WOW!!!!Dude, that's why I've been so hot to trot on the TA503, since it is the most similar of their current designs to my beloved EBMM HD-500!
I really dug those, too!!!
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The time has come! Markbass MegaThread!
- Thread starter SundanceChile
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I really dug those, too!!!
Yup, I remember that like it was yesterday........
[harp music playing.... fade to blurry.... an image forms....]
I got those model cabs when they were blowing them out on ebay. Very nice but way too heavy for me.
I just received an older Epifani NYC 212 cab and took it on it's first gig with my LMII.
Ran it with my Brubaker Xtreme 6. The LMII easily pushed this cab and sounded great. No scooped sound though I could easily dial it in if needed. Worked in a 9 piece band, easily held it's place in the mix. Sent a little to the FOH via the DI with good results.
Ran it with my Brubaker Xtreme 6. The LMII easily pushed this cab and sounded great. No scooped sound though I could easily dial it in if needed. Worked in a 9 piece band, easily held it's place in the mix. Sent a little to the FOH via the DI with good results.
That LMII head is really versatile isn't it Brad? I'll bet you got a great sound from your Brubaker with the LMII/Epi. That's some good stuff!
I used my LMII head last night as a preamp! (Pre-out) I drove a Bergantino IP112/EX112 stack with my F Bass BN5 at a fairly loud rock/blues/R&B gig. The LMII/Bergie IP112/EX112 SMOKED! It was nothing short of amazing. Full, tight, punchy. I've used the LMII with a Bergie HT/EX 112 stack before as well and it was equally wonderful. But side-by-side, the LMII head driving the Bergie IP112/EX is punchier and fuller sounding without EQ-ing. I did find however that I can EQ in the fullness and phat thick tones using the LMII EQ section when powering the Bergie HT/EX stack compared to the IP112/EX.
In short, that little head is incredibly versatile and sounds great! Gary
Yes it is! BTW, yesterday, I let another TB'er check out my LMII into a NEO 212 cab I have, and it destroyed him. He now has bad LMII GAS.
They don't have pre outs, so I assume you were using the DI/line out? Not to nitpick, but there is actually a significant difference, and I actually do wish these had true pre-out/pwr-in loops!
Gig tonight:
LMII into a pair of EA NL-210 cabs with the newer drivers.
Fender American Deluxe P 5, Sadowsky NYC 24-Fret 5, and Skjold Pro Deluxe 5. I'll be A/B'ing the LMII with my Eden Time Traveler WT-405. I know the LMII will have more output, the question is, how is it different tonally.
More later.
Good point Vic. You're right. I was using the DI output. But it still retains all EQ funnctionality. So I still had all the flexibility of the LMII EQ section while using the 1000W power section of the Bergie IP.
What is the difference between a Pre-out versus a DI Output? Sure sounded great. No question there.
Gary
Levels. A pre out is generally hotter, and is always "post eq" as it's your signal just before the raw power amp input.
BTW, I ended up just using the Skjold and the Sadowsky 24 Fret tonight into the LMII and EA NL pair. It ROCKED!
I dont play Ska but have played punk and we do rock covers and i would say with the right cab the MB heads can do it all (im not a valve man so i cant comment on that).
I have found that with my SA450 and 1210 cab i can get some really punchy rock tones from my 55-01. I wouldnt say classic sounds but good enough for what i need.
Ive not used the GS212 but have just got a UL212 and finds its a very thick sounding cab. good for older tones.
smakbass
Smakkin basses for 25 years..
A few observations...Tell me more...
There's definitely a "tight punch", almost a percussive thing, these heads have which is ADDICTING. I don't know technically how Markbass accomplishes this, so I'll have to leave it as just this subjective comment. I can say this... it's NOT just a matter of voicing... it's actually the amp's behavior.
The low end on these is hot. I ended up pulling out some of the lows and low mids. Pretty much everything else was straight up, just about 9:00 on the VPF, maybe a slight bump on the highs for some extra crispness, but not much. Perfect.
