NJW Posted June 12, 2007 Posted June 12, 2007 (edited) Howdy. Thought, since I've owned this amp for a few years now (and am about to lose it) I would write a review of my experiences. Its a twin channel, 300w solid state head built by the same people who make the acclaimed 'SansAmp' pedals. Starting at the input, it has a 'gain' switch to allow switching between passives and actives, and a channel select button. The channel select is also available via the optional footswitch. Plugging in and switching on the first channel will give you (IMO) the 'SansAmp' sound. With the same controls as on the bass driver pedal, this gives you a big 'tubey' sound with lots of grit if you want it. The reason I say 'tubey' is due to its downfall. I just feel it doesn't have the response or warmth of a tube amp, and the top end is a little fizzy and artificial sounding. This is only something we pick up on in the critical environment of recording, and live noone has ever commented on this. The blend control allows you to blend in the dry bass signal to the wet 'SansAmp' signal, which gives you a little more flexibility, and the treble control gives you what I feel is the nicer top end. Try boosting the treble and cutting the presence a bit, as the presence isn't subtle in the slightest. I've also found I like to keep the drive fairly low, as when it's up high the distortion sound is fairly nasty (just my idea of nasty anyway). The channel is also lacking a bit in mid. This is countered by cutting bass and treble, which gives a mid peak, but I always feel it isn't quite right, as you're losing low end for mid. I want BOTH, but with only 300w of solid state power, there just ain't enough juice in this thing. Channel 2 gives you some more options, this time you are given a mid and mid shift control, making it easier to find those elusive mid's of the first channel. The channel seems a bit more calm, but still has a SansAmp vibe about it. I haven't played around with this channel as much as I should have, in truth, so I won't go into too much detail. On the rear of the amp is a DI out, which many engineers love the sound of it (except my bands engineer, who despises it) which has a 10db pad (i think its 10?) and ground lift. There is also a tuner out, footswitch jack, and dual speaker outputs. So, for me, it has been a trusty workhorse, giving me a big, deep tone on many tours. However, it just didn't cut the mustard for me in a recording environment, and as the rest of my band seeked that 'perfect tone' I felt it was time to move on. The amp definitely comes highly recommended to anyone looking for a live amp, or serious enthusiasts. I wouldn't call it pro, or even semi-pro level, but it does a great job! For the sake of context, I play passive Fender Jazz basses through this amp, into an Ampeg 6x10 cabinet with no pedals. I'd give this amp 6.5 out of 10. Nico Edited June 13, 2007 by NJW Quote
NJW Posted June 13, 2007 Author Posted June 13, 2007 Oops. I just realised my error. Could a mod move this to the 'Basschatters Reviews' area? Quote
cetera Posted March 19, 2009 Posted March 19, 2009 (edited) I have the 600 watt version of this beastie.... I'd disagree with the 'quailty' of this amp. It is definitely a high quality pro piece of equipment and I'd give it very favourable 8.5 out of 10. Two things you seem to have missed out on.... The second channel is the same as the Sansamp RPM pre-amp & is VERY usable! It has a darker mid tone and with the variable mids is a lot more versatile than the Bass Driver channel. It's a shame you haven't used this channel more as there are some great sounds within... In addition, when you combine both the channels you can really get some HUGE sounds. e.g. Use your RPM channel for a full clean & deep low end... and use the Bass Driver channel for high end grind....combine them and you get instant Geddy style attack and growl... I'm also surprised that you can't get a decent recorded tone, after all the Sansamp BDDI has been the studio pre-amp of choice for many pro players for many years. But it's down to personal taste I guess.... Personally, I believe this to be a vastly underrated piece of kit, probably down to the lack of them that made it into UK shops and hence into reviews/onto stages....... The 600 watt version also has oodles of headroom and loves a good 2x12, 2x15 or 8x10 at 4ohms... I LOVE mine.... :wub: Edited March 23, 2009 by cetera Quote
