Mesa and GK are high end to me compared to what I’ve had in the past..
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High End Bass Amps- What do you like?
- Thread starter jojobean39
- Start date
Glockenklang are fantastic!
Well designed, well made, good QC, good customer service, fair prices...and, in case you are into that kind of thing...good looking(imho)
I used to have the bassart pre and the soul combo and may get another bassart pre.
If you'd ask for my opinion on who makes the best bass amps at the moment bar none...I think I'd say Glockenklang(based on the afore mentioned criteria)
I'm curious if they too will ome out with something lighter than 5Kg.
Well designed, well made, good QC, good customer service, fair prices...and, in case you are into that kind of thing...good looking(imho)
I used to have the bassart pre and the soul combo and may get another bassart pre.
If you'd ask for my opinion on who makes the best bass amps at the moment bar none...I think I'd say Glockenklang(based on the afore mentioned criteria)
I'm curious if they too will ome out with something lighter than 5Kg.
Prior to the covid unpleasantness I owned an all tube Mesa Prodigy 4:88 with a Bergantino CN212. I've never been so happy with an amp, and I've owned most of the brands mentioned above. About 75 lbs total, could carry it in one trip. It was thunderous but clear and cutting, loved it. Total beast.
(shout out to the 9.2 shuttle with an Uber 410 which was another one I had long term)
(shout out to the 9.2 shuttle with an Uber 410 which was another one I had long term)
Reiner Amplification. Hand built one at a time.
Demeter, Jule, Arkham, and Reiner all come to mind as high-quality (hand-made/small-batch) tube pre-into-class D power hybrid offerings, listed in order of the degree to which their front-end gain structure can be manipulated to effect the tone.
There are lots of great amps, but ever since I switched to Aguilar I simply stopped thinking about what else might be out there. AG700, Tone Hammer, DB751, all great no frills amps. Amp GAS completely gone.
High End Holy Grail worthiness in my experience:
Aggie DB750
Aggie TH500
Ashdown ABM500 EVO II
Berg NV610
Mesa WD-800
Mesa D-180
SWR Goliath Sr.
Aggie DB750
Aggie TH500
Ashdown ABM500 EVO II
Berg NV610
Mesa WD-800
Mesa D-180
SWR Goliath Sr.
Demeter amps; Bergantino cabs. That’s my sauce.
The new Mesa Subway amps, such as the TT800, get honorable mention.
Edit: shouldn’t leave out the excellent Alembic F1-X; which, paired with a good power amp, such as the QSC PLX1804, is a killer.
The new Mesa Subway amps, such as the TT800, get honorable mention.
Edit: shouldn’t leave out the excellent Alembic F1-X; which, paired with a good power amp, such as the QSC PLX1804, is a killer.
I'll second Reeves and Verellen. Not presently practical for me as they are a bit too pricy and heavy, but if money were no object, I'd get one of each and an all tube SVT. It would probably be about 320 pounds of all tube goodness.
Trickfish BH1K - plenty of headroom, wide range of tonal controls, input gain LEDs, and no fan. Never a worry about fan noise when recording.
Mesa WD-800 - killer head. If you can't dial your tone in on this thing it can't be found.
Old standby... GK1000RB. Heavy as lead, but its hard to beat big heavy transformers (not considered boutique I don't think)
Aggie AG700 - miles ahead of the TH series IMO
Friend has EBS and loves their stuff, but I have no personal experience.
Mesa WD-800 - killer head. If you can't dial your tone in on this thing it can't be found.
Old standby... GK1000RB. Heavy as lead, but its hard to beat big heavy transformers (not considered boutique I don't think)
Aggie AG700 - miles ahead of the TH series IMO
Friend has EBS and loves their stuff, but I have no personal experience.
Tech21 has been a great company for years. Doesn't surprise me they nailed bass heads. They have more powerful heads also.
Amplifiers – Tech 21 NYC
We live in a time where there are tons of awesome options, whatever suits a player! My application is modern metal... cutting through high gain and highly present kick. I want the amp to help deliver the forceful attitude I am trying to express.
So I like an amp voiced a bit aggressive and pushy, on the clear side, but also some power tube saturation (compression effect, particular type of OD that comes through on the "edges")... yet warm because I tapping quite a bit. Long story short... old school Mesa Bass 400 with a BDDI blended in the FX loop has been my jam, for past 15 yrs. My for-the-mix tone can come across a bit harsh and thin by itself, but in the mix it sounds right. I've imagined trying other similar outboard pre's in the BDDI spot (curious about the Geddy) but it remains versatile and gets the job done well enough.
