Darkglass vs Mesa WD800 vs SVT4 Pro

[Friggin_RT]

Hey Guys,

Looking to up my head from my current GK Backline 600. Been looking at a lot of options but narrowed it down to these 3.

Darkglass Microtubes 900 v2: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Mesa Boogie WD800: Mesa Boogie Subway WD-800 WalkAbout Bass Amplifier | MESA/Boogie®

SVT4 Pro: Ampeg: Pro Series - SVT-4PRO


Tonally, I think the SVT is the best option here but it costs 50% more than the other two and weighs about 10 times as much lol. I've looked around and the darkglass and WD800 seem to be the next best thing but I haven't found a place by me with either in stock to play through side by side, youtube videos don't quite do the tone variances justice.

Does anyone have experience with the Darkglass and the Mesa? Or better yet all three? I mostly do medium sized bar gigs and prefer a slightly heavier tone with a little grit. Current cabs are a 21012 Schroeder and a 410 SWR.

Any help is appreciated

 

[Lovep]

All three are stellar amps and I’ve owned all three at some point (DG A900 v1).

They all pack a punch and will pair well with most cabs. They all have their own flavor and character, but the DG is going to be the most transparent amp (ie not baked in tone without the OD engaged). With each bass, the DG allowed the character of the bass to come through...it’s just very very transparent to my ears. That’s one of the things I loved most about this amp.

The Mesa has some unique bells like the HPF, dampening, etc. but probably has the most “limited” EQ options.

Of all three amps, I have to say I liked the Darkglass the most, but the Mesa is a very close 2nd.

 

[CaptainWally]

I respect Dark Glass a lot. But one person's "clean/transparent" is another person's "sterile". Such is the case for me here. You can certainly dial in the OD, of course, but that's a different mojo happening.

The SVT-4 Pro is just....ancient tech. No *way* I'd pay that'd kind of money and carry that much weight around. It does sound good, of course.

I own and recommend the WD-800. Great all-purpose bass sound with a little tube character. Plenty loud. Nice beefy mids that cut through. Great form factor, weight, features.

You might also consider the new stuff from GK.

 

[Blues Marvel]

GK Legacy 800

www.gallien-krueger.com/legacy-heads

 

[Friggin_RT]

I respect Dark Glass a lot. But one person's "clean/transparent" is another person's "sterile". Such is the case for me here. You can certainly dial in the OD, of course, but that's a different mojo happening.

The SVT-4 Pro is just....ancient tech. No *way* I'd pay that'd kind of money and carry that much weight around. It does sound good, of course.

I own and recommend the WD-800. Great all-purpose bass sound with a little tube character. Plenty loud. Nice beefy mids that cut through.

Good to know on the SVT.

By sterile you mean the amps eq has minimal effect on tone or no matter what you plug into it, it sounds the same coming out?

 

[Nephilymbass]

Hey Guys,

Looking to up my head from my current GK Backline 600. Been looking at a lot of options but narrowed it down to these 3.

Darkglass Microtubes 900 v2: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Mesa Boogie WD800: Mesa Boogie Subway WD-800 WalkAbout Bass Amplifier | MESA/Boogie®

SVT4 Pro: Ampeg: Pro Series - SVT-4PRO


Tonally, I think the SVT is the best option here but it costs 50% more than the other two and weighs about 10 times as much lol. I've looked around and the darkglass and WD800 seem to be the next best thing but I haven't found a place by me with either in stock to play through side by side, youtube videos don't quite do the tone variances justice.

Does anyone have experience with the Darkglass and the Mesa? Or better yet all three? I mostly do medium sized bar gigs and prefer a slightly heavier tone with a little grit. Current cabs are a 21012 Schroeder and a 410 SWR.

Any help is appreciated

I recommend saving a little and getting the Mesa D-800 and using the extra cash on the smaller more affordable darkglass pedal of your choice. I’m using the Microtubes X into the D-800 and I love it.

 

[Wasnex]

The Mesa has some unique bells like the HPF, dampening, etc. but probably has the most “limited” EQ options.

The WD800 has one of the most powerful EQs available IMHO. Six bands of EQ, and three of them have variable frequency centers. The Darkglass also has six band of EQ, but the frequency centers are fixed.

