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Super-Clean, Powerful Head Poll: There Can Be Only One

Which super-clean head is best?

  • Phil Jones Bass BP-800

    Votes: 19 7.6%

  • Trickfish Bullhead 1K

    Votes: 36 14.5%

  • Ashdown 12-band 600 (heavier but I do like AB heads and not too bulky)

    Votes: 7 2.8%

  • Eich T-900

    Votes: 16 6.4%

  • Gallien Kruger Legacy/Fusion (800 should be fine)

    Votes: 67 26.9%

  • Trace Elliot TE1200

    Votes: 9 3.6%

  • Other - please specify

    Votes: 95 38.2%
  • Total voters
    249
#81
NeonVomit said:
Long post alert!

Right, so after a whole massive bunch of gigs, tours and what have you, I've gotten an evolved idea of what I'm after, and streamlining my gear. I play mostly power/progressive metal and grindcore/thrash. For some projects, I use a few pedals to give myself a pretty driven but tight sound (Boss GT1B and Darkglass B3K) and I use effects like chorus or reverb at some points. For other projects, I might use a touch of drive or grit from a SansAmp BDDI and that's basically it.

I have a Darkglass MT500v2, which I really like, but has been way too temperamental for me, with weird volume cuts, buzzing fan sounds coming out the speakers etc. Credit to the dealer who has had it back and fixed it a couple of times, but I'm at the point where I'm not confident taking it out on the road anymore. I can almost replicate the sound with my B3K pedal into any clean amp, so I'll be using it for rehearsals or something, or selling it for very cheap (I'd be upfront about it's repeated issues to any prospective buyers and price it accordingly)

My Mesa D-800 is an absolute tank, and has never failed me. It's my go-to touring amp. However, I'm after something a little more hi-fi and less old-school sounding (I will keep ahold of it of course, for projects needing that kind of sound)

I have a Phil Jones Bass BP-200 which is excellent - I got it for studio work and smaller rehearsals, and it's the amp which has my favourite sound. It has a super natural, clean tone and takes pedals extremely well. However, the 200w are really not going to cut it in terms of volume for the types of shows I play.

I've been considering either getting its big brother, the BP800, or one of the other really good hi-fi sounding amps out there these days. Sadly where I am, it's almost impossible to find them to try them out. Logic would dictate me picking up the BP800 (since I already like the small version, I SHOULD like the big version, correct?) but I want to see what y'all experiences with it and/or other heads of similar specs/aims are. I've liked what I've heard of Trickfish in reviews and videos, the new Trace Elliot TE1200 looks sweet and I always liked Trace amps back in the day, the Ashdown 12-band looks fascinating (if a bit heavier), GK are great with clear, crisp sounds and I once had a 700RB which I did like, etc.

I'm after reliability, super clear natural tone, and compactness for travelling by air (which I do a lot), and something that can handle being tossed onto any house/promoter provided 4x10 or 8x10 for medium stages. I'm not super keen on loads of extra features/bells & whistles, but it wouldn't be a deal breaker. Budget is up to $1.5k US/1.3k Euro but can push it a bit more for something really good.

Thanks for reading all this and apologies for the rambling!
Click to expand...

Have you tried a Mesa WD-800? I replaced my Eden WT gear for the most part with one of these and haven’t regretted it. I don’t think you would have trouble finding a Hi-Fi tone out of it. I play in a Motown review band and it’s pretty clean. It’s shrinking violet either if you want that at some point. Might even be a little less than your budget.

Good hunting and best wishes for a successful tour.
 
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#84
I've never heard of the Eich before, but of the others, while good gear, I don't know that I'd consider Ashdown, Trace, or GK to be "super clean". Phil Jones, sure. Haven't heard a Trickfish amp yet. When I hear "super clean", I think of EA and old Walter Woods gear. As per someone much earlier in the thread, if you really want clean power, get a Crown (or other) power amp and a simple clean bass preamp for it. E.g.
ebsstack-jpg-jpg.4488061
 
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#86
Acoustic Image makes amplifiers that sound very clean. I've actually heard people complain about them being too clean. They also offer lifetime warranty as long as you pay for the shipping. Amazing customer service. I was very happy with mine for about 12 years. For quite some time I used to pair it with a 21012 Schroeder cabinet and this setup sounded so amazing but also could go very loud at the same time. A friend of mine would bring his SansAmp and it sounded amazing.

The school where I sometimes teach also has one which is newer than mine and has 2 channel so you could plug in a microphone or a keyboard or a guitar if there's only 1 amp available.

I don't own one at the moment because I got sort of an endorsement deal with Eich so I'm playing a T-900 right now. The T-900 is a great amp too. It's stupidly loud and it can sound very clean if you turn off the taste knob to zero. The Eich is IMHO more versatile because the taste knob lets you dial in a warm sound rather easily but you're looking for a clean amp so that probably doesn't play a big role in your decision. Eich customer is excellent in my experience as well. There was a weird sound in one of my cabs right out of the factory and they took it back and solved the issue and took care of the shipping costs both ways.
 
Last edited:
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#87
NeonVomit said:
Long post alert!

Right, so after a whole massive bunch of gigs, tours and what have you, I've gotten an evolved idea of what I'm after, and streamlining my gear. I play mostly power/progressive metal and grindcore/thrash. For some projects, I use a few pedals to give myself a pretty driven but tight sound (Boss GT1B and Darkglass B3K) and I use effects like chorus or reverb at some points. For other projects, I might use a touch of drive or grit from a SansAmp BDDI and that's basically it.

