Ashdown v Hartke sound

[Linus27]

Hi,

I am still looking for my amp and cabs to buy and I have pretty much dialled it down to two makes. Either the Ashdown MAG range or the Hartke VX range.

I have read a lot about the Ashdown having a certain sound. Some like it and some don't. I previously owned a very good XL series Hartke setup which sounded nice but the alluminium speakers I found gave a thin sound which was not to my liking.

Can someone tell me what sort of sound to expect from the following,

Ashdown MAG 300 head
Ashdown MAG 210T Deep Cabinet
Ashdown MAG 115 Deep Cabinet

and this,

Hartke HA3500
Hartke VX2x10
Hartke VX1x15

I have no idea what sort of sound the Ashdown Mag will give me but I get the impression it might be fatter but less bright over the Hartke. I don't want a wooly undefined sound but I don't want a thin twangy funky sound like my old Hartke rig.

Thanks for any help.

[lee4]

Do,nt know about the Hartke stuff,but I've found the Ashdown stuff is wooly as a knitwear shop.

[phatbass787]

The Ashdown MAG gear is fantastic value for money mate and some people do think its wooly but that is more often than not down to pilot error, The EQ is actually very versatile and whilst its always going to be towards the vintagey side of things you can actually get quite a good pallette of tones. I have never really liked Hartke but I know some players swear by them. Best thing is probably to go and have a sit in a shop and give things a try but the MAG stuff is great - however, if you could stretch to the ABM (their are some silly deals on the outgoing EVO 2's at the moment) then you will not be dissapointed!

[bassmansky]

i would go for the evo11 as well,just bought one myself .after a bit of haggling got £100 off their list price.

[Machines]

[quote name='lee4' post='176282' date='Apr 14 2008, 02:15 PM']Do,nt know about the Hartke stuff,but I've found the Ashdown stuff is wooly as a knitwear shop.[/quote]

I could knit the ignorance in this reply into a nice jumper ! It is fair to say that an Ashdown [i]flat[/i] is dull, but that's what the EQ is for. It doesn't take a lot of tweaking to make it just as bright as any other amp, and still have plenty of headroom on the EQ controls.

Not sure about the Hartke gear - never tried the VX cabs.

[JakeBrownBass]

I had a hartke HA3500 with a VX410 & VX115 stack for acouple of years.
There really really nice sounding amps, pretty versatile and pretty loud for its rating.
To be honest, i thought that the cabs were THE best cabs in the price range, i used them for a good year with my Fafner head without even wanting to upgrade.

I've never liked ashdown gear, every show i've played with one, its sounded muddy and wooley, between the two, hartke definitely.

Jake

[johnnylager]

[quote name='jake_tenfloors' post='176551' date='Apr 14 2008, 06:42 PM']I've never liked ashdown gear, every show i've played with one, its sounded muddy and wooley, between the two, hartke definitely.[/quote]
Conversely, I find Hartke gear tinny & thin compared to Ashdown (lets stick together on this one, Machines), but that might just be the alu cones. The only way is to try some mate, ideally A/Bing them at proper volume in a sound room. Or just buy an Ashdown.

[Jono Bolton]

I haven't tried the Hartke stuff but I really liked all the Ashdown stuff I've used (and use). The sound does lean towards the vintage side of things, it's not gonna be suitable for a black metal band or anything, but if you take some time to mess with the EQ you can get some nice warm sounds out of it. I thought the MAG 300 head worked very nicely with distortion. l
I definitely agree with the fault being down to the user, or their settings. My amp can sound woolly when it's flat but that's what the EQ is there for, as it's already been pointed out.

[bassboy115]

I used to own a MAG 2x10 combo which i paired with a MAG115 cab, it was a great amp, gigged it for a year and it never let me down... The sound was very full and low! It also had really good highs which balanced out the sound well!

I now use a hartke 3500 with a 4.5XL and i also have a transporter 410 aswell, Its also really really good, It is a lot thinner of a sound with IMO alot more treble, The preamp setting of the tube is really good(still need to get a new replacement tube though),
Its got alot of variation in the sound.

the reason i swapped was
1) i wanted separates
2) The low muddy sound of the ashdown wasnt really the kind of sound i was looking for as i wanted a more trebley sound to cut through better but still with muddy low!

