plunkrock Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 I'm looking to put together a rig for a heavy sludge/stoner 3 piece (Torche, Kvelertak, Melvins, etc.), I fancy one of these wee micro jobs but can't settle on which one - unfortunately I don't have anywhere nearby I can give them all a go so have been doing a lot of reading/listening online. What I haven't seen anyone comment on is how well an amp works with dirt pedals, I have a Fuzzrocious Demon King that is on 100% of the time, does anyone have any thoughts on, or experience with one of these micro heads that brings out the best in your pedals? I don't have a whole load of cash so I'll be getting the head just now and plugging in to a cab at the rehearsal place we hire and other people's cabs at gigs (seems to be the done thing around these parts) until I can save up for a Barefaced. A few I am considering: Ampeg PF-500 (headphone port is a big bonus here for practicing at home!), Orange Bass Terror (Guitarist has a Dual Terror and it sounds great), GK MB500/Fusion, Aguilar Tone Hammer. Any comments are appreciated! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobbass4k Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 If you're planning on always using pedals for distortion I would go with something super clean so that you have a flat response. For super clean there's no better than the Little Mark, although I've heard good things about TC's class D stuff as well. I think a super clean class D head and a good dirt pedal set up would be better for you, you just can't get super heavy sludge tone out of a Class D amp with a tube-pre, you need an all tube head. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plunkrock Posted April 11, 2013 Author Share Posted April 11, 2013 Ah, cheers, that was one of the main things I was wondering, clean to get the sound of the pedal vs. pushing a preamp tube... I'll have another look at the MarkBass stuff! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xgsjx Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 I've got a Markbass combo & it pretty much puts out what I put in. So if I'm playing clean, I get clean. Turn on the dirt & that's what comes out (in a good way of course). If you're not in a hurry, once my band's up & running you're welcome to try it out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted April 11, 2013 Share Posted April 11, 2013 I use a Markbass F1 with dirty pedals. You get a lot more clanky attack than with other heads which I absolutely love! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannybuoy Posted April 12, 2013 Share Posted April 12, 2013 (edited) I'd go for the Ampeg or Orange over the Markbass. I don't want my clean sound 100% clean, I prefer a vintage, slightly furry sound, which the Orange delivers. Granted, you're not going to get power tube distortion out of a hybrid with tube pre, but the tube can help smooth out the sound and add extra grit when digging in. I've gone the route of ultra clean amps and have come back to the slightly dirty ones! A Markbass amp may well put out what you put in, but the colour of the amp is a vital component of the sound, flat hi-fi response is not what I'd choose for this genre, which is all about sounding lo-fi and retro. Other amps I would look at if you want a tubey sounding head are the Mark Bass TTE500, TC Electronic Classic/RH series, Ashdown MiBass and Genz Benz Streamliner 900. Also cab choice is important, you don't want any tweeters if you're using distortion, they sound too fizzy. Most tweeter equipped cabs have a volume control to turn the tweeter down or even off off, but with some designs this might not sound so great if the crossover is still rolling off all the high mids from the main speaker. Markbass amps have a VLE control which rolls off the highs to emulate a vintage speaker, but it sounds a little fake with fuzz. To get the best sound with distortion I prefer to go straight into the speaker, no crossovers or tweeters in the way, and let the speaker's natural roll-off tame the fizzy highs. Seems to work for guitar players! If I was splashing out on the best and biggest cab for the job I would probably go for a Barefaced 69'er or Bergantino NV410/NV412. Overkill for small venues though. I play the same kind of music and am pretty happy with my Orange Terror Bass and Ampeg SVT210AV cab. The little Ampeg cab delivers the SVT810 vibe in a quarter of the size, you can stack them up two high (which makes it easier to hear clearly and takes up less room on stage), they are very cheap and weigh bugger all! Edited April 12, 2013 by dannybuoy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ant Posted April 12, 2013 Share Posted April 12, 2013 (edited) [sub]i use lots of pedal dirt and used to use an orange terror bass, i traded it in for an Ampeg pf500 and everything sounds loads better![/sub] [sub]edit: my PF500 into my barefaced Super 15, is the beefiest most killer rig ive played through[/sub] Edited April 12, 2013 by Ant Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirky Posted April 12, 2013 Share Posted April 12, 2013 I've got a Gallien Krueger MB Fusion and previously had an Ampeg PF500 - I don't play with heavy distortion, just a touch from a DHA VT1 in some songs, but I'm sure both would suit your needs. They're both very loud and nice, but I preferred the tone of the GK in the end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plunkrock Posted April 12, 2013 Author Share Posted April 12, 2013 Cheers for all the ideas guys, I was up late looking at videos etc. and the Genz Benz Streamliner 900 looks/sounds awesome, came across the review on Shep's site so there's a pretty hearty recommendation on it working well with pedals It has the headphone port and aux in as well, which is important the more I think about it, I live in a one bedroom flat with a girlfriend who does not enjoy the same music as me I noticed there's one in the marketplace, veeeeeery tempted... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plunkrock Posted April 12, 2013 Author Share Posted April 12, 2013 (edited) [quote name='plunkrock' timestamp='1365751580' post='2043771'] I noticed there's one in the marketplace, veeeeeery tempted... [/quote] Er... No there isn't. Could have swore the ad I was reading on my phone was still available, the search continues! Edited April 12, 2013 by plunkrock Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted April 12, 2013 Share Posted April 12, 2013 If the pedal is always to be used for the dirt, I`d plump for either a Markbass head, or the GK MB Fusion 500 (this amp can be set very clean, though of course it does GK grit very well indeed). Clean and punchy as possible, get all the grit from the pedal. Just my prefernece, but I only like to add grit/dirt to completely clean sounds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plunkrock Posted April 12, 2013 Author Share Posted April 12, 2013 Any thoughts on the Genz Benz Shuttle 6.0 for the above? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ant Posted April 14, 2013 Share Posted April 14, 2013 grab yourself an ampeg PF800 when they come out in may Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plunkrock Posted April 14, 2013 Author Share Posted April 14, 2013 The PF800 is one I am considering too. To be honest I'm leaning back towards the Orange after all this, I think I read a post of yours here Ant that made me consider the Ampeg in the first place. You obviously know what you're doing with dirt! There something about the simplicity of the Orange I like, and a few folk I admire are using them for the kind of music I have in mind, I've tried a few things out with these guys that have all been considered too aggressive so looking for a warm solid bass tone. I'm all about 'set it and forget it' so lack of versatility does not bother me. To be honest I'm sick of thinking about it, need to stop worrying about gear and get back to playing, I'm sure every amp mentioned in this thread would do the job! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
0175westwood29 Posted April 14, 2013 Share Posted April 14, 2013 love my orange tb1000 so much head room and i have my line 6 m5 set to push the gain to make it go even more dirty. andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plunkrock Posted April 18, 2013 Author Share Posted April 18, 2013 I went for the Orange TB500 in the end by the way, only had one opportunity to really try it out so far but very happy! Cheers for all the input Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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