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First bass amp advise?

oldangelmidnigh

oldangelmidnigh

Guest
Feb 24, 2014
8
1
Northampton, MA
#1
I've mostly been a guitar player and I got a Mustang bass and I love it. I'm thinking about picking up a bass amp for playing around the house and maybe eventually small performances with a band.
I want an amp with some character.
I'm mainly thinking about the Fender Rumble 200 combo or maybe the Orange Crush 50 watt combo.
I don't yet understand how wattage, speaker size, etc. translate to performance volume.
Would the Rumble 200 with the 15" speaker be enough on its own to play with a band in a bar?
Would the Orange 50 watt with an extension cab be able to handle it?
 
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#2
Basically anything will work for just fooling around the house.
A good rule of thumb for a gigging rig is 300-500w into a 2X12 or 4X10. There are new "super" cabs that kinda rewrite that, but they're pricey and I don't want to start recommending that type of stuff for you.

In very simple terms...
The more wattage you have the more clean headroom you can have.
The more speakers you have the more volume you'll have.

oldangelmidnigh said:
Would the Rumble 200 with the 15" speaker be enough on its own to play with a band in a bar?
Click to expand...

Possibly. It would depend on how loud the band is. It wouldn't cut it for the majority of gigs that my band does, but adding a 2nd speaker would help greatly (if that combo can take an extension cab). It would be fine for our lower volume gigs though.

Would the Orange 50 watt with an extension cab be able to handle it?
Click to expand...

No. I doubt that would even be useful with an acoustic guitar.
 
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#3
oldangelmidnigh said:
I've mostly been a guitar player and I got a Mustang bass and I love it. I'm thinking about picking up a bass amp for playing around the house and maybe eventually small performances with a band.
I want an amp with some character.
I'm mainly thinking about the Fender Rumble 200 combo or maybe the Orange Crush 50 watt combo.
I don't yet understand how wattage, speaker size, etc. translate to performance volume.
Would the Rumble 200 with the 15" speaker be enough on its own to play with a band in a bar?
Would the Orange 50 watt with an extension cab be able to handle it?
Click to expand...
+1111 on the Fender Rumble 200 combo! Here's gig report on the 200 Fender Rumble Club
 
#4
Linnin said:
+1111 on the Fender Rumble 200 combo! Here's gig report on the 200 Fender Rumble Club
Click to expand...
surprise.jpg
 
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#6
oldangelmidnigh said:
I've mostly been a guitar player and I got a Mustang bass and I love it. I'm thinking about picking up a bass amp for playing around the house and maybe eventually small performances with a band.
I want an amp with some character.
I'm mainly thinking about the Fender Rumble 200 combo or maybe the Orange Crush 50 watt combo.
I don't yet understand how wattage, speaker size, etc. translate to performance volume.
Would the Rumble 200 with the 15" speaker be enough on its own to play with a band in a bar?
Would the Orange 50 watt with an extension cab be able to handle it?
Click to expand...
Forget the Orange. Not gonna work. As for the Fender, yeah it could work as long as your band isn't too loud & the bar isn't too big.

As mentioned, 300-500 watts & a 212 or 410 is pretty much the minimum standard.

Oh, & a 115 cab is basically equal to a 210 cab & a 215 is basically a 410. A 112 is less than a 115 or 210. A 212 is more.

$400 (a new Rumble 200) isn't really that much money today. But if that's all you can do, than that's all you can do. Be sure to check local used gear. More (to much more) bang for your buck. Play as much as you can if possible to get familiar with what's what.
 
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#7
OP,
I have a couple suggestions for you to consider. These and similar models turn up used for under $100 pretty often. I have a MPBT-1 I picked up for $75.

Invalid Link Removed

I also picked up a pair of these for sale for (don't remember how much) under $100.

110971623
POWERED STU MONITOR AV40
Used M-Audio AV40 Powered Monitor
icon_3.gif

Guitar Center Orange
Orange, Connecticut 06477
203-799-0233
Now Only
$79.99

With those two (three, actually) pieces I do 99% of my playing at home. Now you're covered for playing by yourself, with prerecorded songs, a beat loop or even another "plug-in" musician like a guitar or keyboard player. The AV40's have a couple different inputs and can be used a bit like a mixer for two sources, as long as you can control each source's volume.

Any amp or gear you buy later will then not be weighed on the "playing it at home" scale. You don't need to consider it for home use at all. You get your groove on woodshedding and saving. When the time comes for a gig or band size rig, maybe your budget will allow for nicer stuff, and it doesn't need to be a combo.

