Seymour Duncan Powerstage Bass

[Zooberwerx]

How are folks liking this so far?

I've been eyeballing it as I think it will be perfect for my use cases - right now I have an old, massive solid-state Peavey rig that I use just because it's the Faith No More rig. However, it is old and heavy and I just need something a little more modern without breaking the bank. $700 new seems like a good price, the EQ on the Powerstage 700 seems flexible enough, the drive seems usable, and if I can't dial in my approximate tone with those, I can run a preamp pedal of the Peavey I use - or a Tronographic Rusty Box, or a Sansamp, or something else - in the effects loop to get those tones.

Still not seeing a lot of reviews out in the wild, or on TB, so I figured I'd bump this one to ask.

It has kinda fallen off the face of the Earth. I went with the Quilter as the options better suited my curiosity and per the real-world application reviews.

Riis

 

[Obese Chess]

It has kinda fallen off the face of the Earth. I went with the Quilter as the options better suited my curiosity and per the real-world application reviews.

Riis

This could be good news for me if retailers start trying to make deals to move inventory.

 

[ebozzz]

This could be good news for me if retailers start trying to make deals to move inventory.

I'm really interested in the amp but not enough to order it at the current price. I have what I feel are some good amp options and I could probably do without at least a couple of them. That combined with the fact that the demand for amps just doesn't seem to be what it was in the past due to the trend for low volume stage presences. If I can get a great deal on the 700 I could possibly make a purchase but my current amps are doing well for me….

 

[aproud1]

Picked one of these up. Open box deal. I was seriously contemplating a new Mesa 800D. But think I like a tube amp playing alone but really prefer a tight modern amp in a band. That and I didn't love any of the other Subway amps. As well engineered and excellent as they are. Started looking at alternatives. Kept coming back to this. Why? Almost everything I've used by Seymour Duncan for bass has really fit my sound (QP Pickups being the notable exception). Really like the control layout. I could put this amp on my stereo rack and no one would notice.

Hows it sound? Coming from my Little Mark Tube 800, the SD is cleaner, tighter, and has a slightly more predictable EQ. I reluctantly love the LMT800 but it certainly has it's flaws. Have cranked up the SD with my basement band a couple of times. Anything that works in this context will work on any gig I would do. Mainly play my Jazz with flats.

For me, the EQ sounds pretty close to perfect set flat. With my LMT800, I used a HPF. On the SD, not needed (guessing they have one built in higher than the MB?). Bass is tight and clean. You can turn it up and get all the bass you want. Volume knob is totally linear. Unlike the LMT800, I tune in a nice low volume, which i do need sometimes(the fan was running but I couldn't hear it). Halfway up is where I was for a loudish band in my basement through my 4 ohm 2X12 (custom deltalite cab). Still plenty more to give.

The drive is interesting. Haven't had great experience with this on other amps. On the SD playing around with it got me to a surpringly good dig in and get some grind place. Definitley going to experiment more.

So far so good. The cons so far? Some buttons are hard to see with my less than stellar vision. All the important stuff is easy to find and I'm sure I'll adapt (can hardly make anything out on the LMT800).

Have owned and played many amps. This is no slouch, especially considering the price. It can hang with much more expensive amps. Time will tell, but thinking this will replace my LMT800 I've had for a few years (and a few have come and gone within that time). The LMT800 has been trusty and easy to live with. I'll give a bit more time to decide though. Been through too much gear to make snap decisions to sell. Buying is always easier to do.

 

[ItsmeSantiago]

I came to this thread looking for info, which I found, but feel compelled to reply.

I've been using this amp for a couple months now and I was surprised to see everyone's criticism of it, especially before it was released. I love mine and couldn't be happier with it. I had a Mesa D800 and absolutely loved it, but when I saw this for $700 I had to pounce. It's robust and a little wider based which keeps it on the cab. It's simple and doesn't have some features that have been around for a bit, but that doesn't affect me. I play dive bars and run it through some GK cabs and love it. The drive channel is great too.

These are the best bang for the buck on the market imho I hope these eventually sell well for SD.

 

[TK4261]

I just ordered one from Sweetwater and I should have it by Monday. I also ordered the deluxe bag/case for it direct from Seymour Duncan since the price was right and it looks like a great bag/case. I'll be using this head with a GR Bass slim 2x12" 900w cab. Really hoping this head works out for me. Great price IMO also.

 

[aproud1]

I just ordered one from Sweetwater and I should have it by Monday. I also ordered the deluxe bag/case for it direct from Seymour Duncan since the price was right and it looks like a great bag/case. I'll be using this head with a GR Bass slim 2x12" 900w cab. Really hoping this head works out for me. Great price IMO also.

Hope you like the amp. Once I Got it setup for my room/cabinet I only adjust the volume. This is a good sign for me. Many amps I feel like I'm close but never quite where I want the sound to be. Constantly tweaking knobs. My Steamhammer was like this. Only reason I sold it.
Or maybe I'm just older and more hard of hearing?

Just got the SD case for mine. It is one of the nicer amp cases I've had.

