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In praise of a little combo ...


Fionn
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I recently aquired a Markbass CMD 121P, played it in the house a bit. It's quite unlike what I'm used to, and it took me a fair bit of tweeking (to previously unfamiliar parameters) to find sounds that I'm happy with. All good though. It's a very sweet spot when it's found.

However, what has really amazed me is how this tiny unassuming box sounds in a full band situation. A couple more wee tweeks, and ooof! ... it properly delivers. I've heard folk banging on about how good this combo is, but I didn't actually fancy it to be quite so freakin solid. I'm blown away by how loud, tight, present, and clean-sounding it is. Totally beyond my expectations. I'm delighted.

There's a great old Trace rig which is available to me for gigging, so I had bought the combo just to have something small and light, but relatively gutsy, for practice and jams, but after the experience of my last two band practices I've decided to make this my go-to amp for everything. I'll get myself the NY121 extension cab for when a little extra is required.

It is a seriously tidy bit of kit.

BTW, I've experienced none of the tweeter hiss that I've read some folk complain about. All is good in this Markbasshood :)

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[quote name='Kev' timestamp='1393550944' post='2381896']
One of two Markbass combos I am looking at, glad to here you like it!
[/quote]

I can't recommend it enough, Kev ... and I haven't even added the extension cab yet.

It seems a very tidy solution for folk who like compact gear with a genuinely big sound.

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Great little amps. I`ve got one, with the NY121 ext cab. I`d always used 412s, or a 410 & 210 together, minimum 410 on its own so when I bought these I was expecting to sacrifice some sound quality, in order to protect my bad back. Not so, I still find it hard to believe how much sound comes out of this little stack. Plus had the pleasure of hearing another band use it the other night and was knocked out by how good a Precision sounds with it (and luckily the bassist used my settings so hopefully I sound like that too).

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I've been using one for years, I play double bass and electric through it and both sound great. I play rock, blues, rockabilly, bluegrass and prog 4,5 & 6 string basses. It's never let me down and is loud enough for most gigs I play without an extension cab or Di through the PA. I have played hundreds of gigs with this little combo and it just keeps going. Best cash I ever spent you really won't regret investing in one of these.

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So it turned up today and sounds great.

However, very notable issue from the off; the piezo tweeter has a pretty loud hiss going on. A hiss that is still there even with the master volume all the way off and no bass plugged in. Is this typical of piezo tweeters or is something wrong with it? Didn't notice this in the shop but then I guess at home its a different environment. The tweeter does not get louder as you turn the volume up and eventually hiss from the 12" takes over it anyway, so I imagine this is normal but its seems loud at home practice volume, and of course there is no volume control or way of turning it off.

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Kev, I'd be tempted to send it back. Having read your post, I plugged mine in, switched on and there was very little hiss even with the master on full, quiet enough to be a non-issue at a gig.
These are great little combos as everyone above attests so, if you can sort this, it'll give you many years of trouble-free pleasure based on my experience.

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Don't get me wrong, it would not be an issue at all at a gig or a band practice, I'm probably making a big deal out of nothing, I don't believe I have ever had a speaker with a piezo tweeter before. One thing I can say, the hiss from the tweeter is completely unaffected by volume or EQ settings and is louder than the fan.

Edited by Kev
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Mine is from Rich Tone Music, built in January this year so as new as can be. Again, must stress the hiss is unaffected by any EQ settings or volume, remains constant. Of course, on increase VPF settings the main speaker hisses more at high volume, but the tweeter remains exactly the same. Will be completely drowned out at gig and practice volume, in fact anywhere after 9oclock on the Master, but it is louder than the fan and noticeable below this. Not ideal for home practice or studio use. However, from what I have read it looks like it is par for the course with tweeters that do not have attenuators, but have contacted the shop anyway to see if they have experienced issues with tweeters before.

Edited by Kev
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[quote name='Kev' timestamp='1393948083' post='2386146']
So it turned up today and sounds great.

