lowhand_mike

just seen this, and really like the Bas designs, especially the zebra, always been a fan of les claypools basses but i think bas's are better, shame i havent got a spare £5000 laying around

I thought after having this for about 6 months now i would give it a review as it has been through it's paces now and it also gave a good amount of time to check it's reliability due to there being alot of problems with ashdown kit over the last few years. I had been using a peavey Max115 combo for gigging and practices and wanted something more. I got to try the Mag 115 combo at soundcontrol in the basement of the Virgin Megastore on Oxfordstreet and was suitably impressed and decided to go for the 210 combo purely cos it fitted the extension cab sizes better ready for upgrade later (though that did prove to be a fairly pointless decisions more on that later) Once delivered from Soundslive (at a very good price i might add) i was presented with one very heavy combo, it's not overly huge but fits the 'standard' dimentions of extension cabs but it is certainly sturdily built and solid. the carpet covering very neatly wrapped the combo and the overall fit and finish was top notch, good start. So first things first was to get it upstairs to where i practice at home, which turned out to be a bit of a slog, the list weight is 28kg but it certainly feels more than that and the delivery ticket said 38kg! It's certainly easier with 2 people. Another little niggle i had was the positioning of the handles, they could be a bit higher to help balance it out but due to the amp in the top they are pretty much as high as they can go so no chance of that but they certainly could go towards the front of the box as the bulk of the weight is at the front of the amp/speakers/grill. A little niggle but if you are moving it around alot it gets to be a pain, though the handles themselves are pretty comfy and have plenty of room around them for big hands and are fitted snugly into the body. The First thing you notice when you start this thing up is the fan, in a quiet practice room it sounds bloody loud though when you start playing you can't hear it however, at least you know its working. Now i had read alot of people saying that Ashdowns sound wooly and muddy (and if you EQ it right they certainly can ) and my first impression when i turned this on was "oh no what have i done it sounds pants" but then i realised you need to turn on the EQ with the EQ pushy button doh! once on though the amp comes to life and is bright, punchy and tight even set flat. And it didn't take me too long to find the tone i was looking for, guess i'm lucky there. The front also has 2 push buttons for Deep and Bright which add depth and bite respectively. You also have your standard Bass Mid and treble with a mid bass and mid treble dials too too add punch and attack. All the dials are kinda like old cooker dials and have a smooth movement to them but i like em and they are not easily knocked out of place. Turning up the EQ controls does increase the input level so you have to watch that and balance the input dial along with your EQ settings so you don't overload it. The we have the sub harmonics dial. Now to be honest i haven't noticed too much difference with this and only use a little bit but maybe its something you hear more out front or with a 115 extension cab, though it does seem to add a little something to the sound. The Amp could just do with a little more low end but that may be down to the depth of the cab itself. The input level meter does work but it's something i don't purely rely on as i'll use my ears to tell me if its clipping too but it is a good thing to check when playing with the whole band. Now back to what i was saying about buying the 210 due to wanting to expand with a 115 cab later, yes as the combo is presented it fits nicely on top of the extension but after a recommendation from Alex Clabber to turn 210's on their side to get better projection, and it certainly works but now it doesn't match the width of the extension cabs, minor cometic problem but the sound certainly benefits from the speaker configuration this way and my drummer is alot happier, also this combo doesn't like being parted with the floor (on a crate etc)as you loose ALOT of low end when you do. Now down to reliability. Like i said i have had this amp for about 6 months now and have had no problems, the first couple of uses the speakers weren't too happy about going up loud but as it got use it got louder and punchier, seems the speakers just needed a bit of breaking in. Other than that it has worked every practice and thats a 2.5hour practice at full volume every week and home practice plus about 4 gigs. Nothing has come loose inside, the grill has stayed put as have the handles and the carpet looks as good as new though i'm sure that won't last. The only ting that i think this would benefit from is the addition of the extension cab to get both the full power out of the amp and to give you that little bit extra head room so you don't have to push the amp as hard, though to be honest i haven't had to have it near full yet anyway, it's more than loud enough. So apart from a few design and weight issues i can't fault this, it's not perfect by any means but it certainly does the job and hopefully ashdowns reliability issues have been addressed. And if they stacked the 210's and made the cab a bit deeper to add some more low end it would be peachy. Its not up there with the £1000 combos but for the money i don't think you can beat it. Should add marks for each section really Build - [b]8[/b]. (i would give it a 9 but it's only chipboard, but it is very solidly made) Features - [b]8[/b] (everything you need is there except maybe a compressor which was due to be added) Sound Quality - [b]7[/b] but thats a good 7 and i only give it that cos at the end of the day it not a mega exensive rig so don't expect that sound quality, that said though i think its the nuts. (might not be to everyones taste but then thats the same for any amp.) Customer Support - [b]10[/b] (so far) only had a few dealings with ashdown but every time i emailed them i got a very promt response with no bull, there was a delay with the shipping of my amp but that was all sorted out very quickly by both ashdown and Soundslive. Reliability - [b]6[/b] as i've only had it six months but it certainly doesn't seem to have any problems Overall - [b]9[/b] For the money and the sound it can't be beat in my opinion good rocky tone through to mellow then funky, they are all there. If you are in the market for a low to mid range combo take a look. [size=1]edited to add scores[/size]

