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Gallien-Krueger MB2-500: Part II

#981
I sent my 00 and got it exchanged for an A05 and it worked great except of the gain input. So I sent it back and it came back repaired still being an A05. The invoice ($0.00) said
1-repaired,
1 Pre Amp,
1 I/O board
replaced listed parts
works great now. I don't have to use the -10db on my passive basses any more.
 
#982
I got my hands on a MB Fusion (a loaner) and I went loud with it last night and did some AB testing with my recently acquired MB-500.

My new MB-500 has a limiter switch on it that the older MB2-500 did not have. The MB-500 clip light is not as sensitive (apparent tweak on the input gain side) and as I understand it the EQ has been slightly tweaked to make it equivalent to the artist series (RB-700) flat setting with the 5 string button engaged.

The Fusion MB has a contour switch to change the center frequency of the scoop (500 and 800Hz). It also has a Presence on / off button and a Deep on /off button.

I played at a friends house with a group that I used to gig with. We do (or used to do) a mix of classic rock and old country. There were two guitars, one playing thru a Buddha 210 and the other playing thru a Marshall 412. PA for vocals and an acoustic guitar. The drummer is pretty heavy handed, hard hitting guy. My bass was a Sadowsky RV5 strung with new Carvin nickels and my cabinents were an Avatar B210 Neo and an Aguilar GS112. I play with fingers (no pick) with very little slap.

I started with the MB Fusion. I set the EQ flat with a preamp tube gain of about 11 o clock. Set the Master to taste and pretty much blew everyone in the room away volume wise. I find that the GK master volume is very sensitive. It took a little while to find the right spot. The sound was a little scooped to my liking and then I realized I had the contour set to about 9 oclock. I turned down the contour and there was a subtle but noticable increase mid range cut. The sound was very big fat and supportive. Playing runs on the D and G strings sounded natural and solid (as in the bottom did not drop out and the notes were well heard). I ended up boosting the lo and hi mids slightly to get a little more boom and cut. When no one was playing the sound was definitly modern but once everyone got loud, it had more of a warm tubey vibe in the mix. The low end was huge. The drummer commented on how cool it was when we got the lock going (big, warm, but tight). Hitting low D and low C felt really great.

I then increased the tube gain to about 2 oclock. The sound went from warm to on the verge of break up but not an all out distortion (think Jack Bruce). It worked in the supportive bass role but I prefered the overall sound with the preamp gain at the lower 11 o clock setting. But it is nice to have the option and a foot switch to kick it in when you want it.

I should note that I did not mess with the Countour (other than the accident at first), the Deep switch, or the Presence switch. There just was not a need in my opinion. Of the three, I think the Presence might have been the most useful and I regret not tweaking with it in hind site. The Deep switch might by useful at lower volumes thru a single cab. I did have limited experience with that at a rehearsal the other night but I did not spend enough time there to make grand conclusions on it.

I then switched over to the MB-500. I started flat and with the Boost setting at 2 oclock. This amp I am famaliar with and this is my tried and true starting point. First I will say my band mates did not really notice much difference. I did however. The Fusion was a little warmer on the low end and a little more balanced on the the upper end runs. But they definitely sounded more similiar than different. I evaluated my original MB2-500 and RB-700 in a moderaltely loud setting without drums which allows for the bass nuances to be more pronounced. In that setting I think the Fusion set flat would have a rounder warmer sound than the MB2-500. However, if you cut some treble on the MB-500 and even use some passive tone control on the bass and cut tweeters, the MB-500 can do warm and round quite nicely.

With both amps I had huge bottom end. The kind that is tight and still hits in the chest. And if you want to play off the back pickup for a more compressed and articulate sound, this amps natural voice does not make back pickup playing sound thin. As I crawled up the neck there was a slight loss of fullness. I suspect this may have something to do with my setup which I will be checking on today, but it is not something I ever noticed playing my EBS HD350. I think that is because these GKs have very strong / pronounced low end which is what I heard in the Guitar Center that led me to GK. The challenge will be to play with the EQ and bass setup to even out the higher register playing. It all sounds very good but is a little shy of that tonal Nirvana in my head.

As for the Fusion versus the MB-500, I will say I am very comfortable with the MB-500 having had it (and its MB2-500 predecessor) since January. I have been able to dial in the sounds I need in varying situations without any appreciable deficiences. In the few hours I have spent with MB Fusion, I did not hear anything that would make me not want to own one, but I did not hear enough difference to make me want to sell the MB-500. In the loud setting they are more alike than they are different. The Fusion may have been a little more balanced going from low to high, but I think I need to retweak my pickup heights on the bass as the primary reason for the inbalance. I think the dual channels on the Fusion may be more useful than the dual channels on the MB-500 because I always want the Boost on when I play the MB-500. With the Fusion you have tweakability on both channels and could even set up the same amount of grit with the same preamp gains and then setup the master volumes differently so you get a a volume boost from the foot pedal. This would be a nice way to go from balads to all out jams without changing your overall harmonic content.
 
#984
banditcosmo said:
I sent my 00 and got it exchanged for an A05 and it worked great except of the gain input. So I sent it back and it came back repaired still being an A05. The invoice ($0.00) said
1-repaired,
1 Pre Amp,
1 I/O board
replaced listed parts
works great now. I don't have to use the -10db on my passive basses any more.
Click to expand...

cool, thanks for the info, gonna send it back this week.
 
#985
I used mine 2 weeks ago and it was perfectly fine... then took it to a Relay for Life benefit @ Pepperdine University and it won't power up at all...
Yes I tried a cable from my MESA M6 and it wouldn't work on the MB2-500....