However in your post you said you didnt really like the thinness of the hartke so im guessing youll probably find the ashdown better as it is a much deeper cab!


But tbh go and try em because i love both and the hartke is more the sound i want ATM but i still have a soft spot for ashdown (one day when i can afford em ill get an ABM! )

Hope this helps!

[cLepto-bass]

I found the MAG range of Ashdown to be pretty rubbish in all fairness. They are cheap but you get what you pay for at the end of the day. I had a MAG stack a while ago and i was counting down the days untill i could afford something else and get rid of of.

But, that is just me.

[bassicinstinct]

[quote name='Linus27' post='176278' date='Apr 14 2008, 02:09 PM']Hi,

I am still looking for my amp and cabs to buy and I have pretty much dialled it down to two makes. Either the Ashdown MAG range or the Hartke VX range.

I have read a lot about the Ashdown having a certain sound. Some like it and some don't. I previously owned a very good XL series Hartke setup which sounded nice but the alluminium speakers I found gave a thin sound which was not to my liking.

Can someone tell me what sort of sound to expect from the following,

Ashdown MAG 300 head
Ashdown MAG 210T Deep Cabinet
Ashdown MAG 115 Deep Cabinet

and this,

Hartke HA3500
Hartke VX2x10
Hartke VX1x15

I have no idea what sort of sound the Ashdown Mag will give me but I get the impression it might be fatter but less bright over the Hartke. I don't want a wooly undefined sound but I don't want a thin twangy funky sound like my old Hartke rig.

Thanks for any help.[/quote]

I think you should buy my Ashdown Mag 2x10 300T Combo and Ashdown Mag 1x15 Deep Cab (complete with covers) currently for sale on this very forum but then, it has to be said, I am biased.

Only £300 though and a bargain at that.

[Biggsy]

I found the amplification of Hartke to be excellent. Especially good if you can find an older Mofset model. The aluminium cones in my cab weren't wonderful but I've heard much worse. I'm sure VX series would be better.
My old head was a 10 year old (or so) HA3500 which just felt like it would last forever. The tone was warm, punchy and 'modern' - only slightly coloured by the tube pre depending on how you set it.

I've only heard Ashdown's and never used one, so my opinion of them isn't entirely valid.

[lateralus462]

I currently play through an Ashdown ABM 210 combo and absolutely love the sound it gives. I can honestly say I have never sounded better.

But saying that I found myself ampless not that long ago and borrowed a Hartke HA5500, VX410 and VX115 and managed to get an awesome sound out of this rig - in fact I was pretty close to buying one myself, but got a great deal on the Ashdown.

I reckon you can't really go wrong (in my opinion) with either brand - I'd try out both to see what you like best.

[Wooks]

I got the best of both world's I suppose!??! I've got the Ashdown 300 Mag head paired with a Hartke 4x10 TA. I picked up both for £250 for the pair. And I love my Ashdown it's superb, and like Jono said you can get some great sounds out of it using the EQ. Plus the additon to the deep, bright and sub-harmonic button just give you a bit more if you want it. I wanted to get a Trace but I am more than happy with the Ashdown I would suggest going to a local store and trying one out for size.

Edited April 15, 2008 by Wooks

[blunderthumbs]

I have owned an Ashdown Abm 4x10" 575w combo together with an Abm 1x15" cab since 2000
The sound is awsome and there are so many different sounds to be had out of it.
I recently bought a s/h mag 200 1x15" combo and a mag 2x10" extension cab to go with it
just for rehearsal purposes and to be honest it just didn't have the Guts that the Abm range has.
I have just sold the mag combo and bought a s/h Abm 2x10" 575w combo and the sound out of those
two tens is the dogs hanging thingys.
So if you can stretch to getting the Ashdown Abm range i'm sure you won't regret it.
There's plenty of good secondhand stuff to be had.
Good luck.

[lowhand_mike]

i've got the mag 2x10 300 combo and the sound is great, if you want wooly our of it you can have it, if you want brittle you can have it, but like others have said if you use the EQ correctly you can get some great cutting tones out of it too. and as far as i am concerned its no where near wooly. add a 1x15 cab to it and i'd imagine the sound to be ace (thats what i'm still after)

if you do get the 2x10 stick it on its side, sounds much better played that way

Edited April 18, 2008 by lowhand_mike

[Machines]

[quote name='lowhand_mike' post='179866' date='Apr 18 2008, 03:54 PM']if you do get the 2x10 stick it on its side, sounds much better played that way[/quote]

Not convinced on this one .

