Dan Dare

It's t'internet, I'm afraid. People will type things they'd never dare to say face to face. Keyboard warriors and all that. 

On ‎03‎/‎01‎/‎2019 at 09:32, tauzero said:

No-one recognises Ariana Grande's name? I wouldn't know her music but surely a suicide bomber at one of her gigs makes her just a teeny bit memorable?

I seem to remember some wag said at the time that he also felt like blowing himself up when her heard her sing...

Aguilar AG700 and Carvin B1000

When I was looking for a class D head, I compared the AG700 directly with and preferred it to the Glock Steamhammer, Genz Magellan,  Mark LM3 and EBS Reidmar. Plenty of power. Simple, usable eq. Has a hint of the Aguilar trademark tone (on the warm side, but not dirty like the TH heads), but does clean, too. Bought the Carvin used as a backup. Does clean a little better than the AG and sounds particularly good with a P bass - compliments it very well. 1000w power rating a little optimistic - I'd say it's on a par with the AG.

Phil Jones C4 and 4B

Discovered PJB when I was looking for a combo for small jobs (at the time, I was running large old-school cabs with a pre/power). Had pretty well decided to buy a 1x12 Markbass and tried a C4 that the shop had on display on a whim. It was something of a revelation. I preferred it so much to the MB and my old cabs, I bought it and decided to get more, move on my old rig and find a lightweight head. Now run two C4s and a 4B (similar tone, with a bit more bottom end than the C4), so can take as many/few cabs as a job demands - both heads will run into 2.6 ohms. Clean, but not clinical, plenty of weight when I use all three together and also work well at low volumes, which you can't say for all cabs (some seem to need to be pushed before they give of their best). Inefficient, so you need powerful amplification. Heavy for their diminutive size and solidly built. Project very well - will do most 'normal' jobs without PA support and deliver a surprising amount of volume in the room without appearing to be particularly loud on stage. Not heard anything I prefer to date and no plans to change.

Apologies. I thought you were asking about heads. For power amps, I would look at those places that sell PA. For class D, the industry standard makes include Lab Gruppen (they also make for other brands, including Martin Audio and L-Acoustic), Camco, Fohhn, QSC and others. Prices are often quite a lot over your budget, however (hence the suggestion to look at Class D heads and use as a power amp). The suggestion above to use a Quilter Bass Block is a good one (Quilter is the 'Q' in QSC). It's simple (so you won't be spending a lot on a pre-amp that duplicates what you have) and plenty powerful. Be a bit wary of bargain priced Lab Gruppens and others. Because prices of good class D power amps are so high,  there are Chinese fakes about, so it can be risky buying from other than an authorised dealer or from eBay. If looking at used, ask to see some kind of documentation - original receipt, etc.

8 hours ago, WHUFC BASS said:

I had a ’78 Jazz fretless which I bought back in the late 80s for around £300. It was the same, heavy as lead, very boring sounding and just uninspiring. I persevered for a good while until it was time to move it on. I also had a 76 Jazz which was the exact opposite, fantastic, light and with a huge sound - almost like ti was made by a different manufacturer

 

A lot of late 70s Fenders - guitars and basses - seemed to weigh a ton. I think they went through a phase of using heavy ash bodies. A pal has an ash-bodied Strat' from the time that could give you a hernia. My'72 Jazz is like your '76 - light, big sound and generally wunnerful.

On ‎01‎/‎01‎/‎2019 at 03:39, Marc Day said:

Thanks, I Appreciate the input, especially as it kind of confirms what I first thought and had heard from a few others. With the RA250 being big (4 units) as well as heavy, both are a bit of an issue. Heavy is far less of a problem if it isn't big and awkward as well, as it is now.

I had considered simply using a class D bass head as a power amp as a waste of money, but thinking about it in another way, that also has it's merits. It couldn't hurt to have some backup ready if the MP11 decided to die at the wrong moment.

Knowing more about what my options are is a great help, so thanks again for that. The next thing is where to look. Finding used stuff is just a question of shopping around, but I've struggled to find a store that offers many choices for buying new. Can you suggest anyone that carries a decent range?

Happy new year!

Marc.

 

 

 

I know I'm being predictable, but if you're wanting to look at new bass heads, Bass Direct has pretty wide stock and carries virtually all of the better brands. 

The bass...

I'd have only got 5. Never heard of the Breeders. So I'm even more out of touch, thank Gawd.

I agree with PJ Bassist. Seems a 1x12 combo will largely duplicate what you have already. Your head is larger than the amp in most combos, but that's  about it. I'd look for a smaller head to use with the existing cab. In addition to the Elf, the baby GK 200 watter is very compact and nice.

I've just dribbled down my shirt. Lovely instrument.

G&L L2000. Fabulous pickups, very versatile, well made. I didn't hate it by any means, but just couldn't get on with the neck (I've spent too long playing J basses). I persevered, but eventually sold it. Was sad to see it go, because it made lovely noises.

