Amps with fast, tight bass response.

[higain617]

GK and Ampeg. I mean those are historically popular in fast metal styles.

 

[Rjb1101]

On an instantaneous level an amplifier does not “perfectly” amplify a signal. It distorts it very slightly. Slew rate describes the change in current or voltage over time. It’s important to an audiophile but most mid range and higher bass guitar amps have similar processing constraints and capabilities. It’s not relevant how many Watts an amplifier can send through your load but how quickly and efficiently the amp can produce it. Since nearly all bass amps are similar, made of common components with common design goals, these minutia are not as relevant as a speaker/cab performance.

Since you asked, slew rate is 2pi X Max Freq X Peak Voltage in V per microsecond, usually. Most consumer bass or guitar amps or PA power amps are somewhere between 10-25 V/microsecond.
In keeping with slew not being singularly relevant, @agedhorse runs through it here. Class D vs Class A or A/B

That was an excellent read as both an engineer and audiophile. Thank you.

 

[Bisounourse]

@Rickslick I have owned many amps and still own quite a few including TC, Mesa, GK and EBS. IMHO the EBS Reidmar 750 you are interested in has a fast and tight bass response, loaded with more slam than most other amps, capable of warmth and has a good built in compressor.

+1 on the EBS Reidmar 750 for the reasons stated above. I use mine with 1 or 2 Barefaced Big Baby II, no complaints.

 

[6thplanet]

Huh, no recommendations for Hartke. I feel my HA amp and Hydrive cabs are pretty punchy. A sealed cab pretty much has that in it's DNA.

I'm seeing a lot of different amps/cabs being favored for their tight/punchy response. Maybe it should have been asked as to which amps are slow and sloppy?

 

[Samatza]

I currently use a TC RH450 and I love the flexibility of the Semi-parametric EQ, and find the compressor to be very useful, however the more I try to get my sound out of it I just find the bass to be too loose, can't get the low end thump I want !

This was my experience with the RH450 also, very useful for when I used 2 or 3 basses but the low end was not tight no matter where I set the frequency.
I sold it and bought a GK 1001 RB and there it was, punchy, thick low end that wasn’t muddy.
I’d say most modern amps mentioned here will make you happy though.

 

[sawzalot]

I have an RH750 and I think what you need is to add an RS212 beneath that RS210. I run that setup as my rig (when I use an amp) and the RS212 adds a ton of muscle to the sound without getting muddy.

 

[BlueTalon]

Hi folks, I am in the market for a new bass amp and unfortunately can't try much where I'm at. What I want is a fairly clean amp capable of some warmth, lots of slam, with a modern tight bass response, good built in compressor is a plus, though not neccessary. I currently use a TC RH450 and I love the flexibility of the Semi-parametric EQ, and find the compressor to be very useful, however the more I try to get my sound out of it I just find the bass to be too loose, can't get the low end thump I want with out too much mud. Right now I'm looking at the EBS Reidmar 750 (love the EBS brand!) GK Legacy 800, or a Mesa Subway D800. I also considered getting something else such as dropping money on a Thunderfunk 750, or getting one of the tube pre amp Mesa's/GK's. I'm pretty much at a loss and very open to suggestions so fire away!

Lucky for you, you live in the age of great bass gear, so you have options like never before. As others have mentioned, the cab you use is important. If I could recommend two things, they would be 1. get yourself a good high-pass filter. That will help a lot with the mud. And 2. don't spend money on an amp or a cab before you get a chance to hear a Phil Jones C8 cab in person. IMO, nothing in the bass world is as clear, clean, and articulate as Phil Jones cabs. And although they use 5" drivers, they produce enough low end & volume to melt faces, if you so choose.

 

[LetItGrowTone]

The Mesa WD-800 even has a damping control, so if you want 'tight' then set it to 'high'. That, along with the adjustable HPF

If I were in the market for one of these Mesa amps it would be the WD-800 for those two reasons, because...

I think the other Subway amps are hard wired to the 'high' setting

I'm pretty sure that isn't right. In the context of this thread especially, better check that.

 

[Standalone]

I think the physics and psycho acoustics of what we perceive as “tight fast bass” are probably pretty complicated.

These probably are worthy of discussion ahead of brands and models.

