VOTE!! Which amplifier?

[pablomigraine]

Which amplifier would you choose bearing the following in mind:

1) You tour at least 40 days out of the year, and your stuff needs to be as light a possible and very roadworthy.

2) You play in a VERY loud, VERY fast band with double kicks and two Marshall fullstacks, so you need HUGE amounts of clean power and a sound that's articulate, clear and quick, but tubey goodness is lovely also...

3) You need to sound GOOD, not just loud.

 

[ESP-LTD]

2) You play in a VERY loud ... so you need HUGE amounts of clean power ...

One doesn't necesarily imply the other. It doesn't matter how much stage volume you make, it matters how much sound you put out front.

IMO, you need a very good PA, and a small stage rig.

 

[pablomigraine]

One doesn't necesarily imply the other. It doesn't matter how much stage volume you make, it matters how much sound you put out front.

IMO, you need a very good PA, and a small stage rig.

Remember touring at least 45 days a year..... at least 15 days of that will involve playing somewhere with NO PA at all or just enough PA for the vocals and maybe the kick drum....

 

[svtb15]

the light as possible is the TALL order if you mix that with Loud and punchy... In my opinion I have never played a light amp that has the ballz and punch of a heavy Transformer / big cap power supply.
For loud loud loud... aguilar DB750 or Carvin b1500 just 35-40 lbs. In my opinion I dont think the Aguilar is articulate, clear and quick..Many will slam me for that.. I think the Carvin is more articlate.

For Lightweight... Markbass or Walter Woods only ounces but I feel they lack the girth you need to destroy those marshalls. The markbass i tried would work in a jazz gig but may die under a stack of marshalls.

Semi light and semi loud ...Eden1200

Light and Sounds Good... EA iamp800.. never giged with one so I can not give an opinion,,,

I personally would anti up and go with a littlemore weight and keep the articulate, clear and quick with punch and get the Carvin.. or second runner up would be the Eden.. The Carvin is a Marshall slayer.. and works great in Country, RnB and metal situations... And is sounds good..
There seems to be a race with companies to see who can make the lightest bass amp and some have it down to the point where when you lift it , you wonder to yourself if there is anything in the box... but amps that I tried seem to miss the bigger girth that the heavier / largepowersupply amps put out.. Just my opinion though..

Real Light... Bass Pod with Inears.. I did that in a loud situation and it rocked.. but only if you have great PA support

 

[Thornton Davis]

I didn't participate in your poll because you either forgot or neglected to include the Genz-Benz GBE1200 head.

It pumps out 1000 watts @ 4 ohms and 1200 @ 2 ohms. Very loud and very articulate sounding head. Match it up with a GB-610T-XB2 cabinet or two GB-410T-XB2 cabinets and you'll keep up with your band mates no problem. They'll be telling you to turn down.

Genz-Benz are very conservative with their amps output ratings.

TD

 

[Metallkasten]

I voted the WT800, but go for the WT1205!

 

[Lowtonejoe]

I voted for the Little Mark II. It is so small, light and inexpensive that you could get two of them and run 2 stacks if you needed to.



Joe.

 

[fullrangebass]

Light, worthy, reliable and loud? iamp800 EA

from what's been proposed on the list i'd go with Markbass

 

[Jiggybass]

What about GenzBenz? I'm almost up the the piont where I have enough to buy one. I borrowed my friends 750, and wow, I play in a rather loud band, with a P.A. for the vocals, and the bass drum, and I tried this with my 210, and the guys Avatar 212, and I didn't turn it up past 3, and I was still overpowering the guitars, but with a beautiful sound. I love Genz stuff.

But sticking to your list, I would choose the Ashdown, hands down winner there.

 

[DrGroovenstein]

I don't get the whole must be light thing. Suck it up, and take an extra trip. I get the weight factor with cabs since you have to heft it solo, but most anybody can carry or cart a 45 pound head. Get a DB750 and call it a day.

 

[wiro]

The last 1.5 year I'm gigging with the AI Focus II series 3. And it's perfect under all circumstances. Especially in combination with the Schroeder 1212 light it gives a huge sound, if needed extremely loud, also without PA even in the open air and it's so light I can take everything up the stairs in one go!
Before this I used the Trace Elliot RAH600SMX with 8x12" but the defenition of AI with 2x12"Schroeder is much punchier. Not to mention the perfect onboard effects.....
I'm a happy man.

 

[pablomigraine]

I don't get the whole must be light thing. Suck it up, and take an extra trip. I get the weight factor with cabs since you have to heft it solo, but most anybody can carry or cart a 45 pound head. Get a DB750 and call it a day.

