Small combo for jazz trio

[Stephan Rangel]

Hello!
I've been playing bass for 5 years after playing guitar most of my life. I have a small amp that I use at home, but for rehearsals and gigs I use whatever is available.
I play in a jazz (fusion? Don't know exactly what we are) trio (guitar, bass and drums) and volume is usually kept under control.
I'm looking to buy a small combo to get a more consistent sound and to use when the amp provided is not great.
I live in Brasil and prices here are kinda crazy. I've listed some combos that have the same price range.
Fender rumble 100
Hartke hd 150
Peavey max 250
Can't try any of them since I live in a small town. By specs, the one looking most convincing is the peavey. To buy a head + cab it would cost at least 50% more (used) and I don't think I wanna go that way.

 

[Riff Ranger]

I haven't played the Hartke, but I think any of those would suit your situation, and your choice would come down to which sound you prefer. The Fender has a strong vintage voicing, I would venture to guess that the Hartke sounds more modern, and the Peavey sounds somewhere in between. Hopefully someone who knows the Hartke can give you a better idea of how it sounds, and you can make a choice based on that. All three seem like reliable, quality choices by reputation.

 

[CallMeAl]

I can vouch for the Rumble in this exact scenario. Great amp, super light. It's a "warm" voicing, the Peavey would be cleaner and the Hartke cleaner still. But I don't think you necessarily need the 15" or the headroom if that's a concern.

 

[Marko 1]

By specs, the one looking most convincing is the peavey.

I have no experience with small combos, so I'm not making a recommendation,

but I'd say you can trust Peavey's specs,

in fact they typically perform better than those specs suggest.

 

[ProbablyTooLoud]

I've played that Peavey model in a practice space and thought it was great. Plenty loud if needed, easy eq to work with.

 

[Stephan Rangel]

Thanks for the input!
You think the rumble 100 would be enough for my needs?

I've played that Peavey model in a practice space and thought it was great. Plenty loud if needed, easy eq to work with.

How about the tone?

 

[ProbablyTooLoud]

Thanks for the input!
You think the rumble 100 would be enough for my needs?


How about the tone?

Pretty sterile and clean compared to a Rumble. I'd rather have the watts on hand than that baked in Rumble tone, though. And although they sound great, a Rumble 100 feels light and cheap to me. Others may strongly disagree, but that's my take. Of your options, I'd say the Peavey is the least glamorous but, to me, your best option.

 

[Stephan Rangel]

Last weekend I played a gig that had a rumble 200. Really liked the tone, but here it costs almost 2x the rumble 100 or the peavey.
Not a lot of info about the peavey online. As a former guitar player, I'm finding a lot harder to have an opinion about bass gear on YouTube.
Maybe I'll wait for something nicer appear on classifieds.

 

[BGroovy]

More expensive but I love Phil Jones for small and great sounding.

Not sure about where you are, but here I always see used Rumbles, can probably wait and grab a used one relatively cheap.

I love Gallien Krueger combos if you come across one

 

[GreyBeard]

The Rumble 100 would be my choice

 

[Riff Ranger]

Last weekend I played a gig that had a rumble 200. Really liked the tone, but here it costs almost 2x the rumble 100 or the peavey.
Not a lot of info about the peavey online. As a former guitar player, I'm finding a lot harder to have an opinion about bass gear on YouTube.
Maybe I'll wait for something nicer appear on classifieds.

If you like the Rumble sound, the 100 seems like the best loved of the Rumble line around here. If your band mates keep their volume down as you say, the 100 would probably do it for you.

 

[Joelc73]

An old Baby Blue!

 

[Stephan Rangel]

Just found a nemesis by Eden nc200 from the the 90's. Cheaper than the ones I'm considering.
200w, 2x10 combo
Doing a research on this one…

 

[Hutch801]

I have the Rumble 40 and it sounds great with a few voicing options that are not too bad. I have also played the Peavy and it was great, but I preferred the Rumble.

 

[Ostie]

I have a Peavey Max 115, a Rumble 25, and a Peavey Delta Bass head into a Hartke 210. For gigs I like the Delta Bass. It's a warmer tone than the Max 115. I've never played a Rumble 100, but I like my Rumble 25 for practice, just not enough juice for a gig.

 

[mikewalker]

Of those three - the Hartke

 

[DuluthDank]

I haven't tried the Peavy, but the Rumble's baked in tone is pretty extreme IMO. I had one and had to get rid of it, because to my ears all my basses sounded the same, and the baked in tone really overpowered my overall sound. Usually with jazz fusion people like more transparent amps. The usual combo to suggest for jazz/fusion electric bass would be the Markbass 12 incho combo. Of the ones you mentioned, the Hartke is probably the most transparent, and also looks like it has an extremely flexible EQ with something like 10 bands. I'd go for the Hartke based on sound, but it will weigh about twice as much as the fender.

 

[Topkat13]

GK MB112 if you're OK w/o a tweeter.

 

[Riff Ranger]

Just found a nemesis by Eden nc200 from the the 90's. Cheaper than the ones I'm considering.
200w, 2x10 combo
Doing a research on this one…

That would be a killer score I grew up in the land of Eden/Nemesis and tried that one when it first came out and I still remember how it blew me away! I say pounce on that one.

 

[wysiwyg248]

I second Topkat13, I play in a Jazz trio/quarter and the GK is perfect for small venues, practice, etc.