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What amps match up with the Ampeg BA-112?

A

Armchair Bronco

Jun 10, 2008
54
0
Seattle, WA
#1
This weekend, I'll be checking out a used Ampeg BA-112.

I'm looking to upgrade to a name-brand amp with a little more punch than my current Roland Cube 30 bass modeling amp. The Roland Cube 30 bass amp is a great practice amp at home, but when my boys recently used it to perform at their school's talent show, the Cube 30 was completely outclassed by the Orange Tiny Terror it was paired up against. My boys may be hooking up with a drummer soon, so the bass player will need something that can be heard over an acoustic drum set during practices.

I realize that going from 30 to 50 watts isn't a huge increase in power, but I also need something that fits in the front seat of my sedan. That means I'm limited to a 1x12-sized cabinet. And the 40-odd pounds of the BA-112 is about all the weight I want to haul around. So a 100 watt BA-115 is out of the question.

What are some other smallish amps I should consider (either 1x12's or under 45 pounds)?
 
#3
The 100 watt Fender Rumble amps are just too darn big. The 210 would never fit on the front seat of my sedan -- I'd have to switch cars with my wife and drive around the Dodge Caravan whenever I need to haul around gear.

A friend of mine has the Rumble 100, and he's always asking me to bring my Roland Cube 30 into work when we jam on Fridays because the Fender is too big to lug around.

More power would be great, but I need something no bigger than a cube-shaped 1x12-ish combo under 45 pounds. The BA-112 is 17x18x13 inches @ 39 pounds, which is just about perfect. The only thing I can complain about is the wattage, but 50 watts isn't a deal breaker. (I figure I can always us my BOSS Blues Pedal to crank up the volume a little.)

Another plus is that I've heard that the BA-112 is also a nice (clean) crossover guitar amp.
 
#5
Do you have any hiss problems with the tweeter on your BA-115? That seems to be a fairly consistent complaint on the Harmony-Center User Reviews. A surpirising # of reviewers are so bothered by it that they simply disconnect the tweeter.

If the BA-115 were just a little smaller and lighter, I'd be in a real dilemma right now, but 62+ pounds is a lot compared to the 112. A 60 pound amp is at best "draggable".
 
#6
the tweeter does hiss, but it's a manageable issue for me. i've never been tempted to disconnect it, i just EQ out some of the high if it bothers me, but it's usually fine. i tend to like a "hi-fi" sound so having some ambient hiss is a workable tradeoff for me if i can get a little sizzle in my tone.

it's a bit of a pain to carry, but i spent 30 bucks on a collapsible hand-truck and haven't looked back. good investment regardless of the combo you end up getting.
 
#8
If you do the style switch and EQ correctly, the BA112 can get suprisingly loud. You sacrifice a bit of bottom end for volume but mine can keep up with a drummer unless he's going insane. I got it because it was the smallest amp I could get enough bottom out of to suit me. They have dropped in price by almost $100 recently.
 
#10
phillm47 said:
Happy with the tone of the Roland?

Why not go for a Roland Bass CUBE-100 Bass? Meets all your requirements weight & size wise. 100 Watts, similar to your Cube 30, built in DI.
Click to expand...

New Cube 100's are expensive relative to used BA-112's. And I've *never* seen a used Cube 100 for sale on Craigslist, although I've been watching for months.

If I could get 2 bass amps, I'd get both! But the price on the used Ampeg I'm looking at is under $180 -- too good to pass up.
 
#11
Look for a Fender Bassman 150, light weight around 38-40lbs.

I had an ampeg ba112, great sounding but just very queit. Got rid of it for a Bassman 150 it is alot louder and sounds very good and underated. Also very portable.

Might want to save up, so you dont have to keep upgrading.
 
#13
So, I checked out the used BA-112 today, and it sounded so good I pulled the trigger and bought it. :)

$175 out the door for a used Ampeg BA-112 emblazoned with the "Proudly made in the USA by Ampeg" moniker on the back. Another cool thing about this amp is that the stock grille covering was apparently replaced with vintage Ampeg cloth by the original owner. The seller told me that the guy he bought it from collected Ampegs and he had some extra vintage grill cloth from a conversion project, so he "relic'd" the BA-112's grille.

I tried out the amp with my BOSS Blues pedal, and it boosted the volume to levels much higher than I could achieve with the Roland Cube 30 it'll replace for rehearsals.

So now I have an Ampeg bass amp that both sounds *AND* looks cool! :D
 
#15
HeartsndSpades said:
sick man those are great amps! its korey the from orange forum btw. but yea im in need of a small combo or something, lugging crap sucks. what kind of car you driving?
Click to expand...

I'm still driving my 2004 Audi A4 1.8T (w/ Quattro AWD). When I bought the car 4 years ago, my spec list was pretty short:

* Must be AWD (preferably from Audi or Subaru)
* Must be a 4-door sedan
* Must be sporty and fun to drive

Last month, my car went out of warranty, and a week later, the glove compartment door sheared off while I was closing it! Go figure... :hmm:

BTW, both my Avatar 1x12 cab for the Tiny Terror and the new Ampeg BA-112 fit perfectly in the front seat...although not at the same time!
 

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