Tec Puma Bass amps

[KJung]

They probably will. The Tiger was a bit more moder/aggressive, the Black Cat had tighter lows (not that the Tiger wasn't tight ).
I tried a DB750 next to them but for me the tone of the TecAmps worked out much better. They really match nice with my UL310's.
And even the normal rack-mount heads are really light!

I've never had the pleasure of trying their full sized heads, since they aren't available over here. The match of the Puma voicing with the Epifani's is just beautiful though. They seem made for each other. That low mid control really fills that slight 'low mid punch hole' that some of us hear with the Epi UL's. VERY nice!

I'd love to hear the Puma1000 with two 310UL's. That would be massively KILLER!

 

[FortessOne]

One of the reasons I'm looking into the Performer is that this head more EQ options. I really like simple heads, but the Black Cat and Tiger both only had low-mid-high controls.
And I like low-mid controls.

The TecAmp heads seem to be quite similar sounding overall, if you like the Puma I'm you'll love the the other amps also.

And yes, TecAmp with 2 UL310's of complete madness! Best tones I got out of my Epifani's so far.

I'll post pics if I get mine (first gotta sell my Hevos).

 

[Evan_S._Brown]

We've had Techamp for just over 2 weeks now at Bass People.
The 600, puma, 210s and 212s and the vibrating floorboard

I really like the Puma, to my ears it sounds very similar to the Hellborg amplification but voiced a bit better in the lower mids,
I really love the 'taste' knob, set all the way to the right you can get a pretty good motown sound out it, and I was using a super bright jazz bass.
didn't really like the taste knob set to the left though.
I found comparing it to my Epi 902 that my 902 was warmer than the puma. however the puma packed more punch.

The speakers are very lightweight, I haven't had a great deal of checking them out but the 4 directional handles are very handy.

 

[KJung]

We've had Techamp for just over 2 weeks now at Bass People.
The 600, puma, 210s and 212s and the vibrating floorboard

I really like the Puma, to my ears it sounds very similar to the Hellborg amplification but voiced a bit better in the lower mids,
I really love the 'taste' knob, set all the way to the right you can get a pretty good motown sound out it, and I was using a super bright jazz bass.
didn't really like the taste knob set to the left though.
I found comparing it to my Epi 902 that my 902 was warmer than the puma. however the puma packed more punch.

The speakers are very lightweight, I haven't had a great deal of checking them out but the 4 directional handles are very handy.

Sounds like we are hearing these amps similarly. Yeah, there is a bit of that Epi502/902 voicing, and I agree, the low end of the Epi amps is really something... fat, super warm and full. But there is just something wrong with both the inherent mid voicing of those Epi amps to my ear, and the very limited control you have over it with the one mid control (even though there is a semi-parametric on one channel). It never seems you can dial in the thump and also dial out the bit of nasal upper mids at the same time. This is not the case with the Puma, which has those two mid controls voiced perfectly.

Also, +1 to the taste control. I find it relatively useless to the left (the mid boost, low end reduction), although that is probably useful to DB and fretless players. To the right, it does a very similar job as the Markbass VLE, darkening and adding thumpy warmth. While not my thing, I agree, it's a good 'motown' control if that's your thing.

 

[Evan_S._Brown]

Sounds like we are hearing these amps similarly. Yeah, there is a bit of that Epi502/902 voicing, and I agree, the low end of the Epi amps is really something... fat, super warm and full. But there is just something wrong with both the inherent mid voicing of those Epi amps to my ear, and the very limited control you have over it with the one mid control (even though there is a semi-parametric on one channel). It never seems you can dial in the thump and also dial out the bit of nasal upper mids at the same time. This is not the case with the Puma, which has those two mid controls voiced perfectly.

Also, +1 to the taste control. I find it relatively useless to the left (the mid boost, low end reduction), although that is probably useful to DB and fretless players. To the right, it does a very similar job as the Markbass VLE, darkening and adding thumpy warmth. While not my thing, I agree, it's a good 'motown' control if that's your thing.

+1 on the mid control of the 902,

however this is primarily a DB rig and my bass is very low mid orientated with its realist pickup. So the lack of mid control isn't such a big issue.
however when I do use an electric I do find a similar problem so I always use a preamp so I can dial in a bit more mids....
this isn't the case with the techamp puma thoug...
this would be an exceptional DB head

 

[KJung]

+1 on the mid control of the 902,

however this is primarily a DB rig and my bass is very low mid orientated with its realist pickup. So the lack of mid control isn't such a big issue.
however when I do use an electric I do find a similar problem so I always use a preamp so I can dial in a bit more mids....
this isn't the case with the techamp puma thoug...
this would be an exceptional DB head

+1 I actually put a thread up with a link to this thread over on the DB side. With the 1 Meg input impedance, the small size, the high power, and the flat voicing with nice mid control, this has the potential to be a great DB amp also!

