hey i was wondering what the best amp for death metal would be i was looking at the ampeg B5R but tell me what you guys think
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Amp for death metal
- Thread starter BaSs_FrEak
- Start date
Ah Death Metal... I just filled in on bass for a death metal band last week. 
Fun task.
When your thinking of what "Amp" will sound best... you should think more of what "rig" would be best. Your cabs are just as important--if not MORE important--than your head. When you think of this... its best to factor in how much weight your going to be hauling, how much power you want/need, how you want your tone, and most importantly.... $$$$$MONEY$$$$$!!!
The B5R is a decent head I guess... but its overpriced, IMO. Plus, you'd wanna run it at 2ohms to get the full 500 Watts... or else you might be a little short in the power area.
Having just played death Metal against a Fullstack guitar amp... I'd suggest you load up on some power. I'd aim for no less than 600Watts, and get more than your average Joe 4x10 cab. I'd go for a 2x12, or maybe stack up a 2x10 and 1x15.
The cheapest and simplest way to get this is get a preamp-power amp set up... and then get yourself some monstrous Avatar cabs. You can load them suckers with power and have a 600-1400Watt Rig for $900-$1500... depending on your preference or selection.
Your preamp selection is nice and diverese when you look at BBE, Sansamp, and Ampeg. Its an easier method of changing your tone than ditching an entire head.
Fun task.When your thinking of what "Amp" will sound best... you should think more of what "rig" would be best. Your cabs are just as important--if not MORE important--than your head. When you think of this... its best to factor in how much weight your going to be hauling, how much power you want/need, how you want your tone, and most importantly.... $$$$$MONEY$$$$$!!!
The B5R is a decent head I guess... but its overpriced, IMO. Plus, you'd wanna run it at 2ohms to get the full 500 Watts... or else you might be a little short in the power area.
Having just played death Metal against a Fullstack guitar amp... I'd suggest you load up on some power. I'd aim for no less than 600Watts, and get more than your average Joe 4x10 cab. I'd go for a 2x12, or maybe stack up a 2x10 and 1x15.
The cheapest and simplest way to get this is get a preamp-power amp set up... and then get yourself some monstrous Avatar cabs. You can load them suckers with power and have a 600-1400Watt Rig for $900-$1500... depending on your preference or selection.
Your preamp selection is nice and diverese when you look at BBE, Sansamp, and Ampeg. Its an easier method of changing your tone than ditching an entire head.
For deathmetal you need 3 things:
-Power
-Strong tone and presence (your playing with usually 2 very thick guitars and a busy drummer)
-Some more power
-A copy of Morbid Angel's "Covenant" (this isn't really amp related, but I meet a distrubing number of young deathmetalers who've never even heard this masterpeice. If you have it you are already ahead of the game!)
I've played in a lot of technical death acts and used several different rigs. If I were going back to that genre now I'd use and Ampeg SVT4 pushing a pair of Avatar 212s. The SVT has scads of power and enough control via the EQ and compressor to get your sound right where you want it to be: lurking at the edges of the mix like some tentacled monstrosity waiting to devour the unworthy!
If the Ampeg is out of your price range (or even if it isn't) the Kustom Groovebass is probably worth a look. I've never heard one of these but they get nothing but praise on this board. If you could A/B them on the same set of cabs against the Ampeg that would be great.
What kind of bands/subgenre do you listen to? Back when I was heavily into this stuff the genre in the US basically consisted of 4 bands: Napalm Death, Carcass, Cannibal Corpse, and Morbid Angel. Made equipment choices easy at least.
-Power
-Strong tone and presence (your playing with usually 2 very thick guitars and a busy drummer)
-Some more power
-A copy of Morbid Angel's "Covenant" (this isn't really amp related, but I meet a distrubing number of young deathmetalers who've never even heard this masterpeice. If you have it you are already ahead of the game!)
I've played in a lot of technical death acts and used several different rigs. If I were going back to that genre now I'd use and Ampeg SVT4 pushing a pair of Avatar 212s. The SVT has scads of power and enough control via the EQ and compressor to get your sound right where you want it to be: lurking at the edges of the mix like some tentacled monstrosity waiting to devour the unworthy!
If the Ampeg is out of your price range (or even if it isn't) the Kustom Groovebass is probably worth a look. I've never heard one of these but they get nothing but praise on this board. If you could A/B them on the same set of cabs against the Ampeg that would be great.
What kind of bands/subgenre do you listen to? Back when I was heavily into this stuff the genre in the US basically consisted of 4 bands: Napalm Death, Carcass, Cannibal Corpse, and Morbid Angel. Made equipment choices easy at least.
icks said:
I'll second thie QSC idea (you CANNOT have too much power), but I'd switch out the cabs for a pair of Avatar 212s. Lots of bottom end, and big power handling on a budget. The cash you save could go towards a better preamp for maximum growl and grit. I'm not a death metal guy, but when I hear a good death metal bass tone, it makes me smile like the village idiot.
- Apr 29, 2004
- 1,247
- 37
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Spector Basses & Cort Basses
I'd go for a Tech 21 Landmark 600 Head into a 2x15 Mesa/Boogie cab. 
Mmmm..... aggression, punch and low end all in one
Mmmm..... aggression, punch and low end all in one
One of my friends is in a death metal band and he uses an Ampeg SVT4-Pro head, an Ampeg 810E Cab, and a Big Muff Distortion Pedal (Russian) to get that thick distorted bass sound. Sounds pretty damn good if u ask me.... and, it's LOUD
get a boss odb-3 pedal for a boost. i use one and it helps me make my signal a lot more powerful
- Feb 4, 2002
- 2,823
- 295
- 55
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: GK, EMG and D'Addario
Hey,
I play in a technical death metal band ala Decrepit Birth, Spawn of Possession, Disgorge, etc.... For a head I use the Ampeg SVT-3pro, and for cabs I use Mesa Powerhouse 4X10 on top of a Mesa Powerhouse 1X15. My bass is an American Fender Deluxe 5 String. This set up works great for me, but when we get louder, and we do get louder, the Ampeg is a pile of crap. It clips constantly, and am never really satisfied with the sound from it.
Our guitarist plays two rackmount Dual Rec's through two mesa oversized rectifier cabs, both loaded with 200 watt EV's, and the **** is loud, but I can always be heard/felt.
I would recommend the powerhouse cabs... but not the ampeg. I'll be hopefully switching to a 400+ within the next month.
Just my two cents.
I play in a technical death metal band ala Decrepit Birth, Spawn of Possession, Disgorge, etc.... For a head I use the Ampeg SVT-3pro, and for cabs I use Mesa Powerhouse 4X10 on top of a Mesa Powerhouse 1X15. My bass is an American Fender Deluxe 5 String. This set up works great for me, but when we get louder, and we do get louder, the Ampeg is a pile of crap. It clips constantly, and am never really satisfied with the sound from it.
Our guitarist plays two rackmount Dual Rec's through two mesa oversized rectifier cabs, both loaded with 200 watt EV's, and the **** is loud, but I can always be heard/felt.
I would recommend the powerhouse cabs... but not the ampeg. I'll be hopefully switching to a 400+ within the next month.
Just my two cents.
