Looking for a Tone somewhere in between MarkBass & GK....Aguilar?

[Jurbanski]

I am looking for a Head in the $500-$700 range- 500 watt area that I can pair with a single 12" or 2 x 10" Cab. I played MarkBass for years and switched to a GK MB 800. Luv my GK but it can be LOUD, I do miss the Markbass sound but I am one of the people that had a lot of service issue's so, a little scarred of going back .

I luv my amps set flat ,I prefer to make minor adjustments for the room. I am trying to find a flat, or baked in tone that lands somewhere between Markbass & GK.

I have tried Mesa- Genzler - Orange Terror- Ampeg- TC- Peavey . All were brilliant, but not my thing. I did get to try the Little Bass Thing and thought it sounded killer with the semi-parametric mid. I have not been able to demo a Tone hammer or the New GK Legacy series. MY gut is telling me Tone Hammer{ pretty sure I can work with the EQ }. Style wise I am all over the place. Fretless Bass, Funk ,R & B, Hard Rock- Classic Rock, Fusion - clean to dirt- and I luv Pedals.

SO ,looking for-Warm sound, medium to fast attack, un fussy EQ, Good DI and effects loop a plus.

contenders are:

Orange Little Bass Thing
Aguilar Tone Hammer 500
GK Legacy 500 [ is it a little less in your face then the MB Series?}
Blackstar Ulite 700

Thanks .​

 

[MarkA]

I have a 4-Stroke 500 and like it well. If he Little Bass Thing sounds and feels similar, that might be my preference. Smoother than the Markbass heads I've played and just a littlein the warm side of clear. (I've not played the LBT, though. Also, the DI on 4-Stroke sounds good but is post EQ, post Master volume. Worth checking to see if that is the case with the LBT if that matters to you.)

Aguilar TH500, in my experience of it, was a little more warm and wooly than the 4-Stroke (which I'm taking as a proxy for the LBT - I've read that the front ends are similar but for the LBT's simplified EQ) but you can still get it to be fairly articulate. Wasn't my thing - when I had it, I also had a Mesa Walkabout, a Markbass F500, and a Kustom KXB500. It sounded good with the P-bass but the Walkabout (for my taste) sounded and felt better. The clean and clear stuff, the F500 and KXB did better and the KXB soundedless sterile. TH500 went, WA didn't have enough power for the loud venues I was playing then (not without more cab), so it went, and the F500 went. I still have the KXB - nice little amp. Sounds like it wouldbe up your alley if you find one used, but the fan is loud and I think the 4-Stroke does what it does better - maybe LBT will as well.

My GK experience is mostly with the RB series heads - great amps, but pretty voiced.

 

[SJan3]

I am looking for a Head in the $500-$700 range- 500 watt area that I can pair with a single 12" or 2 x 10" Cab. I played MarkBass for years and switched to a GK MB 800. Luv my GK but it can be LOUD, I do miss the Markbass sound but I am one of the people that had a lot of service issue's so, a little scarred of going back .

I luv my amps set flat ,I prefer to make minor adjustments for the room. I am trying to find a flat, or baked in tone that lands somewhere between Markbass & GK.

I have tried Mesa- Genzler - Orange Terror- Ampeg- TC- Peavey . All were brilliant, but not my thing. I did get to try the Little Bass Thing and thought it sounded killer with the semi-parametric mid. I have not been able to demo a Tone hammer or the New GK Legacy series. MY gut is telling me Tone Hammer{ pretty sure I can work with the EQ }. Style wise I am all over the place. Fretless Bass, Funk ,R & B, Hard Rock- Classic Rock, Fusion - clean to dirt- and I luv Pedals.

