I don't know anything about amps.

[10emmanuel]

Yes big question! I’ll take a crack at it…

Watts: enough give you “headroom,” the ability to maintain good tone at higher volumes. Somewhat dictates volumes, but not as much as speakers.

Speakers: more speaker surface means more volume. Better (higher) speaker sensitivity rating will also give you more volume and clarity. You’ll have to research impedance and wattage ratings, but impedance is most important to get correct.

Combo vs separates: generally, combos are more affordable and convenient, and separates are more flexible. Largely subjective to the player’s preferences. If you do go combo, I recommend something with extension out.

New vs used: new gets you a warranty. Used may be a gamble, but you stretch your money.

Brands: I’m not super picky, I can dial in a useable sound from all the major brands. But I do have preferences, best to get out there and sample as much as you can.

IMHO 500w and 2 matching cabinets (eg 2x 210s) is a good baseline, covering most situations. One cabinet for rehearsal and small gigs, 2 for large gigs. From your description you may not even need the second cabinet, but nice to leave the door open should the need/desire arise.

I’d recommend Fender Rumble 500, Ampeg RB210 or similar for a starting point. Plenty of juice to get you going without breaking the bank. You could always start off with more than that, but if you do get something bigger/more expensive down the road, it’s always nice to have a powerful combo like that for rehearsal rooms or a back up.

good luck!

THANKS BRO!

 

[Cleezmo]

Just a couple of things to add:

Features - all amps will have some form of EQ, and heads and some combos will have gain and master control. But do you want/need an AUX in so you can play along to tunes? Do you need an active/passive DB switch?And/or a headphone out to practice without waking up the house? Do you want a compressor built in, or do you care? I like having all of those, but the AUX in and headphone out were must-haves for me since so much of my practice is when the kids are sleeping, as was an active/passive switch since I have both types of basses.

Watts - make sure you understand what watts the amp is really putting out based on the cab(s) you are using. For example, an amp that says "500W" in all likelihood means 500W at 4ohms (i.e., powering two cabinets, as most cab are 8ohms), but if you are running into one cabinet, the amp is probably putting out 250-350W at 8ohms. All the companies list their amps at the highest rating, but putting a '500W' head into one 8ohm cab will not deliver 500W. Marketing, you know.

How many watts you need really depends on a lot of things - are you fighting over two guitarists with half-stacks with volumes at 11 and a drummer who hits the kit hard? Or are you playing lower-volume stuff and will run through a PA all the time? I agree that you need headroom, it's definitely better to have more than you need than be clipping/distorting, but lots of folks on this forum seem to think we all need 800-1000 watts pushing two cabinets for a bar-gigging cover band IME, especially if you are running with PA support, something pushing 250-300 actual Watts into an efficient 2x10 or 1x15 will get you through most bar/club/medium size gigs. If you're playing outdoor gigs or large rooms with hundreds and hundreds of people, sure, you need more, but for less than that, I say save yourself some $$ and just get one cab. You can always buy another one later if you need/want it.

I played combos for a long time, just switched to a head/cab setup last year and like it better, but that's because I went light - 36lb 2x10 cab and the head has it's own gig bag. But there are some combos that pack 350-500W and are less than 40lbs; could be a solid solution as well.

At the end of the day, there are all sorts of good amps out there, its just a matter of finding one that has the features you care about that puts out the kind of power you need and sounds good to you.

Good luck!

 

[10emmanuel]

I much prefer the Ampeg RB210 to the Rumble 500. But you may not. Try a few amps at a store if you can, if you find one you like, it’s a good one. I’d recommend used as you won’t lose a ton of money if you decide to sell it. I have a combo that sounds amazing, but I don’t gig with it due to its weight. Think about weight as you decide. Heavy can be cheap and sound marvelous, but it seems no one wants to move the old heavies around any more.

weight its something that I see people put much emphasis in .

 

[2cooltoolz]

I vote for any main brand 500 watt Class D head and same brand 210 (neo if possible) cabinet.

Choosing a brand for you is like telling you which color is best!

 

[Rip Van Dan]

Hello mates!!

As I said in the tittle. I have played the bass for some years now ( counting long inactivity periods ), and I have always jam at studios, with amps from there, I gigged with someone else's amps, and at home I always have had small combos, 80w the biggest, first because I was a beginner and then because I never had a place to play so loud.
So since having a good amp was never a priority and since I dont gig a lot, I never got interested about amps or head. Thats so tru that I must admit, I dont know anything about them. I dont know what's good, what's not, what types are there, difference of speakers, professionals amps(?), I dont know prices, old? brand new? old in a good condition? models?


At least tell me where start reading LOL.

But the truth is, I am gonna fix a studio at home and I jam with my band there and start gigging. Even If I dont gig, I wanna have something that is good for a gig. Not to play in Wembley Stadium, but decent gig. So its nice for studio as well.... I have played the rumbles 800, it was loud, but again I dont know, is that good?.

I dont want to buy the most expensive orange or ampeg, I know they are more expensive...

Whats most important? head or speaker?

I dont look for the exact answer because I know its extensive, but maybe you cans say " hey look on that one, hey I have this one and its cool..."

Thanks"!!

I'm one of those who is firmly in the head and separate cab group. Only had one combo, a Yamaha with 115 and it was OK, but I couldn't do anything but use it. quickly went to a separate cab and head. In my first iteration of amps and cabs back in the 60's and 70's, it was always separate amp and cab. I toured for 3-years in the early 70's and then in 1976 all my touring gear was stolen, including my 1965 Jazz Bass and my pigg-back Standel amp with a powered 215 speaker cab. And We had just had our second child then, so nonew music gear on the horizon. Managed to replace my '65 Jazz in 1985 with my '82 Jazz which has the same neck shape and radius, but didn't start gigging again until 1997 when I borrowed that Yamaha combo from my son.

