Power Amps: What should I consider?

Solid state power amps don't alter your tone to a measurable degree.

Sameless plug, but I have a PV900 (900 watts bridged at 4 ohms) for sale.

 

QSC, Stewart...

 

I own the Carvin DCM1000

I don't have a lot of experience with other types of power amps, not on my bass rig at least, but this has fulfulled my needs completely.

light, compact, more power than I need


can't wait till I get the proper speakon to run it bridged....the 350 I'm running right now is plenty for practice....but man....whew

I like having a kilowatt


(note: I was improperly running it bridged with the incorrect speakon cable and the sound was MASSIVE, it was just clipping....and thats not good, the correct speakon will fix that though)

 

you can run bridged from the speakon out or the binding posts

Just get a cable with your choice of one of those on one end and 1/4th on the other


(by my knowledge this should work fine, though I'm not personally aware of anyone doing this...if this is incorrect please feel free to correct me)

 

Yep, I run my amp bridged using a speakon to 1/4" cable. You can do it no problem.

 

QSC is what I use.
PLX series are lighter, and a little more expensive.
RMX series are tanks, and heavier, but cheaper.
Northern Sound and Light, and Lord Valve here on the board have great prices that are not out of line for what you want to spend...

 

GillesUnchained:

Here is a quote from another thread, which is an example of what I was trying to explain above. The thread poster was asking about two different power amps lines made by Crest. The response is from MudBass

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Quote:
Originally Posted by wolfbass1025
Can anyone make any comparisons between the Crest VS and CA series?

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Reply by Mudbass:
I sure can. I have one of each, a CA9 and a V1100 which is identical your VS series cept on the V the attenuators are on the front where they belong.

I was running the V1100 with a F-1X and an Eden 210T and a 215XLT. Sounded great, lots of headroom and power but I got horny to try out a CA9 since I had heard so much about them. I pulled out the V1100 and slipped in the CA9, Okay...the CA9 weights 53lbs so I didn't slip it in exactly, more like grunted it in. Anyway, the difference was quite remarkable. Even my guitar player noticed the difference immediately and he's the most hopelessly tone deaf human being I've ever met. Same preamp, same cabs, same band, same practice room, same volume levels and the CA9 stomped the V1100 tone wise. You could just tell that CA9 had my 15's by the throat and they were going to do whatever the CA9 said with no arguments. The sound was tighter, fuller and could smack you in the chest like the V1100 couldn't do. It also, I don't know, feels different in your hands when you play through it. I don't know quite how to describe it. The V1100 is like driving a Chevy dualie and the CA9 is like driving a Freightliner.

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So, there's a lot more to it than just the number of watts.

Cheers,

Jim

 

A Bridged QSC PLX has served me very well for many years. Carvin.......Now that is funny.

 

How so?

 

I have owned two Carvin products. In the late '80's I bought a Bass 500, Blew up after one week. Was replaced (not repaired), blew up again, was returned and full price was refunded.

Then about a year ago, (memory must have failed me), I bought a Carvin H400 Headphone amp. After 3 months of use, it blew up mid session. I returned it, asked the sales guy for a replacement......no go......they repaired it (took 3 weeks) in the mean time (I run a studio, you need a headphone amp), I bought another unit. Oz Audio. Neither the Oz unit, any QSC, nor any other amplification product I have ever bought has performed worse than a Carvin product.

Now, your mileage may vary, but to call Carvin "professional" is a joke from where I'm sitting. It makes Peavey look good.

 

Another vote for the CA9. If you are looking for a ss amp, I can't think of a better use of two rack spaces...

Tom.

 

I doubt those units got comparable QC to what a DCM power amp would.

Is that wrong?
Yes.

You pretty much can't get away from getting what you pay for.

Are Carvin's power amps in the same league as the upper level Crown or Crest amps?
No.

On the other hand, a lot of people have used Carvin DCM amps and gotten good service and sound.

The poster was looking for a $300 - $400 power amp:
Used? Maybe a smaller Stewart World or Crest CA6.
New? QSC RMX850 or RMX1450 or Carvin DCM1000 or DCM1500.

 

I don't see them mentioned much, but I'm loving my Yamaha P 2500. I can't say I have a lot of experience with power amps, so I don't know how it compares to QSC or Crown, but I know it's really loud, not too too heavy, and has neat features like high and low pass filters.

 

And who says we don't learn anything on these forums.

 

Stay away from lower end amp from any manufacturer whether it be Crown, Crest, QSC... they all have lower end and higher end series. I would go with Crest CA6 or CA9, Crown Micrtech/Macrotech 600 or 1200, Stewart 1.2, 1.6, or 2.1s. I have had great results from any of the above, it just depends on what you need/ can afford.

 

I have a question...why do bassists like to split the pre and power amps and use PA power amps? Is it strictly to add volume and headroom, or is there a tonal reason? The reason I ask is because I've never heard a bass sound that was improved by using PA amps. Nor have I thought they were particularly louder than most bass heads. And they certainly aren't easier to lug around (unless you lug around an SVT).