It was clean and clear at the high end, nice rich lows without getting boomy, so stage tone was big but tight, and full through the mids. Nothing was missing. We also got pretty stoopid loud last night and I never felt like I was running out of headroom. I'd like to know what these amps REALLY put out... it's more than 500W, I can tell you that much... at least by most manufacturer's standards anyway.
I'll also say this, the new voicing of the EA NL-210's due to the new drivers is REALLY workin' for me. It was a very noticeable upgrade in usable tone. It's like there were some frequencies missing from the original version that they just "plugged in". The old drivers may have sounded slightly sweeter at home, but on a gig, the newer drivers toast the old ones. I liked these cabs before, and now I'm even happier with them.
At the end of the night, after pounding out the last set, I unhooked the amp and picked it up. It was barely warm. Amazing. I mean, the fan was running, but I figured it'd be kinda hot after all that.
I handed the amp to the guitar player and he freaked out... bad...
What's odd, is he'd played with another bass player previously who'd mentioned these and he was always curious bout them due to the "buzz"... this probably originated of course with all the ads resulting from the Berlin endorsement deal.I didn't get a chance to A/B with the Eden. Since the LMII can't do 2 ohms, I had to slave the Eden to drive the wedge on the keyboard side. The keyboard player whines if he can't hear me real well. Go figure.
One nice thing about the parallel effects loop if you don't use effects (like me), is it makes a great dry slave output into another amp, since it's pretty much just a parallel of the input. It's just got the initial gain stage and one buffer between, so it can be kinda' hot, but with proper adjustments, it really works very nicely.If these heads did 2 ohms so I could drive both of my UL310's an the wedge, I'd be in hog heaven.
Both the Skjold and the Sadowsky were KILLIN', and I mean KILLIN' through this rig. Both of them have a very aggressive tone to them, especially if you favor the bridge pickup some on the Skjold. That attack, coupled with the LMII's native punch, and you have some nice tight hard hitting tone to create and fortify a SUPER strong groove with. That's what I thrive on. You look at the drummer and you smile at each other 'cause the music is kickin' so hard people just can't stay sitting down. That's what it's all about.
Last time we had a jam,dedicated to Bob Marley.
I plugged my LMK into a Yamaha 2x10,and used my passive jazz. Eq flat, VLE full. It was great reggie tone! (we recorded as well, it was great) It was low, and the bite remained, the sound was very understandable!I am playing in a rock band as well, and I am using my LMK, it works for me!
Last time we had a jam,dedicated to Bob Marley.
I am playing in a rock band as well, and I am using my LMK, it works for me!
The VLE sounds like a passive tone control to my ears. It is a very cool and effective tone enhancement. When it's dialed up half way to full, it sounds like it dials the treble 'brightness' way, way down. Very effective. I personally like it no more than 11 o'clocl, but I am not going for a reggae tone. Just more vintage mid range growl.
- Apr 3, 2003
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Great review, Vic! Your comments definitely jive with what I have observed, although I did not get a chance to set up a second rig at our show last Saturday. 
But I am hoping to gig test both the SD800 and LMII in June. 
But I am hoping to gig test both the SD800 and LMII in June.
I posted this is the SD800 thread but wanted to share my experience with you.
For the first time i used my SA450 with my UL212 and i took my GK 1001RBII along as well. Im looking to get rid of the GK but wanted to make sure i was happy with the SA450/UL212 combo.
