Opticaleye

Congratulations - I gigged mine last night again. Awesome as usual Haven't noticed the fan being noisy though.

Careful which power amp you use. I used a Bass Pod Pro into a QSC RMX850 for a while and the output of the BPP wasn't enough to drive the QSC with authority. There's something to be said for the matched impedance of a traditional head IMO

[quote name='fretmeister' timestamp='1342612768' post='1737834'] I run a pair of Markbass Club 121 cabs. They are superb, nice and light, tilt back design that can be safely stacked too. Very articulate. Not a huge amount of low, but very clear and excellent in a mix. I think they've been discontinued, but you might find some somewhere. [/quote] I have a pair of these. When running them with my LM2 I actually found them to have too much bottom end. I've done gigs with a single Club121 and had complaints about excessive lows. They sound perfect with my TTE 500 though. I'd suggest the Markbass Traveller 121H.

Markbass stuff tends to sound like the bass you put through it so versatility is the amount of basses you have really ! The TTE doesn't have a vast array of tone sculpting tools but doesn't really need them IMO. Kevin

I've had my LM11 since they came out and bought a TTE a couple of months ago. I disagree that the head is not versatile in the sense that the sound it produces can be used in most genres. It has more valve character than the LM11, is just as quick, just as loud (if not louder) has a tighter bottom end and is a little less complex in the lower mids giving it a slightly more open sound. It's pretty much impossible to get a harsh "ganky" tone out of it although it doesn't seem to lack frequency response in the high mids. Perfect for Rock,Blues,Jazz and Funk (it's so old school funky with a P). Punk might be out of reach without a pedal but I may be wrong there. Having heard other people play mine at a jam night, my first thoughts were that the bass sound seems to envelop rather than attack the ears but every note could be heard clearly. I'm not really a fan of Ampeg valve heads but what I do like about them seems to be present in the TTE without the drawbacks. The tube compressor is great. In summary ; LM11 - Warm but fairly detailed, modernish, clean TTE500 - Warm but detailed, old school but not limiting, mostly clean but can go a little more edgy with the gain cranked. The LM11 is now just a backup for me.

Has anyone compared a Walkabout to a Markbass TTE500? Are they in the same tonal postcode ?

£800? Markbass TTE500. Very, very valvey character, but with great definition.

[quote name='The Dark Lord' timestamp='1341310917' post='1716647'] Bluff. As soon as you plug into an [b]AER Amp One[/b], you'll wonder why you've been plugging into anything else all these years. [/quote] Tried one of those - bought a Markbass Minimark instead. Bass Guitar Magazine did a head to head as I recall as well. The Minimark came out well if I remember correctly. Having said that I prefer the minimark with my DHA VT1 tube pedal before it to lessen the hi-fi ness

[quote name='leroydiamond' timestamp='1338661186' post='1677809'] are the tubes user servicable in the TTE 500,or are they hardwired to the motherboard as in the case of the little mark tube?. I wonder how this head works with the markbass traveller cabs?. [/quote] Not hardwired. The tubes are in sockets. I can't stress enough that this head sounds unlike the Little Mark series and has much more in common with all-tube heads IMO. I've not tried the TTE with Traveller cabs but I don't get the feeling that it would be that fussy about cabs. I've tried it with my Markbass Club 121's and also an Ampeg 410hlf and it sounded great with both.

The bass amp also has feet on the side and no valve retainers. The valves seem solid enough in their sockets though.

I'm not sure if there's so much of an optimum setting for the input gain as much as, say , the LM2. The TTE can sound full at relatively low volume in comparison to my Little Mark. The LM2 [i][u]had[/u][/i] to run just below clipping on the input gain and at least 9 o'clock on the Master to get the full tonal experience (which has been too loud for both of my current bands). With the TTE I can use both Club 121 cabs, even at low volume, and still get a great sound. Using the cabs with the LM2 was a bit of a disappointment because of the excessive lows but the TTE matches perfectly with the Club 121's and provides a controlled but full low end (it did this with the Ampeg 410HLF too and that has way too much bottom end for me normally). I'd be scared to change the valves, even for vintage Mullards, as the TTE sounds so good with the JJ's already. If the sound is even better - wow!

