Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Blackstar Unity Combos and Powered Cabinets
- Thread starter Plastalmonus
- Start date
Blackstar Unity 250 combo and Unity 250 powered extension cab and FS-12 foot switch.
Congrats on the new rig! What bass are you playing through it? Any initial impressions on the amp?
I played my Fender Flea Jazz bass with tape wound strings through it. The effects sound good. I like the chorus on it. I think the sound shaping capabilities is its strong point. If I can hear it on audio, I can dial it in. The optional five button foot switch paired with the two button foot switch that comes with the unit makes controlling the amp much easier. I didn't realize it, but they supply all the patch cables, including the XLR cable used to link the combo amp to the powered extension cab. It doesn't come with a USB cable. I'll need to pick one up over the weekend.
I will try my Guild Starfire II through it this weekend. I've been very busy at work so I haven't had time to play it very much yet.
Not sure if this info has come out in the forum yet, but the U250 combo is 19.2kg (42-1/3 lb) and the U500 combo is 22kg (48-1/2 lb). Rumble 500 is, what, 38lb? So roughly 5-10lb heavier.
EDIT: forgot to add, I am sooooo tempted by these it's not even funny. Get one of these with the big footswitch, all the basics are covered - add a couple extra pedals for wackiness you don't get otherwise, like a filter and a delay, done.
EDIT: forgot to add, I am sooooo tempted by these it's not even funny. Get one of these with the big footswitch, all the basics are covered - add a couple extra pedals for wackiness you don't get otherwise, like a filter and a delay, done.
OK I found one of these at a local GC to try out, a U250 combo.
Sideline: What a frustrating experience - firstly trying to find a P style bass that was set up - most had mile-high action. And then I sit down and am completely drowned out by 3 teenagers behind me apparently trying to teach each other some of the latest Tejano/Mexpop tunes for easily a half hour - they had appeared while I was trying to find a power cable and instrument cable. I gave up for a bit and went into the acoustic room, came back later.
BUT that's not the point. I finally got about 10-15 minutes to play and actually hear the thing.
First impressions: It's fine, but I would need quality time to make sense of some of it. Physically it's a tiny bit smaller than my Rumble 500, and just as light (see previous post, it's only some 5 lb or so heavier than the rumble). Looks nice, controls feel nice to use.
Like:
- Size
- weight
- the actual effect options themselves, for the most part.
- Chorus: just as expected and can be dialed in a little or a lot - speed and depth are fixed though (unless the mix knob is adjusting the depth rather than the blend of the chorused sound)
- The dirt options are alright, with the OD being warm and middy, and the Distortion being edgy. The Fuzz is heavy, but...
No Like: Really it's less "no like" and more "Not sure - may need to figure out more what it's doing" actually:
- Anywhere above 9-10:00 on the Low knob and you're being punched in the face with lows. Powerful and clean, seemingly, but just way more than would be expected. Feels... unbalanced. 12string brought this up in his review i think.
- Master and Gain seem to cut to nothing below 9:00, which was confusing but may behave differently with different settings on other knobs
- Without the footswitch handy, I couldn't switch the dirt off and on to compare clean/dirty levels quickly, I could only roll the dirt in and out with the blend (Drive) knob.
- The clean signal feels thumpy and heavily present even up into the higher range of the drive blend. Sometimes this makes the sound too 'separated', but again, other settings may make this better/worse?
- The Octave effect is not OC2 style, it's POG style. The Octave Blend knob on the back goes from -1 to +1 (with the middle being 'both'), and they seem to always be mixed 50/50 with your dry signal. This is before the dirt section, apparently, which isn't my favorite thing, but I would have to try it with my bass and my strings to see if I hate it or if it's ok.
So, I want to like it, but I would have to mess with it more to see if I really actually do. From this point if I sold my Rumble and my chorus pedal and bought the U250 and the big footswitch, it would come out the same, $$wise, as keeping my amp and current pedals, and re-adding a compressor and tuner and fuzz.
