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Bass head for sludge/doom/drone (need advice)

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dtxo

Nov 20, 2020
2
0
#1
Hi guys,

I'm currently building up my new bass rig and need some help from you. I already picked up Ampeg SVT 810 amp so just need to pair it with some decent head. Not looking for tube amp and below you can find some of my current favourites which I'm considering. If you have advice for any other heads which could be better than those two, I'm open to any recommendations. Main thing which I will be using is high gain (looking for gnarly, heavy distorted sound somewhere between drone and sludge). Hope that makes sense. Here is my picks:

Ampeg SVT 4 Pro or SVT 7 Pro
-
Fender Bassman 500 or 800

As I stated, if you have any better recommendations for me, I will be really happy and thankful for them.

Thanks in advance!
 
#2
I currently have the SVT7pro and really like it for loud and power. I had a SVT4pro before but sold it many years ago. Either is an excellent choice, just a matter of considering what size you want. With the 7, I rack mount it with a tuner and an old MEQ230 to use 4 rack spaces
Either of those amps will be excellent for what you want.
I can't comment on the Fenders as I have never owned one of those, but others here will chime in with their thoughts and certain Mesa Boogie will come up also.
 
#3
dtxo said:
Hi guys,

I'm currently building up my new bass rig and need some help from you. I already picked up Ampeg SVT 810 amp so just need to pair it with some decent head. Not looking for tube amp and below you can find some of my current favourites which I'm considering. If you have advice for any other heads which could be better than those two, I'm open to any recommendations. Main thing which I will be using is high gain (looking for gnarly, heavy distorted sound somewhere between drone and sludge). Hope that makes sense. Here is my picks:

Ampeg SVT 4 Pro or SVT 7 Pro
-
Fender Bassman 500 or 800

As I stated, if you have any better recommendations for me, I will be really happy and thankful for them.

Thanks in advance!
Click to expand...
Orange Terror Bass 500
 
#6
Cheers,

That SVT4 Pro has a MASSIVE amount of POWER and Routing Options. Clearly, a substantial amp does not frighten you! You have not been neutered by Class-D amps.

Assuming your SVT 8x10 is a "newer" style with STEREO inputs 2 x 8 Ohm @ 400 watts per side. Then you could run this in dual mono OR stereo @ 350 watts per side. That's 700 watts working for you.

If the Ampeg 8x10 happens to be a 1200 watts cabinet (I believe the Heritage 8x10 cabinets are rated: 1200 watts @ 4 Ohms.) You could just run it in mono on one side for 625 watts OR be aware and bridge the amp to 1600 watts/4 Ohms. There is a 1600 watt Ampeg 8x10 @ 4 Ohms, but I can't remember what the cabinet nominclature is. I think there is an "HD" in the name.

Point is, there is a ton of options, huge power and it expects to get effects run with it. That's where to look for your overall sound. You can keep up with any high gain guitar rigs with it!

Good luck!

P.S. I think I saw one of the original AMPEG HEAD RACKS with the AMPEG rack panel in Baltimore on Craigslist this week.
 
Last edited:
#7
If you've already got the Ampeg cab, an Ampeg head makes sense. They're a good brand too, I like my pf500 just fine, but the SVT pro series are plenty good as well.

I can't say the same for the bassman series. I'm sure they're great, the people in here that have fenders love them too, I just haven't seen any bassman series gear in the wild

Peavey could be great too if they're available, and affordable. That's not in your list though.
 
#9
Hey guys,

thanks for all your replies! Appreciate every feedback. I will be using pedals for distortion and other effect. Currently I'm considering one more head which could work for me and it's Mesa Big Block 750. Anyone have any experiences with this? If not, I will go with SVT-4 Pro.

Thanks!
 
#10
dtxo said:
Hey guys,

thanks for all your replies! Appreciate every feedback. I will be using pedals for distortion and other effect. Currently I'm considering one more head which could work for me and it's Mesa Big Block 750. Anyone have any experiences with this? If not, I will go with SVT-4 Pro.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

The BB750 is 750 @ 2 Ohms and does sound good. But, it does have a bit of a sketchy history. If it was super reliable, I would like to have one and it has an overdrive setting. It is 1/2 of the MESA Titan that is a monster amp!

That SVT is killer...!
 
#11
I never bonded with the Mesa Big Block 750. Always seemed to have a ton of high end and upper mids. Nothing much in the 220hz - 500 hz range. It's loud for sure.

I owned the 4 PRO and got rid of it because it did not let the tone of my bass shine through. It will deliver thick and low bass tones. High end feels rolled off, but you can boost it back. I felt I fell into the deep end with Ampeg tone and it did not work for me. Still a good head though.

I dig the Mesa D800 currently because it let's more character through, reacts to distortion and other effects well, and is easier to control.
 
#12
dtxo said:
Hey guys,

thanks for all your replies! Appreciate every feedback. I will be using pedals for distortion and other effect. Currently I'm considering one more head which could work for me and it's Mesa Big Block 750. Anyone have any experiences with this? If not, I will go with SVT-4 Pro.

Thanks!
Click to expand...

I see this in the forums for a lot of information:

Mesa Boogie Big Block Club (750/TitanV12)
 
#13
If using a 810
The Efficiency of so much speaker area.
Really allows the use of lower wattage heads that most don't perceive as gig Worthy.

I really like older 100 watt to 200 watt amplifiers. With my 810 and basically any older Peavey or Hartke heads work great. Pretty much crank the amp all the way up and get a cool distortion without a pedal. And kick on a pedal for alot of extra sustain.

There is also countless older lower wattage Ampeg solid state heads that match the cab brand wise and are pretty much dirt cheap.
Plenty of snobs and prudes to tell you they don't do this or that, blah blah. Basically full of it really. All you need is basic EQ and something that doesn't overheat if you crank it. And most tone is the player and the bass.

Plenty of older heads like the SVT 350H, SVT450H, SVT 200T, SVT 1000, B2RE, B1RE
Heck I'll plug in a old B15T and doom all day. Be crazy to find a huge tank lead sled like a V6B lol

Basically anything 200 watts and up works with a 810 cranked to the max.
The magic grind from a old GK400 will work and heck the old Hartke's like a HA 1000, 1500, 3500, 5500 etc or LH 500 or LH100

Doom tone is having enough speaker to be loud. A amp that won't overheat with tons of pedal distortion. And the rest is the player skills and most the tone is down tuning and having a bass set up to sound good and not rattle and fart with lower tuning and larger strings.
 
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