• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

MarkBass amps - anybody with experience with them?

#21
I bought an Acoustic Image Focus 2R series III new for $1400. Used it with many different speaker configs.


Last year I bought a Markbass 112 combo for and "extra" amp, since I often have to leave an amp somewhere while I schlep around another one.

I just recently traded away the Acoustic Image for a bass-

The Markbass sounds better. (AI's are great, transparent, one trick ponies---great for clean, not so great for rock).
 
#22
Pichy said:
Thanks for your suggestions!! I am still considering the head; yet the size of the LMIII concerns me in the sense that it can easily fit inside someone's coat or big purse and just walk away from a gig!! This is something the guy at GC told me he has heard stories from different customers when talking about small amp- heads. The band takes a break and they mingle in the crowd, have a few beers and nobody pays attention to the stage and stuff happens. Nobody can stash a combo inside their coats!!
Click to expand...

Yea, the guys at GC say some odd things, but that is just silly.

Get the LM III head --- it gives you tons of flexibility. I use mine with GK 1x15 and/or 4x10 Neo cabs. Another good option is the head with Avatar cabs. Of course, the MB cabs are cool too. The combos are fine, but there are some drawbacks. The anti-theft theory is not something I'd worry about when making your choice.
 
#23
I played on a MarkBass stack for a while and I loved it. It was the LittleMark with their 4x12 cab and 1x15 cab. The whole rig was super light and it sounded amazing. The person who owned it was selling it for $800. I wish that I had had the money at that point to get it. I'm kicking myself to this day.
 
#27
I use a CMD 121H combo for rehearsals and small gigs, or a LMIII head and a Traveler 151P cab for medium gigs, or that plus one more 151P cab for big gigs. I only wish the Little Mark series amps had semi-parametric eq controls. The Momark line does, and the SD1200.

Know this: at gig volume in a mix the best tone is often found with all the eq knobs at noon and both filters off, or maybe the VLE up some. Also, don't mismatch speakers.
 
#28
murphy said:
Love my markbass amps...they are Grrrreat!!
Did not care for the speaker cabs
Click to expand...

+1.
The speaker cabs vary a great deal from one to the other. So much so, that it would be hard to define what the Markbass cab design goal is. The best ones I've heard are the 115 combos, but they are crazy heavy and awkward in shape. In their price range, there are far better cab options. My choices were Audiokinesis Thunderchild and Bergantino. It wasn't a close call imho.
On the other hand, the LMlll is a great head - warm, balanced, can be adjusted to many situations, dependable.
 
#29
I've had a 112 combo for about 4 years now and it still amazes me. I think it is louder, (much) better sounding and much simpler to dial in a good tone, than my old SWR SM-400/Goliath rig (about 115lbs), and I can pick it up with one hand. If I need anything louder I can hook it up to an extension cab and get the full 500 watts.
 
#30
I currently own a MarkBass Little Mark Tube 800. I would say, it's pretty amazing.

When I first purchased it, I was upgrading from a practice combo amp. I had the choice of either picking a Ampeg SVT, or this MarkBass. Honestly, I was pretty torn when I was at the store, since Ampeg is almost every bassist's standard dream tone. I was trying both the Ampeg and the MarkBass, and honestly, they sound relatively similar. I have to admit, I am not that big on trying to find the perfect tone, since I believe good playing can make anything sound good. However, that doesn't mean the MarkBass is just "good enough".

The amp that I have right now has the tube/solid state dial, which is pretty cool. The tone of the amp is amazing as well - I wouldn't dare to compare it to Ampeg, but MarkBass sounds good in its own way. Most importantly, the weight of this amp is just amazing. It's lighter than a laptop... and this is one of the major reason why I bought this amp.

I would say, a lot of people buy a certain brand of amp purely because of the brand; they probably can't even tell the tone differences if you cover their eyes (Though some people could really tell). If you don't really care about the brand, MarkBass is definitely a good deal. Given, if I have infinite money, I would probably buy a 8x10 cab with a Ampeg SVT; but having this MarkBass in the meantime is definitely not too shabby.
 
#31
Really like my LMII, but still looking for cabs that will make me love it.

Settled on the Avatar B410 because they were cheap. The Eden 12's are a little more subtle.

As for someone walking away with the head...what are they doing on the band riser anyway??

I sometimes use my iPad2 for sheet music display..I always pull that down on break and put it in my gig bag.
 
#34
PDGood said:
+1.
The speaker cabs vary a great deal from one to the other. So much so, that it would be hard to define what the Markbass cab design goal is. The best ones I've heard are the 115 combos, but they are crazy heavy and awkward in shape. In their price range, there are far better cab options. My choices were Audiokinesis Thunderchild and Bergantino. It wasn't a close call imho.
On the other hand, the LMlll is a great head - warm, balanced, can be adjusted to many situations, dependable.
Click to expand...

Yes, they are different. Interestingly, I played my LMIII head through an ancient Ampeg 810 one night, and the thing pretty much sounded like the Ampeg VR head that I usually play through that cab. Not exactly, but just as good. It goes to show that the Ampeg 810 has a sound of its own regardless of what you play through it.

