Osiris

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1489576960' post='3258032'] If I was in the market for a new amp, I would choose the Genzler Magellan - £675. [/quote] I hadn't really considered the Magellan. A mate of mine had one of the Gens Benz heads a while ago (I don't remember which model) but I always felt that it had an unpleasant bump in the mids that was difficult to dial out without radically eq'ing the amp. But he played it through Mark Bass cabs which seem to have a reputation for a low mid bump, so maybe it was the cabs, or maybe the amp and cab just didn't work well together? Dunno. But it had initially put me off the Magellan. And for the record, I like to have the mids present in my tone [size=4] [/size] However, the Magellan has got rave reviews all round so I'm happy to try it and see what I think. A few people have said that it can get that warm, vintage tone that I like, similar to the Tone Hammer. And it looks to be a lot more versatile than the TH too. The specs and features are broadly similar to the Subway but the Mag' is £200 cheaper. Tempting.... Do you have one, or have you ever played through one? I'd be interested to hear what you think of it.

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1489931103' post='3260867'] You might have issues if you need a repair under warranty if importing one. If you're not bothered about warranty, just buy used! [/quote] Unfortunately I had a bad experience with buying a used amp a few years ago, it died mid gig a couple of weeks after I received it [size=4] even though it was supposedly only a couple of months old, so I'd rather pay the premium on a new amp and have the peace of mind of a valid warranty - just in case. No doubt I was unlucky last time but once bitten....[/size]

[quote name='markstuk' timestamp='1489919807' post='3260760'] I'm not disagreeing with you.... You'll need to budget 25% for VAT and duty. plus $50 or so for shipping (which they'll add VAT to).. Any warranty issues will need to be resolved by the supplying US dealer.. [/quote] I didn't think that you were disagreeing with me, you were clarifying that Mesa may not necessarily have control over the recent rise which is more helpful than my response may have suggested. I can see how the reply that you have quoted above can read as being on the defensive side, apologies if it came across as a bit arsey as that was not my intention [size=4] [/size] [size=4]Thanks for the information regarding importing from the states. I'll look into it and give it some thought.[/size]

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1489909057' post='3260649'] You could always make PMT an offer at the old price if you like the amp. They probably bought the stock in before the price hike, are being told what price to advertise by the distributor, but have total freedom to sell at whatever price they like. [/quote] I called them yesterday afternoon to ask about the possibility of buying it at the old price but they said that they couldn't now sell it for that. And you're right, this is a pre price rise amp. Unfortunately they were a little vague as to why they couldn't sell it at the old price point. [size=4]The guy I spoke to was very helpful and almost [/size][size=4]apologetic about the rise but after speaking to the manager he said they just couldn't do it. I got the feeling that their hands are tied, but by who, I can only speculate. [/size] [size=4]So I'm now back to pondering over a Tone Hammer 350 but am also keeping my options open for something a bit higher powered but still sensibly priced. Fortunately I'm in no immediate hurry so I'm going to take my time and try as many different amps as I can to make sure I get something that's right for me. [/size]

[quote name='markstuk' timestamp='1489854412' post='3260372'] It's not Mesa, it's Westside distribution that set the price.. Just bring one in from the US, they have universal power supplies... [url="https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/SubwayD800"]https://www.sweetwat...tail/SubwayD800[/url] [url="https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/SubwayD800P"]https://www.sweetwat...ail/SubwayD800P[/url] [/quote] Regardless of who made the decision to up the price by that much, I still think it's a ridiculous move. More so because I was looking to potentially buy one this weekend pending a successful trial. The fact that this has also been applied to existing stock makes it very difficult for me to see the motivation behind it as anything other than avarice. The idea of importing one directly from the states is worth considering, a crude calculation (price in dollars converted by today's online exchange rate, plus an additional 20% to cover import duty) comes in at under £700. Plus shipping costs too. Are there any other costs that I'd need to factor in? Do you have any idea if the warranty would still be valid if I was to import one directly?