SO ,looking for-Warm sound, medium to fast attack, un fussy EQ, Good DI and effects loop a plus.

contenders are:

Orange Little Bass Thing
Aguilar Tone Hammer 500
GK Legacy 500 [ is it a little less in your face then the MB Series?}
Blackstar Ulite 700

Thanks .​

If looking at Aguilar, the AG700 might be more what you're looking for. As I'm sure you've heard, the Tonehammer can be a bit complex, especially if you're constantly changing your tone. And I would not attribute "fast" attack to the Tonehammer, IMHO

 

[rodl2005]

If looking at Aguilar, the AG700 might be more what you're looking for. As I'm sure you've heard, the Tonehammer can be a bit complex, especially if you're constantly changing your tone. And I would not attribute "fast" attack to the Tonehammer, IMHO

I'll agree with this.

I've gotta TH500, had it for years now, and I always am able to get a good sound.
I hadda LMII, nice amp, but I was always sticking a VTBass pedal in front of it. The TH500 allows me to go from clean to furry with a quick adjustment
I've not tried other Aguilar amps, apart from my DB750

 

[SJan3]

I'll agree with this.

I've gotta TH500, had it for years now, and I always am able to get a good sound.
I hadda LMII, nice amp, but I was always sticking a VTBass pedal in front of it. The TH500 allows me to go from clean to furry with a quick adjustment
I've not tried other Aguilar amps, apart from my DB750

This tells me you learned the Tonehammer better than I did when I had mine. I just told Al Kraft I may do another go around with a Tonehammer now that I think I understand what I did wrong with the thing.

 

[SJan3]

I'll agree with this.

I've gotta TH500, had it for years now, and I always am able to get a good sound.
I hadda LMII, nice amp, but I was always sticking a VTBass pedal in front of it. The TH500 allows me to go from clean to furry with a quick adjustment
I've not tried other Aguilar amps, apart from my DB750

Full disclosure, when playing a Jazz bass, I use a Sadowsky preamp in front of my Littlemark3 to fatten it up.

 

[AlexanderB]

IME, the three "sounds" discussed above (Markbass, Tonehammer, GK) might as well be the opposing three corners in a triangle.

Markbass, no baked in eq or distortion, TH that has a bloated (upper) bass and subdued highs and some grain, and GK, slightly scooped and harsh.

Markbass will do the other ones if you have a pedal, but GK and TH will not do as clean as the Markbass is.

That said, I have not tried the new GK amps.

 

[Alban]

You might want to try an EBS Reidmar 750, it has qualities from every amp you mentioned. Can be fat, clean, crisp and modern, or more vintage with the drive engaged. Oh and it will be loud enough.

 

[aproud1]

I am looking for a Head in the $500-$700 range- 500 watt area that I can pair with a single 12" or 2 x 10" Cab. I played MarkBass for years and switched to a GK MB 800. Luv my GK but it can be LOUD, I do miss the Markbass sound but I am one of the people that had a lot of service issue's so, a little scarred of going back .

I luv my amps set flat ,I prefer to make minor adjustments for the room. I am trying to find a flat, or baked in tone that lands somewhere between Markbass & GK.

I have tried Mesa- Genzler - Orange Terror- Ampeg- TC- Peavey . All were brilliant, but not my thing. I did get to try the Little Bass Thing and thought it sounded killer with the semi-parametric mid. I have not been able to demo a Tone hammer or the New GK Legacy series. MY gut is telling me Tone Hammer{ pretty sure I can work with the EQ }. Style wise I am all over the place. Fretless Bass, Funk ,R & B, Hard Rock- Classic Rock, Fusion - clean to dirt- and I luv Pedals.

SO ,looking for-Warm sound, medium to fast attack, un fussy EQ, Good DI and effects loop a plus.

contenders are:

Orange Little Bass Thing
Aguilar Tone Hammer 500
GK Legacy 500 [ is it a little less in your face then the MB Series?}
Blackstar Ulite 700

Thanks .​

If looking at Aguilar, the AG700 might be more what you're looking for. As I'm sure you've heard, the Tonehammer can be a bit complex, especially if you're constantly changing your tone. And I would not attribute "fast" attack to the Tonehammer, IMHO

Agree with others and recommend a used AG700. They can be had in your price range. It's seems to fit this statement perfectly "looking for-Warm sound, medium to fast attack, un fussy EQ, Good DI and effects loop a plus"

I have a lot of experience with GK and Markbass amps and find it easy to get a sound I like from either. I strayed away from GK due some reliability issues I had with a few of their heads. I struggled to find something I liked as much (closest amp I found that could do a GK sound was the Darkglass 900 amps). I tried an AG700 and it just sounded right. The controls work as you would expect and it's laid out logically. So many great amps just have controls that are complicated to adjust on the fly. If I'm at a gig and need to tweak my amp I don't want to bend down, turn on a flash light and try to adjust. Needs to be easy.

