This is not a review but my initial thoughts on using it, coming up on the month mark. I come from Ampeg bass, and Marshall JCM800 for guitar, but since I exclusively backup a church choir, clean tones are favored over crunchy tones.
First, I really wanted the ELF as it would be more of a do-all amp for me... pop, rock, etc. However, since it didn't have a separate gain and master volume, the crunchy tones are built in by the designer at certain volume levels. In trying it out, I couldn't quite get the volume I needed at the larger church without getting into the crunch. This was with the 2x8 cab.
Then came Craigslist, and a Hartke HA2500 in absolute mint condition for $100. I didn't know anything about it, and decided to research it, and ask around. Waited too long, was gone by the time I got back to the seller.
Walked into the local GC and wanted to check out the PF350, but they only had a PF800 with a 8x10. Oh Lord, nothing like blowing off the faces of my fellow parishioners in the front pews, not including the choir singers. Scratch that.
The sales dude suggested to try some Mark Bass amps which I noticed had majority of the space in the bass amp section. Never thought Mark Bass would do for me, but I ended up liking the Little Marcus 250. I thought the tone was I was looking for gave the HA2500 a run for the money. I was able to get tones from both that I liked. However, it was nearly $400.
Fast forward a couple of weeks, and Musician's Friend stupid deal of the day was the Little Mark 250 which I did demo at GC as well. So, I drove back to GC and asked if they will price match it. I expected they would not, but the store manager said no problem. Ended up bringing it home for $229 plus tax.
What I like:
1- It gets stupidly loud with a 2x12 8ohm cab. I do have to watch the volume.
2- The VLE, or what's called Old School in the Marcus version. It's a variable low pass filter, and I use to give some thump to my tone.
3- The DI volume. I just set it at 12 o'clock, but somehow I feel empowered if I don't like the sound guy's setting my volume in the mix.
4- It has a dual Speakon connector that accepts a standard 1/4" jack, and it also has a separate 1/4" jack. Since my 2x12 is older, it only has a 1/4" jack input which I've not converted over to Speakon. I'm sure I can call Avatar and buy the plate and jack to do so. I just plug into the 1/4" part of the Speakon on the back of the amp.
What I have not figured out yet:
1- The VPF, or variable pre-shape filter. It's suppose to mid-scoop the tone, but I've not gotten comfortable with it. My thoughts on it's probably due me engaging the VLE, and the treble frequency.
2- The crunchy tones from pushing the gain. So far, it doesn't sound great. Not in the same ballpark as the ELF for my ears. I'm thinking a pedal in the effects loop would be better.
What I don't like:
1- Why is the power button backwards compared to all other amps? Is it an Italian thing? Down is on, and up is off which is backwards to what I'm use to. I keep pushing the top part to turn it on, then have to remember, it's the bottom part.
2- The treble frequency is too high for my taste. It's at 10khz per the manual, and I would prefer it to be more around 4khz, 5khz tops. Other than that I like the EQ frequencies. The high mid is something like 800hz, iirc. So that's quite a jump for a bass amp. I believe the Little Marcus has the treble frequency around 4khz.
3- The VLE tends to cut into the treble EQ and negate it early because it's so high. Another reason why MB should lower it as I suggested above.
4- The black line on the knobs should go up over to the top. It's kinda hard to clearly see when I'm performing. I don't have time to stand there at look, but need to look and adjust quickly.
What I haven't used yet:
1- The tuner out. I have my polytune in line after the G10S wireless and the amp. Don't know if I'll use it because it would not cut signal to the amp input when tuning.
2- The effects loop. I don't use effects much, and if I do, it's usually a compressor and chorus pedal. I should give it a try soon. Some say it's parallel, and it can be converted by an amp tech. Odd, because I would expect a blend knob if it is parallel.
The *** is that thing:
1- There's a black plate to the right of the Speakon connector that's held on by two screws. No obvious function and nothing in the manual about it. Best guess is that Mark Bass uses one sheet metal case for a multiple heads, and it's probably used by another amp head.