The Mesa seems to have had an obscene universal price hike over the past 24 hours. [size=4] [/size] Yesterday, Andertons and PMT both had it listed at £739, which is the same ball park as amps of a similar spec from other manufacturers. Today, however, the list price has gone up to £875, an increase of nearly £150. That's an additional 20% on yesterday's price. This seems to be the list price for all UK stockists of the Subway D-800 and it includes existing stock too, so it's not as though there has a new shipment of the amps into the UK that carry the higher price tag. Mesa have a bad reputation for their UK prices, but this is just taking the p***.

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1489752926' post='3259461'] Good call! A clean amp with the TH pedal! Plus then you have the TH pedal for recording or gigs where you can just turn up with a high end DI.....OR, use the pedal with backlines that are supplied and get the TH tone. [/quote] Yes, that sounds like another good option to explore

[quote name='Bridgehouse' timestamp='1489752720' post='3259453'] Bass Direct have the EICH and a tonehammer in, and a D800 - you can compare and contrast and choose your favourite flavour. As an extra thought, if you find the EICH or D800 does a better job, you could always pick up the tonehammer pedal to get that sound when you need it. Less of a one trick pony then..? [/quote] Sounds like a plan! Trouble is I'm out on a stag night tonight and may not be up to blasting anything at volume tomorrow, let alone driving.... I was thinking of heading out on Sunday to PMT in Cambridge, who have the subway in stock, as Bass direct aren't open on Sundays. But you're right, it makes sense to compare a number of amps side by side with the same bass and cab. And next weekend is the good lady's birthday so I doubt whether I'll be allowed out But I'm in no immediate hurry, fortunately, so I can wait a couple of weeks if I have to. [quote name='Treb' timestamp='1489753231' post='3259464'] The TH350 (and TH500) can do clean. Keep the drive down all the way, low-ish gain (with gain at its lowest it still produces sound) and use the master for volume. If I want more sparkle I pull the brightness knob on my DJ-Retro preamp. [/quote] Thank you, it's good to know that the TH will do clean even though I didn't experiment with clean sounds last week.

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1489746647' post='3259372'] The Tecamp cabinets, particularly the one you have, are/is really good. I would stick with that cabinet! I sold mine to help with moving house but I regret it. In the end I picked up a Genz NX212T which isn't so far off so I'm happy. [/quote] Absolutely, I can't see any reason to change the cab at the minute as it is superb in every respect. It only weighs about 20 Kg and the tone is sublime. Great projection too, even stood right in front of it on a cramped gig I can hear every nuance of my playing. My intention is to gig it until one of us eventually keels over

The Eich amps look good although are possibly a bit too hi-fi/clean for what I'm after. I definitely need to, and will, try before I buy. The AGS on the TH is the most convincing tube emulation that I've yet heard and is what makes them the current leaders on my shortlist. It's the tone I have in my head and the one I'm hankering for. However, I do wonder if the TH's are a bit of a one trick pony, although if they are, it's a trick that'll take some beating - for me if not for anyone else. The plan is to test drive the Mesa subway at the weekend to see that can do. On paper it appears to be more versatile than the TH but in reality I probably wouldn't use the extra tone shaping features. But the extra headroom could well be useful for clearer tones at higher volume. I also had the chance to have a blast through OpticalEye's Quilter bass block at the weekend. It's a bit of an oddball for sure but sounded brilliant through his pair of Barefaced 1 x 10's. It's not exactly the tone I'm currently after but is much more versatile than you'd think and is definitely something that I think I could happily live and gig with. I'd love like to hear what it's capable of at gig volume. The bass response from it is a joy to behold, deep, punchy and powerful but without being overpowering. It's almost impossible to describe it, you need to hear to fully appreciate it.

[quote name='Bridgehouse' timestamp='1489675828' post='3258891'] Got mine from there. The Vanderkley cabs are better than the Mesas IMHO [/quote] I'm only after a new amp at the minute. The cab that I have gigged with regularly for the past 5 or 6 years is a Tecamp M212 which, I believe, a direct ancestor of the Eich gear, so if I was to end up with an Eich amp, I think they'd be a superb match. Although I still haven't ruled out the TH 350 yet!

