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Double Bass Alternatives to Walter Woods head

#2
Have you considered Acoustic Image? Gollihur retails them. I'm sure they'd mail it to Italy for you assuming you pay the extra shipping. Their customer service is A+ and many folks think they sound like your bass, except louder. Woods is great too along with a few others, but AI ought to make your short list, IMO.
 
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#4
That's a tough one- most mass produced amplifiers don't come with the level of handmade craftsmanship associated with walter woods amps (I have never owned one, but that's what you see on pictures and hear in people talking about them). If you want hand-built, try Jesper Lundgaard in Copenhagen (no association- I wish I had the $$ for one of his heads). Great heads. Pricey. But- hand-built, powerful, top-notch build quality.www.lundgaardamps.com.

Best
Sidecar
 
#7
Acoustic Image and the Tecamp Puma are both great but much less expensive amps. WW are pretty much electronic works of art. That being said, I'm not sure they are the best amps out there for getting a really high fidelity sound on the DB. The options needed to really tweak amplification for specific basses and different rooms (filtering, HPF, flexible EQ, etc.) are very limited with the WW.

I haven't tried it myself but I have even heard good things about the Markbass Big Bang which has a 2 Mohm input, four band EQ, and plenty of power. Should be readily available in your neck of the woods.
 
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#8
I think that the Tecamp Puma (500 or 900) are a great choice.

Don't laugh, but a great local bassist Clark Sommers was over yesterday to check out cabs. He brought his GK MB800. Plugged it in and I hated the sound. Messed around with the EQ and was able to get a REALLY good DB sound. Really good.
 
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#9
The problem with the little maufacturers is, that you need to send the amp/combo to them.

The Lundgaard amps seem to have a certain sound. You need to like it or better stay away from them. All the bass players on BASS2012 in Copenhagen played over the Lundgaard combo amps and personally I didn't like the sound.

There is another manufacturer in denmark making amps for electric and double bass: http://www.cadaudio.dk/bassamps.htm
I once played two of their combo amps with my Clevinger EUB (when I was there for holidays just a few kilometers away) and they are nice and a lot cheaper than the Lundgaard ones. But they don't have them in stock and only build on request. If I haven't bought my Genz Benz Shuttle 3.0-10T, I might have bought one of these ones. One of the guys building it is a double bass player and knows what he wants from his amp. Since this is a two guy company mainly producing PA gear, expect some time until you can get it. I think you can give it back if you don't like it, but need to pay for the shipping.
BTW, I played the DB-510 (old version) and the DB500-210(T?). I liked the DB500-210(T) best for the EUB, but it's a bit larger and heavier than the DB510.
Was looking for something lighter and found a cheaper new GB Shuttle combo a few months later. Not the ultimate linear combo, but punches through very well and still sound good with my DB. They also make bass heads without a cab.

There is also the german Zadow combo amp, similar to the AI combos, but enhanced in several ways. A one person company with really good service. A bit closer to Italy than Denmark and you can test this amp too. http://www.zadow-electronics.de/musik_e.htm

But for the amplifier only (no cab) the AI is probably a better choice (a bit more expensive but with more options), since this company seems to be a bit larger, so you can expect a longer existance of the company.
 
#10
tito mangialajo said:
hello everyone,
what do you suggest as an head for double bass to buy instead a Walter Woods head that is difficult to have, at least here in Italy?
A piece of gear that is high quality but easier to buy (in shop or on-line).
Click to expand...


Tito,

I own two Walter Woods heads, an MI-400-8 and a Walter Woods Ultra. Although I love both of these heads, I wouldn't try to convince anyone that they should run out an buy one, especially if their located outside the U.S.
Depending on what kind of sound you want I think the current favorites are either a Tecamp Puma or an Acoustic Image. My current rig is a Headway EDB-2 into a powered speaker, so these days my Woods Amps aren't
seing to much action, unless I play a gig that needs a more powerful box. Eventually, my plan is to go with the Demeter Minnie 800D and use the EDB-2 as it's pre amp. That way it's a component system so if one
piece needs to be serviced I can easily swap out amps and pre amps. Just my thoughts.

Ric
 
#16
I'm with Jazz Ad: Hevos is especially aimed at double bass. I don't own one, but have used them several times. Very versatile and usable stuff and not ridiculously expensive. Quality and tone are on par with Glockenklang, but I'd say they are more focused on DB.
 
#18
I have an Epifani 901c - I don't find that it has scooped mids, but it may be a different design than the 501. When I use it with my Greenboy cabinet (and electric bass) it does a pretty fair job of passing through the sound of the bass. I can put it on my test bench and check the frequency response - could be interesting.
 
#19
Vunz said:
If you're based in Europe, you should really check out Glockenklang, as I recommended a few posts ago...
Click to expand...

I don't like the Glocks on DB. I prefer the Puma to the AI's. Although--- I did just sell my Puma and got a Demeter VTB 800. Not very fond of the EQ--but with my little parametric---best sound I've gotten on DB.
 
#20
Mike Arnopol said:
I don't like the Glocks on DB. I prefer the Puma to the AI's. Although--- I did just sell my Puma and got a Demeter VTB 800. Not very fond of the EQ--but with my little parametric---best sound I've gotten on DB.
Click to expand...
I tried almost all Glockenklang models, and currently use the Bass Art, and they all worked perfectly with double bass. Especially when using Glockenklang cabs. I particularly like the semiparametric eq on the Bass Art. However, since you now prefer a Demeter, I suppose we have a rather different view as to what an amplified db should sound like. Which, of course, is perfectly fine.

Cheers,
Vincent
 

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