However, very notable issue from the off; the piezo tweeter has a pretty loud hiss going on. A hiss that is still there even with the master volume all the way off and no bass plugged in. Is this typical of piezo tweeters or is something wrong with it? Didn't notice this in the shop but then I guess at home its a different environment. The tweeter does not get louder as you turn the volume up and eventually hiss from the 12" takes over it anyway, so I imagine this is normal but its seems loud at home practice volume, and of course there is no volume control or way of turning it off.
[/quote]

It's normal. At higher volume you will not notice.
Some people did not hear the hiss on mine when I could clearly... it turned out that they could not hear very high frequencies too well (or at all) through years of rehearsals and gigs without earplugs (there's a lesson: if it's loud, plugs)

One thing I don't like about the piezo tweeter is its inherent sound. I don't use very trebly sounds, but when I do, and with certain distortion pedals, it just sounds a bit harsh. Not a deal breaker, but I wish it could be attenuated, or that they used a different tweeter. It's a great combo, regardless.

edit: I feel I have to make clear that the hiss is not at all intrusive. It's audible at home at very low volume, but that's it.
The piezo tweeter sound is another matter. It's not "bad", I just don't love it ;)

Edited by mcnach
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It was a brief affair, but I am afraid I am returning the amp to the shop today.

From all I have read, the tweeter sound I am experiencing is normal and expected of these amplifiers, which regretfully makes the amp completely unsuitable for me. Primarily was to be used as a home practice amp and a studio recording amp, and with the hiss of that non-adjustable tweeter it would be no good for either of these uses. Would be no problem at all if it was to be used as a gigging amp. I know the issue could easily be helped by sticking a bit of foam or felt over the tweeter to block out the white noise, however whilst I may be happy to do this with a second hand amplifier, I don't feel like I should have to do this with an Amp I have just bought brand new. If it's not perfect for me, it needs to go back. I have requested that the shop look into the return as a fault as well as being not fit for purpose, as I really don't think a tweeter should be that loud. Perhaps at 25 my hearing is still better than others and it's just more audible to me, who knows.

Otherwise, the amp sounded good and I am sure it performs well for 99% of the bassists out there :) Lesson learned: listen harder when trying amplifiers out before you buy. (needless to say I did not try this exact amp before buying it, perils of online purchasing..)

Anyway, apologies for the thread hijack!

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[quote name='Kev' timestamp='1394023873' post='2386998']
It was a brief affair, but I am afraid I am returning the amp to the shop today.

From all I have read, the tweeter sound I am experiencing is normal and expected of these amplifiers, which regretfully makes the amp completely unsuitable for me. Primarily was to be used as a home practice amp and a studio recording amp, and with the hiss of that non-adjustable tweeter it would be no good for either of these uses. Would be no problem at all if it was to be used as a gigging amp. I know the issue could easily be helped by sticking a bit of foam or felt over the tweeter to block out the white noise, however whilst I may be happy to do this with a second hand amplifier, I don't feel like I should have to do this with an Amp I have just bought brand new. If it's not perfect for me, it needs to go back. I have requested that the shop look into the return as a fault as well as being not fit for purpose, as I really don't think a tweeter should be that loud. Perhaps at 25 my hearing is still better than others and it's just more audible to me, who knows.

Otherwise, the amp sounded good and I am sure it performs well for 99% of the bassists out there :) Lesson learned: listen harder when trying amplifiers out before you buy. (needless to say I did not try this exact amp before buying it, perils of online purchasing..)

Anyway, apologies for the thread hijack!
[/quote]


there were some reports of people replacing the tweeter with another that was something like £15, which allegedly worked well and no hiss... but I have not tried that

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[quote name='mcnach' timestamp='1394024519' post='2387006']
there were some reports of people replacing the tweeter with another that was something like £15, which allegedly worked well and no hiss... but I have not tried that
[/quote]

Certainly could be a workable solution to the problem, but as I say it wouldn't be a solution for me as I don't like to modify a brand new amp. Amongst other things I am sure the warranty will be thrown out the window...

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[quote name='Kev' timestamp='1394026612' post='2387048']
Certainly could be a workable solution to the problem, but as I say it wouldn't be a solution for me as I don't like to modify a brand new amp. Amongst other things I am sure the warranty will be thrown out the window...
[/quote]


that for sure!

just putting it out there for the more adventurous who really like the amp.

I have just got the head alone (LM III) so that I can pair it with any cab. It's a bit redundant, having the combo as well, but I really like that amp.

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Well I got mine delivered to work today. It's made in Indonesia and weighs 12.5kg so a little lighter than the Italian-made spec of 13.3kg but not as much weight saving as mentioned in the thread about them being "heavy and made in Indonesia". So I can say for sure, they're not heavier.

Once I get it home I'll take a look at the build quality although I can only compare it against my Chinese-made Ashdown Touring rig. I will of course let you know what I think of the sounds, and will report back after band practice on Friday too.

It looks great though and is lovely, light and easy to move around which is exactly what I wanted.

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