[quote name='Bridgehouse' timestamp='1489669850' post='3258805'] Good question. Well, I went for the T1000 - I suspect the T900 is closer to the D800, but in brief: - To get the same functionality, I would have needed the 800+ (fx loop etc) and it was well north of £1000 - Tone wise, I felt the EICH just had more range and tweak in them - specially the T1000, and the built in compressor was nice.. - The killer for me was the flexibility of the T1000 for what was broadly the same cash as the D800+ - you get 2 500w class D amps in the T1000 - so you can mix and match cabs with different ohms, you can set the volume for each power amp separately to balance cabs out, or you can bridge them for the full 1000w. To me, the EICH sounded more hifi, more rounded and more complete as a tone compared to the D800 though the same Vanderkley cab... [/quote] Thank you, I'll try and get over to Bass direct who have some of the Eich amps in stock so I can have a listen, although hi-fi is not really what I'm looking for

[quote name='Bridgehouse' timestamp='1489667506' post='3258773'] If you are considering the D800 then have a look at the EICH range as well - I preferred the EICH to the D800.... [/quote] Just had a quick look, they look interesting. Just out of interest, what it is you preferred about the Eich over the D800?

There's some great advice and information above guys, cheers, I really appreciate it. There seems to be a consensus that the TH 350 will be probably enough for my needs, a mixture of pub gigs and wedding/party type gigs. In terms of volume, we're perhaps not the quietest band on the average pub gig, but we're by no means the loudest either. My gigging cab is a 4 ohm, 600 watt, Tecamp M212, which according to the specs has a sensitivity of 101 dB (although I have no idea if that's good, bad or average!). Bass is almost always through the PA too unless we're in a smaller venue when we try and keep things down anyway. Tonally, I tend to leave the eq flat with maybe subtle adjustments to suit the room if need be, and I like a bit of warmth to the tone too, not overdrive but a touch warmth/hair/grit whatever you wish to call it. Is the 350 likely to be man enough for this? Form what a few of you have said above, I think that it probably will be. It took me all of about 20 seconds fiddling with the TH 500 to get a sound that I liked and think would work well with the band and I love the simplicity of it. The only thing preventing me ordering one right now is that I'm hoping to try the Mesa Boogie Subway D800 at the weekend to see how I get on with that

[quote name='krispn' timestamp='1489575319' post='3258014'] Twice the price for twice the features but how much does a wee fan cost, a speakon connector and an fx loop I'm sure the TH500 sounds great but it does feel pricy in comparison if the two essentially sound the same. [/quote] That's exactly what I'm wondering too. [quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1489577751' post='3258041'] At the risk of ruining a perfectly good witch hunt. . . . Not twice the price. If my maths is right, the TH500 at approx £819 is slightly over 30% more expensive than the TH350 at approx £600. [/quote] My intention is not to start a witch hunt, but to try to understand why there is such a significant cost difference between the 2 amps. Obviously the higher powered amp with the additional features will cost more, I don't have an issue with that, what concerns me is that size of that difference. A quick look on Google shows that you can pick up a new TH 350 for £420, which is almost half of £819 So my question probably ought to be, is it worth paying another £400 for a few additional components that likely have a negligible cost, some additional power, which from what a number of the guys above have said that I'll almost certainly not need? I don't use any effects, and only ever gig with a single 4 ohm cab, so the loop and the extra speaker out aren't essential for me. I think I've just answered my own question!

[size=4][quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1489531697' post='3257770'][/size] Yes you are. Check the specs again. [/quote] [size=4]Looking at the specs above, it looks there's also a bigger amp case, an extra fan plus an extra speaker output in addition to the additional 150 watts and the effects loop. And while I'd expect to pay more for the extra power etc. I still don't see why there is such a huge difference in price between the 2 models. [/size] [size=4]So what is it that I'm missing here? [/size]

I'm in the market for a new amp and had the chance to try out the Tone Hammer 500 at the weekend and it sounded great, exactly the tone I'm looking for. But sniffing around online, the best price I can find for the TH 500 is £768 from Gear4music, everywhere else has it at £829 upwards - Whereas Andertons and PMT are doing the TH 350 for £420. Why is the 500 almost double the price of the 350? As far as I can tell all you're getting is an extra 150 watts plus an effects loop. Is there a reason for this? Am I missing something?

