Amps on a budget

[Tommy Sparks]

I'm looking for a combo and won't be able to transport a head/speaker in most cases. I don't need an enormous amount of power, either... just a 1x10 speaker combo or something. At GC I turned up some 50W amps like halfway and almost blew my eardrums out, and the amp seemed to handle it fine. The 8" speaker amps would rattle though, which is why I'm looking for a 10".

There are some older Acoustic 100W 1x15s I've seen being sold used for around $140, but that seems like too good a deal to be a good amp.

Acoustic isn’t the the Acoustic amps of the 70s. Just a name.
I’ve never played a new version of em.
My thinking is Fender rumble is probably your best bet at this point. An older Peavey can be had for small $s and in your price point. However you don’t know what you’re getting.
I have one from the early 80s and it’s fine, lots of Lbs and a not to bad Of a sound.

 

[bassliner50]

Go ahead buy used. Be sure to investigate the intregrity of any gear. For bang for your used buck, I would think in terms of Fender Rumble 40, or Rum 100. These are plentyful, light as a feather, reliable gigable amps. Go for it.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

Edit: All the amps I'm talking about would be bought used.
I need a bass amp, but the problem is that I know almost nothing about amps. I went to my local Guitar Center to test some amps out, and I've narrowed it down to a few.
I love the Ampeg Rocket Bass RB-108 and its tone, but my biggest problem with it is speaker size. It has an 8" speaker, which I know is not supposed to be able to produce as good of a bass frequency as its larger counterparts. I didn't notice much of a problem with producing bass... until I turned the amp up a little bit. At around 1/4 of the volume with the bass dial in the middle, I noticed the speaker struggling to produce bass. A rattle started emanating from the amp. Upon trying the 10", 50W version of the amp, this problem was not present. Unfortunately, the larger speaker model rocket amp is out of my price range.
The other biggest competitor is the Acoustic B50C, a 10" 50W amp at around the same price as the Rocket 8" 30W mentioned previously. While this amp has more power and doesn't suffer from the rattling problem the Rocket does, its tone is far inferior. There was much less versatility in the sound I could get, and somehow I felt that it was less full of bass than the Rocket. Again, I have no idea what I'm doing.
Just for context, I don't need to turn up either amp really at all for practicing - it's just that I like to jam with some people, and being able to turn the volume up a bit would be great.
What do you guys think I should choose, and am I missing out on any other great-value amps? Thanks.

My experience (with bass, not guitars) is that when you get to 70% and beyond of the rated limit of a speaker, they tend to increasingly get harsher and less perceived low end the harder they are pushed.

It sounds to me like you need something a little more substantial speaker wise than what you’ve experience with your Rocket and the Acoustic combos. A 25-50 watt amp is more than enough for practice but that assumes the speaker is not overworked. The venerable Ampeg Port-A-Flex is a classic example (rated at 25-50 watts) and they did a great job for your type of application.

Like others have posted, definitely shop for used gear, Fender Rumbles like the 100 watt version might be a good choice. Just keep in mind, the sweet sound of a rig is at 50% of capacity. JMO.

 

[scottfeldstein]

Great instinct to buy used. I rarely buy new gear. And do yourself a favor - get something you can gig with, something that will stand up to a drum kit. This, to me, is a bare minimum for any bass amp equipment. If I can't gig it with a drummer I won't even consider it.

What about people who just want to practice at home and will never need to jam with a whole ensemble? Well, those people are wrong. If you play at all it will eventually come to pass that you will play with others. At that point your decision to buy a practice amp ends in tears. As the sweet taste of gig victory will turns to bitter ashes in your mouth, you will shake your fist at the sky and ask yourself why oh why didn't I listen to Scott? But it will of course be too late.

All of which is to say, get something with at least a 12" speaker. Some 10" combos might do the trick, but I bet a lot of them would not. Buy it nice or buy it twice. Or: buy once, cry once.

 

[BassNugget]

I haven't tried the rocket bass line, but I practiced (and even gigged) with an Ampeg BA108. 25 watts and an 8 inch speaker. I still have it and still love the tone. No problem with buzz or farting out at reasonable volume.

Try looking for one of these. Used they are about $100.00. The BA108 weighs more than my Fender Rumble 100, even though it is tiny by comparison. That is the downside...heavy for it's size.

