Best studio combo?

[Beedster]

Looking for something small, portable, extremely quiet (fan, background hum/hiss), and toneful. Versatility would be nice, but it's not essential. It's a very small studio.

And yes, a '64 Portaflex would be perfect, but it's out of my price range unfortunately

Cheers

Chris

[JTUK]

I'd say the Markbass 102 combo... really like that at low levels

or bang for buck a classic old SWR valve pre head. Like a 220 or similar and a decent 2x10 or 2x1x12's

[charic]

Line6 studio 110 gets my vote xlr out silent when not playing and nice n versatile!

Got one myself and works brilliantly.

[Delberthot]

V-type combo?

If I had the cash that's exactly what I'd be using

[rodl2005]

yeah the LINE 6 small combo's have a LOTTA 'personality' -it may be someone elses personality- but they can sound good!! That EBS studio 60 is s'posed to be good for this purpose.
U mention in yr sig, U have a MESA WA- ??? is it a scout combo- a this'd be great. VERY B-15 sounding IME. I LOVE mine & IT sounded GREAT recorded!

If it's too loud- could U try using it with a single 12"??

Otherwise- yeah Mark Bass LMII etc into any small cab-pref a 1x12" for my liking. Chuck a VTBASS pedal in front of one(Or ANY amp for that matter- or direct even) & U got the B-15 portaflex vibe down 99.9%

[niceguyhomer]

I read a great review of [url="http://www.swrsound.com/products/search.php?partno=4420500010"]this[/url] Chris

[krispn]

I have a V Type combo for sale/trade if you wanna go down that route

[Beedster]

Thanks guys

I was expecting replies along the lines of Markbass and PJB, and was hoping for some alternatives, so the Line 6 and SWR were interesting suggestions (don't get me wrong John, I think Markbass are certainly in the running also).

Re Trace, light and quiet are two words that I don't associate with them

Yes, I currently have a pretty formidable Mesa line-up, Walkabout Scout plus 12" extension cab, and M-Pulse 600 plus 1516EV cab. The problem with both is that they are designed to be played loud, even the Scout, and I find that whilst the tone at low master volume is still great, they tend to be a little more noisy than I'd like in the studio (any of you guys who read my PJB problem thread this time last year will remember that I get slightly wound up by noisy amps!). I've now got the Walkabout head in a (rather expensive) Mesa Bronco case, and sit the head behind a closed door when using the Mesa to record bass, not ideal. For sure, I might just stick with it, it has a phenomenal tone, but it's also not a light unit, so if I could find a combo I could use equally well in the studio and for smaller gigs, it would probably be a useful addition to the Beedster armoury. Much as I love having the M-Pulse 600 AND it's little brother, I don't think it would do any harm to diversify a little either, hence this thread!

Keep those ideas coming folks

Cheers

C

[BassBod]

Again - SWR 220 and a small modern cab (mesa ext?) would be a good choice, and pretty cheap. Also the red face Bassic 350 or whatever it was called - but some versions may have a fan?

[clauster]

The Micro SVT?

[Beedster]

[quote name='BassBod' post='965555' date='Sep 23 2010, 01:22 PM']Again - SWR 220 and a small modern cab (mesa ext?) would be a good choice, and pretty cheap. Also the red face Bassic 350 or whatever it was called - but some versions may have a fan?[/quote]

Cheers Dncan, I'll take a look. 220 certainly has a reputation

[quote name='clauster' post='965564' date='Sep 23 2010, 01:30 PM']The Micro SVT?[/quote]

Still quite noisy I'm afraid. Nice unit for the price and the tone though

[Musicman20]

Totally over the top perhaps, but the RH450 + a nice 112? Even their RS112?

Ulitmate flexibility, warmth, and 'tube' like sound, but light and quiet.

[ahpook]

[quote name='niceguyhomer' post='965207' date='Sep 23 2010, 06:59 AM']I read a great review of [url="http://www.swrsound.com/products/search.php?partno=4420500010"]this[/url] Chris[/quote]

i was going to suggest something small and blue as well !

my swr baby baby blue would make a great studio combo methinks...don't think they make them any more tho.

[Legion]

I owned one of those GK MB150 combos for a while and thought it had a beautiful rounded tone - loved it.

It couldnt handle any serious volume though so it had to go. Might be worth a listen Chris, assuming you haven't already owned 3?

[umph]

do you need a combo? a top of the range valve di would be in your budget range aswell and would yield some great studio tones!

[BassBod]

I was also thinking a good preamp rather than combo. I can't remember the last time I miked an amp...must be years.

There are great rack 1u preamps around. Expensive new, but affordable used because they aren't very portable once you put them in rack case. Alembic, SWR, Ampeg, Trace Vtype (or even GP11) Demeter, if you're not in a hurry you could pick up some great units. Also the non-bass specific stuff like Joe Meek, Groove Tubes, Raven Labs, Universal Audio.....and the people that make that really nice compressor.....

[BB2000]

Is it the fan noise that's annoying you on the walkabout (the fans on the walkabout do get very noisy over time)? You can either retrofit a low noise fan or a fan on/off switch (like the thunder funk has). They're both an easy DIY job.

[pantherairsoft]

For a clean studio sound I go with either an EBS, TC or EA amp/combo. I find them the most neutral dousing an the easiest to get a good sharp recording from. Just me though

There was a 12" EBS Drome combo in the for sale section that would of been perfect!

[xgsjx]

Beaten to the Baby Blue. A fellow bassist from 5 or so years ago said it was the best combo he'd played thru in a studio.
I was tempted too til I got the MB.

[bassmachine2112]

hiho,I,ve got a roland as well-db700 and it is a fabulous amp.
great sound ,no noise and very versititle.

[lozbass]

I'd take a look at an Epifani UL112c - I really can't imagine why I sold mine - the most versatile, sweet-sounding, pro combo I've witnessed (and light too). Unfortunately, they're not too easy to find (and they're expensive too - you're paying for quality design and execution here). If you decide to go for a pre, I'd be thinking seriously about an Alembic SF2 - extraordinarily versatile and ultra-high quality (often thought of as Series II electronics in a box but actually more than this)

[LawrenceH]

I've only got second-hand reports of their bass combo being brilliant, but in terms of uncompromising sound quality in a tiny package AER make the best small monitor speakers for vocals and keys that I've ever heard. The mid-range was particularly detailed and sweet, the only stage monitors I've heard that don't sound dodgy around here. Their current bass gear (Amp One, Basscube 2) must be worth auditioning, not cheap though. Digital Village stock them if you've got one nearby?