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Rig advice
- Thread starter pickettj
- Start date
When you do go to the music stores to try out amps, bring your own bass. You'll have a much better sense of the sound that way. Also don't hesitate to make more than one trip to the store. Your ears will be the best method of deciding which amps and cabs really appeal to you. I especially recommend comparing different setups side by side; try one head with different cabs, etc.
There is a lot of great gear available, with loyal users of many brands. Starting here with research is a good idea; follow up your theoretical search with a real, in-person search also. Don't make your purchase until you feel comfortable with your decision.
I have a Markbass rig and an Eden / Aguilar rig. I prefer the sound of the Eden and Aguilar combo, but the Markbass is solid also and is much easier to transport. There are a LOT of happy users of each of these brands, as well as those previously mentioned here on Talkbass.
There is a lot of great gear available, with loyal users of many brands. Starting here with research is a good idea; follow up your theoretical search with a real, in-person search also. Don't make your purchase until you feel comfortable with your decision.
I have a Markbass rig and an Eden / Aguilar rig. I prefer the sound of the Eden and Aguilar combo, but the Markbass is solid also and is much easier to transport. There are a LOT of happy users of each of these brands, as well as those previously mentioned here on Talkbass.
pickettj said:
What??? You're willing to put $2000 into a Markbass rig that you've never heard, never played, but are "afraid" to try GK? IMO - GK and Ampeg are the "top o the line" but very different sounding. You can't go wrong w either setup but you really need to use your ears - not some nifty marketing pitch!
slap5string said:
Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's why I'm here! When the funds became available and I started really looking, Markbass looked a LOT less like a nice setup and a lot more like an overpriced marketing job. I always assumed ampeg was generic. Give their marketing guys a kick in the balls for that one. GK I didn't really know anything about other than it seemed "old school". I'm only 30 so anything pre 1995 is old school to me. Just the metallic grill. It looks nice but I associate "old" with Clangy, clunky junk. I'm planning a trip to test out a GK setup, an ampeg and a few cabs. The big problem now is finding a store that has the stuff I want to see!
I play two inexpensive basses. And by inexpensive I mean cheap. The first is a schecter. She's my baby. She's loud and beautifully setup plus she's got an awesome body. The other is a fender mexi p-bass with bass lines QP pickups. The schecter is always on the wall at GC so I don't need to take my guitar there. And I'm
Pretty sure Sam ash has no shortage of fender mexi's.
I'm really hoping to have a new rig in the next two weeks. Looking forward to another field trip!
To funny - this is the first time I've read someome calling the GK MB800 or Neo 410 "old school". Anyway, both GK and Ampeg have great amps. Personally, Im looking forward to checking out the new GK 410MBEs when the become available. Anyway, have fun store shopping and etc.
No, but I certainly appreciate the sarcasm. We have two mics on the drums, four singers (drummer, two guitar and me), two guitar amps mic'ed, a specialty mic (it's an old pay phone) and an ambient mic for our, lets call him "special" lead guitarist who has to have a dedicated channel to run his ear buds on. Even if we opened a spot up, the setup we have isn't going to do well for us in the future. We are looking at expanding and I think they are buying a ProSonus board to add on to the Mackie. (Yes, I realize they are miles apart). We still need a ton up front on mains and monitors but for now I just want to be heard without my little 10's farting all over me.
Down under, you seem adamantly opposed to me upgrading. You partial to Acoustic gear? Ha!
Let me add that a 1212/6, an Audiokinese cab, Barefaced cab, or a Baer cab would be a killer rig.
Just a thought.... I would consider looking for the following used :
GK 700rbII - $400 used - $599new
GK 410SBX cab - $250-$300 used
480w + 50w tweeter (biampable)
This will leave you around $1000 to get a used American Pbass or Jazz bass or even a Musicman Stingray if that's your style. This setup can rock, funk, jazz with the best of them!
