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I didn't read the notes first so I was shocked at how much difference the Super Fifteen was making. It sounds by far the best there IMO, but then it might be possible to get somewhere near (or different, or better) with the eq on any of the other boxes that have it. My takeaway is that the Super Fifteen and the Sisma consistently sound the best and the Caveman sounds consistently the worst, with all the rest being somewhere in the middle, very similar and moving depending on the bass used. What immediately obvious though is how they all sound WAY more the same than different. Caveat: Youtube compression.

If we are talking modern class-d amps, I suspect that someone in the industry, probably an accountant, has decreed that 200w gives the best bang for your buck in an entry level bass head ( or combo). The amp designers also probably agree that 200w class-d should be just enough to gig with in a band not requiring a full blown FOH gig setup. If you take a company like ICE Power for example, the unit cost of a 50w, 100w, and 200w class d module is virtually identical. It's literally pennies of a difference. They are also all roughly the same size so will fit in a small box that needs only minimum peripherals to support them eg small cooling fan that runs fast, I/4 inch jacks and basic EQ and a DI. Would anyone be interested in buying a 50w or 100w class d head when a 200w head is the same cost? Could you gig with a 50w or 100w class d head? Maybe a combo though. Fender's Rumble 100 is a very good example of a successful package and I think they use 100w ICE Power modules into a 4 ohm speaker. ICE Power's 300 watt modules are only marginally more expensive but larger so need a bigger case, more peripherals. When you get to 500w modules, the cost has doubled from the 200w modules. Slightly more peripherals like a larger cooling fan, maybe combi speakons, more features mean there is an increase in costs and that is reflected in the jump in retail prices. At the end of the day cost plays a large part in the proliferation of smaller class d heads around 200w. It's a sweet spot for budget rigs nowadays. It's possible to buy a 200w class d amp brand new for about £90 ( eg TC Electronic BAM200). So these days, class-d 200w, 500w and 800w( 700w with 100 marketing watts added😉) are basically what is generally available to choose from new and second hand. These replace what in the past was class a/b 50-100w, 100-300w and 500w +; where 50-100w was for home/studio use and the pub/club player, 100-300w the advanced prosumer player who could afford it( wedding bands?), and 500w + the fully professional level amp. IMHO of course. I still have a couple of amps that I'm equally happy to use at home, studio, and gig with in the 100w-300w power range. None are class-d, and that's just a personal choice. 🙂

Those Abertillery roads/hills are a challenge, especially for handbrakes & hill-starts.

Yes. The are pretty accurate, not as nice as my Mitutoyo ones.

👍🏼

Long horrible journey to Abertillery, a mining town where the average road gradient is about 45º. The local Blues club. They were a bit disappointed with an attendance of 80 people at £5 a head, which filled the place and we thought was excellent on such a grim nightn although the venue looked welcoming on a dark night. Bluesfire so LOTS of pa, lights etc. Played from 8:30 to 11+ with a raffle break. Nice little stage and great sound as good ceiling, carpet and plenty of bodies to control the sound. My rig has been sounding glorious since I just boosted a mids a bit. Could barely hear my voice in the monitor though. First time they've only used one sub and to my ears the low end sounded much better. We got a rapturous reception and were more free and improvisational than usual which was mostly fun and occasionally hairy. By the end I felt like I'd been beaten up, so the long slow load out and hour's drive in more rain were tedious. In bed at 1:45. Another gig tonight with Bendricks Rock nearly two hours away. Fortunately singer will drive. I see much ibuprofen in my future. I hope my body copes with this two month glut of gigs.

only because I have the SVT 4 Pro and a few other bits mounted in a rack, so it's convenient for it to be rackmount, but pedal style pres are all over the place and rackmount is rare these days. I'd love to find one but they seem to be rare as hen's teeth. Really a bit of hair is all I'm looking for. I think I'll invest in a TB600 as it's the same front end and then at least I can see if I like the tones. Plus the drive is footswitchable on that, right?

🤣 that's why I had to make it my main bass, so it would force me to get comfortable with it! I must say though, the thin flat neck really makes a difference to the ease of play. I would love to try the 4 string version for comparison

Have to wonder how well this would work with a bass...has anybody here tried one? Love the idea but also hard to imagine how this would sound...now I need to know! 🤣

I've taken up folks' suggestion to raise this with A&H, and they have been supportive so far and allowed me to make a warranty claim with Audio Technica, notwithstanding the fact that it is outside the 12 month warranty period. Very reassuring customer service by them so far!

Excellent. I have one of the full size Orchid DI boxes (with a latching mute) and am also impressed. Thanks for posting this - it makes me realise that I don't need to spend loads on a high-end DI / preamp (even if I want to!)

First of all not all bands are rock bands, some may not even have a drummer, people who play quieter genres of music still need an amplifier if they play electric bass. Secondly we don't all use our amps to fill a room with sound. In my current band the bass amp is just a monitor for the band. The audience hear my bass through the PA. My bass amp only needs to fill the stage and if it is too loud it ends up going through the vocal mics and distorts the sound for the audience. If you are so loud that only a 500W amp will do then your band probably sounds quite poor however well you play because of the volume in the vocal mics. Finally you need to take account of the range of speakers we all use. A 100W amp through a 102db/W is going to be louder than a 300W amp through a 96db/W speaker. Like most people who are commenting I carry a 200/130W micro amp as a backup to my 500/300W amp but I tend to use the smaller amp almost all of the time as it is more than loud enough for the gigs I do.

It's a bit academic nowadays, as watts have become cheaper and more plentiful. As others point out, the difference between 50 and 500 watts is only around twice the volume (depending on speaker efficiency, eq choices, etc). And that's before you get into the minefield that is wattage, how much difference quoted/claimed figures actually make and so on. Class D has meant high powered amps are small and light, so there is no longer a need to have large and smaller amps. I use either of my heads (700w or 1000w claimed) for practice and small gigs with one or two cabs and keep the volume down. If I need to make more noise, I simply add more cabs and turn up the wick.

New one on the bench which is a slow time build and this might divide opinion… 😅 This ziricote top has just been glued up and is to be attached to a sapele body, after which it’ll become a MM StingRay-style build. Except… it’s getting a Jazz bass neck. Because why not. I’ve always liked the StingRay pickup position and punch, but I’m also a Jazz neck tragic, so this feels like a perfectly reasonable life choice rather than a cry for help. Before I commit to routing, I’d love some pickup wisdom from the hive mind: • Classic StingRay vibe vs something a bit more modern? • Alnico vs ceramic? • Any particular MM pickups that play especially nicely with warmer woods like sapele/ziricote? Nordstrand, Aguilar, Delano, Seymour Duncan, Wizard, home-wound madness — all suggestions welcome. Bonus points if you’ve tried an MM + Jazz neck combo and lived to tell the tale. Cheers all👍🏼

You are not alone, they look great. Definitely tones down the bling factor.

Everything Is Broken - Bob Dylan