gazhowe

Have you considered the MoMark? If you aren't sure what you prefer that would allow you to swap out pre-amp, EQ and output modules if you fancy a change while keeping the same power amp frame.

Hi Neil, welcome on board. Caught the Alcatraz House band at the County (So Shields) a while back - good stuff!

Welcome on board Barry.

Turning 43 this year. The main difference is that one of the first questions I ask about a new gig venue these days is "It's not an upstairs room is it?" I still love the whole gigging experience, its just that the body takes a lot longer to recover these days.

Just the one rig for me - 1 MoMark amp (500w) and 1 Bergantino AE410 cab. If I had spare cash I would probably buy another head as a backup but I'm just keeping my fingers crossed for now.

Status Hotwires on my S2 DR's on my Warwick Used Rotosound for years then decided to try something new after trying out the Hotwires and having had a few sets of dodgy Rotosounds where the .40 was snapping around the tuner where putting a new set on.

Nice review. I've always loved the look and shape of the S2 since seeing a review years ago in Sound on Sound magazine. I borrowed a similar older S2 from a friend for a few days last year before I ordered mine and was blown away by it's punch, clarity and sustain. Needless to say he wasn't remotely interested in selling it.

I bought a new Line6 G30 at the weekend. The sound quality is great however the green led's on the receiver that show the signal quality and battery status are much less bright than those on the transmitter, making them very difficult to see. The guitarist in my band has a G30 but without this problem. I tested another G30 today at the retailer which had the same issue and then a G50 that didn't. I'm now awaiting a replacement unit from the retailer but wondered if anyone else has come across this issue?

Always 2 basses for me. Occasionally played both for different sounds but now the 2nd one is for backup only.

Nothing wrong with a bit of showmanship IMHO as surely the point is to entertain people and have fun. It helps if you also don't take yourself too seriously. That said, if you're posing and jumping around to the point where it's seriously impairing your ability to play the song properly then perhaps it's time to re-think your priorities.

S2 Classic for me. Love it!

[quote name='Musicman20' post='805110' date='Apr 13 2010, 05:44 PM']The AE410 looks great, but I can imagine after gigging it twice a month that must start to take a beating on the finish?[/quote] If you are prepared to fork out for an AE410 it's worth spending a few extra quid on a protective cover. I gig mine 2-3 times a month and the cover has kept the cab looking great.

Liking the look of an item of gear is an important consideration for me, but always less important than liking the sound, playability and then portability.

Check out the MarkBass MoMark amps with 500w power frame. There's lots of options to build your own amp spec.

[quote name='51m0n' post='769934' date='Mar 9 2010, 11:50 PM']+1 for a trip to bassdirect, Marks a gent, he will however let you fall in love with hidously expensive gear by letting you play it for as long as it takes, offering very occasional pearls of wisdom - clever git! You have been warned....[/quote] I can vouch for that......

I tried various options however I went for the 500w MoMark for the following reasons; 1. I liked the sound I was getting just using the VPF and VLE controls on the amp with the EQ on my bass set flat so I went for a simpler setup (solid state input module with mute button, blank EQ module and output module with only volume, VPF and VLE controls). 2. It has a mute button (unlike the LMIII) which allows me to silently tune up using my rack tuner without needing to have the tuner in the signal chain between bass and amp. 3. Future proofing - I can change a module or the power section rather than the whole amp if I fancy a change at some point or it develops a fault. It was a little more expensive than the LMIII but, for the above reasons, the MoMark made sense to me. I haven't switched any modules yet and it's unlikely that I will so, for an amateur player like me, it could be considered a bit gimmicky. More importantly though, I love the sound that I'm getting using this amp and the AE410 (bought at the same time) and haven't found any negatives so far.

[quote name='alhbass' post='769481' date='Mar 9 2010, 05:36 PM']....This is really interesting, and exactly the kind of A/B test I'd love to carry out myself, if only there was a store where I could do so within reasonable reach (I'm in York - anyone know of one? Don't think any of the Leeds shops that I'm aware of carry TC gear yet...)...[/quote] Can I suggest you pay a visit with your own bass to Bass Direct in Warwick as they stock both the RH450 and numerous Mark Bass amps? I recently spent an afternoon there trying out my Status through various Mark Bass amps (using the MoMark testing tower) and different Bergantino cabs, then tried the RH450 with TC 2x10 & 2x12 cabs before A/B'ing the LMIII and RH450 through the same Berg cabs. Before arriving I desperately wanted to like the sound of the RH450 because of all of the great features it has built in but this was far outweighed by my personal preference for the sound of the Mark Bass, even though it doesn't have the 'bells and whistles' of the RH450. The varied, but equally valid, opinions expressed in this thread only serve to highlight that if you are thinking about spending £500+ on an amp then it's worth the effort to travel to somewhere that allows you to do a true comparison and then let your ears decide.

+1 to the above. I've been using my Great Gramma for 3 months now and it's great to be able to get a consistent sound from venue to venue with no hassle whatsoever.

[quote name='farmer61' post='763109' date='Mar 3 2010, 04:38 PM']I have a whole raft of Trace gear that I think is superb apart from the weight of the stuff. I am seriously considering looking at the lighter weight Mark Bass gear. I currently gig an AH500 into a 4 x 10 for smaller gigs and 4 x 10 with a 1 x 15 for larger gigs. In terms of Mark Bass what would the equivalent gear in their range be and are there any thoughts on price comparison and tone. I would need to sell to buy or exchange upwards. Thx[/quote] I've recently gone from a similar rig to yours (Trace Elliott AH400SMX with Mesa Boogie 2x10 & 1x15 cabs) to a Mark Bass and Bergantino setup (see my signature). I bought the 500w MoMark chassis and this has got plenty of headroom to spare, even on larger gigs without needing to go through the PA. To be honest I haven't missed any of the bells and whistles that the AH400SMX had because the MoMark does what I want it to do very well - provide a good (IMV) uncoloured tone that I like that's easy to change on the fly if needed. The fact that the amp is light in weight is a bonus as it wasn't my main consideration for changing.

Haven't done it much but it's worked out okay - Mesa Boogie 1x15 cab (owned for 15 years), SWR amp (owned for 3 years til it blew up) and Musicman Stingray (already had one so knew what I was getting). I only buy blind on smaller purchases now.