Rig Upgrade Time.

[Pep]

That’s a pretty impressive amount of posts for an amp released in September.

Agreed!

 

[Hans Gruber]

Bag Ends are just under 50 lbs but sound amazing. You can’t go wrong with MESA heads.. they all do different things so you might want to research them.View attachment 7381527

I love Bag Ends so much. Had a 15 with coaxial speaker, and it was just so musical. 50 lbs sounds heavier than these actually felt, there was a good ergonomic lift to them. That oiled birch is to die for.

 

[TonyBass1989]

Bag Ends are just under 50 lbs but sound amazing. You can’t go wrong with MESA heads.. they all do different things so you might want to research them.View attachment 7381527

Dude i just picked up some Bag Ends, and could not be happier. plus with my mesa boogie amp head too. Different models but same spirit between us

 

[57pbass]

That looks hot.

There was a guy who used to play Bag End cabs in the mid 90s- those were just cool pieces.

That might have been me.. I’ve been playing Bag End cabs for that long…

 

[whitelines]

Used to have a triad. Man it was big and heavy, and the dimensions were awkward, it was so deep.
I now have two Mesa subway 15s and they really are workhorses, and shockingly light. I can carry one with each arm (dangling) in a pinch, or usually use a little dolly. Can’t recommend them enough for a working bassist that loads their own gear.

 

[avi]

Loved my triad, my SWR bass 350 (forst version), and my Mesa 400 (no plus). Sold the SWR for the boogie. I hurt my back and then the 400 wasn't a possibility after that. So I switched to a walkabout. Bought an SM-400, it blew up. I went to a Traynor sb200 and that was great. Very much like the Walkabout. Went back to a Walkabout, then went back to a Traynor and am finally back at the Bass350 (maroon face first version). It sounds fantastic and is much lighter than the 400 though its not class D light. Plenty of volume. Used one of these for years when they came out. I also just bought a Mesa d350 head. I have to say its no SWR. For cabinets Im now playing Dr Bass 1260 neo and a 15. They sound great. Very similar to the goliath cabs. The 15 is lighter than the 12 neo cab (50lbs) though. I recently played a subway 112 and loved it but can't do a $1000 12. Might go to a Hartke HD 112 mostly because its 20 lbs lighter than my 1260 neo. Swr did make a Headlite class D head but they are tough to find. I would probably trade my Mesa D350 for one though. Good luck. Thankfully there are a lot of options now for the age afflicted. You should check out a Genzler array. They make a 15. Great cabs if money isnt an issue.

 

[The Golden Boy]

That might have been me.. I’ve been playing Bag End cabs for that long…

Sorry- I meant a guy in a band around here that I shared bills with.

 

[Giffro]

Hi. My name is is Dave, the Golden Boy.

I've been playing the rock and roll bass guitar (as well as guitar) in bands for something like 40 years. Round about 30 years ago I got the bass cabs that have kind of defined my rock and roll bass playing. SWR Triad and Goliath II cabs. Round about 25 years ago I got my dream bass head, an SWR SM-900.

I also have an SWR 2x15 cab:

Mostly because of those cabs, I've determined that I like the sound of 15s. The bar gig world is a lot different than it was when I got those cabs. Most of the time, I played out with both cabs, no one looked at me funny. If I rolled in the 2x15 and I wasn't getting the side eye from the sound guy or bartender. These days, a lot of places have fancy setups that sound so much better than the good places sounded 20 years ago- and people are using in-ears and only showing up with a DI/pre. Then there's the big issue of the weight. I think the Triad is 90#, the Goliath 93# and the 2x15 is 115#. Most of the time these days I'm just playing out with the Triad- unless it's an outdoor show. I'm not getting any younger, my back is not getting any stronger, and this rig is not getting any lighter. So I'm thinking of overhauling my rig. I'm still dancing around in-ears- I don't like 'em. I like wedges and sidefills and cabinets flapping my pants legs.

My main gig these days is a Rolling Stones "tribute" band but do fill-ins and other projects. My main bass is an old Thunderbird. I've got a couple older thumpy basses and a Jazz and a G&L. I have a couple other heads, a Mesa/Boogie Bass 400+ and a Seymour Duncan 300x300 head, but pretty much exclusively play out the SWR head.


Since it's fun to spend other people's money - I'm asking the hive mind to evaluate my choices and maybe get some suggestions before I throw down and upend my entire bass playing life.

My secret plan is to get a head and 2 1x15 cabs. I'm not in any kind of hurry to implement this secret plan. My goal is to have a good sounding, lightweight, yet modular system to be easily transportable by someone in their 50s into their 60s. I'm not set on these choices-

For heads I think I'm looking between the Aguilar Tonehammer 700, the Mesa/Boogie Bass 800D and the D-800.

Then for cabinets I'm looking at the Mesa 1x15.

And the Aguilar 1x15 cab.

I'll see your Big Koala and raise with me and my Giant Koala loll

 

[ezstep]

You heard a Berg 2x12 and liked it? Give a serious listen to the Subway 2x12. I have a pair of SW 1x15's, but that single 2x12 cab gets much more use. I think it is their best cab (and I do have the 15's to compare).

 

[The Golden Boy]

I had a meeting with my dealer last night...

I have this habit of jumping into something, or not getting out of things before they become obsolete.

Case in point- I got my 2x15 and SM-900 and rack around the turn of the century. Fender buys out SWR... then within a few years lightweight cabinets start popping up, a few more years and everyone's using them. I've hung onto stuff so long- there's no hope of selling and getting much of anything out of the big cabs now. At this point- everything I own is a dinosaur- in this day and age- is getting ANY amp going to be more of the same? I had a conversation with a friend- he was saying his band rarely ever uses amps- everyone brings their instruments and DI/preamps and that's it.

I've been resisting the IEM movement- but just the whole thought process around this amp refresh has got me re-evaluating that.

 

[H Nighttrain]

Not sure if it's been mentioned here... I gig a RevSound RS115, usually with a TH350. The 115 cab is relatively small in size, is just 25 lbs, and sounds excellent. If you can wait out the build time, I highly recommend.

(I'd love a second, right now if I think I need more volume I use a 4-ohm RS212.)

I too am no fan of playing ampless - feels disconnected, less 'organic' if you will. And my days of playing "pants-flapping" loud are thankfully in the past!

 

[agedhorse]

Loved my triad, my SWR bass 350 (forst version), and my Mesa 400 (no plus). Sold the SWR for the boogie. I hurt my back and then the 400 wasn't a possibility after that. So I switched to a walkabout. Bought an SM-400, it blew up. I went to a Traynor sb200 and that was great. Very much like the Walkabout. Went back to a Walkabout, then went back to a Traynor and am finally back at the Bass350 (maroon face first version). It sounds fantastic and is much lighter than the 400 though its not class D light. Plenty of volume. Used one of these for years when they came out. I also just bought a Mesa d350 head. I have to say its no SWR. For cabinets Im now playing Dr Bass 1260 neo and a 15. They sound great. Very similar to the goliath cabs. The 15 is lighter than the 12 neo cab (50lbs) though. I recently played a subway 112 and loved it but can't do a $1000 12. Might go to a Hartke HD 112 mostly because its 20 lbs lighter than my 1260 neo. Swr did make a Headlite class D head but they are tough to find. I would probably trade my Mesa D350 for one though. Good luck. Thankfully there are a lot of options now for the age afflicted. You should check out a Genzler array. They make a 15. Great cabs if money isnt an issue.

There were very few Headlite amps sold. Unfortunately, it was were too little, too late to save SWR.