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Markbass CMD 121p - Can it Handle the Volume?

#21
::::BASSIST:::: said:
So does this combo have a midrange sound? Or is it nice and thick?
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Markbass cabs sound like Markbass cabs. If you've ever heard a Markbass cab, you have a pretty good idea of what all their cabs sound like. I consider it pretty flat in its response, but yeah, if you're into deep heavy bass response, it's probably not a first choice. I consider it thick for its tiny size, and it certainly mics up thick, but you may not. The thing about it is it sits in the mix extremely well. Some people don't get past them because in the store it's not the prettiest sound ever, but in a mix it's amazing.
 
#22
::::BASSIST:::: said:
So does this combo have a midrange sound? Or is it nice and thick?
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It really depends on what bass you're playing through it. I played an MIA Jazz bass and a Warwick fretless 4 through it and both sounded pretty good. The sound was nice and thick but still clear when I played my Peavey Millennium Plus 5 through it, though! I think the higher output from my Peavey made a difference. It sounded like I imagine bass to sound, which is why I'm going to be buying one of these as soon as I can!
 
#23
ksandvik said:
I would say midrange is the MarkBass's forte, but best is to check it out yourself.
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Put one of these little beasts a foot or two in front of a bare
wall and VIOLA! More low bass coming from the rear ports
reflecting off the wall. I had to use my 121P with a 6 piece
band once. I put the amp in a bare corner. The guys couldn't
believe it. I had to really push the box, but it came through
like a champ.
 
#25
fourstringbliss said:
On an amp stand it's pretty midrangey, but on the floor the bass comes through loud and clear!
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That's less of a function of the floor as it is the stand angling it more toward your ear so you hear the mids and highs better. I remember Bill FM saying you have to get it off the floor like 2 feet or more for it to have an impact on actual bass response.
 
#26
pointbass said:
Yup, they all chuckled when they first saw it. The sax player was in an out-right panic when he realized that I was actually going to only use the 121P the first gig I brought it to .... until they all heard it :bassist:

I'm 6'5" tall, I weigh 270 pounds and I play ERB's nearly exclusively, so if I can get over looking a lttle stupid with this mini-sized amp behind me, anyone can .... :cool:
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That would be quite a sight to see. It really is the mouse that roared, huh? It'd really be something to have it perched atop that 112 cab with all 500w pumping out. It would be enough to make any Ampeg lover wonder why they're toting around a hand truck to move their rig!
 
#30
BEBOP 1 - you talked about the 121 as a good keyboard amp. What about the fact that most keyboards are stereo and don't sound as good when you go mono. These Mark Bass amps only have 1 input. I am also a keyboard player and have never loved the sound of keyboard amps and I've tried and owned a bunch of very high end ones. Would love it if a CMD 102P or 121 could double as a great keyboard amp. But I'm concerned about that one input.
 
#33
Robert Sands said:
BEBOP 1 - you talked about the 121 as a good keyboard amp. What about the fact that most keyboards are stereo and don't sound as good when you go mono. These Mark Bass amps only have 1 input. I am also a keyboard player and have never loved the sound of keyboard amps and I've tried and owned a bunch of very high end ones. Would love it if a CMD 102P or 121 could double as a great keyboard amp. But I'm concerned about that one input.
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Hey Robert:

I play keys, EWI (sax), and harps with one (blues) 5-piece band and play bass with a 4-piece rock gig.

My keyboard et al. setup is simply:

Keys and EWI straight (both in stereo) into a little Mackie 8-channel mixer to the PA in stereo and to the CMD121P in mono. Harps go through bullet mics to a Fender/Boss Deluxe emulator pedal (for grind and reverb) to my stage mixer, PA, and 121P in mono for monitoring. The mixer also allows me to use in-ears (in stereo) if I want.

I find that I'm happy enough with mono on stage and haven't tried stereo live. (Don't want to go there!)

The Mackie mixer is no bigger than a book and is no hassle to toss in my gig case.

For some gigs, if we want a real vintage vibe, I'll bring my Leslie as well and the mixer allows me to send organ or Rhoades patches to the Leslie and I route piano, synths etc. to the 121P. Those times are rare, though.

When I play bass gigs, I don't bring the mixer and just go into the 121P and 121H extension cab and use it's DI for the PA. I find the 121P alone is enough for me with keys but I like the extra speaker cone area for bass.

Hope that clears it up for ya...
 
#34
Link Removed

Pointbass told me that he used to use a hartke 5000 head with an Eden 210/410 cab stack. Now he's using his 121P with a 151P cab underneath and he not only doesn't notice a volume difference but the sound cuts through better!

My current amp weighs 85 lbs - more than both his 121P and 151P cab combined. :rollno:
 
#35
Robert Sands said:
BEBOP 1 - you talked about the 121 as a good keyboard amp. What about the fact that most keyboards are stereo and don't sound as good when you go mono. These Mark Bass amps only have 1 input. I am also a keyboard player and have never loved the sound of keyboard amps and I've tried and owned a bunch of very high end ones. Would love it if a CMD 102P or 121 could double as a great keyboard amp. But I'm concerned about that one input.
Click to expand...

Yes, few Keyboard amps are stereo, anyway. If you need that you should use the PA, even if I doubt playing stereo live is a good solution.

I've used CMD 121P as a keyboard amp, works great. Next I will use it as the amp for my Line 6 PodXT for guitar work! Seems this is the best amp purchase I've had in this lifetime.
 
#38
i have the little combo and i dont use extension cab but i like it very very much wherever i go it comes next to my ray... U can have it as practice amp, rehersal amp, gig amp even without extension... Only big gigs need it (extension) in studio in every room fitted better than ampeg i played ....
 
#39
Cant go wrong with this set up - the 12's sound great and fill any room.

Saving on Back Pain in later life ....PRICELESS :hyper:



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