DGBass

While I've not had any experience with the SMX heads, I do have a series 6 GP12-200 head. Other than replacing serviceable items like the coupling caps on the mosfet power board and the bridge rectifier diodes( my amp was made in 1992 and the originals were only changed last year due to a developing hum), I've found these amps super solid and reliable. The SMX is a bit more complex in that it has a back board like the Ashdown ABM's and a Multi pin connector from the pre-amp board to the back board. If the amp cuts out after a thrashing or responds to a thump on the case when it cuts out, it could possibly be either heat related (perhaps a dry joint on the power board somewhere) or perhaps the multi pin connector between power board and pre-amp is not fully home in the socket or shaking loose. For heat issues and if your SMX has the big cooling fins at the back, these power sections MUST have proper thermal compound applied in copious amounts or they can easily overheat and cut out / blow expensive Hitachi mosfets. For pre-amp issues, I had an ABM which had very similar symptoms to what you describe and the fault was traced to the multi pin connector/ribbon cable from pre-amp to back board. It was vibrating loose and generating all sorts of strange loud earth type hums and buzzes. And cutting out. On ABM's, the pre-amp signal routes off the pre-amp board via the multi pin connector cable to the back board and back again in a loop. So any issues with the ribbon connectors can cause all sorts of weird and difficult to trace issues. A bit of hot glue applied to the the multi pin connectors to stop them vibrating loose at both ends solved the problem for me. Clive Button did a lot of design for Trace and Ashdown at the time so there are a lot of similarities between ABM's and TE SMX amp designs with the valve pre-amp.

This is a review of my experience with a fairly old school combo bass guitar amp from Ashdown Music. These haven't been made for a long time now but they can be picked up fairly cheaply used and if you know what to look for you can get a very capable example that can ace rehearsals and do small Gigs easily. And is very easy to carry around. The MAG 250 is an intermediate amplifier version that sits nicely between the old school MAG 200 mosfet combos and the later MAG300 bi polar amp combos. What you can expect to get is a fairly lightweight chipboard cabinet that is covered with black carpet and has two rear ports on the speaker box. Standard plastic corners, and a rubber strap handle are fitted. Originally no rubber feet were fitted to these combos so they are prone to wear on the bottom panel. The amp chassis section is fairly interesting in that its made of lightweight magnesium alloy and only a fraction of the weight of EB180 and MAG300 steel chassis versions. This is a major plus as it gives the combo a very lightweight feel. The pre-amp is standard MAG specification and the power amp section is essentially a MAG300 with a smaller 250VA toroidal transformer. Early MAG 250's were convection cooled but can be prone to overheating if used at high power for extended periods. Later examples had a cooling fan fitted ( a standard 80mm Jamicon fan unit ) longitudinally inside the amp chassis. These are the most desirable versions. The standard speaker fitted to these units was a SICA branded 8 ohms 15 inch unit. I'm not sure of the power rating as its not stamped on the chassis but expect this is the same unit fitted to MAG 300 combos of the time so likely to be between 200 to 300 watt rating. The driver seems fairly efficient and can easily handle the MAG 250 output. In use the pre-amp is bog standard MAG. You have high/low inputs for passive/active basses, an input volume, 5 band EQ with bass(usually swept around 100Hz), low mids swept normally at 220Hz, middle swept at 660Hz , high mids swept at 1.6 Khz and treble swept around 7Khz. There is a low boost and a high boost switch, a main EQ in/out and a switchable sub octaver with adjustable knob. The DI is post EQ and there is an effects send/return and a tuner /line out. if you have ever used a MAG or an Electric Blue amp these will all be familiar and the EQ section can create a wide variety of tones. RM users will also find these controls familiar. The rear panel has two speaker out jacks with a safe minimum impedance of 4 ohms. Essentially adding an external 8 ohm cab will allow the full power and headroom to be used. In use this combo can really deliver a fine and powerful output from its inbuilt speaker. I tested this with a p-bass straight in and with the input around 3/4 and the master around half on the dial, it delivers a tight focused output that sounds clean and detailed around 30-40 feet away. One thing you will notice is the amp chassis gets very warm at this sort of high volume and after a long session. This is normal as the chassis is also part of the cooling mechanism for MAG 250's. The combo tested in this review was owned by me and originally was built and left the Ashdown UK factory around May 2003. It was reviewed last year at a local rehearsal studio. In summary, here are some pros and cons: Pros lightweight alloy amp chassis makes this a breeze to transport (15.5 KG typical total combo weight) Lightweight particle board cab Rear ported for a deep smooth tone Punches easily as high as later MAG300 combo's for loudness. Cheap as chips used Simple to repair/maintain Parts cheap and easily accessible. Efficient SICA blue line driver Typical Ashdown tone. Cons rehearsal / small gigs only prone to overheating during long gigs if it doesn't have the cooling fan update. prone to wear on the bottom panel as did not have rubber feet as standard and carpet/corners can get torn/worn. cats love these combos for sharpening their claws so never buy one from a cat owner as it will likely be torn to shreds down the side panels. Verdict - one of Ashdown's hidden gems where lightweight amp chassis design/technology wasn't appreciated at the time(except by those in the know).

