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smallest/best sounding 100 watt (ish) combo?

Global Citizen

Global Citizen

May 6, 2010
288
131
CANADA
#1
I've done alot of research and I cant seem to find one. I just got rid of my DOD combo Ive had for over 10 years (40w) and I was looking for something around 100w. I would really like to get the GK MB150S but I dont know if its really worth the money. I checked out Markbass but only the micro stuff seems interesting, like their 9inch 50w little cube. Nothing slightly bigger. I dont need 300w because I have an 210 I use for anything bigger... Penny for your thoughts..
 
#3
krstko said:
I used to have Ampeg BA11, nice little 15'' combo :D
If you want small you should check Hartke combos, like kickback 12 ;)
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Ide be looking for a powerful 10' or max a 12', not a 15'. I hadn't checked out Hartke's stuff. For sure I hate ampeg but thats a personal thing. I've always found their sound boomy. The lighter the better anyways so thats another no no for ampeg.
 
#8
DiegoRR said:
...I checked out Markbass but only the micro stuff seems interesting, like their 9inch 50w little cube. Nothing slightly bigger. I dont need 300w because I have an 210 I use for anything bigger... Penny for your thoughts..
Click to expand...

Don't discount the Markbass Minimark, it really is smaller than you think and sounds incredible. Yes it is a bit pricy but you will never regret the purchase. :cool:

I used to own a couple variants of the Gallien-Krueger, a 200MB, and later on a MB150S, both are nice amps that you can't go wrong with, either, but the Minimark is so neutral sounding, with a very nice deep bottom end for such a small amp, that the GK amps sound colored and boxy by comparison. I have played lots of different basses through the Minimark with wonderful results; recently, I got together with some friends who had the chance to hear and try my Minimark, one already bought one (that night!) and the others have it on their GAS shortlist. :D
 
#9
Jeff Scott said:
Don't discount the Markbass Minimark, it really is smaller than you think and sounds incredible. Yes it is a bit pricy but you will never regret the purchase. :cool:

I used to own a couple variants of the Gallien-Krueger, a 200MB, and later on a MB150S, both are nice amps that you can't go wrong with, either, but the Minimark is so neutral sounding, with a very nice deep bottom end for such a small amp, that the GK amps sound colored and boxy by comparison. I have played lots of different basses through the Minimark with wonderful results; recently, I got together with some friends who had the chance to hear and try my Minimark, one already bought one (that night!) and the others have it on their GAS shortlist. :D
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+1
Best small/light combo/practice amp EVER. Full, neutral sound that really captures the natural tone of your inatrument. with an extension cab it gets up to 250w and can be heard with a drummer. Alone, still fantastic for jamming. Get this amp is all I can say.
 
#11
ahhh, this is more like it. Im a huge fan of GK and Markbass, and they were my obvious choices, although I'm going to check out the minimark. I was wondering if there were any lesser known choices. I know Yorkville makes a smaller combo (plus Im in Canada) but its not that loud and is fairly big...
 
#12
I REALLY like my Ibanez Promethean 1x10 combo. 33 pounds, in its carrying case. It always amazes me how much bass sound I can get out of 1 10" speaker.

And it's just a bonus that it's 250W by itself, 500W with an 8 ohm extension cab, and the head can be detached with no tools and used standalone (7 pounds, by itself, I think) with other cabs.
 
#13
StuartV said:
I REALLY like my Ibanez Promethean 1x10 combo. 33 pounds, in its carrying case. It always amazes me how much bass sound I can get out of 1 10" speaker.

And it's just a bonus that it's 250W by itself, 500W with an 8 ohm extension cab, and the head can be detached with no tools and used standalone (7 pounds, by itself, I think) with other cabs.
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Now that is interesting! How does it sound?
 
#15
Well, *I* like the way it sounds. :) It has a 2-band passive EQ plus a 7(?) band graphic EQ that you can turn on or off. Plus, it has another knob that lets you dial the tone from "Modern" to "Vintage". You can switch this on or off, too. I think dialing it fully to "Modern" is basically the same as turning it off. Dialing it fully to vintage gives it more of a sound like playing through my Ampeg tube amp. Not the same, but closer than the "Modern" setting.

And the cab has a piezo (I think) tweeter built in, so it works well for full range sound, too, not just bass. With the Aux In jack on the front, this means it's awesome for use as a practice amp. I can plug my MP3 player into the Aux In and play tracks that come out sounding good (i.e. the highs sound good), and then play along with them.

And being as small and light as it is, I take the head off and take it with me to gigs as a "ready spare", in case my Ampeg tube amp has an issue - which has saved my bacon once already!
 
#16
DiegoRR said:
65 pounds for just 100 watts????? :(
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The problem with wattage in cheaper combos is that most of these boxes are not engineered to handle the power they can provide. Most fart badly when played near their capacity. 95% of top quality 12 cabs fart or compress the low end before they see 150 watts....and that applies to cabs that cost many times the price of a cheap combo. The B100 can actually use all its' 100 watts. I'd just go with a Peavey Max or Hartke, good for the price.
 
#17
shopping used and waiting it out could yield a shuttle 3.0-10t at a nice price. don't be concerned about "watts" so much as "headroom" also when shopping. a cheap 100 watter thru a cheap (like unfortunately most combo cabs are) speaker cab can be more like 50:(

on a related note: right now i see a 3.0 combo at guitar center in seattle for 439.99. it doesn't specify whether it's an 8 or 10 inch cab, but it looks like mine, so it's probably the 10.
 

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