That's just a thought I've had for a while that I missed the boat on when I first started playing. I always crept up incrementally with the rig and just ended up with a mountain of cheap stuff, instead of fewer good pieces. These days, you don't always even need a real amp at home. If you buy a small to medium combo now, it may just be the bedroom amp in the near future when you upgrade because you aren't loud enough.
 
#9
When I was looking for a combo recently, I was leaning hard toward the TC Electronica BG-250 with the 2-10s, also the Rumble 200; but, got lucky and found a Rumble 500 used at the local GC. I liked them all except the TC lacked an auxiliary speaker outlet. On the up note for those who want it, all three have a Line Out for FOH. Though I feel FOH is severely abused and creates a bad experience for those listening. I currently have a Rumble 40 v3 that I purchased for around the house and open mic nights. I have taken it to several open mic nights and several practices and I can say is worked out well so long as there was no drummer. The 40w was able to hang with most amped guitarist unless your's is one trying to compensate for other shortcomings by playing obnoxiously loud. IMO, the Rumble 200 v3 is the minimum if you are going to have a drummer.

Fortunately for me, most guitar players close to my age know loud doesn't make you sound better. Many also, realize how much we damaged our hearing playing in our teens and twenties. One of the guitar players who got me back playing after a 40 year hiatus, won't play with a drummer because it bothers his already trouble hearing problems.
 
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#11
So, let me get this straight: The Rumble Club gave the Rumble 200 a glowing review? Wow - I'm shocked. That's like the police investigating themselves and finding no wrongdoing.
So, I set out on the interwebs to get some real information on that Rumble 200. Every site that sells it (Sweetwater, Musicians Friend, Amazon, etc.) has 4-5 very good reviews on that amp. The only negative one I found had nothing to do with the amp.
I'm a hater of all things Fumfer, but I see absolutely no reason why that Rumble 200 would be a bad buy, especially at that price point. I had a Randall 150 watt 15" combo in college, and it worked for home practice, as well as gigging (with a death metal band).
I agree with the feedback on the Orange combo; it will never hold up in a situation with drums. Go for the Rumble or a TC; Guitard Center probably sells both. You can also try a Hartke HyDrive combo, but they're pricier, and the feedback on them at higher volumes isn't so good.
 
#13
I recommend lite, compact, modular and flexible. Something for home and studio and easy to manage if/when a band is in the future. Small to medium gigs as well. Of course great sound.
For me the answer is Aguilar TH500 @ 3.4lbs and 2 Aguilar SL112 cabs @ 25lbs each. Not really cheap IMO (even used) but man-o-man is it easy to make this rig work with most of what I do AND a dream to hump around. While I certainly recommend the Aggi brand there are others that can be had for less that generally achieve the same 4 objectives.
 
#15
I'm in the same spot (well its an upgrade amp) and have really been looking at either the Carvin MB1215 or BX500-210. The MB is a 3 way combo amp with a tweeter, a 6 inch and a 12 inch speaker and the 15 is a 15 inch speaker extension cabinet. It runs at 250 watts. The BX has a 500 watt head attached to a 2 X 10 inch cabinet. They are both in the $500's brand new.
 
#18
lyla1953 said:
I recommend lite, compact, modular and flexible. Something for home and studio and easy to manage if/when a band is in the future. Small to medium gigs as well. Of course great sound.
For me the answer is Aguilar TH500 @ 3.4lbs and 2 Aguilar SL112 cabs @ 25lbs each. Not really cheap IMO (even used) but man-o-man is it easy to make this rig work with most of what I do AND a dream to hump around. While I certainly recommend the Aggi brand there are others that can be had for less that generally achieve the same 4 objectives.
Click to expand...
Many more bucks than the OP's talking, at least so far. And while I think the TH500 is one of the better amps around, I can't say the same for the cabs. Not when there are so many better choices for the bread.
 
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#19
In my experience, a one fifteen is not enough for a live performance. I would recommend you check out your local Craigslist and get a used 410 or something of that nature and get a 300-500 watt header to go with it. I don't know about your area, but you can get a hartke speaker cab and header for a decent price.
 
#20
Lots of good advice in here.

I run a GK 212 MB for gigs (2 guitarists with 1/2 stacks, and a drummer who isn't afraid to pound his drums, but we usually have PA support and everyone runs through it), and at home i have a 15w practice amp, however more often than not, i am just playing into my Mac and using Garage band at home.

Good Luck!
 

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