Do you play Bass through a solid state or valve?

[zombie1965]

Tubes every time. I gave 2 different SS amps a chance to sway me over the course of 12 months and both left me dissatisfied. The first was a Little Mark III, I found it sterile and a bit woody. the other was a Portaflex 350, It sounded OK still not as good as tubes to me, but gave up after just 7 shows.

Ill stick to my all tube SVT and my Hartke Ha3500 hybrid.

 

[socialleper]

Most of my amps have been solid state. I had a Mesa 400 Bass for a few years but never really got the mileage out of it that I should have. I have nothing against tube heads, especially if I can borrow someone else's, but it just isn't practical for me. I'm cheap and I have to be able to move my equipment quickly into small spaces. If I have a roadie and a full sized tour van\bus someday, sure.

 

[/\/\3phist0]

Class D, (Subway D800_/ Carvin MB210 w-Extention 2x10)
Hybrid (Tube front-end, Mosfet Power.) (buying my Titan Back!).
Soon to acquire: Vintage All tube Large Format Dinosaur (Ampeg V4,V22, Fender SuperBassman 100, Bassman 135 Just an old low-power (150 or less) old school cab to support.
visual condition: aged/worn (crawled out of storage look ) functional 100% Updated components
(Hot off the presses performance collector's value completely unimportant)

 

[Jeff Bonny]

People actually do care more than you might expect. But they only have two categories rather than 100 different categories like musicians have when it comes to judging amps. Their two categories are "your amp sounds good" and "your amp sounds bad."

Reminds me of the story of someone saying to Chet Atkins, "That guitar sounds great!". At which point Chet sets it down in the stand and asks, "How's it sound now?".

 

[basslicks]

I'm currently using valve (old Portaflex head over there above my name <--------) but it's far too weak for any real gigging unless it's mic'd, so if I do any gigging then I'd definitely switch over to class D because they are amazingly light and efficient. It's also amazing how much power you can buy for so cheap these days and many of them sound pretty damn good!

 

[jamro217]

After years of putting up with fickle tube amps or thin sounding solid states, I decided to suffer from both simultaneously (like taking your wife and mother in law for a long car ride). I use a solid state power amp (for reliability) and a tube preamp (for tone). I haven't checked out any class D equipment yet, so that may be something to consider in the future.

 

[lowfreqgeek]

Yes.

 

[noahw1]

Solid State Class D - the new Genzler 800, which is a fantastic head. I mostly do it for weight. I have lumbar and cervical disease so weight is a huge issue for me. That being said the new amp sounds great.

 

[BassmanPaul]

i would have to reply both. I use a 2KW Class D stereo power amp that weighs around 10Lbs. It’s driven by a full tube pre-amp that I designed and built.

I started playing in 1962 so, at the time, tube amps were the only route to go. I still love tube amps but to get the power that my Acme cabinets require SS is the path I chose. I adore my B15N but I’d never try to gig with it.

 

[PaulJSmith]

Depends. For larger gigs, I use an Ampeg SVT-4PRO hybrid with tube preamp and SS power amp. Sounds great. For smaller gigs, I use a Carvin MB10 class D combo. Sounds great, too.

Nothing sounded like my old SVT-CL head, but, at nearly 50 years old now, I don't miss lugging that thing around.

While I do love the tone from all-tube amps, there are plenty of solid state amps that are fantastic, too.

 

[The Regulator]

1 Hybrid and 2 Solid State with a SansAmp VT Bass DI

 

[Killens84]

Solid State (Mesa Subway) and a Fairfield Barbershop pedal, set to emulate a slight tube saturation. DI is a REDDI, sending a warm tube tone to FOH.

 

[Mantis Tobaggan]

Hybrid - SVT 7 Pro with max gain for tube grit.

 

[Doner Designs]

I am the world's worst tube snob. It is so clear in my mind that tube amps are the superior format, as are big cabs, yet I do a lot of gigs on budget solid state combos and micro amps with small light speakers, and I think I still sound pretty great So it's never as much about the amp or bass as the player, but I never get quite as overjoyed with my tone as when I'm using a tube amp.

As for maintenance, tubes aren't as bad as non-tube fans like to make them out to be. Sure, you'll have to replace an occasional tube or three sometimes, but if you're smart about not replacing tubes that aren't broken, it's not so costly. And I don't find them to be all that fragile, either. Besides, not like SS amps don't break.

I would love an SVT with an 8x10 or even a 1x15, but just the amp weighs 85 lbs. I'm an old fat man and am not sure I could even lift the head. The heaviest thing I ever move is 40lb bags of water softener salt, so I always have that in mind when I look at amp and cab weights. Gotta be in the 30-40 lb range (or less) or it's not gonna work for me. I wish that were not the case. If I were 25 instead of 57, I'd probably suck it up and haul a big rig. The new Ampeg portaflex stuff is tempting though. Seems like a good compromise that can cover a lot of different uses.

 

[39-Bassist]

I have a Line6 Lowdown HD750 solid state...love it....It just has a great amount of amp simulations...most of them are usable.

 

[chadds]

Yes, too.

This SS amp with my touch may give me everything. This other SS, just meh. Same with tubes. Some people want tubes for the grit and drive while others want warmth and purity. Some SS are phat some are sterile.

There are other parts that influence the sound as well so the fun of the tone quest is to recognize what works for you.

 

[garmenteros]

I use both. Recording in the studio all tube always. Live depends on my mood, but mostly these days its an Ampeg SVT classic and maybe my acoustic 370 from time to time.

 

[MJ_Sotti]

I know they call tubes "valves" in Britain, but if a American uses the word "valve" is that hipster for tube?

 

[lfmn16]

SVT, 8X10 cabinet. Not that SS can't sound good but to my ears, nothing sounds as good as an all tube amp.

 

[spanndrew]

Hybrid