The Combo Club

[iagtrplyr]

So- made the move to ‘consolidate’ my equip... sold my MB Nano 300 head (as I, almost, never used it) & my MB NY121 cab (as I almost never used it)... got a second CMD121P- will serve as both! Had a cable made which enables both cabs to run from 1 head so, if I take both combos- I have ‘all-in-one’!

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Very cool, staurosjohn! Years ago I would’ve never thought of pairing two combos as a working rig, but it makes good sense. So many possibilities with your setup. Enjoy!

 

[WestyBassBob]

So noncomboistic of me but yeah I want an Orange Terror and a couple o' 15s

Orange makes combos. Haven’t heard much about them and they are kind of expensive compared to similar ones. But supposedly they are great for that old school British sound. (Yes please)

 

[GwenOnBass]

And Fender added a certain fruit-flavored model that’s got built-in grit. Not one of their best, but with some tweaking it’s more than serviceable.

Actually, I like your Studio 40 idea. Call me crazy, but I think you could easily small gig with one. There’s lots to play with to find the tone you seek for a particular song.

And yet not likely to replace my BA108v2+ as my practice amp because the 'Peg includes a volume control for AUX IN. That's important to me as I switch sources as I practice ...

 

[WestyBassBob]

And yet not likely to replace my BA108v2+ as my practice amp because the 'Peg includes a volume control for AUX IN. That's important to me as I switch sources as I practice ...

Plus it’s an Ampeg.

 

[GwenOnBass]

Orange makes combos. Haven’t heard much about them and they are kind of expensive compared to similar ones. But supposedly they are great for that old school British sound. (Yes please)

Almost six bills for an Orange 100 watt 1x15 combo that weighs more than 53 pounds ... eight bills walks me into an Orange Terror that will match quite decently with one PJB C4 at under 30 pounds for the cab and a shave over 10 pounds for the head ... so honestly, going to be looking elsewhere for combos in the absence of a burly roadie.

 

[GonePlaid]

Always seems to be a lot of coin involved in matching the bass ideal I hear in my head with gear

And what I find is my taste hasn't changed, but it has become more refined. And also of two minds. For part of me just stands there, jaw hanging in space, as Jack Bruce nails it with his EB. Another part of me hears Phi Lesh's Guild Starfire loaded with Wickersham wizardry ... so full on YES to the semi-hollowbody I play

Two very different tones, love them both ... a Fender Studio 40 could get me most of the way there for low volume and/or recording ... In the meantime the VTBass gets that overdriven power section sound out of a practice amp

To visit the "bass ideal I hear in my head" thing, as I have mentioned before, my favorite sound was what I vaguely remember coming from the pairing of my 1967 NR Thunderbird with a 1963 blonde 7ender Bassman head and cab. Super clean with just a smidge of 12ax7/6L6 natural overdrive-if I was digging in. Many mango seasons later, I attempted to duplicate that sound through a 67ish black 7ender piggyback Bassman. I didn't know at that time that the later Bassmans used a different circuitry, not the 6G6B of the 63. It just wasn't the same. Or, at least, the same as I remember. I prefer a 'clean' tone with as little grit as is possible(I use the OD function of my Rumbles as a mute button). Will I ever achieve that elusive tone 'in my head'? Prolly not. And finances dictate that I'll be "finding" it with what I now own: Rumbles 40, 100, and 200c, plus a 2000 Bassman 25 and 2 P______'s, one of which stays in my van as a 'just in case' backup.
Oh. I can get a 1963 blonde piggyback Bassman(yes, they're still out there)for ~$2600-$3000. And they still weigh too much and would require at least one extra trip during load in/out. Nope.

