Help choosing Head / Cab

[BassAdder60]

Yes prefer a head plus cab ( for storage I can keep cab in garage and head indoors )

Never liked leaving amps in garage over winter etc 

 

[ern500evo]

There’s a GK MB800 and Barefaced big one in the classifieds at the moment. Combined price of £675, that would be more than adequate, power wise. I had the 500w MB Fusion, playing in a fairly loud band with two guitars, and never found it a struggle volume wise 

[Lozz196]

Bargain of the year imo on Ebay at present, Ashdown ABM1000 and ABM410 for £500 (plus £25 postage). 
 

 

[peteb]

I would keep an eye on the Amps & Cabs For Sale section and look for a 410 cab and a hybrid amp (at least 400-500W). 

There's an old SWR SM900 on sale here for £325 (brilliant amp) and a couple of MB LM3s for £250 / £300. I'm not a bit fan of Ashdown, but you can't go far wrong with an ABM1000 and matching 410 cab for £500. 

If you can stretch your budget a bit, there is a Mesa Boogie Big Block for £500 and you could probably pick up a decent 410 for £300. 

If you're not too bothered about really lightweight gear, there is plenty of choice of great amps around for not a lot of money. 

[BassAdder60]

Thanks to the great suggestions and help.

Ive decided to wait until the new year and see if playing out live returns 

Decided to invest in a new head and second hand 115 cab to start with 

[cetera]

I'd give the 1x15 cab a miss and go for a 2x12 for the best of solid low end, with plenty of mid punch and some treble sparkle if you need it. There's a fantastic Genz Benz 2x12 in the for sale section that is probably the loudest/lightest/best value for money 2x12 out there.

Add a head of your choice to that and you'll be laughing....

Edited December 9, 2020 by cetera

[peteb]

1 hour ago, cetera said:

I'd give the 1x15 cab a miss and go for a 2x12 for the best of solid low end, with plenty of mid punch and some treble sparkle if you need it. There's a fantastic Genz Benz 2x12 in the for sale section that is probably the loudest/lightest/best value for money 2x12 out there.

Add a head of your choice to that and you'll be laughing....

Personally I would recommend a 4x10 for the type of music the OP wants to use it for, but I would agree that a 1x15 is going to struggle

[BassAdder60]

The plan is start with 115 cab 8 ohm and add a 210 8 ohm cab later 

[machinehead]

41 minutes ago, BassAdder27 said:

The plan is start with 115 cab 8 ohm and add a 210 8 ohm cab later 

The perceived wisdom is that you'd be better to have two cabs the same.  Try a search on the forum.

Frank.

[peteb]

10 minutes ago, machinehead said:

The perceived wisdom is that you'd be better to have two cabs the same.  Try a search on the forum.

Frank.

Certainly having two cabs with the same speakers eliminates phase issues as all the speakers are doing the same thing at the same time. A few years ago I had a set of SWR cabs with a 4x10 and a 1x18. I replaced the 1x18 with an identical 4x10 and the difference was very noticeable. 

[gjones]

2 hours ago, BassAdder27 said:

The plan is start with 115 cab 8 ohm and add a 210 8 ohm cab later 

A secondhand barefaced compact, is capable of going very loud. I've gigged mine with a 500w head, with some shed builder drummers and it was more than loud enough on it's own.

It was advertised as being as loud as a 4x10.

If you bought one, you probably won't need another cab.

Edited December 10, 2020 by gjones

[BassAdder60]

Trying to keep costs down so will look for a couple of 2x10 cabs in the new year.

Barefaced look good but way too pricey for my needs I think 

I’m leaning towards Ashdown at this stage 

 

Edited December 10, 2020 by BassAdder27

[jimbartlett]

I owned two One10s from Barefaced and they were very good, I loved them. I needed to sell to raise some cash at the time. When I had some money again, I went with the Trace Elf 1x10 cab and I have to say, it doesn’t sound much different to my ears. Lightweight, loud, sounds great and built like a tank.

https://peavey.com/trace-elliot-1x10-speaker-cabinet/p/03616930

[naxos10]

PMT look to have an Ashdown Retroglide 800 at £275 pair this with a Barefaced cab like The Big One and you can choose the tone the like for any venue. Light and easy to carry and made in the UK to boot.

