Thoughts on SWR products?

[kski94]

Hi,im looking to purchase a stack to replace my current amp, an acoustic b200 combo.a local music store has an Swr with a 410 cab,and was wondering what you all thought about them. i need an amp that can handle a low b,and a good modern rock/jazzy sound. any help at all would be appreciated.

[brndn123]

Considering SWR makes a lot of products, you should try to give us more details (model, appearance, etc.) SWR generally makes quality gear AFAIK, but you should definitely try it out with a 5 string bass to see if that is what you are looking for. Good luck!

[kski94]

thanks. i wish i had more info, all i know is it was $699 and a 410. i only played through it for a few minutes,and it's a small shop, with no fives. i was just wondering what a general consensus was on them since i probably won't be buying the exact one in the store.

[Crabby]

Check out their web site to see the different series of 410 cabs they currently offer. I honestly think for $700 you can do a lot better. If a 410 cab is what you are after, consider a Mesa, GK, Markbass, Epifani or Genz Benz cab as well. They all sound different and have their own voice. The SWR Goliath IV is I believe the current top of the line SWR cab. They are expensive, not known for handling the low B string very well at higher volumes and weigh a lot.

A used SWR 410 in good condition can easily be had for around $300-400 so consider your local Craigslist too.

[spaz21387]

Swr stuff is great. I love my swr 6x10 cab. Im a 4 string player so I cant tell you if they handle the low b string. I would get an older swr cab like a pre fender owned cab

[bigbottomend]

I played through a SWR the other night DUBIOUS BROS. with Steve Tudberry on Bass - YouTube not sure what it was as i only got up to jam some 12 bar with this band. It was OK but it doesn't come even close to my 73' SVT.

[Son of Bovril]

SWR is more known for a clean modern sound. some say slightly scooped in the mids. Although you can obviously eq it however u like. Not the first brand that comes to mind for big deep lows but may yet be exactly what you are looking for. SWR is not really flavour of the month on here at the moment so expect some alternative suggestions

[JLY]

You can pick up a used Epifani 3x10 for much less than the new SWR 4X10 cab....and there is no comparison...much better quality with the Epi

[chadds]

Originally Posted by kski94

Hi,im looking to purchase a stack to replace my current amp, an acoustic b200 combo.a local music store has an Swr with a 410 cab,and was wondering what you all thought about them. i need an amp that can handle a low b,and a good modern rock/jazzy sound. any help at all would be appreciated.

The SWR pro gear is sturdy and widely available used. They have a sound that distinguishes it from as does Eden, Aguilar etc. They can sound like whatever you want them to as they can be one of the more transparent rigs out there. Just like each manufacturer has it's characteristic sound, that sound as a starting place may or may not be your thing. Your ears.
They handle the low B as well as any of it's competitors.
I only recommend the actual Pro gear. No workingpro or workingmans. Buy used. Yes that price is too high for cab alone but for both fine if it's Pro gear.

[T. Alan Smith]

Originally Posted by JLY

You can pick up a used Epifani 3x10 for much less than the new SWR 4X10 cab....and there is no comparison...much better quality with the Epi

Wow. Not exactly talking apples to apples here. Epi has a very different sound than SWR. I gigged the Epi 3x10" with my MB LMII and it rocked my world. So I don't have anything against Epi. We're just not talking the same thing. If the SWR sound is what turns the OP on(as it does me), then my recommendation is to stick with their Professional Series.

[fhm555]

I've got an older SWR 10" combo cube which was the precursor to the current LA series. I also have a workingpro 12 and I like both amps just fine, and have in fact played small rooms with them no problem.

I also own an SWR Basic 350 which I ran through a Hartke 410XL for many years playing in bars and I got constant compliments on my sound.

Never played a 5 through any of them so I can't say how it would sound, but I could get just about any sound I wanted/needed for guitar driven rock, blues, country, southern rock, etc, etc.

I could get boom or twang or anything in between, and with few exceptions I never lacked for volume.

[Tuned]

I love my SWR Goliath III 4x10, put a lot of amps through it (Ampeg V4B, Bryson 3B, Genz-Benz Shuttle 6.0, settled on Peavey IPR 1600). It's not huge on bottom end, but not scant either. I recommend it for stage monitoring more than driving the room, but it's still a pretty potent cab at 750W and 105db/1W sensitivity, well ahead of Hartke, Ashdown, etc.

As a fretless player it really delivers the mids I need to stay in tune, and for fretted I run an Ampeg SVPCL preamp and get more beefy. I love the Ampeg/SWR combination, sweet harmonics and growl without the vague flab of Ampeg cabs.

Of their competitors I would pick Aguilar or Epifani over the others.

[blindrabbit]

I gigged extensively with an SWR 4x10 Goliath II cab (running off an SM-400 head) and my Stingray5. Can't say I ever had an issue with it, always sounded great to me.

[Broadbent]

I bought an SWR 350x and 4x12 cab in 2003, I gigged the rig heavily(6-8 times a month) for 5 years and never had a problem with it. I sold the head in 2008 but I still have and use the cab.... I'll never sell that cab, it sounds tits awesome, is built like a tank, and is a 4x12, not that many bass players play 4x12s.

If you like the sound of an SWR I say go for it, because they've proven themselves to be reliable.