New Markbass combo versions

[Bassamatic]

re: Mute switch - Yes these are a good addition, very useful! This is why I put a mute switch on all my basses. So I can set it down between sets or takes and not have to change any settings to keep the output quiet. I also use a cable with the Neutrik Silent Plug so I can unplug without any noise or pops.

 

[themickster]

Thanks! Mostly I just like a mute switch to turn the amp to standby during breaks. If I’m playing upright, then there is no volume control on the instrument. When I double on upright and electric then I use a preamp (Grace Felix) that has a mute. When it’s one or the other I like to keep things as simple as possible with just the instrument, a cord, and the amp - that’s when the mute on the amp would be handy.

Turn the gain down to 0? Solids don't need putting on standby anyway.

 

[smurfco]

The Little Mark Vintage has the three way Flat / Scoop / Old switch and it seems to work well enough for me to not miss the old VLE and VPF knobs.

 

[SJan3]

The Little Mark Vintage has the three way Flat / Scoop / Old switch and it seems to work well enough for me to not miss the old VLE and VPF knobs.

The Little Mark Vintage is a tempting amp.
I agree, with the 3 way switch, the VLE and VPF aren't essential. My NANO has 4 band EQ only and I can still find my sound.
But the filters are convenient and a quick way to tweak your tone.

 

[KJMO]

They were the big attraction for me along with what I think was a nice tone stack that made those two filters very usable. I actually seem to remember some small combos that they used to make that only had two controls, the VPF and a volume knob. They were surprisingly capable in a sort of Quilter Bass Block minimal/unique EQ kind of way.

Every single person I've seen using one in the wild had all the settings on the amp set "flat", which meant the VPF and the VLE were both up half way, which is totally not flat (who knows what effect that would have, but it's not good). So I think most users were confused by it, and perhaps the new setup will be easier to understand for most people.

 

[SJan3]

Every single person I've seen using one in the wild had all the settings on the amp set "flat", which meant the VPF and the VLE were both up half way, which is totally not flat (who knows what effect that would have, but it's not good). So I think most users were confused by it, and perhaps the new setup will be easier to understand for most people.

This is possible as the uninformed would tend to set everything at 12:00 thinking that they had set the amp flat. Far from it!!
Whenever I hear of someone hating a MarkBass amp after testing in a guitar center, I always wonder where they had the filters set.

 

[DirkP]

Never owned MarkBass, but played through them enough to know I like them. Still have the rat fur?

I have rat fur Markbass stuff since more than 10 years and it seems they are right about it having a high quality. No problems with it at all, just use a vacuum cleaner from time to time. I like rat fur as a small convenient pedal board or in use with the Markbass amp stand or instrument holder.

 

[Al Kraft]

Every single person I've seen using one in the wild had all the settings on the amp set "flat", which meant the VPF and the VLE were both up half way, which is totally not flat (who knows what effect that would have, but it's not good). So I think most users were confused by it, and perhaps the new setup will be easier to understand for most people.

Excellent point and something that is very similar to what I think Aguilar TH users who just couldn't get it to work suffered from - assuming that gain and drive at noon were "neutral"/flat. I actually like a touch of the VLE depending on the cab and bass to dial back some top end and use it as I would a LPF (although I think the VLE is a bit more sophisticated in the way it integrates its effect with the tone stack). I usually have the VPF around 9 o'clock once again depending on the cab and bass. While some would argue it's just a mid scoop, my sense in using it is that it's effect is well-integrated to be complementary with the tone stack design.

 

[Nebadon2000]

I am curious how that new 'Band Limiter' will perform at loud levels.

Mute is nice if tuner out stays live. In fact I wish they had tuner out on previous model after gain and before master. [yes you would loose ability for 'tuner out' as a slave output]

I applaud their moxy to have full yellow amp face in lieu of haters bitchin about their 'Yellowness'

Their tone center[another bitchin point] on Low control is only change but I have found tone controls musical and effective on my Amp.

As Sanj3 expressed the VLE[now old school] is great for general tone change with no fiddling and VPF switch takes away fine tuning of scoop.

 

[SJan3]

Excellent point and something that is very similar to what I think Aguilar TH users who just couldn't get it to work suffered from - assuming that gain and drive at noon were "neutral"/flat. I actually like a touch of the VLE depending on the cab and bass to dial back some top end and use it as I would a LPF (although I think the VLE is a bit more sophisticated in the way it integrates its effect with the tone stack). I usually have the VPF around 9 o'clock once again depending on the cab and bass. While some would argue it's just a mid scoop, my sense in using it is that it's effect is well-integrated to be complementary with the tone stack design.

Regarding the Tonehammer 500, that would be me, Al. I set the gain and drive at noon and couldn't understand the reaction of the amp so, in ignorance, I sold it. How I wish I had someone to 'splain it to me.

 

[DirkP]

This is possible as the uninformed would tend to set everything at 12:00 thinking that they had set the amp flat. Far from it!!
Whenever I hear of someone hating a MarkBass amp after testing in a guitar center, I always wonder where they had the filters set.

I rehearse with my band in a rehearsal-center where most of the rooms have Markbass amps, some have Ampegs. It is true that more often than not, when we rehearse in a room with a Markbass amp, both VLE and VPE are set to 12:00
It is a shame that the stupid ones dictate how amps are build for the elite of super clever bass players like me and you.

 

[SJan3]

I rehearse with my band in a rehearsal-center where most of the rooms have Markbass amps, some have Ampegs. It is true that more often than not, when we rehearse in a room with a Markbass amp, both VLE and VPE are set to 12:00
It is a shame that the stupid ones dictate how amps are build for the elite of super clever bass players like me and you.