The photos are representative of ABM EVOII or newer models so I'd say what you are seeing is fairly usual. the ABM 300's I've come across(quite a few) from EVOII models onwards had the same power amp boards as EVOII and EVOIII 500 that I've also come across . It's known as an APC033. I've also seen the same power amp board appear in MAG 600's. These utilise (usually 6) big Bi-Polar output transistors but I'm unsure if Ashdown spec these differently between 300/500 units. The ABM 500's have considerably larger and heavier transformers basically to supply more power. Older ABM 300's, 400's & 500's use different power boards( APC001) with a Mosfet output design and either 4 or 6 output mosfets depending on model. They also have specific transformers rated for the model. I gigged an ABM 300 EVOII for a spell a few years back and it certainly didn't lack power. If anything, it was more powerful that I expected it to be.

I've used Eden World Tour kit in the past and it was great sounding and very high build quality. I'm not surprised Marshall pulled the brand offline without warning, they did the same with the old EdenAmpsForum (A very friendly forum of dedicated Eden users with excellent Eden Resources available). I think Marshall has historically had a mixed reputation for their bass gear which might be in part due to their history and reputation as a maker of guitar amps. They've made some fine Marshall bass amps over the years but not really anything I can recall that set the bass world alight in my humble opinion. Eden was a fine brand for them to keep their hand in the bass market when they stopped making Marshall bass gear but I don't think they ever really promoted it to any extent or certainly not as much as their guitar products. I suspect it didn't have the mass market appeal to a company that needed to shift units. Eden equipment had fairly hefty RRP values when new. It will be interesting to see what happens to the Eden brand and whether Marshall finally decide to be a guitar amp only company. Who knows they may be ready to launch some new exciting bass products of their own in place of the Eden brand. An 800 watt Class-D Marshall Superbass JCM2020? Fender did it with their Bassman amps🤨 RIP Eden.

Because it was fitted onto a left hand bass. The bridge comes as a right hand unit and the saddles did have those small v notches already cut but for right handed fitting. The notches were re-cut to suit left hand use and to keep string alignment & spacing even.

Never really been into having an exotic board and have always stuck to basics. 95% of the time I use my Boss GE7 ( not the bass version) to provide a mild 100Hz boost for extra low down oomph and the Boss Limiter Enhancer controls the level into the amp and adds a little extra sheen & click to the sound especially when using flat wound strings. The TC Polytune is indispensable as a tuner and also as gig mute. I only occasionally use chorus and phase pedals and the overdrive is for special occasions. It all works well though and is very simple to use, setup and transport.

Weapon(s) of choice at a recent first rehearsal after lockdown - My 2012 Fender American Standard Jazz with custom shop 60's and running 100 gauge Rotosound Monel flats. preferred noise boxes were my mid 1980's AH250 GP11 MK5 through the studio 8x10 and a mix of Ashdown ABM's. ( A 2010 ABM 500 EVOIII head and a 1998 ABM C410H-400 ). It was hefty.

Fender have made specific leftie cases on occasion. Some of them were contracted out to well known vintage case manufacturers like G&G. My 90's USA Standard came with a vintage G&G leftie case as standard when the righties came with an ABS shaped cases. I've not really seen many of these G&G vintage leftie cases over the years to be honest so I guess they are quite scarce. For the vintage case snobs and case sniffers, the G&G cases smell awesome and impart a really vintage smell on to your bass. Legit!