[quote name='timmyo' post='61680' date='Sep 17 2007, 01:55 PM']Hmm yes, budget. Seems my good lady wife and I have differing views on this . . . ta[/quote] hehe, if that was the only thing we differed on erhem... if it just for practicing then you should be able to pick something up for between£100 and £200, gigging you are gonna have to look at £300 plus really (just a rough guide) the other thing is you could buy something cheap and then a few months down the road need to upgrade which would mean more outlay and bad economy

[quote name='NAS' post='61613' date='Sep 17 2007, 12:48 PM']Even an old brain works better in the morning - my mother used to make me do my piano practise between 6:30 and 7:30 in the morning (which I really rebelled against in later life) but I suspect that as with many things your elders know best! Very best of luck. Nick S[/quote] first thing in the morning is definately NOT the best time for me to be playing, would hurt my head too much the other way you could look at it is that some things people find harder than others, i can sometimes pick up a bass line in a couple of practices and others that sound easy take forever

peavey are certainly worth a look and seem pretty indestructable, i had the use of a MX 115 combo for a few gigs and it jsut about did the job, ok it's a bit under powered for gigging with but it still held up even though it was driven pretty much flat out everytime. though it does weight a ton. they also do lower versions with smaller speakers so there is a 12" and 10" version with a lower wattage but all should give you a nice sound. ashdown dispite the problems they appearred to have now seem pretty stable and produce (to me anyway) a very nice range of tones and they are very well priced and you also have the choice of 2x10, 12" and 15" drivers. and higher wattage than the peavey's (for the price anyway) though it really depends on what your budget is before you can narrow down your choices

[quote name='wotnwhy' post='59947' date='Sep 13 2007, 04:17 PM']i must admit when doing smaller, pub gigs, to a 'not yet won over' crowd i can feel like that. but i can guarentee you that nobody will be thinking about your atire anywhere near as much as you are. self confidence is a very big factor in things like this. i used to be one of those people getting butterflies before going on, then hiding as far back on the stage as possible, not moving, looking down, trying to draw as little attention to myself as possible. you just need to build up gradually, and as you do so, you'll notice a change in the reaction you get from the audience (it'll be positive ), and that will give you the confidence to go that step further each time. think of it this way. you go and see a band. they're all plainly dressed, standing still, looking down, no smiles on their faces. it doesn't exactly inspire you to get out of your seat and get down on the dancefloor does it? whereas if you see people who've made an effort with their appearence, are moving around and look like their having a lot of fun, it puts a smile on your face and gets you more into the spirit of things. at least it does for me.[/quote] totally agree, it's just putting it into practice, maybe i need to mess about a bit more in rehersals and then it wont be so hard on the night.

fact of life really, though some of my friends that come to gigs are very good about comenting on the bass and even go to the length of saying i should get more focus with a good choice of certain songs (bass oriented) even notice it in my band where they spend alot of cash on mics and racks and other stuff but ignor the fact that i'm only just getting heard in the mix, the drummer hopefully will get a new kit soon but that just means i'll have to wait longer to expand my rig, but like i said thats life and i'm enjoying myself which is what matters +1 on stop playing for a bit it's amazing how flat it all sounds.