 

[Obese Chess]

So, I'm finally in a place where I am ready to buy. I am going to need a new cabinet with this as well and I am stupid. 700W at 4 Ohms. That's also 350W at 8 Ohms, right? So something like a Bergantino NXT112 (400W RMS at 8 Ohms) would be fine?

 

[aproud1]

So, I'm finally in a place where I am ready to buy. I am going to need a new cabinet with this as well and I am stupid. 700W at 4 Ohms. That's also 350W at 8 Ohms, right? So something like a Bergantino NXT112 (400W RMS at 8 Ohms) would be fine?

Congrats! That would work. Bergantinos tend to play nice with most amps. I've used my Powerstage with a few different cabs and all were good. Probably any decent 8 ohm 1X12 would be happily driven by the SD amp.

 

[Obese Chess]

Congrats! That would work. Bergantinos tend to play nice with most amps. I've used my Powerstage with a few different cabs and all were good. Probably any decent 8 ohm 1X12 would be happily driven by the SD amp.

Perfect. I was thinking I needed a 2x12 until I saw the wattage/ohm listing and was like "wait a minute..."

I absolutely love Berg's cabinets, a Berg 212 was the best cab I ever played through, but the price delta is pretty steep between a 112 and a 212 and if I'm buying both at the same time it's a lot.

 

[aproud1]

The Bergantino stuff is great. Always has been. A reference 15 has always been on my GAS list but have no real need. The HG310 is probably the cab I should not have sold, but what can you do. I would imagine the NXT112 being a perfect match with this amp.

For me the 2X12 vs 1X12 isn't so much volume as much as a can I hear myself on stage thing. But the beauty of a 1X12 is you can stack as needed.

If you get the amp, I hope you like it as much as I do. It really does all the things right for me and at a reasonable price. If you grab one, I'd recommend the SD case. It is super nice and like the amp really well priced.

 

[Lo_Basserson]

From the manual

Interested in this one, but One thing in the manual that I'm clueless about:

"Continuous Output Power without thermal shutdown" is only 270W, but the amp is 700. What are the real world implications of this?

 

[Passinwind]

Interested in this one, but One thing in the manual that I'm clueless about:

"Continuous Output Power without thermal shutdown" is only 270W, but the amp is 700. What are the real world implications of this?

The relevant metrics to explain this are either duty cycle or crest factor. If you don't play continuous rest free waveforms in your songs you will be fine, in the vast majority of use cases.

 

[aproud1]

Interested in this one, but One thing in the manual that I'm clueless about:

"Continuous Output Power without thermal shutdown" is only 270W, but the amp is 700. What are the real world implications of this?

What Passinwind said. He seems to know a lot more than nothing.

Amp has plenty of usable power. I love mine.

 

[agedhorse]

Interested in this one, but One thing in the manual that I'm clueless about:

"Continuous Output Power without thermal shutdown" is only 270W, but the amp is 700. What are the real world implications of this?

It means that under high duty cycle applications (calculated, the duty cycle is 38%) meaning that the amp can deliver rated 700 watts for 38% of the time averaged out over a defined period of time.

This is generally specified at 25 degrees C ambient, and the duty cycle gets derated when the temperature increases above 25 deg C (77 deg F). The derating factor can become important when playing in hotter parts of the world.

 

[Lo_Basserson]

If you don't play continuous rest free waveforms in your songs you will be fine, in the vast majority of use cases.

the amp can deliver rated 700 watts for 38% of the time averaged out over a defined period of time

I don't recall seeing this specified when looking at other amps (at least not when looking at the GK, Mesa, or Genzler heads).

I guess I'm wondering how this would compare to my current head. Is this continuous output a normal level of expectation, or is the Seymour Duncan something a bit lesser than I might be used to.

I guess, in the end, I sounds like it's not a huge issue unless you are continuously walking a bass for 20 mins at full blast. (A slightly weird use case.) I'm looking for a head, and for 3-400 more, I'm wondering if I would be better off with getting something else and just running through the loop return if I wanted to skip the pre for a modeler to run in.

 

[Passinwind]

I don't recall seeing this specified when looking at other amps (at least not when looking at the GK, Mesa, or Genzler heads).

It's straight from the spec sheet for the stock ICEpower 700AS1 module. Other manufacturers may not mention it because it simply doesn't matter in typical real world usage (depending, as Andy mentioned), but it's also possible/probable that they use added heatsinking and/or fan cooling that changes that number.

 

[agedhorse]

I have discussed this in the past, specifically how it relates to higher ambient temperature conditions and low impedance loads.

 

[Obese Chess]

Well, got an unexpected bonus at work today so I've got one on order along with an NXT212.

My current rig, as I may have mentioned, is uh... not quite as compact or modern. So it will be a welcome change.

 

[aproud1]

Well, got an unexpected bonus at work today so I've got one on order along with an NXT212.

My current rig, as I may have mentioned, is uh... not quite as compact or modern. So it will be a welcome change.

Congrats!

Still rockin mine. Took me a minute dial in the drive but there are some good sounds in there. Hope you enjoy. Going to be a potent rig (even though it may all weigh less than one of those heads)!