I need a new amp!!!

from those choices, i would go with the fender. i really like the tone you get from the bassman combos, especially with the enhance button which scoops the mids.

 

Peavey's are loud but TNT's are $h*t heavy
Even with casters they are monsters
80 pounds for a 15 in combo...

 

save and buy a half stack. the longer you can wait the better, bacause you wil have more $$ to spend on more whattage!

 

Hartke and Fender half stacks are pretty reasonable...

 

I would check into those Genz Benz combos. They make some nice 200 watt lightweight models.

 

What are you looking at spending? Avatar has some cheap, Yet quality cabs, won't bust you, and you will be getting way more bang for your buck. And many people from this site swear by them. All you would have to do is buy a head then.
Avatar site
peace
-Ben

 

PeaveyTNT

The Fender Bassman 200 seems to fart out at a lower volume than the Peavey, and the peavey sounds better.

Go Peavey.

 

an avatar 4x10 375
behinger power amp 300
and a used pre amp 100-300

and you got 1500 watts.....

 

Of the options you listed, I'd definitely go with the SWR. Always loved the tone of their amps, and I've owned Fender/Peavey/Yorkville amps without being incredibly impressed with any of them.

If you don't need it *right now*, I'd agree with waiting and saving up for a half stack. Buy used and you can find some pretty sweet deals if you look around.

 

You can get the avatar right from Dave at
Click Here . A pre amp is basically what shapes your tone, and powers your line signal into your power amp. And if your going with a power amp then a pre-amp is a must, Tech 21 makes a rack mount (SansAmp RBI)$299 and a stomp style pre (SansAmp Bass Drive DI) $189, check them out at Musicians Friend. Also search the boards around here for info on power amps and Pre-amps, quite often pre-amps/ power amps come up on the For Sale board, I got my Ampeg SVP-BSP from a fellow TB'er for $300 shipped. Deals on here come around often, and everyone I've delt with from here are honest, trust worthy people.
Also check out this link here http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=92713 for info on power amps, I've never tried Behringer power amps, but I haven't heard much good about them, and you can get a used QSC on here for comparable prices, well I hope I helped

peace
-Ben

 

An integrated bass amp (aka Bass Head) combines a preamp and a poweramp into one unit. You wouldn't need a separate preamp if you bought a head.

You would probably be better off buying a used Peavey bass head (or other brand) with more power. 160 watts at 4 ohms isn't going to take you very far, even though Avatar cabinets are pretty efficient.

To compete with loud guitars, you're going to need a lot more power than the guitarist has. Some people suggest 3, 5 or even 10 times as much.

You can search the gear for sale ads here on Talk Bass, eBay.com, www.bassgear.com, www.harmonycentral.com, www.thedudepit.com or any number of other sites for used gear.

 

A quick search on E-Bay produced the following-

I toured with this very model and it served me FAITHFULLY even under the most extreme of conditions. You cannot find them very often and this is a good price.

Max Bass-
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2544773279&category=38076

My next (and most preferable) suggestion would be for you to pick up one of the following amps and a pre-amp of your choice. I'm using the newest version of the DPC (DPC 1400x) and it is a phenominal peice of equipment. These don't come up too often either and the prices are fair. The Peavey Max Bass Pre-Amp would be a great match (that's what I run with mine).

DPC 750-
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2545981528&category=23787

Deca 528-
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2545250801&category=23787

The Mark VI series are good "all around" bass heads. They have sufficient power to run the cabinet you're looking at as well.

Mark VI (newer style)-
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2544740815&category=23787

Mark VI (older style)-
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2545823945&category=23787

I don't have any experience with this particular bass head. I have never reall heard anything bad about them though.

Firebass-
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2545222688&category=38076

 

go with the power amp/pre-amp set up...more power. and i have seen some very good deals on the TB fourms on QSC power amps, but i have no money
Ben

 

You can find a poweramp for under $300 if you look around on the usual sources for used gear. I would suggest looking at any local shops in your area for heads too, there's a good chance you'll stumble across a good deal.

Something to watch out for: I'm not sure that Avatar ships to Canada, you should check that out.

 

If you are looking for decent used gear you might want to check out www.musicgoround.com
They are a series of stores that specialize in used gear. I have purchased a number of items over the last few years from several stores without any problems. They check the equipment before they post it.

www.musicgoround.com has a number of used Peavey bass heads and amps for decent prices - typically lower than what you pay for on ebay.
If you go with Peavey equipment, try to get an amp that is no older than the early 90's. There are 70's and 80's models at cheap prices but you sacrifce some of the tone and low frequencies that the 90's through present models have. The older models are usually very heavy.
For example: The early 80's model Peavey Max head typically runs for $300-$350 on www.musicgoround.com - it has 2 400 watt power amps built in and weighs about 100 lbs. I have a 1981 model in a closet that I stopped using about 10 years ago because of the weight. 800 watts is nice but 100 lbs is not.

 

nfs_riffle,

Please allow me to suggest that you consider an Ampeg B-100R. It's rated at 100 W, but this thing is damn loud, really. For what I experienced, it has many more balls than a H&K BassForce XXL, though this one is rated at 300 W...

There's also a new amp in the Ampeg range : the BA-115HP. 220 W, many on-board features (including tuner), and affordable price. If you really want 200 W min., this one will certainly do the job.

I'd take any Ampeg over any Bassman, any day.

Hope this helps,
JL