hey there!
this is my first post, been lurking around here a while...
I am in the market for a new amp, my little peavy max 126 has run its course. My problem is this- i'm looking for an amp that can play along side a medium sized band for practice and maybe small gigs, i would like to spend under 500 dollars.
I do not know the first thing about amps. In this price range, is it better to look at combos, or are a head and cabinet a better way to go? What brands should i avoid?
I want a fat bassy, tone more suited for funk than for say, metal.
what is the ampeg sound people talk about. or the orange sound for that matter?
thanks for your time and patience. BASS
new here, need help with amps.
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Fretless19
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Tue Jun 05, 2012 1:09 pm
- Location: michigan
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FretLessSince68
- Posts: 307
- Joined: Tue Dec 19, 2006 2:29 am
- Location: On an Island, WA, USA
First, buy a used amp in good condition to save money.
Your needs appear to point towards a 2x10 combo. An Eden Metro would serve, if lucky you may find one in your price range. An Eden Nemesis 2x10 combo would also do the job and usually cost less. There are many similar units from various makers that should fit the bill, many are good, some are junk, use your ears.
If you are planning to move up to a larger rig (later) such as (2) 4x10's then a combo may not serve as well as a separate head/cab would. If you buy a head adequate for medium to somewhat larger situations (say around 400 - 500 watts) then you could use it with a smaller speaker too, such as a 2x10 or 1x15.
Since you want the classic bass tone a 1x15 might serve you well. For medium to somewhat larger situations the classic R&B bass rig has been 2x15's. For fretless I prefer light cone 15's over big monster heavy 15's. There is a tone difference but you loose power handling capacity with the light cone drivers. For the R&B tone you might want to sacrifice the fretless tone thing and go for power and thump. If you want power and fretless tone you may need to go with more drivers such as a 4x10 or two 4x10's.
These days I have moved to 2x12 boxes as they combine the faster response of 10's and the better air moving potential of 15's.
The bottom line really is using your ear to see if the amp/cab gives you the sound you are looking for. I would advise getting a 24 hour return agreement with the seller so you can test it in another sound environment.
There is a fairly long thread on this site about amps and speaker cabinets.
The "Ampeg sound" really describes the sound propagation characteristics of the cabinet designs they have been producing combined with their amp head tonal characteristics. To sum it up - the Ampeg sound has a slight low end efficiency peak at about 250Hz, present and audible mid bass response (350 Hz - 900Hz) and diminished high frequency above 3KHz. Excepting their newer designs that have built in tweeters.
I hope this helps.
Your needs appear to point towards a 2x10 combo. An Eden Metro would serve, if lucky you may find one in your price range. An Eden Nemesis 2x10 combo would also do the job and usually cost less. There are many similar units from various makers that should fit the bill, many are good, some are junk, use your ears.
If you are planning to move up to a larger rig (later) such as (2) 4x10's then a combo may not serve as well as a separate head/cab would. If you buy a head adequate for medium to somewhat larger situations (say around 400 - 500 watts) then you could use it with a smaller speaker too, such as a 2x10 or 1x15.
Since you want the classic bass tone a 1x15 might serve you well. For medium to somewhat larger situations the classic R&B bass rig has been 2x15's. For fretless I prefer light cone 15's over big monster heavy 15's. There is a tone difference but you loose power handling capacity with the light cone drivers. For the R&B tone you might want to sacrifice the fretless tone thing and go for power and thump. If you want power and fretless tone you may need to go with more drivers such as a 4x10 or two 4x10's.
These days I have moved to 2x12 boxes as they combine the faster response of 10's and the better air moving potential of 15's.
The bottom line really is using your ear to see if the amp/cab gives you the sound you are looking for. I would advise getting a 24 hour return agreement with the seller so you can test it in another sound environment.
There is a fairly long thread on this site about amps and speaker cabinets.
The "Ampeg sound" really describes the sound propagation characteristics of the cabinet designs they have been producing combined with their amp head tonal characteristics. To sum it up - the Ampeg sound has a slight low end efficiency peak at about 250Hz, present and audible mid bass response (350 Hz - 900Hz) and diminished high frequency above 3KHz. Excepting their newer designs that have built in tweeters.
I hope this helps.
One good note makes my day.