[BassAdder60]

Ok guys I’m still looking but I think it’s between the following two amps

LM3 Markbass

Ashdown Rootmaster 500 Evo 2 head 

For good punchy full sounds which one ?

bear in mind I had an LM3 before and only an older ABM 300 head some years earlier 

Decided to get this very soon 

[peteb]

A LM3 will work in pretty much any situation - very clean sounding, transparent & plenty of power (I own one). Sounds better in the mix than listening to it on its own, if that makes any sense!

No idea about the Ashdown... 

[Lozz196]

The Ashdown RM500 is a great amp, it’s fuller sounding than the Markbass, has better eq points - imo of course - and with both drive and compression as well it is much more versatile. Having had both amps, you could get the Ashdown to do what the Markbass does, you couldn’t get the Markbass to do what the Ashdown does. Also, due to the pre-shape feature on the RM500 it can get into ABM territory.

They're both good amps though, get a good deal turn up on either and I don’t think you’d be disappointed.
 

Edited December 11, 2020 by Lozz196

[walshy]

Im selling an almost brand new ABM600 if you're interested?

[lownote]

My history is Ashdown and Markbass.  I love the MB sound (it is distinctive if you play with the EQ enough), and entirely reliable and robust.  Or was until I dropped my Little Mark 2 from table height to a concrete floor.  Then you discover that no one will fix a class D head except for a sum equal to the national debt. OTOH, Ashdown are bigger and heavier (but entirely manageable), can be dirt cheap for older ones, have great sound, are reliable and robust, and if you do drop it on a concrete floor Ashdown elves will fix it for you for an old sock and a tin of biscuits. 

For cabs I use Phil Jones, 4x7 + 2x7, but they're  bit niche and perhaps not everyone's cup of tea.

And I live in Suffolk too.  

Edited December 11, 2020 by lownote12

[BassAdder60]

30 minutes ago, walshy said:

Im selling an almost brand new ABM600 if you're interested?

Can I ask why you are selling ??

They are more expensive than the RM500 heads I think ? £459 new 

 

[walshy]

4 minutes ago, BassAdder27 said:

Can I ask why you are selling ??

They are more expensive than the RM500 heads I think ? £459 new 

 

Yeah I have the CTM300 that is my gigging amp and the Helix should it all fail at a gig! The ABM600 is amazing, I love it but its done 1 gig since I got it. Its on the for sale section if you want pics/info

[bazzbass]

if you are under 40, buy an old heavy rig for cheap.

otherwise, go small and light.

 

Brands don't matter much.

 

Smallest is an Elf 200w head into their 10" cab that weighs 8kg. Add a second cab. Small, light, LOUD. has a seriously good DI out as well.

 

Markbass Vintage 500w head is killer, has a working tube in the preamp.Gets that old school tube warmth.

 

GK, Ampeg, make heads at many price levels as do Peavey and Hartke. All are good working amps.

 

[stevie]

19 hours ago, BassAdder27 said:

Ok guys I’m still looking but I think it’s between the following two amps

LM3 Markbass

Ashdown Rootmaster 500 Evo 2 head 

For good punchy full sounds which one ?

bear in mind I had an LM3 before and only an older ABM 300 head some years earlier 

Decided to get this very soon 

In my search for a lightweight head, I had an LM3 for a while. It was OK but I prefer my current Ashdown RM500. It's certainly punchier.

On the matter of cabs, a half-decent 15" will be fine for "small to medium pubs and clubs". A used one is normally a very good buy at the moment because they're not flavour of the month.

 

[alexa3020]

I’ve just gone through this myself and ended up with Ashdown ABM head and Barefaced cab. Well happy with my rig.

Of all the class D heads I tried, I thought the Aguilar th was the best, but the ashdown rm was good, as was markbass lm3. 
if weight is not an issue, obviously I’d recommend ashdown Abm evo iv, the other head that caught my attention was the Handbox R400. Unless you could try one you’d be going off YouTube and bc reviews, as I’m not sure anyone stocks in uk. There is an extensive thread on here.

Good luck

[BassAdder60]

Decision was made over the weekend

Gone for the Ampeg PF800 and initially a single PF115LF cab 

I think I can keep levels down using single cab and add second PF115LF when I want more from the rig 

For rock / blues etc I think this will be good paired with a PBass