Has anyone tried or is using these amps for DB as they are much cheaper than AI or AES whats the general opinion ?
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Double Bass SWR workingman 12 or 10 combo
- Thread starter tez123
- Start date
I've had both. They are pretty good. Not the best but you can certainly get a very usable tone from either. Of amps that are not specifically meant for DB they are about the best out there IMHO. The 10 is not very loud so the 12 is a bit more versatile but is heavier and bigger to carry.
i run an alembix f1x into a wm12 that is connected to a wm10 extension speaker
i love it. very portable. durable.
i love it. very portable. durable.
I've used both a lot. For the price they are good. I find the most frustrating thing about them to be the preamp voicing. Not great for double bass. The 10 is limited as it is only 80 watts.
My SWR experience with both upright and horizontal basses is the same: too heavy, underpowered, terrible tone controls.
I used these on a cruise gig last year with a Warwick electric. I'm not a fan of them, I would not buy one for my own usage, though I'll use it if it's already there on site. Some design choices too me show sloppiness in thought, ie. XLR output in the front, yet headphone jack in the back? Cable for the amp to the speakers is an L cable that blocks the headphone jack access. Its seems to have been replaced by the WorkingPro 12 Bass Combo that is 200W.
The voicing is very mid-range, and the combo is actually heavy. There is not a lot of headroom either. If you're looking for an amp the 1/2 size DB you were posting about in the other thread, I think there are better options, but they'll cost more. You may appreciate something very light, yet powerful as you'll pretty much always need to play with an amp.
Check out heads+cabs or combos by Markbass, AI, GK , the usual suspects.
The voicing is very mid-range, and the combo is actually heavy. There is not a lot of headroom either. If you're looking for an amp the 1/2 size DB you were posting about in the other thread, I think there are better options, but they'll cost more. You may appreciate something very light, yet powerful as you'll pretty much always need to play with an amp.
Check out heads+cabs or combos by Markbass, AI, GK , the usual suspects.
If you go for an SWR see if you can find a used pre-Fender one. In the early 2000s Fender bought SWR which was a little boutique amp maker. The quality and the sound went down IMHO.
Hi.
No experience about the WM12, but I've had a (pre Fender
) WM10 for about 10 years now.
Cute little amp that'll get the job done in most situations if loud and deep is not expected. Or, if there's PA support and the WM acts just as a monitor. I have used mine with even my F#BEADG 6er slab on gigs for monitoring purposes with good results, on a stand obviously.
There's a few things about the WM10 that's apparently different from the other WM combos. It (mine anyway) uses a TDA hybrid amplifier chip (not discretes as the rest), which had some teething problems. The later chips are better and the swap is easy since most of the "power amp" is located on that chip.
I bought mine non-functioning, and the DIY repair was ~15€ for the parts, the PS caps included.
Whether that using hybrids instead of discretes topology is a bad thing or not, depends on the view. Replacing discretes is more time consuming and more expensive, the discretes have to be biased, the hybrid does not etc.
The original speaker wasn't to my liking (tired?) and I swapped it for a Hartke XL. It's been said repeatedly in WM10 threads that the Eminence Deltalite II is a huge improvement on both the sound and the weight, I haven't tried that yet even though I have a few on the shelve. Im more of a tube or DI kinda guy, and the Deltalites are reserved for another project.
The WM10 combo isn't exactly small, but I'd still take that -and perhaps an extension cab for louder gigs- over a WM12 or WM15.
On louder gigs the traditional SWR tone-stack may prove inadequate for feedback prevention, at least compared with the graphic and parametric EQ's found on more modern amps, but the same goes for all "classic" amps.
Regards
Sam
No experience about the WM12, but I've had a (pre Fender
) WM10 for about 10 years now.Cute little amp that'll get the job done in most situations if loud and deep is not expected. Or, if there's PA support and the WM acts just as a monitor. I have used mine with even my F#BEADG 6er slab on gigs for monitoring purposes with good results, on a stand obviously.
