Obsolete bass amps

[SJan3]

Ok, we know the SVT and V4B are still viable but what about all of the other brands (mostly SS amps) that appeared in the 80's until the latest class D amps sort of 'took over'?

I have an Eden Metro and a GK 800RB both of which i think are solid even today....even my Music Man HD150...getting into bass from a guitar world i was taken with the number of brands to choose from that i saw on stages thru the past decades.

Which of these amps that were at one time considered 'top tier' are now relegated to the scrap heap, possibly in terms of weight and size being a factor?

Are many not even worth repairing even though they may have been among the preferred examples just a few years back?

The old Fender, Vox and Marshall circuits have survived in the guitar world...but what is still viable in the bass amp world?

This comes down to convenience and personal preference? Why is there a resurgence of interest in vinyl records/players. They're not convenient at all but there's "something" that still attracts "purists" who argue that the sound reproduction is more accurate/authentic, even if not nearly as clean as digital recordings.
I'd gladly rock an SVT or Acoustic 360, if I had a convenient way of moving the beasts. Why, because they still sound good. GK800RB, Eden WT550 and others are looked at as 'ol skool now but I remember when they were considered a revelation in size, tone and output.
So, today's equipment is, without question, more convenient but as far as tone, well I still see a myriad of choices today, more than from yesteryear but I also see SVTs, 800RBs, older Eden amps, SWR etc on stage. The player still appreciates the sonic footprint of these units and I suspect there will always be "purists" who have to have that SVT or their record player.

 

[azureblue]

Kustom tuck and roll Blue metalflake 2-15' JBL D140!

 

[azureblue]

I would take back my old 80s Sunn SS amps.

I had a Sunn 2000s with 2- 15's - yep, I wish I had it back.

 

[Paul New]

I have a 91 and 93 GK 400RB as my main heads and I have yet to find a head to replace them. I've tried some of the newer Class D heads but I feel like the ones I've tried sounded to processed to me. I'm interested in the GK class D heads and the Darkglass ones but me 400RBs are so tried and true. If anything, I would probably get an 800rb if I can find one in good shape.

The 400RB has been my favorite too, for a long time. Mine is getting to be unreliable, so I just bought a GK combo MB210ii. I also have Acoustic image gear for upright, and my first amp back in the day was an original portaflex. Long story short, I might send the 400RB somewhere to get it checked out, but it's just going to be a backup. The new combo sounds just as good or better, and the whole rig is 35lbs.

 

[Pdaddy1978]

‘Obsolete’?? It’s story time....

Once upon a time, a clockmaker decided to build musical instruments. He used the technology with which he was already familiar, and crafted a thing that sorta sounded like a pipe organ. It was huge and heavy, reliant upon electromechanical gears and circuits. But it sounded good as it’s own entity, and began finding itself in homes across the land as well as on stages everywhere. That thing is the Hammond organ. It was in baseball stadiums, on gospel church stages, it got hauled around by big bands like Deep Purple and ELP.... and by your local band, playing to 50 people at a backyard party.

The sound was awesome. The hauling, not so much.

Combine that with the constant desire for ‘new’ sounds, and in the late 1970s and into the 80s you started to see bands literally putting these things out on the curb for the trash man as they acquired new technology like the DX7 and the various other polysynths. And then came samplers, and the Hammond was dead. Obsolete.

Or was it?

We all know about the resurgence. So by the year 2000, a B3 that in 1983 might have been kicked to the curb would, if in good shape and paired with a good Leslie 122 or 147, fetch $6K or more.

Now these organs are finally becoming truly obsolete. The reason is that rebuilding one (I’ve done two myself) is a huge PITA, and the parts are becoming unavailable as they age out and become non-functional. Thank goodness that ‘modeling’ technology has finally gotten to where it is sonically indistinguishable from tonewheels and vibrato scanners and filter capacitors and electronic crosstalk.
_——————————-

Anyway, the moral is that nothing is ‘obsolete’ if it helps you make the sound that’s in your head. Yeah a Hartke amp from1998 is far heavier than a current class D amp. But it sounds great, and that sound might not be available from another amp. So ‘obsolete’ is entirely subjective.