[quote name='walbassist' timestamp='1338444641' post='1674565'] Dropping some vintage Mullards into my amp tonight! And anyone noticed how Opticaleye and I have almost the same settings on our amps? [/quote] They'd probably be closer (input gain higher) if I wasn't so wary of shaking the windows! The settings will probably vary depending on the bass with this amp (unlike the LM2 which I left pretty much flat). I'll be rehearsing next week and it will be the first chance to hear it with the 2 Club 121's in a band situation. Also I will be able to test it with my NSD electric upright. I'd be interested to hear what you think about the Mullards

I love this amp. I have another one of these Markbass Club 121's and they go really well together. I've also paired it with an Ampeg 410HLF at a jam night and I had such a wide grin standing in the audience listening to the other bass players through it. Rich and versatile with the depth and character of the better all-tube amps. I expected an easier solution to the LM2/ DHA VT1EQ I've been using - but it's so much more than that.

I had 2 x 102p's and currently have a TTE 500 (which I absolutely love). I can't imagine that one 102P and a TTE would be a good match as the 102 doesn't really have [i]low[/i] lows and the TTE has quite a controlled low end compared to the LM2 I also have. I did loads of gigs with just one 102P and the LM2. 2 of those cabs sound great though. I now use 2x Markbass Club 121 cabs which suit the TTE more than they suit the LM2 .

[quote name='GregHughes' timestamp='1330080176' post='1552315'] Thanks, did you buy the JJ new as it looks in very good condition. Looks like the PM is an aged one? Sounds like you should sell the JJ to me [/quote] The JJ was bought new last year (I was confident enough to buy without playing it, once I found it wasn't too heavy) . Yes the PM is a Soft Aged one and since that photo, now sports a Wizard P pickup. The JJ currently my favourite so I'll be keeping it

[quote name='TRBboy' timestamp='1330000799' post='1551084'] Nice collection Opticaleye! Is the PM quite an old one? I notice it's got a different bridge and string retainer to any I've seen before, along with fretboard dots and no logo on the body. Oh bugger, this thread is starting to give me GAS for a JM........... [/quote] Yes, I bought the PM secondhand off here - I think it's around 2006 and it says Custom Shop on the headstock. Lovely bass [quote name='GregHughes' timestamp='1329983057' post='1550654'] Lovely bases Opticaleye, how would you compare the JJ against the JM? [/quote] The JM is a little more versatile and maybe a little more modern sounding. I've rotated the MM pickup so that the single coil mode is in the 70's position. It didn't do a convincing J sound previously. It now does P, 70's J and MM if the EQ is set just right. The JJ does P and 60's J and can cop vintage and modern with the boost/cut EQ circuit. I obviously love Sandbergs !

Here's mine [IMG]http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q310/optical_I/sandbergs.jpg[/IMG] and [IMG]http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/q310/optical_I/SANDBERGJAZZ.jpg[/IMG]

Have you tried adjusting the pickup height ? My JM4 doesn't sound weak (even compared to the legendary MFD in my G&L L1000!) I did rotate the M pickup so that the single coil was in the 70's Jazz position when in single coil mode though. The factory position of the coil was too close to the neck PU to get a genuine 60's Jazz tone. It is possible to get a vintage type tone out of the Delano pickups btw. Broken-in GHS pressurewound strings and a DHA VT1 BASS EQ/DI is how I do it.

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/f15/noisy-thin-sound-di-amp-mark-bass-content-367337/ Start reading at post #15

It may not be the pre/post switch. Certain desks don't like the Markbass LM11 DI due to impedance mismatch or the like. I (and others) have had this problem and was also unlucky that my Fishman ProEQ DI did exactly the same thing with my old bands desk. I took the LM11 back to the dealer but it worked perfectly with other desks. As I remember we put an adapter on and went into the desk with a stereo jack as a workaround. I now have a DHA VT1 Bass EQ DI (which I would never be without) into my Markbass amps anyway, so always use that DI instead. Tubey goodness