Best Trace Head

[shine182]

Hi,

So, thinking about purchasing a more retro solid state bass head. Been using valve heads for years but somehow missing that grit you get from driving a solid state. Not after mega Watts for this purpose, but equally don't want a total fart box. Always loved trace gear, particularly 130 combo I had. Albeit sporting a slightly compromised speaker enclosure. Anyway to the point, I lost track of all the variations trace put out in head versions, so if you were to suggest the best 150/300watt trace head they made, what would it be?

Thanks 

Alex 

[TheGreek]

I have two 150 SMC and a 300 SMC (amongst others) - completely happy with them.

I don't think that there is "a best" TE head - they're all good AFAIK.

[shine182]

44 minutes ago, TheGreek said:

I have two 150 SMC and a 300 SMC (amongst others) - completely happy with them.

I don't think that there is "a best" TE head - they're all good AFAIK.

That's the one with compression isn't it! They came a little later I believe and indeed could be the best 150/300watt heads they made? What about the AH / SM / GP7 series I ponder? 

[Deedee]

As @TheGreek has said, there are are many different models and eras to choose from.

If you're not wanting to go for one of the larger rather lovely UV lit 3U heads, my favourite 2U model is the AH250 GP12 SMX. Plenty of power, easy carry, a very (very) subtle valve in the pre, dual band compressor, pre-shapes 1 & 2 for blending in with the graphic and my favourite feature the EQ balance with which you can effectively 'tilt' the EQ with a simple turn of the knob to suit the room without having to mess with your graphic.

[TheGreek]

I can't for the life of me remember who it is/was, but one of the members here used to work at Trace Elliot when they were based in Essex.

I remember as they sold me their TE Varsity jacket...not available for sale to members of the public. Paul Stevens told me he donated his to his local charity shop...

[shine182]

29 minutes ago, Deedee said:

As @TheGreek has said, there are are many different models and eras to choose from.

If you're not wanting to go for one of the larger rather lovely UV lit 3U heads, my favourite 2U model is the AH250 GP12 SMX. Plenty of power, easy carry, a very (very) subtle valve in the pre, dual band compressor, pre-shapes 1 & 2 for blending in with the graphic and my favourite feature the EQ balance with which you can effectively 'tilt' the EQ with a simple turn of the knob to suit the room without having to mess with your graphic.

Ohh I like the sound of that! Could certainly entertain a valve pre also. That's the thing, there's seem so many versions to choose from I'm a little lost. I pondered an ashdown ABM for a while simply because there's not many bells and whistles so to speak, but playing a mates, it's not quite what I'm looking for. Perhaps the only way is to just dive in and give one a whirl given they they are all pretty much incredible value. There's a valve twin on here that I'm trying hard not to buy, but it might get the better of me. 

[stewblack]

2 hours ago, shine182 said:

Ohh I like the sound of that! Could certainly entertain a valve pre also. That's the thing, there's seem so many versions to choose from I'm a little lost. I pondered an ashdown ABM for a while simply because there's not many bells and whistles so to speak, but playing a mates, it's not quite what I'm looking for. Perhaps the only way is to just dive in and give one a whirl given they they are all pretty much incredible value. There's a valve twin on here that I'm trying hard not to buy, but it might get the better of me. 

Plus one for this. I bought one recently best Trace head I've ever owned. Two others went up for sale not long after it arrived. 

[Lfalex v1.1]

Another vote for an SMX of some sort. I really liked mine.

[paulmcnamara]

Trace Hexa Valve....... pure heaven..............

V. Rare now!

[stewblack]

Keep an eye on the for sale threads here, there are often quality Trace Elliot heads going for an absolute bargain.

 

 

*cough*

[paulmcnamara]

My original and first pro Trace rig with the AH350 115 & 210, then at The Bass Centre (Wapping) annual sale in the mid 90's I picked up a NOS Hexa Valve amp for about a third off the retail price.... a great upgrade! Pics are quite old..... Both amps were great and worth trying to pick up when they occasionally appear........