I fitted a fender Hi Mass bridge on to my player series and to be honest I never really noticed much difference. It looked more cool but sonically didn't make a great deal of a difference. I sold the bass on after a year and put the stock fender MIM bridge back on the bass. Sounded as good with either bridge. I never had any issues with setup. Only thing I would mention is you have to be very careful cutting string slots, specially if your fitting the hi-mass bridge on to a leftie bass 🤨

Ashdown amps in my experience are very repairable. They are well designed from the outset. I'm sure there have been several quotes stating 'a quality instrument or amplifier is easily repairable'. Ashdown would breeze the 'right to repair' laws that are due to come into force in the near future. ABM's are also a breeze to work on and repair. Not much goes badly wrong with them. My most recent repair was a 23 year old ABM400( see below). All it needed was a new pre-amp volume pot, a replacement valve, a quick clean and it was good as new. The china made ones aren't all that bad either ( EvoII/III models). Not to mention MAG's and EB's. They are also very easy to fix. I hope your ABM gets the love it needs to gig again.

I must admit I can get a bit OCD with string and pickup alignment. Does it make a difference if your strings are floating to the left or right of the pole pieces or slap bang in the centre? Hmm difficult to tell sonically but if anything it looks better if the strings aren't all skewed to one side or the other. Some basses are better setup than others from the factory. String height probably affects the sound more than where it is in relation to the pole pieceThis particular bass needed a fair bit of work to the bridge position to get the strings aligned with each set of pole pieces. I don't think it really made a huge difference to the sound but it looked better and played better as the strings were more evenly spaced on the fingerboard.

The 1048H cabs are pretty much 'wall of sound' when cranked. Late 90's green carpet boxes are rated 300w @ 8ohms. The drivers are Celestion G10T-80's so actually it's more like 320W. The horn is usually a Fostex 150W unit so you could argue that they are rated at 470W rms @ 8 ohms. A lot of Trace Elliot gear is very conservatively rated. The only thing worth a watch on these cabs is the horn attenuation switch which can wear out. If it's working ok and on full it can be really painful to be near it at volume. These are great cabs for grungy metal tones with the horn on about half and the treble up on your amp. They are also very efficient cabs. A 150 watt GP7SM will scream with a good 1048H cab even at 8 ohms. I used one of these for a while but the cab weight and size was its achilles heel...

There are a few subtle differences to the line in option for different ABM incarnations. From experience the line in on the ABM rear panel for old skool ABM, ABM EVO and EVO II amps is permanently live and sound will come out the speaker when you plug an input source into the line in. I spent days troubleshooting the line in option on an ABM EVO III amp backboard because no sound came out the speaker from my source only to find that it only became active when I had an instrument plugged into the front panel input jack. I thought the backboard was a dud but it was fine. Same issue with the send and return. The rear panel options basically only worked on the EVO III if the front panel input jack had something plugged in. I suspect this is by design to keep noise levels down on the newer ABM designs. I'm sure Ashdown could clarify the correct operation if you drop them a message. I did try and check over a few ABM user guides but there wasn't anything specific to say you need something plugged into the front panel input to use the rear panel options on newer incarnations.

When I was a bit younger and gigging a lot more, I only ever had one amp(thats all I could afford) and it was an old Marshall superbass head. What I did have was a comprehensive toolkit with me at all times which included a soldering iron, screwdrivers, pliers, wire snippers and a box of spare valves, jack sockets, and various guitar parts including string sets. In recent times, gigging before lockdown comprised of a main and a backup amp. Years of playing have taught me that a dead amp midway through a gig is something you need to be able to remedy quickly. The only spares I carry nowadays are a box of fuses, one set of spare bass strings and a few extra leads. Experience has taught me that as long as you know your amplifiers are in tip top condition, there's very little to worry about. I gig with a fairly modern( last twenty years) high power Class A/B transistor head and in the gig bag I have a class D back up amp. So far so good and the class D has never had to back up the OLD IRON. If we ever get back to gigging, I'll stay with the same philosophy. I've also never had one of my cabs fail in all the years I've gigged( fingers crossed) or one of my basses fail. There's a certain amount of risk of something failing at every gig. But for me at least, I don't thrash or neglect amps and I'm always checking/maintaining my amps/cabs and improving/servicing anything I think might be a potential weakness to avoid a gig failure. For a main I prefer to use an Ashdown ABM or either a Trace Elliot Series6 AH200 GP12 / MK5 AH250 GP11 depending on the venue and how my back is feeling, The class D backup is always a Markbass LMIII

thats a good question... IMHO MAG's don't quite have the bottom end grunt ABM's have but they aren't far off it. They are really good at low mids and upper mids. Especially the old school MOSFET MAG's.

