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Newbie assembling first rig rack, needs power amp recommends

Aircooled

Aircooled

Apr 29, 2010
168
10
Las Vegas!
#1
Jumping back into the bass playing scene, I know the prudent thing to do would be to get a nice, sensible combo, or a already-assembled and matched head and cabinet. Something safe and sane, tried and true.

But nooooo. I decided to complicate it for myself because it's fun and I have to follow the rules enough in other aspects of my life that this is one where I can forge my own path. If it works, it works. If it doesn't, there's a learning experience. Nothing irreversible.

But I need some sagely advice as to how best to move forward. I have the first cabinet (Peavey TVX 410, 8 ohm), the preamp (BBE 383), rack, tuner, etc. What I need is a power amp.

What I'd ultimately like to do is use the 4x10 in conjunction with a 1x15 or 18" (also 8 ohm) down the road and with the same amp. Possibly in a bi-amped configuration, but not definitely.

Did I mention I'm trying to do this on the cheap? So yeah. It needs to be in the sub-$300 range. Used, refurb is fine if I can find it. New may be unrealistic at my price point, I realize this, but seems like there may be some options.

The amps I've been considering are a QSC GX5, and a Crown XLS-602D. Both in my price range, and both seemingly fit the bill. Thoughts?

A technical question I have is: can I run an amp, non-bridged, using only one full-range channel? Will it damage the amp with no load on one channel? I realize this is bad for a tube amp, but will that also apply to a solid state?

And of course, amp recommends and what-to-steer-away-froms most welcome.

TIA ...
 
#5
I have always been partial to the Crown CE series of amps. Total workhorses, but they are a discontinued model. You can find them used for a very good price when they pop up. Good thing weight is not an issue as these bad boys weigh about the same as a Dodge Dart.

-Mike
 
#6
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#7
The crown XTI series is pretty much the king of bang for your buck right now. It's like a quality 1u DSP module with a 2u power amp, in a 2u case that weighs as much as a Gk 1001 RB II or less. And they're the same price per watt as Carvin's quite cheap power amps, roughly.

Ebay is the place to get them.
 
#8
Aircooled said:
A technical question I have is: can I run an amp, non-bridged, using only one full-range channel? Will it damage the amp with no load on one channel? I realize this is bad for a tube amp, but will that also apply to a solid state?
Click to expand...

Yes, you can run just one channel with no ill effects. You can also have different loads on each channel if you want to assign a speaker to each channel.
 
#9
I've heard nothing but the best about the QSC Gx5s, though, they can't mono-bridge, IIRC. I love my QSC PLX 1602. Never had a problem with it, and its really light (like the GX5). The problem with this route is that you'd be much harder pressed to find one of these used for a decent price. I think that I bought mine for $350 or so, but I've seen them sold as low as $250. I went ahead and got mine because it was what I wanted and they don't pop up every day anymore.

OTOH, I have heard great things about the DCM series from Carvin, FWIW.
 
#11
The DCM-L's are great, and I use one for powering my E-drums and practice room PA (formerly a bass rig). But I can't in good conscience recommend them given how lacking their feature set is compared to the XTI series, and the prices are almost the same.

The Peavey IPRs being vaporware is lame, and the DSP available is extremely inferior to the Crown models by all accounts.
 
#12
Thanks for all of the replies. You've certainly given me some data that will help me in my search. A-hunting I shall go!

wagdog said:
Yes, you can run just one channel with no ill effects. You can also have different loads on each channel if you want to assign a speaker to each channel.
Click to expand...

So, I could run one channel at 8 ohms for one cabinet, and the other channel at 4 ohms for another?

Hmm. That opens things up a bit ...
 
#15
just look around for a 2 space Peavey power amp from the GPS series or something like a CS800H or CS800X or something. sure they're a little heavy but that's the depleted uranium armor. anyway these easily run ~ $200-$400 used and are great amps. They all run @ 2 ohms and can be bridged . shy away from the PV series as these do neither...

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