DB750 just isnt for me. Great head for those who dont average around the 180 - 220BPM range. Most of the gooeyness there is to love about that head is wasted in this fashion.

 

[pablomigraine]

I didn't participate in your poll because you either forgot or neglected to include the Genz-Benz GBE1200 head.

It pumps out 1000 watts @ 4 ohms and 1200 @ 2 ohms. Very loud and very articulate sounding head. Match it up with a GB-610T-XB2 cabinet or two GB-410T-XB2 cabinets and you'll keep up with your band mates no problem. They'll be telling you to turn down.

Genz-Benz are very conservative with their amps output ratings.

TD

That is a great amp, however just not for me. WAAAYYYY too much EQ. Anything with more than 8 knobs including gain & EQ starts to make my brain melt and I spend more time fiddling with the EQ than playing.


........... Seems I should have included the carvin tho......... can anyone tell me more about this amp?

 

[Richard Lindsey]

Carvin B1500. Not the only choice, but a good one. Tons of power, built very well.

You can find out more by doing a search. In particular, SMASH had a very good and thorough review of it. And there have been other threads as well. Read what you find, then ask if there's anything more you want to know.

 

[BassJunkie730]

the light as possible is the TALL order if you mix that with Loud and punchy... In my opinion I have never played a light amp that has the ballz and punch of a heavy Transformer / big cap power supply.
For loud loud loud... aguilar DB750 or Carvin b1500 just 35-40 lbs. In my opinion I dont think the Aguilar is articulate, clear and quick..Many will slam me for that.. I think the Carvin is more articlate.

For Lightweight... Markbass or Walter Woods only ounces but I feel they lack the girth you need to destroy those marshalls. The markbass i tried would work in a jazz gig but may die under a stack of marshalls.

Semi light and semi loud ...Eden1200

Light and Sounds Good... EA iamp800.. never giged with one so I can not give an opinion,,,

I personally would anti up and go with a littlemore weight and keep the articulate, clear and quick with punch and get the Carvin.. or second runner up would be the Eden.. The Carvin is a Marshall slayer.. and works great in Country, RnB and metal situations... And is sounds good..
There seems to be a race with companies to see who can make the lightest bass amp and some have it down to the point where when you lift it , you wonder to yourself if there is anything in the box... but amps that I tried seem to miss the bigger girth that the heavier / largepowersupply amps put out.. Just my opinion though..

Real Light... Bass Pod with Inears.. I did that in a loud situation and it rocked.. but only if you have great PA support

+1

I'm in a VERY LOUD fugazi-esque hardcore meets the stooges and the pixies type band (we eat brooklyn brit pop bands for breakfast)
the B1500 WILL turn your 410R into a marshall eating - double kick swallowing beast

Plus you can always add another cabinet if you need even more volume.

what's nice is the amp has the headroom and girth to take your 200BPM craziness and keep it clean and separated.

The thing that I've been saying about the amp is that it's a cabinet magnifier

If you like the sound of your schroeder 410 - the B1500 will make it sound larger than any amp before.

 

[kobass]

+1 on the B1500. I see you have a Schroeder 410. I just did my first gig with my B1500/Schroeder 410L on Saturday. I couldn't be happier! Great, clear tone and incredible headroom! Did I mention it can get really LOUD? Killer amp. You should try one. If it's not your thing, you can send it back in 10 days. You'll only be out the shipping charge (one-way). btw, it's a very managable 35 lbs. It's 3U high by 10" deep. I put in a an SKB "shallow" rackcase. Very easy to transport.

Cheers,
Kevin

 

[spectorbass83]

Just checked the specs on the Ampeg SVT-8.
800-Watts @ 8 ohms, 1300-Watts @ 4 ohms, 2500-Watts @ 2 ohms, 23 pounds! If thats not a light and powerful rig then I don't know what is. It also has a tube preamp section so you can get a little bit of that tubey goodness you're looking for. The Ampeg gets my vote!

 

[BartmanPDX]

I take it you're not interested in a separate pre/power amp combo, like a nice tube pre paired with a Crest CA-9?

The nice thing about a pre/power amp combo is that you can get outrageous amounts of power, and all the flexibility of choosing the right pre for you.

 

[bassforjesus]

I did not participate in the poll because my amp is not listed. i think the best out there is genz Benz

Gbe 750 all the way

 

[lefty007]

I voted the WT800, but go for the WT1205!

+1


.