Amen on moving one of them old B3s!
Even after guys lopped off as much of the furniture as they could, those were a beast to move.
If you ever had to help lift and relocate one, you got a much better idea on how the pyramids were built!

 

[dalkowski]

I had a Sunn 2000s with 2- 15's - yep, I wish I had it back.

I had a Beta Bass combo, then a Concert head with 2 EAW 1x15s.

 

[Spirit of Ox]

The 400RB has been my favorite too, for a long time. Mine is getting to be unreliable, so I just bought a GK combo MB210ii. I also have Acoustic image gear for upright, and my first amp back in the day was an original portaflex. Long story short, I might send the 400RB somewhere to get it checked out, but it's just going to be a backup. The new combo sounds just as good or better, and the whole rig is 35lbs.

If you have the older one like mine (Series II) They are very easy to work on so any amp tech probably wouldn't charge too much. The main issue this amp will have is the the Effects loop jacks get corroded and need to be burnished. It's worth getting it checked out.

 

[iiipopes]

I, on the other hand, am at the mercy of house PA systems all of which are very good. But with three acoustic guitars rumbling away my bass seems to get lost in the monitor mix. My little one twelve cab and amp do a fine job of keeping my groove, if not flapping my pant legs. Besides, gotta have something to put the beers on.

Oh, please forgive me, but I've spilled beer in an amp setting my cup on top and it getting knocked. Not pretty. May I suggest one of these instead:
mic stand accessory holder | Sweetwater
Amazon.com : music stand cup holder

 

[2112]

Not a bass amp, but pretty obsolete. Also really cool-looking, though it reportedly sounds like isht.

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View attachment 4084101

Love the look, hate the sound.

 

[Standalone]

I'm in the minority here on TB -- players for whom Class D just isn't acceptable. I do think I could tell you the difference, even in a blind test, especially on a gig and even more especially with my cabs. I like to play through the Markbass stuff at the local GC and all, but it's just not my tone and response profile.

That Metro you had was a load for sure. I tried lifting one of them when I checking out Eden gear, and said no thanks.

That said, I don’t play with a “scooped 90’s sound” with my Eden gear. Just a slight bump at 120-150 hz. Everything else is at flat. My Fender PJ is wide open, tone and volume controls.

Mostly I play in larger vocal/horn band ensembles 90% of the time with FOH support. I just need tight clear punchy tone that sits in the mix without creating a lot of unnecessary low end for the sound men to deal with. It works really well in that setting.

Probably more towards you point, I might have issues if I played in a power trio when I needed to fill a lot of sonic space. Death Metal?? I don’t think so.

The 210XLT was more the issue than the Metro's preamp. But there is some consensus around here about the Eden and SWR tone profile overall. My GK gear is much fuller through the mids, IME. But it's more than that -- the GK gear will get a grind when I dig in that is, for me, essential to rock and roll bass tones that I seek. Clean, but some real organic power amp based grit that I can't get through a pedal. As a jam band bassist, the tone on stage is important to driving the improvisational aspect of the music, and PA monitoring misses something. You'll see a lot of jam band bassists keeping their rigs on tour.

 

[BarfanyShart]

I've always been a big combo amp guy, and I used to lug around this Carvin 600 watt 2x10 combo. The thing weighed ~70 lbs. That sort of thing is probably completely obsolete at this point, now that equivalent gear weighs half of that.

 

[sirpas]

Yeah...my iAmp 800 is not obsolete by any means but, when my three other heads fit in a gig bag and have the same power and tone, it became obsolete to me.

I still have my iAmp800, but rarely, if ever, use it. I typically only need my GK500MB to help me on stage if I need reinforcements in that way. I will say that EA amps are fantastic and the giant transformers that make them go BOOM are why I still keep that amp. Class D stuff just doesn't do it for me in louder settings.

