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Forte or Puma 900?

#21
I own a Forte, a Subway D-800 and a Puma 500, which is obviously not the 900, but I can make some observations. The Forte just kills with my Berg CN-112 pair. The cabs sounded great with both other heads, but the Berg+Berg pairing is off the hook. It is a simple, very clean amp, and experimenting with the VRC (compressor) is where the magic is, at least for me. I would agree that I like the form factor better on the other two amps. The Subway is indeed a little warmer/darker than the other two, and it is built like a tank, which I love. I pair it with a Subway 15, and the results are terrific; it is my "one cab" gig rig. The Tecamp is also super clean, and the "Taste" knob is a brilliant tone shaping tool. The 500 has no fan, and I agree that the 900 will be happier with the fan, since I managed to put the 500 into protection (no sound) a couple times, but that was with a band that likes to play way too loud. All 3 of these are high quality amplifiers that have run without any problems whatsoever for me. I did not have the same reliability with G-K, having owned both an MB-500 Fusion and an MB-800, although those were both bought used, while the ones I am discussing were all new. I think the most important factor tone-wise is the match between the amp and the cabs, and I have not played a Fearful, so I cannot comment that way. My gut feeling is that the Forte is super impressive sounding and very powerful, and it would be hard to make a mistake buying one. The resale value is likely to be better than the Puma. Good luck!
 
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#22
petch said:
I own a Forte, a Subway D-800 and a Puma 500, which is obviously not the 900, but I can make some observations. The Forte just kills with my Berg CN-112 pair. The cabs sounded great with both other heads, but the Berg+Berg pairing is off the hook. It is a simple, very clean amp, and experimenting with the VRC (compressor) is where the magic is, at least for me. I would agree that I like the form factor better on the other two amps. The Subway is indeed a little warmer/darker than the other two, and it is built like a tank, which I love. I pair it with a Subway 15, and the results are terrific; it is my "one cab" gig rig. The Tecamp is also super clean, and the "Taste" knob is a brilliant tone shaping tool. The 500 has no fan, and I agree that the 900 will be happier with the fan, since I managed to put the 500 into protection (no sound) a couple times, but that was with a band that likes to play way too loud. All 3 of these are high quality amplifiers that have run without any problems whatsoever for me. I did not have the same reliability with G-K, having owned both an MB-500 Fusion and an MB-800, although those were both bought used, while the ones I am discussing were all new. I think the most important factor tone-wise is the match between the amp and the cabs, and I have not played a Fearful, so I cannot comment that way. My gut feeling is that the Forte is super impressive sounding and very powerful, and it would be hard to make a mistake buying one. The resale value is likely to be better than the Puma. Good luck!
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The used forte sold before I could but it, so now I am debating if i should wait for another forte to pop up used (in Canada, not often in happens) or pull the trigger on the puma. i had a mb500 and no reliability issues. how was tone and volume with the puma 500 vs mbf 500?
 
#26
I've owned/gigged most of the amps mentioned so far. The Puma is hard to beat for the size, and the taste knob can be quite useful. If you found the D800 on the dark side, you might want to consider the WD800. I still have a D800 as my backup, but the WD800 has a lot of tone shaping capabilities. I sold my Forte (which is another great amp) for the WD800 and haven't regretted it. The Mesa has a bit more edge to it out of the box. Hints at GK without going quite as aggressive.
 
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#27
nostatic said:
I've owned/gigged most of the amps mentioned so far. The Puma is hard to beat for the size, and the taste knob can be quite useful. If you found the D800 on the dark side, you might want to consider the WD800. I still have a D800 as my backup, but the WD800 has a lot of tone shaping capabilities. I sold my Forte (which is another great amp) for the WD800 and haven't regretted it. The Mesa has a bit more edge to it out of the box. Hints at GK without going quite as aggressive.
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@nostatic how much brighter did you find the puma over the d800?
 
#28
A little bit. I don't find the D800 to be dark - it is all relative. It certainly is darker out of the box than a typical GK head, and the WD800 has a bit more edge and zing (all set flat, which isn't necessarily flat).

I liked the Puma - had a 500 and a 900. If you need the smallest possible gig-worthy and good sounding amp, I think that is the call. That said, the 900 costs the same new as the WD800, and I'd choose the Mesa every day of the week due to the increased flexibility. Just depends on what features are most important to you.
 
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#29
nostatic said:
A little bit. I don't find the D800 to be dark - it is all relative. It certainly is darker out of the box than a typical GK head, and the WD800 has a bit more edge and zing (all set flat, which isn't necessarily flat).

I liked the Puma - had a 500 and a 900. If you need the smallest possible gig-worthy and good sounding amp, I think that is the call. That said, the 900 costs the same new as the WD800, and I'd choose the Mesa every day of the week due to the increased flexibility. Just depends on what features are most important to you.
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Totally hear you.
New the puma wouldn’t be in the conversation. But used it’s half the price. If the Mesa has been brighter I would have kept it. Almost sounded like a towel had been placed over my cab. Awesome sound for some stuff but not my cup of jo. Think the puma is halfway between Mesa and GK?
 
#30
arca_tern said:
Totally hear you.
New the puma wouldn’t be in the conversation. But used it’s half the price. If the Mesa has been brighter I would have kept it. Almost sounded like a towel had been placed over my cab. Awesome sound for some stuff but not my cup of jo. Think the puma is halfway between Mesa and GK?
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That's one way to think about it. I had a GK Fusion head and found I needed to run the treble about 9:00 and hi mids around 10:00 to get close to a sound that is "flat" to me (ie my starting point). The Puma I would usually run flat and use the taste knob to tweak. Everyone has different ears, gear, and technique that impacts things as well.
 
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#31
A friend of mine plays the Forte and says it the best amp he ever played. He's a powerful player though as one of his bands is a Who Tribute band. His sound just rips. It's an aggressive tone for sure, but I'm sure he can tame the beast when he wants. That's the thing, you can tame a beast but you can't make a beast if the amp isn't up to it. That immediate and thunderous response, not all amps are up to it.
 
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#32
Best part, Puma fits perfectly in 80s cassette case lol
image.jpeg
 
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#34
nostatic said:
A little bit. I don't find the D800 to be dark - it is all relative. It certainly is darker out of the box than a typical GK head, and the WD800 has a bit more edge and zing (all set flat, which isn't necessarily flat).

I liked the Puma - had a 500 and a 900. If you need the smallest possible gig-worthy and good sounding amp, I think that is the call. That said, the 900 costs the same new as the WD800, and I'd choose the Mesa every day of the week due to the increased flexibility. Just depends on what features are most important to you.
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Nostatic, Have you had a chance to try the Forte HP by any chance? I also demo'd the Forte and liked it, but I LOVE the Mesa WD-800. I've gigged my Mesa WD-800 at least a dozen different venues and the tone shaping is superb. It never fails to let me down. KILLS with Bergantino Ref 210/112 stack. Absolutely best bass sound I've ever had. I also use a pair of Bergantino HDN112's stacked and that kicks booty too.
 
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#37
GRoberts said:
Have you had a chance to try the Forte HP by any chance? I also demo'd the Forte and liked it, but I LOVE the Mesa WD-800. I've gigged my Mesa WD-800 at least a dozen different venues and the tone shaping is superb. It never fails to let me down. KILLS with Bergantino Ref 210/112 stack. Absolutely best bass sound I've ever had. I also use a pair of Bergantino HDN112's stacked and that kicks booty too.
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I haven't tried the HP - the WD-800 pretty much does anything I ask it to do. I have been curious about what it would sound like with the HDN210, as I love the form-factor of that cabinet. I had an AE210 back in the day...
 

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