 

[savinggrace]

+1 I actually put a thread up with a link to this thread over on the DB side. With the 1 Meg input impedance, the small size, the high power, and the flat voicing with nice mid control, this has the potential to be a great DB amp also!

Ken,
Thanks fo tthe throrough review! So there are stong cutting through mids with the Puma. Can we get a more indepth comparison of the mids/ low mids compared to the Thunderfunk 550a/b?

Thanks!

Dean

 

[Bassist30]

Great Review Ken. Very informative. So you think the MB are louder but tone wise I think you are in favor with the Puma.
Personally I love warm punchy amps yet which does not sacrifice the top end, I like it smooth with presence. Seems like an amp that would be perfect for my tone goals. Yet as of recent I feel many of the mid powered amps just make it and at seldom times fall just short of head room. I don't think you get that with the MB in response to your pronounced feelings you show toward these amps. Please don't take this as an insult. This leads me to believe maybe volumewise its closer to the TF? My Crest with the F2B is all the volume I need. But thats alot of power. Maybe more than I need but it also gives me the head room I love. I wish the new mid power heads were now 750 instead of 500 to 600. So maybe i should consider the Puma 1000. But all in all you give a very fine review and I (we) thank you. Good luck with it and every now and then talk about the amp.

 

[KJung]

Great Review Ken. Very informative. So you think the MB are louder but tone wise I think you are in favor with the Puma.
Personally I love warm punchy amps yet which does not sacrifice the top end, I like it smooth with presence. Seems like an amp that would be perfect for my tone goals. Yet as of recent I feel many of the mid powered amps just make it and at seldom times fall just short of head room. I don't think you get that with the MB in response to your pronounced feelings you show toward these amps. Please don't take this as an insult. This leads me to believe maybe volumewise its closer to the TF? My Crest with the F2B is all the volume I need. But thats alot of power. Maybe more than I need but it also gives me the head room I love. I wish the new mid power heads were now 750 instead of 500 to 600. So maybe i should consider the Puma 1000. But all in all you give a very fine review and I (we) thank you. Good luck with it and every now and then talk about the amp.

+1 The Puma has a MUCH nicer upper treble response than the TF, and much deeper lows. However, the absolute volume is similar to the TF.

The 'trouble' with the Puma1000 (and why I didn't pony up the extra $500 or so to get it), is that it's designed to either run two 4ohm cabs, or one large 8ohm cab bridged. This is exactly the opposite of my cab collection, where I have small 8 ohm cabs designed to work great with a mono block head like the Puma500 in pairs, or large 4ohm cabs that are again designed to be used as stand alone cabs for larger gigs.

The Puma500 has plenty of power for what I need, and the pairing with the Epi410UL (4ohm) is pretty stunning... big, smooth, crisp, but with that low mid control that just punches like crazy if you want it.

However, if you had, for example, two 4 ohm 210's or 212's, the Puma1000 would probably shake the rafters. It also has some cool extra features (a couple of additional voicing buttons for deep and sizzle, and from what I understand, an amazing on board compressor... same size, and only about a pound heavier than the 500).

Regarding the mids versus the TF in an earlier post, the Puma is less 'warm' than the TF in the mids. The Puma will punch just as hard (and again, to me improves the low end and upper treble response greatly over the TF550), but it really is a creamy, clean, hi fi type voicing versus the more compressed, warm mids and upper mid/lower treble sort of thing that the TF does.

 

[sandmann]

kjung,

i completly agree with your reviews. i sold my heart rock 3 days after i got my puma 1000. i play it over two tech-soundsystems neo-cabs (2x12 8ohms and 1x15 2,4 or 8 ohms) and could be happier.

i also own the genz benz 6.0 which i prefer on small stages and in clubs because of the tube-preamp. on larger locations i put the tone hammer in front of the puma and have all options then.

regards,

sandmann

 

[KJung]

kjung,

i completly agree with your reviews. i sold my heart rock 3 days after i got my puma 1000. i play it over two tech-soundsystems neo-cabs (2x12 8ohms and 1x15 2,4 or 8 ohms) and could be happier.

i also own the genz benz 6.0 which i prefer on small stages and in clubs because of the tube-preamp. on larger locations i put the tone hammer in front of the puma and have all options then.

regards,

sandmann

Very cool! I look forward to getting my hands on a 4ohm S212 to try with my 500.

 

[tombowlus]

I just received an 8 ohm Tech Amp 2x10, and the Puma 1000 should be here tomorrow. Wow, talk about a lightweight cab! I thought the box felt light, but then I realized that half of the weight was packing material!

 

[KJung]

I just received an 8 ohm Tech Amp 2x10, and the Puma 1000 should be here tomorrow. Wow, talk about a lightweight cab! I thought the box felt light, but then I realized that half of the weight was packing material!

