Cheap bass rigs that you love , and beat your high end rigs

[dave_bass5]

18 hours ago, stingrayPete1977 said:

My favourite amp for sound was the 1x15 Peavy TNT, probably worth £75 or less these days.

Mine as well. The rehearsal studio we were using up to a year had one that i had to keep moving out of the way to fit my (back then) Markbass F1 and BF BB2 rig. One day i couldn't be bothered so plugged the Peavey in. It was 10mins after that point i decided the BB2 was going. Even the band, who never really comment on my tone said dont dare plug my own rig back in.

[discreet]

10 hours ago, Marvin said:

Brand new, I bought the V2 Fender Rumble 210 350w combo for about £300. In retrospect I should have just stuck with that as it sounded really good and was really solid.

In retrospect I should have just stuck with it as well. I'd buy another tomorrow but for the usual reason.

[Andy H.]

Don't have it any more (age / weight ratio thing), but I had many great sounding gigs with my old Peavey 410TX cab. Bought it in preference to Ampeg / Trace / whatever else I tried at the time. Have also had many good Peavey combo experiences. Their bass gear always seemed to do the job for me.

Amp-wise I've got quite a few (!), but the one I probably use most at home is a little 10W TOA PA head from the '70s. All valve, basically point to point built, and just great sounding clean. Overdriven it just gets sweeter and sweeter. Love it for bass or guitar. It is at my techs right now for a little fettling, just to keep it as bomb-proof as ever. Looking forward to having it back on top of my BF One 10. Picked it up for 25 quid ages ago. One of my better buys!  

Andy.

[Andy H.]

Double post - sorry!

Edited January 17, 2018 by Andy H.
Double post

[ebenezer]

another shout for peavey....i had the combo 130, the forunner to the TNT with the rotary controls and parametric mids......15 black widow speaker

what a great amp!!

[3below]

17 minutes ago, ebenezer said:

another shout for peavey....i had the combo 130, the forunner to the TNT with the rotary controls and parametric mids......15 black widow speaker

what a great amp!!

+1 on the same combo 1981 to 2004 ish.  Am thinking what would one be like with a suitable neo speaker and ports.

[discreet]

17 minutes ago, 3below said:

+1 on the same combo 1981 to 2004 ish.  Am thinking what would one be like with a suitable neo speaker and ports.

I too was thinking about modding a Peavey TNT... build a lightweight cab out of braced, thin ply and fit a neo driver... but what's the betting it'll sound like crap? If you try to analyse something too closely, it often gets away from you.

I came to the conclusion that hauling gear to and from gigs is a big pain in the bum regardless of the weight of the gear. So why worry?  

[Marvin]

11 minutes ago, discreet said:

I came to the conclusion that hauling gear to and from gigs is a big pain in the bum regardless of the weight of the gear. So why worry?  

Yes, you're not wrong. Even a small carrier bag with 2 cables is an annoyance

[pineweasel]

On 16/01/2018 at 10:16, fretmeister said:

Roland Bass Cube 30.

Superb amp in every way.

Agreed, I use one in our rehearsal room and it always sounds good. 

[CameronJ]

I’ve seen at least two live bands recently with bassists running Trace Elliot rigs. One was a Reggae band and one a Blues band. Both sounded bloody good. I could tell just from looking at them that they weighed a ton, though 

[3below]

58 minutes ago, discreet said:

I too was thinking about modding a Peavey TNT... build a lightweight cab out of braced, thin ply and fit a neo driver... but what's the betting it'll sound like crap? If you try to analyse something too closely, it often gets away from you.

I came to the conclusion that hauling gear to and from gigs is a big pain in the bum regardless of the weight of the gear. So why worry?  

I have also had that same thought, 9mm ply box.  I then think by the time I have done the woodwork I might just get a Peavey minmax 500 head for my diy combo.  I still use Peavey Tour 700s. In my A/B with the Marshall VBA400 I also owned, the Tour 700s suited me better.

Edited February 7, 2018 by 3below
spelling

[grandad]

And another,  I bought a 2nd hand Peavey TNT 115 combo still in mint condition for the music club, (£90). It doesn't move from the community centre though. A bomb-proof bargain.

