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GK MB200 vs TC Electronic BQ500

S

SSCBA

Oct 14, 2006
265
10
#1
Hi,
I have a used MB200 (12-15 years) and have the opportunity to sell it and buy a new BQ500.

I don't know if it would be considered an upgrade, specially in terms of reliability and I don't have easy access to direct Warranty where I live, only a 30 day return period.

Have been researching and haven't found any common fails on the BQ500 (other than the inverted active switch and "fixed" clip led on early models). But the cheap price makes me a little wary of it.

Do you consider in the long run would be safer to keep the GK even it's age, or get a new BQ500? Has anybody had experience getting repaired BQ500 or BQ250? Do they just swap the entire board?

Thank you.
 
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#2
Repair for either is simple: take board, throw in trash. Install new board. I haven’t had to do that.

I have both. The MB200 has a bit too much hiss for my taste. The BQ500 is dead silent. Both have been extremely reliable. The MB has taken on the role of permanent backup amp as it’s so small you can just shove it in a cable bag. The GK sounds like a GK and the MB sounds like a studio channel strip.

I wouldn’t sell the 200 to get the TC. It’s a good amp. Best move is to have both.
 
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#4
KevInDaBassment said:
I wouldn't sell it to get the BQ500...but what is lacking on the MB200 that you feel warrants replacing it?

In your shoes, I'd be looking for a used MB500/MB Fusion if I were looking to upgrade wattage and tonal shaping.
Click to expand...
I have two MB500’s and a MB200. There’s more tonal flexibility with the MB500 and a lot more volume. I take both 500’s on a gig; one backs up the other.
 
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#5
I had a BQ250 for a backup and gigged it a few times and was quite impressed. It always performed well, no reliability issues at all and seemed more powerful than 250 watts. When pushed, it had a nice natural compression that I kinda liked, it got a little bouncy like a tube amp. I wasn’t a huge fan of the on board compression tho.
 
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#6
I’ve had a BQ250 as a small practice/low volume gig amp and was quite impressed. I bought the BQ500 and used it as my main head for a while. (I put the 250 into the amp bag as a backup, because people were always talking trash about TC reliability.)

Never had a problem with any of them. I sold my Ampeg V4-BH head (basement amp), replacing it with another BQ500, and aside from the ridiculous size decrease on top of the big cabinet, it’s done the job fine.
 
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#8
Thanks for your replies!

The main reason to consider the "upgrade" is that without adding any extra money I can replace a 15 year old amp with a new one with more than 2X the power.

But my main conerns are:
- Short and long term reliability and repairability.
- If the difference in power is really going to be perceived.

It gets difficult for me to trust the BQ500 given it's cheap price, even though I haven't heard anything bad about it (but it hasn't been on the market for as long as the MB200).

I'm not playing/gigging that much at the moment, so I don't want to spend extra money upgrading, for example, to a bigger GK.
 
#10
I haven't tried many other micro amps, but I will always keep my MB200 around. First time I tried one was in a backline, with an 8x10 fridge, and I was convinced it was a no-brainer to have. I throw it in the car as a backup on the reg, and sometimes I prefer the sound of it to my Legacy. I think the only shortcoming is no ground lift on the DI out (but I use my JDI anyway). Mine is quiet, except for the headphone out--that is hissy.
 
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#12
logdrum said:
I have sour experience with TC amps. I would not recommend them. The Vegas repair center will flat out refuse repairs ( like anything bought from Amamzon - they will just recommend to return to Amazon or any similar bib box stores) and if they do take them after you complain they will not fix them basically return it without being fixed
Click to expand...
Unfortunately, GK doesn’t appear to be repairing or supporting their discontinued amps either. You have to find a qualified (authorized?) repair shop. Someone please correct me if I’m wrong.
 
#13
bass player 53 said:
Unfortunately, GK doesn’t appear to be repairing or supporting their discontinued amps either. You have to find a qualified (authorized?) repair shop. Someone please correct me if I’m wrong.
Click to expand...
Yeah that is true but they are unlikely to break and if he got 15 years out of one, it's all worth it. It looks like it is still working, I would keep it, Saved for a better head other than TC unless you like to throw money. Even it is only 200$. The anger and frustration is not worth it,
 
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#14
Yeah that's one of my questions as well:

Is a 15 year MB200 (with no that much use) more prone to break because of age?

Or if it has passed that test of time should it work properly many years more?
 
#15
SSCBA said:
Yeah that's one of my questions as well:

Is a 15 year MB200 (with no that much use) more prone to break because of age?

Or if it has passed that test of time should it work properly many years more?
Click to expand...
Welcome to my family. I’ve posted this so many times now. I bought the MB200 used, and it was fine. Played it a lot, then stuck it in a case, and not so much. This year, the volume pot started crackling. I sound like a broken record now, but most of the volume pots on all these amps and combos crackle. It’s not as easy as ‘just spray DeOx on it’, and because they are surface mounted, they’re not simple to replace.
My MB200 is 9 years old now.
 

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#16
bass player 53 said:
Unfortunately, GK doesn’t appear to be repairing or supporting their discontinued amps either. You have to find a qualified (authorized?) repair shop. Someone please correct me if I’m wrong.
Click to expand...
Not discontinued, but I gave up trying to get an out-of-warranty GK MB112-II combo fixed. The authorized service center nearest me (about an hour and a half) wanted almost $200 for me to just walk in the door, whether they could fix it or not. I had the matching powered cab too which then became a large paperweight as it only worked with the GK stuff. That's when I switched back to strictly heads and cabs...
 
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#20
bass player 53 said:
Welcome to my family. I’ve posted this so many times now. I bought the MB200 used, and it was fine. Played it a lot, then stuck it in a case, and not so much. This year, the volume pot started crackling. I sound like a broken record now, but most of the volume pots on all these amps and combos crackle. It’s not as easy as ‘just spray DeOx on it’, and because they are surface mounted, they’re not simple to replace.
My MB200 is 9 years old now.
Click to expand...
For scratchy pots, I've had some success by repeatedly moving back and forth each knob.
Don't know if it's the same problem you are having but maybe it's worth a try.
 
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