New GK Fusion S heads

[Al Krow]

The new range Legacy heads looked really good.

These Fusion S heads, with their hybrid tube pre / class D power format for me go one step further.

If they are anything like as good as my Mesa M6 but one quarter the weight, I think the prospect of my joining any new @Sibob 2020 gear abstinence challenge is already looking doubtful! 

https://www.gallien-krueger.com/fusion-s-heads

 

[HazBeen]

Rather a different tonal character between the Mesa and GK preamp approach though.

[Al Krow]

19 minutes ago, HazBeen said:

Rather a different tonal character between the Mesa and GK preamp approach though.

I'm sure that's right. Are you able to elaborate? 

[HazBeen]

GK is more aggressive, more pronounced high mids, and “glassy” top. Mesa is rounder or warmer, more lows and low mids.

Both I happen to like, but with Mesa I generally cut Lows a little bit, GK I cut highs quite a bit.

[mcnach]

11 hours ago, HazBeen said:

Rather a different tonal character between the Mesa and GK preamp approach though.

 

indeed, pretty different animals

[Merton]

I am going to have to make a hugely concerted effort to stay away from retailers which stock these next year.

Apart from the Ashdown RM series which I adore, my old GK MB Fusion was the best class D head I’ve used - I’d rather not allow my head to be turned again as my five amp heads currently owner is already four too many for the amount of gigs I do 🤣

[Merton]

PS - I think I actually prefer the aesthetic of the Legacy heads as it barks back to the classic GK heads of old. The Fusion S heads are very dark, though I suspect the light up controls will be a thing of beauty

Edited November 24, 2019 by Merton

[Al Krow]

39 minutes ago, Merton said:

Apart from the Ashdown RM series which I adore, my old GK MB Fusion was the best class D head I’ve used 

Although I've never had the pleasure of playing one, I've only really heard good things about the GK MB Fusion heads. I've always been a fan of the hybrid amp format and with 3 x 12Ax7 tubes in the pre, this is a 'full on' valve pre. 

[Jakester]

And it appears they go down to 2 ohms...

[cetera]

I'll be interested to try/hear these. I love my new GK Legacy800 and get plenty of growl from it. I can't see how these are going to sound any better for what I personally need... I'm guessing they probably just have more overdrive on tap? Regardless, being GK, they will sound excellent - of that I have no doubt!

[Radchenko]

Looks great, but I'm thinking about possible loud fan noisy.

[gjones]

33 minutes ago, Radchenko said:

Looks great, but I'm thinking about possible loud fan noisy.

My GK MB500 and GKMB 800 don't get particularly warm when I gig them, I assume because they're digital. I've never noticed the fans.

Edited November 27, 2019 by gjones

[dave_bass5]

Damn you mr Krow 🙂

Now i really have GAS for a new GK head. I had just talked myself out of the other Legacy heads, as being too similar to my MB800, but these.......

My MB800 fan is very, very noisy when it kicks in. It seems to kick in very quickly, although the head doesn't seem to get too hot. Not a problem at gigs, but even the band notice it at rehearsals. 

EDIT: Ah, just seen the price for the 800watt. Too much for me, I'm out. 

Edited November 27, 2019 by dave_bass5

[Al Krow]

Yeah they are pricey Mr @dave_bass5. But they do look good! 

The new DG M900 Mk2 have pretty silent running and they and the Mk1s will deliver all the power you need. 

And @fretmeister, when he is not crying by the letterbox waiting on his Boss SY-1 to arrive poor chap, is loving his new Markbass head which seems to have built on the excellent LM3 platform with much better EQ centre points and that much loved MB warmth. 

[fretmeister]

Certainly am - not taken my DG head to rehearsal since I got the Marcus Limited. Just take that and a mini board with a Thumpinator, compressor and a tuner.

Very happy.

Just not with Boss!  

[fretmeister]

I cant find prices for the new GKs.

 

What are they?

[Al Krow]

Just $ prices available on the GK website (see my link in the OP) 

But premium pricing, no question. 

Edited January 27, 2020 by Al Krow

[fretmeister]

 

 

Video up.

 

Sounds better than the Legacy I reckon. I love that proper chunky clean with a bit of grit thing.

[thodrik]

Three preamp tubes? Foot switchable overdrive with additional tone shaping? So in features it is similar to my Mesa Big Block but a fraction of the size and weight. 

I'm not buying anything soon but this is the kind of head I would be interested. Basically I'm putting this post in to see how folk get on when the try and buy these amps. 

[Al Krow]

Damn gents, I'd totally forgotten about these...and now you've reminded me with that clip and  'sales pitch' that they do sound very tasty!