What i found was that at this particular gig the SA450 was way too boomy but then i was stuck near a corner but on the floor not on a stage. It was a small room and i guess i was on about 3 on the master. I ended up turning the low down slightly (first time it has ever gone to the left) but couldn't get rid of the boom without sounding a bit weak out front. Im guessing its the cab as ive never had a problem with the SA450's tone and i need to play around with the EQ a bit more than im used to with this cab. Anyway, second set i plugged the GK in. And with the EQ flat the sound was nice and even. Even when i boosted the low a bit it never got boomy. But i noticed that to get a good tone i was running the woofer on about 2 o'clock and the boost was around 12. the volume (input gain) was around 1 o'clock and thats where i keep it so it doesnt distort my sound. so i guess i was pushing the amp a bit harder than i was the SA450. Now it might just be the tone but to me, in this room, with this cab the SA450 was way louder. Im going to try the SA450 again at another gig (a regular so i know what to expect) but i have a feeling the SA450/UL212 is a very loud, deep combo. And if it wasnt for the problem im having with one of the drivers i would be very happy about getting rid of the GK. I only got it for the 700watt output but i feel i wont be needing that amp again.
I also found that while i tend to use the VLE on around 9-10 by turning it up almost all the way i got a very nice punch to my sound.
Now i have to look at a SD800 as i feel it might be a bit of an in between head. All the good things about the MB heads but with a slightly tighter but cleaner low end that i feel maybe the UL212 needs and of course more output for the big gigs.
And to think, a few months ago i was going off my SA450.
For the first time i used my SA450 with my UL212 and i took my GK 1001RBII along as well. Im looking to get rid of the GK but wanted to make sure i was happy with the SA450/UL212 combo.
What i found was that at this particular gig the SA450 was way too boomy but then i was stuck near a corner but on the floor not on a stage. It was a small room and i guess i was on about 3 on the master. I ended up turning the low down slightly (first time it has ever gone to the left) but couldn't get rid of the boom without sounding a bit weak out front. Im guessing its the cab as ive never had a problem with the SA450's tone and i need to play around with the EQ a bit more than im used to with this cab. Anyway, second set i plugged the GK in. And with the EQ flat the sound was nice and even. Even when i boosted the low a bit it never got boomy. But i noticed that to get a good tone i was running the woofer on about 2 o'clock and the boost was around 12. the volume (input gain) was around 1 o'clock and thats where i keep it so it doesnt distort my sound. so i guess i was pushing the amp a bit harder than i was the SA450. Now it might just be the tone but to me, in this room, with this cab the SA450 was way louder. Im going to try the SA450 again at another gig (a regular so i know what to expect) but i have a feeling the SA450/UL212 is a very loud, deep combo. And if it wasnt for the problem im having with one of the drivers i would be very happy about getting rid of the GK. I only got it for the 700watt output but i feel i wont be needing that amp again.
I also found that while i tend to use the VLE on around 9-10 by turning it up almost all the way i got a very nice punch to my sound.
Now i have to look at a SD800 as i feel it might be a bit of an in between head. All the good things about the MB heads but with a slightly tighter but cleaner low end that i feel maybe the UL212 needs and of course more output for the big gigs.
And to think, a few months ago i was going off my SA450.
The SA450 is the little brother to the SD800 as I understand it. It would be VERY interesting to hear your opinions on the LMII, which is another amp they make with the same output, but a different design (and a different sound). I just gigged with one over the weekend, and while I did roll off the lows just a bit, it definitely didn't sound thin, and it also wasn't boomy. Very tight sounding.
I would assume you'll hear the same thing with the SD800 as your SA450 since it's just a louder version of the same thing.
Hey Vic... glad you are enjoying the LMII.
The SA450 is actually virtually identical to the LMII in basic power and components. They add the two semi-parametric mids, the DI volume and pre post switch and put it in a bigger box. So, while it looks almost identical to the SD800, and the control layout and features are identical to the SD800, it's really an LMII inside (with the 'analog' power amp and 500 watts power).
So, better to think of it as a 'more fully featured' LMII than a 'little brother of the SD800', since the power amps are quite different between the SD800 and SA450.
vision
It's all about the groove!
- Feb 25, 2005
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+1...If I understand correctly, the F1 would be the lowered powered version of the SD800, and the SA450 is an LMII with additional features as you mentioned above.
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