Bass Amp Recommendations

[jpurvis]

Hey everyone, I hope I'm posting in the right place. I've been playing bass in a classic rock/country band for a while and we're getting good enough to start playing shows. Knowing little about amps I was wondering what size amp I should buy to play small bars? And if anyone had any recommendations? I had an old TNT 115 but it was stolen. I've been using a little practice amp and I'm looking to upgrade. I sometimes play my '76 P bass and my main axe is a '06 MIM P bass if that helps. Thanks!

[progrmr]

Find another Peavey - as you know they're built like tanks and very reliable. I haven't found a bass amp I like better.

[t_ross33]

+1 for the Peavey - good solid choice, and quite affordable. Combos are handy, but a good head/cab setup is cool, depending on how big (or small) you want your rig. Look for an amp that has a DI out so you can feed a signal direct to a Front of House PA system if available. I'm to the point where I love gear, but hate hauling it around - maybe look at a Sans Amp pedal/DI from Tech 21 and forget the amp all together

[marnold***]

Hard to go wrong with Peavey. If you have a GC nearby, you might want to check out some of the larger Acoustic (the company) combos. Lots of amph for not much cash.

[Duffy]

I had a TNT 115 that I bought brand new in the early 80's that I have given to my son. Even though I bought him an SWR Workingpro 15 great new relatively expensive amp, he still likes the TNT. A lot of people would like to get their hands on his TNT 115.

I don't think they make them like they used to.

I personally bought myself an inexpensive on sale plus a coupon Fender Rumble 100 with 15 inch speaker for general use and I like it, of course it is not even close to as nice as the TNT was.

However, I bought a portable bass amp to use at bedside and after playing many small bass amps with my Schecter Stilletto Elite 5 string, I found out that almost all of the smaller 30 - 60 watt practice amps COULD NOT HOLD the bottom B string. They all made cracking and popping sounds when cranked at all (and the bass has an active preamp and electronics). The cracking and popping sounds are a type of distortion, but it is not the type of distortion that is at all musical and sounds more like the speaker breaking and things like that.

After playing several of these practice amps with my Schecter (I advise bringing your own bass when checking out bass amps) I finally plugged into the new Marshall MBB30 bass practice amp and WOW what a nice amp. Completely held together when overdriving the five string's B string at full volume on both channels and sounded very excellent cranked thru both channels, as well as turned down. It has two channels - modern and vintage. It has a defeatable and adjustable compression circuit with on off switch and sensitivity controls. It has a built in limitter and an EQ plus a three position EQ voicing switch. The overdrive channel is very pleasant sounding as well as is the clean channel. I use this amp all the time.

If I get a bigger bass amp I'll get one of the larger Marshall MBB bass amps. They have a 100 watt one and a 450 watt one that look great to me and they a tube in their circuits to warm them up. No affln. to Marshall, these are great amps with great tones and don't cost a fortune. My MBB30 was 199 with one ten inch speaker.

One thing to remember. A bass amp needs a lot more watts for playing clubs than a guitar amp. A general rule of thumb is for the bass player to have an amp that is three times the wattage of the guitar player's amp. So if the guitar player has a 40 watt tube amp this is equal to a 120 watt solid state guitar amp. Because one tube watt is approx. equal to three solid state watts. Since most bass amps are solid state you would need a 350 watt bass amp to compete with a guitar player with a 40 watt Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, for instance. It is more difficult for a bass amp to push the longer wavelengths to the point where the apparent volume is as loud as a guitar amp. The guitar amp pushes shorter wavelengths at higher frequencies and this requires less amplifier power than a bass amp pushing longer wavelengths at lower frequencies.

It is common for bass relatively inexperienced or beginner bass players to underestimate the amount of watts they will need for their rigs in order to play in a band with a drummer and hot guitarist. You don't want to be unidentifiable in the band's sound because you are being drownded out by a loud drummer and powerful guitar amps, Marshall tube amps, etc.

I'm partial to the new Marshalls because of the five string and its special requirements from an amp, but there are some great bass amps out there like Hartke, MarkBass, and even Peavey or Ampeg. SWR makes super great bass amps. My son's SWR Workingpro 15 has all kinds of limiters and sound shaping circuits plus an adjustable XLR line out so you don't need a direct box to the PA, plus you have some control over the PA if the mixer guy turns you down.

Good luck. Sounds like you have excellent bass guitars, worthy of an excellent bass amp like the SWR or big Marshall.

[NWBasser]

How could I miss a bass amph thread!!??

OK, here's my take as a bass player for over 25 years.

