Avatar B212 arrived, and...

OHMIGOSHTHISTHINGISFREAKINGAWESOME!!!!!!!!

The tone I've been seeking for years is now MINE, ALL
MINE!!! MUHAHAHAHAHAAAAA!

Run, don't walk, to your phone and grab one of these
puppies before Dave comes to his senses and starts
charging what it's worth!

(No connection with Avatar, just a customer who's happier
than the proverbial pig in chit.)

I got the Delta LF version... I play 5 strings, and wanted the extra low end.

BTW, I'm driving the cab with a Tube Works head pulled out of my faithful 1x15 combo that's served me well for years. 260 watts into 4 ohms, or something like that. (These amps
aren't well known, but they're still made... Genz Benz
bought TW... info is on the Genz Benz website.) I'm playing
Carvin active basses and have a Presonus compressor.

I was (and still am, I guess) considering selling the Tube
Works combo and buying an SWR head (I like the SWR tone),
but based on that first session yesterday I don't think I need a new amp. It sounds darned good just as it is.

Dave mentioned when I ordered it that he likes the horn control turned up just a bit... if "off" is at 7 o'clock, he likes it at 9 o'clock. It does indeed sound great that way.

 

Regarding the Tube Works question:

The combo was a 7100 series, which when it was built used what TW called a 3300 series head (go figure). It's hard to see the photo on the Genz Benz site clearly, but the control panel on mine looks identical to the current 7100 series combos.

The manual says it puts out 180 watts @ 9 ohms (a typo? 9 ohms?), 260 @ 4 and 300 watts @ 2 ohms. I like the tube side sound a lot better than the solid state... to each his/her own.

I'm running it with the CONTOUR control turned 3/4 of the way up, the lo eq (<150 hz) boosted about 1/4, the lo-mid eq (100-400 hz) cut about 1/4, and everything else flat. The horn on the cab is turned up about a a quarter of the way (pointing at 9 oclock).

(Side note on bass amps... I've noticed a lot of amps have an "extra" tone control like my CONTOUR control. SWR calls it the "aural enhancer," Eden calls it "presence," etc... it definitey colors the tone, and I really like the effect. Others will no doubt disagree.)

Regarding the Stick query... Yes, it deals with the low B on my 5 string really well, especially compared to my old 1x15 combo speaker.

I can't answer the full-range question fairly. I'm looking for a specific bass tone, which I got in spades. I have no idea what it would sound like with the treble side of a Stick... also, the amp plays a huge role in the sound. Bass amps are designed for bass frequencies and have the EQ configured appropriately.

Speaking personally, if I got a Stick I'd take advantage of its stereo wiring and use two amps, each designed for its role... a bass amp for the bass side and a guitar amp for the treble side. But that's just me.

The horn on the B212 is capable of serious highs, as in it doesn't sound very good (with a bass guitar) if you crank it all the way up... way too much fret and string noise, but again this is a bass guitar I'm playing here. The high output is a characteristic of the horn, not a design flaw, and Dave himself told me when I ordered it that it sounds best with the horn turned up just a bit from the off position. He's right.

Hope this helps

 

Saetia... of COURSE you're going to get biased answers. By definition we're all just expressing opinions here, right?

Consider that the chances of any given person having actually A/B'ed two specific pieces of equipment (one of which is brand new and not out there in great numbers yet) AND being present on this board are pretty slim.

If you're willing to take a chance, you could order an Avatar and send it back if you don't like it. You'd be out the shipping both ways if you did send it back, but you'd KNOW which sounds better and wouldn't be relying on the opinions of others, which are, after all, worth every single penny you're paying for them.

Or, why not call Dave at Avatar and find out if he's sold a B212 to anyone in your area?