What about something like a drum hardware box? Hardcase do loads of different size and shapes, they're not particularly cheap but they do last - our drummer has a couple that have been battered around for years but are still going strong. I nearly bought the 28 x 10 x 10 inch one for cables, stands etc. but was only put off the the asking price which I think is a lot for what is essentially a glorified Tupperware box

They're more usually known as the Model P, there's loads of reviews online if you Google 'Dimarzio Model P' but as usual you'll get a ton of often conflicting information! I've had a couple of these over the years - and have just picked up another one on here recently for a great price. They are a very different beast from the quarter pounders though, the QP's supposedly have masses of bottom end and a mid scoop so are more modern sounding (I've not used the QP's personally, but this seems to be the online consensus, so apologies if that's not right!) whereas the Model P sounds much more like the classic Precision tone - solid, rounded bass, punchy mids and enough top end to cut through without being too bright sounding. Think something along the lines of the tone that has served Steve Harris so well over the years and you'll be in the right ball park. Personally I love the tone of them. I've read that 1 or 2 people think they have a bit more mid range than the Precision is known for, but in my experience that is not the case, they give the classic P tone but with a somewhat higher output from the pickup. They work brilliantly in a band mix too. As to whether they're the sort of thing you will like, only you can answer that

[quote name='Beer of the Bass' timestamp='1488569002' post='3250199'] Yes, that's right. [/quote] Brilliant, thank you [size=4] [/size] I don't claim to understand any of the technical talk above. What I do appreciate, however, is that you need to know what you are doing with a valve amp as it seems that you can easily kill it if you don't. And I'd rather be safe than sorry before diving in head first.

Thanks for the help everyone. I have 2 different cabs, one is a 600 watt, 4 ohm, 2x12 and the other is a 300 watt, 8 ohm 1x12. And I only ever use one or the other - never both together. So using the scenario in my original post, if was to use either cab with a 100 watt all valve amp (using the appropriate output from the amp) then regardless of the cabs nominal impedance, I'd still be getting the full 100 watts through each cab?

[size=4][font=arial,helvetica,sans-serif]I'm pondering the idea of getting an all valve amp, the only one I've ever had was when I started playing about 30 years ago, it was an old Park guitar amp and I really didn't know anything about them at that time, and if I'm honest, I still don't, having played through solid state and Class D ever since. But, happy as I am with Class D, this is an itch that I think it's about time to scratch…. My question is regarding the output from all valve (tubes as the cool kids and our brethren out in the colonies call them) amp outputs. Whereas the SS/Class D's that I've used seem to work on a minimum load i.e. 500 watts into 4 ohms, 300 watts into 8 ohms etc, it looks to me that some valve amps have dedicated impedance outputs i.e. an output for 8 ohms and a separate one for 4 ohms. Do the same rules apply to the output i.e. if you have a 100 watt all valve amp and run it with an 8 ohm cab, are you only getting half (or thereabouts) of the power from the amp as you would with a Class D/SS amp? Would you get the full output running valve amps at 4 ohms? [/font][/size]

Just received a VT Bass pedal from Dave and can highly recommend him as a good guy to deal with; fast and friendly communication and he posted the pedal really quickly too - I paid for it on Thursday night and was playing through the pedal by Saturday morning.

[quote name='paul_5' timestamp='1487594510' post='3240980'] I'm putting it together myself. Will post some audio samples once it's done. [/quote] Looking forward to it, cheers

[quote name='paul_5' timestamp='1487538066' post='3240645'] Off the back of this thread I've just ordered a 'Blue Juice' bass O/D PCB from Fuzz Dog to do a 'boutique' low gain circuit and see how it sounds. [/quote] Are you having it built by fuzz dog or putting it together yourself? Can you let us know how you get on with it once you get your hands on it, please?