Anyway. I sold my AG700 because I like to make bad decisions. Bought some cheaper gear that worked fine but always missed the AG700 so bought a second one.

As for the amps you listed:

Orange Little Bass Thing - Great sounding amp, weak output into an 8 ohm cab, needs a lot of compression to get loud enough with a drummer. It always irritates me when an amp doesn't include input gain. Solid little box though.
Aguilar Tone Hammer 500 - Great sounding amp, takes a whole other mindset to adjust for a good sound, not loud enough if you want a clean sound (for me)
GK Legacy 500 [ is it a little less in your face then the MB Series?} - Never played but I'm sure it sounds like a GK also keep in mind it's actually 450 watts into 2.7 ohms, 300 into 4 so probably 150 - 200 into 8. Those are GK watts and seem to go further. Supposed to sound like the older GK amps which the other GK amps sound like so it probably sounds like a GK Amp
Blackstar Ulite 700 - Never played, Have played some of their combos (and own the little tiny one). I remember liking the combos and could get a decent sound. It's probably a decent little amp. That said, there are a lot of extra switches and knobs that seem to do things you may not need.

 

[AlexanderB]

You might want to try an EBS Reidmar 750, it has qualities from every amp you mentioned. Can be fat, clean, crisp and modern, or more vintage with the drive engaged. Oh and it will be loud enough.

Yes, a Reidmar with eq set to flat sounds virtually identical to Markbass Ninja 1000, which has a very flat preamp and clean power section. The Reidmar offers slightly more and "flexible" features, where the Markbass LM series pre is more like a channel strip on a mixer, with four fixed eq bands.

 

[Jurbanski]

Agree with others and recommend a used AG700. They can be had in your price range. It's seems to fit this statement perfectly "looking for-Warm sound, medium to fast attack, un fussy EQ, Good DI and effects loop a plus"

I have a lot of experience with GK and Markbass amps and find it easy to get a sound I like from either. I strayed away from GK due some reliability issues I had with a few of their heads. I struggled to find something I liked as much (closest amp I found that could do a GK sound was the Darkglass 900 amps). I tried an AG700 and it just sounded right. The controls work as you would expect and it's laid out logically. So many great amps just have controls that are complicated to adjust on the fly. If I'm at a gig and need to tweak my amp I don't want to bend down, turn on a flash light and try to adjust. Needs to be easy.

Anyway. I sold my AG700 because I like to make bad decisions. Bought some cheaper gear that worked fine but always missed the AG700 so bought a second one.

As for the amps you listed:

Orange Little Bass Thing - Great sounding amp, weak output into an 8 ohm cab, needs a lot of compression to get loud enough with a drummer. It always irritates me when an amp doesn't include input gain. Solid little box though.
Aguilar Tone Hammer 500 - Great sounding amp, takes a whole other mindset to adjust for a good sound, not loud enough if you want a clean sound (for me)
GK Legacy 500 [ is it a little less in your face then the MB Series?} - Never played but I'm sure it sounds like a GK also keep in mind it's actually 450 watts into 2.7 ohms, 300 into 4 so probably 150 - 200 into 8. Those are GK watts and seem to go further. Supposed to sound like the older GK amps which the other GK amps sound like so it probably sounds like a GK Amp
Blackstar Ulite 700 - Never played, Have played some of their combos (and own the little tiny one). I remember liking the combos and could get a decent sound. It's probably a decent little amp. That said, there are a lot of extra switches and knobs that seem to do things you may not need.

