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ampeg vs markbass

B

bryceg2189

Jul 24, 2009
105
11
#1
so i have a markbass r500 going thru a begantino 610 and i play in a sorta proggy-art rock band and my drummer does NOT shut up about how i need to get an svt ampeg head because they are THE best. i personally think ampeg is okay, but BEST is completely subjective. i think some of the ones ive heard are really muddy and lack some definition, like someone just boosted the bass eq, which is probably it. and now my bands singer/guitar guy is recording the album and is using ampeg plug-ins instead of using my sound. im okay with that if we wants to just make it sound good, but cmon...i want my tone to sound like me.

anywaaay so is there anyway i can convince these guys to get off my back about damn ampegs? its annoying me because i paid over 2000 for my gear and i think my tones preeeeetty okay...if anything ill upgrade to the markbass 300 all tube head, and i just needed to vent.
 
#3
I have both a markbass LMIII, a Aguiliar DB359 (premium 200 W all tube), and a 1971 Ampeg SVT Blueline fully restored to orginal specs. I have a ber NV610 cab as well.

I have had the privlage of having a bunch of equipment and play in a jazz quartet where I use the Aggi with the Markbass as a backup head I use either 1 or 2 Aguliar GS112 cabs depending on the gig.

For my big gigs in the classic rock 60,70, 80s cover band I use the vintage SVT head with the ber NV610. I agree with your drummer, there is no better tone I have been able to find when compared to my fully tuned vintage SVT through a berg610. Even when I pole people who have no preconceived opinion (i.e. my wife, daugther, grandma, audience members, etc). the SVT always whens the taste test.

The journey is expensive both in $$$ and on your back however!!! 80 lbs or so for that SVT vs 6.5 lbs for the little mark III (which by the way does sound great thats why I have it for practice). But for the big gigs ultimate tone, SVT all the way.....
 
#5
Well....one sure way to shut them up is to tell them "you know, you are right! So, why don't you guys go down to the store and buy me that rig?"

Usually shuts them up.....;)

Look, I play Ampeg and MarkBass. Both are great rigs. YOU are the bassist. Tell them that this is the rig you have and there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with it.

Hell, tell the drummer that he should ditch his current kit and grab, I dunno, a new set of Ludwig or whatever....he'd probably sound better if he did...:D
 
#6
Buster Brown said:
Well....one sure way to shut them up is to tell them "you know, you are right! So, why don't you guys go down to the store and buy me that rig?"

Usually shuts them up.....;)

Look, I play Ampeg and MarkBass. Both are great rigs. YOU are the bassist. Tell them that this is the rig you have and there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with it.

Hell, tell the drummer that he should ditch his current kit and grab, I dunno, a new set of Ludwig or whatever....he'd probably sound better if he did...:D
Click to expand...

+1000:bassist:
 
#7
I was always told that I needed an Ampeg rig to sound good but I always hated their tone and weight. I stumbled upon Markbass when they first made it to my local GC and fell in love. Play what makes you happy, not what will make someone else happy (unless they are paying you a crap load of money to play it ;)).
 
#9
awww thanks guys

yeah, i would bet that those vintage ampegs sound immaculate...but ive heard new ones are iffy. and thats what i alwaays tell them... "Yeah! you should get me one"

and i would tell him to get CNCs or something but i know nothing about drums...he unfortunately has owned a rickenbacker and a warwick. but no ampeg.
 
#11
Total +1 on the VT Bass. I run through a LM-II and moved down from a SVT 4-Pro (It's not all-tube, but still certainly Ampeg-y). The VT Bass got me all the tones that I used to use on the 4-Pro at a very small fraction of the weight. Check out the effects forum for info on the pedal, and then mosey on over to the classifieds. There is sure to be at least one for sale there at least once a month. ;)
 
#15
hahaha i love the guys in the band, and the music is extremely promising...in shreveport lousiana there arent much better things either. i might check out that vt bass pedal though. ive heard sans amp colors tone a bit too much though
 
#17
Buster Brown said:
Look, I play Ampeg and MarkBass. Both are great rigs. YOU are the bassist. Tell them that this is the rig you have and there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with it.
Click to expand...

+1 to this. I have a 70s SVT, it really is the boobies. But if it's not your tone, it's not your tone. Play what you like. I don't play markbass because I don't like it ;)

bryceg2189 said:
yeah, i would bet that those vintage ampegs sound immaculate...but ive heard new ones are iffy. and thats what i alwaays tell them... "Yeah! you should get me one"
Click to expand...

There's nothing wrong with the new ones. There were some initial issues during the manufacturing transition, but now that the heads of LOUD have got their act together they're actually putting out some good stuff.

bryceg2189 said:
and i would tell him to get CNCs or something but i know nothing about drums...he unfortunately has owned a rickenbacker and a warwick. but no ampeg.
Click to expand...

Tell him he needs a DW kit. If he has one, say he needs Ayottes.
 
#18
bryceg2189 said:
i might check out that vt bass pedal though. ive heard sans amp colors tone a bit too much though
Click to expand...

That's kinda the point, you want it to sound like an SVT, don't you? :)


Anyhow, some people are just idiots for brand name, like when guitarists say "Oh man, there's nothing better than a Marshall". Even worse, these kind of people just base their own tastes on what other people might say, usually people who are more skilled than them because obviously you should never have your opinion and you have to adapt to the older guy's one, right? Pffft...


It's bullcrap to me, if he doesn't like the Markbass, and acts so fanatical about it, it's probably because he hasn't heard anything else. Oh and, between you and me, I don't think Markbass products sound much more different than an Ampeg, especially if you're playing with a bassy tone, which Markbass and Ampeg are known for...




P.S. Most of the time you will sound like yourself no matter what you play. Even more, if you always play with a standard bassy tone I would say the difference is almost invisible. Besides, you'll probably end up EQing it to sound like you do on the Markbass because it's your sound.
 
#19
one of my favorite topics of all time...used to have an lmii and was always struck by how ampeggy it sounded. however, with all controls at noon on the lmii, you get a near flat response, whereas with the svt you get a giant low mid hump and a gradual tapering off of mids and highs like a diagonal line pointing down. i cured this problem simply by turning knobs, which some bassists don't seem to like to do. i was easily able to make both amps sound like each other.

i once ab'd the lmii and the svt on a gig. and while i was able to set them very close tonally, two things put the svt over...

1. the svt treble response was smoother and sharper than the lmii.

2. the lmii has a limiter to where it feels like you can't get any more out of it when you dig in, even at low volumes. the svt had no such limiting going on.

again, this is not an indictment of the markbass. i really loved that head and only sold it because it was overkill for a backup amp and i needed to free up some money for a vt deluxe. but not only did i notice the difference between the svt and the lmii, everyone else in the band and the soundman noticed the difference as well. i think this as it should be, since the lmii is a small and inexpensive amp with a switchmode power supply, and the svt is a giant tube monster. both are absolutely wonderful amps, though, and nobody should be complaining about your r500.

however, with that cab of yours, i would find the temptation to get an svt pretty great. but unlike the last time you tried one, if you ever try one again, move the knobs. it will get pretty much any tone you want.
 

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