First bass amp suggestion

[Marcin_3005]

Hi, I need some help with choosing my first bass amp. My choice is between Yamaha Thr10 and Fender Rumble 100. I want to play with a band as soon as possible so the fender seems to be the best option but I live in a small apartment an need to know if it wouldn't be too loud.

 

[el murdoque]

Well, with the Yamaha you get something for playing on the kitchen table without the next room hearing.
From those people who tried it on bass, I head pleasant things. It seems it sounds okay. It reaches a tiny bit more than bedroom volume, but it's clearly not meant to be used to play with others.

With the Rumble you get an amp that is right in the middle.
It's too small to be considered a serious amp and it cannot be expanded with a second cab. The volume you can reach with it in a living room is loud enough to make the neighbors two doors over call the cops, though.
If you're planning on using it for small stuff like coffeehouse gigs, where you have percussion and acoustic guitars, it's a great amp - the 12" can provide enough foundation and it's a lightweight, too.
If you're thinking about using it in a real band with drums and electric guitars, you will only make it work if the room is good enough and the others are able to keep their volume down.

 

[Marcin_3005]

Well, with the Yamaha you get something for playing on the kitchen table without the next room hearing.
From those people who tried it on bass, I head pleasant things. It seems it sounds okay. It reaches a tiny bit more than bedroom volume, but it's clearly not meant to be used to play with others.

With the Rumble you get an amp that is right in the middle.
It's too small to be considered a serious amp and it cannot be expanded with a second cab. The volume you can reach with it in a living room is loud enough to make the neighbors two doors over call the cops, though.
If you're planning on using it for small stuff like coffeehouse gigs, where you have percussion and acoustic guitars, it's a great amp - the 12" can provide enough foundation and it's a lightweight, too.
If you're thinking about using it in a real band with drums and electric guitars, you will only make it work if the room is good enough and the others are able to keep their volume down.

Do you have any other suggestion in the budget of rumble 100 that would be good in bedroom and rehearsal levels?

 

[el murdoque]

You need to define what 'rehearsal levels' means for you.
If you want to play metal with downtuned guitars playing 150W halfstacks you need a different amp than what a bluegrass combo playing unamplified would call for ...

 

[Marcin_3005]

I'm more into r&b, soul and funk.

 

[Ralf1e]

That can get pretty loud. Save your money until you can afford what you need or you end up buying twice and so on.

 

[dbase]

You'll never be satisfied with enough bass power. Start with a used 200 watt amp and a 2x10 cab, see how that goes. You can always upgrade. Oh, by the way. It will never end. You will be buying more and more gear as the years go by. Trust me. Just another tip from your old uncle Dbase

 

[buldog5151bass]

Every bass has a volume control.

Rumble is a decent amp for the money, a d has a decent vintage tone. But if your goal is to be playing with a band, better to get the 500.

 

[CallMeAl]

Of the two, Rumble 100. I used it as a gig amp for a few years and it’s still my rehearsal amp. Little sucker gets loud! But no worries on too loud- between gain, master, and bass guitar volume knob, you’ll have plenty of control.

if you can shop used, and bump up to a 15” combo (like an Ampeg BA 115) you’ll get a little more presence for rehearsals.

 

[TexasThunder]

I have the rumble 100 and it’s a great practice amp but it’s no full band amp. Full band meaning traditional acoustic drum set, lead electric guitar, rhythm acoustic guitar, and me on bass.

I also have the rumble 500 and it doesn’t go above half on volume or gain and keeps up great. Awesome combo amp.

For quiet playing, both of the rumbles have an aux in and headphone jack. So that’s what I’d recommend.

The 500 will do everything you want. The 100 won’t. Good luck with it either way!

 

[Marcin_3005]

What about the Eden Terra Nova TN 2251? It has 250 watts and a headphone output. Also I'd like to know if it can get as quiet as rumble 100. I've been playing an electric guitar for quite some time and 100W 12" guitar combo was more than enough for my needs but I'm totally new in the bass world so I don't really know what speaker size/how much watts would be right for me.

 

[Phlipper]

For the price of the Rumble 100 you can find a larger used combo with a DI that will carry a band or at least serve as a stage monitor and go to the PA. I downsized from a stadium rig to a simple Hartke KB12 and that's all I need. Check those out or other combos with a DI.

Or if you don't mind the weight, you can find an older red stripe Peavey TNT or white panel Combo (that's the actual name) that will still be going when you die of old age and is loud enough to kill small animals. Yet the volume pot will make it as quiet as you need ... all the way to 0.

Once you get your 'stage legs' under you, THEN you can go spend $2000 to $3000 on the latest handcrafted whiz-bang head and cab that will surely be suggested any minute now.

 

[Marcin_3005]

For the price of the Rumble 100 you can find a larger used combo with a DI that will carry a band or at least serve as a stage monitor and go to the PA. I downsized from a stadium rig to a simple Hartke KB12 and that's all I need. Check those out or other combos with a DI.

