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Another "help me build a lightweight rig" thread

unbrokenchain

unbrokenchain

Jun 8, 2011
1,357
2,280
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Black Mountain, NC
#1
Mostly DB player coming over to the BG side to solicit some advice on a rig for my P-bass. I've peered through the archives a little bit, but it's easy to get lost in the sheer volume of threads and the number of products on the market. So maybe this is a more direct way to go about it.

I've been asked to be a part of a 4-piece, guit/bass/drums/pedalsteel touring band to support a sort of indie-country singer/songwriter with a new record. Have already put in hundreds of shows with the artist so I know the material, but all on DB as duo or acoustic outfit. Artist now has manager and record label support, and those folks have asked me to switch to electric bass for travel convenience, and to fit with the new band because that's the sound on the new record. I don't really mind, excited even, as I never have an excuse to play electric bass, it's always just hanging on the wall asking me to play it. But I think I need a new amp rig for this.

My bass is a stock Mexi Fender P. Right now I have two amps, the GK MB112 ii that I use with upright, and an old Crate BX-220h that I run through the speaker cabinet from a 70's Peavey TNT 100 (original 15" speaker, bottom slot-port cab). The GK is perfect for my DB needs, but I very much prefer the sound of the Crate/Peavey for the bass guitar. The old amp and 15 speaker has more depth, more hair, and is a little more ambiguous if that's any way to put it into words. The GK is much more focused, tight, clear, and for this style of music that's not what I'm going for. I need to pad and fill space like a DB, not so much poke through the mix.

I'd just as soon take the Crate head and Peavey cabinet on the road honestly, if not for the weight of both pieces, and the "yard sale" pedigree might be a little embarrassing even if I know they sound good. The GK has me spoiled with weight, and almost every rig I see these days at shows looks modern and lightweight.

So, can anyone recommend a modern, lightweight combo amp or head/cab combo that sounds kind of old school/lo-fi like my old heavy rig?
 
#3
unbrokenchain said:
Mostly DB player coming over to the BG side to solicit some advice on a rig for my P-bass. I've peered through the archives a little bit, but it's easy to get lost in the sheer volume of threads and the number of products on the market. So maybe this is a more direct way to go about it.

I've been asked to be a part of a 4-piece, guit/bass/drums/pedalsteel touring band to support a sort of indie-country singer/songwriter with a new record. Have already put in hundreds of shows with the artist so I know the material, but all on DB as duo or acoustic outfit. Artist now has manager and record label support, and those folks have asked me to switch to electric bass for travel convenience, and to fit with the new band because that's the sound on the new record. I don't really mind, excited even, as I never have an excuse to play electric bass, it's always just hanging on the wall asking me to play it. But I think I need a new amp rig for this.

My bass is a stock Mexi Fender P. Right now I have two amps, the GK MB112 ii that I use with upright, and an old Crate BX-220h that I run through the speaker cabinet from a 70's Peavey TNT 100 (original 15" speaker, bottom slot-port cab). The GK is perfect for my DB needs, but I very much prefer the sound of the Crate/Peavey for the bass guitar. The old amp and 15 speaker has more depth, more hair, and is a little more ambiguous if that's any way to put it into words. The GK is much more focused, tight, clear, and for this style of music that's not what I'm going for. I need to pad and fill space like a DB, not so much poke through the mix.

I'd just as soon take the Crate head and Peavey cabinet on the road honestly, if not for the weight of both pieces, and the "yard sale" pedigree might be a little embarrassing even if I know they sound good. The GK has me spoiled with weight, and almost every rig I see these days at shows looks modern and lightweight.

So, can anyone recommend a modern, lightweight combo amp or head/cab combo that sounds kind of old school/lo-fi like my old heavy rig?
Click to expand...

Congrats on the gig!


We gotta have a budget before we go any further.
 
#7
Do you have a store locally that carries the Mesa, or Genzler line of gear ? I’m very partial to the discontinued Genz Benz stuff, and play mostly Roots based music. You can find the Shuttle series of amps here in the Classifieds frequently. Otherwise, I would check out the new Mesa Subway gear, or the Genzler stuff. Very lightweight, 800 watt amps with an assortment of cabs to choose from.
 
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#10
Personally I love GK gear and that would have been my first suggestion but, if you're not a fan, then you're not a fan.

If you want something a little more "vintagey", the fender Rumble series seems to get great reviews here. I've never tried them myself but they do seem to get a lot of love in general, and not just "for the price".

If you are willing to buy used, then you can of course get more for your money. That could mean a second speaker cabinet, a more powerful amp, "higher end" components (to be clear, I am NOT putting down the Fenders or GKs, that's why I put "higher end" in quotes), etc.

But I think the Fender Rumble amps and cabs seem to be worth checking out. Might want to also look at Ampeg. I think they have heads that would give you the sound you're looking for, but I' don't know enough about their cabinets to know if they have lightweight models that you might like.
 