 

[GreyBeard]

Here's an Ampeg RB-110 that's in your price range and shipping with GC is pretty inexpensive in my experience.
https://www.guitarcenter.com/Used/Ampeg/RB110-Bass-Combo-Amp.gc

There it is, jump on it.

 

[MarMar]

My only brand new stuff ever was:

1..) First setup - a Squier Affinity Series P Bass and the little Fender Frontman 15B practice amp. You can figure out yourself what kind of quality I got for what I spent. This was in the early 2000s and I'm fairly certain this is when the Affinity series was "hit or miss" according to my research here at TB.

Although I did gig the HECK out of that P bass. And it was beaten up in all sorts of ways and on different occasions. The nut is now off center. I've talked about getting it fixed some day for the hell of it because the bass oddly has sentimental value to me.

2.) Avatar 4x10 4 ohm cab and 300 watt GK Backline Head in the early 2000s. These are still with me today and have survived a lot of gigging and throwing around. I love them except the weight of the cabinet.

Otherwise, everything else was used. I try not to buy stuff unless I feel it is a "good deal" and fortunately I've found myself some "good deals" over the years. There is so much cool used stuff out there you'll never find at Guitar Center or whatever.

 

[OldSchoolFlats]

BTW, since you say you are new, I suggest trying the amp with both a sizzly treble slap-sound, and a meaty low-down treble-cut bass-boost sound.

 

[JeezyMcNuggles]

Edit: All the amps I'm talking about would be bought used.
I need a bass amp, but the problem is that I know almost nothing about amps. I went to my local Guitar Center to test some amps out, and I've narrowed it down to a few.
I love the Ampeg Rocket Bass RB-108 and its tone, but my biggest problem with it is speaker size. It has an 8" speaker, which I know is not supposed to be able to produce as good of a bass frequency as its larger counterparts. I didn't notice much of a problem with producing bass... until I turned the amp up a little bit. At around 1/4 of the volume with the bass dial in the middle, I noticed the speaker struggling to produce bass. A rattle started emanating from the amp. Upon trying the 10", 50W version of the amp, this problem was not present. Unfortunately, the larger speaker model rocket amp is out of my price range.
The other biggest competitor is the Acoustic B50C, a 10" 50W amp at around the same price as the Rocket 8" 30W mentioned previously. While this amp has more power and doesn't suffer from the rattling problem the Rocket does, its tone is far inferior. There was much less versatility in the sound I could get, and somehow I felt that it was less full of bass than the Rocket. Again, I have no idea what I'm doing.
Just for context, I don't need to turn up either amp really at all for practicing - it's just that I like to jam with some people, and being able to turn the volume up a bit would be great.
What do you guys think I should choose, and am I missing out on any other great-value amps? Thanks.

You really need to wait another week, or so, til you have enough to buy the better one. Don't throw your money away on something that doesn't cut it, because the one that does is 100 bucks more.

That makes you out all your money, and not satisfied. That's a lot more out of budget, than spending an extra 100 the first time.

 

[Jack Butler]

If you’re young and strong, there are some bargains out there. I saw 2 different peavey TNT amps on my local Craigslist last week that were both under $100 in great shape. They may not be the coolest “new thing” but I gigged the heck out of one of those things for years back in the 90’s when it was all I could afford. It handled every situation just fine.

 

[scottfeldstein]

If you’re young and strong, there are some bargains out there. I saw 2 different peavey TNT amps on my local Craigslist last week that were both under $100 in great shape. They may not be the coolest “new thing” but I gigged the heck out of one of those things for years back in the 90’s when it was all I could afford. It handled every situation just fine.

I concur on Peavey. They perform way above their price tags. I literally just gave one of their 112 cabs away for free because it wasn't worth the trouble to get money for it. And it is a great sounding and great performing cab. (Just too heavy for this old guy.)

 

[Dropped D]

I agree with others encouraging you to stay away from cheap newer amps.

What does your practice and jam session setups look like? Or, what do you foresee in the future? I'll offer a couple different paths to consider. I have used them all to great success.

- Focusrite into computer with headphones or powered speakers. Plug-ins, pedals, etc. for amp simulation and effects as desired. I practice going directly into a Focusrite and headphones without effects. I have a buddy I jam with where we both go into his Focusrite and use his powered speakers. Works great.

