Muppet

Full disclosure - I am selling something in the marketplace that I am about to recommend and it's not because I want to sell it by recommending it here! I used to be in a similar situation. I opted for a Markbass CMD 121P, based on size, weight, portability and sound. To augment the sound when needed, I added a NY121 cab which is exactly the same size as the combo. Both stacked together makes a compact but loud 2x12 setup. This is a really good and powerful rig. I also have a Rumble combo and I'll admit I prefer this for the music I now play, but it's nowhere near as portable and compact as the Markbass.

I find DRs (specifically Sunbeams) to be better that D'Addario's

I have the Gator Pro and I love it. its really well padded and hardwearing, with lots of storage don't use the shoulder straps, I just use it for carrying from house to car to venue. I used to use two bags but I much prefer this solution. If I were travelling on the tube I might not want be carrying this on my back, but then again, I wouldn't want to be carrying two gig bags either.

I think therein lies the problem. The 701s are open back reference headphones - I'd class them as studio headphones - with an impedance of 62ohms so they need driving pretty hard and obviously the elf isn't up to it. I'd change to different headphones to be honest if you can.

What headphones are you using? Some headphones need more power than others to drive them. The green light flashing is ok, it will flash red when the gain is turned up and compression is automatically applied.

I'm pretty sure I've a bag of spares that TC sent me once. I don't have the amp anymore, message me your address and I'll stick em in the post.

Yes it's not bad. I compared it to a Darkglass Alpha/Omega Ultra and on that pedal I had to engage the growl button to retain the same amount of low end as the Fender had. Remember that with the TC you can hunt around for a Tubedrive toneprint that'll give you what you want and load that up. With the Fender you're stuck with that particular OD circuit. It's just as shame that you can't create a custom toneprint for the TC and load it on (well I don't think you can anyway, I only ever have the option of selecting a prebuilt one)

I've got both. if you need the aux in and headphone then the Spectradrive will always win. I find the natural sound from the Fender to be better and it's easier to tweak all the components on the fly whereas with the TC you're reliant on connecting via Toneprint. Then again, the number of toneprints available means you're likely to find something that works and the standard spectracomp setting are pretty good anyway. The fender is bigger, heavier and has a greater current draw. It doesn't have a power supply, the TC does. The Fender doesn't have an unaffected 1/4" 'thru' output like the TC does. You can switch the effects order around on the Fender and specify whether you want the FX and EQ to be output through the DI. The lights are nice on the Fender too! With the Fender you have more options to switch items on and off (EQ, Comp, OD). So, both have pros and cons - the TC offers much more flexibility in connectivity and also in compression and drive settings IF you plan ahead. It also has a bit more flexibility in the EQ section. The Fender is better if you want more traditional (albeit limited) control, especially in a live environment. I use the Fender more, purely because the default voicing is more appealing to my ears (in the same way as I prefer the Fender Rumble sound over the TC RH750 sound)

yeah this, and Helix to Amp Effects Return!

Good point - I think most of the third party IRs are also modelled on classic cabs. Worth noting is that the IR block function has parameters covering low and high cut, level and blend so if it is too dark you have plenty of options available.

Guys, check out the 3 Sigma Audio IRs. Remember with IRs, they are sampled, so if you buy an IR you will get many different samples, based on microphone and microphone positioning and sample quality - the differences are subtle but there. I get good results with both the Mesa and Orange cabs. The Ampeg 810 IRs I always find too muddy. I do split my signal too and for live work I send a non IR affected signal to the PA, effectively simulating taking a DI out from an amp head, as this is far more common nowadays that actually miking a bass cab. My second path actually has an IR in it and this is the one I send to my FRFR cabinet onstage, in order to emulate an 'on stage' sound. If I were sending to a traditional amp/cab setup for monitoring (as opposed to my FRFR cab) then I'd not use the IR.

I rather like the EHX Bass Clone as a cheap option which is like the small stone but with the added HPF filter switch too.

It's a long thread but this is the best places to start if yu've got a couple of days....!

I see you used the random pedalboard optimiser to determine your layout? 😉

There's an extension cab in the for sale section, just sayin' (not mine before you ask!) Apart from the obvious volume benefit, this and the combo stacked looks awesome.

Definitely can. To be honest, on it's own it's loud, but when I pair mine with the extension cab it's very loud. I've said this on here a few times before but I have a number of amp and cab combos and if I just need to turn to something reliable, simple, that I know will just work then this is it.

Supertwin for me too. Suits the amps perfectly !

I would ask John @KiOgon whether he can make you up a solderless loom for your new project. The quality is excellent. You could then drop it in with the new pickups and then rebuild the existing loom at your leisure whilst still having an operational bass.

I have a Evo IV 600 and it's a beautiful sounding amp. They have been know to occasionally suffer from failing 16v capacitors, which is an easy fix by an amp tech, who would replace them with upgraded ones. My tech did this on advice from Ashdown and it's been bullet proof since.