Ashdown 220 Touring Combo is tempting me...

[Mornats]

In my endless (and somewhat annoying for anyone willing to listen to me) quest for a decent amp for practice and small to medium gigs I've stumbled across the Ashdown 220 Touring 1x12 dual tube combo on Anderton's website: [url="http://www.andertons.co.uk/bass-combos/pid23176/cid687/ashdown-220-touring-1x12-220w-bass-amp.asp"]http://www.andertons.co.uk/bass-combos/pid23176/cid687/ashdown-220-touring-1x12-220w-bass-amp.asp[/url]

The price is in my "new purchase" price range and they do finance so I can grab one ASAP. However, they also do the MAG 210 300w combo: [url="http://www.andertons.co.uk/bass-combos/pid12867/cid687/ashdown-magc210t300-307-watt-2x10-bass-combo-evo-ii.asp"]http://www.andertons.co.uk/bass-combos/pid12867/cid687/ashdown-magc210t300-307-watt-2x10-bass-combo-evo-ii.asp[/url].

I know very little about tube amps other than you'd have to replace the tube valves every so often and that the stated wattage isn't comparable to solid state wattage. Or I could be wrong on those!

So, I'll tap into the excellent Basschat knowledgebank and ask if there are any disadvantages/warnings that I should know about regarding the 220 Touring.

And of course buying used from Basschat would be a great option but I doubt any of you do credit

[wateroftyne]

It only has a tube preamp - the power stage is solid-state.

[Mornats]

So I guess that makes the power output similar to a solid state amp. I must admit that I did always fancy one of the EB-180 (1x12) combos too... argh, choices!

[franzbassist]

[quote name='wateroftyne' timestamp='1335813204' post='1636502']
It only has a tube preamp - the power stage is solid-state.
[/quote]

This is correct. It's the same dual tube preamp in the 220, 330 and 550 heads and is very nice. The difference comes in the quality of the power section for each (220 = Electric Blue, 330 = MAG, 550 = ABM).

I had a Spyder 550 and it sounded amazing, but my concern at the lower end of the range would be reliability, or lack thereof.....

[franzbassist]

If it has to be Ashdown and it has to be a combo, I'd try and stretch to [url="http://www.soundslive.co.uk/product~name~Ashdown-550-Touring--Ex-Display~ID~16087.asp"]this[/url]

[guybrush threepwood]

[quote name='walbassist' timestamp='1335885955' post='1637558']
If it has to be Ashdown and it has to be a combo, I'd try and stretch to [url="http://www.soundslive.co.uk/product~name~Ashdown-550-Touring--Ex-Display~ID~16087.asp"]this[/url]
[/quote]
That's what I'd go for, and it's a fantastic price. I've got the 1x15 550 combo, and it's an absolutely cracking amp.

[Budgetneil]

I bought a 220 Touring 115 about a month a go and I'm really pleased with it. I couldn't find any opinions either way on the 220 here on BC so went and tried both the 112 and 115 at PMT in Manchester (same prices as Andertons despite what their web site said at the time). In short, I loved the tone and it was the only amp with anything like that power in the price range. I was tempted by the EB-180 too but, as well as the lovely tone, the 220 had that little bit more power and the bargain hunter in me was swayed by the £450+ amp reduced vs paying full price for a cheaper amp.
Things to note are:
You dont get full power through the 8ohm internal speaker, you need an extra 8ohm cab for that.
Tone-wise look a up BC's own Walbassist's YouTube review of the 550 on t'interweb - same pre-amp and very similar tones
I'd recommend trying the 115 and 112 together - for the extra £30 I felt the 115 just sounded 'bigger'.

Hope that helps! (but don't blame me if you get one and hate it!!! ;-))

Edited May 2, 2012 by Budgetneil

[Mornats]

Thanks for the info, and also for pointing out Walbassist's video (which I've just seen). It's a nice tone from that amp but maybe the tone I got out of the EB-180 I tried suited me better. I've got my Tanglewater going through a borrowed Laney Linebacker at the moment and I'm finding that I keep the EQ flat and leave any fancy knobs alone. I did like the compressor on the EB though which I know the Touring series lacks. I'd have to hear them side by side to get a true comparison but I am leaning more towards a MAG 300 head now, mostly due to the options I have with cabs plus the compressor on it. I'm off to my local PMT on Saturday hopefully so will see what they've got there.

[Mornats]

Well, I got to try the 220 Touring in both 15 and 12 inch versions and loved the tone of them. I preferred the 12" one (sparklier mids and highs imo) and bought that one. I also compared it to the EB-180 12" and a MAG 500 through a 1x15 and the 220 Touring's tone was by far the best. I would have liked the 330 Touring that they had but in all honesty, I'd never fit it in my car and I'd never be able to carry it anywhere. So if I need a bit more oomph I'll get a VS112 cab to go with it. As for reliability, the shop I got it from gives a 3 year warranty on top of the Ashdown 1 year warranty so hopefully this will be a decent one if anything goes wrong.