Hi,
This is my first post on Bass Chat and I am hoping to get some advice about what I should look for in a new rig.
I play in a covers band, mostly doing punk, rock and pop covers - some modern and some oldies thrown in too. I've been using a Mexican jazz as my main instrument but have recently upgraded to an American Deluxe Jazz, so have been left a little short of funds to upgrade my amp. At the moment I use a Hartke 2500 and have a Hartke 4 x 10 xl and 1 x 15 xl. I also have a 4 x 10 vx which I actually like better than the xl cabinets.
I am not an expert bass player and I think my meagre investment in a Hartke rig has been WELL worth the money I paid - I think the sound I get is pretty reasonable, however, in would like to upgrade to something that would be easier to carry around and would hopefully be more flexible - as we often play open mic nights, where a hulking 4 x 10 is too much. At the moment I play those gigs with a TC Electronic BG250-208 but I find it too boxy, weedy and not really what I want.
I would like to have a budget of about £1500 but I don't. I could probably stretch to around £600 at the moment. I think I would like to look at getting two 1 x 12s - I've played through some EBSs that sounded like they would be able to cope with the small pub gigs we play....but I'm not really sure what would be best. I would ideally like a rig where I could take one cab to a small open mic and two to a full gig. I thought maybe that my Hartke head would be worth keeping and upgrade bit by bit, first buying new cabs. Is this a good idea? I had seen some Gallien Kruger 1 x 12s at around £300 each.
Mainly, I'm wondering whether to upgrade now, trying to find something around £600 as a step up from my Hartke gear (which cost me £120 for the head and £50 for each cab) or just keep going with my current set up until I can stash away enough money to get a better rig.
Any thoughts would be very greatly appreciated. Thanks