[quote name='wotnwhy' post='59301' date='Sep 12 2007, 02:42 PM']if you look silly, and all of your band looks silly, it helps lift the tensions of playing. 'we look like twats, so what does it matter if we act like it'.[/quote] hmm, i like the idea if only the part of my brain that goes "you look like twat and every one is going to let you know so why go out there like that?" didn't say that, i mean it does even when i'm wearing something that is pretty tame but to me is a little bit too loud and its only a black tshirt with a sparkly embossed logo on the back (go figure) that was the other thing as when at school i didn't do plays cos "ah sh*t everyone is now looking at me and i know i'm going to make a twat of meself" geuss i need to chill and relax. where do i get valium then?

i tried this with one cab from a pair that our guitarist picked up on ebay, they looked home made with 15" drivers full range, yeah they sounded loud but really struggled with the low end as they farted a bit, needless to say as soon as they did that they got disconnected and will just be used in our PA setup. bit gutted really as if it had worked they would have made a cheap alternative to buying a new bass cab.

been wondering about this alot recently (as i have done for a while now) and i want more of a reaction from them out front, and so far it's like being at the zoo except we are the animals they are gawping at. very little crowd movement. now onstage we may as well be dead as ther aint much going on, i'm not exactly outgoing so even looking at the audience scares the hell outta me (suprised i even make it up on stage to be honest ) but we enjoy the gigs we do and out dress tends to be black or dark shirt/t-shirt jeans or black trousers, the singer has some loud shirts he wares which is a start. but how do you take it that one step further? and make it a show?

1. Is a light bass cabinet important to you? Yes 2. Would you be interested in a smaller designed cabinet for maximum portability? no me combo would fall off the top 3. What is the weight of your current rig now? 32 Kg ish 4. Have you ever had portability issues with this cabinet before? Yes 5. Would a Neo speaker make the amplifier more appealing? not really cos the cost would go up 6. Would you want casters on the amplifier for added portability? as long as they are easily removeable 7. Would you want the input to be in the back? Yes 8. Would you want the Ohm rating to be 4? No 9. Would you want the power rating to be over 200 watts? Yes 10. Is a metal grille cover attractive on an amplifier? yes

mostly finger though a few songs do require pick so i use that when needed, used to be pick only but fingerstyle i can play alot quicker, would like to be good at slap but just mess with it at the moment.

[quote name='BlueBear' post='51317' date='Aug 27 2007, 03:59 PM']Power = voltage squared divided by resistance. Therefore 100W = 8 Ohms / Voltage squared. So, voltage squared = 100 x 8 = 800 Square root of 800 is 28.3 That any clearer? [url="http://www.allaboutcircuits.com/vol_1/chpt_2/4.html"]This[/url] may help.[/quote] erm now i'm confused you say voltage squared but where did you get the voltage figure from, the wattage figure was 100

fernandes

damn i need to practice more doubt i could get anywhere near that though it does make me want to have a go but still cant do that double thumping thingy

yeah she's good, not for me though, and jazz has always sounded to me like if you play the notes with enoguh conviction you can play damn well what notes you like. i know thats not true and it's hard to do but thats what alot of it sounds like. the who you know thing counts in pretty much anything and the what you know follows along. that being said if you are good you're good and she obviously is.