 

Edited May 12, 2020 by paulmcnamara

[shine182]

6 hours ago, paulmcnamara said:

My original and first pro Trace rig with the AH350 115 & 210, then at a Bass Centre (Wapping) annual sale in the mid 90's I picked up a NOS Hexa Valve amp for about a third off the retail price.... a great upgrade! Pics are quite old..... Both amps were great and worth trying to pick up when they occasionally appear........

 

They look like great rigs! I enquired about the twin valve for sale on here, but the seller is too nervous to have me arrange a couriered and apparently it has quite a noticeable hum? Is that your experience with the hexa valve? Was it noisy on idle? Thanks 

[paulmcnamara]

No, it wasn't noisy at all, you could hear the fans doing their job but no hum.... maybe an earth loop on the Twin?

 

Regards, Paul.

[ryancowell25]

+1 for the AH250 GP12 SMX.

i won't part with mine 

[Daz39]

1 minute ago, ryancowell25 said:

+1 for the AH250 GP12 SMX.

i won't part with mine 

I had the same head too, for about 20yrs. Lovely tone shaping, just never got to use it loud: even volume 1 through a Trace 150w 15” cab was enough to get me told off.

[DiMarco]

Grit from driving a solid state? First time I ever heard that. Any grit from SS sounds flat and ugly in my book.

The SMX are hybrid amps and part of their charm is the little tube that's in their pre section making things sound more lively then any regular solid state can or will give you. The two band compressor in there does magic stuff in the total bandmix with your bass, too. Great amps which I do recommend.

Me I took it a bit further and now use the Hexa Valve (and a Cali'76cb compressor). Compared to any of my other amps (and I have owned a LOT of them) this one is miles beyond any of them. And at nearly 30 kilograms it damn well should be.

 

[shine182]

36 minutes ago, DiMarco said:

Grit from driving a solid state? First time I ever heard that. Any grit from SS sounds flat and ugly in my book.

The SMX are hybrid amps and part of their charm is the little tube that's in their pre section making things sound more lively then any regular solid state can or will give you. The two band compressor in there does magic stuff in the total bandmix with your bass, too. Great amps which I do recommend.

Me I took it a bit further and now use the Hexa Valve (and a Cali'76cb compressor). Compared to any of my other amps (and I have owned a LOT of them) this one is miles beyond any of them. And at nearly 30 kilograms it damn well should be.

 

I used to own a Elgen 100w solid state bass head and the girt, or let's just be honest the distortion it produced, when not pushed to the absolute limit was actually very musical, growly and compressed. I punted it on for £60 or so and find myself missing it some what Don't get me wrong valves are great and I'm a big fan, but I think there's somthing to be said for a good solid state preamp. Might investigate the new Orange little bass thing, but not a fan of class d poweramps after a nasty experience with an Ampeg portaflex! Older Trace Elliot gear has never failed to impress me. The AH250 GP12 SMX, after a little research, following recommendations on here, seems the best if all worlds! Now to find one lol

[thodrik]

I had a GP7 SM300 combo for about 15 years. Never let me down. 

I also had a GP12 SMX 300 for about 6 years. It was a more flexible amp than the  GP7 SM300, just for the extra EQ features alone. The dual compression was nice but I didn’t really use it as I felt it sucked out the low frequencies a bit. The valve feature on SMX added a tiny bit of warmth but there was no real drive or grit to speak of so I needed a pedal for that. Great amp though and was my main backup amp when I was touring. 

I got a V6 in 2013 though which I preferred to both the other Trace amps so the other Trace amps were sold. Nothing wrong with the amps but I had barely used them for years. The V6 does not deliver any of the classic hi-fi Trace Elliot clean tone and the EQ features are very limited but it is a fantastic amp for a deep valve warmth. So it is probably my favourite Trace amp as a result. 

[shine182]

43 minutes ago, thodrik said:

I had a GP7 SM300 combo for about 15 years. Never let me down. 

