HEY no pictures of doody allowed!!oh heck! you clearly DIDN'T EVEN READ THE TITLE!
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For Fun: Suppose SUNN came back and...
- Thread starter MEKer
- Start date
oh heck! you clearly DIDN'T EVEN READ THE TITLE!
I read it. Pipe dreams aside, the brand “cominging back” would be no different from when fender owned it. Sound city is back now. Owned by Fryette and has no association to the original.
i wonder why i can't just comment my wish about sunn, and not be pounced on. smh
My first 'real' amp was a Sunn 1x15 combo, SB 160 I think. Here's a tb thread about them:
Opinions on Sunn SB160 Bass combo, post CBS
It wasn't powerful enough to keep up with the drummer in the punk band I was in so eventually got rid of it for a 2x15 cab and an acoustic head. My dream though was to have a giant tube head from Sunn or Trace, back then those were considered far out of reach of this minimum wage earning high schooler.
Opinions on Sunn SB160 Bass combo, post CBS
It wasn't powerful enough to keep up with the drummer in the punk band I was in so eventually got rid of it for a 2x15 cab and an acoustic head. My dream though was to have a giant tube head from Sunn or Trace, back then those were considered far out of reach of this minimum wage earning high schooler.
Only if they’d offer Coliseum Bass and 880 heads with: 1-15 , 2-15 horns and 1-18 Coliseum folded horns all
speakers neo and light weight cabs
So my fantasy!
I am inheriting a Sunn Sorado head and matching 2x15 cabinet from a brother that just passed away. He bought it used in the late 70's and I used it in the mid 80's when I started playing. I gave it back to him around 1991. If memory serves over the next few years he replaced the tubes, added a grounded power cord and replaced the speakers...although I don't have any details about the components he used. I should have it in my hands around the end of the month. I'm interested in playing through it, because to my 15 year old ears, it was great. Now a few years later (I just turned 47), I've owned original trace Elliot, mesa boogie, hartke, fender, ampeg, GK and markbass gear. I'm gonna guess it'll make me tingle like it used to, but probably for more emotional reasons.
Nope. The only possible reincarnation of Sunn I could see as viable would be if Fender used the name to put out some custom shop version of the 200s and 2000s, all handwired, like the newer '64 Custom Deluxe. Be there custom bass amp marquee. That's the only way they could come close to the originals. And people would complain about the price without realizing that when new, the 2000s rig cost $1995 in 1969 (or $14,000 adjusted for inflation), they'd sell very few, and the brand would go dormant again. Personally, I don't think there's anything out there terribly similar on the market (HiFi based big-iron tube head), but there are still enough of the old ones kicking about for those who want one to get one. The other problem is JBL doesn't make the drivers anymore, and that's a huge part of the Sunn sound. Sure, Fender had Eminence make JBL clones for their 65 Twin Custom 15, so maybe they could get some halfway decent D/K/E-140 drivers, but I sort of doubt they'd be quite up to snuff.
As for the SS side of things, 500/1000w and I'm guessing you're looking at class D, which would likely be a major turn off to the devotees of the classic SS Sunns. The whole je ne sais quoi of the Coliseum and Concert is that they are relatively low wattage old SS lead-sleds, so a 500/1000w version isn't really fitting. Plus, those amps sell for pretty dirt cheap, new ones, especially ones that don't capture the spirit, wouldn't be able to compete in the market place
Sunn lives in the domain of crushing stage rigs, which sadly lack a place in most modern music.
As for the SS side of things, 500/1000w and I'm guessing you're looking at class D, which would likely be a major turn off to the devotees of the classic SS Sunns. The whole je ne sais quoi of the Coliseum and Concert is that they are relatively low wattage old SS lead-sleds, so a 500/1000w version isn't really fitting. Plus, those amps sell for pretty dirt cheap, new ones, especially ones that don't capture the spirit, wouldn't be able to compete in the market place
Sunn lives in the domain of crushing stage rigs, which sadly lack a place in most modern music.
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Years ago I emailed Conrad and asked if build plans were available for 1-18vh ( which in my Acoustic Control loving mind thinks the Sunn folded Horn sounds better)
He kindly replied No
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Here is one of my favorite cabs of all time. When it came out I thought it looked so futuristic. Sunn 215B.
Not really pouncing
Hey 400 or 500 watts into a 4x12 is beautiful thing , great idea.
And a " Real" Sunn badge is a beautiful thing as well.
Powerful amps are dime a dozen it's just not what sunns all about. As mentioned that dream already came true sunn 1200 is a horrible piece powerful crap that ran the brand into the ground. Plenty Sunn 4x12 and powerful amps with no life.
Now if you told me Conrad was making brand new exact copy 2000s I'd pee my pants and run around like a kid just got free ice cream
It's all about massive stacks of speakers and quads of 6550 tube being nailed into submission of gorgeous tone. Something a overpowered 500/ 600 watt amp just don't do. There is preamp gooberage and pedal drive gooberage but. Mean saturation or grind from 80 to 180 watt tube love is " Sunn"
Jessup is doing some 2000S stuff, they've got an order page up for a full voltage pedal pre at least. They might do a full 2000S reissue as a custom order. Verellen had one up on their instagram page as well. Not a ton of demand for an amp you can find on the used market for cheaper than what it would cost to build I'd think.
Nah man. I want something smaller than my double 410 rig that competes in volume and quality.
Because every finite little detail on Talkbass has been honed to an artform whether agreeable or not. You should go over to the folded horn thread and see all the disagreement and animated discussion going on. I've learned to quickly digest what I find helpful and consider the rest flak or "static."
D