 

[mmbongo]

If I were in the market for one of these Mesa amps it would be the WD-800 for those two reasons, because...

I'm pretty sure that isn't right. In the context of this thread especially, better check that.

I'm pretty sure that @agedhorse stated that the other Subway amps without the damping control were default to the 'high' setting but I could be misremembering.

 

[SC Bassboy]

GK RB series.

Preach it. The RB series can be had for a reasonable price used and they are ANGRY hard-hitting amplifiers.

 

[Lammchop93]

The fastest most slamming amp I have tried was the Peavey MiniMega, believe it or not. It is a fantastic amp for the money. My only complaint was the fan was a little loud if you are playing at low volumes, but man it hit so hard!!!

 

[Lobster11]

Another vote for an adjustable HPF. I finally hopped on the bandwagon and was amazed at how much mud it removed from two different rigs in two different locations: just a little tweak was all it took. Bandmates in both groups commented on how much "punchier" my sound was. For $75 you can get the always-on version from Boughton (the one I bought), which is a lot less expensive than replacing a head. And even if you do wind up getting a new head or cabs, you'll find it useful for those too.

 

[Liam Wald]

The title of this posting should be "What amp do you own?"

 

[leavetheconnoli]

Hi folks, I am in the market for a new bass amp and unfortunately can't try much where I'm at. What I want is a fairly clean amp capable of some warmth, lots of slam, with a modern tight bass response, good built in compressor is a plus, though not neccessary. I currently use a TC RH450 and I love the flexibility of the Semi-parametric EQ, and find the compressor to be very useful, however the more I try to get my sound out of it I just find the bass to be too loose, can't get the low end thump I want with out too much mud. Right now I'm looking at the EBS Reidmar 750 (love the EBS brand!) GK Legacy 800, or a Mesa Subway D800. I also considered getting something else such as dropping money on a Thunderfunk 750, or getting one of the tube pre amp Mesa's/GK's. I'm pretty much at a loss and very open to suggestions so fire away!

My taste sounds similar to yours, trust me go Reidmar 750. GK is also good imo

 

[Ewo]

While there are quite a few amps/cabs that do clean and tight very well, I would recommend the Mesa Subway Series line for the following reasons; exceptional... design/engineering, craftsmanship, reliability and the best customer service available (IMO, of course). TalkBass also has a member (aged horse) that designs these (and other) amps. He is an invaluable resource for the Mesa users. Too many positives for me to consider another brand. But that's just me.

I've been using the Subway gear since it first came out. I'm an old cat and been through a ton of amplification over the years; this is the best stage amplification I've ever had.

For a tight low end that thumps but sounds organic with fingerstyle, I'd point you toward a 2-15 or a pair of 1-15 cabs driven by a WD-800. The variable HPF and three (!) semi-para EQ bands give you great tone-sculpting. If you slap a lot, a 1-15 and 2-10 is very nice.

 

[fishdreams]

Quilter bass block. Great marriage between what-you-play-is-what-you-get and slam/heft

 

[jazzman64]

Prior to purchasing my Mark Bass Amp + Head, I used a Fender Rumble 100 for the longest time. It sounded great, had three amp settings and an EQ to slightly change your bass sound, and it was SO LIGHT! The Mark Bass caters to all my needs now, but I still have a special place in my heart for the Rumble!

 

[dmac1961]

Tightest, most focused rig I've ever used - a Reeves Custom 225 with two Decibel Sound Implements 1x15 cabs. A properly made/tuned cabinet makes all the difference.

View attachment 4467278

I'll second this.
Tight, massive low end.

 

[MrSidecar]

I don’t even quite know what “tight” is. But I imagine it has to do with “transient response” and decay. IIRC, that’s why I primarily would search for any amp you like the tone of, only it should be rather powerful. And the main thing I would check is the cab, not so much brand-wise but rather concept-wise.
What do I mean? Transient response and fast decay is notoriously difficult for ported cabs and an area where horns (or similar things like the MAS cabs) excel. Or sealed cabs, for that matter. Sealed cabs often don’t go as low as ported ones, but ported ones are considerably less “tight”.

rough generalisations, but maybe worth checking out. And it maybe explains why the op stated he had tried several cabs to similar results- if they all share the build principle, that could be the reason.

best
Sidecar