Buying my first Bass Amp

[moshmonkeys]

Hey all. I'm a newbie to bass (been playing guitar for close to 10 years). So, I'm looking for a decent amp. It will be mostly used for practicing with a drum kit, vox and two 100 watt amps. The volume won't be up too high as we'll be practicing in a mates house. Gigging will be a good few months off and when we do gig if an amp wasn't provided I'd plan on using the PA. Some other bassists I've talked to have said that for what I want 60watts should be ok but I'm unsure. The bass plays a very active role in the songs since I've always been a lead guitarist and it's hard for me to stop being a self-indulgent w***er and resign myself to an accompaniment role

I'm a fan of Laney amps. I love their guitar amps but their reputation with bass differs from person to person. I've narrowed my choice down to the following models:

Laney Richter RB3 / RB4 (budget could extend as far as the RB4)

Warwick Blue Cab 60

Ashdown T15-180S [url="http://www.thomann.de/ie/ashdown_t15180s.htm"]http://www.thomann.de/ie/ashdown_t15180s.htm[/url]

Any help and other recommendations would be appreciated. Cheers.

[mikeh]

Im going to be like a broken record now!! lol but in that budget id have a look at the fender Rumble 100 115. I've played one and it sounded really good, and easily loud enough to do gigs with. IIRC they come in at around the £220 mark new.

[moshmonkeys]

Hmmm....cheers. I'd neglected the idea of a Fender as I really dislike their guitar amps. But I'll check them out now.

[trent900]

There's billions of small-ish combos about, recommendations are thus of limited value since I suspect everyone will recommend something different for my 2p worth, I have a Hartke Kickback 15 which is a great little amp, doesn't go up ridiculously high in volume but has a proper DI output straight into the PA and you can thrash it to hell and it won't complain. Can't remember how much they are now, under £300 certainly. 120W.

[moshmonkeys]

They're 444Euro new online which is out of my range at the moment.

[trent900]

[quote name='moshmonkeys' post='191401' date='May 4 2008, 12:15 AM']They're 444Euro new online which is out of my range at the moment.[/quote]

444 Euro??? That's what...£340? Somebody's ripping you off.

Here you are [url="http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/kickback-15/12557"]http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/kickback-15/12557[/url] the she is for £289. You could've had mine but it's already committed elsewhere. As I say, recommended from personal experience but there may be still better for your requirements. Maybe the DI XLR output is an advantage is you're routinely running through PAs though?

[moshmonkeys]

Looking at Gak's website there and I don't think they ship outside of the UK. Doesn't have a section on shipping info....I could just be blind though.

[trent900]

Ah, are you non-British? Nobody's perfect, eh?

All the best with the amp choice - see if you can pop into a decently-stocked local music store and thrash about on some. Forum chatting can throw up some good choices you may not have considered, but really only finding an amp somewhere and having a play can make your mind up.

Alternatively, you could do what I do and buy what looks coolest...

[moshmonkeys]

[quote name='trent900' post='191413' date='May 4 2008, 12:36 AM']Nobody's perfect, eh? [/quote]


Ah but I am, I'm Irish


Cheers for the help.

[phatbass787]

[url="http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/page/shop/flypage/product_id/14392"]http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/page/shop/fl...roduct_id/14392[/url]

Superb amp and amazing value for money plus has a DI for when you start to play bigger gigs, very useful.

[The Burpster]

Roland cube 100x....

Undoubtedly perfect for your specifications inyour OP

[stingrayfan]

[quote name='mikeh' post='191390' date='May 3 2008, 11:41 PM']Im going to be like a broken record now!! lol but in that budget id have a look at the fender Rumble 100 115. I've played one and it sounded really good, and easily loud enough to do gigs with. IIRC they come in at around the £220 mark new.[/quote]
+1 on the Rumble 100w. And as Mike says, it'll happily see you through your first few gigs. Don't go any lower than 100w if you're up against a drummer.

Edited May 5, 2008 by stingrayfan

[GM10]

Another +1 on the Rumble 100. Very good mids for that bit of slap if your that way inclined!

[moshmonkeys]

Well there's no slap in our songs. I played the Laney RB4 and liked it. I haven't played the Ashdown EB15-180 or the Fender Rumble and haven't seen them in stock anywhere. Tends to just be Marshalls and Laney's around. Few Fenders and Ashdowns but not the Rumble of EB models.

Supposing I was to take peoples advice here and forget about the Laney and choose between the Ashdown and the Fender Rumble, what would be the better of the two?

The Fender Rumble 100 and 100/210 are only 100 watts but the Ashdown is 180. Is there much difference in sound because right now I'm tempted to go for the Rumble 100/210 over the Ashdown due to reviews, the RRP is so high leading me to believe it's better quality and the Ashdown is so ugly. I'm tempted to go for the Ashdown because like with the Rumble it's got good reviews and the 80 watt extra head room over the Fender would come in handy.

That said, I haven't really found a reason not to go for the Laney RB4 except that the other amps have come in so highly recommended. Since I can't play the others but have played the Laney it might make sense for me to just go for it.

And yay Gak do deliver overseas

Edited May 5, 2008 by moshmonkeys

[Adrenochrome]

The Laney RB-4 is probably the best value for what you want to do. It's not flash but they do what they're supposed to do. Might be loud enough for small/medium pub gigs without PA support.

Edited May 5, 2008 by Adrenochrome

[mikeh]

In my experience the Laneys are very underpowered for their rating, youd be suprised how loud that Rumble 100 can get. I used a Rumble at a gig once, it was to about 250 people without PA support and it was plenty loud enough. Id say out of the ones suggested best bets are the fender or Ashdown. I've been meaning to buy one of the Fenders for years as a back up but something always comes up!!!

[queenofthedepths]

I love my Laney combos!

[moshmonkeys]

[quote name='mikeh' post='192523' date='May 5 2008, 10:32 PM']In my experience the Laneys are very underpowered for their rating, youd be suprised how loud that Rumble 100 can get. I used a Rumble at a gig once, it was to about 250 people without PA support and it was plenty loud enough. Id say out of the ones suggested best bets are the fender or Ashdown. I've been meaning to buy one of the Fenders for years as a back up but something always comes up!!![/quote]


How's about the sound becoming distorted when they're cranked up?

[lowhand_mike]

bare in mind IIRC that teh rumble does not have a speaker out, so that 100 is through that 1 speaker, the ashdown 180 has a speaker out and you'll only get the 180watts with the extension cab attached. So you'll probably only be pushing 100watts through the built in speaker (but you have the option to go loader later) you could look to the mag series of ashdown (shameless personal choice plug) which are louder (and less blue ) for not much more money.
i was considering the rumble when i was looking at amps but the ashdown gave me more longevity so i could upgrade, the rumble as good as it sounds would have to be sold before you upgrade.
I used to play laneys years ago and looked at them too, think it might have been the RB3 1x15combo, certainly loud but not overly clean when at high volume so might be pushing it a bit.
my recommendation just look at me avatar

[Deep Thought]

I'd be inclined to get something a bit bigger at the outset if your budget can stretch-I got back into playing 18 months ago, and started with an Ashdown MAG 300watt 4x10, which has been fine. If you're practising you don't have to have it fully turned up, and 300watts will be plenty for most small to medium venues, if the PA option isn't available. The ability to take an extension cab is also a distinct advantage. I also wish I'd gone head/cab in the beginning rather than combo, which I am still in the process of rectifying. Keep an eye on the For Sale pages here, where you can get some damn good kit at very decent prices from (generally) trustworthy folks.