Grab and go?This isn't a thread/discussion/debate of choosing combos over separates or visa versa. Both ways are cool and legit ways to get where we want to go so it's personal preference to be sure.
This thread is just for those who prefer combos and why.
Why did you choose your combo (include pics)?
I've been playing for over 45 years and owned many different amp/cabs and combos. I even designed and built my own cabs. Some were tilt back speaker cabs with a built in rack for using different heads with it so I could experiment with my combo design. After a hiatus from music I decided to go with two Fender Rumble 100's (V3). One is more than enough for most gigs and I use both chained together for bigger gigs. I totally appreciate separates, but I just want simple and light.
I wasn't even looking for an amp/cab or combo. I was at my local music store waiting for the sales guy who repaired my Roland Electric piano to come back from his lunch, so I was goofing around the lineup of all the new (V3) Rumbles. I really liked the tone...and then when I picked up the 100, I couldn't believe how much volume and tone was coming from this little, lightweight combo!
My preference for combos is for the sake of simplicity and weight. My Rumble combos only weigh 22 lbs. each. I like the volume and tone I can get out of a 100 watt, 112 combo (or essentially a modular 200 watt 212). I have no need for tons of power or speakers any longer, and I want as few lightweight trips as possible. so I just prefer lightweight combos these days.
Most of my tone comes from my Zoom B1X FOUR with heavily modded and saved Presets anyway. I always use this into my Rumbles (or monitors/FOH, other backline amps, etc.). Fits into a small gig bag and fits perfectly on top of my Rumble 100 where I can still access the controls on top...
Very small and light! To show size/scale...
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Why a Combo?
- Thread starter M-Mittlesteadt
- Start date
I LOVE grabbing my bass and amp in one go! I've lugged bass amps for years (even WHEN we had road support) and it's so great to not hafta bookend my gigs w/ moving a big rig. I have both combos and separates, but for most everything these days it is a Fender Rumble 800c (w/ ext cab if needed) and # 1 or #1.2. Simple in and out and the sound is swell, to boot~
I have the GR210 Slim combo and it is far more than sufficient for rehearsals and gigs with my 6-pc band (two guitars, harmonica, keyboards, drums and me on bass).
Years ago when I was designing and building cabs (ala - the fEARful 15/6 and the like), I always wanted power. Something in the 700 to 1000 watts range, thinking my cabs were so efficient that I really wanted to push them to keep up and/or "cut through the mix".
But then I realized for all the power big watt amps had, in reality I wasn't even close to using all that power. I realized most combos were like 200 to 300 watt and didn't even use that much power.
But now I'm finding that my Rumble 100's (V3) with only 100 watts into a 112 are small, light and really produce far more volume than I thought they would. Even a single Rumble is sufficient for most gigs I'd play now (even with drummers and guitarists) and if I need more volume I'll just bring both and chain them together for essentially a 200 watt, 212 rig.
I don't play in loud rock bands anymore and I'm also more selective in playing with older plays who understand stage volume and set up accordingly. 200 watts is more than enough (and I'm not even pushing my Rumbles very hard either.
My "old school" days...
1200 watts into my fEARful 15/6, or my own 110/6 cabs...
A modular dual 110/6 rig with a 500 watt amp (250 per side). Cabs were around 45 lbs. each...
Is now more sensible, and much easier to move lightweight rig using either one or both Rumbles Each are 22 lb., 100 watt/112 combos) that easily keeps up with loud stage volumes if needed...
But then I realized for all the power big watt amps had, in reality I wasn't even close to using all that power. I realized most combos were like 200 to 300 watt and didn't even use that much power.
But now I'm finding that my Rumble 100's (V3) with only 100 watts into a 112 are small, light and really produce far more volume than I thought they would. Even a single Rumble is sufficient for most gigs I'd play now (even with drummers and guitarists) and if I need more volume I'll just bring both and chain them together for essentially a 200 watt, 212 rig.
I don't play in loud rock bands anymore and I'm also more selective in playing with older plays who understand stage volume and set up accordingly. 200 watts is more than enough (and I'm not even pushing my Rumbles very hard either.
My "old school" days...
1200 watts into my fEARful 15/6, or my own 110/6 cabs...
A modular dual 110/6 rig with a 500 watt amp (250 per side). Cabs were around 45 lbs. each...
Is now more sensible, and much easier to move lightweight rig using either one or both Rumbles Each are 22 lb., 100 watt/112 combos) that easily keeps up with loud stage volumes if needed...
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That’s always been my idea. In the days before class D, a combo with casters was an easy load in/out. Nowadays it’s not as important because class D heads are small and light, connecting to a speaker adds what, maybe 15 seconds, to your set up time?
Here’s my rogues gallery.
Sometimes a particular combo just has a great sound that spearates don’t have. The 2-8” plus 5” cone midrange used on the SWR Baby Blue sounded much smoother than other cabs with tweeters. SWR briefly made an extension cab with same drivers but discontinued it. Aguilar copied it at the request of Jack Casady but they no longer sell it.
My Traynor Bass Mate was a 20W tube combo with 1-15”. I used this for rehersals and bar gigs. Because of the good old “tube watts” compression phenomenon, it was right on the edge of breakup with all three knobs at 3:00, sounded nice and fat, wasn’t too heavy and only cost me $65.
Of course, sometimes it’s just not sensible, like the Fender Bassman Ten which has 4-10” drivers. Casters helped, but picking up 75 pounds with that strap to go up and down stairs is just ridiculous. Even at only $200 used, it was instant buyer’s remorse after the first gig.
