Wilvies8184 Posted January 23, 2022 Share Posted January 23, 2022 Hi š Hoping for some advice please!Ā Need to get my first āproperā small bass rig having only ever needed low power amps for home practice. Im playing bass/lead vocals in a reasonably restrained blues rock power trio (no Animal style drum bashing or guitar to 11!). Have gigged as a guitarist for 20 years but never gigged on bass. Will be small venues or have PA support. As itās a trio I need to fill a lot of space with the bass! Needs to be as light as possible as I have issues lifting heavy stuff. Ā Iām on a pretty low budget right now, I would look to upgrade later on. Iām considering an Ashdown Rootmaster cab & the 300 watt OriginAL/Rootmaster head, Ampeg PF350 or Warwick Gnome 280. Running at 8 ohm, adding a second cab when needed. My concern is that the Ashdown guitar amps (& my partners bass amp) back in the day (circa 2006) weāre horrifically unreliable & Ive heard similar about the Ampeg PFs. Ā TLDR: Has Ashdown reliability improved in recent years? Anyone played a Gnome Pro 280/Ashdown OriginAL 300/Ampeg PF350 to compare? The rehearsal studio amp is an Ampeg PF500 & like the tone. Ā Any advice appreciated š Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted January 23, 2022 Share Posted January 23, 2022 Ashdown gear is both decent and reliable, Iāve had a good few and still have two (ABM600 & RM500). My first ABM600 I used for both weekly rehearsals and gigs at least once a week, plus a good few tours in that period as well, no issues. The Ampeg PF range issues as far as Iāve read never included the 350s - which from what Iāve also read donāt sound that similar to the 500. Ā Ā 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassAdder60 Posted January 23, 2022 Share Posted January 23, 2022 (edited) Definitely Ashdown for reliability and service ( when required )Ā Some good bargains to be hadĀ and find a 500w if you canĀ Ampeg PF350 ok but Ashdown would be better I feelĀ Thereās an Orange Little Bass Thing for sale on here that is a superb amp head and would also make a great choiceĀ Ive owned Ampeg PF800 nice amp and PF500 new last year but sent it back as a bit underpowered.Ā I own Ashdown ABM600 and they are superb amps and my spare amp is the Orange Little Bass Thing which is very loud and nice sounding. You are also right some of the older Ashdown stuff was a bit hit and miss. That Original head is a decent sounding head according to the reviews etc. Ā Edited January 23, 2022 by BassAdder27 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Dare Posted January 23, 2022 Share Posted January 23, 2022 If the budget is limited and you're looking to upgrade in the not too distant, buy used. I have to say that it's hard to combine budget, light and loud (you say you need to cover a lot with the bass in a power trio). Budget, loud and heavy? Can do. Ditto light, loud and expensive. If weight is an issue, use several smaller cabs, rather than one large one. Ā I've not heard of reliability issues with Ashdown and their backup is very good. Of course, if one is regularly pushing gear beyond its capabilities, all bets are off. I'd try some stuff and not decide on the basis of recommendation alone. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pirellithecat Posted January 23, 2022 Share Posted January 23, 2022 Plus 1 for the reliability of the Ashdown ABM 600 - I have one, I've done a few gigs with it and a lot of rehearsals - has a cover, but just transported in the boot of the car each week.Ā It's around 3 years old, it's good from the tonal flexibility point of view without being too complicated, it's loud, is "hefty" enough, and it's not too heavy.Ā Ā I've been tempted by others but so far not moved this on.Ā And the service from Ashdown is really really good!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
naxos10 Posted January 23, 2022 Share Posted January 23, 2022 Ashdown all the way, OriginAL or RM. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skybone Posted January 23, 2022 Share Posted January 23, 2022 Very reliable amps. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wilvies8184 Posted January 23, 2022 Author Share Posted January 23, 2022 Thanks all for the advice - you have reassured me that I donāt need to be concerned with Ashdownās reliability these days so may well go down that route š Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