[quote name='Shockwave' post='51431' date='Aug 27 2007, 08:38 PM']This is what happened to me twice, bringing in someone else behind my back. I was kept in an indie rock band because of upcoming high paying gigs for over a month whilst they kept "cancelling" practices but actually training someone else behind my back. But kept me on for those gigs. I was with them for 2 years, yet decided i wasent right for them. They may have been right but its a really sh*tty thing to do. It also happened again with a funk band i was with. Its the shittiest thing you can ever do so for gods sakes tell your singer your trying someone else out or dump him before you try the new guy out.[/quote] well we didn't have the practice anyway, so that all fell flat, and i suppose i'm kind of releved. i would have liked to just hear someone else in the singing role even if it was just for a comparison. i think my post title is a bit too strong for what i mean but it gets the idea across, i don't personally think he is truely awful but he can be flat at times (but then so can alot of the high paid ones) it may just come down to leaving and setting up another band and in truth my main reason is i just really don't enjoy alot of the songs we do. They are your cover band classics but i'm playing so i can't complain too much. it's been 3 weeks now with no practices so maybe they are auditioning another bassist

[quote name='JPJ' post='51506' date='Aug 27 2007, 11:52 PM']Thats what I like about them, live, there is really experimentation within the successful formula to the point where you can almost feel the edge, like if they go any further they'll fall off and make complete arses of themselves. I struggle to think of any other established rock acts who step so far outside of the comfort zone every gig? Any of us who play live know what its like when you are right on it. I don't mean tighter than a gnats chuff on it, I mean sloppy tight when its musical and big big sounding. I'm making a complete mess of trying to describe it, but I played a gig about six months ago when we were like that and people still talk about that gig today, like it was something special. We knew it on stage, but somehow the audience knew it as well, it was special, and it was spontaneous. RHCP seem to be able to produce that atmosphere in every (televised) live show that ive seen.[/quote] +1 and you also need to bare in mind that they have been playing alot of these songs for a very long time and trying to keep that fresh each gig without going stale is gonna be tough, to keep that energy up and passion to play each song (no matter how times you have played it before) is very tough. BSSM was a mile stone for me playing wise, once i started to get that album down i improved alot and thats all thanks to Flea. his onstage pressence is infectious and that gets the mood up. i didn't think his playing was over the top at all, people go to see a live show and thats what they get, the audience are there for a show not a display in technical accuracy, and hell i struggle to walk around while playing let alone bounce around like a flubber while playing. JPJ i know exactly what you mean, we had it once, we weren't even going to play the song, we had dropped it from the second set, but just as we finished our last song it kind of felt right and we all knew it, the drummer started the intro and we went into a 15minute jam of wipeout (yeah i know but it worked) and the audience for once went for it too. it wasnt technically tight but everything worked and was more about the feel. The chilli's seem to be able to do that every time. oh and how many here can claim to be as good as flea? not many i imagine (that includes me BTW)

thats almosrt exactly the tone i'm after, oooh creamy

i've now come to the conclusion of 'if i havent got the money to buy one don't bother looking, don't get me wrong i like to ooogle gear but it's best if i don't then i don't get the hump

well we have another practice this monday and as per the bank holiday ritual the singer wont be there, we were going to go down anyway and brush up on certain songs (the drummer, who is actually a very good singer as well as drummer normally does some vocals) but the lead guitarist has a mate at work that has said he fancies having a go singing in a band and is supposed to be quite good so he's going to pop down to give a few songs a bash, might give the rythmn guitarist something to think about if hes any good. personally no idea what eh is like. i never was going to be blunt, just was looking for pointers like have been given out. personally i would like him to improve and it to carry on as is as they are a great bunch but who knows. cheers guys

can't think of any way of doing something like that without it sounding like a critisism. though i did forget to say thanks for the ideas so far, keep em coming.

[quote name='bigd1' post='49706' date='Aug 23 2007, 05:48 PM']I'm on the top of the Pennines right in the middle of tYorhshire[/quote] showin off with your fancy wireless laptop are we? oh and don' t rub it in, is cold, wet and windy here (bit like an old dog)

[quote name='The Funk' post='49681' date='Aug 23 2007, 05:11 PM']Do you like the singer's work or not? Fork what everyone else thinks.[/quote] erm... its ok i guess i was looking for some magical solution and as i suspected there aint one. but it's not my band so i figure i have no clout in that decision.

whats best being too hot or too cold? :ph34r: