Tiny self contained power amp options.

[agedhorse]

Another example of a fully legit one was the Acoustic Image Focus SA, which IIRC Rick Jones at AI said sold all of around 50 units total over the few years it was in production. Ouch!

I forgot about that one

 

[basscooker]

Could possibly rephrase this as " Is the market ready NOW?"

Lots of changes since the Amplite / Headlite was attempted. Lots of cool preamps in pedal format since. Niche doesn't mean not there. Devils advocate and all that.

But still, u really want that on the FLOOR?!

 

[Jazzdogg]

I surmise tiny power amps will be readily available in large numbers when there's sufficient demand to make them profitable.

If gamers, or guitarists, or the car stereo market, suddenly created a metric crap load of demand for mini amps, bass players would probably still cry that the mini-amps available weren't powerful enough.

 

[InkCow]

There are plenty of pedal board friendly sized power amps, the issue is the power required for bass amplification. I don’t see how you’re going to square that circle, honestly. You have a few incongruities that make this pretty impractical from a marketing standpoint:
1. your mains power is still going have to be AC and the PSU will either be onboard (thus increasing the size/heat) or a wall wart/laptop style PSU. You will still need an extra outlet by your board
2. the bundled preamp isn’t the expensive part
3. It’s still going to be no smaller than, say, a TE Elf (probably a little bigger). We’re not going have something the size of an EHX .44 Magnum, much less a Mooer Baby Bomb. I put my Warwick Gnome on my pedal board, but it’s a 1/4 of the power you want and I built my board to accommodate having a micro head on it.
3. there’s like 100 people in the world that would pay for this and they might not want to buy it from whoever makes it for “reasons”

At the end of the day, I’m not sure why a Quilter BassBlock or similar isn’t almost everything you’re looking for.

 

[InkCow]

2. the bundled preamp isn’t the expensive part

I should clarify: the bundled preamp is the part that 99% of the world is paying for.

 

[frankie5string]

I surmise tiny power amps will be readily available in large numbers when there's sufficient demand to make them profitable.

If gamers, or guitarists, or the car stereo market, suddenly created a metric crap load of demand for mini amps, bass players would probably still cry that the mini-amps available weren't powerful enough.

They have been around for a long time - in large numbers. I think one of the main proponents of the really tiny ones - The Tripath kits were actually accessible and lots of DIY people bought them. Does Tripath even exist anymore as an entity? Lots of those larger gaming speaker systems and car-stereo rigs used them.

The Roland Cube 100 from the early 2000s had one of those Tripath "Class-T power amps on a chip" and you can just barely find it if you open the chassis and looked really carefully.
So it's not like it couldn't be done - rather that not enough people care for it to be a stand-alone thing. The whole point of shrinking that was so it could be put in something else.
You could try one of the Pyle or Lepy pocketable amps - but they're only 15-90Watts.

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

Not necessarily, but it’s possible I’d put the poweramp on the board.
In that case I would use what you always use to connect a poweramp to speakers: speaker cable. That might be 15’ tops.

I don't think having the power amp on a pedalboard on the floor is a good idea.. one might spill drinks on it.

If I were you, I'd sell my cabinet and buy sg similar w/ a power amp. That's what I'm considering for my self.

 

[agedhorse]

Anything placed on the flour should not have vents in the top, that’s kind of a given if playing places where drinking is taking place.

 

[AgostoMortal]

portable power amp yes, to put on the floor? NO thanks!

 

[ole Jason]

I'd get a lot of use out of a tiny amp that is battery powered. Even something rather low wattage like the Elf or Gnome would be very useful for me if it didn't need external power. Is there anything like that on the market viable for bass?

 

[bebass]

As far as small form factor, i think it woukd be difficult to get a commercially available & certified amp in a smaller form factor than the Quilter bass amps. Note they are no longer in production. It will be interesting, IF rumors are true of a new release, to see if a new bass amp from them is still in the same form factor.

Although I would never use one on a pedal board on the floor. I don’t really “get” those setups. While cool, the large pedal board is just as difficult to carry as a carried in shoulder-bag small less than 10 lb amp. I have done a pedal board amp before, but just one spilled drink into a top vented amp will destroy one’s day. Even side vented could be a disaster with a fan running. For me, either a powered cab or simply set the amp on top of cab - no drinks allowed.

 

[byacey]

As far as small form factor, i think it woukd be difficult to get a commercially available & certified amp in a smaller form factor than the Quilter bass amps. Note they are no longer in production. It will be interesting, IF rumors are true of a new release, to see if a new bass amp from them is still in the same form factor.

Although I would never use one on a pedal board on the floor. I don’t really “get” those setups. While cool, the large pedal board is just as difficult to carry as a carried in shoulder-bag small less than 10 lb amp. I have done a pedal board amp before, but just one spilled drink into a top vented amp will destroy one’s day. Even side vented could be a disaster with a fan running. For me, either a powered cab or simply set the amp on top of cab - no drinks allowed.

Yes, at some point the musician has to take responsibility for the safety and protection of their gear. I'll bet if they dump a drink into it, they'll be much more cautious after they get it repaired or replaced.