Yes, well spotted. I'm a big ABM fan but I also like the RM cabs. If you like, it's not a bad thing to mix and match different lines. I've owned and tried a bunch of MAG and ABM cabs, both had their positives but were a tad on the heavy side for me. I like the form factor, size and weight of the recent RM cabs, and the one thing that impressed me was how they sounded. The RM white line drivers don't seem particularly efficient but they really do have that Ashdown tone nailed. For me the speaker efficiency isn't a major issue as my ABM 500EVO is more than able to drive them hard at gig volume. I use a four year old RM210T EVO and a two year old RM115T EVOII cab with the ABM and I'm very happy with the balance and tone of each cab and how they perform together gig wise. They are both slightly customised with vintage tinted Musicman grille cloth and the 210T also has a fair bit of internal structural customisation to tighten up the response and performance of the cab. The 210T is 14kg dead, and the RM115T EVOII is 15.5kg. My ABM is 12.5kg. it's an easy lift into a gig and I've used both cabs on their own many times for rehearsal to great effect. Point is, the Ashdown thing works well wether you are in to ABM's or an RM user and don't be afraid to mix and match. Both are viable lines to get in to and sound good when mixed together. I must admit being interested in the new ABM Neo cabs but they are heavier than the the RM's and don't add any extra power handling and cost more. So I'm happy with my investment in RM cabs for now to use with my ABM 500EVO. My ABM EVOIII 500 combo is a whole different thing...its a complete MONSTER and the only amp that's frightened me in recent times😲 It's heavy though at 32kg so not used as much as the RM cabs/500 EVO setup. 🙄

I’ve not had much experience with the RM class-D amps but can vouch for the ABM units as capable, great sounding, well put together, and reliable performance amps. My go-to amp incidentally is a twenty year old ABM 500EVO. It sounds great, still works perfectly and gigs really well. The valve in the pre-amp separates the ABM’s from other models and its worth mentioning different ABM models/variants do their valve sound a bit differently. If your interest is dipping your toes in the Ashdown sound and you aren’t sure which to purchase, it may be worth trying to pick up a good inexpensive used Ashdown to try out. ABM wise there’s a lot to choose from, they come in power outputs from around 200-1200 watts. Used RM class-D amps are also showing up regularly these days in the classifieds so that may be a good option to try. I'm biased towards ABM's though and prefer amps that come in a wooden box, are covered with Tolex and actually have a carry handle on them 🙂 My initial interest in Ashdown amps started with a second hand ABM200 and I was hooked on the ABM sound after that experience. I’ve tried quite a few Ashdown things(and other things) since, but always come back to my ABM’s( I have two at present, the other is an EVOIII 500).

Hi, I picked up one of these as a restoration project last summer and at that time it's cooling fan sounded like a bag of nails. It was just very well worn. The original fan was a Bi-Sonic SP802512L 12v 0.12A and it's bearing was knackered. I was lucky enough to have a spare from an old Ashdown amp (a Jamicon type from a MAG300) to replace mine with. I'm sure Ashdown amps could probably help you source a suitable replacement one if you think yours has a problem. May also be worth checking it's not clogged with dust before condemning the fan. A good clean fan can make a difference. I think historically early MAG250's may not have had cooling fans and were convection cooled only. The whole amp chassis is light alloy and part of the cooling mechanism. The fan is sort of an extra cooling unit as far as I can see. These amps warm up a fair bit when being used at gig/rehearsal volume. I've added a vid of mine as it is at present, hope this helps. There is still an audible whirr but I'd say its about the same as a MAG300 or EB180/220 type combo/amp. IMG_0005.mov

