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Acoustic B100, B200

H

HT Paul

Mar 3, 2008
66
2
#1
Stopped in at GC yesterday, they happened to have the new Acoustic B100 combo and B200 head w/matching 1x15 cab. I have the B20, and really do like it quite a bit so I was intrigued.

The B100 appears to be a 1x15 combo, but honestly I didn't get a good look thruough the grill cloth to confirm the speaker set up. Price is $250. Controls are Volume, Gain, Notch, Bass, Low Mid, High Mid and Treble, if I remember correctly. Took some time to plug it in, nice, full, sound, not overly boomy , not overly muddy. Mostly kept it clean, but did play with gain up, master down, got into a nice fuzzy kind of dirt. I did not play at all with notch control, I have no real idea what it was doing. Did not open it up all the way, but I would say it should be able to hang with most reasonable drummers volume wise, I did not notice a line out which would be nice for larger gigs.

The B200 head is also $250, the matching cab, a 1x15 (slightly larger than the B100 combo) is $200. The controls are a little differnet from the b100, I believe is 5 EQ knobs, marked with the ranges in hz, rather than the generalized "Bass, Mid, Treble". Also has the notch control.
 
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#2
I used to work at GC and it was just as the new Acoustic B200H head was built by them. The B200H is 200 watts at 4ohms, dual 1/4" speaker outs, XLR out w/ gain control, effects loop, 6 band EQ, Notch Filter (think Aural Enhancer on SWR or VPF on Markbass). I thought the head was very nice sounding for a 200 watt $250 head. I ran it through an Ampeg 6x10 and it had no problem running that cabinet and running it well!

Everyone who needs an inexpensive head should try out the B200H (and if SS is you thing...it is quick!).
 
#3
This weekend nearly all GC stores should have the full lineup of the new Acoustic gear in stock.

The B20 and AB50 combos have been out for a while, but the B100 and B200 combos as well as the B200H and B410 and B115 cabinets should be in all stores.

There are four bands of EQ on the B100 combo and actually six on the B200. The B100 combo is a single 15" and the B200 is a single 15" and HF horn with on/off switch.

Both cabinets also include a HF horn and the on / off switch.
 
#5
Stacknobuser, way to pimp! ;)

I'm kind of looking forward to this Acoustic relaunch, even though I hated them back in the 70's and 80's. But the Acoustic sound has taken its place as a classic sound in bass history, and it should be available to bassists. I hope GC relaunches Acoustic the right way, though. Updated products are cool but everyone's waiting for the 370/301.
 
#8
MotorTed said:
These new acoustic amps and cabs certainly "look" great. Does anyone have access to the B410/B115 specs? Do they have a HF horn?
Click to expand...

Yes. Both cabinets feature a HF horn with an on/off switch on the back. Same for the B200 combo.

In addition, the B100 and B200 combo deliver the full rated power to the internal speaker and use a series extension speaker jack, so they will sound louder as a combo than other amps of the same power with the standard parallel jack.

Here is the link to the B410. The B200 head, combo and both cabs are covered in the downloadable manual. It is about a 10MB PDF so takes a while to download. The info is all there.:p
 
#9
I'm gonna have a GAS attack LOL!!!!

I tried the B20 when I first saw it, and was totally floored with what it could do for 20 watts! Yesterday I went to GC and tried the B200 head with the B410 cab, and the B115 cab as a stack. I grabbed the Squier VMJ Fretless off the wall to test it. I was all stoked, and when I turned it on, it just HOWLED at me! Whenever I tried to bring up the volume, the "clip" light came on and it squealed in protest (EEEEEEEEEEEE) at me. Turned off the horn on the 410 cab, and it seemed to help, until i brought up the tone control on the bass.....EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! Needless to say, I was VERY disappointed!

However, when I plugged into the B200, combo, my world seemed to change. I sat and tweaked with that thing for damn near an hour, and loved what it was doing. I could get a sound very close to my 371/301, or Jaco's 360 tone. It could get bright and punchy, fat and bouncy, and with judicious use of the eq controls and the notch control (in addition to the volume and tone controls on the bass,) I could get a nice upright tone out of it.

I got compliments by a few fellow players, and I tell them the same thing every time: Don't underestimate these amps, man. Honestly, I was really floored when I came in and saw those amps sitting there. I was sorely disappointed when the B200 head failed to deliver. I'll chalk it up to Chinese manufacturing, but I can't just turn my back on it.

My 371/301 serves me well. For classic rock, I really enjoy using it. I use a Korg AX3B with a fuzz preset (ala Mel Schacher.) For all my other gigs (blues, jazz, etc) I use a Nemesis NC320 2x12" combo, and I'm getting an RS210 combo for portability.

Anyway, that's my two cents regarding the new acoustic combos/head.:bassist:
 
#10
I just got the b200h head and the b115 cabinet and used them out at a club on Derby night. I think this rig sounds pretty tight and powerful, almost like an Ampeg for a fraction of the price. I think it has plenty of warmth for a solid state, with the 15 anyway. I'm digging it so far. Can't say much about the reliability or durability yet. This stuff does seem to be pretty sturdy though. The cab weighs 71 lbs. It seems pretty well tuned, but the horn just has an on/off switch, not a level control. I like the sort of 70s vintage look. I was really just needing a cabinet when I found this, they looked so cool together I had to get the head too. So far I'm glad I sprang for the whole rig. I guess we'll see how it holds up. So far I can say the new Acoustic stuff is definitely worth a look.
 
#17
do the people who tried it think the B200h is loud?

with two of the 410 cabinets maybe?
or one of each ?

is it loud enough to take to large indoor venues?

750 seat auditorium with no pa?

2500 seat auditorium with no pa?
Click to expand...

Probably not. I'd wager that the 4x10 aren't the most sensitive in the world.
 
#20
Hi guys, I used to love the Acoustic stuff and even still bought some used Acoustics as recent as 2004. In one of the posts a guy said he had a link, but it didn't show up. Does anyone know where I could see pictures of these amps? Also, what is the website? Who makes these? Are they Korean? Thanks
 

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