There's a few things about the WM10 that's apparently different from the other WM combos. It (mine anyway) uses a TDA hybrid amplifier chip (not discretes as the rest), which had some teething problems. The later chips are better and the swap is easy since most of the "power amp" is located on that chip.
I bought mine non-functioning, and the DIY repair was ~15€ for the parts, the PS caps included.
Whether that using hybrids instead of discretes topology is a bad thing or not, depends on the view. Replacing discretes is more time consuming and more expensive, the discretes have to be biased, the hybrid does not etc.
The original speaker wasn't to my liking (tired?) and I swapped it for a Hartke XL. It's been said repeatedly in WM10 threads that the Eminence Deltalite II is a huge improvement on both the sound and the weight, I haven't tried that yet even though I have a few on the shelve. Im more of a tube or DI kinda guy, and the Deltalites are reserved for another project
.The WM10 combo isn't exactly small, but I'd still take that -and perhaps an extension cab for louder gigs- over a WM12 or WM15.
On louder gigs the traditional SWR tone-stack may prove inadequate for feedback prevention, at least compared with the graphic and parametric EQ's found on more modern amps, but the same goes for all "classic" amps.
Regards
Sam
I loved my WM 12 for electric bass but thought its scooped voicing wasn't a good fit to upright or EUB. Also, since the cab is made from MDF, it's very heavy for its power. A good studio rig for electric, but there are some better choices now for upright.
I had both at one point and I agree--the preamp voicing is just bad for the double bass. it's bad for electric too, in my opinion: there was always something nasty going on in the midrange that I could not dial away. It seems to me that SWr amps are always aimed at the electric bass mid scoop thing.
Also the 10 would whistle--air would be forced out the 1/4 jacks in the back and it would literally whistle. It came with little rubber plugs to put in the jacks but they would pop out and then it would whistle again
Also the 10 would whistle--air would be forced out the 1/4 jacks in the back and it would literally whistle. It came with little rubber plugs to put in the jacks but they would pop out and then it would whistle again
I've used both, but owned neither. I always wanted the 10 to have the power of the 12. It sounded much better to me. I good local player does or used to gig exclusively with the 10 and got away with it pretty much everywhere.
Certainly not the best that $1,000 can but, but might be the best that $200 can buy sometimes. Not a bad choice.
The "blue" series SWRs are more popular for db, but are in a price range where they don't compete well with other options and are too heavy. The California Blonde can sound really nice for db, but is very heavy by our standards and can be expensive as well.
If you can pick up a WM10 cheap enough, it's not a bad choice on a budget. Not nearly as good, though as a GK MB150 used in the $400-500 range, though. Depends on your budget.
Certainly not the best that $1,000 can but, but might be the best that $200 can buy sometimes. Not a bad choice.
The "blue" series SWRs are more popular for db, but are in a price range where they don't compete well with other options and are too heavy. The California Blonde can sound really nice for db, but is very heavy by our standards and can be expensive as well.
If you can pick up a WM10 cheap enough, it's not a bad choice on a budget. Not nearly as good, though as a GK MB150 used in the $400-500 range, though. Depends on your budget.
Certainly not state of the art, but I've had two WM12s and used a WM10 for university big band work. I like them better for BG than DB, and I prefer both to the WM15 which sounds dark/slow and is bigger/heavier. An annoying design feature on the 10 is that the fuse holder sticks out further than anything else on the back of the amp. It's easy to knock out of place, and you're screwed without a spare!
I'd definitely buy a WM10 if I found a good deal locally and try the Aural Enhancer bypass mod I've seen on the BG side.
I'd definitely buy a WM10 if I found a good deal locally and try the Aural Enhancer bypass mod I've seen on the BG side.
Tell me about it. I got to a gig and the whole cap was gone. I had to do the gig commando. I got a repair place to replace it with one that fit flush.
I have an SWR Baby Baby Blue which works quite well with upright and electric upright. About 140 watts into a single 10".