I owned one of these basses from new and the maple body was much denser(and heavier) than the mahogany bodied SR300L 4-string I also owned. The pickups had been installed back to front from new eg the bridge pickup in the front pickup position and vice versa. Once swapped around it sounded much better. The one thing I never got to grips with was the setup from new. The nut was cut way low and the B string flapped mercilessly on the first 3 or 4 frets making an unpleasant clicking sound. I tried different string gauges using lighter and standard settings but couldn't get the odd clicking to go away. Raising the action helped but to a point where it was less comfortable to play in a gig situation. I've owned a couple of four string lefty SR's and they have always been brilliant and had an awesome punchy tone ( an SR300L and an SR500L) but the five string was a mixed bag. I guess I could have taken the bass to a luthier for a more professional setup but I expected much better from Ibanez out of the box. It was a gorgeous bass, the whisky burst finish was very impressive. If it had played as good as it looked I would have kept it. I set it up best I could and sold it on to another lefty who was much happier with it that I was. I hope yours is better than mine was!

Dave Green is in my opinion legendary in his Ashdown advice. He recently fixed me up with a replacement set of Mosfet's for a super early 1997 ABM500H rack mount amp. I also personally use a 2000 vintage ABM EVO500 as my main gigging amp and the valve sound on these amps is more like a valve 'presence' than a 'grind' option. I must admit to liking this very much. I also use an EVO2 300 watt ABM big chassis version (2005 vintage) where the valve sound is much more aggressive than earlier models so there is def a difference in pre amp valve performance for different model year ABM's. I have no experience with evo 3 or 4 versions so not sure how these are voiced. The older ABM's in my opinion have a much more subtle rounded presence rather than a grit/grunge sound.

My 2012 lefty Fender USA Standard in Mystic red with a Hipshot Kickass bass bridge

I decided to go for one of the leftie Player jazz bass versions that were available mid 2019 in the later colour options. I contacted Fender UK directly for the 'Capri Orange' colour option which they said was available for order and mine was one of the very first sent to the UK market. My bass is stock apart from the Fender high mass bridge and sounds fantastic with the stock pickups. The Pao Ferro fingerboard has really nice grain and takes a bit of getting used to visually. I also have a 2012 USA Standard Jazz and the fingerboard is rosewood( it's as dark as ebony)and both have great and different overtones. The big difference from the Player and the USA standard is the neck. the USA standard neck is far and above the Player in terms of stability and tuning and earthy bass tones. I guess its those carbon fibre struts in the USA standard making a difference? Both though play very well and sound great, like Jazz basses should. The bottom end thump is there but if you want some grind its so easy to dial in from the standard player pickups.

I currently have the Eden Terra Nova 110 cab you mentioned, 4 ohm and 300watts. It's a great minimalist unit, extremely well made ported light plywood cab and the electrics are very high quality. So far, its performed as well as a Barefaced one ten I owned a few years back(now sold on). I use mine with a WTX264 and occasionally at noisier rehearsals with a Trace Elliot GP7 SM150. It seems to work much better with the Trace at volume. The cab puts out some serious lows at decent (clean) medium volumes. I've personally gone back to a reasonably good 1x15 for gigging as my experiences with a 1x10 cab on its own just didn't cut it for loud rock. I'm lucky that I have multiple cabs to choose from but if I could only have one, I'd prefer a good 1x15 even if it means a bit more pain lugging it about. 2x10's are also a good 'one cab' option worth thinking about and there's plenty to choose from these days.

Just thought I'd contribute to the thread with one of my fave lefties, a late 90's USA P-bass.

I was thinking of starting a similar 1x12 frankenstien project thread after reading all the 1x12 cab diary threads on Basschat. But based on modifying a branded cab not originally designed as a 1x12. I don't have WinISD or am technically profficient in cab design. It's more a case of modifying something with the bits to hand and see if it works! I suspect the advice would be 'don't go there' however my latest project seems to have worked out well despite having no technical design. If Could offer one one opinion it is that I agree with your last statement regarding being up for a little bit of experimentation. If anyone is keen, my project was a Musicman RH115 horn loaded cab made from pine and light weight which had a new 3/4 marine ply baffle fitted and converted to a 1x12 cab. The replacement driver was an Eminence Beta 12LF ( 250watts rms) . It sounds pretty darn good and has lows and mids aplenty, more so than when it was a 15inch speaker cab. Can anyone do the WinISD math on my franken cab to see if it adds up?