Which amp for beginner for pubs / low key gigs

Simon Marsh · #1 01-04-2009, 06:27 AM

Could anybody give me some direction on which amp (combo?) to buy for pub type gigs? I'm in Bristol, England. I am a beginner looking to play a mix of jazz (ultimately) and rock'n'roll. I appreciate this probably sounds very vague. Also, I've been reading through pick ups and it appears the Full Circle pick up is most people's favourite - so I'm probably going to go for one of those. Will I need an equaliser of some description too? The pick up will be fitted to a ply/tonewood mix bass (tonewood top).

Any help would be really appreciated.

Thanks.

bassman21353 · #2 01-04-2009, 07:00 AM

I guess I would have to say what's affordable, transportable and what's unique for UB. I love my Acoustic Image gear and it's very portable considering the fact that we're playing an upright. The Phil Jones suitcase is appealing and I'd like to try one but I'm happy with my gear. If your playing low volume just about any combo can work but EQ is essential. I have a Fishman Bass EQ Platinum with a compressor, phase and depth switches which really helps round out my tone with my amp almost completely flat. Hope this helps and good luck.

Ric Vice · #3 01-04-2009, 09:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Simon Marsh

Could anybody give me some direction on which amp (combo?) to buy for pub type gigs? I'm in Bristol, England. I am a beginner looking to play a mix of jazz (ultimately) and rock'n'roll. I appreciate this probably sounds very vague. Also, I've been reading through pick ups and it appears the Full Circle pick up is most people's favourite - so I'm probably going to go for one of those. Will I need an equaliser of some description too? The pick up will be fitted to a ply/tonewood mix bass (tonewood top).

Any help would be really appreciated.

Thanks.

Simon,
It looks like both Euphonic Audio and Gallien Krueger are available in England. The New GK MB2 is a very nice amp. EA builds the Micro 300 and is developing the Doubler. Markbass has the new F500 that's also sold overseas. All three of these heads are small, light, and powerful. I have no idea of the cost.

Ric

Roger Davis · #4 01-04-2009, 09:23 AM

As far as I'm concerned it's a no brainer. Get a Gallien Krueger MB150. You should be able to find one second hand in UK quite easily. I used mine for twenty years before I started to get picky and amassed the arsenal of equipment I've got now. You will find that the GK is a very versatile amp, is small and very portable. Especially suitable for the small to mid-sized room. I got mine out of retirement on NYE mainly because I didn't want to hoof too much gear up the stairs to the room where we were booked. It sounded great. You may also want to consider a Markbass amp and I believe there is a good shop in Bristol that sells them. No matter what the pickup I would always recommend a preamp for tone shaping, impedence buffering and feedback control. The Fishman Platinum Pro is the gold standard in UK but I have a simple Fishman Pro eq that has always done me well.

Good luck, and enjoy the bass.

fingers · #5 01-04-2009, 10:48 AM

+1 on the GK MB150. I prefer the 'S' model which is the cheaper of the two. You should be able to find one used for cheap. I have a AI Clarus and an EA Wizzy 12 M-Line which is supposed to be the holy grail of DB amplification and I still prefer my little GK for most stuff.

It does have its limitations in terms of volume (which is where the AI/EA rig comes in handy). By itself it is cool for small to medium rooms at 'acoustic' volumes. It starts to get a little dicey if you have a real basher on drums. That can be remedied with an extension speaker. The weakness is it is completely useless outdoors by itself and just ok with an extension.

Still the amp that gets the most use in my gig-world. And the portability is unmatched.

mje · #6 01-04-2009, 05:33 PM

My local GK dealer tells me a few of his customers have switched to the GK Backline 112. Half the price, too.

fingers · #7 01-04-2009, 05:39 PM

Maybe for slab but I tried one for DB when I was doing a clinic at a school and it is definitely not the same animal.

bolo · #8 01-05-2009, 01:24 PM

The Yorkville (a.k.a. Traynor) combos have received some good reviews in this forum too. Just another alternative.

Sure, the AI and EA and Phil Jones stuff is great, but for a beginner, I'm guessing maybe "affordable" is an important requirement. If I may, I would recommend focusing on just getting a good sound acoustically that projects without an amp before you start worrying about higher end amps and such. Settle in on which strings sound best to you for example. They are pricey enough!

The amps mentioned so far all have some form of EQ built in. But the Fishman preamp that Roger and bassman21353 mentioned provides more goodies like they said, esp. a high impedance input, and a high pass (low cut) filter. Plus it will give you a consistent front-end regardless of what amp you use.

etoncrow · #9 01-05-2009, 01:27 PM

I love my Azola EUB through a Euphonic-Audio setup (see gear on profile). But check out Bob Gollihur's website. He has lots of good information.

http://www.gollihurmusic.com/

albertofrog · #10 01-05-2009, 02:00 PM

SWR Workingman's 12 Combo should fit the bill for you.

I've got one that Ive played Jazz, big band, pop/rock covers etc through and its light enough to carry in one hand into the gig.

I think Bass Centre in Denmark St (London) do them.

Mine came from sound control in manchester (now defunkt) but they pop up on ebay quite often...

Can feed into an extension cab as well when the gigs get bigger...

fingers · #11 01-05-2009, 02:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by albertofrog

SWR Workingman's 12 Combo should fit the bill for you.

+1. I used one for years and really liked it. A little weighty but I'm sure you could find one for a song since SWR (or should I say Fender) discontinued that model a few years back.

Simon Marsh · #12 01-05-2009, 02:56 PM

Thanks everyone for all the advice - very much appreciated, and thanks for the encouragement.

macmrkt · #13 01-06-2009, 07:42 AM

This is a pet subject for me. Don't know what's easily available, but the most neutral sounding rigs and combos, which are the best for DB, are the EA Micro300/Wizzy Mline12, PJB Flightcase or the PJB 4B with their D200 head or a Markbass F1. Of note is the Acoustic Image Coda III combo, but I have yet to spend time with this series. I am working with the new SWR Spellbinder combo and it seems very neutral and flexible. I also liked the Markacoustic combos. The Bass Gallery in London has some of these, and Gollihur.com exports.

CamMcIntyre · #14 01-07-2009, 08:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fingers

+1. I used one for years and really liked it. A little weighty but I'm sure you could find one for a song since SWR (or should I say Fender) discontinued that model a few years back.

Another +1.

I've been using my SWR WM12 for the past going on 4 years here in Chicago. I've gone from an amped DB gig one night to playing a rock show the next. They provide a lot of bang for the buck. I paid $350 for mine used from BassNW in the summer of 2005. I've attached it to a luggage cart and i can take it on our subway no problem.

Whenever I start looking into an amp again, I ask myself-do I use one enough to make it worth it over the SWR? Thus far-the answer has been no. The WM12 has a nice sound, great price point, and isn't unbearable to lug around. Plus if your doing a show that has PA support, you've got a DI on the front. I still want a new amp, just it's not worth it to me yet. If i was doing gigs regularly where I needed to bring my own-that might be a different story.

all the best.