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Which amp should I buy??

Which amp?

  • Total voters
    120
#21
Where do you live? It might be worth a road trip to a place with good music stores.

As much as I love SVTs, that’s way overkill and they weigh about 80 lbs. I retired mine and am happy with my Ampeg PF-800. You can usually find the Ampeg PF-210 or PF-115 cabinets pretty reasonably priced. It would be a great practice setup which you could also gig with.
 
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#22
From the list the Aguilar with a sl112 would be a great house rig, sounds great at any volume and super compact and lightweight. It will also be a capable gig rig as long as you are not competing with 100 watt Marshall’s and hard hitting drummers. Super solid tone.
 
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#25
Aguilar TH350 or 500 will survive you a lifetime. ... Or if you want to go big a Bergantino B-amp. ... Those are great clean, flat amps that turn heads. ... MM are great basses that make any amp sound better than it is but don't get fooled by amps that add colour to the sound. ... It's the first thing your ears will get tired of. ... Just take your bass out with you when you go shopping and plug into everything, even used. ...
I run my MM Stingray with a slight bump on my treble and mid and my bass flat. ... When you're trying an amp run your bass flat, at the indent. ... And when you get close to what you want to ear then change your bass tone controls to how you like it, that's when it should sparkle. ...
 
#26
From your list, the Aguilar TH-500 is the only amp I've got direct experience with. It took me a while to dial in the tone I was after, but now I kind of dig it. I don't own one, but a room where I rehearsed a bunch this past summer had one with two SL112 cabinets. That amp and one of those cabinets could cover a lot of ground.
 
#27
Based on your comments, I suspect that you are favoring accuracy over loudness. If that is the case, I suggest you look into 'cleaner' amps like the Quilter BB802. Pair this with a good 1x12 cab, and you will find a nice clean, clear sound that will work at all volume levels.
 
#28
Cam Buchanan said:
Just wanted to get an opinion on which amp I should get.

What I really want out of the amp is for it to still sound great even at lower volumes, I don’t want to have to shake the house to get the best tone out of it.

I mainly like to play funk or 70’s r&b, but that doesn’t meen I don’t venture out to rock or country.

I currently have a EBMM stingray that I play through a markbass micromark 8in combo.

the combo is great, but I just wonder if I’m missing soo much sound by not getting a different amp.

the options I’m looking at would be:

ampeg svt VR
GK legacy 800
Aguilar tonehammer 500
Or just adding a 12in cab to my current markbass amp.

each would I assume run through a 12in or 15in cab.

aux in and headphone out would be nice addition for practice, but not a dealbreaker.
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This may seem like overkill but it ticks all your boxes and will keep up with a drummer. Will also work if you do any jams or small to medium sized gigs. Cab is only 38 lbs.
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#29
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#31
I used to own the GK Legacy 800, which is a very good amp. I like GK stuff in general, and the GK 700 RBII is my favorite head. The Legacy 800 sounded fantastic in a live setting, and it is very easy to dial in and easy to transport. So that was my vote, but I have no experience with the others.
 
#32
Its not on your list, but if your looking for an all tube amp I would highly recommend the Fender Bassman 100T! It has a switchable power section (100w, 25w, and silent for recording) which would allow you to push the amp at lower volumes which you had mentioned. It has 2 channels (vintage & modern) both have amazing clean, and overdriven tones. Just an amazing sounding amp! If I had to recommend anything else I would personally go with Gallien Krueger.
 
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#33
Cam Buchanan said:
Just wanted to get an opinion on which amp I should get.

What I really want out of the amp is for it to still sound great even at lower volumes, I don’t want to have to shake the house to get the best tone out of it.

I mainly like to play funk or 70’s r&b, but that doesn’t meen I don’t venture out to rock or country.

I currently have a EBMM stingray that I play through a markbass micromark 8in combo.

the combo is great, but I just wonder if I’m missing soo much sound by not getting a different amp.

the options I’m looking at would be:

ampeg svt VR
GK legacy 800
Aguilar tonehammer 500
Or just adding a 12in cab to my current markbass amp.

each would I assume run through a 12in or 15in cab.

aux in and headphone out would be nice addition for practice, but not a dealbreaker.
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WarwickE36 said:
Hard to believe it hasn't been said yet but....

Mesa TT800 and Subway 115 Cab!
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Per Cam’s info on her original post, she already has a Markbass combo. The SW 15 is great, the SW 12 might be a better match for her.

However, @WarwickE36 I do agree with you on the TT800, or at least an amp with higher wattage than the Minimark. All 3 of your choices are good.

I believe Cam is playing through an 801 which will only put out 60 watts at 4 ohms. I dunno. Cam, at least see what’s out there on used market if you’re pressed on money If all else fails, maybe bump up to an 802 combo and then you’d have 250 watts at 4 ohms. You’d still have the flexibility of combo on hand.

Lol. I myself have a Minimark 2x6 combo and dig it. Comes in handy a lot.
 
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#36
Ampeg SVT may be overkill for what you need out of an amp, and they are extremely heavy. Check out the new GK Combo amps. Their 1x12s and 1x15s, loaded with GK Fusion 800 or Legacy 800 seem like great options. They're light, portable, and powerful. You can always get a 2nd cab if you need more stage volume and the DI can handle FOH.
 
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#37
roccobass said:
Per Cam’s info on her original post, she already has a Markbass head. The SW 15 is great, the SW 12 might be a better match for her.

However, @WarwickE36 I do agree with you on the TT800, or at least an amp with higher wattage than the Minimark. I believe Cam is playing through an 801 which will only put out 60 watts at 4 ohms. I dunno. Cam, at least see what’s out there on used market if you’re pressed on money. Maybe bump up to an 802 and then you’d have 250 watts at 4 ohms.
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It says she has a combo amp with an 8" speaker.

She said she was looking to get an amp to play through a 12 or a 15.... I recommded the setup I did because I have it and have compared mutiple Mesa amps and Cabs. I am fortunate my local store has Mesa in store. To me the 115 is the Cab I would recommend. The head depends on what you are looking to do with it, but with 2 channel options the TT800 gives a huge variety of options. I use my TT channel for country/classic rock and my subway channel for more modern rock and reggae. YMMV.
 
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#39
There are obviously lots of good amps/options/suggestions out there, but I'll jump in with this one.
JoeDoe said:
I’m gonna join the minority and point you towards a Traynor as well. Very affordable, smooth, and full sound. Love my SB500 for playing at home and driving a small cab for the lightweight jam session now and again.
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The SB112 would work well for your scenario, @Cam Buchanan. It has a very well-designed EQ section and sounds full from soft to loud volumes, which means it makes a nice home practice amp but is also loud enough for gigging. (Some combos can lose fullness on the quiet end or get shouty at the loud end.) As a bonus, it's reasonably priced, well-made, and light enough for a one-trip load-in.
 
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