GK 700rbII - $400 used - $599new
GK 410SBX cab - $250-$300 used
480w + 50w tweeter (biampable)
This will leave you around $1000 to get a used American Pbass or Jazz bass or even a Musicman Stingray if that's your style. This setup can rock, funk, jazz with the best of them!
I think the OP already pointed out that they dont want to spend that much money on a cab.
He said he has a $2k budget. The cab is the most important part of his signal chain.
I think the $2k budget is for a bass, amp, and speaker? And the OP better really like little mid drivers before getting a two-way 15/6, 1212/6, etc.
I agree with that. Those types of cabs are great, but they're not for everyone.
But the solution here is Pickett needs to go play some stuff. That's all there is to it. Everyone's got their favorites, and they may work for them but may not work for him.
And Pickett, don't cheap out on the cab. Cheap out on anything else BUT the cab. A cheap cab can make the best bass and amp on earth sound like crap, and a good cab can make the cheapest gear on earth sound like a million bucks. You don't have to buy the VERY best, but don't go for the cheapest thing in the store, either.
Joe Louvar said:
Yeah. I'm sure they're nice but $1,600 for a cab is rediculous. And people plug the hell out of the fEARless stuff. I was starting to think it was a sponsor of the forum! Ha!
I'm also part of a band in it's infancy that has seen a whopping two gigs in a year. We are just getting started but we have a good groove and are planning on picking up more, more often. This includes at least one or two outdoors shows which is where my main concern resides anyways.
JimmyM said:
I kinda figured that. I saw a gk 4x10 neo for cheap and thought it was too good to be true. The review it had was awful. Said bracing sucked, sound at higher volumes was terrible and "GK should be ashamed that their name is on it."
Harsh, no doubt, but proved to me that I needed to keep looking. I just don't see $1,600, or $1,200 for that matter, being reasonable. I'm afraid I'm going to go listen and fall in love with the Markbass cab. If that happens I won't be back here to talk about it...buncha haters if it's not a fEARful setup! Hahaha
In the end I think Jimmy nailed it. I just need to go look and listen. I don't want so much power that my rig volume is always set on 1. It would be a waste. But I also don't want so little that I always have to take it to 11. But, it goes to 11...
I just needed some insight in to the world of split setups since all I've ever shopped is combos.
Oh, and I'm sure it's funny hearing me say gk neos and such are antiquated. It's just an impression I got purely off of cosmetics and shows just how lost I am in this world of bass rigs. I really do want to learn (or I wouldn't be here) and I think the first step is research (why I'm her) and then eventually buying and setting a rig up.
slap5string said:
I really expected a lot more suggestions for buying a new bass after I revealed I was playing a schecter and a fender mexi. I'd love a Musicman or hell, Ive had my eye on a fender custom '69 relic P but I think $6,000 guitars are reserved for the big guys. The Musicman basses are nice but again, might as well forget an upgrade. The one I'm looking at is $1,600. The only thing that even allows a limited sound budget is a fender mexi, schecter, epiphone, etc. I'll upgrade the guitar on down the road. Maybe that'll be my project next year. That's a lot easier and IMHO a lot more intimate decision. What feels good in my hand may not work worth a damn for the next guy. It's not a matter of specs and technical details. It's, which $1,500-$2000 bass do I think I would be most comfortable with.
In that case I recommend starting with a good 8 ohm 410 cab - that way if you ever need more volume you only need to add a second identical 410 cab, and one good 410 has kick so it may be all you need. I like 15s but two good 15s (at 4 ohms) may not be enough volume for you and with an 8 ohm 410 you can expand without having to slave amps w/215s.
CL400Peavey said:
I just don't understand the push for this company. I understand plans are free but the tools to become a carpenter are not. Plus I'm working an average of 5-6 days a week. For my job that's 60-72 hours. That while also juggling family, house and band. I really don't have time to build something right now. Only extra thing I could fit in right now is a trip to SmAsh, GC and having a stroke from extreme stress levels.
Maybe on down the road when my schedule releases me from the grips of two kids, one an infant, I'll look in to trying to build one of these cabs. I think it would be a cool experience.
