NJE Posted January 19, 2022 Share Posted January 19, 2022 (edited) I sold my amp and cab last year as I didn’t think I would gig again for a while, but some pals have been in touch and it looks like we will be having a get together in the next week or two. So I need an amp, but despite hours of browsing I just can’t decide, so I thought I’d seek ideas from the collective knowledge on here. I have up to £600 budget and here’s the guidelines: 1. Combos and Head/Cab setups considered 2. I am not overly keen on MarkBass 3. don’t mind Class D or something like an Ashdown ABM 4. 300w would be ok, but I’d prefer 500w 5. Collectively it can’t be too big, so ABM head and 1x12 would be cool or a lightweight 15 or 2x10 combo. 6. Used or New is fine 7. A frfr cab would be ok too So far I have got one idea which is the Fender Rumble 500, is there anything better? Edited January 19, 2022 by NJE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trueno Posted January 19, 2022 Share Posted January 19, 2022 Fender Rumble 500 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skybone Posted January 20, 2022 Share Posted January 20, 2022 (edited) Fender Rumble 500. Only about 300w with the combo, 500w with the extension cab. Light too. Ashdown RM500 or the OriginAL C210T 300. There's a few in the Amps For Sale section that look pretty good, the GR combo, or the MarkBass combo for example. Though for that kind of money, you could pick up a good head & cab. Plenty of older, big heads available, or a few Class D's. That Laney Nexus 400 rig looks very tempting. There's an RM500 head & cab as well (but maybe a bit far to collect). Edited January 20, 2022 by Skybone 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigwan Posted January 20, 2022 Share Posted January 20, 2022 Right now if it were me I'd go used QSC K12.2 and a behringer BDI21 if you needed a preamp... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NJE Posted January 20, 2022 Author Share Posted January 20, 2022 2 hours ago, Skybone said: Fender Rumble 500. Only about 300w with the combo, 500w with the extension cab. Light too. Ashdown RM500 or the OriginAL C210T 300. There's a few in the Amps For Sale section that look pretty good, the GR combo, or the MarkBass combo for example. Though for that kind of money, you could pick up a good head & cab. Plenty of older, big heads available, or a few Class D's. That Laney Nexus 400 rig looks very tempting. There's an RM500 head & cab as well (but maybe a bit far to collect). There are some good deals in the for sale section, but everything is quite a trek from me and I am so hesitant to use couriers and don’t have much time to drive and collect. It’s a real pain, pre kids I had so much more time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NJE Posted January 20, 2022 Author Share Posted January 20, 2022 5 minutes ago, Bigwan said: Right now if it were me I'd go used QSC K12.2 and a behringer BDI21 if you needed a preamp... Yeah I have been keeping an eye out or contemplating stretching the budget. Also contemplated a Yamaha DXR15 but I would have to order without trying. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Krow Posted January 20, 2022 Share Posted January 20, 2022 (edited) 12 hours ago, NJE said: So far I have got one idea which is the Fender Rumble 500, is there anything better? MB AC 121 Lite will deliver 500W through its own single 12" without an extension cab. One of the very few combos on the market that doesn't need an extension cab to deliver its full payload: was designed specifically to do this by having an extended speaker excursion. Mine easily kept up with a full rock band without breaking into a sweat for several years before I went down the separates route. Should be able to pick one up used for the top end of your budget. A quality top-end combo. Ooops scrap that! - Just re-read your OP and spotted your point (2) 😁 FWIW: my issues with MB combos have entirely been dealt with by using a presence EQ boost at 1.5kHz and 3.5kHz - removes the feeling that there is a blanket over the cab! If I had worked that out a few years back I would have held onto my AC 121 Lite. Edited January 20, 2022 by Al Krow 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodwind Posted January 20, 2022 Share Posted January 20, 2022 41 minutes ago, NJE said: Yeah I have been keeping an eye out or contemplating stretching the budget. Also contemplated a Yamaha DXR15 but I would have to order without trying. I'm weighing up the cheaper cousin a DBR12. Yamaha stuff is really good and you have access to a 4 year warranty. Having been in settings with QSC and RCF powered speakers going pop (or rather dead) the weak links are the power modules. I would be wary of buying any of these cheaper PA speakers second hand without a warranty as getting them repaired is a hassle. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skybone Posted January 20, 2022 Share Posted January 20, 2022 3 hours ago, NJE said: There are some good deals in the for sale section, but everything is quite a trek from me and I am so hesitant to use couriers and don’t have much time to drive and collect. It’s a real pain, pre kids I had so much more time! And money... 😄 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NJE Posted January 20, 2022 Author Share Posted January 20, 2022 1 hour ago, Skybone said: And money... 😄 Oh god yes! Who knew school uniforms were so expensive! 😄 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NJE Posted January 21, 2022 Author Share Posted January 21, 2022 22 hours ago, Al Krow said: Ooops scrap that! - Just re-read your OP and spotted your point (2) 😁 FWIW: my issues with MB combos have entirely been dealt with by using a presence EQ boost at 1.5kHz and 3.5kHz - removes the feeling that there is a blanket over the cab! If I had worked that out a few years back I would have held onto my AC 121 Lite. That is really interesting, I had an old LM2 and it was built like a tank, really quality bit of kit and worked flawlessly, but I just felt it was muffled in some way. I sold it and then got an EBS Reidmar through the same cab, and my exact words were “it sounds like I have taken a blanket off the cab”. Good to know it can be resolved because I have completely written off MB since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Al Krow Posted January 21, 2022 Share Posted January 21, 2022 (edited) 21 minutes ago, NJE said: That is really interesting, I had an old LM2 and it was built like a tank, really quality bit of kit and worked flawlessly, but I just felt it was muffled in some way. I sold it and then got an EBS Reidmar through the same cab, and my exact words were “it sounds like I have taken a blanket off the cab”. Good to know it can be resolved because I have completely written off MB since. Yeah I picked up a used CMD 121H a year or so back as a practice / back-up rig and it's a great bit of kit with that EQ hack in place. It's all down to MB cabs rolling off the high-end frequencies which gives them their characteristic warm sound combined with the older LM2/3 heads having a huge EQ gap between the high-mids centre point of 800Hz and the treble centre at 10 kHz. An EQ patch on my little Zoom B1-4 sorts it out pretty easily. The 121H has ooodles of headroom and you should be able to pick one up well within your budget. But maybe worth paying the extra for the AC 121 Lite (and also just still within your budget) - it's still one of the very best combos available IMO. Agreed about the build quality of MB gear. I, similarly, had zero issues during several years ownership and very regular use of my MB AC 121 Lite. Edited January 21, 2022 by Al Krow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gjones Posted January 21, 2022 Share Posted January 21, 2022 I recommend buying secondhand, as you can sell it for what you bought it for, if you latest endeavour is a damp squib. You can get more bang for your buck. Although my advice is never sell your gear, as you never know what's around the corner. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassAdder60 Posted January 21, 2022 Share Posted January 21, 2022 Ashdown RM500 head and ( to start with ) and Ashdown 115 cab You should be able to do that for approx £600 and have a great rig When things progress add a second cab Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted January 21, 2022 Share Posted January 21, 2022 Great suggestion, warm, powerful, can sharpen nicely if needed, on-board drive & compression, def worth a look. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted January 21, 2022 Share Posted January 21, 2022 44 minutes ago, BassAdder27 said: Ashdown RM500 head and ( to start with ) and Ashdown 115 cab You should be able to do that for approx £600 and have a great rig When things progress add a second cab There’s an 800 on the bay at present for £300 buy it now. Leaves £300 for a cab, plenty of good stuff out there for that. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.