Musicman20

Maybe he is referring to relief?!

[quote name='LawrenceH' timestamp='1339694879' post='1692935'] Ah, I hadn't realised the streamliner was HV as well! Got to be worth looking at, thanks for the heads-up. But the valve being small doesn't matter - all the 12AX7-based amps run in starved plate mode aren't going to sound as 'valve-y' as a small tube run at proper spec voltage. That 6205 is also a relatively high-voltage tube, so not great at low voltage for the same reasons as a 12AX7 but I bet in the right circuit it could sound fantastic. [/quote] Ah, I see what you mean now! Thanks. Yep, the STreamliner is a very cool design.

This discussion of one 1x12 not cutting it have thankfully put me off buying a pair. May as well always use a 2x12.

[quote name='Prime_BASS' timestamp='1339538546' post='1690369'] Very surprised at this. Personally I prefer the tube head that Markbass do, as I find the solid state pre to be very nasally and a little lacking in soemthing, not that it's bad it just doesn't tick boxes for me. The added highs you are hearing is the extra harmonic distortion you get from having a tube in the signal, especially as it's a very clean amp anyway. I find the difference enough to ignore the solid state side all together. But it also depends on the cabs used. Been using barefaced and markbass and the difference is audible enough even at rehearsal volumes. I also find that the gain needs to be set higher on the tube side to get the best signal to noise ratio, and lower on the solid state side. The thing is these amps arn't for breaking up they are for clean and transparent, but with the eq knobs and the filters you can use the head in any situation. Plus it weighs nothing! Setting everything 12? Yes I do this only because I like the way my signal sounds DI'd and the cab's give a faithful representation of that signal, but on the gig cause I am going DI'd I will EQ to the stage/room so I can hear myself and the band can hear me. Regardless of how big or small the tube is it creates what I like about preamp tubes, and thats enoough for me. The TC stuff. It sounds great and looks great on paper but I would recommend that this be tried in the environments it's going to be used in. Yes the 450 is loud, but it's a different kind of loud. Louder than a 500watt Markbass head? No. It's hardc to describe how the head sounds. I had the RH750 for a while and it was loud but when it started pushing it had horrible dynamics, due to the way the power amp works. the on board compressor is nice yes but at volume it was useless, along with any minute EQ shift. Great amp, sounds good and feature packed but something missing. No way was it noticably louder than the 500watt MArkbass. The Genz streamliners are just a better all round amp than the TC. Sound better at volume, if a little muchy in the lows. Again it has a similar compressing going on but only in the low band, so it does keep getting louder but only because it's squashing the lows. At the end of the day, it's nice playing with stuff in a shop, everything sounds pretty decent. It's onlyon the gig where it matters. You may find the head you love in the shop doesn't perform on the gig. You also have to choose the amp for you and your needs. My needs arn't very typical of a bassist, I just want to be able to hear myself clearly on stage, as most of the time I'm DI'd , I liek the sound of the DI thats not a problem. but when I need it to the Markbass will be the loudest thing there and pump my sound around a massive space. [/quote] Thats good that it works out for you. When the LMTube came out, I went to the Bass Merchant and A/B'ed the LM3/LMTube and the LMTube800. I decided that the 800 was too much volume wise, and didnt really listen to the tone that much as I was set on the 500 watt Class A/B LM amps. Myself and the two guys at the BM setup the LM3 and the LMTube with the same bass, going through the same cab (Markbass 4x10), and switched between amps using the tall Markbass demo stand device. We had the LM3 flat, the LMTube flat, and turned all the way to the tube setting. Tried it at high volume levels, and I could barely hear any difference, and I was really listening because I was deciding between the two models. I wanted the LMTube because it seemed like a slick package, but I just couldn't hear it. The LM2/3 sounds like quite a transparent 'clean' tube amp, as it warm and clear. I was expecting distortion or grit...at all, I just wanted a different tube tone. I love tubes, and I love solid state amps, and I couldn't hear enough difference between the LM3 and LMTube. In my experience, and what seems like the consensus on thge first Talkbass RH450 threads, the RH450 is very very loud, and will quite easliy outrun the LM2/3 amp. I had the LM3 and RH450 at the same time. Obviously the volume tapers are different, (the master on the Markbass heads is a bit of a trick...they don't really do much after 1 o'clock) but the LM3 limiter clips hard and runs out of steam much quicker than the RH450. The RH750 is louder and has more authority. The Streamliner 900 is a total volume BEAST. That all tube pre amp is a beautiful design and it really does achieve its goals...eg super clean loud fat tube tone. It will grit, but you don't have to. I've recently acquired a Genz Shuttlemax 9.2, which has a fet and tube channel. Set flat, and switching between the two channels, there is quite a big difference in tone. It warms up, the high end has a more softer attack...and you get a little tube sag. Blending them is brilliant! [quote name='LawrenceH' timestamp='1339605730' post='1691379'] That's not really how it works... [/quote] See above. It really isn't a full tube pre like Genz or GK MBFusion. The LMTube's are using a tiny 6205 tube. PS - The Genz Streamliner uses a high plate voltage.

Still agree with Wayne. Went to see NOFX last night...after all these years of being a fan I still get super excited to see them. Stunning band...much more talented than most muso's realise.

Mike Burkett of NOFX.

Not feelin it. Plus MH is no Fat Mike. But don't listen to me...it actually looks pretty neat

I had both and the rosewood looked better on a P. If its a black pick guard on say a Jazz or Ray, then maple can look nice.

