Help me pick a small practice amp from my local shop!

[brisonic]

I like markbass though I might spring for a slightly larger one, either a minimark or something with a bigger speaker. Those are pricey amps. Considered the Fender Rumble 40?

 

[mcrawfordmusic]

I would play them all and buy the one you like the most and the one that inspires you to play music

 

[Naturekev]

I had a Roland Cube and really liked it. I gave it to my goddaughter, who is also a bassist. I then bought myself a larger Roland Cube. It's great for practice, and loud enough that I'm sure I could use it for smaller live performances if I wanted to.

 

[ProbablyTooLoud]

Those little Ampegs sound great.

 

[Krakmann]

Salud!

If the Cube is one of the battery-powered ones, maybe that. Sometimes we play in parks and can be useful. My head is a MarkBass, so I like the brand. Didn't use the 8 cabs, though.

 

[Strung_Low]

If theyre all in your local shop, grab a bass and go try them out. Id be interested to hear what you find! Otherwise id say orange or ampeg

 

[BobDeRosa]

I love my Markbass 801 for practice and occasionally even use it on gigs -- sometimes with a preamp, and sometimes, believe it or not, without. $250 is an excellent price.

 

[coyoten23]

OK so here's the update guys.
I went to the store to try out that 801 and it sounded good! In my mind, I said OK I am going to leave with an amp today.

Then the worker, who is my friend, pulled out a Rumble 40 V3 from storage. It was without a box and not on his catalogue at all, and it sounded better!
It even sounded better than the Rumble 100.

I left the store with the Rumble!
That being said, the Markbass is clearly made better and with nicer materials.... Maybe I'll get that too!!

 

[MotorCityMinion]

? Why not go there and listen for yourself ?

 

[SJan3]

OK so here's the update guys.
I went to the store to try out that 801 and it sounded good! In my mind, I said OK I am going to leave with an amp today.

Then the worker, who is my friend, pulled out a Rumble 40 V3 from storage. It was without a box and not on his catalogue at all, and it sounded better!
It even sounded better than the Rumble 100.

I left the store with the Rumble!
That being said, the Markbass is clearly made better and with nicer materials.... Maybe I'll get that too!!

Didn't try the Marcus Miller combo?

 

[butterfingers1]

Ampeg.

 

[coyoten23]

@SJan3 That unit was in his warehouse in a different city, it's being sent to the store and will arrive tomorrow!!
Might grab that one either in addition or instead of the Rumble.

Rumble sounds really nice for such a small amp it's quite surprising how these solid state things can sound good with bass! I would never look at SS with guitar.

I wish it was made to the Markbass standard though. These MB amps look like military grade weapons. I hope that Rumble can last because it doesn't FEEL like it would last, that's my only problem with it.

Will update tomorrow about marcus miller!

 

[Deleted member 271037]

The Markbass is a step above the rest on that list IMO. At least if we're talking about tone. They're not the most beautiful looking amps though... I have to admit I feel a little sick every time I see a Markbass but that's soon forgotten when I fire it up and start using my ears instead of my eyes.

 

[cnltb]

i've only heard the micro mark and think it is really useful for the size.

 

[bassliner50]

Of course the most practical choice (if it were my choice to make) would be Fender Rumble 40. But since it is not a listed option, I'd go with the Ampeg 108 (I own both and have extensive experience with these). Another (not mentioned) suggestion: Buy one used if possible.

 

[Fernando Costa]

I had a Cube 100XL Bass, it was a great amp for home practice. Should handle small gigs easily too.

 

[soundsupport1]

I use Eden and it's bulletproof.
En8jr has a kickback shape, which makes it brilliant as a dedicated bass monitor live.

But of the above options, try some out. If you have an account with the shop they should let you.
In that list I would avoid the Stagg brand amps. They're cheap, and that's what they sound like.
Roland cube is also a bit of a left-field choice.

So my advice is that Eden is very good, so is Markbass, so is Orange, so is Ampeg. Try before you buy.
And on no account touch the $3000 guitar amps - you'll end up wrecking them and by the time you've bought bass drivers to put in them you'll not have saved much money over just buying a purpose-built practice amp.

Peace,
SoundSupport

 

[CaribooBass]

Ampeg.

Nuff said!

 

[39-Bassist]

Take your bass to the store and let your ears tell you which one...you will know.

 

[shirojiro]

Is a used amp an option for you?
It seems like there’s always a bunch of decent small bass combo amps available for $50-150.