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Light weight bass head suggestions and opinion

bass7858

bass7858

Apr 11, 2009
112
0
central florida
#1
I'm looking to reduce my load in. Bought a ampeg pf500 @GC yesterday and after it quit producing sound in the middle of a song last nite returned it today for a refund. I was digging the sound but understand these particular heads have issues.

Heads that interest me at this point GK MB 500 and 800,
Genz shuttle 6.0-9.0 as well as the stream 6 and 9. Mark bass has never really caught my eye.....have read some negativety about the lm tube 800...maybe I have not looked at the right models.

Another head that has been suggested is the kustom kxb500.
Finally...12-13 lbs is about a 1/3 of what I am schlepping now....So I guess the carvin b2000 would certainly be an option and push any cab/cabs a person wanted to use.
Also, a peavey ipr stereo amp or other lightweight power amp with a nice pre-amp has many options too.

thanks for any opinions and the time it took to give them
 
#2
Lightweight heads and power amps are totally kicking these days.

If you want a bass head
Take a look at the Fender rumble heads
5-Year transferable warranty
Schematics are online
Invalid Link Removed

Any company that has a 5-year warranty and publishes the schematics is standing behind their products. No other company I know does that.
 
#5
seamonkey said:
If you want a bass head
Take a look at the Fender rumble heads
Click to expand...

Isn't that a bit like recommending a Hyundai Accent when someone is shopping Cadillac?

He listed some pretty nice stuff in the op.
I'm not trying to knock the rumbles, but entry level Fender stuff just isn't a GB shuttle or shuttlemax. Also I don't think anyone here would disagree about GB's customer service reputation being good.

OP, was the PF500 your only amp? Is there something a bit larger or heavier that you already have? If you are at the very beginning of your bass journey, then by all means, check out everything, but the amps mentioned in your OP are some very nice units, indeed, and IMHO would far outclass any entry-level line.
 
#7
It seems that light weight heads dominants the market these days, at least the newer amps. There are so many, and I am sure newer models are on the way. Not sure the sound you are looking for but the GK 800 sounds very good to me as it is within your interest. Has enough power at 4 ohms to power any cabinet yet can fit in your gig bag.
 
#8
seamonkey said:
Lightweight heads and power amps are totally kicking these days.

If you want a bass head
Take a look at the Fender rumble heads
5-Year transferable warranty
Schematics are online
Invalid Link Removed

Any company that has a 5-year warranty and publishes the schematics is standing behind their products. No other company I know does that.
Click to expand...

Agree 100% Rumbles Rock! The Rumble 350 head is very conservatively rated and uses the very same B&O power amp as the Aguilar Tone Hammer and Genz Benz. Get a highly reliable and great sounding bass amp for $400 vs $750+
 
#11
Maybe should have qualified. Not starting a journey. Been playing for 42 yrs. Kind of tired of lugging heavy stuff. Have owned multiple combos. Owned multiple modulars (i.e. head/cab) Current head is a peavey pro bass 500.
Never have liked it.

Gonna have lds build me a cab for 2 12" speakers I have now and hopefully keep it light for size and on one of those small folding hand trucks. Then if can get the bass and head and few chords is a soft case im set.
hopefully.
I like my sound to be clear...not into distortion. Cant say that i'm lookin for uncolored. love full, punchy and round.
I know all of that is subjective. any help appreciated
 
#12
bass7858 said:
Maybe should have qualified. Not starting a journey. Been playing for 42 yrs.
Click to expand...

You got all the tools you need then, buy them, try them, return them if they don't work out.

Lightweights cost hardly anything to ship if they're not available local.

You're not going to get much more "clean" power than picking a power amp, but they all seem to be 2-space racks. Any pre you add is going to add the color.
 
#17
My only gripe about the lightweight amps are that they are usually lacking in tonal shaping abilities. I like a lot of options and a good-old eq (9 band at least). I like the Carvin BX500 for this reason. There are others that have it, but I didn't like the Markbass amps (I've owned the Tube800 and their 500 in a combo). I really like the Promethean lightweight amp, but they have little options for shaping your sound. Sound and tone are totally a subjective argument and this is just my personal opinion, but - such as it is - that's it.
 

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