So there, long way to go to say it didn't blow me away. I like the idea of things being all in one, and I thought this one would be more simple and direct than, say, the Stage 800 with all its effects and screen and wifi and crap.
Sideline: What a frustrating experience - firstly trying to find a P style bass that was set up - most had mile-high action. And then I sit down and am completely drowned out by 3 teenagers behind me apparently trying to teach each other some of the latest Tejano/Mexpop tunes for easily a half hour - they had appeared while I was trying to find a power cable and instrument cable. I gave up for a bit and went into the acoustic room, came back later.
BUT that's not the point. I finally got about 10-15 minutes to play and actually hear the thing.
First impressions: It's fine, but I would need quality time to make sense of some of it. Physically it's a tiny bit smaller than my Rumble 500, and just as light (see previous post, it's only some 5 lb or so heavier than the rumble). Looks nice, controls feel nice to use.
Like:
- Size
- weight
- the actual effect options themselves, for the most part.
- Chorus: just as expected and can be dialed in a little or a lot - speed and depth are fixed though (unless the mix knob is adjusting the depth rather than the blend of the chorused sound)
- The dirt options are alright, with the OD being warm and middy, and the Distortion being edgy. The Fuzz is heavy, but...
- Anywhere above 9-10:00 on the Low knob and you're being punched in the face with lows. Powerful and clean, seemingly, but just way more than would be expected. Feels... unbalanced. 12string brought this up in his review i think.
- Master and Gain seem to cut to nothing below 9:00, which was confusing but may behave differently with different settings on other knobs
- Without the footswitch handy, I couldn't switch the dirt off and on to compare clean/dirty levels quickly, I could only roll the dirt in and out with the blend (Drive) knob.
- The clean signal feels thumpy and heavily present even up into the higher range of the drive blend. Sometimes this makes the sound too 'separated', but again, other settings may make this better/worse?
- The Octave effect is not OC2 style, it's POG style. The Octave Blend knob on the back goes from -1 to +1 (with the middle being 'both'), and they seem to always be mixed 50/50 with your dry signal. This is before the dirt section, apparently, which isn't my favorite thing, but I would have to try it with my bass and my strings to see if I hate it or if it's ok.
So, I want to like it, but I would have to mess with it more to see if I really actually do. From this point if I sold my Rumble and my chorus pedal and bought the U250 and the big footswitch, it would come out the same, $$wise, as keeping my amp and current pedals, and re-adding a compressor and tuner and fuzz.
So there, long way to go to say it didn't blow me away. I like the idea of things being all in one, and I thought this one would be more simple and direct than, say, the Stage 800 with all its effects and screen and wifi and crap.
Any more thoughts on your stack?
I just got back from playing one in store and was quite impressed!
Soooooo much versatility with the preamp coicings and output stage modelling.
I liked the cleaner settings on both the best.
Oh and they look BEAUTIFUL.
Last edited:
So far so good. The Guild sounds good but it took a little more time and effort to get the sound I was looking for than with my Jazz bass. Using the -10 dB switch helped. I will be moving my gear into a larger room soon. The room it is in now is kind of small.
Clean sounds are very easy to get. With the modern voicing, loud isn't a problem either. Switching from flat voicing to modern is an instant boost. Two 15's at 500 watts is plenty of powerful me. I don't gig, but I think it would be plenty most club venues.
Fantastic- exactly what I needed to hear!
The decision is now between the 15 or 210 combos.
The controls are easy to use. If you need to change settings quickly, the foot switch is the way to go. It does come with a 2 button foot switch and cable.
If they don't list the weight or the dimensions (or make those hard to find) it's no sale for me.
I was in Andertons store a few days ago and the guy was raving about them. Didn’t get a chance to plug it in as it’s school holidays here and every room was being used and folk were queuing up. I lifted it up and messed about with knobs etc. I’d have no trouble carrying it upstairs with one hand and I’m no giant. Really thinking of ordering the 115 as a birthday present to myself. I was thinking of getting a rumble plus the boss GT1B but if I got this I wouldn’t need the extra effects.