Had Not looked at the AG700 because of Price ,but may need to reconsider waiting a little bit, or looking at a used one. I do luv my GK MB 800 and it is staying put, Just time for another tool in the shed. You and Sjan3 make great points about the Tone Hammer EQ, while I am sure it rewards the user with careful adjustment.. Plug and play is more of a priority.

Thanks for the advice.

 

[Jurbanski]

Yes, a Reidmar with eq set to flat sounds virtually identical to Markbass Ninja 1000, which has a very flat preamp and clean power section. The Reidmar offers slightly more and "flexible" features, where the Markbass LM series pre is more like a channel strip on a mixer, with four fixed eq bands.

That's 2 for the Reidmar! Will have to check them out.

 

[AdamR]

All the amps you have listed are very different. Especially compared to the Markbass. In my opinion, Mark bass is super clean, no baked in tone. Gk is very hi-fi. Especially the MB series. The Legacy is going to have more grit.

You may want to check out the Darkglass M900. It's way more than a metal amp. The clean channel is very underrated. Then you have the option of blending in one of 2 overdrive circuits. B3k is the modern overdrive and can do the GK grit, VMT is more vintage, much like the tone hammer

 

[Roland GR 88]

I moved on from a TH500 to an older AG500SC for a more neutral eq set but it still sits in the Aguilar tone range and doesn't have the huge eq sweeps that most other heads have. The Ag700 uses the same preamp.
FWIW I paid $200.00 for the AG500 last year. They weren't Aguilars most popular offering so look around.

 

[Kukulkan61]

GKs have a volume knob if they are too loud you know..

 

[aproud1]

That's 2 for the Reidmar! Will have to check them out.

I liked the Reidmar. Stupid powerful. A lot of tone shaping. I did find I needed to work a bit to get a sound I loved. It's in there but takes some knob turning.

 

[Nebadon2000]

I have similar qualifications for Amps as you. I have a Markbass now but if I was looking for an amp; I would include Bergantino Forte' D, GK Fusion S 500, Markbass little mark Vintage D2, along with Orange Little Bass Thing

Although these pages have me interested in Mesa and Genzler and first I would try after Berg; which you have eliminated

 

[MarkA]

I moved on from a TH500 to an older AG500SC for a more neutral eq set but it still sits in the Aguilar tone range and doesn't have the huge eq sweeps that most other heads have. The Ag700 uses the same preamp.
FWIW I paid $200.00 for the AG500 last year. They weren't Aguilars most popular offering so look around.

I could be wrong, but I thought that the preamp on the 700 was refined, at least slightly, from the 500. (I haven't played the 700, so I could be mis-remembering something I heard or read.)

Only played the 500 once, but found it to be super-articulate -- killer on slap/percussive stuff. I recall thinking that the mid bands of the EQ were kind of peaky (Perhaps this was changed with the 700?) and wishing they were voiced wider. Again, though, only played it the one time.

I know that the 700 is more powerful, but I'd be curious to play one side-by-side with the 500 and see if it hits the same way.

 

[MarkA]

Orange Little Bass Thing - Great sounding amp, weak output into an 8 ohm cab, needs a lot of compression to get loud enough with a drummer. It always irritates me when an amp doesn't include input gain. Solid little box though.

That's a bummer about output into 8 Ohms, if so -- I feel that's a strong point of the 4-Stroke.

 

[SJan3]

I could be wrong, but I thought that the preamp on the 700 was refined, at least slightly, from the 500. (I haven't played the 700, so I could be mis-remembering something I heard or read.)

Only played the 500 once, but found it to be super-articulate -- killer on slap/percussive stuff. I recall thinking that the mid bands of the EQ were kind of peaky (Perhaps this was changed with the 700?) and wishing they were voiced wider. Again, though, only played it the one time.

I know that the 700 is more powerful, but I'd be curious to play one side-by-side with the 500 and see if it hits the same way.

I had an AG500SC and remember it as you do. I loved most about it but coaxing mids seemed to be a challenge. Not the amp for those in favor of the burpy Jaco tone. But a slapper's delight.