Particularly if, as you allude, they are genuinely going to stack up against Mesa amps. 

Edited January 27, 2020 by Al Krow

[dave_bass5]

1 hour ago, thodrik said:

Three preamp tubes? Foot switchable overdrive with additional tone shaping? So in features it is similar to my Mesa Big Block but a fraction of the size and weight. 

I'm not buying anything soon but this is the kind of head I would be interested. Basically I'm putting this post in to see how folk get on when the try and buy these amps. 

That more or less describes the MB Fusion 800 head as well, without much of the extra EQ options  

Edited January 27, 2020 by dave_bass5

[thodrik]

9 minutes ago, dave_bass5 said:

That more or less describes the MB Fusion 800 head as well, without much of the extra EQ options  

Looks class. I’ve only tried the RB heads, which I think are great as well. I’m not familiar with the Fusion line to be fair.

[dave_bass5]

4 minutes ago, thodrik said:

Looks class. I’ve only tried the RB heads, which I think are great as well. I’m not familiar with the Fusion line to be fair.

Ive never used the Fusion line either, but i know a few people that have them. I know they arent as sophisticated as the new Legacy S line, but sometimes i find all those EQ bells and whistles are a bit wasted. 

The new Legacy S line  is bound to sound better though. £150 cheaper and I'd be tempted, as i love my MB heads but could do with a bit more. 

[scrumpymike]

On 23/11/2019 at 15:30, HazBeen said:

GK is more aggressive, more pronounced high mids, and “glassy” top. Mesa is rounder or warmer, more lows and low mids.

Both I happen to like, but with Mesa I generally cut Lows a little bit, GK I cut highs quite a bit.

I have a Fusion 800 (not the S) and a Subway 800+.  Apart from the occasional tweak to suit the venue, both give me the gig sound I'm after with EQ knobs at 12 o'clock and the Mesa hi-boost switch pretty much always on (through 2 x BF SC Gen 3 cab's btw).

[dave_bass5]

Bit of a review over on TB. This is what was posted.

' OK, I bought one, the 800 Watt version.

Quick & Dirty Impressions:

- It sounds amazing right out of the box with no effort at all.
- The owners manual in my box is clearly not a "final" version, and the descriptions of each knob's feature are pretty unsatisfying. I've been playing bass since dinosaurs walked the earth, and there are quite a few head scratchers in these descriptions. Hopefully they will update this. They could take a huge lesson from Mesa Boogie in this area.
- Along these lines, it is going to take me some time to figure out how all of the features work and interact with each other.
- The plastic knobs feel a little cheap to me. The "push" engage feature of the controls, gives a more flexible (almost wiggly) feel to the knob. I don't know the mechanics behind this, but no one wants to feel a wiggly anything on their amp. We will see how they hold up.
- I tried some of the presets from the demo version, and although they sounded different in my house (different bass, recording interface), they sounded similar and quite good. I used an active, passive and piezo bass, and was happy with the sound using all of them.
- When using headphones, there were a couple items that I didn't love. 1) The Standby Switch doesn't work through the headphone send. So even though the light changes from blue to white when you engage it, the audio still comes through the cans. This was an unpleasant discovery when I turned my amp off while wearing my phones and received a squeal/squelch into my earbone. 2) no matter how I set the Trim, Normal and Master volumes for a clean sound, I could hear a low level distortion in the signal. Maybe it was my phones, I will check it out through the speakers and other headphones, and see if I can still hear it.
- The Overdrive Channel: It has its own foot-switch and cable which is nice and works well. The thing with the overdrive channel is it is not programmable, so even though I can preset the Overdrive Level, Edge/Cut, and Level/Body settings, I have to use whatever other settings are currently on the rest of the amp. So there is not much opportunity to use the switching to get a very different sound and EQ, just the same sound you are currently using with overdrive added. I honestly am not too crazy about the sounds I am getting from this section, but I am still in a learning curve. But for example, the Level/Body features are on the same clickable knob. So if I want to set my overall output level, I cannot effectively use the "Body" feature because that will also raise or lower the output. So if you like the body level high, your output will be too loud. Yes, I can adjust the master or send volume, but then when I click off the overdrive channel back to the Normal channel, my volume will be too low. I can imagine that I will not get much use out of this overdrive channel, unless I have a eureka moment.
- Small item: The Standby light is ALWAYS on when the amp is plugged in to power. It goes off when you go out of standby mode, but when I am done playing and pack up, that damn white light is still shining like a beacon to those lost at sea! I wish I could turn it off.

So, still early, still exploring, but I can confidently say that the amp sounds really, really good, is light and portable, looks amazing. It sounds like a GK, has balls, edge and power, and I like it a lot. '