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So was NAMM 2019 a damp squib for you too?


Al Krow
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Maybe I'm just getting long in the tooth and generally content with my existing gear, but there is nothing that's so far come out of NAMM 2019 that got me thinking "wow that's amazing, I must reaaaally get that!!" 

A couple of interesting pedal announcements from Source Audio and Pigtronix that I'll be following up on and seeing if they match up to the hype / out perform the kit I've already got, but that was about it...

Anything that you guys are definitely going to be getting from this year's NAMM, or have you had a similar reaction?

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6 and two 3s. Some stuff was pre-announced that I am tres excited about: 6 string Combustions from Dingwall. Am liking the Source Audio pedal stuff, but yeah a lot of other things that were just different colour/hardware combos (Fender), some meh stuff (Gibson), and some 'how much?!' from EBMM.

On the amp side though: the Bergantino Forte HP and the Darkglass new amps look very nice (obvs prohibitively pricey.)

 

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Yeah a bit. Never really go for the 'hype' though. 

One thing struck me as amusing though - the Chinese company who make copies of loads of basses had a stand there... one copy they produce is a Rickenbacker. I hope they were near the Rickenbacker stand. I'd love to have seen JH's face.

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10 minutes ago, ped said:

Yeah a bit. Never really go for the 'hype' though. 

One thing struck me as amusing though - the Chinese company who make copies of loads of basses had a stand there... one copy they produce is a Rickenbacker. I hope they were near the Rickenbacker stand. I'd love to have seen JH's face.

The vast majority of those knockoff vendors are downstairs in Hall E. Different ones come and go year to year, nothing really new there. But yeah, one kind of has to wonder about how well Mr. Hall's blood pressure meds are working.

I skipped going to the show this year, three in a row was sufficient for my wants and needs. I watched a lot of people playing through stuff I built via live vids from my friend's booth, and greatly enjoyed having access to a volume control. My friend gave me a really nice fretless a few weeks before NAMM, so I'm in negative GAS mode if anything. Yel_wink.gif

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12 hours ago, chris_b said:

I don't know much about NAMM but, with the Mesa Boogie WD800 and Bergantino Forte HP, the 2019 show might be the start of a new chapter of bass amp design.

Looking at the Forte, isn't it basically a B|Amp without the bits that made the B|Amp unique, ie. another lightweight bass amp that doesn't manage to be as light or as small as its competitors?

The WD800 looks rather more interesting, but not £1300 more interesting.

The most interesting thing to me were the multieffects which appear to be heading into Helix territory at considerably sub-Helix prices, although the Mooer might not be at that low a price point. The Hotone will be interesting - so far superior to the Zoom B3n to be worth double the price, or so far inferior to the Helix not to be worth a third of it?

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1 hour ago, tauzero said:

Looking at the Forte, isn't it basically a B|Amp without the bits that made the B|Amp unique, ie. another lightweight bass amp that doesn't manage to be as light or as small as its competitors?

 

He's talking the Forte HP, not the older Forte. If you don't count 400+ extra watts and actually want deep menu driven programming, perhaps so. It's not exactly a big heavy thing for being a 1200 watt unit though, really. Personally, I greatly prefer that form factor, the controls are just too cluttered and close together for my taste on many of the "micro" ones.

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4 minutes ago, Passinwind said:

He's talking the Forte HP, not the older Forte. If you don't count 400+ extra watts and actually want deep menu driven programming, perhaps so. It's not exactly a big heavy thing for being a 1200 watt unit though, really. Personally, I greatly prefer that form factor, the controls are just too cluttered and close together for my taste on many of the "micro" ones.

Ah, got it now. I was indeed looking at the Forte. So, an extra 300W that I wouldn't use and three times as heavy and as bulky as my Puma 900 - not one for me, but we're all different. Mostly.

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3 hours ago, tauzero said:

Ah, got it now. I was indeed looking at the Forte. So, an extra 300W that I wouldn't use and three times as heavy and as bulky as my Puma 900 - not one for me, but we're all different. Mostly.

Yep, different strokes. I've shown a few amps at NAMM that are similar in size to the B|Amp and user feedback was extremely positive. Not all of us want to put our amp in a gig bag with an instrument.

Several years ago the Forte HP or your Puma would have been quite attractive to me, but now even a 300 watt amp is pretty serious overkill for my playing situations. In any case, the B|Amp I heard at NAMM a year or two ago was truly outstanding, and I can't think of many company owners who know their market better than Jim Bergantino. The fact that he does so much of the engineering himself is just icing on the cake.

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7 hours ago, tauzero said:

Ah, got it now. I was indeed looking at the Forte. So, an extra 300W that I wouldn't use and three times as heavy and as bulky as my Puma 900 - not one for me, but we're all different. Mostly.

On looking at the brief details and knowing Berg cabs I would guess that the Forte HP is a new "world beater". You can compare numbers but they don't mean anything on their own. The Forte HP looks like it is closer to the B|amp than the Forte with many of the features but without the profiles (I don't have Berg cabs any more) and the confusing (to me) menu screens. IMO, weighing in at about 6lbs, the weight difference between this amp and the Puma is pretty inconsequential.

With Bergs it isn't a numbers game. If I'm reading correctly, the 1200 watts are there for tone, attack, heft(!!) and headroom, all reasons other than volume. I'll be interested in the reviews when they appear. It is pricey, but someone will buy one and decide they want something else in a couple of months. If they do I might just be waiting.

The WD800 also seems to be a feature rich "tone monster". I'll also be watching that one as well. 

So far, in my experience, better amps create a better sound. From the feedback I get others notice the difference in my rig as well as me. Up to a certain point, the sound I aim to make is for the band and the audience. After that the rest is for me. If others appreciate it then great, but if I'm happy and confident I'll play better, and that's what is going to get me the gigs.

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On 29/01/2019 at 23:49, Rich said:

Negative GAS? So that means you really really want to get rid of it..? :lol:

Close...I would be quite happy to get rid of two others now. Two or three bass guitars is the absolute max I could ever see wanting for myself. I didn't ask for the new one, although if it had already been made like that and I saw it I just might have been GAS afflicted. And now that I have it, it's clearly already my #1. My friend knows me very well and he also played my former #1 a few times before he started this project.

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