Depending on the other musicians in the band, I'd recommend at least a 300 watt head and either a 15 or a 4x10 cabinet. This would get you the volume to be heard over the drums.

Beyond this point, much would depend on your budget and desired tone goals. On the less expensive side of things are used Peaveys, Carvins, and Acoustics. If you like punchy and clean, Gallien Kruger is a good choice. The GK RB800 is renowned for solid reliability and can be had fairly cheap on the used market.

If you want stellar tone, lots of features, and extremely high quality, Genz Benz makes some truly awesome amphs. The new Streamliner series are getting lots of raves lately.

If you want ooey gooey tubyness, then an Aguilar DB751, Ampeg SVT, Orange AD200, etc. are expensive routes to that end.

A much cheaper (and lighter) route to tube tone bliss would be to get a high powered and cheap solid state head and use a Tech 21 BassVT pedal in front of it.

And be sure to let us know what you end up with!

[Eric***]

Depending on the other musicians in the band, I'd recommend at least a 300 watt head and either a 15 or a 4x10 cabinet. This would get you the volume to be heard over the drums.

So 4x10" or 1x15" would be comparable? Interesting.

[t_ross33]

So 4x10" or 1x15" would be comparable? Interesting.

I think they'd be comparable in the amount of air they can push (perceived volume), but they would certainly have a different voice. 4x10 would likely be tighter and punchier whereas 1x15 would sound thicker with more rumble and bottom end.

[NWBasser]

So 4x10" or 1x15" would be comparable? Interesting.

No, not really. A single 15 cab might be loud enough to keep up with a drummer and is more comparable to a 2x10. Sort of the bare minimum. A decent 4x10 will certainly get the job done.

In the realm of general commercial bass cabs, 10s usually give a faster, punchier tone while 15s are generally more smooth. However, cab design is a much bigger factor in bass cabs than guitar cabs and it's quite possible to build a very deep-sounding cab with 10s in it.

Keep in mind, all of this is predicated on not having substantial FOH support. If you have a serious PA, a direct box will do and many bass players have chosen this route.

[jpurvis]

Well the guitar players don't use half stacks and our drummer doesn't play hard enough to crack symbols lol if that helps. We've got a small Peavey pa that we can line out to if need be. Plan on using the house pa's if we needed more power than that. I've been looking at the Acoustic B-100, B-200. and at used amps in that price range. Think I can get by with a 100 watt amp with a line out to our pa or should I plan on getting a bigger amp?

[deeaa*]

Just remember in bass sound the actual bass used AND the type of sound mandates much of what kind of an amp you need.

Our bassist played a Rickenbacker copy with a Fender Bassman head into a guitar cab and he could be heard in the next town I'm sure. Our current bassist plays a Precision copy into I think a 200W SRW /4x10" and he can be well heard but it's pretty clunky sounding.

But, both are/were rather midrange-rich rock bass sounds, if you want very much clean real low end, you need a LOT of power to deliver that. With bass there is no amp too big, you can always just turn it down unlike most guitar amps which work best at a given volume by and large.

Thus, you can get by even with a tiny 30W amp if you play aggressively with the right bass and don't mind a guitary sound, but even with a NOT loud a band I'd start with something like 100W tube or 200W SS or preferably more for future expansion. Just my 2c I only played bass a lot for a few years (I used no real amp but a 100W wedge monitor and ran a line to PA as well, 5-string bass)

[Duffy]

In a band you might seriously want to consider more than one hundred watts, for sure, like these experienced guys here are saying. I know you have a certain limited amount you can spend and you want to get this "now". I'd look around a lot and hold out for my best deal. Maybe a used head and cabinet. A drummer definitely doesn't have to be cracking cymbals to be VERY loud and a lot of guitar players keep turning up their amps until they are real loud.

I have a one hundred watt Fender bass amp and believe me, it is not loud enough to carry the sounds I want to make in a rock band situation. First of all, I would have to crank it to the max and turn the treble up and use the brightest settings. When I turn down into the lower tone frequencies the volume is no where near as loud as when the treble and mid are maxed.

If you are just going to be practicing at home and maybe doing some light garage jams you should be alright, but if you are going anything bigger I think you will be happier with at least the B200, without question. I kind of like your B200 idea - I think it would be a cool amp and it might just get you thru what you are into, considering the PA and everything. Question is, can that PA handle a bass without damaging it?