Or if you don't mind the weight, you can find an older red stripe Peavey TNT or Combo (that's the actual name) that will still be going when you die of old age and is loud enough to kill small animals.

Once you get your 'stage legs' under you, THEN you can go spend $2000 to $3000 on the latest handcrafted whiz-bang head and cab that will surely be suggested any minute now.

I know that I can get something bigger but I want it to also be my practice amp. The hartke seems to be really nice but again I need to know if it can be played at apartment levels.

 

[Phlipper]

I know that I can get something bigger but I want it to also be my practice amp. The hartke seems to be really nice but again I need to know if it can be played in apartment levels.

Ummm ... not trying to be a smartass ... but you realize they all have a volume knob? On most amps there is zero sound at 0 on the dial, and as you roll it up the sound kicks in, usually at a very low volume.

Unless it is a PV classic 30 which goes from 0 level to bedroom volume asap.

 

[Marcin_3005]

Ummm ... not trying to be a smartass ... but you realize they all have a volume knob? On most amps there is zero sound at 0 on the dial, and as you roll it up the sound kicks in, usually at a very low volume.

Unless it is a PV classic 30 which goes from 0 level to bedroom volume asap.

I come from the electric guitar world and I've never owned a bass amp. There are lots of high wattage guitar amps that sound like crap in really low volumes and also there is no way that you could play something like a 12" fender hot rod deluxe in a comfortable small apartment volumes. That's why I'm asking all of these questions (sorry if they seem to be stupid).

 

[Nebadon2000]

Once you get your 'stage legs' under you, THEN you can go spend $2000 to $3000 on the latest handcrafted whiz-bang head and cab that will surely be suggested any minute now.

Yes, Just get a Mesa TT800 with 2 Subway 1x15 now and save all that cash and time buying amps working up to the Mesa Rig and use aux in and headphone out to practice at home.

To answer OP question The Rumble 100 will work for low volume playing using contour and vintage buttons and will get by in most rehearsals for gig's not so much, maybe your cousins birthday party in his family room.

May want to look at for new Peavey Max300 2x10 or Max208 2x8 or for used Rumble 500, Markbass CMD 121P or similar.

 

[BassFalcon]

I know that I can get something bigger but I want it to also be my practice amp. The hartke seems to be really nice but again I need to know if it can be played at apartment levels.

As long as it has a volume knob any amp can be played at apartment levels. I use a 700 watt Tonehammer to practice while my family and two napping beagles are 15 feet away in the other room watching TV and talking. The volume knob on an SVT also goes to zero, it’s just a matter of using it. You mentioned you were a guitar player. Bass amps are not guitar amps, you will not need to crank your amp to get “your tone” You want as much power as you can afford, it’s always better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it. It’s hard to know if the rumble will be right for you. I had a 140watt Hartke combo with a 15 in it. That was all I could afford at the time, I played many loud rock shows with it and then took it to college where I used it with a 19 piece Big Band. The big band was a bit much and it ended up with smoke billowing out the front a couple times because I was pushing it too hard but that was after years of redlining it. 100 watts will get you surprisingly far. It’s funny, when I was young the rule of thumb was you needed 100 watts minimum to be heard with a drummer, now that number has inflated to 500. As I said more is always better, and buy more if you can, but the way the math works is that it takes 10x the power to sound 2x as loud. So a 1000 watt amp will only sound 2x louder than a 100 watt amp. But that 100 watt amp is gonna be darn loud. I think that rumble has an extension cab Jack too, so maybe go for that now and add speakers later if you need them.

 

[Sid the Kid]

If you want something that will sound great and fill the room with *polite* bass I suggest checking out a Phil Jones bass combo. At first glance they will appear expensive and small, but when you hear it the cost will be justified. Actual room filling bass that you can have a conversation over. Clear and clean and deep without being louder than a cranked TV.

The smaller Phil Jones offerings would have a tough time keeping up with loud musicians, but an amp for the apartment and an amp for the stage are 2 different things entirely. I spend more time playing and rehearsing alone than I do with my band mates, so a good bit of my budget went to having a very pleasing tone to keep me motivated.

 

[Phlipper]

I come from the electric guitar world and I've never owned a bass amp. There are lots of high wattage guitar amps that sound like crap in really low volumes and also there is no way that you could play something like a 12" fender hot rod deluxe in a comfortable small apartment volumes. That's why I'm asking all of these questions (sorry if they seem to be stupid).

Ahhh ... I got ya now. I was solely lead guitar till about 12 years ago. Lots to learn when I started thumping. Most SS bass amps sound fine at very low volumes, unlike my tubed babies.

 

[Phlipper]

Yes, Just get a Mesa TT800 with 2 Subway 1x15 now and save all that cash and time buying amps working up to the Mesa Rig and use aux in and headphone out to practice at home.

He will get one of those suggested for real I bet.

TGP is the worst for this. Some kid will ask about a beginner amp under a specific budget number and half the responses are gonna be booteek amps costing thousands. Basically ... you should just quit until you can afford my fav flavor of the week high dollar whizbang tube amp made by elves in Sweden.