Etienne Posted March 19, 2009 Posted March 19, 2009 I owned a Landmark 300 for about 5 years and loved just about everything about it- it never let me down once in all the time I owned it- not even a blown fuse! Very versatile amp- I only sold mine because I needed a bit more headroom... This is one of the best built, best sounding pieces of kit I've used- like pretty much everything else that Tech 21 make IMO! I currently use a BDDI and a VT Bass pedal, and neither of them are going anywhere... Hey Cetera, I'm just going a bit OT here, but how does the Landmark 600 sound with your NEOX-212T, and do you use the tweeter at all? I'm looking into getting one of these cabs at the moment, and want to know if they can bring the grind for pickstyle hard rock? I'm not a fan of horns, so need the grind from the drivers (like it's meant to be!). Does it deliver the goods? Quote
cetera Posted March 19, 2009 Posted March 19, 2009 [quote name='Etienne' post='439346' date='Mar 19 2009, 03:53 PM']Hey Cetera, I'm just going a bit OT here, but how does the Landmark 600 sound with your NEOX-212T, and do you use the tweeter at all? I'm looking into getting one of these cabs at the moment, and want to know if they can bring the grind for pickstyle hard rock? I'm not a fan of horns, so need the grind from the drivers (like it's meant to be!). Does it deliver the goods?[/quote] I leave the tweeter/horn flat/off.... Never use it.... there's no need. The cab loves pickstyle grind and sounds great. It's light as hell to carry and loud as hell to play! Recommended! Quote
cetera Posted March 19, 2009 Posted March 19, 2009 [quote name='Etienne' post='439404' date='Mar 19 2009, 04:29 PM']Nice one, thanks mate! [/quote] No worries mate. I'd recommend that you take your amp down to 'Bass Direct' & plug into one yourself for your own piece of mind Quote
Etienne Posted March 21, 2009 Posted March 21, 2009 I've just got one- a NEOX-212T that is! Just traded my pair of Aguilar GS112s for it earlier this evening with Alan AKA niceguyhomer (who's a lovely bloke by the way!)- first impressions are... WOW! Quote
NancyJohnson Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 I bought my Landmark from Etienne about six months ago (with Gary going 'Go on Paul' in the background) - I hadn't heard about Tech21 until I saw a little advert in Bass Player about nine months ago. Have to say that it's hands down the best bit of kit - amp-wise- that I've ever owned. For the money, I simply can't fault it. It's got whump, drive, power and versatility in equal measure. Build quality is great. Granted it took a bit of tweaking to get the sound I was looking for, but now it's simply a case of plugging in and I'm pretty much set to go. For the record, I'm running mine into Ashdown enclosures (a 4x10 and a 1x15). While I'm sure there's better amplifiers out there; it's like hi-fi; it's very easy to achieve a 6.0 or 7.0...hell a Laney or Behringer would probably score this, but it's when you start throwing big money at combinations of amps and enclosures that's when you start scoring extra points. I can't believe [i]anyone[/i] would rate this 6.5/10. I'm also a bit surprised you used it on [i]many tours[/i] over [i]a few years[/i] if you thought it was mediocre. I know we bass players are pretty stubborn, but we do have deep pockets. IMO, if you were so unhappy (which is how your review reads), then you should have chopped this in some time ago and gotten something else. Sorry! P Quote
cetera Posted March 23, 2009 Posted March 23, 2009 [quote name='Etienne' post='441289' date='Mar 21 2009, 08:18 PM']I've just got one- a NEOX-212T that is! Just traded my pair of Aguilar GS112s for it earlier this evening with Alan AKA niceguyhomer (who's a lovely bloke by the way!)- first impressions are... WOW! [/quote] You lucky bugger! If, god forbid, you ever want to move it on.... let me know! I'd like to go stereo with another one of these Quote
Beedster Posted January 29, 2015 Posted January 29, 2015 Just picked one of these up and really looking forward to using it. Anyone know if I can use both channels at once, specifically for a stereo Ric? I'm pretty sure that combining both channels from the mono output will get me close to the tone I'm after, but the two channel option would be ideal? C Quote
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