I don't want to sound like I know it all, etc. I appologize if I do, but some of us are encouraging you to get as many watts as you can afford if you are going to play in a rock band. If two hundred watts is all you can afford, then that's it. I would look any used electronic equipment over real good. Repairs are expensive. Some shops guarantee their used stuff for a short time, if you are real lucky.

You don't want to waste your money and you are probably going to not want to have to max out the amp. You probably also will want to get a lot of versitility out of your amp in terms of different tones, power levels, etc. To do those things you'll need to have more power. Like three times the power of the guitar player's amps.

My opinion would be to get the Acoustic B two hundred instead of the one hundred for sure. In my opinion you will be way happier in the long run if you hold off now for a while until you get a powerful enough amp to play with in the band without having to rely on PA's, etc. You may want to lay down some thick and heavy thumps and snappy growls that push out there real good.

A friend of mine is in a loud heavy metal band and he has a two thousand watt bass amp head and a cabinet with eight ten inch speakers; not the greatest stuff in the world but half way decent and is satisfactory in getting his job done. Of course he can do anything he wants with this rig, and he also has a Musicman bass and a Geddy Lee Fender J Bass. So he is at the semi professional level and is trying real hard to be a full time professional. Of course this is not an easy pursuit. He is always trying to acquire upgraded equipment for himself and his band.

One thing he tells guys is that if they want to open for his shows that they should seriously look at upgrading their equipment, not immediately, but to make continuing improvements - just like they do in his band. A lot of these guys don't even have jobs so upgrading their equipment is not what they want to hear. They just want to get on the venue and rock out, get the ego rush and the babes. He also books acts at a small venue that he manages and he looks over the equipment list in the portfolio of every band he considers when selecting who he is going to even audition, let alone book. Might not seem fair but he's the boss and that's how he rolls.

You will know when you find the right amp, I think. In my opinion, you'll feel it - it will just feel right and have more than the punch that you think you need. Because it might sound loud in a music store where they don't want you to crank it up anyway, but when you get it home you might find out that when it was set at 3 at the store, that it doesn't get much louder at 10. Some amps are like that. Just because it sounds loud at three doesn't mean it will sound super loud at ten. If it's super loud at three you know it will be super loud at eight.

Seems like you are taking your time and looking around instead of just jumping in blind.

[deeaa*]

Excellent post there Duffy :-)

One more thought came to mind: buying used is one thing, but buying this modern ultracheapo Behringer/alto/t-bone whatever stuff is yet another.
It's funny how these days we get good guitars cheap and equipment for a song, but in equipment...well you notice the cheapness too well after a year or so.

I'd rather get me a 15 year old Peavey bass head than a brand new T-bone bass system, or a Behringer one, or any of those brands. Me & my friends have bought a lot of cheap end stuff like that from poweramps to mixers, and for home use they're OK but pretty soon you realize not a single piece of such equipment has survived longer than a year or so in real band use...I alone have had two PA amps blow just a few years old (caps, and the resulting destruction to tightl packed IC boards makes for so costly repairs it's easier to buy a new POS instead), while we still have this old Peavey poweramp in use from late 70's or something and no problems.

Dunno squat about Acoustic amps, though.

[Duffy]

Very good ideas Deeaa, and helpful to anyone thinking about a bass amp.

I'm supposed to be getting my late 80's Peavey TNT 115 bass amp back from my son in a few days. This amp is probably 150 ss watts without the extention cabinet. With a cab it puts out 200 I think.

Anyway, this old Peavey is WAY louder than my Fender 100 watt Rumble combo that I bought a couple years ago. It is also VERY heavy. But it is worth it. It has tone shaping all over it, limiters, etc., plus a nine band graphic EQ. This thing has stood up to the test of time better than I would ever have imagined. The only problems I ever had with it was having to tighten down the ground wire to the ground - which I diagnosed and did myself.
I'm looking forward to getting that old amp back. It was gigged with extensively in my son's band, and continued to be used by the band, on loan, after he left the band. Probably was gigged for five of the last years on a regular basis at high volume.

If a person could find something like that old Peavey TNT 115 used, he might have a good deal. You can also find some old style Ampeg bass amps around here every now and then that seem decent, but power is always an issue - too many of these used amps don't have much power.

Three hundred and fifty watts wouldn't be bad for some uses. That would have some cool potential. Plus speaker sensitivity is another factor. If you replace the stock bass speaker with one that is over 100dB sensitivity you will get a WAY louder sounding amp. So buying a used older bass amp might not be a totally bad idea, if you can find one that isn't beat too bad.