I lusted after a Ric for years when I were a lad (based on the look and the fact that nothing else would do that Chris Squire sound). Never got one. String spacing is pretty tight - they tend to be preferred by pick players. Pricing is OTT, but if you like/want what they do, nothing comes close.

Agree with Chiliwailer that D'Addario Chromes are worth trying. They work very well on a J bass and can do bright/crisp if needed. Relatively cheap, too.

You won't necessarily need class D. Unless weight is important, a regular (class A/B) PA power amp will do the job and be neutral/uncoloured. They can be had for much less than you are looking to spend (used, they can be bought for surprisingly little, even premium brands). You'll need one you can bridge if you don't wish to run stereo, but many will do that. It might also be worth looking at getting a class D bass head and using it as a power amp. Many have a switchable input that will accept line level signals, so you can set the eq flat and run your existing pre into it. Alternatively, if it has an effects loop or a power amp in, you can drive it via that or the effects return. Definitely try before you buy.

20 hours ago, Bill Fitzmaurice said:

Valve amps don't have a minimum impedance load, they have a maximum impedance load, the opposite of SS amps.

I didn't know that, Bill. I assumed, as you are warned on pain of destroying valve amps not to use them with no load connected, that very low impedance would be bad for them. Thanks for the heads up.

The only way to be sure is to head for BD and try one for yourself.

I wouldn't buy sight unseen. It can be a short cut to dissatisfaction and spending more in the long run (have a look in the market place at the amount of good quality kit people are trying to move on. Nothing wrong with any of it, but I'd bet many bought it on recommendation and found it didn't suit them). I know. I've been there. I finally saw the light and spent half a day in a well stocked shop trying things and bought something I liked (and which I feel no desire to change). You really need to try things out. What anyone else likes won't necessarily work for you. This is especially true of the price bracket you're looking in (which dictates buying used).

Good quality closed-back phones (such as you have) will usually give much clearer insight into bass lines than the majority of monitors that are available at affordable prices. Definitely try/compare before buying. You may find it better to stick with what you've got (and you'll save some money).

It looks to me as if the valve amp the OP is considering needs to see a minimum of 4 ohms (many do). If that is the case, you can safely use it with a cab of higher impedance, but should go cautiously with lower (2.66 might be pushing things a bit, unless the output transformer is up to the job or tapped to deliver into 2 ohms). So your 6 ohm cab will be fine. You may get slightly less output, but it will be hardly noticeable and we all know that valve watts are much louder, don't we 😀?

Where is it/are you?

I have a Carvin B1000. They turn up occasionally and not for too much money (Carvin are out of business, so no new ones to be had). I like it a lot - for some things, I prefer it to the AG700. 

This illustrates another very good reason to use a P bass (see other extensive thread on the topic). They're simple, weighty, solidly made/hard to break and ideal for self-defence purposes 😉

1 minute ago, dmccombe7 said:

Any chance you could send me a wee pic 

 

I'll try. I'm ancient, so will have to work out how to upload one.

11 minutes ago, dmccombe7 said:

I'm finding the same thing with the Precision Deluxe i bought couple years ago. Its good and it does a lot of sounds but it still doesn't do that P bass thing even on passive mode with full P pick up its not quite as full.

What did you use in your Bitsa bass out of curiousity

Was thinking maybe a Squier and update the pick ups might be an option.

Dave

I used a Squier body, no name neck (but decent - nice flamed maple with a good rosewood board. Had to file/smooth the fret ends and level a couple, but simple enough to do. Plenty on eBay), Grover tuners, Gotoh bridge (not high mass), Seymour Duncan regular P p/u (not the high output version and don't bother with the Antiquity, because the spec's are identical to the cheaper regular one), CTS pots, orange drop cap, Switchcraft socket, that 'vintage' cloth wound cable and silver solder (tried to make everything absolutely bog-standard P bass). It worked a treat and cost me les than £250. Oh, and I put a 'Dinky Toys' decal on the headstock (you can get them off eBay). None of that using a Fender one 😊

1 hour ago, dmccombe7 said:

I love my Jazz but i bought the PJ bass to get that "P" sound. I've tried the neck pick up on its own with my Jazz and altho its a close tone to a P it doesn't carry the same depth of tone with everything else on the amp remaining exact same.

I'm a Jazz fan but a P bass definitely has a sound of its own. I think it simply sits better in a mix than a Jazz bass and it fills out the sound better. Jazz has more edge and clarity for my own personal taste tho.

I might develop GAS for a full on P bass in 2019 methinks but it will have to be a good one

Dave

My sentiments exactly. My main instrument is an old Jazz and I bought a PJ to have the best of both worlds. Versatile, but it doesn't quite do the full-fat P bass sound, so I built a bitsa P (simple enough, with only around 35 bolts/screws to do up and some very basic soldering), put La Bella flats on it and bingo. When you need 'that' sound, nothing else will quite do it.