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Genz Benz Streamliner-Pt 2
- Thread starter Chef
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All the way with you on that one & I've been doing it for years with my SVT4Pro. Friends always ask me how I get so much clean growly sweet low end with my bass knob just a quarter of the way up. I tell them it's all in the low mids! But the reality of me selling my entire Ampeg 4pro 810E rig for a Genz is gona keep me up at night. I've got gas like crazy for a STL900... I'm loosing my mind & Ed Friedland just added mad beans to my gas attack! Woe is me...
All the way with you on that one & I've been doing it for years with my SVT4Pro. Friends always ask me how I get so much clean growly sweet low end with my bass knob just a quarter of the way up. I tell them it's all in the low mids! But the reality of me selling my entire Ampeg 4pro 810E rig for a Genz is gona keep me up at night. I've got gas like crazy for a STL900... I'm loosing my mind & Ed Friedland just added mad beans to my gas attack! Woe is me...
I sold my 810E, SVT-II, and a Peavey tube head in the past month. I didn't need them. The one that's tearing me up is selling my Genz Benz 610 XB2. I don't want to let that cab go. However, I do the same as you and boost the low mids so 30 watts can actually carry me for a show with my Bag End 410.
If you're looking to get punched in the ear, get a Genz cab. I turned my SVT-II to 10 through it and that's how I felt. Like some a-hole had just come up and somehow punched me in the eardrum.
I ordered my Streamliner 900 from my local Mom & Pop store last Friday (for $749 !!!!!) and it will be here tomorrow!!!!
Can you please pm me their email too? Very interes
ted...
Can you please pm me their email too? Very interes
That's an amazing price on this head!
Can you please pm me their email too? Very interes
It sure goes to show what the markup is on stuff, huh?
That $729 is a killer deal and I'm still waiting for my PM as well if it's of any consolation
It sure goes to show what the markup is on stuff, huh?
That $729 is a killer deal and I'm still waiting for my PM as well if it's of any consolation
I think wholesale is typically 50% of the MSRP, with most retail stores selling at about a 30% mark-up to cover their costs and make a little after tax profit (i.e., the ubiquitous 20% discount at retail). I can't believe Genz would be thrilled to have one of their retailers bottoming out the pricing of an amp right at introduction, but they would have little control over that.
On a side note, after reading the manual, nice touch that the input impedance is 1Mohm (I think their other heads have the more typical 500Kohms input impedance.. similar to most heads out there). This is a bit over my head, but I believe passive basses 'prefer' a relatively high impedance input for the most full range tone and performance (i.e. less top end roll-off, and I think less pickup 'loading'... might have that wrong though). That fits nicely with the sort of 'vintage' vibe of this amp.
KJung said:
Confused, wouldn't less top end rolloff be more "modern" of a tone? Isn't that why everyone cuts out the tweet and rolls back the treble for the vintage sound? Just curious. How does pickup loading come into play as I am very ignorant of how that effects end tonal results (I knew too long instrument cord can "dull" the tone some) Thanks
I'm not talking about modern top end zing, but rather less pickup loading, which can dull and deaden the tone. However, I am also over my head here, and maybe making too much about it. I do know though, that a buffered signal (like the one coming out of a bass with an active preamp) is not really impacted by capacitance (i.e., cable length or type) or input impedance. Passive basses are though, and I believe a higher input impedance (and even a lower capacitance cable or shorter cable length... i.e., under 20 feet) can provide a more nature top end.
Probably pretty subtle, but just noting the 'attention to detail' on the spec of this amp.
Maybe Agedhorse can 'clean up my mess' regarding this topic
No mess really Ken, I was enjoying talking about the amp again. Having hard time waiting for delivery ya know 
I was wondering after reading manual, why does just the mid controller go through a tube and not bass/treble?
I was wondering after reading manual, why does just the mid controller go through a tube and not bass/treble?
It sure goes to show what the markup is on stuff, huh?
That $729 is a killer deal and I'm still waiting for my PM as well if it's of any consolation
You have PM
No mess really Ken, I was enjoying talking about the amp again. Having hard time waiting for delivery ya know
I was wondering after reading manual, why does just the mid controller go through a tube and not bass/treble?
I'll let the Genz guys handle that one. Not sure if it is just that they emphasize the tube in the midrange in the manual, or if it has to do with the Baxandall/Bandaxall (if I spelled that correctly... you know what I mean) bass and treble controls being a different kind of beast.
Not sure I agree with this...why would Genz care what the dealers and retailers sell them out at? The dealer price is the same, so Genz make their money, and with such a low end user price they will shift more so everyone wins. The only person losing out is the dealer who tries to stick to the MSRP.
It's all about price point to the consumer, brand image, and not having one dealer extremely undercutting others. Marketing 101. Again, Genz profit is obviously the same no matter what a dealer does, but an extremely low price point, along with a pricing battle among retailers and a 'perception of low cost' in the market place can kind of undermine what a brand is trying to communicate.
And, no dealer 'sticks to the MSRP'... most stick to the 20-25% or so discount level.
Again, uber price cutting is great to the consumer in the short run, but can hurt the dealership (lower profits) and brand imagery in the long run.
I'm not sure a manufacturer can control how low the gear is sold for. That would be Price Fixing and tends to be seen as illegal.
However, the manufacturer can likely control the advertised price. This special low price offering is not advertised, and only extended to "their customers" - some existing & some new. In either case, special discounts can always be offered to retain customers.
This "Small Mom and Pop" outfit is listed on GB's site as an authorized dealer.
Making money by volume or limited number of sales, is really left up to the dealer to decide how they want to sell product.
Take it for what it's worth.
Mesa does it all the time. I believe if a dealer sells below Mesa's list price, Mesa pulls them as a dealer.
The way some shops get around it is either not charging tax or highly discounting other items purchased at the same time.
I think I read somewhere the problem with one dealer selling a product at close to cost is that they may not provide very good customer service (because they cannot afford to). A couple things can happen from there -
- The customer service burden gets shifted to the manufacturer.
- Dealers that provide good customer service, but cannot compete on price stop carrying the brand or go out of business.
Not my area of expertise, but, like I said, I think I read that somewhere.
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