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Pros and Cons of combo Amps

#21
Quadzilla said:
Why would you lock yourself into a combo when you can get a sep head and cab?
Click to expand...

I bought a combo amp back in December, but I'm still learning and didn't see a point in buying a head/cab as I don't know how long I'm going to be staying with bass for(I'm really enjoying it so far, it's first instrument I've ever played).

When I upgrade my Bass after a year or so I'll probably switch to a head/cab configuration.

But as it is, my amp is pretty decent for most things and considering how unpopulated my area is if I do ever do any gigs with bands or whatever it'll be good enough for that, plus it has a Digital Out jack on it so I'll be able to hook directly into any PAs.
 
#24
I like the idea of a light or small combo such as those eden ones ones or an epifani for gigs where good pa support is supplied. Big amps in those situations are just unnecessary in my opinion and I have been known to use a JBL eon powered pa speaker... really good powered pa speakers for those of you who don't know, ones that can be angled right at your face. That and a DI box.
 
#25
Unless you are playing a Jazz gig or are backing up some folk singers, you are a weinie. No, that's not right. Nobody is a weinie for using a certain type of equipment. What I meant to say was that if the venues you play can be handled with a combo amp, you are very fortunate indeed. There is nothing I would like better than not having to lug around a bunch of gear. But my experience has taught me that in a rock music venue the guitar players will be using ALL of their watts by the end of the night. If you are doing it with a combo amp, the best of luck to you. :hmm:
 
#27
I tried to think of an original reason that combos are not that great, here is what I came up with.......if you don't know what you want, you could limit yourself by buying a small combo. You could be stuck with limited options tone wise, and then have to sell it to go find something you like better. In that case having seperates would be a good idea.

For me.......I like Eden gear, and I owned Eden seperates for a while. Since I really liked the tone, I went ahead and bought me a Metro. I think if you know the tone you want, and that manufacturer makes a combo, it makes perfect sense to buy their combo. If you love Aguilar cabs and amps, why not get the combo if you can afford it?

Nothing weenie about rolling in a 600 watt combo. I could see if I showed up to a club gig with a Johnson 35 watt combo being thought of as a weenie though.

-Mike
 
#30
I play thru a kickback 15 120 watts and at practice and small bar gigs it's never turned above 5 (with a TPSII tube pre amp) The drummer (loud) and guitarist like it. Sooo....yeasterday at practice I informed them I picked up a Hartke 215XL cab on "ebay" for about half the price of a new one......They said "Jesus, what do you want to do play the super bowl :) .... I don't think I'm making up for anything (as previously stated in earlier post) I think maybe I'm like most here and just LOVE the bass!! Thats what it's all about isn't it?? and not a bad investment to boot!..... BTW anybody else play thru a 215XL?? Can't wait till I get mine
 
#34
Oh, I meant size as in watts...volume. Do these guys play loud?

I played with a guy who had a good size Peavey stack, and we sat down before practice once and checked out our EQ settings. He agreed to back off on the freq's I was looking to bring out, and I stayed out of the ones he "claimed". No one bought anything more powerful that night, but during that practice and from then on, we were louder. Look into that option as well with your guitar player.

-Mike
 
#35
I don't know what they put in those Mesa Triple Rectifiers, but if you are standing near one when it is cranked up you had better be wearing shorts with a lead crotch or you will be singing in a higher key. Certainly no place for a combo amp. :hmm:
 
#36
MJ5150 said:
Oh, I meant size as in watts...volume. Do these guys play loud?

I played with a guy who had a good size Peavey stack, and we sat down before practice once and checked out our EQ settings. He agreed to back off on the freq's I was looking to bring out, and I stayed out of the ones he "claimed". No one bought anything more powerful that night, but during that practice and from then on, we were louder. Look into that option as well with your guitar player.

-Mike
Click to expand...


They do and the drummer of course.
 
#38
Getting back to the question-

Using seperate heads/cabs, beside the transport issues, can offer greater versatility in creating a sound that you like by mixing components that have a good voice for your style and requirements. This is taken a step further when a seperate power amp is used with a preamp,plus all the other goodies that can make up a signal chain.

However, if you find a combo that sounds right for you, your work is done! Many of the top line mfrs. offer their seperates in this fashion, and it's becoming more prevalent.
Eden, SWR, Ashdown, Mesa, and now Aguilar come to mind.
Demeter recently combined their HTB pre with a SS power section-Looks real good!
Sometimes designing the seperates from the ground up as a combo, with the cab's porting, etc. can make a very good sounding unit.

There's a lot of great gear available, and if a combo amp does it for your sound, it's not automatically a lesser choice than seperates.
 
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