newbie: bass amp wattage

[milosman]

I'm a guitar player getting ready to start playing bass and am getting a rig put together.

My question has to do with understanding wattage ratings in bass amps.

In particular, for my guitar head I've been using and Orange tiny terror (switchable 7/15 watts; all tube). Because I like it so much, I'm interested in its bass counterpart: the bass terror.

The thing is, the bass terror is either 500 or 1000W. I know that wattage increases volume sub-linearly. But still, 500W seems absolutely insane.

I assume the difference has to do with the fact that--as I understand it--the bass terror has a tube preamp with solid state power amplification. Does this change the way to read that wattage rating? I play mainly in very small venues so don't need something that's going to blow our drummer away.

Lastly, if I were to go with a 500W bass terror, do I still need to get a cab rated at 500W?

Thanks for being patient as I learn the ropes!

 

[CL400Peavey]

Is 500 watts enough? Way more than enough, and not even close. It all depends on who you are playing with, what you are playing, which cabs you are using, and what your tonal goals are. There are guys here that happily play with a 100 watt combo and it meets all their needs. There are also guys that are running 3 kilowatt rigs and wouldnt show up with less.

 

[billfitzmaurice]

Watts are relatively meaningless. For one thing to sound twice as loud requires ten times the power. That means that it takes 500w to sound twice as loud as 50w, but far more significant that 200w will sound half as loud as 2000w.
Where speakers are concerned watts only say how much power a cab will take without the driver voice coils burning out. It has no relationship with how low or loud it will go.
For meaningful explanations of what really counts, devoid of advertising specsmanship, this is currently the best, and to a some extent only, manufacturer site worth looking at:
Barefaced Bass - Technical Information

 

[RickenBoogie]

So, the lower frequencies of bass guitar relative to guitar, take much more power to sound equally loud. Having a 500 watt amp is also meaningless without enough speakers to project that volume. On average, 300-500 watts is a good median for a bass amp, and more importantly, having at the very least, a 4x10, 2x12, 2x15, etc. The speakers are of primary importance. A 300 watt bass amp through a good 2x12 bass cab will sound about as loud as a 15 watt guitar amp through a single 12.

 

[kb9wyz]

I would like to to RickenBoogie's statement:

Also, our hearing decreases as we get closer to the limits of what we can hear. So the lower frequencies of bass, aside from taking more power to produce, are harder for us to hear as well. We will hear 800Hz a lot better than we hear 80Hz. Even if the sound pressure level (SPL) is the same.

 

[Bassamatic]

It depends on how efficient your speakers are, and how many there are. As stated above, it takes 10X the audio power to sound twice as loud to your ears. So - to be twice as loud as 500W you need to go to 5000W - not likely. However, you can be twice as loud with twice as many speakers.

Better you should pick some great, efficient speakers to go with it, and you should be plenty loud! I have a little MarkBass 12" combo amp that is 250W by itself. When we play large venues or outside, I have a 2 x 12 Schroeder cab that I stack with it and get 3 x 12s at the full 500W. OMG! I have never had to put the volume over about 1 or 2 o'clock.

BTW - The tube front end has nothing to do with the output section.

 

[Slapstyle]

You gotta remember too, that all tube wattage and tube hybrid and solid state wattage don't really compare, and when you cross from guitar to bass it seems this principal expands even more. I play with a guy who has a hundred watt marshal all tube combo which is by far louder than my 500 watt solid state GK bass amp. I imagine it's easier to amplify higher frequencies too. Further, a 300 watt all tube ampeg will blow the doors off my GK, my 600 watt Mesa hybrid, and my 600 watt Genz Benz hybrid. I'd compare it to a 1000 watt hybrid in terms of output.

 

[JimmyM]

You gotta remember too, that all tube wattage and tube hybrid and solid state wattage don't really compare, and when you cross from guitar to bass it seems this principal expands even more. I play with a guy who has a hundred watt marshal all tube combo which is by far louder than my 500 watt solid state GK bass amp. I imagine it's easier to amplify higher frequencies too. Further, a 300 watt all tube ampeg will blow the doors off my GK, my 600 watt Mesa hybrid, and my 600 watt Genz Benz hybrid. I'd compare it to a 1000 watt hybrid in terms of output.

I've made this comparison with my well-tuned 69 SVT and a couple different 450 and 500w SS heads, and the SS heads could ever so slightly get louder clean. It's once you get past the clean part where tubes show their stuff. You can make tubes distort a little and not notice it in a mix unless you're specifically listening for it because it sounds more pleasing to the ear than most solid state amps do when they go past their rated wattage. That gives people the impression that tube watts are louder, but in fact, they're measured exactly the same.

 

[Dave W]

tube wattage and tube hybrid and solid state wattage don't really compare

Not this again.

Watts are watts are watts are watts.

 

[Downunderwonder]

If your guitarist is in the same low wattage camp as you, your bass amp needs are modest so long as there is a good PA for you to use to supply bass.

If you are without PA support for bass and kick drum you have to make do with beater noise for the kick. Still your bass rig can be quite modest, until you want to play outside. Then you need the 500W and good cabs with high sensitivity.

I don't know zip about the terrorbass, aside from it's tube preamp with a switchmode power amp. 500W is louder than many, not as loud as some. With the right cabs you are golden.

Tell us more about the band, gear budget, band PA, venue PA etc etc.