 

[WestyBassBob]

To visit the "bass ideal I hear in my head" thing, as I have mentioned before, my favorite sound was what I vaguely remember coming from the pairing of my 1967 NR Thunderbird with a 1963 blonde 7ender Bassman head and cab. Super clean with just a smidge of 12ax7/6L6 natural overdrive-if I was digging in. Many mango seasons later, I attempted to duplicate that sound through a 67ish black 7ender piggyback Bassman. I didn't know at that time that the later Bassmans used a different circuitry, not the 6G6B of the 63. It just wasn't the same. Or, at least, the same as I remember. I prefer a 'clean' tone with as little grit as is possible(I use the OD function of my Rumbles as a mute button). Will I ever achieve that elusive tone 'in my head'? Prolly not. And finances dictate that I'll be "finding" it with what I now own: Rumbles 40, 100, and 200c, plus a 2000 Bassman 25 and 2 P______'s, one of which stays in my van as a 'just in case' backup.
Oh. I can get a 1963 blonde piggyback Bassman(yes, they're still out there)for ~$2600-$3000. And they still weigh too much and would require at least one extra trip during load in/out. Nope.

I am puzzled by how many people on TB seem to be so feverishly trying capture a specific bass tone that is either in their head or in a recording. Maybe it’s just that I’m not a pro musician but it seems quixotic.

I do generally prefer a nice clean burpy tone but almost any quality amp will deliver a tone I am happy with.

 

[Miles_ONeal]

Always seems to be a lot of coin involved in matching the bass ideal I hear in my head with gear

And what I find is my taste hasn't changed, but it has become more refined. And also of two minds. For part of me just stands there, jaw hanging in space, as Jack Bruce nails it with his EB. Another part of me hears Phi Lesh's Guild Starfire loaded with Wickersham wizardry ... so full on YES to the semi-hollowbody I play

Two very different tones, love them both ... a Fender Studio 40 could get me most of the way there for low volume and/or recording ... In the meantime the VTBass gets that overdriven power section sound out of a practice amp

Two of my very favorite tones! I really wish Alembic would build copies of that old Phil Lesh bass, and license someone to make more affordable copies as well. I love the G&L approach; the Legacy is (was? I haven't kept up) a USA, hand-made, updated Strat, while the Tribute[1] Legacy is the more affordable version (cheap pots were the only complaint I ever had with mine).

 

[GonePlaid]

I am puzzled by how many people on TB seem to be so feverishly trying capture a specific bass tone that is either in their head or in a recording. Maybe it’s just that I’m not a pro musician but it seems quixotic.

I do generally prefer a nice clean burpy tone but almost any quality amp will deliver a tone I am happy with.

Yeah, maybe some of us are tilting at windmills, but if one listens to recorded electric bass sounds over the (somewhere around 70)years, the differences in tone and technique are tremendous. I like Gibson/Epiphone necks. 7enders are uncomfortable-for me-to play for more than a few seconds. Many amps are far too mid range-y for my tastes, so I pass on them. I don't wanna sound 'fuzzy', a lotta folks do. The 'holy grail' for one player is a POS to another. And so the quest continues. Otherwise, we'd all be playing a 'P' bass through a flip-top B-15.

 

[JakobT]

I am puzzled by how many people on TB seem to be so feverishly trying capture a specific bass tone that is either in their head or in a recording. Maybe it’s just that I’m not a pro musician but it seems quixotic.

I do generally prefer a nice clean burpy tone but almost any quality amp will deliver a tone I am happy with.

The thing is, my tone will change in the mix depending on what’s happening with the rest of the band, and/or the room if I’m playing live. It will even change as the room fills up with people. There are so many variables, and the differences can be so subtle that nobody notices anyway. So I’ve decided that chasing a specific tone is a lot of work with precious little to show for it.

In the studio it’s different, but if I’m going to play for a crowd (not that it seems very likely any time soon), I’ll just settle for sounding good, and what sounds good changes with every venue.

 

[iagtrplyr]

Yeah, maybe some of us are tilting at windmills, but if one listens to recorded electric bass sounds over the (somewhere around 70)years, the differences in tone and technique are tremendous. I like Gibson/Epiphone necks. 7enders are uncomfortable-for me-to play for more than a few seconds. Many amps are far too mid range-y for my tastes, so I pass on them. I don't wanna sound 'fuzzy', a lotta folks do. The 'holy grail' for one player is a POS to another. And so the quest continues. Otherwise, we'd all be playing a 'P' bass through a flip-top B-15.

And whats wrong with that???