Cool. I think you will dig the Puma's voicing, given your tone goals. Let us know how the on-board compressor is also, since that isn't part of the 500 feature set.

Edit: Also, check out the bass boost control (also not part of the 500 feature set). If I understood the description on the site correctly, I think this only impacts one of the power amps. If I have that right, that's kind of cool... send more low end wump into a 115 on the bottom of you stack while keeping a 210 tight and mid punchy. I could have that wrong, but I seem to remember reading that in the specs.

 

[Bassist30]

+1 The Puma has a MUCH nicer upper treble response than the TF, and much deeper lows. However, the absolute volume is similar to the TF.

The 'trouble' with the Puma1000 (and why I didn't pony up the extra $500 or so to get it), is that it's designed to either run two 4ohm cabs, or one large 8ohm cab bridged. This is exactly the opposite of my cab collection, where I have small 8 ohm cabs designed to work great with a mono block head like the Puma500 in pairs, or large 4ohm cabs that are again designed to be used as stand alone cabs for larger gigs.

The Puma500 has plenty of power for what I need, and the pairing with the Epi410UL (4ohm) is pretty stunning... big, smooth, crisp, but with that low mid control that just punches like crazy if you want it.

However, if you had, for example, two 4 ohm 210's or 212's, the Puma1000 would probably shake the rafters. It also has some cool extra features (a couple of additional voicing buttons for deep and sizzle, and from what I understand, an amazing on board compressor... same size, and only about a pound heavier than the 500).

Regarding the mids versus the TF in an earlier post, the Puma is less 'warm' than the TF in the mids. The Puma will punch just as hard (and again, to me improves the low end and upper treble response greatly over the TF550), but it really is a creamy, clean, hi fi type voicing versus the more compressed, warm mids and upper mid/lower treble sort of thing that the TF does.

Ken that is so interesting and again informative.Why can't everything be simply. 500 8 ohms 750 4 ohms 1000 2 ohms. I don't know I just can't see the sense in it. But I can see the purpose for some. I guess it can have advantages for those with 2 4 ohm cabinets. I guess it eliminates the 2 ohms on the amp right? It just makes more sense to me with the 8,4 and 2 ohm variation. Maybe Im old fashion.
To my ears the TF is a great amp but like all amps there is always something to each individual that has its cons as well as its many pros. Again i love the amp. Other than the compressor coming in to soon and the lack of pushing the 6 to 10 k its a great amp. The mids is one of its strong points as well as the tembre knob. Also being solid state helps also.
To me the Tec amp seems like a good buy but I won't buy one for the reason concerning its ohms. Sounds like a great amp. know any amps out there that sound great, light and can push 750 at 4 ohms. Maybe a 1000 at 2 ohms? That is similar to the tec amp? The iamp has the idea but tonewise its not my sound unfortunately. But I don't know of too many light amps out there that has the power and the sound I like. The closest are the TF and eden. Anything else come to mind? But your new amp sounds like a big winner. Have fun with it.

 

[KJung]

Ken that is so interesting and again informative.Why can't everything be simply. 500 8 ohms 750 4 ohms 1000 2 ohms. I don't know I just can't see the sense in it. But I can see the purpose for some. I guess it can have advantages for those with 2 4 ohm cabinets. I guess it eliminates the 2 ohms on the amp right? It just makes more sense to me with the 8,4 and 2 ohm variation. Maybe Im old fashion.
To my ears the TF is a great amp but like all amps there is always something to each individual that has its cons as well as its many pros. Again i love the amp. Other than the compressor coming in to soon and the lack of pushing the 6 to 10 k its a great amp. The mids is one of its strong points as well as the tembre knob. Also being solid state helps also.
To me the Tec amp seems like a good buy but I won't buy one for the reason concerning its ohms. Sounds like a great amp. know any amps out there that sound great, light and can push 750 at 4 ohms. Maybe a 1000 at 2 ohms? That is similar to the tec amp?

I too am not a big fan of the 'stereo' type heads like the Puma1000, since I typically use one 4ohm cab.

The Markbass SD800 does a true 750 watts into 4ohms, and while I didn't particularly dig the uber modern voicing, it thunders and is under 10 pounds. I don't know of any really lightweight head that puts out that big power into 2ohms. The Walter Woods Ultra puts out 1200 watts into 4ohms, but it just doesn't sound nor feel like 1200 watts. I think the power output must really drop in the low bass area.

I know I sound like a broken record lately, but have you checked out the Mesa M6 Carbine. It's rated at 600 watts into 4 or 2ohms, but it's the biggest darn 600 watts I've ever heard, and it's voiced much more closely to the Markbass/Puma type quick, clean, punchy tone than the traditional Mesa tone. It has a 2 ohm setting that allows for safe and I assume high signal quality operation. It's about 25 pounds and two rack spaces... not too bad.

