! you can dial in basically every sound you want. it everything from metal, to rock, to pop, to jazz (which i play). i think my favorite feature is the tubetone. it really gives a good tube like sound and a real growl with distortion if you dial it all the way. the tuner is good, easy to use and its precise. the preset function is also one of my favorite features. you can store three different presets, that you dial in yourself and change between with the press of a button. like i said, i dig the sound and the fact that you can get practically any tone and sound you want with it. i haven't tested it in a gig scenario yet, but it did a good job at rehearsal with a 6 piece band with two guitarists. i could almost drown the sound of the guitarists with it my next gig (at least so far) is in may, so i'm looking forward to test it there.
the amp is easy to practice with, since it has a headphone jack and it also has a RCA stereo input so you can hook up a mp3 player that you can play along to. i have also tried the balanced xlr output for recording or a PA system. recorded a demo last week, and it sounded really good. no noise or anything, just the bass sound.
to sum it all up, its a really good, versatile amp. can be used for almost any type of music and it does a very good job. it also looks very good

the only thing i'm missing on this amp is a foot remote controller for the tuner, presets and the contour function (that i forgot to mention).

andyp13 · #5 05-20-2011, 04:55 AM

What cabs are you using with the BH500 ?

I wanted to use it with some Gallien krueger cabs (MBE series) as they have double the output of the BC cabs (250 watt).... I am a little concerned that 250 watt is a little low etc...
The only problem is the BH500 has only one output and the MBE cab has no outs for chaining etc....

Andy

AshdownMad · #6 05-20-2011, 05:12 AM

I played with one of these (with 2x bc210s) and was really impressed with the tone and the volume! Really nice head.
I would probably get 1 of these rigs in the future if i wasnt such a 'new manufacturer' phobe!

oddio · #7 05-20-2011, 05:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AshdownMad

I would probably get 1 of these rigs in the future if i wasnt such a 'new manufacturer' phobe!

TC has been around since the late '70s. Although they are a relatively new entry in the bass amp arena, all the pro sound guys I have talked to hold their equipment in very high regard. In fact, the TC amps are the only ones I've ever owned where the soundman will jack it straight into the board (as opposed to handing me a Countryman DI).

nasr20de · #8 05-20-2011, 05:22 PM

There's a TB'er named backtothegroove he has one and can give you a lot of useful info on it's operation. Look him up and send him a pm great guy to talk with.

BackToTheGroove · #9 07-06-2011, 12:46 PM

Hey, thanks Nasr!

Great BH500 demo by Uriah Duffy.
This one is more informative than any of the intro vids on TC's own site-sorry Uffe, its just good to actually hear the bass played through the amp along with an explanation of the features

YouTube - ‪Uriah Duffy about BH500 from TC Electronic‬&rlm;

Other TB BH500 thread: TC Electronic BH500

So here's my story on the BH. Overall: Very well thought out, well built, powerful, useful, flexible and practical tool for the bass player.

Now as a head, its ready to power any cab with it (alone to a gig using supplied cabinets - your bass(es) EQ already saved in the 3 memory slots, adjust for the room), and you can use it alone for practice with an mp3 player and 'phones (1/8" to RCA stereo cord is included). Its 27lbs, but portable.

You can't go wrong with it. compare power and features with other heads in its price range: tuner (with mute), compression, and tubetone - sort of like getting 3 pedals with it. The Tweetertone on the front is another useful sound shaper - I find it works almost like a mild 'presence' you'd get on a BDDI unit. Add the 3 memory saves function. Man, so useful. I use one for a '74 Ric 4001 (low gain pickups), a single coil P bass (hot-rodded direct to jack), and an ATK750ka (active). Distinct sounds with one click - AND useful for the different outputs that each instrument has, using the Gain Clipping light.

Its an impressive amp with lots of power, and real world useful features. 27 lbs is nothing really, it feels like quality. The black cabinet built around it adds protection and gives it a solid, serious look... more so than the little 'transistor radio' gadgets of some of the light-weight heads these days. The face is a deeper red than you see on TC's site - which I like more than the candy apple red as it appears on the site.

I've paired my new BH500 with an Avatar B410NEO-4. Shazaam! Full bass presence, over using volume, to be heard. Feeling the bass now that I've wanted. The B410NEO-4 sounds perfect powered with the BH500. Its a very deep sounding cabinet, so for the room this weekend more hi-mid, treble and tweetertone - no problem, it was ALL there.

This weekend I used it for the first gig. I offered my rig up for the backline also (3 bands). Its baptism of fire. The next band up had a friend of mine playing who is professional and far more experience than I (his rig is all Markbass; head and 410). He really liked it, "It really has the stuff!". The treat for me was to hear my rig from the audience: it had the feel and sound I've always had in my head. Excited about this new set up.

Note: Never made my living from bass playing, but have been in a couple of gigging bands, then jammed weekly. Bass is an unavoidable part of me. So having such affordable, well made, quality gear is very important.