For DB, the speaker cab is more important than the amp head, so why not design an amp with features tailored for DB like high pass and notch filtering, XLR inputs with phantom for using a mike and proper buffering for a piezo pickup, then marry it to a great 3-way speaker (10” woofer, 5” midrange and a tweeter). Now make it weigh only 25 pounds and be under a foot tall. Throw in some digital effects in case you want to use it for bass guitar and need some chorus and reverb…as long as you don’t need dirt and screaming volume, this is great bass guitar amp, too. What’s not to love?
At my louder gig I use separate amp/cab. My quiet gig it’s a rumble 100 combo. Personally the rumble just doesn’t sound good. I have a SWR 12” cab and a TC head I was going to use at the quiet gig. It has a really good sound. Lots of compliments. But yesterday am when I was packing my gear, the 19 pound combo was there ready to go. I may sacrifice sound a little for convenience.
You like the Hartke? Does it lose a lot of “energy” out the back thru the 2 big ports?
I don't gig and have downsized my collection. I own 2 combos; Markbass Mini CMD 151 and a Genz Benz Shuttle 3.0/10 combo. I also have the matching NY151 extension cab and would love to find the 10t extension for the Genz.
I’ve been mulling this over for at least a year now, looking at amps like the Rumbles and GR Bass. The fact that GR costs 3-4 times what a Rumble does is a problem. Am I willing lay out well over $1000 for convenience? Under $500, maybe.
Can I live with compromised sound? Again, maybe.
Yeah, like I said, I’m not happy with the rumble sound. But to go to the next group up, we’re going from a $350 combo to $1000 combo. If your thousand dollar combo quits your thousand dollar combo quits. Opposed to an amp and a cab you may spend $800 for a cabinet, 300 for an amp, it’s easier to replace the amp for $300 opposed to trying to get your $1000 combo repaired.
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I'm not sure how much energy it loses but at that party I mentioned, the band was set up on the back deck facing the backyard. My friend asked me if I would go to the basement and grab two or three folding chairs and while I was down there I could hear the bass just fine but not so much the vocals and guitars. When I say I could hear the bass just fine I mean note definition.
Out in the yard facing the band I could feel the Bass.
I'm happy with my choice. I probably could have got by with the KB12. I haven't played it in a band setting but I have no doubt it will hang with a heavy handed drummer.
It's easy to dial in any style I like to play.
I had one. Loved it until I had to lift it.
Also a very lovable combo series is the Hartke KB series, a 12" and a 15".
I have the 15". It is 500 watt and can be tilted backwards. I used it as a personal bass monitor by the side of the stage monitor when gigging with a FOH. Without a FOH I used my Peavey Mace tube head and big Yamaha PA 15 + 8" speaker.
But now that I have the Quilter / PhilJonesBass set up this stuff hardly gets used. (see previous post of mine in this topic)
I have the 15". It is 500 watt and can be tilted backwards. I used it as a personal bass monitor by the side of the stage monitor when gigging with a FOH. Without a FOH I used my Peavey Mace tube head and big Yamaha PA 15 + 8" speaker.
But now that I have the Quilter / PhilJonesBass set up this stuff hardly gets used. (see previous post of mine in this topic)
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I'm not really getting what people aren't hearing about the Rumble sound, but coming from a SWR Baby Blue 2, which was the "go to" studio choice, Bass Player Mags test rig, at for the 90's, I find the Rumble100 sounds good? Perhaps it depends on what you are coming from? I'm sure that coming from a huge high end rig to a Rumble it's going to be a disappointing sound, but for the weight and price, it works great for me.
What is "compromised sound?" I just looked it up in Webster, it said "anything you are capable of playing."
Just saying.....
I was using a Phil Jones Bass Double Four (70w, two 4" special bass speakers) with my bass ukes, playing indoors with my 35 person uke group. We had an outdoor gig a number of years ago and found that the PJBD4 wasn't cutting it. I came here asking for suggestions, which was to get a 15" speaker to move air. I ordered a Carvin MB15 200w with a neo speaker, plus the matching 115MBE for 250w. The combo amp is compact and weighs 26.7 lb, the cabinet is 24.2 lb. I usually use just the combo amp, sometimes also the cabinet.
I like the convenience and prefer playing gigs where a combo with or without an extension cab is enough.
I owned a BabyBlue II myself and replaced that with pairs of first Epifani (I thought they were too scooped but that gave them a seductive “pillowy” sound) and later Bergantino 1-12 cabs. Over the years I’ve used my Bergs with two A.M.P. heads, two Walter Woods heads and most recently a TC BH250 head. What I hear with the BB II and Bergs is more clarity of the notes than I hear with the Rumble combos.
I briefly owned a Rumble 500 head and A/Bed that with my current WW. It always had a bit of grit in the sound and the sound through the cab seemed “veiled" compare to my WW. I had each head connected to a Berg and used an A/B pedal to switch between them and carefully balanced the volume levels. My WW just sounded better, more detail in the upper mids I guess.
Rumbles are definitely usable. I did an outdoor gig back in the summer and the provided backline was a Rumble 200, which did the job but what impressed me was how light it was…not the sound.
Using something that doesn't sound as good as something I could have used instead.
Yeah, I get it, but this thread was about combos. I think you can always get a better sound out of a good head/cab pairing. I sure appreciate the simplicity and light 27 lb weight of the Rumble, did not much care for the 50 lb weight of the SWR BB2. Also the BB2 being a relatively tall cabinet with the 3 speaker arrangement made it a bit more awkward to lift and carry.
Depending on what type of music you play, and the venue, a Rumble just might not be a good fit. For jazz and small venues, like my bedroom, it sounds very good. Plus, if it breaks, we take to any GC and they either fix it or(bought 5 year warranty) or give me another. No significant down time.
