My WT 400 into a 410 XLT hits the spot. I used an Acoustic 370/408 before that and it gets louder but the WT 400 does just what I need just fine.
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How many watts do I -really- need?
- Thread starter jid
- Start date
dont think you are going to find more than 400 watts in a bass amp..you can patch more than one together..but why..?..most of the good venues are going to have PA..if its tube you want..go with fender superbassman..ampeg cl..reeves..or hiwatt and be done with it.....for cabs two 410's..two 610's..or two 810's will give you all the meat you want..
Watts are just one part of a greater equation when building a rig.
Speakers, and how many, are the difference when it comes to loudness.
You’ve got a 610. That cab with 100 watts would be louder than 1000watts into a 112.
The SVT was meant to be used with either one or two 810 cabs. If that wasn’t enough volume (!) you added another SVT and more 810 cabs.
I recently got a Bergantino CN410. That thing is LOUD, even with 200watts. So speaker design/efficiency/sensitivity is important, too.
Speakers, and how many, are the difference when it comes to loudness.
You’ve got a 610. That cab with 100 watts would be louder than 1000watts into a 112.
The SVT was meant to be used with either one or two 810 cabs. If that wasn’t enough volume (!) you added another SVT and more 810 cabs.
I recently got a Bergantino CN410. That thing is LOUD, even with 200watts. So speaker design/efficiency/sensitivity is important, too.
Hi there. All my amps are 600 watts at 4ohms. Australian made Labsystems amps. SS600. VP600S. VP600HP and a the odd one out is the 800B.
I combine these with Genz Benz XB610. GK Neo 410. MARKBASS 410 STD HF 4 and Hughes and Kettner 410 neo with matching 15 cab. Labsystems 410.
All these cabs are minimum 600watts 4 ohms. Most are 800 +.
Any of these rigs are perfect for my bands.
The primary band is a Bon Scott tribute band and I am involved in other cover bands too.
I've never had a problem with not being heard over the drums and two crazy loud guitarists.
For a lot of players (me included ), an all tube svt has been more than sufficient for small, medium, or large gigs, since the 70s!
That’s 300 watts BTW. Mix and match cabs to achieve desired volume.
That’s 300 watts BTW. Mix and match cabs to achieve desired volume.
Why? Why would you choose an amp based on that technical specification rather than simply basing it on how it sounds?
Make a sound your goal, not a technical specification.
Tube amps can sound great. They can also sound terrible. The same goes for solid state amps. In the end, it comes down to the amp design, not whether it is tube or solid state.
Now for a bit of
<heresy> Aside from other bass players, and who cares about bass players, no one really cares about the subtle differences in tone coming from low frequencies. They just care if the low frequencies are not present. We can obsess all day long about how to get what we think is an incredible bass tone and spend many thousands of dollars on Fodera basses and exotic boutique handmade amps, cabs, and effects, and in the end no one would notice the difference between that rig and a Squier going through a Hartke HA3500 and a VX410 cab with a B3N multieffects unit.
But, show up on stage with the Fodera rig and play like crap and everyone will notice the lack of talent and never notice the incredible tone. So, all the most expensive gear in the world will not hide an obvious lack of talent. OTOH, give Henrik Linder that Squier and Hartke rig and people will not notice the tone, the only thing they will notice is the impressive talent. So, the best investment is in acquiring more and more, and more talent.
</heresy>
<heresy> Aside from other bass players, and who cares about bass players, no one really cares about the subtle differences in tone coming from low frequencies. They just care if the low frequencies are not present. We can obsess all day long about how to get what we think is an incredible bass tone and spend many thousands of dollars on Fodera basses and exotic boutique handmade amps, cabs, and effects, and in the end no one would notice the difference between that rig and a Squier going through a Hartke HA3500 and a VX410 cab with a B3N multieffects unit.
But, show up on stage with the Fodera rig and play like crap and everyone will notice the lack of talent and never notice the incredible tone. So, all the most expensive gear in the world will not hide an obvious lack of talent. OTOH, give Henrik Linder that Squier and Hartke rig and people will not notice the tone, the only thing they will notice is the impressive talent. So, the best investment is in acquiring more and more, and more talent.
</heresy>
I have never heard of a 300 watt class A bass tube amp - and this is the power section I assume based on the power draw you are talking. The AC30 for example is not a true Class A power section. A class 300watt amp qill require at least 12 6550 or KT88 tubes. I had a Craftsman C500 clone hifi tube amp mono block and it is 30 watt for 2 6550
The answer is simply where you want the watts to go. If you want a full, deep bass sound, a hifi sound, with tons of headroom then you need a hell of a lot. You're the person they build kilowatt rigs for. If you want a middy, twangy, more compressed sound then you can get away with much, much less power. Because you're not trying to move those bass frequencies. You can happily get away with a 200 watt amp.
300 watts should be fine. I love the ALL Tube sound. Something about the warmth and dynamics I can feel.
Save yourself some dough and snag an all-tube emulator and stick it front of any SS power amp. I use a Barbershop and the old adage rings true "30% of the money buys 90% of the sound"...nobody will miss the the other 10%. Nice thing about this set-up is you can stick it in front of any rig, including unknown backlines, and consistently cop the desired vibe.
Riis
Riis
another option is to use whatever amp you want and get an EBS valve drive