My 151P cabs do a fine job. I'd say they have their own sound, but I can get traditional bass sounds from the rig. Each weighs 45.75 lbs., more than I'd like, even though I know that's not really heavy. I am saving for a Barefaced Compact, or another Barefaced, or two, hee, hee.
 
#35
I've owned the markbass 2x10 combo for about 5 years, great volume, functional and really portable. I traded my giant ampeg rig for it b/c i needed something light-weight but still loud enough for practice and gigging - this combo was perfect for that.

I like that the amp has only a few knobs-it's no fun having to screw around with dozens of dials and buttons to find your tone. Very minimalistic, yet effective: I usually leave all my EQ knobs Zeroed out and just play with the VLE & VLX voicing knobs to dial in a good tone.

at live shows and in the studio, the direct XLR line out is awesome for plugging straight into the PA or mix board. One complaint is that there is no mute button but whatever, I'll live.

sure, there are lots of high dollar tube rigs out there that weigh 1,000's of lbs and give you better tone, but I'm poor and those don't fit into the backseat of my Kia.

if i had unlimited $$ at my disposal, i'd prob trade my Mark for something like a Trace or an Ashdown and hire a gorilla-man to carry it around for me.

here's a picture of my most current rig. I've noticed that markbass made a small change to the head unit on this combo a couple of years ago, added another volume or something? anyway, the new ones look a little different from my older model, but still the same output, 300W at 8ohms, 500W at 4ohms. I think it would sound a lot better if I added a 1x15" cabinet to round out the tone.

If you're thinking about buying one of these, try finding something USEDthe price they charge for these at GC is absurd. Mine has been through a lot of abuse over the last 5 years and i haven't had a single problem, so i'm willing to bet their used stuff is pretty solid
 

Attachments

  • photo(14).jpg
    photo(14).jpg
    193 KB · Views: 57
#36
I've had a Markbass 2x10 combo. Sounded great at the store and then in my bedroom.

Sounded like a complete honky piece of poopoo at gigs. I'm still looking for the right amp, modern Ampeg sounds the best but the reliability is, well, nonexistent.
 
#37
i too like my LM II but I really LOVE it with my Bergie 212! Fantastic combination... Dont feel like you need to have the same brand of cab as the head. Pick a good head and experiment with cabs.

StyleOverShow said:
Really like my LMII, but still looking for cabs that will make me love it.

Settled on the Avatar B410 because they were cheap. The Eden 12's are a little more subtle.

As for someone walking away with the head...what are they doing on the band riser anyway??

I sometimes use my iPad2 for sheet music display..I always pull that down on break and put it in my gig bag.
Click to expand...
 
#38
you can pick up a LM II head used for $300 - $350 here on TB!

WesJett said:
I've owned the markbass 2x10 combo for about 5 years, great volume, functional and really portable. I traded my giant ampeg rig for it b/c i needed something light-weight but still loud enough for practice and gigging - this combo was perfect for that.

I like that the amp has only a few knobs-it's no fun having to screw around with dozens of dials and buttons to find your tone. Very minimalistic, yet effective: I usually leave all my EQ knobs Zeroed out and just play with the VLE & VLX voicing knobs to dial in a good tone.

at live shows and in the studio, the direct XLR line out is awesome for plugging straight into the PA or mix board. One complaint is that there is no mute button but whatever, I'll live.

sure, there are lots of high dollar tube rigs out there that weigh 1,000's of lbs and give you better tone, but I'm poor and those don't fit into the backseat of my Kia.

if i had unlimited $$ at my disposal, i'd prob trade my Mark for something like a Trace or an Ashdown and hire a gorilla-man to carry it around for me.

here's a picture of my most current rig. I've noticed that markbass made a small change to the head unit on this combo a couple of years ago, added another volume or something? anyway, the new ones look a little different from my older model, but still the same output, 300W at 8ohms, 500W at 4ohms. I think it would sound a lot better if I added a 1x15" cabinet to round out the tone.

If you're thinking about buying one of these, try finding something USEDthe price they charge for these at GC is absurd. Mine has been through a lot of abuse over the last 5 years and i haven't had a single problem, so i'm willing to bet their used stuff is pretty solid
Click to expand...
 
#39
One of the charity's I volunteer for "Rock The Autism" just got a sweet sponsorship from MarkBass and MarkDrum. They sent us a killer bass stack, bass combo and a bitchen drum set. The kids really love the drum set the most but I really love that little 1/10 combo, such an amazing, easy to dial in tone.

You can read about it here: Invalid Link Removed.

They are simply an amazing company for doing this and the kids really appreciate it :)
 
#40
If you're thinking of going with only a 2X10, you really need to audition the combo next to a loudazz drummer.

I found it would not keep up. In that case you'll end up adding another cab or wishing you had got the 15" combo.

Of course, if you never have to worry about keeping up with loud drummers or other instruments, the 2X10 sounds great and is ultra-portable. A true one-hander.

I went with the Markbass CMD151P, perfect. The only time I need to add another cab is on large theater or large outdoor stages. On all small to medium indoor stages I have plenty of headroom. I'm not real big on tweeters, but just in case, I also invested in a seperate MB 15" cab with tweeter and a used LMII head.

Better too much than too little.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back