Probably need to get an RA # and send it back to GK... My only concern is durability... The power switch just broke off once and now this....

Anyone else????
 
#988
First off this is my second MB2 500 and this one is a A02 version. It sounds great with the aguilar DB112s, but I am having a bit of problem with this one. After a few minutes I getting some distortion. I tried different cables, different basses, different cabs, with and without -10db pad and it is still there. The GIVE circuit increases the distortion. I powered down and tried again with both DB112s and it went away, but it comes and goes even with one cab.

Brian from GK speculated it was overpowering a single cab and that is why it went away when I connected both, but with the DB112s rated at 300w and playing at lower volumes I don't think that is it. Any other similar experiences?
 
#989
Saluki said:
First off this is my second MB2 500 and this one is a A02 version. It sounds great with the aguilar DB112s, but I am having a bit of problem with this one. After a few minutes I getting some distortion. I tried different cables, different basses, different cabs, with and without -10db pad and it is still there. The GIVE circuit increases the distortion. I powered down and tried again with both DB112s and it went away, but it comes and goes even with one cab.

Brian from GK speculated it was overpowering a single cab and that is why it went away when I connected both, but with the DB112s rated at 300w and playing at lower volumes I don't think that is it. Any other similar experiences?
Click to expand...

When I was shopping for cabs to match up with my MB2-500, Brian recommended a minimum rating of 350w. So I got my Avatar with the 500w Delta instead of the 300w Neo. I'm sure glad I did!

BTW - I played through my MB2-500 last night (it's an A07). Three and a half hours straight because we had the crowd really going and didn't want to break. It performed flawless and I got great comments on my tone from fellow musicians in the crowd. I can't say enough good things about my MB2-500/Avatar rig.
 
#990
Brubass said:
When I was shopping for cabs to match up with my MB2-500, Brian recommended a minimum rating of 350w. So I got my Avatar with the 500w Delta instead of the 300w Neo. I'm sure glad I did!

BTW - I played through my MB2-500 last night (it's an A07). Three and a half hours straight because we had the crowd really going and didn't want to break. It performed flawless and I got great comments on my tone from fellow musicians in the crowd. I can't say enough good things about my MB2-500/Avatar rig.
Click to expand...

I'm pushing the Avatar B210 Neo (500w) with my MB2 500, and it works great. Which Avatar cab are you using?
 
#994
Update: GK customer service is nothing short of spectacular. I sent my amp in on the 27th of may and hadn't heard anything as of yesterday, so I just sent Brian an email to see how the bench test had faired and when I get home there was a brand new MB 500 setting on my porch. It has the limit swith and everything. Sweet, thanks GK.

I proceed downstairs to run some checks against my shuttle 9.0 and Mesa M6 through a berg AE210 and some aguilar DB112s and I must say out of all the micros I have owned this is my favorite one tone wise. It just works for me. The problem I have had with most micros is I usually compare then against my reference M6 and most dissapoint me after that comparison. I know it is not a true apples to apples, but even considering that are different I always want more out of the micros. For me, if I felt there were not some sacrifices with the micros then there would be no reason to hold onto a 20+ pound conventional amp, but with this head I am tempted. The GK Mb 500 is as close to the tone of the M6 that I have found in a micro and it just smokes. I had a fit of Sadowsky gas (tone starts with the bass right?), and If I have to let this go to fund it, when I am in the micro market I don't have to look any further. I love it paired with the Berg AE cabs:bassist:
 
#995
Saluki said:
Update: GK customer service is nothing short of spectacular. I sent my amp in on the 27th of may and hadn't heard anything as of yesterday, so I just sent Brian an email to see how the bench test had faired and when I get home there was a brand new MB 500 setting on my porch. It has the limit swith and everything. Sweet, thanks GK.

I proceed downstairs to run some checks against my shuttle 9.0 and Mesa M6 through a berg AE210 and some aguilar DB112s and I must say out of all the micros I have owned this is my favorite one tone wise. It just works for me. The problem I have had with most micros is I usually compare then against my reference M6 and most dissapoint me after that comparison. I know it is not a true apples to apples, but even considering that are different I always want more out of the micros. For me, if I felt there were not some sacrifices with the micros then there would be no reason to hold onto a 20+ pound conventional amp, but with this head I am tempted. The GK Mb 500 is as close to the tone of the M6 that I have found in a micro and it just smokes. I had a fit of Sadowsky gas (tone starts with the bass right?), and If I have to let this go to fund it, when I am in the micro market I don't have to look any further. I love it paired with the Berg AE cabs:bassist:
Click to expand...

I would agree that the MB500 is in the same tone family as the M6.. HUGE low end, polite low mids, and a very, very, very bright voicing in the lower treble extending WAY up into the sizzle range. It is probably the most 'goosed' voicing of all the micro's I've tried, and that extremely wide tone(almost like the old SWR's that had the lo pass and hi pass filters virtually 'off') is pretty cool if you love the 'boom and sizzle'. It's almost like it has a built in 'contour/enhance' control voicing, like the M6.

Not my thing, but it is a cool voicing, and the GK 'grind' comes through nicely in the upper mids. The tight, mid punchy tone of the Bergantino AE cabs (which I think you are using) was a nice yin yang with that voicing.. the cab punched up the head a bit, and the head widened the AE down low, and extended the top end nicely.

If you remember that quick and dirty comparison clip I had up a while back, it is the first micro that made my F1/F500 sound 'dark' in comparison.
 

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