Acoustic B20 for double bass?

avocado · #1 07-01-2008, 07:26 PM

Hi, I'm looking for a small amp for small-room gigs (coffee shops and the like). Does anyone have experience with the Acoustic B20? Here's a link: http://www.acousticamplification.com/products/b20.cfm .

It's labeled as a practice amp, but would it be loud enough to keep up with non-mic'd guitar, banjo, violin, etc.? Is the sound acceptable for with a double bass?

The style is old time/folk, almost always pizzicato, with occasional arco. I carry the bass on a bike trailer, so the amp needs to be small enough to fit on that (the B20 would be just right).

Also, any suggestions for entry-level preamps would be appreciated. The pickup is a K&K bigshot. Thanks!

Bassbasixx · #2 07-01-2008, 07:48 PM

IMO I think most practice amps are worthless, but I was at GC trying different basses and many small practice amps such as Fender, Crate, SWR La10, Peavey, line 6, "Beringer" which by the way was the worst. Most had bad tone and could not get much volume with out distorting but expected they are practice amps, but the Acoustic b20 was a stand out compared to the others decent tone, much louder with out distorting and IMO I think you could pull it off no problem for low volume coffee shop gigs with un amplified guitars but nothing bigger then that or small bedroom jams. It is small lite and and has a small price tag. It is not the best out there by any means but for the price and what you want to do I would think I would give it a thumbs up

Ric Vice · #3 07-01-2008, 08:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by avocado

Hi, I'm looking for a small amp for small-room gigs (coffee shops and the like). Does anyone have experience with the Acoustic B20? Here's a link: http://www.acousticamplification.com/products/b20.cfm .

It's labeled as a practice amp, but would it be loud enough to keep up with non-mic'd guitar, banjo, violin, etc.? Is the sound acceptable for with a double bass?

The style is old time/folk, almost always pizzicato, with occasional arco. I carry the bass on a bike trailer, so the amp needs to be small enough to fit on that (the B20 would be just right).

Also, any suggestions for entry-level preamps would be appreciated. The pickup is a K&K bigshot. Thanks!

I'm sure that these amps will show up at a Guitar Center near you.
This is the kind of retro name amp they usually pickup. Nearly every amplifier name from the 60's has been bought by someone else, so it's hard to say what these amps will sound like. Eden has a new line of smaller amps in the Nemesis line and based on their reputation I'd certainly take a look at those first. Here are pic's of the N8 and N10.

Ric

Kirkowitz · #4 07-01-2008, 08:25 PM

Check out the Fender Bassman 100. It's a 1x10 combo. Pretty small. Not too expensive. Sounds alright for upright. I also liked the eden nemesis that I played, I don't remember the model number, it was a 1x12 combo. SWR workingmans 12 sounds alright too. If you go shopping for an amp, try to take your upright and plug it in, what works for electric sometimes will not work for upright amplification. I haven't heard the acoustic amp you mentioned, but I have an old Acoustic 370 that I love for electric, it makes a horrible upright amp. You will need a preamp. I'm sure you'll get lots of suggestions. There's a guy on Talkbass that makes a preamp that everybody likes, never heard it myself....he goes by Fdeck.

Bassbasixx · #5 07-01-2008, 09:41 PM

I Owned a SWR workingmans 12 it was a great small amp more power and better tone, more features, it is bigger and a lot heavier but would still fit in your bike trailer, but more money as well if you buy new. I would still have mine if it did not get stolen, I even did a recording with it. As mentioned above the only way to know for sure is to try before you buy and factor in what ever your budget is.

avocado · #6 07-01-2008, 10:06 PM

Thanks everyone! I'll check out those amps.

The other thing about playing with folk and old time musicians is that they sometimes get intimidated by amplifiers.

I also have an Ampeg 1x15 combo (I'm coming to upright from electric bass). This is a small amp when compared to the Ampeg SVT head/2x15 cab I used to haul around, but it never fails to shock the other musicians that I brought a "big" amp. Something smaller like the B20 would be just right.

bolo · #7 07-02-2008, 09:01 AM

For preamps, the HPF-Pre from fdeck has several key ingredients for amplifying DB (10 Mohm input impedance, phase reversal, high pass filter). No EQ, but you can do that on your amp. Very reasonably priced.