Lol!! Well, I don't know about that but I agree that the manufacturer may have chosen to change the format to accommodate the uninformed. The VPF filter in the hands of the ignorant is a dangerous thing!

 

[jwilson67]

Sorry to resurrect a very old thread but I'm getting a 210 combo very soon here and the CMD 102p is on my radar along with the Fender Rumble series and and GK MB210. I have a couple friends who use the Markbass and I love their tone - even my wife noticed how good they sound.

I'm in a conundrum though! I don't know whether to seek out the older CMD's or go with the CMD 102p IV (which BTW is currently on sale on MF for $899). Since this thread originated does anyone have experience with the newer version of the combo? Like others have said I can't find anything on YouTube or elsewhere for reference.

 

[SJan3]

Sorry to resurrect a very old thread but I'm getting a 210 combo very soon here and the CMD 102p is on my radar along with the Fender Rumble series and and GK MB210. I have a couple friends who use the Markbass and I love their tone - even my wife noticed how good they sound.

I'm in a conundrum though! I don't know whether to seek out the older CMD's or go with the CMD 102p IV (which BTW is currently on sale on MF for $899). Since this thread originated does anyone have experience with the newer version of the combo? Like others have said I can't find anything on YouTube or elsewhere for reference.

The LittleMark IV is featured on YouTube but it's a poor demo sonically. Tells you nothing really. That said, I'd expect the version IV to be very similar in performance to the lll. There is a change in the low band frequency center from 40hz to 68hz. That may tighten up the low end a bit.

 

[DirkP]

The LittleMark IV is featured on YouTube but it's a poor demo sonically. Tells you nothing really. That said, I'd expect the version IV to be very similar in performance to the lll. There is a change in the low band frequency center from 40hz to 68hz. That may tighten up the low end a bit.

Owning the LMII and the LMIII as part of the cmd 121 P combo, I just had a look at the LM IV head.
"Old School" seems to be another name for the VLE, but the VPF is gone and replaced by a simple switch that changes to pronounced lows and highs and reduced mids. I like the VPF much more, where you can dial in the amount of more lows and highs you want. Why taking away this versatility? Maybe it confused to many users, but I love it.
I like the mute that the older versions didn't have and the limiter seems to have changed to a two-band, but can't be manipulated in any way.

 

[SJan3]

Owning the LMII and the LMIII as part of the cmd 121 P combo, I just had a look at the LM IV head.
"Old School" seems to be another name for the VLE, but the VPF is gone and replaced by a simple switch that changes to pronounced lows and highs and reduced mids. I like the VPF much more, where you can dial in the amount of more lows and highs you want. Why taking away this versatility? Maybe it confused to many users, but I love it.
I like the mute that the older versions didn't have and the limiter seems to have changed to a two-band, but can't be manipulated in any way.

This is a great analysis of the changes to the LITTLEMARK head. And I agree with all your points.

 

[jwilson67]

Thanks for the input! That was indeed a great description of the updates that were made.

I was actually off Talkbass for about 4 years and just came back on the other day. I'm sorting through review after review of combo amps hoping for some actual concrete answers. There are players on TB who say such-and-such amp sounds amazing and then someone debunks it with "it's the worst thing I've ever heard" so I can't go with reviews here. All I come away with is I just have to trust my own ears.

Obviously then it just comes down to technique. I really dig the meaty, not overly zingy tone that the Markbass stuff has. For reference/context I'm coming from an Ashdown ABM 500 and an ABM410h cab which I've used for the last 22 years but I just can't lift this stuff anymore. I literally threw my back out after a gig two weeks ago. Also, there are certain things I like about the rig and others I don't.

All I know is what I've heard - which are a couple bass player friends who own the CMD 102p and they sound great. It seems like an amp I can put pedals in front of to change the tone to what I need as well.

Since it's impossible to actually try anything out in person anymore I'm going to trust my instinct and go with the 102.

 

[oren]

I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. I used to use an Ashdown ABM 500 with a 115 cab and now use a MB CMD-121P. The MB doesn’t have that huge meaty low end that the Ashdown had, but it has sweet low mids that sit really nice in a mix and I feel like I can usually hear myself better now.

 

[jwilson67]

I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. I used to use an Ashdown ABM 500 with a 115 cab and now use a MB CMD-121P. The MB doesn’t have that huge meaty low end that the Ashdown had, but it has sweet low mids that sit really nice in a mix and I feel like I can usually hear myself better now.

Thanks! That is precisely the frequency range I like to have the "meat" of the sound in. The Ashdown is a fantastic amp but many times it's overkill - particularly the 410 cab. My other option is to keep using the ABM 500 and just get a lightweight cab but I'm really looking for a tone change in general. I tried my head with an Aguilar GS112 and it sounded like major poop.

I'll still have the Ashdown in case I play a 3,000 seat gig which won't be anytime soon!

 

[PhatBasstard]

I don't know whether to seek out the older CMD's or go with the CMD 102p IV, which is currently on sale on MF for $899.

FWIW, I bought mine (102p IV) from them (MF) a couple months ago for only $699 new, shipped.
Got a 102p cab on the way too for a virtual 4x10 (104HPR) when I need it.

The 102p IV by itself is great though,

re: Mute switch - Yes these are a good addition, very useful! This is why I put a mute switch on all my basses. So I can set it down between sets or takes and not have to change any settings to keep the output quiet. I also use a cable with the Neutrik Silent Plug so I can unplug without any noise or pops.

...and can be muted/unmuted with the optional footswitch.