I also had a GP12 SMX 300 for about 6 years. It was a more flexible amp than the  GP7 SM300, just for the extra EQ features alone. The dual compression was nice but I didn’t really use it as I felt it sucked out the low frequencies a bit. The valve feature on SMX added a tiny bit of warmth but there was no real drive or grit to speak of so I needed a pedal for that. Great amp though and was my main backup amp when I was touring. 

I got a V6 in 2013 though which I preferred to both the other Trace amps so the other Trace amps were sold. Nothing wrong with the amps but I had barely used them for years. The V6 does not deliver any of the classic hi-fi Trace Elliot clean tone and the EQ features are very limited but it is a fantastic amp for a deep valve warmth. So it is probably my favourite Trace amp as a result. 

That's my fear, that a trace purchase will just be too clean. I suspect I'm searching for sound that a solidstate trace just can't produce! Now I've only used a Soundcity 120B and an Ampeg V4BH head for an extended period in the world of 'valves'. Perhaps I need to try something different that's valve based. I don't need big volume, just home recording and enjoyment really. Ashdown CTM 15's and 30's seem a little clanky and I don't want loads or drive. Orange terror bass heads seem a good option perhaps? Or a old 50watt Selmer? Any recommendations out there? 

[thodrik]

An Ashdown ABM has some similarities to  a classic Trace but is capable of a good amount of dirt. However it is not a Trace

The Peavey era 12 band series had a drive circuit that could get very dirty indeed. Is it a classic Trace Elliot amp? No, but they are nice amps. 
 

Myself, my main amp for the last ten years has actually been a Mesa Walkabout. It isn’t all valve but it sounds like it. 

[shine182]

1 hour ago, thodrik said:

An Ashdown ABM has some similarities to  a classic Trace but is capable of a good amount of dirt. However it is not a Trace

The Peavey era 12 band series had a drive circuit that could get very dirty indeed. Is it a classic Trace Elliot amp? No, but they are nice amps. 
 

Myself, my main amp for the last ten years has actually been a Mesa Walkabout. It isn’t all valve but it sounds like it. 

Yes, peavey might be a good shout. I'll look into that. In the back of my mind I've got it that the had a range of valve heads also, before the more recent stuff. Sure its all rare as hens teeth though. But an older SS Peavey might be just the ticket. Guess it will be a buy to try kind of thing at the moment tho. 

[thodrik]

12 hours ago, shine182 said:

Yes, peavey might be a good shout. I'll look into that. In the back of my mind I've got it that the had a range of valve heads also, before the more recent stuff. Sure its all rare as hens teeth though. But an older SS Peavey might be just the ticket. Guess it will be a buy to try kind of thing at the moment tho. 

I was meaning the later series of Trace Elliot amps that were released around 2006 once Peavey bought them from Gibson. You can find them second hand. 

However an old Peavey, SWR or Gallien Krueger amp might be more what you are looking for. 

[shine182]

2 hours ago, thodrik said:

I was meaning the later series of Trace Elliot amps that were released around 2006 once Peavey bought them from Gibson. You can find them second hand. 

However an old Peavey, SWR or Gallien Krueger amp might be more what you are looking for. 

Ahh I see, I'll look into that, although after all my blurb about SS I think I've found what I'm looking for in Ashdown's CTM 30 Little Stubby. The EQ seems a little more refined and the drive much more tamed than the 15. It's got an out for recording and I can see it sitting very nicely on my old Ashdown ABM 410 plus no class d power section, being all valve, and at a very reasonable price. 

[thodrik]

1 hour ago, shine182 said:

Ahh I see, I'll look into that, although after all my blurb about SS I think I've found what I'm looking for in Ashdown's CTM 30 Little Stubby. The EQ seems a little more refined and the drive much more tamed than the 15. It's got an out for recording and I can see it sitting very nicely on my old Ashdown ABM 410 plus no class d power section, being all valve, and at a very reasonable price. 

The Little Stubbys are great amps! You can’t go wrong there. I would have that over a second hand Trace Elliot for home practice and recording.

[TheGreek]

48 minutes ago, thodrik said:

I would have that over a second hand Trace Elliot

Careful now...you'll have to move stealthfully through my neighbourhood with statements like that..😉😉