40hz Posted January 24, 2022 Share Posted January 24, 2022 (edited) With Ashdown, even if something does happen, you can be sure to benefit from the best Customer Service in the business. I had an Electric Blue and Mag series back in the day. Use an RM from time to time at a rehearsal room and have recorded an album on an early ABM series. All fine except the Electric Blue, which had a common issue with a failed transformer, which was dealt with in an exemplary, swift manner, that other bass companies would do well to pay attention to. Edited January 24, 2022 by 40hz 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pbasspecial Posted January 27, 2022 Share Posted January 27, 2022 Ashdown 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted January 29, 2022 Share Posted January 29, 2022 There's some absolute bargains in the second hand market at the moment. Ashdown is the new "Peavey" in my eyes ... What I mean by that is when my kids start bands they'll be going to damp dinghy rehearsal rooms that will have Ashdown gear from the early 2000s still going strong and sounding amazing thirty plus years later. Ā I have used Ashdown for my revived gigging "career" in the last ten years. I like the sound of other amps, but you know where you are with an Ashdown. And as already mentioned, you can just call them and ask questions or get things sorted quickly.... Not that I've ever needed to. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeycrikey Posted January 29, 2022 Share Posted January 29, 2022 Ashdown studio 15. Weighs 11kg. Sounds great. Di out socket for PA support. But in overdrive effect.Ā Good EQ range. Pretty cheap new too 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
police squad Posted January 30, 2022 Share Posted January 30, 2022 i went from a pf-500 (which was dead reliable actually. The first one I bought went wrong but its replacement was perfect) I then switched to The Ashdown RM500 EVO II. It's superb, I love it and highly recommend it 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wilvies8184 Posted January 31, 2022 Author Share Posted January 31, 2022 22 hours ago, police squad said: i went from a pf-500 (which was dead reliable actually. The first one I bought went wrong but its replacement was perfect) I then switched to The Ashdown RM500 EVO II. It's superb, I love it and highly recommend it Ah thank you thatās good to know - I was eyeing up the RM500 EVO II yesterdayĀ š 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted January 31, 2022 Share Posted January 31, 2022 49 minutes ago, Wilvies8184 said: Ah thank you thatās good to know - I was eyeing up the RM500 EVO II yesterdayĀ š Def worth a look, they`re great amps 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretmeister Posted January 31, 2022 Share Posted January 31, 2022 2 hours ago, Wilvies8184 said: Ah thank you thatās good to know - I was eyeing up the RM500 EVO II yesterdayĀ š Ā I've had one for about 2 weeks now and it's great. Very pleased with it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stewblack Posted January 31, 2022 Share Posted January 31, 2022 Another RM500 lover here. In fact I've had three Ashdown amps, one of each and they're all amazing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted February 1, 2022 Share Posted February 1, 2022 What I'd say about the Rootmaster range is it's a very easy plug n play with any type of bass, intuitive controls that don't have cryptic names... It's just easy to get a good sound with any bass. Compare that to a lot of other amps, for example I can't get a good sound out of Orange amps with my Stingray, but plug in a P bass and it sounds phenomenal. But the EQ is the wrong way round and there's daft pictures above the knobs instead of words wot tell u wot it does. I can't deal with that, I need something that sounds great for any bass with just a quick knob tweak and off you go. That's the Rootmaster, plug n play, maybe tweak a knob. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quilly Posted February 2, 2022 Share Posted February 2, 2022 I use Ashdown all the time and if youāre willing to get a head / cab you can pick up ABMs second hand at quite reasonable prices. I had an ampeg pf350 and itās just underpoweredĀ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassAdder60 Posted February 2, 2022 Share Posted February 2, 2022 (edited) I too tried the Ampeg range PF500 and PF800 Great sounding amps but seem under powered compared to equiv. wattage Ashdown etcĀ Edited February 2, 2022 by BassAdder27 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quilly Posted February 2, 2022 Share Posted February 2, 2022 I had Genz Benz stuff in the past and I found them to be lightweight and decent sounding and cheap. I think they did a pretty good 2 * 10 combo.Ā 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wilvies8184 Posted February 4, 2022 Author Share Posted February 4, 2022 Thanks for all the responses - lot of love for Ashdown here! I was at practice with my other band last night where I only do vocals and the bass player turned up with an Ashdown RM800 - what an absolute beast! Sounds great! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassAdder60 Posted February 4, 2022 Share Posted February 4, 2022 Just seen Ashdown amps on Sky Arts Brian Johnson with Dave Grohl Foo Fighters at their studioĀ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.jpg.7e18f76540598a8efc0e6ca9be453059.jpg)
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.