• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Amp heads ranked, $ per Watt

robert_stuart

robert_stuart

Gold Supporting Member
Mar 28, 2017
626
673
Denver
#1
(From a comment I wrote in another thread)

Here's my take on the amp market for Q2 2026:

The threshold for inexpensive vs. expensive is right around $1/Watt RMS.

Let's see where some representative models wind up!

ModelClaimed Watts RMS @ 4ΩPriceClaimed $ per Watt
Bugera Veyron M BV1001M1,000$310$0.31
Peavey Minimax V2600$500$0.83
Quilter Bass Block v803800$700$0.88
Markbass Little Mark 58R500$600$1.20
Ampeg Venture V7700$900$1.28
Ampeg Venture V3300$500$1.70
Aguilar TH500 v2500$1,000$2.00
Gallien-Krueger Legacy 500450$900$2.00
Boss Katana Bass 500250$850$3.40

Conclusions: Lol, Boss Katana. The buyer has to really value those effects. Personally, I do find the cabinet resonance calibration highly intriguing. I got to test it at a store. I'm going back for more samples and validation. But at this price I'm planning on making my own system to do it for any amp. I'm already in the Darkglass Anagram ecosystem.

Meanwhile, Quilter and Ampeg are really trying to shake things up.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Doctor Morbius and Sinewave3
#9
It's a bit out of date now, and would no doubt be more expensive if the model existed today, but I bought a Harley Benton class A/B 600w head for £227, probably a little over $300 in today's money. For not much more they did an 800w Class D head. I only use mine as a power amp for a Sansamp, honestly, but the head itself sounds decent - no overdrive, though.

I was going to check the current prices but it appears they aren't in the bass head game anymore. Shame, if you're in the UK or Europe they represented excellent price per watt value.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sinewave3 and robert_stuart
#12
Reposting what I wrote in your original thread:
robert_stuart said:
My analysis: Lol, Boss Katana. The buyer has to really value those effects.
Click to expand...
On reading up, it's not just drive, compression and "other", it's got a programmable signal processor built-in. So it would be cheaper and more compact than separate amp and multi-effect pedal, and probably easier to carry. The marketing on this aspect is weirdly evasive about it because alongside the 'cabinet resonance' thing it should be the amp's biggest selling point.

The Katana isn't a product I need or want but it's a reminder that when you buy an amp, you're not paying per watt of power and everything else is free. Designing the preamp section (even a "simple" all-analog one) can be expensive and time-consuming, and manufacturing it requires parts and labor too.
 
#13
On the one hand its probably about the only metric that you could actually calculate a "price per" for but on the other hand I agree with the general opinion that its not going to be very useful for most of us. I don't recall the last time I really considered the power rating!

I'm happy to be corrected by those who actually do it, but it seems to me that power amp watts would be a relatively small part of the cost of an amplifier, at least in development time. Getting the preamp voicing required and getting the various safety certs seems to me to be likely to consume a lot more time effort and money.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Al Kraft, JMarkD and TomB
#14
robert_stuart said:
(From a comment I wrote in another thread)

Here's my take on the amp market for Q2 2026:

The threshold for inexpensive vs. expensive is right around $1/Watt RMS.

Let's see where some representative models wind up!

ModelClaimed Watts RMS @ 4ΩPriceClaimed $ per Watt
Bugera Veyron M BV1001M1,000$310$0.31
Peavey Minimax V2600$500$0.83
Quilter Bass Block v803800$700$0.88
Markbass Little Mark 58R500$600$1.20
Ampeg Venture V7700$900$1.28
Ampeg Venture V3300$500$1.70
Aguilar TH500 v2500$1,000$2.00
Gallien-Krueger Legacy 500450$900$2.00
Boss Katana Bass 500250$850$3.40

Conclusions: Lol, Boss Katana. The buyer has to really value those effects. Personally, I do find the cabinet resonance calibration highly intriguing. I got to test it at a store. I'm going back for more samples and validation. But at this price I'm planning on making my own system to do it for any amp. I'm already in the Darkglass Anagram ecosystem.

Meanwhile, Quilter and Ampeg are really trying to shake things up.
Click to expand...


If the list was ACTUAL Watts and $ Per ACTUAL watt, would it be different? (other than the Behringer)?.. 🤔


T$
 
Last edited:
#19
While I appreciate this interesting rack and stack of products, I'm not someone who would select a bass amp using this criteria. For me it's voicing and features (I find useful) that are the greatest influence.

Let me offer a Mesa product family example that illustrates what I mean. The D-800 and D-800+ are both 800 watts, but priced differently due to very different feature sets. Using only Watts per dollar they would rank almost the same, but users of one or the other will have strong reasons for their choice totally unrelated to Watts...and will I admit sometimes it could be price.

Price also reflects things like quality of parts, quality of manufacture, length of warranty, etc., all of which are likely more significant cost drivers than Watts.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: TomB, Wicked G, gln1955 and 6 others

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back