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POLL : Help me decide !

Best Head in this league ?

  • Aguilar TH350

    Votes: 23 29.9%
  • TC RH450

    Votes: 3 3.9%
  • Hartke LH500

    Votes: 5 6.5%
  • Kustom KXB500

    Votes: 12 15.6%
  • GK MB500

    Votes: 34 44.2%

  • Total voters
    77
The GK MB500 is the only one on your list that I've gigged, and I really liked it. I've played the Aggy TH500 in a store, but didn't really get to "hear" it or get a real feel for it.
 
I've only had 1 GK, but it had a hiss if you pushed the highs past 12 o clock (maybe just an isolated issue with mine??) The genz 6.0 or 6.2 are nice, and you can get them used fairly cheap used (not sure if there's any customer service anymore, I believe fender sold them, but I don't know who bought them)
 
Those are all good viable choices. A lot depends on the tone you are after. Most of them have enough EQ flexibility that you can get close to most of the popular tones, though none of them really comes close to the sound of clean or overdriven tubes (though many find it close enough). I prefer to have separate lo and hi mid controls, a semi-parametric mid control or a switchable control between lo and hi mids. Whats most important is that you learn to use the equipment you have. If you don't like adjusting controls (and some players don't), you'll need to select an amp that has the tone you like with the controls set at noon (like a 'point and shoot' camera).
 
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I've only had 1 GK, but it had a hiss if you pushed the highs past 12 o clock (maybe just an isolated issue with mine??) The genz 6.0 or 6.2 are nice, and you can get them used fairly cheap used (not sure if there's any customer service anymore, I believe fender sold them, but I don't know who bought them)

Probably. Did you get the hiss with the same bass and cab when using a different amp?
 
all things equal, only the high end hiss on the gk. I've had issues with the class d power section of the genz 6.0 as well (but otherwise a great sounding amp). By far the most bulletproof amps I have are a couple mid 90s SWR. But these days I've become a fan of the high wattage/low weight class d amps when gigging.
 
Those are all good viable choices. A lot depends on the tone you are after. Most of them have enough EQ flexibility that you can get close to most of the popular tones, though none of them really comes close to the sound of clean or overdriven tubes (though many find it close enough). I prefer to have separate lo and hi mid controls, a semi-parametric mid control or a switchable control between lo and hi mids. Whats most important is that you learn to use the equipment you have. If you don't like adjusting controls (and some players don't), you'll need to select an amp that has the tone you like with the controls set at noon (like a 'point and shoot' camera).
Well the truth is that I never had a good amp only crappy Vermona's and Behringers back in 2000...(I'm a electronic music producer for about 6-7 years now) all this years I just missed playing bass so I decided to get my first and biggest love back, I just bought myself a MIJ Jazz Bass 62RI and now I'm looking for a decent amp for it, I will use it mainly for the basslines in my productions but I'm hoping to play live too in the near future :)
 
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Seeing that you are in Israel, Clap Trap, you're going to want something super reliable that sounds great with your '62 RI Fender Jazz. If any of your music stores have a Fender Rumble 500 in stock by all means do go and audition one. I believe it will be a perfect match. Plus it will record extremely well and play any gig anywhere. :cool:
 
I absolutely LOVE my HA3500. It has been beat up so badly over the years that it has developed a high frequency buzz that's super annoying, but I'm likely going to replace it with a HA5500. I also own a SVT-3 Pro, and I find the HA3500 suits my tonal preferences much better. If it weren't for the annoying signal noise in the 3500, I'd keep using it forever. I just can't get the tone I want out of the 3 Pro. If you want punch, the HA3500 is where its at.
i agree with pretty much everything you said :thumbsup: i just might buy another ha3500 when i get some spare change as a backup for my svt cl. The ha3500 is just so versatile that it can really emulate alot of amps and tones with ease. plus its cheap and reliable as hell. and like you said, punches like a mo fo.
 
i agree with pretty much everything you said :thumbsup: i just might buy another ha3500 when i get some spare change as a backup for my svt cl. The ha3500 is just so versatile that it can really emulate alot of amps and tones with ease. plus its cheap and reliable as hell. and like you said, punches like a mo fo.
Exactly. I go back and forth between the 3 Pro and the 3500, and the Hartke is my preference. The 3 Pro has a smooth, fluffy, and kinda sterile sound to me. I also have to crank everything to get the volume I want. The 3500 just has "it" (for me), and seems to have a more power. I'm kinda wondering if Hartke will ever make a Class D amp with similar sound/features as the HA series.