Hartke HD500 2x10 combo

[Iofflight]

I honestly can't answer that. I have mine in a home studio and have never played it out. I can only state that I tried to read everything I could on it, though there was limited information due to how new it is, and from what I could ascertain it has quite enough power to handle small/medium venues. I chose it because it sounded better to me than the Rumble and GK in the same class. At home I never go past the 4 on the volume and I'm using rather low volume, darker Bartolini Pickups. I did have a 5 string for a short while and I thought it handled the B string quite nicely not flubby or farty at all but I also didn't turn it up to 11 either.

Here was a review from a gigging musician on Sweetwater that I caught that mentioned venue size.

"Been waiting for this baby to come out now for a few months and finally got my hands on it last week (thanks to Matt at Sweetwater pre-order). Been using a Hartke A-100 now for about 4 years for the small/medium venues and it's never failed me yet - now using it as a backup. This new model is over twice the power at 500 Watts (250 RMS). It's got some definite punch with the 10" HyDrive speakers over the older A-100 straight aluminum 15" cone. It also comes in at about 15-20 lbs less weight so it's a piece of cake to carry gig to gig... Have all EQs pretty much set flat with a little treble boost for some of the Orbison/Doobie Bros. stuff. Haven't even needed to fiddle with the "shape control" at all. Can't get the thing turned up much past 3 without the guitar player and drummer complaining that I'm starting to drown them out... Since getting this amp, I haven't yet had to work any outdoor venues, but I think I might have to question even needing to use and lug my big Hartke LH1000/4x10 HyDrive any longer for the big gigs!"

 

[Mike151]

[QUOTE="Here was a review from a gigging musician on Sweetwater that I caught that mentioned venue size.

"Been waiting for this baby to come out now for a few months and finally got my hands on it last week (thanks to Matt at Sweetwater pre-order). Been using a Hartke A-100 now for about 4 years for the small/medium venues and it's never failed me yet - now using it as a backup. This new model is over twice the power at 500 Watts (250 RMS). It's got some definite punch with the 10" HyDrive speakers over the older A-100 straight aluminum 15" cone. It also comes in at about 15-20 lbs less weight so it's a piece of cake to carry gig to gig... Have all EQs pretty much set flat with a little treble boost for some of the Orbison/Doobie Bros. stuff. Haven't even needed to fiddle with the "shape control" at all. Can't get the thing turned up much past 3 without the guitar player and drummer complaining that I'm starting to drown them out... Since getting this amp, I haven't yet had to work any outdoor venues, but I think I might have to question even needing to use and lug my big Hartke LH1000/4x10 HyDrive any longer for the big gigs!"[/QUOTE]

Hmm.... This one post might be enough to get me to buy it as a speculation purchase. I'm hauling a SWR Megaliath 8X10 with a SWR 750 head. Back breaking for the few feet that I need to carry it but in smaller venues, It just eats up real estate on the stage meaning sometimes I can't just tuck it back in a corner. The last gig, I had to place it in front of the drummer which was horrible for the drummer. Complains when he hears me too loud and complains when he can't hear me well enough. Bass Player=Sound man? Any way, I think I might just give this a test drive.

 

[Iofflight]

There is one used for 399 at guitar center. I picked mine up for 375 at GC on a lark. It cost 50 bucks to ship to northern CA. I don't live near any GC so I couldn't use the ship to a different location and pick it up there option..

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[basss]

I picked one of these up a few days ago. I like it so far but I won't be able to get it out on a gig for another couple weeks. Sounds fat punchy and focused in my practice room. I think it should do well on medium gigs.

 

[sonojono]

Can’t wait to try the amp out. I’m stuck between the HD500 or the recently NEW Fender Stage 800 watt.

 

[basss]

I'm gigging with mine for the first time tonight. I'll post after the show.

 

[basss]

The HD500 did great on the gig last night. We played on a medium sized stage in a casino with PA support. It was a Steely Dan cover band, with 3 vocals, 4 horns, guitar, keys, drums playing moderately loud. No bass in the monitors.

I've played that room maybe 10 times in the past with an Acoustic Image head and LDS 15/5 with Faital drivers (total cost about twice as much) so the combo had a lot to live up to. I had the volume up half way and was easily loud enough. The sound was full and fat, with a nice punch but maybe not quite as detailed or deep as my other rig. I didn't test the volume limits but my sense is that it doesn't have the capacity of my other rig.

I really like the super simple EQ and single volume knob. It made quick adjustments on the gig easy. The EQ does what you'd expect it to. The sound man used the on board DI and it seemed to work fine.

Load in was super easy. The shallow cabinet makes it easy to schlep and it fits in the trunk of my hatchback with my bass, which was one of the big draws for me. I got a basically new unit on a deep scratch and dent discount - not sure I'd pay full price since I already have a nice rig that will do the job. I will keep it though - it's a killer combo for grab and go situations that can provide a satisfying sound with a pretty loud band.

