gndboy
November 28th, 2010, 01:36 AM
How many here remember how hard it was to get hold of a decent bass amp in 1965 through 1968? They were really expensive, and often not all that good. The best I remember from that time is the Sunn 200S w/2X15 JBL D140 cabinet. It cost around $2K which was the cost of a new compact car then, actually more than a VW Beetle. The Traynor YBA-3A with 8X10 was also really good, probably better than the 200S. Ampeg had yet to do the venerable and iconic SVT; same with the landmark Acoustic 360. The Fender Bassman was not too good, and the Ampeg Portaflex was marginal at best in a gym up against a loud (they all were loud) drummer.
There were the Guild Thunderbass and the Fender Dual Showman, neither of which would thump your chest but cost upward of a kilobuck. The Thomas Organ Vox's were a joke for bass. And all the hippie guitaristas kept piling up cabinets higher and higher. Silvertone marketed a solid-state 100W 6X10 piggyback that sounded pretty good but wasn't around for long. The Kustom tuck 'n roll monsters were loud but grotesque sounding.
I do believe bass amps are a lot better and a lot less expensive since around 1995. Even since then things have improved on the low end.
This is my unrequested observation. $2K in 2010 buys a lot of bass rig, but not much of a new car.
There were the Guild Thunderbass and the Fender Dual Showman, neither of which would thump your chest but cost upward of a kilobuck. The Thomas Organ Vox's were a joke for bass. And all the hippie guitaristas kept piling up cabinets higher and higher. Silvertone marketed a solid-state 100W 6X10 piggyback that sounded pretty good but wasn't around for long. The Kustom tuck 'n roll monsters were loud but grotesque sounding.
I do believe bass amps are a lot better and a lot less expensive since around 1995. Even since then things have improved on the low end.
This is my unrequested observation. $2K in 2010 buys a lot of bass rig, but not much of a new car.