I have a Darkglass MT500v2, which I really like, but has been way too temperamental for me, with weird volume cuts, buzzing fan sounds coming out the speakers etc. Credit to the dealer who has had it back and fixed it a couple of times, but I'm at the point where I'm not confident taking it out on the road anymore. I can almost replicate the sound with my B3K pedal into any clean amp, so I'll be using it for rehearsals or something, or selling it for very cheap (I'd be upfront about it's repeated issues to any prospective buyers and price it accordingly)

My Mesa D-800 is an absolute tank, and has never failed me. It's my go-to touring amp. However, I'm after something a little more hi-fi and less old-school sounding (I will keep ahold of it of course, for projects needing that kind of sound)

I have a Phil Jones Bass BP-200 which is excellent - I got it for studio work and smaller rehearsals, and it's the amp which has my favourite sound. It has a super natural, clean tone and takes pedals extremely well. However, the 200w are really not going to cut it in terms of volume for the types of shows I play.

I've been considering either getting its big brother, the BP800, or one of the other really good hi-fi sounding amps out there these days. Sadly where I am, it's almost impossible to find them to try them out. Logic would dictate me picking up the BP800 (since I already like the small version, I SHOULD like the big version, correct?) but I want to see what y'all experiences with it and/or other heads of similar specs/aims are. I've liked what I've heard of Trickfish in reviews and videos, the new Trace Elliot TE1200 looks sweet and I always liked Trace amps back in the day, the Ashdown 12-band looks fascinating (if a bit heavier), GK are great with clear, crisp sounds and I once had a 700RB which I did like, etc.

I'm after reliability, super clear natural tone, and compactness for travelling by air (which I do a lot), and something that can handle being tossed onto any house/promoter provided 4x10 or 8x10 for medium stages. I'm not super keen on loads of extra features/bells & whistles, but it wouldn't be a deal breaker. Budget is up to $1.5k US/1.3k Euro but can push it a bit more for something really good.

Thanks for reading all this and apologies for the rambling!
Click to expand...

NeonVomit said:
I play mostly power/progressive metal and grindcore/thrash.
Click to expand...

That being said, I have nothing to vote on or add...:).
 
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#90
dbsfgyd1 said:
Have you tried a Mesa WD-800? I replaced my Eden WT gear for the most part with one of these and haven’t regretted it. I don’t think you would have trouble finding a Hi-Fi tone out of it. I play in a Motown review band and it’s pretty clean. It’s shrinking violet either if you want that at some point. Might even be a little less than your budget.

Good hunting and best wishes for a successful tour.
Click to expand...
I have a WD and love it.
Sounds like his is looking for less tubie, more modern, clean like PA amp, Bergantino sound.

He writes, "My Mesa D-800 is an absolute tank, and has never failed me. It's my go-to touring amp. However, I'm after something a little more hi-fi and less old-school sounding (I will keep ahold of it of course, for projects needing that kind of sound)"

Or just take his Phil Jones amp he says it's the clean sound he likes but not enough power. Jack that preamp out/DI post into his most powerful amp he already has, like the Mesa D 800 power amp input and see how that sounds. Won't cost anything to try. Might be fun.

:)
 
Last edited:
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#91
DJ Bebop said:
I have a WD and love it.
Sounds like his is looking for less tubie, more modern, clean like PA amp, Bergantino sound.

He writes, "My Mesa D-800 is an absolute tank, and has never failed me. It's my go-to touring amp. However, I'm after something a little more hi-fi and less old-school sounding (I will keep ahold of it of course, for projects needing that kind of sound)"

Or just take his Phil Jones amp he says it's the clean sound he likes but not enough power. Jack that preamp out/DI post into his most powerful amp he already has, like the Mesa D 800 power amp input and see how that sounds. Won't cost anything to try. Might be fun.

:)
Click to expand...

I think he needs something else.
 
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#92
If you're already using pedals for your tone shaping and all you really need is a capable power amp, I'd grab a GSS Sumo (1000W @ 4Ohm, < 600$/€) and pocket the remaining cash, or spend it towards a dedicated front-end preamp pedal of your choice (so you're not stuck with the one that would be bundled with the amp).
These are compact, light and powerful.

Link Removed
 
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#96
NeonVomit said:
Pretty interesting concept here! Would you have any idea if a Boss GT1B or even a SansAmp can drive it, or would I need something else in between?
Click to expand...

I'd imagine the Boss would work... you're essentially going to your own personal mini PA by just using a power amp and cab. I go direct to the PA from my BOSS GT10B and your GT1B has similar amp and speaker emulation. I don't even use the cab sim on mine, just the amp sim for overdrive, compressor, EQ and various effects and it sounds great through the PA
 
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#100
doran.dragic said:
Acoustic Image makes amplifiers that sound very clean. I've actually heard people complain about them being too clean. They also offer lifetime warranty as long as you pay for the shipping. Amazing customer service. I was very happy with mine for about 12 years. For quite some time I used to pair it with a 21012 Schroeder cabinet and this setup sounded so amazing but also could go very loud at the same time. A friend of mine would bring his SansAmp and it sounded amazing.

The school where I sometimes teach also has one which is newer than mine and has 2 channel so you could plug in a microphone or a keyboard or a guitar if there's only 1 amp available.

I don't own one at the moment because I got sort of an endorsement deal with Eich so I'm playing a T-900 right now. The T-900 is a great amp too. It's stupidly loud and it can sound very clean if you turn off the taste knob to zero. The Eich is IMHO more versatile because the taste knob lets you dial in a warm sound rather easily but you're looking for a clean amp so that probably doesn't play a big role in your decision. Eich customer is excellent in my experience as well. There was a weird sound in one of my cabs right out of the factory and they took it back and solved the issue and took care of the shipping costs both ways.
Click to expand...

AI is also defunct. As far as I know, Gollihur Music is in charge of clearing out the remaining stock and are offering a different limited warranty on stock they sell. The owner died recently and the remaining staff decided to shut it all down.
 
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