DrGonzo

To the extent of my knowledge, Behringer have NEVER been successfully sued (and I mean successful to the point of ceasing production). They have some seriously sh*t hot lawyers... Mackie were after them for years, before that a stream of other companies. They have ripped off (well, reverse engineered, but its the same thing...) every thing they've ever released (pretty much, unless youre counting for cheap add-ons for an already successful design / product) BUT they do work OK for the money... They are cheap, and not a patch on the original, but OK for they money involved...

The big difference in instrument amplifiers as apposed to hi-fi / pa amplifiers is the gain level required to produce audible output and the nature of the signal being processed. hi-fi and pa systems are most often run with nice, "loud" line level signal, its easy to predict and control its output level, so tolerances can be very tight with regards to getting volume out of a pa speaker. you can run a 1000w (peak) amp into a 500w RMS cabinet with no problems - provided you know what you're doing... an instrument signal is much much "quieter", the gain applied to the signal is much higher, the dynamic range of that signal is massive (in terms of output voltage) and so you need to make sure your cabs can handle anything your amp kicks out - as the tolerance has to be that much higher. At least, from where I'm standing that seems to be the reason. Either that or I'm talking sh*t, and I'm sure someone will point that out!

Hving just bought one this weekend, I can recommen a Gibson Victory Standard or Customer. Great basses, very well made and great tone... Mine cost me £415, but there's one on Ebay US thats going for less than £200. Very thin neck, very fast. The only downside with them could be their weight - its fine for me, but the guy who sold it to me was struggling after an operation or something. Having neverplayed one, just seen them around, I can heartily recommend these basses. If I had any cash or wasn't buying new cabs I'd probably buy this one : [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260187317672&_trksid=p3907.m32&_trkparms=tab%3DWatching"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...=tab%3DWatching[/url]

good to see The Wombats getting some recognition, I promoted them about 2 years or more ago, great band and lovely lads. Shame the music's gone a little pop-tastic from what it used to be, but then you have to pay the bills somehow...

If you want to DI your bass through a proper PA, use a BSS AR-133. Best sounding DI box I've ever used. Seriously! As for muting, you could probably just buy one of those little alu boxes and get the switch from an A/B box, simply wiring the second side of the switch to nothing. Exactly the same effect as a mute switch...

Hmm... I am the aforementioned 'friend' of man_at_arms and I am indeed the proud owner of said VBA400 with its pet 8x10. I used to hire this amp out to bands at the venue I work at (until someone dropped it and forced a re-valving... grrr....!) and every person that used it - and I mean [i]every[/i] person that used it - was mightily impressed. I know what you're saying Telebass about bass amps being a second string for Marshall - they discontinued the padded case for this head before they started shipping it (although a few were made for endorsees and the like... bastards!) however in no way let this give anyone the impression that they aren't serious about this amp. According to a guy I met (guitar tech for Raging Speedhorn, also bass player for Viking Skull - and proud VBA user) because of the relatively small number of these amps that Marshall are shifting, they're pretty much a build-to-order job these days. There are, however, a reasonable number of them floating about - I know the guy from Doves uses them, and the bass player from Moloko to name but two. The reason I got it was because it sounded loads better than an SVT for what I wanted to use it for - screaming distortion... Its not quite as agressive as an SVT (although this could also be the cab...) but if you want absolute sludgy overdrive / synthy fuzz / gentle feedback then it sounds amazing! The one other benefit that this custom build aspect may bring is to the reliability of these beasts as I've had a few problems - mind you I dont have any case for it at all, its stored in "less than ideal" conditions and I tend to drive it like f**k... And yeah, its heavy but its not that much heavier than your MAG combo... considering you can pick these up for around £450 on ebay, they're reasonably priced for what was originally meant to be a serious contender for the SVT2

yeah sounds like a saturated valve head (cleanish) mixed wth some pure filth

For what it's worth, I've very rarely heard a bass sound so fantastic as with ManAtArms (Alex) 's T-Max through those Peavey cabs. A couple of exceptions spring to mind, but as they involve that wallet-sweating word Aguilar I won't mention them. Oh yeah, and sorry for mentioning the amp dude, I know they're both sorely missed.

My general rule with FX loops is this... If it alters gain or tone, stick it before the pre amp, if its playing with the sound (i.e. delay, trem) stick it through the loop. Although them other dudesw is right, there's no better way of finding out than to f*ck about with it for a good couple of hours until you work out what way is best.

Heh, Alex you always was a moron... Brill, now I can abuse you on tinterweb too!

Finding a band (or two) to share your own space is a great idea in theory, but you have to both know and trust the people you share with, unless you'll all be bringing your own kit every time. I don't think there's anyone out there that hasn't had a single problem in this area. However, it is great to have your own space whenever you want it. Certainly works for me! We got a couple of Carlsbro Gamma 15/600's and a cheapo mixer. Cost about £500, but again split that cost and its all not too bad. Worked out about £100 each. I can also recommend the older Peavey stuff. Its not great, but it works pretty well for a dirty little system, second hand they may look tatty but recones are cheap and the Black Widow cone can be replaced in about 25 minutes for about £50 if you know what you're after. Hi-sys or Euro-sys PA speakers should be pretty cheap and will last you well for a couple of hundred quid. A little mixer and power amp will probably give you the greatest flexibility on a budget rather than buying a powered mixer. £50 will get you a few channels so you can run vocals and keys or whatever. A cheap power amp won't be more than £100. That way, if you want to get a bigger system you can upgrade each part one at a time, e.g. buy some more speakers and another amp, you can use what you've got as monitors and use the Pa for gigs etc. etc. I would certainly recommend buying something a little more expensive rather than buying the absolute cheapest thing you can afford as you really do still pay for quality, especially in terms of durability in components. Research the manufacturer, also try asking any local PA hire companies as you should be able to rent similar systems relatively cheaply to try out and see what you'll get for your money. If you're really lucky they might even have something old and battered for a few quid lying out the back... If you want any other advice, gimme a shout. I worked in a Pro-Audio hire and sales shop for five years while on the road training as a sound engineer...

I'm still not too sure why people are always going on about a flat frequescy response as being an "uncoloured" sound. In my experience, no matter how flat the response is, different components, boxes and construction methods always sound different, as do different parts in amplifiers, no matter how flat their response is. I work as a sound engineer, and this is most obvious when you compare top-flight PA systems. That's why different PA companies still exist. There isn't really a top class PA out there that isn't virtually flat response, but they still sound radically different (to my ears at least). A Funktion One system sounds very brittle at the top end, EV X-Array is a little woody-sounding, Meyer MILO sounds like the worlds biggest Hi-Fi speaker, Nexo Alpha is very in-your-face and gutsy. I could go on, but I sense you're already bored. My point being, forget about frequency response curves and acheiving a perfectly flat spreaker cabinet or amp. Go out and try a load of different amps. Sooner or later you'll find one that sounds just right to you, then go buy it (if you can afford it... )