Keyboard amp. If you hunt a bit, you should find a decent wattage for less than $200. They don't have any bass coloration to speak off. But, they are usually quite even across the frequencies and reach down into our bass register. You can find reviews/opinions here with a quick search. Again, future investments in effects and/or amp simulation goes a long way here.

Most multi-effect pedals have a headphone jack and some sort of amp simulation. Lots of opinions on them, just search around here Very useful for practicing. If you are jamming with someone who has a PA, you can just go direct. It is quite sweet to go to a gig/jam with just a pedal board and your bass; you don't have to tote an amp that will cut through, unpacked and setup in minutes, and have time to help the drummer setup.

Good luck. You have choices.

 

[truand85]

Here's a used RB110 for less than $200: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

I have one. It's a good choice.

Edit: I see it was posted already. I bought mine new, it's a fun little amp for the price.

 

[lowend1]

I'm trying to spend around $200 or less for a used amp. As for the problem with used quality, I'd be buying through GC with an amp in "great" condition. Generally, most used items that GC specifies as "great" or above are pretty good. My bass was bought used in "great" condition and it works well.

This is actually a pretty easy nut to crack, but you will likely have to make a couple of concessions. If you're going to jam with people, you will run out of roadway really fast with a 30 watt bass amp. So, you're going to need to go bigger - and probably heavier. With a $200 ceiling, my first suggestion is Peavey combos from pre Y2K, or maybe shortly after - most of them will have the twin aluminum vertical bars that border the speaker grill baffle. The TKO, TNT and BASIC series are plentiful and the KB series keyboard amps can do the job for you also. Peavey stuff from that era is generally bulletproof or easily repairable if it does break. Great old-school thump, but don't expect anything hi-fidelity. The drawback is that they are heavy, and the enclosures themselves can be bulky. Avoid oddball models like the DataBass - they were innovative but quirky. There are some newer models in that price range, but they will likely be down on power compared to the older stuff.

 

[kodiakblair]

I'm trying to spend around $200 or less for a used amp

Decent budget , to make the most of it stay away from the GC bass amp section !

Stray into live sound and check some FRFR powered cabs instead

$180 will get you the Gemini AS-15. Driver frequency of 50Hz - 20kHz goes lower than most dedicated bass amp drivers.

https://www.guitarcenter.com/Gemini/AS-15P-15-Powered-Loudspeaker.gc

GC have a pile of used Alto FRFR that will do the job too.

The power amp section in FRFR cabs generally won't colour your bass tone so you best think about some form of preamp. Thankfully Behringer have got you covered with their BD21 unit , for 20 years these little $30 units have been saving bass players butts

https://www.amazon.com/Behringer-V-...B007Z1FVZG,B00EFAM9G4,B00OI324HC&srpt=GUITARS

 

[JimChjones]

1) Go used. These days stuff that's made it out of warranty usually last years unless badly abused. But make sure you can play it before you buy.
2)This is not a marriage. Get something adequate and popular that will resell easily and if your requirements change you can change the amp. Hell, some people here seem to buy and sell amps every frigging month...
3) There will always be a better deal coming, so if its not a good deal walk, but if its reasonable you may as well go for it - see point 2.

 

[STRMan]

Get a used Peavey TKO 115. You should be able to get that for under $200

 

[LHbassist]

I always find it perplexing.. a small amp, when you turn it up, produces some distortion..and this has always been true, from my first Supro Thunderbolt, to my Ampeg B-15's.. and on, and on. So, when looking for a bigger, more powerful combo to use to practice, jam, or play gigs with- we all watch these demos- like the one posted here with the Acoustic. And what is the area most covered in that, and so many other reviews?
THE DISTORTION the amp is capable of making! Seems every amplifier manufacturer feels it is a must have in all their products! They all tout their specific distortion circuits as selling points! Is it just me, or is that something that I've been trying for 50 years to get rid of? Yeah, I know, it's popular now, but I have a pedal that'll do that. I like clean, powerful, undistorted bass that projects.

 

[CallMeAl]

I have a Rumble 25 8” for home which is fine for my tastes. I also have a Rumble 100 12” for rehearsals. For “jam with friends” I’d get a 12”.

Peavey, Hartke and Rumble are good, and I particularly like the Ampeg BA amps. Both v1 and v2. Now that the Rockets are out, plenty of them available cheap. Check GC used too, they only charge like $25 to ship.

 

[CallMeAl]

Some examples:

Just remember the older it is, the heavier it’ll be… if that matters to you