[jazzmanb]

Still gigging my Peavey T max 500

Bought new in a combo with a 1x15 black widow,wasn't cheap mind £799 in 1994

combo cabinet long gone so the head is in a rack and i use 2 Peavey 210 cabs to get it full range

Loads of crunch from the valve section.

just moved onto lighter cab options

[Ghost_Bass]

Nothing cheaper can beat my current rig for my desired tone straight out of the box (TRB5PII/STL-9.2/BF-S12T) but i've tried other bits of gear, way more expensive, that didn't sound half as good a my setup (for my taste) so i can say i own the cheapest rig possible for my tone

[RandomBass]

On 16/01/2018 at 10:16, fretmeister said:

Roland Bass Cube 30.

Superb amp in every way.

Yes, yes, yes... And yes.

I have one too, by the way. 

[Dan Dare]

Another Peavey fan here. I think the main reason is that their Black Widow drive units were (can you still get them?) so good. I replaced the crappy Fender drivers in my old Bassman 2x15 cab with them and the improvement was massive. When I got my TE AH350 in the 80s, the sound of it with the cab was fabulous. Bulky and heavy rig, but wonderful sound.

[Paddy515]

Never had a high-end rig but this Eden set-up couldn't possibly be beaten for a budget rig - £250 for combo AND extension cab together!! 115 driver swapped out for a Celestian before I bought it but otherwise as it left the factory in 2001.

[billynoband]

Yes Dan Dare. Its worth pulling a speaker out of any old T.E or H/H as well to upgrade with also if you have the back for it.  All the T.E and H/H I have used have been as good as anything alse I tried. My Antoria short scale semi acoustic sounded great with a V-amp 60 (ex H/H staff made) also. Its sad I have no choice but to look for lightweight kit now I am starting again.

[Deedee]

Loved the Peavey TNT.  I had a couple, a wedge type (bloody awkward to carry about) and a 150 with the Sheffield speaker.  As has been said, bomb proof.

Also old Trace gear.  The best sound I ever had to my ears was my SMX going through a 1153 (1x15) and 2103 (2x10).  I’d still use those cabs but for the size limitations of car boots etc.

Last year I picked up a pair of these cabs and a 200 watt TE head for £90.  I stinky poo ye not 😮

[Kevsy71]

Old Fender Rumble 150 that I painted surf green and added a top handle to. Cost me £100, the volume pot is shot and not too easy to replace so I just play through the effects return with a Tech21 VT. Has been my rehearsal and pubs amp for years, even used with a low pass filter as a kick drum amp a few times, love it to bits

[mep]

Another for the Peavey TNT 150 and cheap TE kit . Belting sound for not a lot other than the weight. 

[andy67]

@ £510 just a little over, my Hartke LH1000 and AK410 cab were awesome 😎 should never have gotten rid. 🤦‍♂️

Edited February 11, 2018 by andy67

[Japhet]

Had a Peavey MkVI head and 1820 cab many moons ago. Awesome sounding thing but it caused tidal changes due to it's own gravity field.

[TheGreek]

...and the winner of the Greek vote this evening is.....

vintage Trace Elliot!!!

 

Yes, the combos are heavy but the heads are a single hand lift and carry - shouldn't be a problem for anybody. They're nuclear bomb proof, suit all styles of music, EXTREMELY loud, everybody can get a great sound out of one and you can pick a half decent one for ridiculous money - less than £200. Pair it with a modern, lightweight cab of your choice and you make the Cheshire Cat look like a miserable b4st4rd. 

[Deedee]

24 minutes ago, TheGreek said:

...and the winner of the Greek vote this evening is.....

vintage Trace Elliot!!!

 

Yes, the combos are heavy but the heads are a single hand lift and carry - shouldn't be a problem for anybody. They're nuclear bomb proof, suit all styles of music, EXTREMELY loud, everybody can get a great sound out of one and you can pick a half decent one for ridiculous money - less than £200. Pair it with a modern, lightweight cab of your choice and you make the Cheshire Cat look like a miserable b4st4rd. 

Like he said 😁