Had to sell that combo because there was no way to upgrade it and went through a number of different amps and cabs working up to what I have today, which is a great set up.

My advice would be to get at least a 500-watt, or better yet an 800-watt class D amp. Bare minimum would be 500-watts or you can expect to have to upgrade your gear about every year until you get there. If you can't afford a class D amp, there are a lot of class A/B amps out there that sound great. They just weigh more. I have an Eden WT500/800 that I've been using since 2010 and it sounds great. But it does weigh about 36-lbs. in its rack whereas the DNA-800 class D amp that I bought last year weighs 4.8-lbs. Good news is that a lot of the old Class A/B stuff is available for some really low prices, so keep those in mind if you can handle the weight.

For cabs, I went backwards. I had saved up a bunch of money for "one last cab purchase" and spent my $1,000 on a DNS-410 by DNA in 2015. Freaking GREAT cab - LOUD, clear, clean, articulate and great bottom end, but found out in short order that small venues wouldn't let me bring it in. they typically pointed me towards a 112 combo of some type, which was their "backline" and made me use that. So, when I was accepted into the DNA Endorsing Artist Group in 2019, I bought their DNS-210 cab. Nobody bats an eye when a bassist brings in a 210. I use that cab for all my indoor venues now because it's a loud cab and just bring out my 410 for outdoors and music festivals.

I'd highly recommend that you get the 210 of whatever brand you want first and then get a second 210 cab when playing a large venue, outdoor venue or music festival.

 

[juggahnaught]

I don't know anything about amps.

...

I never got interested about amps or head. Thats so tru that I must admit, I dont know anything about them. I dont know what's good, what's not, what types are there, difference of speakers, professionals amps(?), I dont know prices, old? brand new? old in a good condition? models?

...

I have played the rumbles 800, it was loud, but again I dont know, is that good?.

To a certain extent...amps just take sound and make it louder. There's no real magic or anything. Due to that - if you have the opportunity to try out any amps, I'd just say play through them and use your ears. There's very little that is objectively bad. (However, almost everything is designed for a specific use - a 40-watt practice amp with a 8-inch speaker isn't objectively bad, but it's not designed to fill an arena with bass and it will not do that.)

Some *general* rules of thumb, though:

• More speakers = more sound (generally)
• More watts = more sound (generally)
• You might need fewer speakers and fewer watts than you think you do

You might consider Mesa, and I say that not because the brand is good or better than other brands (it is good, though) but because there's a Mesa tech on these boards who is very knowledgeable and very helpful with all things related to amplifiers. It might not be a bad place to start if its inside your price range and the products give you the sound you want.

 

[-Stingray]

2 words of advice (if playing with a band):

1. 500 watts minimum.
2. Neodymium speakers if weight is an issue.

Good luck!

 

[Ggaa]

Short of having Mesa $, I've had good luck with Rumble heads(200 and 800). 500 should work for a lot of stuff but if you can find an 800 within your price range grab it. They have a pre/post eq switch on the xlr out and they're still in production.

 

[MrLenny1]

Time to go shopping.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

Hello mates!!

As I said in the tittle. I have played the bass for some years now ( counting long inactivity periods ), and I have always jam at studios, with amps from there, I gigged with someone else's amps, and at home I always have had small combos, 80w the biggest, first because I was a beginner and then because I never had a place to play so loud.
So since having a good amp was never a priority and since I dont gig a lot, I never got interested about amps or head. Thats so tru that I must admit, I dont know anything about them. I dont know what's good, what's not, what types are there, difference of speakers, professionals amps(?), I dont know prices, old? brand new? old in a good condition? models?


At least tell me where start reading LOL.

But the truth is, I am gonna fix a studio at home and I jam with my band there and start gigging. Even If I dont gig, I wanna have something that is good for a gig. Not to play in Wembley Stadium, but decent gig. So its nice for studio as well.... I have played the rumbles 800, it was loud, but again I dont know, is that good?.

I dont want to buy the most expensive orange or ampeg, I know they are more expensive...

Whats most important? head or speaker?

I dont look for the exact answer because I know its extensive, but maybe you cans say " hey look on that one, hey I have this one and its cool..."

Thanks"!![/QUOTE

I’m not sure of your budget but I’ll offer the following:

I think a Rumble might be suitable, however, I’d recommend for gigging 300 watts @ 8 ohm amp which would take care of anything your are likely to encounter and then some gig wise or playing with really loud band mates.

With Speaker cabs you get what you pay for. I like the Mesa lineup. There are very well engineered, highly regarded, and I think are a good value for the money spent. If I didn’t have a lifetime supply of brand X, I’d be playing a Mesa rig.

Their one 15” 8 ohm cab would be a place I’d start. You can always pick up a 2nd cab down the road if needed.

JMO.

 

[nnnnnn]

I like having ... an active/passive switch since I have both types of basses.

My main bass is active, but I leave my amp's active/passive switch on the passive setting regardless of which bass I have plugged in. Sounds fine with every bass I've ever tried it with, active or passive.

 

[Old Garage-Bander]

Lot of good amp/cab advice here. Not so much about studio builds.
That's another whole can of worms that in my opinion exceeds the complexity of amps and cabs by a great deal.
I'm sure there are a number of folks on TB that can offer good advice. I ain't one of those people. I know just enough to know that I don't know much at all about studio builds, even though I've had to do some of it out of necessity.

Maybe a separate posting about that elsewhere is needed. Or you can go outside of TB to look for forums specific to studio builds.

(This assumes your studio build experience is somewhat in line with your knowledge of amps and cabs. If not, please disregard.)

Good luck on both learning curves.