Sparky Mark

SNAP!

Markbass' out of warranty repairs have never been particularly straightforward in the UK. You can bank on a repair costing at least £200, maybe more in these inflationary times? In the UK, the only manufacturer that I would go with if repair support was my main consideration would be Ashdown; but their products are nothing like Markbass IME. (Just as good but different).

Ah, okay. I've always checked with Mark prior to placing any order.

Did you go with Thomann? I've always had excellent customer service from Thomann, not so good with DV247 or Bax. From all I've read the 1000 watt Markbass heads are incredibly powerful (which you'd expect of course).

Still waiting for delivery?

That's not an unreasonable price for a low production quantity hand built in England amplifier. If they ever get built in PRC then the price could come down, but I'm not convinced another 150 watts and an output meter make this amp any better than the brilliant ABM600.

Clever to use green for the bass version. It's effectively a twin channel valve pre amp with a free 50 watt power amp for the price of a pre amp only pedal. As my 500 watt heads aren't that much bigger and I don't own a tiny cab to create another micro SVT I doubt I'll ever buy one (unless I can "steal" one too of course!). My Ampeg Micro VR with SVT210AV does a brilliant low to low-medium volume SVT rig impression.

I used my LM2 on an outside gig last night with one Bergantino HD210. The LM2 is simply a brilliant amp. I'll be sad when mine goes to the great gig in the sky.

What cab(s) will you be using with it?

I've never played one of the 1000 watt Markbass heads but from all reports they punch like Mike Tyson. There's nothing weedy about Markbass propietary 500 and 1000 watt class D power amps. The only question is which flavour of preamp/EQ you want in front of them.

Although I've used my Markbass heads with many different Markbass cabs over the years and really liked how they worked together, my Bergantino cabs do sound better.

I hope all of these contributions have convinced you to withdraw your offer. Bleedin' cheek!

No worries, Mum's the word! I'll keep 'em peeled. Cheers.

Looking good. Where do you keep finding these CS cases? I could do with one for my CS jazz too.

Great result. It's so satisfying when things like that go well isn't it? You fixed the speaker fault and got the cab back in action.

Yes, exactly. The amp isn't involved at all in the PP3 testing, so cannot be damaged. (I can see how you misinterpreted my point, but we are on the same page).

The great thing about testing with a PP3 is that you can't damage your amp and you shouldn't be able to damage the speakers. I wouldn't leave the battery across the speakers any longer than to check their direction of travel. You can try the different wiring schemes risk free.

Yes, just plug the speaker cable into the cab jack socket, then put the other jack connector ( that you'd normally plug into the amp) across the terminals of the PP3. Put the tip on the positive PP3 terminal. All cones should then move out (or in) all the same. If some go in while others come out, they're out of phase and the cab will sound gutless.

That's not surprising at all. The LM2 is the head that really made Markbass. Some thought the limiter was too severe once the LM2 hit its max output, but hey, at that point you probably need another rig.

Once all connected up it would be a good idea to do the PP3 9v battery test to confirm all the speakers are in phase with each other before connecting to an amp.