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"Some Bassists Don't Know How To Play A Tube Amp"

#123
I've just never been happy with anything but a tube amp for bass.

Sunn 200S, '73 Black Line SVT, Reeves 225, that's my comfort zone.

I owned a horrific Fender B-300 solid state bass head and a Peavy Mark III after my SVT head
was stolen. I just wasn't going there again.
 
#124
I'm also realistic, knowing how tough it is today to earn a living as a music professional.

Not everyone, not even full time pros can easily afford to dish out $3500+++ for a rugged, roadworthy, professional bass rig.

Carting heavy gear around gets old too, I get that.

If you like what you have GREAT!

Still I encourage people to save a bit longer, do more research and make the most well educated decision you can
for your situation.

There are others here who know much more about light weight, solid state alternatives and even more who cover the 'best cheapest" categories.
 
#125
FFTT said:
I bought my 225 because I wanted a high quality, all tube bass amp.
I got by long enough on cheap bass amps.
I also considered there's a damn good reason so many artists are still using their vintage Hiwatts 40 years later.
Those Hiwatt circuits have more than stood the test of time.
I also did not want any amp with proprietary components
Click to expand...

Doesn't Reeves use their own spec retro Partridge copy transformers? Very few tube amps that I've worked on use generic transformers.
 
#126
people are just confusing "slow" with "squishy".

as i understand it, tubes run within their rated current are actually technically faster in their slew rate and all that, as the little electrons are zipping through vacuum instead of slogging through silicon. (not that there's really any delay with either one since they both have the electricity going through them at a significant percentage of the speed of light!)

that said, there is a certain "touch" you need to learn if you want to get a good clean low end out of a tube amp that's being pushed a little too hard.
 
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#127
FFTT said:
I'm also realistic, knowing how tough it is today to earn a living as a music professional.

Not everyone, not even full time pros can easily afford to dish out $3500+++ for a rugged, roadworthy, professional bass rig.
Click to expand...
You could slap together a used 100-200w tube amp and a 410 or 215 for less than a grand. Of course, you can slap together the same rig with a used 500w SS head for $500 or less ;) but at least tube amps are still doable for those on a budget.
 
#130
Funnily enough, the Reeves weighs 59 pounds.

My Bad Cat Hot Cat 100R guitar head weighs 69 pounds, 97 pounds in the flight case that came with it.

The recording artist who sold it to me lived up three flights of stairs in N.Y. with no elevator.

One man's aching back is another man's treasure!
 
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#132
headband said:
...I have put both SS and tube amps on an oscilloscope, where input and output waveforms can be observed, and I have never seen anything measurable (and scopes can be very accurate - my HP scope covers way beyond the audio spectrum, and measuring millisecond difference is not difficult)...
Click to expand...


Oh, that's because your HP scope probably was built in 1956, has tubes in it, and is sloooooowww, right? :whistle: :whistle: :whistle:

Link Removed
 
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#134
It also depends on which tube amp you are using for a frame of reference.
I always thought a Fender Bassman was shite for alive bass rig.
For low volume recording with a much better speaker, maybe, but severely underpowered for
live applications.

A Sunn 200S was not that powerful, but larger transformers & KT88's gave it clarity and headroom.

The SVT's solved the power issue, but my '73 failed on me twice mid-show, due to a diode blowing on the PCB board.

I passed on the cleanest most well cared for '72 Blue Line SVT I had ever seen the day I pulled the trigger for my Reeves.
They were both the same price. I really did want a new amp too.
 
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#136
FFTT said:
A Ford Fiesta & a '65 Ford AC Cobra will both get you down the road, but which would you rather drive?
Click to expand...
Depends on how far I'm going, what the weather is like, how much luggage I carry, how much gas money I have, what the roads are like, who's with me in the car ... ;)

EDIT: I'm speaking from personal experience, I drive a two seater convertible and it's hardly the best choice for every trip. And not the best car for hauling bass gear either. :)
 
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#137
FFTT said:
I'm also realistic, knowing how tough it is today to earn a living as a music professional.

Not everyone, not even full time pros can easily afford to dish out $3500+++ for a rugged, roadworthy, professional bass rig.

Carting heavy gear around gets old too, I get that.

If you like what you have GREAT!

Still I encourage people to save a bit longer, do more research and make the most well educated decision you can
for your situation.

There are others here who know much more about light weight, solid state alternatives and even more who cover the 'best cheapest" categories.
Click to expand...

Jump on Craigslist, $800-1000 for an Ampeg SVT amp and $300-400 for an Ampeg 8x10 (or 410hlf or 6x10 for the same price). Total $1,100-$1,400 which you can sell it back for the same price when you are done.
 
#139
If it was going to be another SVT it had to be an American built Blue Line.
When I was looking 5 years ago. The best price I found for one clean, properly maintained, NOS glass, original circuit integrity was $2,200.00 for the head.

I had already owned a Magnavox built, Black Line and nothing made by Loud Technologies Ampeg interested me.
 
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#140
FretNoMore said:
Depends on how far I'm going, what the weather is like, how much luggage I carry, how much gas money I have, what the roads are like, who's with me in the car ... ;)

EDIT: I'm speaking from personal experience, I drive a two seater convertible and it's hardly the best choice for every trip. And not the best car for hauling bass gear either. :)
Click to expand...

Yes, if you're a hard core environmentalist and fuel economy is your #1 priority and you want a car with modern EPA standards and want computer controlled gizmos, a wiring harness MIC, and GPS and anti-lock brakes, and low car insurance rates, you might go for that Fiesta.

If you want a raw pure muscle car, no EPA BS, no computers or PCB's to worry about, no GPS, beautifully laid out under the hood,
American built when quality still mattered, and the thrill of the ride, you just might want that '65 Ford AC Cobra.
 

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