Which bass amp head?

[Cleezmo]

One other, maybe lesser-known option would be the Blackstar Elite 700. It has three pre-amp setting (flat, classic, and modern) and three power-amp voicings (linear/flat, 6150 and 6l6). You can choose the flat pre and linear power amp sections and it's basically a totally clean amp. You can mix and match the pre- and power-amp sections to go anywhere from clean to Ampeg-ish to GK-ish. Note, not perfect representations of course, but with a flip of a couple switches the tone changes dramatically. It also has built-in overdrive/distortion/fuzz.

I find that I use one setting for several basses and another for my Jazz bass, for example. Easy to flip back and forth.

 

[dustinymichaels]

Someone once said the earth was flat too, but that was proven false…

Ha ha. I doubt there's any absolute truths in this craft of ours. It's just something that was said. I felt that when I went from the old SVT Pro 3 to an SVT Classic with my stingrays, something was lacking. At the time I only had money for one rig. The tubes sound great for my Fender types and I kept it. These days I can afford options and I feel that my sound, with a stingray, is where I want it to be with the tone hammer.

 

[Wasnex]

I think it needs solid state, whereas the Terror has a valve pre-amp.

IMHO this is where to start:

What makes you think it's the amp and not the cabs or settings?

Each model of amp tends to have it's own personality. So it would be helpful to understand what you are experiencing and specifically what you want. Also it means that it's best if you actually try before you buy.

A common concern with the original Terror Bass amps is the preamp has quite a bit of gain. Some users were frustrated because they could not turn the Gain control above 9:00 or so without getting distortion. If you can't get a clean sound, set the input to passive and turn the Gain down. As long as you can get the desired tone, it doesn't matter how low you have to set the control.

The Mk2 Terror Bass amps have less gain and a clean switch, most likely to address this concern.

The Terror Bass uses a Fender tone stack. This means it's not capable of producing a mid boost. Flat should be with the Bass control open a hair, the Mid control around 3:00, and the Treble control off. I suggest starting with the tone controls set accordingly.

If your Sterling has active EQ, I suggest starting with the Volume wide open and the tone controls in their neutral position...no cut or boost. First, adjust the amp's controls to get the best possible sound. If you can't get all the way there, then make subtle adjustments using the bass's tone controls. The key work is subtle. In other words use just a little bit of boost or cut.

Most of the Bad Company hits I remember had pretty vintagey sounding bass. The videos of the Sterling I have listened to suggest it is a fairly modern sounding instrument?

The Terror Bass can be fairly bright and my guess is the Sterling can also be fairly bright. You may need to roll some of the highs off with the bass.

 

[Wasnex]

I was thinking maybe a used Trace Elliott, because I have used them before.

I loved the old solid state TE sound....but they are getting very old. I would be concerned about reliability and repairability. They were also heavy!

The previous generation of TE amps (Peavey made) did not sell very well. My guess is the reason is because they were too big, heavy, and old school. The industry is currently focused largely on small and light weight bass gear. I don't know how reliable this era of amps were, but IMHO they sounded good. I believe available models include: AH500-7, AH600-7, AH600-12, AH1000-12, and AH1200-12. The AH1000 and AH1200 have dual output sections. The AH500-7 and AH600-7 seem to pop up used fairly regularly.

The current TE amps include the ELF and the TE1200. Both of these are class-D and neither has the classic TE graphic EQ.

 

[Old Blastard]

I recently purchased a Magellan 350 after trying the Kinetix and Mag 800. The Kinetix is awesome, but I took three very different basses with me and played them all through the amps. I can't say what you should purchase, but if I was in the same situation, I'd get the Magellan 800. I can do a lot with a little tweaking on my 350 and the 800 is similar. It's also 400 watts at 8 ohms.

 

[mrjim123]

Someone once said the earth was flat too, but that was proven false…

I don't know, a lot of people still believe that. That Flat Earth Society claims to have thousands of members "all around the globe".

 

[KevInDaBassment]

I don't know, a lot of people still believe that. That Flat Earth Society claims to have thousands of members "all around the globe".

I hear those claims, and they're flat-out wrong...no way around it

 

[Holdsg]

the guitar player in my Zeppelin tribute band is a flat earther.
Don't ever get him started. That's at least 30 minutes of your life you'll never get back.

but back to the topic.
I love my Genzler Kinetix 800. has a tube preamp, solid state otherwise. I love you can go from clean to overdriven goodness in seconds with the turn of the gain knob.

 

[Bar Band Bassman]

My solution (to a problem that doesn't actually exist for me) is a Genz Benz Shuttle Max 12.0. Switchable between tube and FET preamp, or both together which is typically my preference.

BBB

 

[wintremute]

I totally agree with the others that Quilter is a top notch product, high quality.

However, if you want a Bad Company sound and solid state, I'd suggest trying an Ampeg PF 800.

 

[Aussie Player]

I play an EB3 into a Marshall and get Andy Frasers tone perfectly when playing Free songs.

For Bad Co songs you have to listen to Boz Burrell very closely as he has a very soft, non aggressive style of playing.

Subtle is the best word, and he really highlights his playing with the melodic accent runs he plays. Easy to miss on radio, come alive when heard using ear phones. They are two very different playing styles but both can be played on an EB3.

For Fraser, set the bass on both pick ups, turn both tones down to 2-3 then put the bridge PU volume on full and back off the neck PU to about 7 and play over the bridge PU.

For Boz, turn the tones up to 5 and simply move your plucking hand between the pick ups or a little more towards the neck until you get the softer tone.

These bass settings also work with class D or hybrid amps.

Listen to the way these guys pluck a note and you will close the gap on tone.

 

[BaltBass5]

but back to the topic.
I love my Genzler Kinetix 800. has a tube preamp, solid state otherwise. I love you can go from clean to overdriven goodness in seconds with the turn of the gain knob.

I use the Kinetix with my active Spector Euros. For me the key to that was replacing the tubes in the V1 with a 12AU7 and V2 with a 12AT7. This my suggestion of replacing the Orange’s 12AX7 with a 12AU7.