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My 10 Watt Practice amp is APPARENTLY not good enough...

Hey everybody! I've got a quick, easy question.

I need a new amp, what should I get?

Okay, now for the details...

I'm originally a guitarist. I own a bass & a crappy 10 Watt practice amp. I can play bass (really, I actually can). I play music, I'm a musician.

Now the tricky part. A band wanted a bass player, and, because I can play bass, I offered to help out.

Sad thing is, my amp sucks. REALLY sucks. It barely has enough power to be heard over a full band.

So, obviously I need a new amp, because now we're starting to look for gigs, and our next one is in a week. For that, they do have a nice Ampeg combo amp for me to use, it's about 400 Watts. And I have played on it, it sounds pretty fine.

There's one other thing. I'm kinda not wealthy, and I don't want to go and drop a few grand on an amp. My range? I think the most I'd want to pay would be 450$. It's not a lot, I know... we actually just dropped 600$ on two nice new pa speakers, so, the least amount of money with the best possible sound would be great.

What kind of music/sound? Well, I would like a bass amp that has some sort of range, I love the sound of deep synth-pad like bass, but I tend to play interesting bass lines that require more defined shape. Mainly alternative rock/electronica here...

Oh and one other thing... I'd like it to have some sort of expansion capabilities. That'd be GREAT.

Thanks SOOOO much!

-AJ
 
Hey everybody! I've got a quick, easy question.

I need a new amp, what should I get?

Okay, now for the details...

I'm originally a guitarist. I own a bass & a crappy 10 Watt practice amp. I can play bass (really, I actually can). I play music, I'm a musician.

Now the tricky part. A band wanted a bass player, and, because I can play bass, I offered to help out.

Sad thing is, my amp sucks. REALLY sucks. It barely has enough power to be heard over a full band.

So, obviously I need a new amp, because now we're starting to look for gigs, and our next one is in a week. For that, they do have a nice Ampeg combo amp for me to use, it's about 400 Watts. And I have played on it, it sounds pretty fine.

There's one other thing. I'm kinda not wealthy, and I don't want to go and drop a few grand on an amp. My range? I think the most I'd want to pay would be 450$. It's not a lot, I know... we actually just dropped 600$ on two nice new pa speakers, so, the least amount of money with the best possible sound would be great.

What kind of music/sound? Well, I would like a bass amp that has some sort of range, I love the sound of deep synth-pad like bass, but I tend to play interesting bass lines that require more defined shape. Mainly alternative rock/electronica here...

Oh and one other thing... I'd like it to have some sort of expansion capabilities. That'd be GREAT.

Thanks SOOOO much!

-AJ
rent for a while from some shop that will credit your rental payments if you buy........some will let you change rigs if you plan to buy so you can find out what suits you best...... then save up
 
+1 on renting.

for another option, i'd recommend checking out the classifieds on here - there's always good deals, especially with the economy as it is right now.

it sounds like you'd want to get a head and cab rather than a combo - that way you can expand your power by adding cabs and switching/upgrading cabs and heads as you want/are able.

as for actual amps, i would just do some research on whatever is available. i'm sure others on here can be more helpful in this respect. fwiw i love my gk 1001rb and dr bass 212 setup (dr bass has awful service apparently, but if you go used you should be alright)
 
+1 on renting.

for another option, i'd recommend checking out the classifieds on here - there's always good deals, especially with the economy as it is right now.

it sounds like you'd want to get a head and cab rather than a combo - that way you can expand your power by adding cabs and switching/upgrading cabs and heads as you want/are able.

as for actual amps, i would just do some research on whatever is available. i'm sure others on here can be more helpful in this respect. fwiw i love my gk 1001rb and dr bass 212 setup (dr bass has awful service apparently, but if you go used you should be alright)
exactly..look for the deals that are out there and not for something specific......the best way to buy a certain item is to wait for the deal and sometimes it takes a while