which bass amp to buy

[Justin Thomas]

... I've been a guitar sort-of player for 45 years. Since that never really panned out, maybe I should try bass.

You've probably got a suitable bass amp already, after 45 years as a "guitar sort-of player..."

I play both. No one EVER asks me to play guitar. In ten years, I've played guitar at gigs maybe 5% of the time?

Screw bass - play drums. They ask their own rates and are usually the only guys in the band to get paid.

Justin

[patlaw]

I'd love to learn to play drums, but I don't have room for a set.

The only two amps I have are a Sunn Sentura II (fully restored) and a Fender Vibrolux Reverb (black face released after silver face).

[Justin Thomas]

I'd plug into the Sunn first before I bought anything... It's FREE! I bet it would be more than "passable" as a bass amp w. 2xKT88s. Closed back cab? Good speakers? Rock & Roll!

Justin

[tedmich]

guitar->bass->drums

a race to the bottom so to speak

[Justin Thomas]

Perhaps... but if you'r a STUDIED drummer on the other hand who doesn't let schooling and discipline get in the way ofheart and creativity, on the other hand...

Kaching!

Justin

[Richard]

Open back cabs "throw away" bass. The idea was to get more mid/hi projection. Bass cabs better be closed-back, and you can choose ported/vented or totally enclosed as you wish.

Funny enough, Fender Showman amps very similar to your Fender Twin are a good choice for bass amp. Played through a couple of EV or JBL 15's, that can sound terrific for small & medium gigs.

Playing indoors, the room contains the bass wave, unless it's a huge room you can get a pretty good sound from any competent amp & bass cab. Outdoors, the sound goes out & it don't come back, you need a lot more power & speakers.

I agree. My bass sounds nice through my Super Reverb Reissue but it's not very loud and still clean. A proper bass speaker (15" please) makes a huge difference. For bedroom volume my SF Princeton trough a 2x12 sounds nice. Sticking it in a corner may help.

[popoahi]

they're 2 Hartke models A-70 with 70 watts @$299.00,, HD75 with 75watts @$249.* , this has a 1" TWEETER? whats with the tweeter? and has slightly more wattage at $50 bucks less, is this a deal???
also noticed a Fender Rumble 100 watt 12"spkr@ $299.00 how are the fenders for sound and reliability??
Peavey has a VIP 100 watt 12" spkr listed as a guitar/bass amp but has reverb and features whats your opinion on peaveys?? when they say guitar/bass amp I'm leary?
the Hartke's don't say if they have reverb which I wud like to have..? I guess I cud add a reverb foot box???

[popoahi]

good ques... cud I get the Hartkes serviced in hawaii for reasonable wait and cost?

[Leo_Gnardo]

they're 2 Hartke models A-70 with 70 watts @$299.00,, HD75 with 75watts @$249.* , this has a 1" TWEETER? whats with the tweeter? and has slightly more wattage at $50 bucks less, is this a deal???
also noticed a Fender Rumble 100 watt 12"spkr@ $299.00 how are the fenders for sound and reliability??
Peavey has a VIP 100 watt 12" spkr listed as a guitar/bass amp but has reverb and features whats your opinion on peaveys?? when they say guitar/bass amp I'm leary?
the Hartke's don't say if they have reverb which I wud like to have..? I guess I cud add a reverb foot box???

Tweeter - some bass players want to hear some twang on top, but often the tweeter is the first thing to break whether the amp/cab is cheap aka disposable, or one of the presumably more reliable expensive ones.

Reverb - is there for your guitar playing friends. Not much use for reverb on bass unless you're emulating the ECM jazz records of the 1970's - Eberhard Weber & like that. Good "lost in the fog" music, very relaxing, but defnitely not rock n roll. For the whole band, IMHO reverb just puts more mud into the mix. Reverb on snare - that can help some. A little on vocals & guitar - when necessary - leave it OFF most of the time unless you like that lost in the sauce mushy-tone mix. Def. NOT on bass.

You asked about service, you know on the islands it's pretty much do-it-yourself unless you happen to know one of the very few repair techs. Stores, well their behavior is pretty much the same everywhere (grab the money!!!). You remember what kind of "expert help" you got with your Twin, they didn't know much about it really, they'd be better off selling coconuts. And shipping to mainland and back for repairs, way expensive.

When you're shopping at the low end of prices you get what you pay for. Mick Bailey had some good words to say about that back in post #2. Let me add: some equipment is on the company's "do not repair" list. They don't bother paying a warranty tech to fix 'em, they just send a replacement amp. Of course they try to avoid having to do that since it eats into their profit margin. And at the high end of the cost scale, some companies don't provide parts & information. "Send your deflicted amp back to us in (Italy, Denmark) and we'll fix it for you, eventually, maybe. Plus shipping both ways of course."

Best advice I've seen yet is #4, Jazz P-Bass recommends the Hartke Kick-back. May cost a bit more than the cheapest end of the line but I'd take advice from an expert tech and bass player. If I'm not mistook, you can slide the amp out of the cab easily should you need to send it for repair.

Or you can put together a bass rig from whatever good quality amp/cabs you can find used locally.

[Chuck H]

Or you can put together a bass rig from whatever good quality amp/cabs you can find used locally.

+1

Considering the hurdles for getting an amp serviced under warranty and the DNR nature of less expensive models I'm not sure "new" buys much in this case. Unless you choose an amp that is researched and known to NOT be listed as DNR and that brand has a service center in Hawaii you're paying for new assurances that don't amount to much. In this light I'll repeat my vote for the Peavey products. An old TKO with a 15" speaker (for example) will serve you well and IMHE are tough and reliable.

[popoahi]

thanks Leo,,,
answered all my ques...you're absolutely right of course..
mahalo

[gui_tarzan]

For what it's worth, I found my Ampeg SVT3 (non-pro) at a pawn shop for $200 and my son and I built a single 15" EV cabinet with their blueprints, from their website, and I have an EV 15" SRO speaker in it. Total cost, $75. I have played it at small, medium and large venues and it keeps up with everything. Of course it's run into the PA system at large venues but that's another thing altogether. At church we have a Hartke 12" and it does just fine.

[catalin gramada]

arround you budget I sugest to buy a B-15 kit. I builded one from scratch just for fun times ago, huge bass tone. for small gigs and recordings is all you need.
Catalin

[popoahi]

enlighten me on a b-15 pls.... what is it and where wud I start?
so many great suggestions... easiest seems to be the cheap Hartke 12" 70 watt ,,,the aluminum speaker sounds tough???
thnx much aloha

[popoahi]

sounds good but I'd need to find a head and where I just moved to maui and not equiped to build anything right now..
much appreciate ur idea though.
aloha