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Double Bass Ashdown ABM 400h + small cab?

A

Andy S

May 24, 2001
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56
Manchester, England
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#1
Hi,

I'm just getting round to having a pickup fitted to my DB. I was thinking of getting a small combo (GK MB150 or Markbass Cmd121) so that I could easily fit both in my (small) car. But...

I already have an Ashdown ABM400 head and an Ashdown 4x10 cab. The cab is too big, and probably overkill for the kind of gigs I've been doing.

Would the head be any use for Double Bass? And is there a smaller cab that'd be a good match?

Could I put what I already have to use, or would I best to get one of the combos?

Thanks
 
#3
One redeeming quality about the Ashdown heads, is that they have a High impedance input (or at least my MAG600R does). It's quite helpful with a piezo pickup, if you're stuck without a functioning preamp.

I'll toss my vote in with Mr Sidecar above though, my MAG series (I haven't had the pleasure of trying out any of the ABM stuff) is very electric bass sounding, even after spending much time tweaking eq settings.
 
#4
Thanks for the replies. As you say, I was thinking that the high impedance input of the Ashdown might be of some use ( I don't have a preamp yet) but I did wonder about its suitability for double bass, and obviously a small cab would be cheaper than a new combo. I'm thinking I may get rid and get a good doubler.
 
#5
Andy S said:
Thanks for the replies. As you say, I was thinking that the high impedance input of the Ashdown might be of some use ( I don't have a preamp yet) but I did wonder about its suitability for double bass, and obviously a small cab would be cheaper than a new combo. I'm thinking I may get rid and get a good doubler.
Click to expand...

Andy,
Depending on how loud you need to get there are a lot of options. The GK MBS is a good choice and I think you should be able to get one for a fairly good price now $449.00 in the U.S.. If you need to go louder then Euphonic Audio has the Doubler that's getting very good reviews on Talkbass. It is a great deal more expensive but it has a full suite of features for DB and EB.

Ric
 
#6
I have successfully played through my Ashdown ABM with an EA NL-210 cabinet. The Ashdown is voiced bottom heavy, so turning down the lows and keeping the grit tube to a minimum helped. The graphic eq helped me eliminate some feedback issues.

Generally, 10" and 12" speakers should work well for your upright.
 
#8
I think I should probably update my opining to add that the only pickup I've used with it is a K&K Bassmax/RAB+ (some would say a fairly Electric Bass sounding pickup).

A smaller, flatter cabinet, as well as turning down the bass are definitely a step in the right direction toward making it work as a DB amp.
 

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