 

[Standalone]

I have a 91 and 93 GK 400RB as my main heads and I have yet to find a head to replace them. I've tried some of the newer Class D heads but I feel like the ones I've tried sounded to processed to me. I'm interested in the GK class D heads and the Darkglass ones but me 400RBs are so tried and true. If anything, I would probably get an 800rb if I can find one in good shape.

I now run a 700RBii and have the 400 at home. I think you'd enjoy the 700. It's maybe a *little* less creamy than the 400. *Maybe*

 

[Basslice]

Ok, we know the SVT and V4B are still viable but what about all of the other brands (mostly SS amps) that appeared in the 80's until the latest class D amps sort of 'took over'?

I have an Eden Metro and a GK 800RB both of which i think are solid even today....even my Music Man HD150...getting into bass from a guitar world i was taken with the number of brands to choose from that i saw on stages thru the past decades.

Which of these amps that were at one time considered 'top tier' are now relegated to the scrap heap, possibly in terms of weight and size being a factor?

Are many not even worth repairing even though they may have been among the preferred examples just a few years back?

The old Fender, Vox and Marshall circuits have survived in the guitar world...but what is still viable in the bass amp world?

I'd say not many. There is someone always wanting those old amps - even the ones that don't sound great compared to newer amps.

Here is the test. Go to Craigslist and see how many throwaway, fire sale price amps you can find of any vintage. That will answer your query.

 

[Spirit of Ox]

I now run a 700RBii and have the 400 at home. I think you'd enjoy the 700. It's maybe a *little* less creamy than the 400. *Maybe*

I bought a 700RB 1st generation a couple years ago but it had some issues (probably the preamp) so I had to return it. I would get a second gen 700RB or an older 800RB. Your description is accurate. They are a little more crisp and hifi than the older 400RBs. All of these amps get that great growly sound when you push them.
I can hit the rails pretty well with the 400RB and it sounds great and doesn't overheat either.

 

[silvertone]

They don't make my GenzBenz Shuttle 3.0 any longer but mine still kicks.
I bought it used via the TB Classifieds and have no complaints.
Just need to swap out the 12AX7 preamp tube once in a while.

 

[SJan3]

Amen on moving one of them old B3s!
Even after guys lopped off as much of the furniture as they could, those were a beast to move.
If you ever had to help lift and relocate one, you got a much better idea on how the pyramids were built!

Amen, brother. We were strong teenagers and 4 of us had a bitch of a time moving that succa! Must have weighed about 400lbs. It was truly a labor of love.
P.S.just looked it up. Hammond B3 weighs 425 lbs. Oh, my hernia!

 

[Steadfast]

Idk. I have an acoustic 360 and twin fender 500 combos. The acoustic sounds way better for the bass. The fenders sound more hifi but doesn’t have a gut punch like the acoustic.

 

[MobileHolmes]

I don't know about obsolete, but back in my rocker days I had a nice Hartke rig. The 3500 head in particular was exceptional. I whipped the absolute crap out of that thing, and it never skipped a beat. That was back when you could smoke in bars...ahhh those were the days...

Eventually I traded it to a friend because it was collecting dust for years, but part of me still regrets it.

I had a 7000 with hartke cabs. I wasn't that wild about the head, but I still dig the cabs

 

[portpc]

o, today's equipment is, without question, more convenient but as far as tone, well I still see a myriad of choices today, more than from yesteryear but I also see SVTs, 800RBs, older Eden amps, SWR etc on stage. The player still appreciates the sonic footprint of these units and I suspect there will always be "purists" who have to have that SVT or their record player.

Funny you wrote/ I read your post now, I was driving to work this morning and was remembering one of the last live shows I attended, The Mannheim Steamroller Holiday Show last Dec.
The bassist pulled double-duty on guitar, of course his was a monster player and his stage amp to hear himself was an SWR Redhead.. The color of it actually added to the theme...