SWR Super Redhead?

A lot here on that topic...
"SWR Super Redhead" site:talkbass.com - Google Search
I own one. Old school and heavy. Love it.

 

Unless you have a fettish for the Redhead, I'd invest my $500 elsewhere. As has been mentioned, much has changed since the Redhead. Heck, you can get an Ampeg BA210v2 NEW for the same money. For a bit more, you can step into higher end units. I wouldn't pay more than $400 for the Redhead if it's clean.
My opinion.
PS. The Redhead is heavy as snot.
Fine, if you don't mind.

 

If you like the sound, well, there is no substitute for that is there?

 

A great combo for its day, a good combo today.

Also keep in mind (if this matters to you) that SWR has been out of business for over ten years, some parts are getting harder to find or not available at all if service is needed.
This is an old amp that can go out in two weeks or last another 20+ years before service/repair is needed. You need to balance if that is worth it for you, or you want something newer with a warranty or at least a stronger service program behind it.
Most of the RedHeads are still serviceable.

I recommend loading and unloading it from the store to your vehicle and back into the store a few times and see if you still want it. (for some moving it gets old, fast.)

 

I'll take a older combo over something new any day.
But as mentioned newer amp heads are lighter, and smaller.

Most of them need to sit on a cabinet which weigh the same or can be slightly lighter. Lighter high power neo cabinets can carry a higher price for the convience.

The real issue is sound pressure or sound pressure level. Or basically how loud you need to be. A 2x10 is a 2x10 and within reason can only move so much air and handle certain amount of power.

So in a nutshell, the Super Redhead is highly regarded with many players. And has plenty of power to take it's 2x10 combo too full power. Regardless of being more or less compared to something new. It literally does the same thing and will reach the same levels or SPL of something " new"

If a 2x10 reaches the level you need. The redhead is great. And I personally prefer the sound and tone of class AB amplifiers and don't care for new class D amplifiers and don't care at all for switch mode power supplies. Which is basically what allows these newer heads to be light.

Really what you should be asking is a 2x10 combo loud enough for me. Or do I need a 4x10 to reach band levels.

It's basically the standard for a long long time now. With a moderate to loud drummer usually you'd lean towards a 4x10 to reach higher volumes with minimal distortion.

If it's for practice, lower level gigs, or you just need a stage monitor . Assuming your bass is mainly carried in the clubs main pa. A 2x10 is probably fine.

And as mentioned a 210 is a 210 and doesn't really need 600 or 800 watts that everyone will tell you can't live without.

 

Not so much for you since you already made a decision, but for anyone who might see this thread later, there's not some "magic" just because something is "new". Is a Lamborghini Diablo not a hot car just because it's 30 years old? No. You just have to understand that there might be some differences to the things you would find now. Some of those differences might be bad, but others will be good.

The Super Redhead is like a vintage Italian sports car compared to, I don't know, like a 370z or something. The 370z is pretty cool, but the Diablo is art and is ALWAYS going to be cool and desirable to people who know what it is, even if the fast and furious teens in the mall parking lot don't really get it.

The SWR stuff was pretty meticulously designed and engineered, certainly for its time, and it will always be great. Honestly, my Goliath III I almost forget how good it is until I compare it to MOST other cabs. It's so good it just blends into the background and you don't have to think about it. "Oh, if it only had more lows, or if it was only a little louder, or a little cleaner..." You don't have to worry about any of that because it just sounds like it's supposed to. Same with the amps. They just sound fat and clean and punchy and big and musical.

That quality is sorely lacking in MOST gear these days, certainly in a cheap modern (GC owned) Acoustic combo. Just because something is "old" does not mean it's bad. Usually the opposite is the case.

We also have to get out of this consumerist trap that we're in of always thinking we need "new" stuff. Why? The only reason you need something NEW is if what you have is not meeting the criteria it is intended to meet. People buy phones every year or 2 for insane amounts of money. Why? Nothing has really changed in phone technology in that time that will make that big a difference, and if you don't abuse your phone it should last a good 3-4 years just fine.

Meanwhile, people pay insane money for old stuff. Partly because a lot of it is actually really good, partly because the stuff that survives tends to be the better stuff and gets better with age, and partly because of a certain craziness about "vintage" anything. But sweeping that aside, there are a lot of elements that just are actually better. So the new stuff just has to keep cramming in bogus features and gimmicks (no, I don't need bluetooth in everything) because they usually can't compete on build quality, materials, and vision. Sometimes there can be a technological advantage, but literally every company is trying to capture something from 30-50 years ago more or less so that should tell you something. Fender probably sells more strats than all their other models combined, and that's a design from literally 65+ years ago that has barely deviated from what it originally was in that entire time.

 

Omega Monkey pretty much summed up what I was going to say.

Things will always be new. However, there are very few things that leave a mark. If there were a book on historic amps or amps that made an impact, SWR would certainly be mentioned. I never followed the logic of parts availability having an impact on the longevity of a loved item. People are breathing new life into things that have been out of production for decades.

Edit: "Heavy" is subjective. I've heard and seen people complain about lifting a 20-30lb cab or amplifier. Compared to an SVT, that's peanuts in terms of weight. At this rate, players are going to be advocating software over hardware.

 

I have owned both a Super Redhead (grey crinkle square opening grill version) and a WM's 12 (S/N 36) Both were very fine amps and if it were not for the weight, I'd probably still have the SRH.

Congrats on purchasing two classic amps!