Cabs same principle, need a low mids bump and clear midrange. Mesa PH for that.
A little tapping (a great cat I know did a quick master on it)-
In tha mix (heavy FS and slapping)-
So I like an amp voiced a bit aggressive and pushy, on the clear side, but also some power tube saturation (compression effect, particular type of OD that comes through on the "edges")... yet warm because I tapping quite a bit. Long story short... old school Mesa Bass 400 with a BDDI blended in the FX loop has been my jam, for past 15 yrs. My for-the-mix tone can come across a bit harsh and thin by itself, but in the mix it sounds right. I've imagined trying other similar outboard pre's in the BDDI spot (curious about the Geddy) but it remains versatile and gets the job done well enough.
Cabs same principle, need a low mids bump and clear midrange. Mesa PH for that.
A little tapping (a great cat I know did a quick master on it)-
In tha mix (heavy FS and slapping)-
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Thanks so much. You guys have mentioned a lot here that I haven’t thought of.
I guess I should have given a little more info about my playing situation. I play strictly in church. So, weight doesn’t matter. I don’t move it. I need something with decent headroom because I do use a cab for presence on stage, but I need to go direct in for live streaming and for the in ear monitor system.
Glock is the one that has grabbed my interest the most, but the Bergantinos have as well. Trickfish showed up on my radar too. There are some others mentioned I’m going to have to learn.
I’m curious about the tube heads. Do they have XLR outs? That’s incredibly uncommon (and useless if it was a thing) on guitar amps. But for those of you using all tube heads, how do you go through the system?
I do like Mesas and I’ve owned 3 (and still own one) Of their guitar amps. It has been all over the place with me and it still works like a champ.
I guess I should have given a little more info about my playing situation. I play strictly in church. So, weight doesn’t matter. I don’t move it. I need something with decent headroom because I do use a cab for presence on stage, but I need to go direct in for live streaming and for the in ear monitor system.
Glock is the one that has grabbed my interest the most, but the Bergantinos have as well. Trickfish showed up on my radar too. There are some others mentioned I’m going to have to learn.
I’m curious about the tube heads. Do they have XLR outs? That’s incredibly uncommon (and useless if it was a thing) on guitar amps. But for those of you using all tube heads, how do you go through the system?
I do like Mesas and I’ve owned 3 (and still own one) Of their guitar amps. It has been all over the place with me and it still works like a champ.
- Jul 7, 2010
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- Endorsing Artist for: Duncan Pickups; Line6, Hipshot, GHS Strings, Somnium Guitars
For 'off the rack' purpose-built bass amps, I'd be hard-pressed to see much past Andy's remarkable Subway amps and cabs, although I'm sure I'm happily quite surely biased due to his faithful presence here amongst us. Even though somehow, mystifyingly, MESA has no Nashville dealers, and who knows why . . . . .
Beyond that, Demeter's gear is always top-shelf, and I'd like to try some Bergantino, but see the same mystery as above regarding THEIR availability in Music City, USA. Demeter's modern 12" fliptop looks like big fun.
The old guy experimenter in me also thinks an Avalon 737SP or Universal Audio LA615 Mk2 sitting on top of some self-powered Bag Ends would do the trick IF I had stoooopid money to play with. I played through the Avalon once and it was a revelation.
Beyond that, Demeter's gear is always top-shelf, and I'd like to try some Bergantino, but see the same mystery as above regarding THEIR availability in Music City, USA. Demeter's modern 12" fliptop looks like big fun.
The old guy experimenter in me also thinks an Avalon 737SP or Universal Audio LA615 Mk2 sitting on top of some self-powered Bag Ends would do the trick IF I had stoooopid money to play with. I played through the Avalon once and it was a revelation.
I like the smooth sound and versatility of my Hughes & Kettner BassBase 600.
2 channels of really flexible nice sounding eq and plenty of power.
it has the unique capability to bring out harmonic overtones that are very punchy in a variety of settings.
addition of a notch filter is handy as well adjusting the sound to different cabinets.
I swapped the stock tube for a NOS telefunken and it brought even more sauce to the party!
2 channels of really flexible nice sounding eq and plenty of power.
it has the unique capability to bring out harmonic overtones that are very punchy in a variety of settings.
addition of a notch filter is handy as well adjusting the sound to different cabinets.
I swapped the stock tube for a NOS telefunken and it brought even more sauce to the party!
