HIWATT PA 200 DR203 Valve Power Amplifier

[guiguite]

hi there

I m wondering if a HIWATT PA 200 DR203 could make a good bass amp ? It s a 200watt all tube PA head from the 70's ( i think)

I m looking to buy a tube amp and in many topics in the forum it is said that old PA head are pretty good ( with maybe some mods to do)

what do you think and how much do you think it is reasonable to spend for one of them ?

cheers

[Kiwi]

I've seen some bass players use other makes of English valve PA head for a bass amp. You'll probably get a nice clean, powerful signal from it. I've never seen one for sale before so I can't help with a reliable price. But I'd expect somewhere between 400-700 quid, depending on reviews. Two hundred watts will be plenty for a gig though! Good score, especially if you plan on using more than one bass. Is it stereo or mono?

[bass_ferret]

Try it out. If you like it, buy it. If you dont like it buy it and try and sell it for a profit

[umph]

its going to be very loud clean and fat. 4 kt88's is always a good thing for bass!

[guiguite]

thx for all the comments. that helps me quite a lot :-)

[thetonequest]

I have one of these myself and it´s one of the best "bass" amps i´ve ever played through! :-)
It doesn´t have to be modded in any way and it sounds just as good (if not better) as a vintage Hiwatt custom 200 amp, so my advice is to go for it...

Edited February 21, 2010 by thetonequest

[slobluesine]

i used an AP 50 for years, wunnerful for Bass, should never have have sold it, old 50s & 100s go for top dolla these days

[alanbass1]

It will sound totally oldschool and if that's the sound you are after (think Free) you will be onto a winner.

[kopplog2]

hi guys.

I guess, I´ll buy one [url="http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?p=9583202#post9583202"]too[/url]
what do you think? how´s the sound?

kopplog

[Beer of the Bass]

Old valve PA amps can be ace for bass. I have a 100 watt Carlsbro, which I like the sound of as much as any other similar size valve head I've tried. I modded one channel to a Fender style tone stack for a bit of variety, but the stock channels (which are flatter) are fine too. And given that a 100 watt valve amp is useable at surprising volumes, 200 watts should go a long way...