Amp Combo Help?

[BFMV 666]

I need to get a new bass combo to do gigs. I've narrowed it down to two I particularly like, So my choice is Fender Rumble 350 or the Marshall MB4410. I will probably be mostly doing small gigs (No bigger than a hall). The genre my band does is mostly punk/rock. Can anyone give me advice over which is the better purchase? The prices are virtually the same and I want the better one. Extra information: The bass I play is the Ibanez SR300 which is an active bass.

Fender Rumble 350:
[url="http://www.fender.com/en-GB/products/rumble/models.php?partno=2315700020"]http://www.fender.com/en-GB/products/rumbl...rtno=2315700020[/url]


Marshall MB4410:
[url="http://www.marshallamps.com/product.asp?productCode=MB4410&pageType=OVERVIEW"]http://www.marshallamps.com/product.asp?pr...geType=OVERVIEW[/url]




Thanks.

[Ed_S]

I've heard quite a few reports of the MB's going down, whereas a local venue I play quite a bit has one of the Rumbles as their house bass amp, it gets thrashed literally every night, and it just keeps going.

[Lozz196]

Difficult one that, I`ve had quite a few of the MB range, and never had any problems with any of them, great sounding amps, especially for classic rock/punk, used mine in both types of bands, and was perfectly suited.

However years back, I checked the Rumble series out, when the largest was 100 watts, I loved the sound it made, but didn`t get it, as it was too quiet. But that was 100 watts, not 350. Are two 10-inch speakers going to be enough though? That may be something that will need to be considered.

[xgsjx]

Instead of wasting your money, could I point you [url="http://http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showforum=20"]here?[/url]
Take a look around & you'll get a much better rig for the same money.

[Marvin]

I can't comment on the Marshall as I've never used one.

I've got a Rumble 350. It sounds very good (when it's not in our rehearsal room - which we now refer to as the room of doom due to it's dreadful acoustics) and has quite a wide range of sounds. Lots of features. Is it loud? Yes. My drummer is quite loud (loudest I've come across) and my guitarist can crank it up. I haven't gigged it yet but at one rehearsal we were insanely loud and the volume dial wasn't even at 3. However, I don't know what it'll do at a gig but I've got some room to play with.

The only thing I would like to have seen is the possibility to extend it with another cab. It's a good combo and I'm happy with what I got for my money.

[Lozz196]

And you can hook it up to another 4 ohm cab, so either the MB115, or MB410 (or any other suitable cab).

Mega-stack of bass!

[TheRockinRoadie]

I;ve had quite a few models in the MB range, and all have had problems. Very mixed oppinions about them, but I would avoid them if i were you. On the other hand I thought the new Rumble combos were great!

[leonshelley01]

I have a MB4210 with a MBC115 and have never had any problems whatsoever during the past two years. Love the tone, plenty of head room and excellent for the price.

[bobbytodd]

i dont know about the construction of the fender but the marshalls made out of particle board i had the four ten cab and was forever retightening the screws which hold the speakers in.i think id go the fender way

[bobbytodd]

[attachment=81863:DSC00262.JPG]sorry my mistake its made of mdf the build quality still wasnt good and the pcb was badly made

Edited June 6, 2011 by bobbytodd

[TheRockinRoadie]

My head and 115 appear to be particle board. I'd never recommend anything* from the MB series - Marshall let me down bigtime!




* except the MB30 - thats a great amp!

Edited June 6, 2011 by TheRockinRoadie

[Marvin]

The Rumble is either particle board or MDF. It's definitely not Birch ply. Even being constructed in China I can't see them splashing out on ply. Having bought it (Baltic Birch ply) it's damned expensive.

[Russ]

I've heard that Marshall have refined the design of the MB series amps as a result of bad feedback about reliability. I've never owned one, but I've played through a few and always thought they sounded bloody good for the money, easily up there with the likes of the Ampeg B series.

I wish Marshall would put the Dynamic Bass System stuff back into production. That was the best bass gear they ever made. The only downside was the sheer size and weight of the cabs - they could do so much better now with neodymium drivers and so on.