Gully35 Posted January 18, 2022 Share Posted January 18, 2022 Hello just after some advice. Was looking at the two ampeg tube amps primarily to achieve a good recording sound in the studio. Does the PF-20T cut it? Or is it worth shelling out the extra £300 for the PF-50T? I've read some reviews which state the PF50T isn't loud enough anyway to gig so was wondering is it worth the additional cost for the pad and few extra dials? Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretmeister Posted January 18, 2022 Share Posted January 18, 2022 What's the rest of the recording set up? 99% of bass recordings are direct, with plugins these days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gully35 Posted January 18, 2022 Author Share Posted January 18, 2022 Normally the cab is mic'd and a DI out from past experience. I know there is a trans DI out on the ampegs which apparently is a good job. The £300 is a big difference. I could use the PF20 for home practice also which I guess would sound nice. You always get drawn to the bigger option though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigRedX Posted January 18, 2022 Share Posted January 18, 2022 Even if you take your rig in and get the engineer to mic one or more of the speakers up, they'll also take a DI from the head and another direct from the bass. When it comes to getting the bass sound, a good engineer will use what they could hear in the live room as a reference; but you have no way of knowing how the final bass sound in the mix was created and could just as easily be the direct DI from the bass with plug-ins on it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretmeister Posted January 18, 2022 Share Posted January 18, 2022 2 hours ago, Gully35 said: Normally the cab is mic'd and a DI out from past experience. I know there is a trans DI out on the ampegs which apparently is a good job. The £300 is a big difference. I could use the PF20 for home practice also which I guess would sound nice. You always get drawn to the bigger option though! In that case I wouldn't bother at all (unless you just want to have the amp because it's fun!) Go direct - use one of the many Ampeg plugins and tweak as much as you like after you've recorded the part already. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bunion Posted January 18, 2022 Share Posted January 18, 2022 Spend the cash and get a Noble preamp/Di happy days 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gully35 Posted January 18, 2022 Author Share Posted January 18, 2022 11 minutes ago, Bunion said: Spend the cash and get a Noble preamp/Di happy days I think I seen Sean Hurley with one of those on YouTube. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bunion Posted January 18, 2022 Share Posted January 18, 2022 (edited) yes Sean Hurley has a video out there too it is worth plugging in the headphones Edited January 18, 2022 by Bunion 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gully35 Posted January 18, 2022 Author Share Posted January 18, 2022 Some bit of kit that. Only thing is I can mess around with the Ampeg’s at home for some tubeyness, so I couldn’t totally justify picking one up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramirez Posted January 22, 2022 Share Posted January 22, 2022 I have a PF20T and the 112HLF cab for studio use (I run a studio and I'm a recording engineer) It's nice, and the fact that it acts as a standalone (albeit bulky!) DI/preamp without a cab attached is a very nice feature. It's not very loud, but I didn't expect it to be - if I want to gig it it I can connect one of the XLR outs to a powered cab (another advantage of being able to run the amp without a speaker load), though I usually use IEMs when possible. I did consider the 50, but I read somwhere that the 20 was apparently a bit closer to a B15. Who knows. It makes a very neat pair with the cab, so if you want something for studio recording and a good amp just for playing through then it's a very nice (but expensive, and simple) option. As others have said though, mic'ing a cab is not always done, and even if done, not always used. I have a bit of a love/hate thing with mic'ing bass amps, but the little 112HLF does what I want a cab to do nicely (I prefer it to the SVT-212AV at the studio.) We have an Ampeg V4B at the studio as well. I haven't tested them side by side much, but for me it doesn't offer much over the PF20 apart from the obvious (Ultra Lo/Hi and selectable mid frequencies), but is obviously much more giggable. I'll have to do test soon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretmeister Posted January 23, 2022 Share Posted January 23, 2022 On 18/01/2022 at 20:06, Gully35 said: I think I seen Sean Hurley with one of those on YouTube. The one that made me laugh most was the vid about his vintage B15 and his settings when it was clear the recorded signal was from his board! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beans-on-toast Posted January 27, 2022 Share Posted January 27, 2022 Both the 20T and 50T are reported to record well in a studio. The PF-50T offers more tonal variation and more headroom. With a PF-20T, you can compensate for that with DAW plugins. Both have the same basic James tone circuit for bass and treble. When I play through an amp, I look for it to inspire me while I’m playing. I like the sound to be there at that point. So for me, the tone out of the speaker is important. The speaker cabinet is important. Both the Ampeg 12 and 15 cabs are good products, it comes down to personal taste. It helps to raise the cabinet close to ear level for better monitoring. How you mic the cabinet is also important, close or a few feet away. If close, where on the speaker should the mic be placed. Which mic to use. A lot to work out to optimize your sound. Some helpful information here: https://www.talkbass.com/wiki/tips-tricks-and-modifications/#23-miking-a-cabinet Others have mentioned mixing a DI with a mic’ed cab. When doing this it’s important to ensure that the two tracks are time aligned to avoid cancellation of parts of the signals. This isn’t a big deal to do in the DAW. DI has advantages in that it can compensate for low frequency roll-off that. mic may have. Not all mics used to capture bass have roll-off issues. A mic’ed cab sound with some air between the speaker and the mic also has its advantages. There are always pros and cons to consider and there is no right or wrong answer. Bottom line, get the amp that you can best afford and make the most of it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewebow Posted June 27, 2022 Share Posted June 27, 2022 On 18/01/2022 at 19:54, Bunion said: Spend the cash and get a Noble preamp/Di happy days How much to get a noble Di imported these days and what is the wait time on that!!? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretmeister Posted June 27, 2022 Share Posted June 27, 2022 (edited) 1 hour ago, thewebow said: How much to get a noble Di imported these days and what is the wait time on that!!? $1264 inc shipping to UK = about £1036 as of this morning's exchange rate. + import on the item + vat on the item AND on the shipping + handling charge = roughly £1300 to your door. EDIT - waiting list is 35 weeks. There's an urgent build option for 6 weeks for an extra $580 / £472 and VAT will apply to that as well - about £566 on top. Edited June 27, 2022 by fretmeister Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thewebow Posted June 27, 2022 Share Posted June 27, 2022 Anyone know whether there is an English maker doing something similar? I mean you could buy a used jules Monique for £1050! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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