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#11
It really does depend on how much volume you need on stage. I’m assuming you’ll have PA support from your descriptor. The Genzler 350 combo tics a lot of your boxes and is surprisingly potent for such a small rig. If stage volume is reasonable, it would cover you for larger gigs with PA and small gigs alone. Add a second BA10-2 cab or even the larger BA12-3 and you have a rig that will cover medium gigs with no PA support... but the 2nd cab blows your budget.
 
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#13
Thanks for the responses y'all, seems like some great choices to explore. I've looked at the Fender Rumbles, and if I could find one that was 500 watts with a 15" I'd probably go for it, but I've only seen 200w/15" or 500w/2-10".

It happens that I've owned a lot more instruments than amps, so I've never used Mesa, Genz Benz, or most of the higher end stuff out there so I'm not really sure what to expect. I get that a lot of players really want the more modern, punchy kind of sound like my GK delivers, so I can't expect that more expensive is necessarily better, but if more expensive means it's that much more reliable or has zero noise to the line out, then it seems worth it.
 
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#14
I think that all/most of the Fender Rumbles have the line out post volume control which makes them very tricky for the sound person. If you change anything on stage, their settings are all messed up.

I know the Genzlers have an excellent DI and I would expect the same for the Mesa, and likely many/most of the higher end heads. The Genzler 350 “combo” gets a lot of love from DB players so you may find that it would allow you to sell your GK to recover some of the cost for the new gear. They also have a version of their acoustic amp sold only through Gollihur that is voiced for DB. I’m not sure I see the advantage over the 350 but it might be worth investigating.

Invalid Link Removed

https://www.genzleramplification.com/shop/magellan-350-combo/
 
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#16
Djadja said:
I think that all/most of the Fender Rumbles have the line out post volume control which makes them very tricky for the sound person. If you change anything on stage, their settings are all messed up.

I know the Genzlers have an excellent DI and I would expect the same for the Mesa, and likely many/most of the higher end heads.
Click to expand...

Good to know about the Fenders! That might be a dealbreaker for me. The GK I have is good about that, can adjust stage volume independently of the balanced out as long as it's switched to "pre."

I've been tempted to try a GK MBP 15 in addition to the MB112, but the thing is almost the same price as just getting the MB115 combo amp instead..?

The Genzler looks like another sweet option for upright, I wonder if I could find one to demo on BG. I'm skeptical that a 10" is gonna have the low-fi sound I have in mind, but I've sure been surprised before.

Guitar Center and Musician's Workshop are the places in town here with the best stock of new gear, I guess I need to just suck it up and try everything in the stores. I'm not up to date with what brands they carry.

I guess it's good that there are so many options, doesn't make it any easier to make decisions though, hah
 
#18
unbrokenchain said:
Good to know about the Fenders! That might be a dealbreaker for me. The GK I have is good about that, can adjust stage volume independently of the balanced out as long as it's switched to "pre."

I've been tempted to try a GK MBP 15 in addition to the MB112, but the thing is almost the same price as just getting the MB115 combo amp instead..?

The Genzler looks like another sweet option for upright, I wonder if I could find one to demo on BG. I'm skeptical that a 10" is gonna have the low-fi sound I have in mind, but I've sure been surprised before.

Guitar Center and Musician's Workshop are the places in town here with the best stock of new gear, I guess I need to just suck it up and try everything in the stores. I'm not up to date with what brands they carry.

I guess it's good that there are so many options, doesn't make it any easier to make decisions though, hah
Click to expand...

The contour control is magic. The Curve B attenuates the highs and high mids with a slight cut of the lowest lows while giving a low mid bump to give you an old school sound. Curve A at its extreme is a very modern smiley face EQ that works great for slap. Likewise, the rest of the EQ section is very powerful. The line array gives you better horizontal dispersion while the paper cones give a smooth midrange and present but never harsh highs. I have one each of the 12-3 and the 10-2. The low end of the 12 is certainly deeper and more round than the 10 which is more punchy but with application of the EQ, I think you'd be able to get what you like.
 
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#19
I do like my Genzler 350 a lot, although I haven't had an opportunity to take it out of the house yet. But using it home through my Barefaced One10 sounds fantastic (I bought the Genzler to pair with the One10 for a project that never actually happened). It also sounds fantastic through one or both of my Big Baby 2's, though different, and even one of them can get quite a bit louder than the One10.

I don't know if a One10 would get you the volume you need, but it is surprisingly loud (seriously) for a single 10 with the Genzler. And, already said by revroy above, the B curve of the contour control gives a more vintagey sound, and sounds great with the One10. If you want a less modern sound, the 350 can do it.

I've never tried one of the Genzler line array cabinets, but the seem like a really effective design. They seem to get a lot of love here, too.
 
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#20
Here’s another thought.

I have a Warwick LWA 1000. It has two independent channels—- great for gigs that require two different instruments. (though you don’t need that for the tour).
I wouldn’t call the tone tube like, but it can sound warm with the available knobs.
It’s loud and light.
You pick the cabinet. 2 individual 12’s give you options.
 
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