Huggy and the Bears Posted March 26, 2008 Share Posted March 26, 2008 I have been through an interesting exercise with MarkBass amps which I thought I would share. Basically, I elected to change my gear for a MarkBass amp and an Aguilar (GS212) cab as I like the sound and they get very complimentary reviews. A well respected bass player friend has a MarkBass LMK (as he wanted 2 channels) and a pair of Aguilar GS112 cabs. This is the sound which I wanted. I Bought a GS212 cab and a MarkBass LMII head. I was pleased enough with the sound however couldn't put my finger on what was missing from the EQ (compared to his) and I wondered if the difference in cab combination was affecting the sound. We compared gear side by side last week, swapping heads, cabs etc. and identified that the LMII is a different sound to the LMK! Very interesting. I wont list the specs as they are well documented elsewhere however, they are kind of pitched as being the same as each other in terms of sound (the LMK having 2 channels of course). To conclude: I have now bought an LMK and again completed some side by side comparisons. This is (crudely) what I found with like-for-like EQ settings: Channel 1 on the LMK sounds the same as the LMII Channel 2 in the LMK sounds like LMII but more defined, clearer and punchier Blended together Channel 1 & 2 on the LMK is (in my opinion only) getting close to an ultimate MarkBass sound and in laymans terms like the LMII on steroids. Whilst I can not be critical of the LMII (it does do what it says on the tin) in my opinion, the LMK is worth the extra money as it is more 'the real deal' and the LMII sounds like a (again not being critical) a poorer version of the LMK. I know you could say 'it is the poorer version as it is cheaper', I agree but my point is, is that it was not identified to me that the LMK had a superior sound - merely that it was a two channel version of the LMII and in my (very) humble opinion (and experience) it is not a like-for-like sound. I would recommend the LMK over the LMII if the budget will stand it. I hope this information helps you select the sound you want. Kindest regards, Simon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niceguyhomer Posted March 26, 2008 Share Posted March 26, 2008 Cheers for that Simon - I've just acquired an LMK in a trade and initial impressions are good. I haven't gigged with it yet but I used to use a LMII so it will be interesting to compare when I do. I need to master changing channels before I do Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huggy and the Bears Posted March 26, 2008 Author Share Posted March 26, 2008 (edited) [quote name='niceguyhomer' post='163804' date='Mar 26 2008, 02:54 PM']Cheers for that Simon - I've just acquired an LMK in a trade and initial impressions are good. I haven't gigged with it yet but I used to use a LMII so it will be interesting to compare when I do. I need to master changing channels before I do [/quote] Edited March 26, 2008 by Huggy and the Bears Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
machinehead Posted March 29, 2008 Share Posted March 29, 2008 (edited) Very interesting Simon, and very surprising to me. Thanks for taking the trouble to write this. Frank Edited March 29, 2008 by machinehead Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huggy and the Bears Posted March 31, 2008 Author Share Posted March 31, 2008 Yes, it was a surprising discovery! Done a couple of gigs in same place with both amps now which has confirmed that they sound quite different. Ciao for now. Simon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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