Definitely another option

Firstly, how are these such good value, and neo?! http://www.soundsliveshop.com/p/Gallien-Krueger_NEO_112_Bass_Speaker_Cabinet/GK-NEO112 Is it because GK manufacture their own speakers? (Paragon) Has anyone got one of these, or a pair, and can give an impression of what they are like. Crazy low weight, low price, and a nice size.

The tube is so small on the LMTube it's insignificant, plus you can't change it.

Nice colour...red and sparkly!

Cool!! I'd like to hear what the new pup is like.

GK told me the last stock of Chinese amps is being shipped out (month or so ago) and then they are making the new ones.

[quote name='1976fenderhead' timestamp='1339420424' post='1688130'] Well then, dramatic turn of events after further testing I did some more playing but this time sticking mostly to flat setting to get the true nature of the amps. Genz Benz is eliminated, because of compression on both the Streamliner and Shuttle (which maybe is better on the Shuttle 6.2, not sure) and also because of that scooped baked in EQ that seems to be their signature sound. I really grew to dislike that today so not really interested in trying the 6.2 due to that philosophy of having such a strong voicing baked in. Feels like cheating to me somehow, as does the compression, like trying to get more volume out of their power, makes me feel they're not as powerful as the numbers say. The Aguilar, though I love it, is off too. Love the Drive breakup thing and the beautiful dynamics, but the sound is a bit too middy, so the problem with this one is doesn't do scooped well. So both GB and Aguilar suffer from lack of flexibility for my intentions. Surprise: Pretty dead set on MarkBass now. The reason why it seemed too flat last time was because I AB'd it quickly with GB and was fooled by that instant GB punch, then didn't go back to it. The Little Mark III is actually very warm and natural, and very, very flexible. Does scooped well, slap tones, aggressive rock tones, classic, modern, the lot... They should get the Little Mark Tube for me to try this weekend and I think one of these will be the one... The fact I didn't like GB makes me think I won't like TC either, as they use similar tricks to simulate valves that by their own admission, compress the dynamics. I also read about reliability issues, knobs breaking etc. Not sure if I feel like driving 1 hour to test it alone, and not being able to AB it with MarkBass at that shop won't help much... But I'll see if I can do it somehow this weekend. I tried a few cabs with the Little Mark III. MB cabs kind of sucked. Vanderkley was good, preferred the 210 to the 112 but had to turn down the tweeter a bit. EBS Neo 210 sounded just right. So what cabs would you advise for this amp, given that I liked Vanderkley and EBS and hated MB? I like that GK ones can tilt up, but worried they'll sound as trebly as their amps!! [/quote] I think before you jump (and don't get me wrong, Markbass is a fantastic choice), my advice is: TC amps sound nothing like Markbass or Genz...at all Genz Shuttle amps (the 3.0 and 6.0) have a high pass filter that takes the low end and cuts it off. They were designed to match with small combo cabs that Genz make, and this prevents failures (a small 1x12/10/8 will only take so much!!). The 9.0, and more so the 6.2, 9.2 and Max .2s have a much fuller low end and a more pleasing voicing. I haven't heard any natural scooped tones from the Genz Shuttle amps set flat. In actual fact they have a high mid bump to my ears...definitely not scooped set flat at all. The Streamliner 600/900 has a very small mid dip which can be put to flat with the use of the mid knob put to 1 ish and the bass to 10 ish. It's and old fashioned EQ section...flat at 12 doesn't really matter. The Markbass amps do sound great all at 12 on the EQ. My problem is that it has become a bass requirement to have this on all amps. Position doesn't matter as long as it sounds great. If I was to buy Markbass I'd stick with the LM2/3 or F500. The Tube series sounds very un-tube like and the Rocker grit isn't very musical...

I can't deal with UK festivals now. After witnessing Groezrock in Belgium it made me realise we are overcharged and very unorganised in the UK, with rubbish weather. I agree Clarky, get in the hotel

Which Genz Shuttle did you try? I'd highly recommend trying the new Shuttle 6.2 and 9.2. If you can afford it, the Max 9.2 dies everything! The 3.0 is built for the tiny combo they are part of and hence the amp does not have much girth and low end to the voicing. The Streamliner is the 600 or 900, both will do very very clean fat tube tones or dirty tube tones at ridiculous volumes (esp the 900). Don't knock the TC until youve tried it. TC know a lot more about amp technology than most forum members so ignore the comments and try it for yourself much louder (the 450) than a similar spec lm3 by Markbass and won't clip nasty! The Aguilar gear is awesome. I don't need it but I'd love a TH500. You can slap through anything. Some old school funk guys used P basses and flats to slap. Some prefer very tinny MIller type Jazz tone.

[quote name='largo' timestamp='1339251630' post='1685920'] I went for the GK Neo 112-ii cabs which sound great and are almost as light as the BF Compact I used to own. Each cab is smaller, but bigger dimensions because there's 2 of them. I did feel the sound from the BF Compact passed my legs so was difficult to hear at some gigs and certainly wasn't bomb-proof when it came to a gigging cab. Just wanted to say. Now the Schroeder, that was a cab [/quote] Those GK 112s are a very very good price.

What are you looking for? Do you want to hear more of the treble and high end? If so the Compact is not for you. I always prefer having the option of using a tweeter or not.

Personally I don't like the pressure you can get in stores to rush through trying it. When it's an instrument over £500, especially ones hitting the £1500+ region, it takes time to make sure it's right. What happens if you travel and you dislike it? You've lost the petrol and the time. If its fairly local, no issue, but for example, if I went to the Bass Gallery, it's a very expensive journey. Just thinking out loud

Aguilar DB112. Fantastic tone.

Punk is Precision, Jazz, Stingray or Ric. That includes modern punk.