 

[iagtrplyr]

I am puzzled by how many people on TB seem to be so feverishly trying capture a specific bass tone that is either in their head or in a recording. Maybe it’s just that I’m not a pro musician but it seems quixotic.

I do generally prefer a nice clean burpy tone but almost any quality amp will deliver a tone I am happy with.

For me, I don’t think it’s feverishly...yeah, it probably is. I feel I am more focused and therefore play better if I like the sound I’m hearing. Sounds like many feel that way, though Jokob’s Separation of gigging tone vs. studio tone makes sense.

My problem is I suffer from TFS (tone fatigue syndrome). No matter how good it sounds, after a week or two I’m switching out what I’ve been using for something else. I like keeping it fresh, though some parameters stay the same. Hey, I’ve been stuck in a spare bedroom for over a year, sue me.

Right now, my favorite bass tone is my P thru the SCR-DI and out to my JBL studio monitors. If I could sound like that everywhere I go I’d be happy. My BA-108 v2+ gets me right close to that. If I had to, I could sell everything else, but thank goodness I don’t have to!

 

[iagtrplyr]

And yet not likely to replace my BA108v2+ as my practice amp because the 'Peg includes a volume control for AUX IN. That's important to me as I switch sources as I practice ...

And can ya believe, M, that such an inexpensive item such as that Aux In knob is, makes us so happy? Where has that thing been the last decade or so?

 

[RodRy]

I am puzzled by how many people on TB seem to be so feverishly trying capture a specific bass tone that is either in their head or in a recording. Maybe it’s just that I’m not a pro musician but it seems quixotic.

I do generally prefer a nice clean burpy tone but almost any quality amp will deliver a tone I am happy with.

I was thinking something similar. I do not have a tone "in my head" but rather I just listen to what a given amp, cabinet (often within the same enclosure) and bass give me. If I like it during the time I'm playing it, I'm happy. Maybe my memory of a tone is not very good? So that each time I plug in and click "on" I respond to what is happening now, rather than what I vaguely remember.

Ah well, to each their own. Still thinking of a super mini combo in a mint tin...

 

[iagtrplyr]

Almost six bills for an Orange 100 watt 1x15 combo that weighs more than 53 pounds ... eight bills walks me into an Orange Terror that will match quite decently with one PJB C4 at under 30 pounds for the cab and a shave over 10 pounds for the head ... so honestly, going to be looking elsewhere for combos in the absence of a burly roadie.

Agreed. I’m after less the gritty 70s punk bass sound as an alternative to a clean Fender or whatever other name you wanna toss out. The Terror Bass the perfect baseline to begin tone-crafting.

 

[RodRy]

And can ya believe, M, that such an inexpensive item such as that Aux In knob is, makes us so happy? Where has that thing been the last decade or so?

More amp companies need to pay attention to this!

 

[iagtrplyr]

More amp companies need to pay attention to this!

I hear ya, RR. And since we’re talking, how about not making controls so flimsy. I like inexpensive as much as the best bass player, but let’s make ‘cheap’ illegal!

I may hold off buying anything new until Yamaha comes out with the next version of the BA-series. I’m curious to what they come up with based on what they currently working with.

Keep the 60-degree wedge shape? Revise the Scrambler to be a little more musical? Update wattage ratings to better compete with the others? Drop some of the excess weight, though I know it may be more gig-ready than others? How about modeling in some combos? Borrow from their thr-line.

Throw out, Ampeg fans, what you’d like to see. GP, it’s okay, you can play along too!

 

[WestyBassBob]

I was thinking something similar. I do not have a tone "in my head" but rather I just listen to what a given amp, cabinet (often within the same enclosure) and bass give me. If I like it during the time I'm playing it, I'm happy. Maybe my memory of a tone is not very good? So that each time I plug in and click "on" I respond to what is happening now, rather than what I vaguely remember.

Ah well, to each their own. Still thinking of a super mini combo in a mint tin...

Yes but even a newbie like me can say that there is nothing like the sound of a tube amp being played loud.

 

[RodRy]

Yes but even a newbie like me can say that there is nothing like the sound of a tube amp being played loud.

Agreed, and it even more depends on who's playing.

 

[GonePlaid]

And whats wrong with that???

See second sentence in my post.