 

[Funkmabassup]

I have a Hartke HD500 as my backup/grab&go amp and will tell you my experiences:

Main band, progressive/experimental rocktrio, guitarist uses a fender deville 4x10 which is extremely loud. In this band the hd500 didnt cut it at all, in matter of fact I barely could hear myself and so was my bandmates. Although im now using a a very powerful rig in this band, I have earlier used both fender rumble 500combo and Gallien Krueger MB212 combo, both did cut it volume-wise

Band 2, original 70ish rockband: 2 guitarists using marshall 2x12 amps and hard-hitting drummer. In this band the hd500 actually kept up when Im pushing it. I have the volume-knob around 60% which basically is max of what it can handle, after that it only compresses more the more I turn it up, loud notes and deep notes wont get louder after around that 1oclock setting, also deep notes are on the verge of farting out. That being said while I had too push it, at least it sounds good with this band, nice filling lows and a bit of sparkle up top

Verdict: Its a light, portable very nice sounding combo but not the most powerful, certanly not as powerful as a Rumble 500 which is very loud(but sounds like crap) and also not as powerful as a markbass 2x10. One other thing worth mention about the Hartke hd500 is it does compress alot when pushing it above 50% Loud notes just run out peakvolume(loud slaps and pops dont stand out and sound overcompressed) and my quiet notes seems too be boosted, dynamics is fairly reduced at this point. In my opinion it sounds really really good on lower volumes, better than many other cheap combos, its a bit scooped in the high-mids with a nice bump in the low mids which fats out the sound, the highs sounds very good for a non-tweetered unit.
I guess If you play in acoustic settings, average volume bands like jazz or soul-ensambles and music which is not often at earplug-volumes this combo is really nice, one of the better sounding actually

 

[Iofflight]

Thank you for that input. I really got it as a practice amp for my 9x12 room, and I think if I played out I'd be comfortable in a small to medium venue but not if I was going toe to toe with a guitarist doing metal or progressive/heavy rock with a 4x10 amp.

 

[Funkmabassup]

Thank you for that input. I really got it as a practice amp for my 9x12 room, and I think if I played out I'd be comfortable in a small to medium venue but not if I was going toe to toe with a guitarist doing metal or progressive/heavy rock with a 4x10 amp.

I can second all of that, im surely gonna take it out for gigging, just not with my loudest band

 

[basss]

I agree with the above. I doubt it would work in a really loud rock band.

 

[sonojono]

I would have to weigh in on my experience of owning a Hartke HD500 (for a month):

While the simple EQ shaping really impressed me and how it treated my instruments, during gigs where I'm competing against a loud guitar player (that drowns his effects full of reverb) and a hard hitting drummer, I was able to stand out in the mix no problem. Playing with a standard folk/alternative rock band (4 piece) where the lead guitarist increases in volume during solos and the drummer keeping it steady in playing, was also able to stand out. It's weird to me seeing the complete opposite of what I'm reading about this amp not being heard in the mix (ears are subjective and maybe I'm younger than some cats here). I really love this amp that it's starting to replace my GK MB2x10!

Already a month gigging with this amp consecutively and couldn't be more happier with this purchase. Up next, Hartke HD4x10 cabinet with a darkglass 900 head drool

 

[Iofflight]

I just had the chance to play the MB210, it was a different environment but I thought the Hartke HD500 had it over the GK. The Darkglass 900 and 410 sounds like a winning combo well the Darkglass 900 and most anything really.

 

[sonojono]

I just had the chance to play the MB210, it was a different environment but I thought the Hartke HD500 had it over the GK. The Darkglass 900 and 410 sounds like a winning combo well the Darkglass 900 and most anything really.

Yeah. It was weird going back to an MB210 after hearing how crazy flexible the Hartke HD500 is tonally. Just couldn’t go back to a GK, I’ll let you know more about that darkglass/410 I’ll be checking out in Hollywood, CA this weekend

 

[BillisCool]

So far I have played 2 shows with the Hartke HD500 and it has performed flawlessly. Both shows were on 90+ degree days and for large crowds.

In the picture, I used the shape knob turned all the way down to take the mud out of being on a stage and it worked perfectly. Volume was probably near its limits, but look at the 1 guitar players rig, and the drummer is a super loud player as well. I didn’t need myself in the monitors.

Material was Steely Dan, Genesis, Allman Bros, KWS, Trower, etc.

I’m very happy, especially considering the price point.

I’ve been previously playing Genz gear since the neox212t came out but wanted to try something different and lighter/easier to do gigs like this. The tone is more modern than tube-y, but its working for me even if I’m not used to it.

I mentioned the heat because I’ve definitely had other brands shut down in the heat before. Not the Genz though.

 

[Naigewron]

There's a bit of conflicting information about this amp and its usability in a band context, but I decided to take the plunge today since I found it very nicely priced on the local used market.

We're not an overly loud band, so I'm hoping it will be fine. The guitarist is playing a 20W 1x12. If it turns out to not be quite enough, my pedalboard has a DI out, so I can get some PA assistance too.

This will be my first bass rig, since I've only recently moved from drums to bass. It's a cool journey so far, so let's hope the Hartke can help me get to that next level

I'll report back with my findings

 

[basss]

Cool, let us know how it does. I've been using mine a lot lately. It did well on a moderately loud wedding gig last night with an 8 piece band in a medium hall with no PA support.

 

[Naigewron]

So far so good. I have yet to test it with a drummer (since we don't have one at the moment), but when jamming with a guitar player and singer, with drums on tape through the PA, it sounds like it should do the job nicely. Lots of definition and clarity, and from what I can hear it sounds like it's got a lot more volume potential than I have heard so far.

Using it with an MXR Bass DI in front of it as a tone shaper and distortion channel, and it seems like I can get a lot of usable sounds from this little rig.

Here's a very quick clip I recorded from when I first set it up and tested the MXR Distortion channel into it.

 

[TreySonagras]

I am interested in the HD500. I have used a KB15 many times with small jazz combos and a local big band. Also with small-venue wedding bands, etc. and it handles those nicely. Has anyone closely compared the HD500 with the KB15? I like the idea of the 2x10s and just wonder how they compare.

 

[Mike151]

Old thread but I must say, I haven't broken out my SWR 750W 8x10 rig since I have used this hartke 500w live.
OMG it's just been a dream to walk in with this lightweight 2x10 cab and have it sound so damn good at shows. I'm considering selling my big rig but the only thing that is holding me back is that I know as soon as I sell it, there will be an outdoor gig that I will definitely wish I had the 8x10 for.