Finally, I noticed that Musician's Friend no longer as the Little Mark 250 on their website. Only an open box one. I wonder if the parent company is no longer importing them, or if Mark World is discontinuing it.
First, I really wanted the ELF as it would be more of a do-all amp for me... pop, rock, etc. However, since it didn't have a separate gain and master volume, the crunchy tones are built in by the designer at certain volume levels. In trying it out, I couldn't quite get the volume I needed at the larger church without getting into the crunch. This was with the 2x8 cab.
Then came Craigslist, and a Hartke HA2500 in absolute mint condition for $100. I didn't know anything about it, and decided to research it, and ask around. Waited too long, was gone by the time I got back to the seller.
Walked into the local GC and wanted to check out the PF350, but they only had a PF800 with a 8x10. Oh Lord, nothing like blowing off the faces of my fellow parishioners in the front pews, not including the choir singers. Scratch that.
The sales dude suggested to try some Mark Bass amps which I noticed had majority of the space in the bass amp section. Never thought Mark Bass would do for me, but I ended up liking the Little Marcus 250. I thought the tone was I was looking for gave the HA2500 a run for the money. I was able to get tones from both that I liked. However, it was nearly $400.
Fast forward a couple of weeks, and Musician's Friend stupid deal of the day was the Little Mark 250 which I did demo at GC as well. So, I drove back to GC and asked if they will price match it. I expected they would not, but the store manager said no problem. Ended up bringing it home for $229 plus tax.
What I like:
1- It gets stupidly loud with a 2x12 8ohm cab. I do have to watch the volume.
2- The VLE, or what's called Old School in the Marcus version. It's a variable low pass filter, and I use to give some thump to my tone.
3- The DI volume. I just set it at 12 o'clock, but somehow I feel empowered if I don't like the sound guy's setting my volume in the mix.
4- It has a dual Speakon connector that accepts a standard 1/4" jack, and it also has a separate 1/4" jack. Since my 2x12 is older, it only has a 1/4" jack input which I've not converted over to Speakon. I'm sure I can call Avatar and buy the plate and jack to do so. I just plug into the 1/4" part of the Speakon on the back of the amp.
What I have not figured out yet:
1- The VPF, or variable pre-shape filter. It's suppose to mid-scoop the tone, but I've not gotten comfortable with it. My thoughts on it's probably due me engaging the VLE, and the treble frequency.
2- The crunchy tones from pushing the gain. So far, it doesn't sound great. Not in the same ballpark as the ELF for my ears. I'm thinking a pedal in the effects loop would be better.
What I don't like:
1- Why is the power button backwards compared to all other amps? Is it an Italian thing? Down is on, and up is off which is backwards to what I'm use to. I keep pushing the top part to turn it on, then have to remember, it's the bottom part.
2- The treble frequency is too high for my taste. It's at 10khz per the manual, and I would prefer it to be more around 4khz, 5khz tops. Other than that I like the EQ frequencies. The high mid is something like 800hz, iirc. So that's quite a jump for a bass amp. I believe the Little Marcus has the treble frequency around 4khz.
3- The VLE tends to cut into the treble EQ and negate it early because it's so high. Another reason why MB should lower it as I suggested above.
4- The black line on the knobs should go up over to the top. It's kinda hard to clearly see when I'm performing. I don't have time to stand there at look, but need to look and adjust quickly.
What I haven't used yet:
1- The tuner out. I have my polytune in line after the G10S wireless and the amp. Don't know if I'll use it because it would not cut signal to the amp input when tuning.
2- The effects loop. I don't use effects much, and if I do, it's usually a compressor and chorus pedal. I should give it a try soon. Some say it's parallel, and it can be converted by an amp tech. Odd, because I would expect a blend knob if it is parallel.
The *** is that thing:
1- There's a black plate to the right of the Speakon connector that's held on by two screws. No obvious function and nothing in the manual about it. Best guess is that Mark Bass uses one sheet metal case for a multiple heads, and it's probably used by another amp head.
Finally, I noticed that Musician's Friend no longer as the Little Mark 250 on their website. Only an open box one. I wonder if the parent company is no longer importing them, or if Mark World is discontinuing it.