The Darkglass is probably the right choice if you like and want it's distortion capabilities. The amp basically has parallel processing. So it has a clean channel and a distorted channel with B3K and VMT voicing. You use the Blend control to balance the level of clean and distorted signals, which is a cool trick for retaining fat lows when you use higher gain distortion.

Here's a pretty decent Darkglass 900V demo.


Here is the official WD800 Demo. There is some OD demoed at about 1:14 Note the sound is way different than the Darkglass style distortion.



Each amp has its own sound as well as strengths. Ideally one would play both and choose the one that best suits their personal needs.

 

[Friggin_RT]

The WD800 has one of the most powerful EQs available IMHO. Six bands of EQ, and three of them have variable frequency centers. The Darkglass also has six band of EQ, but the frequency centers are fixed.

The Darkglass is probably the right choice if you like and want it's distortion capabilities. The amp basically has parallel processing. So it has a clean channel and a distorted channel with B3K and VMT voicing. You use the Blend control to balance the level of clean and distorted signals, which is a cool trick for retaining fat lows when you use higher gain distortion.

Here's a pretty decent Darkglass 900V demo.


Here is the official WD800 Demo. There is some OD demoed at about 1:14 Note the sound is way different than the Darkglass style distortion.



Each amp has its own sound as well as strengths. Ideally one would play both and choose the one that best suits their personal needs.

Gotta say the Mesa demo video showcased a lot of tonal variance and some fat lows while the distortion is engaged and just a fuller, more desirable sound IMO. I think you swayed me back this way, plus I can always add a microtube b7k pedal later on if I want, right?

 

[ole Jason]

I'm a big fan of the Darkglass without the distortion engaged... which basically turns it into a very powerful ICE module with a robust EQ. It definitely lets the sound of the bass shine through, not sterile at all assuming you play with dynamics. The distorted side of the amp speaks for itself if that's the tone you want.

 

[CaptainWally]

Good to know on the SVT.

By sterile you mean the amps eq has minimal effect on tone or no matter what you plug into it, it sounds the same coming out?

Yeah, exactly. Minimal effect on tone is well put. High fidelity without a lot of the sounds you'd expect to come from the inherent tone of an amp, e.g. Ampeg.

Genzler, Dark Glass, Bergantino are all clear/transparent amps. I guess the idea is that you start with a clean palette and add your zesty spices to taste.

Ampeg, Mesa and Aguilar (TH) have more of a traditional bass amp sound out of the box.

 

[_Some Dude]

I switch it up between an SVT and a WD800, depending upon the size of the gig.

The WD800 can get close enough to Ampeg... but it’s so much more than that. Modern and clear to old school and wooly.

I like Darkglass pedals, but not so much that I’d want to dedicate an entire amp to that sound.

 

[Danny2454]

I recommend saving a little and getting the Mesa D-800 and using the extra cash on the smaller more affordable darkglass pedal of your choice. I’m using the Microtubes X into the D-800 and I love it.

Agreed! I just took delivery on the WD800 and was blown away by its incredible tone pallet. And this was before plugging my pedal board in. Besides the usual Octave, Wah pedal, and filter pedal, I use the Dark Glass BK7 and typically leave it on full time. Dialing in the tones with DG BK7 and the WD800 provided a whole new world of controlled grit, and sizzle across all 5 strings. As a big fan of Ampeg SVT tone, I found I can control the amount of overdrive; subtle to massive overdrive (depending on the band of night).
The thing is, I really like the tone of WD800 by itself, and for some acoustic type shows I'd probably disengage the DGBK7.
But with the DGBK7 engaged, the tone and feel of my Sadowsky takes on a brand new level of Hi-Fi studio grade tones (think of some of your favorite acid jazz bassists and the killer growl they get on those recordings). I love the parametric EQ, and the ability to bump 250hz, and 4K, I find these to be key frequencies for one of the clubs I play 1-2 times a month (at least when we played indoors).
The passive mid is very musical, and can really help you find your sweet spot quickly in new venues. As does the HPF for us 4x10 ported cabinets.
I play in multiple, venues, and go from 50's rock n' roll, 70's-2020 soul funk, and jazz, to top 40 PoP, and Rock - the ability to dial in tones is on of the many keys to getting the call.
Cheers!