I'm with you though, if TecAmp made a mono Puma750, I'd probably sell everything else that I own

Edit: Of course, there is the AI Focus, which almost exactly matches your requirement and is a micro size and weight head. I just didn't dig the voicing of the pre, and the lack of EQ power.

 

[Bassist30]

I too am not a big fan of the 'stereo' type heads like the Puma1000, since I typically use one 4ohm cab.

The Markbass SD800 does a true 750 watts into 4ohms, and while I didn't particularly dig the uber modern voicing, it thunders and is under 10 pounds. I don't know of any really lightweight head that puts out that big power into 2ohms. The Walter Woods Ultra puts out 1200 watts into 4ohms, but it just doesn't sound nor feel like 1200 watts. I think the power output must really drop in the low bass area.

I know I sound like a broken record lately, but have you checked out the Mesa M6 Carbine. It's rated at 600 watts into 4 or 2ohms, but it's the biggest darn 600 watts I've ever heard, and it's voiced much more closely to the Markbass/Puma type quick, clean, punchy tone than the traditional Mesa tone. It has a 2 ohm setting that allows for safe and I assume high signal quality operation. It's about 25 pounds and two rack spaces... not too bad.

I'm with you though, if TecAmp made a mono Puma750, I'd probably sell everything else that I own

Edit: Of course, there is the AI Focus, which almost exactly matches your requirement and is a micro size and weight head. I just didn't dig the voicing of the pre, and the lack of EQ power.

Thanks. I think we are on the brink of a common 750 in 4ohms.
I am really surprised that TecAmp did not jump on this.
Im with you on the SD 800 and the AI Focus. I mean they are good amps. But a TecAmp at 750 would be ideal.

 

[tombowlus]

I know I sound like a broken record lately, but have you checked out the Mesa M6 Carbine. It's rated at 600 watts into 4 or 2ohms

Not that it is a huge factor, but FWIW, we tested the M6 Carbine at 539 watts into a 4 ohm load, with 1% THD, and 610 watts into a 4 ohm load at 5% THD. Into a 2 ohm load, with 1% THD, we showed 738 watts (and we did not do a 5% THD measurement at 2 ohms).

But a general +1 to this head. It's one of those magical products that both Ken and I seem to be very excited about.

 

[KJung]

Not that it is a huge factor, but FWIW, we tested the M6 Carbine at 539 watts into a 4 ohm load, with 1% THD, and 610 watts into a 4 ohm load at 5% THD. Into a 2 ohm load, with 1% THD, we showed 738 watts (and we did not do a 5% THD measurement at 2 ohms).

But a general +1 to this head. It's one of those magical products that both Ken and I seem to be very excited about.

Even better!

 

[sandmann]

guys,

tecamp sells the matching big-cabs, for example a 2x15, a 4x10, 6x10 or 4x12 and even a 6x12 that can handle 1000watts (and way more!) at 8ohm.

but the idea behind the puma 1000 is that if you have a lightweight amp you probably will not want to carry such a big cabinet. you will use two smaller lightweight cabs each at 4 ohm (or more) or on the smaller locations (or when less volume is demanded) maybe only one 4ohm cab on the one channel and the pleasure-board one the other channel. that way you can keep the volume low, not disturbing anyone on the stage but still have an earth-ratling-feeling through your body. i saw quite a lot of professionals here in germany using the pleasure board.

one very cool thing with the puma 1000 is the fact that the one channel provides a sub-boost-function and that each channel has a seperate volume-knob on the back. the sub-boost cuts of everything above 200hz and therefore boosts the low end. so i can use my 1x15 as a sub and the 2x12 on the regular channel. that way you get a lot more lowend. you can hear and feel the difference.

another feature the puma 1000 provides is the very good sounding compressor which works almost without any loss of volume. it sustains the notes and is perfect for slapping, pick-playing or hiphop- and disco-stuff.

the last thing to mention is the low- and high boost-knobs on the frontend. with these controls you can shape the tone very easily in a certain direction before fine-tuning with the eq or the shape-filter.

all in all a very cool amp. if there is one thing i miss it would be an overdrive-function. i play a lot of rock-music where i sometimes need a tubey- ord slightly overdriven sound. but as i mentioned before: i put the aguilar tone hammer in front of the puma and have everything i can dream of then.

sandmann

btw: i use my puma with a tech-soundsystems nd610xt cab. i weighs 33kg and has 2100watts on 6ohm. thomas eich assured me that 6ohm is not a problem at all for the puma 1000 in bridged mode. i can get plenty loud.

 

[cellkirk74]

I did not read the whole threadand therefor do not know if this already has beein posted, but a member of the swiss bassic.ch-forum did a nice Soundfile with a Puma Combo some time ago.

The thread with the myspacelink can be found here:
Invalid Link Removed

It also might be interessting for those of you that understand german language...