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The new tc electronic BG500.

#202
Infidelity said:
Brought mine back..

Great combo and surely a best bang for your buck! I had no issues with mine but to be on the sure side I returned it.. :)
Click to expand...

Shame you guys feel the need to do that :( Mines been in use for over a year and apart from one of the small preset buttons coming lose it worked flawlessly, It's now my back-up/ practice rig as I wanted to go seperate head/cab and move a bit more air.
 
#204
The BG500 2x10 combo is actually my favorite amp I've played I think. Great sounding amp, but man it's heavy. If I run into a flight of stairs, forget it. I tweaked my back loading it into truck a couple of weeks back and that's when I decided it needed to go. I thought about going to head/cabs but figured I would try the RH750 instead. So much lighter.
 
#205
Greetings fellow lowenders
just got a BG500 on a trade for
a few basses and i have to tell you
as you all know it is a great sounding
amp...yes it is heavy and you cant expand it
but for a great tone that can be "your" tone
this is it....

but i like everyone else is having button issues
how can i go about getting addtional buttons
mine didnt have one on the tuner
and i really like having an onboard tuner at just a touch....
 
#206
The button thing is really turning into an epidemic isn't it? Mine are still going strong, but I'm already contemplating a remedy in case mine crap out.

As for the weight, yeah its heavy compared to the micro stuff out there, but its not that bad. Its certainly manageable, especially with the hand truck. I would hardly call it 'too heavy'.
 
#208
Followup:

As I said I was going to much earlier in the thread, I took mine back as soon as my hand was out of a cast.

Before I did, I carefully benched the chassis in my shop and gave it a good looking over.

There were too many things I didn't really trust and too many screwy things I found odd and off-putting about the design and execution, most of which people have already gone into here, plus some new ones I found. I think being unable to tell sharp from flat from more than a foot or two away with the tuner LEDs was the final straw. The visual and physical ergonomics didn't work for me. :hmm:

If I had different needs, I might have found a place for this, but I have better, more flexible and more portable amps I can use. I couldn't see having a 500W practice amp at home, which is what this would have been had I kept it. I could see it being a good semi-permanent-setup, small-stage rig for a church player or a rehearsal room amp with a loud band, but that's not for me.

If the BG500 works out for you and your needs, great, and I wish you the best of luck with it.
 
#209
If the BG500 is too heavy then have you guys considered the BH500 head, I believe its the same amp and features etc, I have one with two BC212 cabs, its a nice bit of kit and very powerful .
It can also be used with multiple cab configurations .
 
#211
Bongolation said:
Followup:

As I said I was going to much earlier in the thread, I took mine back as soon as my hand was out of a cast.

Before I did, I carefully benched the chassis in my shop and gave it a good looking over.

There were too many things I didn't really trust and too many screwy things I found odd and off-putting about the design and execution, most of which people have already gone into here, plus some new ones I found. I think being unable to tell sharp from flat from more than a foot or two away with the tuner LEDs was the final straw. The visual and physical ergonomics didn't work for me. :hmm:

If I had different needs, I might have found a place for this, but I have better, more flexible and more portable amps I can use. I couldn't see having a 500W practice amp at home, which is what this would have been had I kept it. I could see it being a good semi-permanent-setup, small-stage rig for a church player or a rehearsal room amp with a loud band, but that's not for me.

If the BG500 works out for you and your needs, great, and I wish you the best of luck with it.
Click to expand...


That is what I am using it for. A stage rig at my church that can get very loud with the band I play with. I tried it out Sunday and it worked perfectly. I will not be moving it much and the tones I get from it are real versatile. She is a keeper for right now. This rig is a steal for $349.
 
#212
One month in and I'm still lovin this little bugger! My son used it a a keyboard amp about a week and a half ago, and loved it! The only hang I have is that my rehearsal spot (where I leave thing) is on the third floor!!!! Stairs are a monster with this thing!!!!!

I have plenty of bass gear in my room, but somehow this is the first thing that is plugged into, not only by me, but the rest of my bass buddies as well!

This thing is perfect (outside of weight) for my smaller gigs that I may need a little extra push. I really prefer the tone of this thing in comparison to my buddies Markbass CMD 102P, I only wish they weighed the same!
 
#213
CapnSev said:
The button thing is really turning into an epidemic isn't it? Mine are still going strong, but I'm already contemplating a remedy in case mine crap out.

As for the weight, yeah its heavy compared to the micro stuff out there, but its not that bad. Its certainly manageable, especially with the hand truck. I would hardly call it 'too heavy'.
Click to expand...

+1
Exactly my thoughts.
The complaint about loss of eye contact with the tuner on distance was kind of a hilarious comment. Most combos twice the price don't even have memory buttons and tuner built in. The most Important thing must be the sound/price aspect and although the size is a bit unpractical for carrying it, if you have normal physical capacity and no back problem that's not a major issue. Almost any combo(amp) out there will have issues to complain about if thats what you want to do.
The BG 500 has a lot to offer for the money and sound and volume is great considering the size so I'm still very happy with it.
 
#215
So... in case the buttons do fall out, what's the best way to put them back? Drop of glue and a pair of tweezers?

I'm asking because the only one a local shop has in stock (and they won't be ordering for a long while) has a fallen-out tuner button that they're . The button is mercifully in the non-muting position, with the switch underneath still functional, so I guess the button can probably be glued back in, but it's not at the moment and thus the amp's on rebate.
 
#218
For $349, whats the downside of having this as a home/practice rig? That's cheaper than a 100-watt Ampeg BA115 ($379). Heck, it's not that much more expensive than a 50 watt Ampeg BA112 ($279).

I understand the weight issue but I can't think of anything else at this price point that delivers this type of performance and BTW, the Ampeg is 62lbs vs. the 70 of this unit. The closest in price are the Fender Rumble 150 combo, Acoustic B200, and the Peavey TKO 115. None of them have the performance or features that the TCE delivers.

Design idiosyncrasies aside, at $349, this seems like a killer deal.
 
#220
TCE BG500-210 arrived today. Connector jacks work, control knobs work, the amp sounds like heaven both clean, compressed and downright dirtily driven.

Tuner button cap broke on first light push, contour button cap was floating without a grip on the button itself, and when I removed it it appeared one of the legs was bend out of shape. Luckily I managed to collect all the bits, nothing remained in the amp head. I can live without the two functions for now - the buttons are pushable thanks to my long picking hand fingernails. :smug: I contacted TCE anyway for spares. Let's see how it goes.
 

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