Also, around me you don't see hardly ANY bass amps that are real tube bass amps, with preamp tubes and power amp tubes. The only ones I see are the ones with the pre-amp tubes to warm up the sound. They don't have the power amp tubes that would make the amp really LOUD. Finding one of them would be very cool, in decent shape.

An engineer friend of mine told me a long time ago, to spend as much as you can afford on musical equipment, stereos, speakers, etc. Because the better stuff costs more money.

So I guess it's a relative thing. You can only afford to spend as much as you think you can afford. But it is the principle that counts. You apply it within your own specific parameters that only you have to live with and try to understand.

You can also look around for sales on the internet places and even call places up and try to get them to give you 15 percent off, etc. You can go to local music stores and see if they have anything that has been sitting around for a few years that they can't move and sometimes you can get REALLY great deals that way - like I did when I got my NOS Ibanez SZ320 goldtop for 200 dollars. It is a very nice guitar.

By me they have the old Fender Rumble series that has been replaced with the new Rumble series. You can get deep discounts on the old Rumble's. I saw a 2 x 10 combo with 150 watts I think going very cheap. Plus they make a 350 watt one. When the amps sit around for a few years and they can't get rid of them sometimes you can get a real good deal, but you have to ask and try to get your best deal - rather than just pay retail price.

Acoustic used to be a notable amp manufacturing company years ago. Guitar Center or one of it's conglomerate bought the name a few years ago and started offering Acoustic amps again as a house brand - you see them on MF and so forth. I don't think they bought the old factory or any old equipment or even use any of the old amp designs, but they are making amps now and they are reputedly quite decent bass amps. I have heard a lot of people speak highly of them.

Also someone could use the method of trying to find a bass amp head here and a cabinet there, type of thing. Find some bargains and put together your own stack. A decent head always leaves you the opportunity to add another cabinet or upgrade your cabinet with a different one as time goes by.

[NWBasser]

A big consideration in bass amps is headroom. It's usually much better to run a lot of power at less volume than to run less power full-tilt.
If you're pushing a 200-watt bass amp with a single 15 to be heard, it works that amp pretty hard and the speaker won't hold up to much of that either. Dynamic peaks, common to bass, can really do a number on both the amp and speakers. I had a Tubeworks 250-watt combo with a single 15 and I had to really push it hard to work with a drummer. It's now long-gone.

Generally, more speakers will give much more volume than watts. Although you do want to have some power to get them moving.
If you go the combo route, be sure to get one with a speaker extension so that you can add on if needed.

I think the old Peaveys are a very good value for sheer reliability although they are quite heavy. Just get the highest power you can afford.

FWIW, I use a 600-watt Genz-Benz head into an Avatar 4x10 cab in a moderately loud rock band. I don't ever push it hard and keep it well within its safe operating range.

[jpurvis]

Thanks for the great advice everyone! This is the kind of stuff I was looking for. I'm trying to take my time to find what I want/need. I would've hated to have bought a smaller watt amp only to get home and wish I'd have spent a little extra.(agree 100% as to keep upgrading gear as needed) So this has got me thinking of looking into the 200 watt range. I wish I could get my old TNT back. lol I think my dad payed something ridiculous like $200 for it and the 76 precision back in the late 80's. Excellent points about the modern cheap amps not holding up. I want something that'll last for a while so i'm thinking about a used peavey or maybe an acoustic b-200. What do you think? Tone that I'm after is the usual old fat fender type and maybe a pick sound like Skynyrds Leon Wilkeson. (saving up for a jazz or thunderbird bass too.)

[t_ross33]

Tone that I'm after is the usual old fat fender type and maybe a pick sound like Skynyrds Leon Wilkeson. (saving up for a jazz or thunderbird bass too.)

Well according to THIS LINK, Leon played Ampeg SVTs. I would suggest something along the lines of an older Peavey amp and augment it with a Tech 21 VT Bass or VT Bass Deluxe pedal. Should be close enough for Rock and Roll.

[NWBasser]

I see that the Acoustic B200 has an extension for a speaker out. You can put another 15 beneath it if needed which is a very good option to have.

I think you could get in the ballpark of Leon's tone with the Acoustic. If I recall correctly, it has a gain control to add in some dirt which would get somewhat close.

T-Ross' suggestion of a VT Bass pedal would really get you close to the classic rock SVT sound.

[jpurvis]

The more research I do the more stuff I want to buy haha. I've never played with bass pedals much but after looking on youtube the VT really opens up tone options and gives a fuller sound. I may have to get one of those in the near future. I'm going up to Guitar Center within the next few days to check out the b-200 and I'll let everyone know what happens.