uk_lefty

True. It may occasionally get used as an amp. Or as a backup head. I'm trying to keep my options open. I've already got an MXR DI pedal which I like the sound from, so that is my starting point, but for many reasons another amp (either head only or combo) would be an advantage.

Ah I had one of these but just plain didn't like the sound.

Hi everyone. I'm looking for suggestions for a small practice amp I can XLR out of to leave in my drummers practice room. So it needs to be cheap but capable, so secondhand, old tech all welcome. The other option is a head that can run an XLR out without always running a cab. I know this can't always be done (how do I know if a head can or can't do this?). Why a head only? To have a backup. Reason for this is.... We are going to headphone based practice as a band. The drummer plays an electric kit and we have a digital PA so we can all plug in and join in by headphones. We've got most of the kit and the bits we need can be covered at the cost of less than three visits to the rehearsal room that has questionable kit. We may also play quietly with or without the PA so I'd like an amp for this possibility but it's not essential. Keen to have suggestions of amps or heads that are easy to get hold of secondhand and relatively cheap also... So not the 60watt Markbass Marcus Miller that costs hundreds and hundreds. Thank you!

I think there is/ was a law about producing unique products for the domestic market too. In my younger days I remember finding "Japanese edition" versions of albums that had extra songs and versions of songs that you couldn't easily get hold of (pre internet days) for the Japanese domestic market only. Maybe this explains why some stuff just isn't exported as a new product? I don't know for sure so don't lambast me if wrong, I'm neither a lawyer or Japanese speaker, and I'm definitely not a Japanese lawyer.

Shame it went that way but the form seems just too small for bass. There's plenty of good multi instrument practice amps out there, the "full size" Spark and the Blackstar BEAM are both adequate bass practice amps but come in to their own when used to record. Also, Fender's old Bronco 40 bass amp was impressive so I expect their newer modelling amps are very good.

I love this old Peavey gear!

Fender Japan have always used basswood as far as I know except on special run limited edition basses. It's made by Fender Japan, they know what they're doing. As for the price, nothing shocks me any more. I just wish I'd filled my boots when you could get a brand new Aerodyne bass for about £430 in the recent past.

For bassists do you have a preference of reverb or digital delay? I like a bit of reverb on fretless but heard Marcus Miller say he prefers digital delay because in his view reverb sounds muddy.... Obviously Marcus knows what he's doing but for those of us without his supreme talent, years of experience, and time to tinker with settings... What do you prefer and why? Today, I have no opinion on the matter. I had a digital delay, I now have a reverb I received in a trade, I've had multi fx pedals that do both. I've never really explored it.

If you want small and cheap then the Harley Benton does what it needs to do and is about £15. It tunes, it muted, it doesn't take up much space.

In a taxi right now after playing four forty five minute sets in Amsterdam city centre. Absolutely crazy, great crowd. Did this gig last year and was worried there wouldn't be the excitement, but the excitement was just different. Knowing the venue, the route etc. And being a tighter band a year on... Absolutely brilliant. Now to sleep....

I'd be interested in seeing your settings for each parameter. At the moment I'm using not far off the manual setting as a limiter which sounds great with my jazz bass but takes a lot of the best bits out the sound of my Stingray. I think I need to increase the room a bit to allow more of the natural bass sound and dynamics through so that the Stingray can still kick and punch but without overpowering everything else...

That's not good, the bigger unit is ok as a practice amp once you get some other settings on it but bass does just need bigger speakers.

If you go onto the webpage for Positive Grid and download some better amps hopefully it improves your experience. I had the Spark full size version and thought it was tinny and disappointing but different presets sound so much better. Hopefully it's the same on the Go! Good luck.

Joel, I'm not taking anything away from your post, you know your stuff and I'm not going to dispute it. It's just this line. This line made me think of this: https://youtu.be/BHkhIjG0DKc

That seems more of an Eastwood type thing?

If you had to play a U2 song that's one way of dealing with it I guess.

I am guilty of this too!!! Moreso in my old band. I've grown up a bit since, though. In my current band a lot of the songs don't have scope to overfill but my approach is now 'less is more'. But to avoid any muddiness my basic rules are not to play fills under vocals or during a chorus. Under solos it's fine to an extent but not so much you're taking over the solo itself.

If I remember right... Years ago when I first started reading bass forums over dial up internet I used to read the bassist section of Harmony Central. The Peavey T40 was a bit of a joke amongst people there, giving each other a friendly ribbing about playing one and it being a crappy bass but there were some who were loving them and collecting them. I think at the time they were going for peanuts on eBay over here. Now they're over a grand.

That neck!!! Lovely.

I would learn to play right handed to have that bass. Absolute perfection.

I've got a gig in Amsterdam in a few weeks and my pedalboard is impractical to take with me, so I bought a small Harley Benton board and put this "essentials" board together. The good: small, light, fits enough pedals on to keep things interesting. The bad: I bought a Boss daisy-chain to power them all but some of these pedals have their power inputs on the side, which is annoying. I will have to power it with a Caline power supply... And it doesn't fit under the board... Going to have to find a way of extending the front feet but keeping it all stable. What's on the board? Boss wireless, HB tuner/ mute, Behringer Limiter/Enhancer which may get sacrificed, Darkglass Duality Fuzz, TC Corona Chorus and a Marshall Guvnor overdrive. What got left behind? Boss OC-2 which doesn't get enough use sadly and isn't an integral sound in the set at the moment, AMT Bass Wah which gets occasional use but not enough to justify a spot on this board, TC HOF reverb which is always on for fretless and gets use in the middle 8 of one song only on fretted bass, MXR M80 preamp and distortion which I'm kinda thinking I should keep but just can't quite bring myself to yet...

If it works, it works!!! For an outdoor gig on a dodgy May afternoon I found that a medium sized North Face rain jacket fits an Ashdown Rootmaster head and cabs perfectly to protect from the rain!

Well, if the Wal is off to the skip I suppose I could, reluctantly, take it off your hands... 😜

So far so great with this bass. I've used it in two band rehearsals and a gig. The highs are really clear and present, the bass is nice and deep and defined... It doesn't have the brittleness of tone that some maple boarded basses can have IMO. The stock strings need to go, I can't wait to get some new ones on, but even with slightly dead strings this bass really really sings. The feel of the neck is fantastic, the weight and balance just right. The tuners are really stable including the E which needs to come down to D occasionally. I'm super impressed. It's a much more refined instrument than my Stingray so it complements it fantastically. I thought I might regret the cost but I have to say I have no regrets at all. Even the case is incredibly well put together!