Your profile is blank. But if you play electric, you might also want to audition the Line 6 Studio 110. They carry them at Guitar Center. Reviews I've read for upright are mixed, so it might work for you, might not. At 75 watts I'd bet it would be more flexible (i.e. you could use it on louder gigs) than the 20 watt B20. I'll bet w/ all its built-in presets it might sound pretty cool w/ slab. I was surprised to learn that Will Lee and Randy Jackson both have one.

When did Acoustic amps come back? Wild.

Gearhead43 · #8 07-02-2008, 12:41 PM

If you are looking at the little B20, why not just go for the 50 watt AB50? It's a 50 watt slant cab with a 10 " and tweeter. The coolest part is that it has two channels and the inputs are XLR/1/4" combination inputs.

The info on it says that it was "designed for acoustic/electric bass (guitar they mean)". I have one and it sounds pretty good for low volume practicing with my upright, and I bet it would work well for coffee shop gigs. Cheap, too.

For upright, it sounds much better using a pre with a high-pass filter. Just don't expect tons of volume, of course. It's not a "boutique hi-fi" amp, but it's louder than you think, and a pretty versatile practice / very small gig amp.

grayhawk1853 · #9 07-02-2008, 01:13 PM

+1 on the AB50

hdiddy · #10 07-02-2008, 02:18 PM

I had a GK Backline 110 from GC and it sucked rocks.

Martin Beer · #11 07-03-2008, 12:57 PM

This is kind of off-topic, but I'm curious about the bike trailer idea. What kind of trailer do you use, and how is the bass loaded onto it? Any problems with stability etc?

bolo · #12 07-03-2008, 01:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Martin Beer

Any problems with stability etc?

Only after I drink more than 3 pints.

avocado · #13 07-06-2008, 10:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Martin Beer

This is kind of off-topic, but I'm curious about the bike trailer idea. What kind of trailer do you use, and how is the bass loaded onto it? Any problems with stability etc?

Sorry for the slow response.

I use an old Burley kids' trailer. There are many two-wheeled trailers around, but the Burleys seem to be the best built. There are usually several used on Craigslist. Also, this trailer uses 20" wheels; the larger the wheels, the better the padding. Stability is great.

To modify it, I lined the frame with two layers of foam pipe insulation. Then I attached straps to the frame to hold it in, with the bass facing right. The back of the bass rests against the trailer's left side frame, which leaves plenty of daylight between the bridge and the right side frame. The C-bout rests very nicely against the trailer's top bar.

I attached a makeshift orange flag to the top, and use plenty of lights. The farthest I've ridden is about 9 miles, with a few small hills. Most trips are flat and in the 2 - 3 miles range. So far, the system works really well, and draws plenty of bemused looks.

I've also heard that you can carry a bass in the back basket of an adult trike or on a modified xtracycle, but haven't tried either of those.

Here's a photo, pre-flag (Just wrapped the fabric around that day). This is an old touring bike, but any normal bike would work.

Lowtonejoe · #14 07-06-2008, 10:55 AM

^^^
| | |

That is cool!

Joe.

Martin Beer · #15 07-06-2008, 11:45 AM

Wow, that does look surprisingly workable. I'm not absolutely sure I'd do it with a carved bass in a city that does hills, cobbled roads, rain and wind as well as my home town does though...

avocado · #16 07-06-2008, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Martin Beer

Wow, that does look surprisingly workable. I'm not absolutely sure I'd do it with a carved bass in a city that does hills, cobbled roads, rain and wind as well as my home town does though...

Oh definitely not. This is a set-up for a laminated bass on reasonable roads in nice weather (I'm in the San Francisco Bay Area, where it rarely rains from March to December).

I don't know what I'll do if I ever get a nice bass or move somewhere with actual weather--might have to take the bus.