Best amp you played through

[armybass]

 

[spiritbass]

Nice rigs man. Have been wanting to try one of those Reeves heads but no shops anywhere around my area carry them.

Thanks, brother. The likelihood of finding one in a music shop is probably low, unfortunately. I had never even heard of them before reading a post by Tom Bowlus about his Custom 225 which intrigued me. Then I read the Bass Gear review which sold me. I was wanting an all-tube amp, did not want to 'rehab' an older unit, so was looking for a new build. Called up the factory, sent some money, and they had it at my door in about two months. It's a GAS-ending amp. The main reason I invested in the Shaw was that one of the original KT-88's in the Reeves was defective and popped after only three or four months of use and I wanted an all-tube backup amp. It's also killer but in an Ampeg-ish way.

 

[Xandrell]

I haven't played through a lot of different amps but I kinda know what I'm after.
A great tube sustaining sound. This one does it. I'm sure others can as well like the Mesa, Fender, and Traynor tube amps, among others. I'm also thinking about adding something lighter like a V4B and Heritage 410 perhaps.

 

[j-raj]

I've had way too many....

Aguilar DB659>QSC PLX1602 (my favorite)

Honorable Mentions:
Walter Woods
Trace Elliot V-Type Pre>Crest CA9
Epifani UL502


*I am awaiting an Eich T900 this month, so this list could change.*

Yup, currently my EICH T900 is my favorite amp so far, hope others get a chance to try one here in the states.

 

[Ric Vice]

I saved my gig money for over two years to purchase a Walter Woods MI-400-8. It sounds as close to a tube amplifier as I've ever heard. Walter only built around 50 or so of this model. The amber pilot light identifies the amp as a 400-600 watt amplifier.

Ric

 

[fretter]

It might have been this one. I know it was a TE 1x12. It sounded like a full rig.

 

[Raadsmayer]

Glockenklang heartrock II. Sound is superb. Warm, dynamic, realy nice harmonics and a lot of power. No matter how loud you play it, this amp lets every note sing like youre in the opera. Build like a tank and has a fantastic look. Not light weight, but the sound of my bass is so great (F bass, Warwick). About 90% of the time i do not use the eq setting at all. The other 10% I dial in a little bit of extra bass, for an even thicker low end. The heartrock II is a modern sounding amp with a honest clean sound, but make no mistake, this amp sounds very warm and evenly sounding. It tracks down all the nuances you play, with a magic twist, if that makes any sense. I think it has to do with the frequency enveloppe (higher frequencies, above the ground frequency, while playing a single note). These higher frequencies sound very rich and are harmonicly very defined. So every note you play sounds like a little orchestra, so much going on there. And the amp pumps out these 'ohhs' and 'ahhs' with incredible dynamics. The louder you play it, the beter it sounds to. BUT do not use this amp when you are a lousy bassplayer, beceause every mistake you make sounds realy painfull while there is no 'tube' or 'coloured eq' covering a mistake up! I tried a couple of them, but imo the Heart rock 2 is the best sounding Glockenklang amp out there. Not the cheapest one.

 

[dramatwist]

For me? Acoustic 360. Period. YMMV.

 

[gregbackstrom]

Bergantino B|Amp
Trickfish Bullhead 1K
Genz Benz Shuttle 3.0-10t

Other standouts over the years:
Mesa Boogie 400+
Mesa Boogie Subway D800+
Thunderfunk TFB 750/800
Genz Benz Shuttle 9.2
GK MB/MBF 800

 

[Thornton Davis]

I've owned so many amps during the past 50+ years that it's difficult to remember them all but when it come to the two best it's a toss up for me between these two killer rigs. I miss them both but I don't miss lugging them around.

First up Genz-Benz GBE1200 and two 410 XB-3 cabs.

My Peavey Classic 400 with two 410TX cabs. 445 watts RMS of pure tube power. I loved this rig but was big time heavy!

TD

 

[frankie5string]

One of the rehearsal spaces I use gives me a Mesa M9 head through a modern SVT Classic 8x10 cabinet. It's got just the right amount of midrange and push to it, and it's never boomy. The articulation it provides really belies the cabinet it's hooked to.

What a fantastic combination!

 

[baxter_x]

The M9 is a fantastic amp. There are just some strange choices in its design. The first that comes to my mind is obviously the taper of the master.

 

[walking Bass]

Fender Dual Showman with 2x15.

 

[WoodyJ]

Late 1990's Fender Custom Amp Shop Rumble Bass, 300W all-tube, 2x15 ported cab with EV-15BX 400W speakers. No other bass rig I've played through in the past 46 years came close. Sadly, I recently sold it due to a move halfway across the country plus I'm no longer playing live gigs.

 

[Dave814]

My Vox AC100. 3rd set when everyone is cranked up and I’m pounding the strings and those tubes are crying, there’s nothing like it

 

[joel406]

Nothing comes close

 

[Chad Michael]

As far as:
1) just a demo in a music store - old school GK 400 RB thru a Hartke 115 xl. Unreal.
2) provided backline - SVT with 810.
3) my own gear - Eden WT600 thru SWR GIII (freckle - faced grille)

plus honorable mention, of my own gear: SWR Studio 220 / Epifani UL 210

 

[Uncle Ernie]

Back in 1992, a SWR Baby Blue II... lovely tone indeed

 

[Arthur U. Poon]

1. Mid to late 70's Ampeg SVT stack. It was loaned to me for a couple of gigs.

1.1 My current setup: Tech 21 GED-2112 preamp, Crest CA9 stereo power amp, and a pair of Mesa Powerhouse 212s. And I'm adding a Mesa Powerhouse 610 to it.
Think "Cheech and Chong's Next Movie". Where Cheech exclaims: "I hope I can still have babies!"

3. GK-2000RB into an SWR Goliath Sr. 6-10" cabinet. This was my gigging setup for quite a few years.

 

[BlackCatBassman]

If you guys have any amps/cabs that you want to stop being produced, let me know and I'll make it happen.

Darn near everything I plug into in a store (or at a gig) and fall in love with ends up getting discontinued.

> SWR Redhead
> SWR Headlite
> Trace Elliott 1210 Combo (really everything Trace Elliott, gosh I loved their stuff)
> Mesa Walkabout Scout