[lowhand_mike]

fuzzy logic

Edited April 18, 2008 by lowhand_mike

[lee4]

[quote name='Machines' post='176538' date='Apr 14 2008, 06:33 PM']I could knit the ignorance in this reply into a nice jumper ! It is fair to say that an Ashdown [i]flat[/i] is dull, but that's what the EQ is for. It doesn't take a lot of tweaking to make it just as bright as any other amp, and still have plenty of headroom on the EQ controls.

Not sure about the Hartke gear - never tried the VX cabs.[/quote]
I tried an abm combo in a studio and no matter what I did the wool was there.
Trieda Mark Bass rig at a shop though.Left the EQ flat and used the VLE dial.Tone heaven!

[Johngh]

I've owned stacks of gear over the years and Hartke is the best I've had by miles (IMHO) I've just never fancied owning Ashdown stuff at all. I've played through a couple of Ashdown rigs that were set up when we did some multi band charity gigs, and didn't like the sound of it at all.

[Vasquez Rich]

My main amp is a Hartke 3500 coupled to a Hartke 410XL cab and these are awesome bits of kit, very loud, very punchy and very robust although very heavy as well. When I was in the market to get a big cab, after using a smaller one, I took my HA3500 to the shop and tried everything I could afford (that excluded the Ampegs and SWRs) and the 410XL came out best (I wasn't surprised). The Hartke VX range was cheap and muddy by comparison, the Ashdown cabs were quite awful, Peavey not very good, few others I can't remember.

I have played gigs through kit shared Ashdowns and have always thought that my Hartke sounds better, with one exception at a gig in Leeds but that may have just been the room/setup etc.. in general I would always prefer the Hartke. I have recently "aquired" an Ashdown Mag200 combo (1x15") but have not pushed this to any volume yet.. doubt though that it will rival my other stuff though.

In short. Hartke all the way, VX range not worth the money, XL range definitely worth the extra.

Richard

[twentyhertz]

For me it'd be the Hartke 3500/2000 into an Ashdown MAG 4x10.

The nice attack and much more versatile EQ/preamp from the Hartke heads, and the much bigger thicker sound of the Ashdown cabs. I used to play in a rehearsal room with a Hartke 2000 into an Ampeg 4x10, and I have to say it was one of the loveliest sounds I've got in a long time

[tempo]

A sort of +1 to the previous 2 posts. I had an Ashdown EB combo as my 1st amp, It's got the same preamp as the MAG. It sounded pretty "vintage" (wooly?) into its own speaker, but into the Hartke 2.5XL extension cab, I got a great tone. The 5 band tone controls are well thought out frequencies.
So I would mix it the other way, An Ashdown Mag head & Hartke (either two 2.5XLs or a single 4.5XL) cab (I wouldn't touch the transporter or vx range).

[phil_the_bassist]

[quote name='Wooks' post='177192' date='Apr 15 2008, 05:42 PM']I got the best of both world's I suppose!??! I've got the Ashdown 300 Mag head paired with a Hartke 4x10 TA. I picked up both for £250 for the pair. And I love my Ashdown it's superb, and like Jono said you can get some great sounds out of it using the EQ. Plus the additon to the deep, bright and sub-harmonic button just give you a bit more if you want it. I wanted to get a Trace but I am more than happy with the Ashdown I would suggest going to a local store and trying one out for size.[/quote]


I've got a hartke ha5500 with a vx215&vx410 and freakin love it!

I got to try out a ashdown at the local studios we use for practice, I don't know the spec of the head but it was coupled with an ashdown 8x10.

When i first plugged in and started playin, i nearly wet myself...superb sound for the rock stuff we were churning out, but when I went down lower than G it started sounding a bit dead, when I tried to play a low B it seemed to have no balls at all! I tried tweeking the EQ, the Sub-harm etc etc etc but nothing seemed to fix that. Is this just a naff (/abused by previous rehearsing bassists) amp, or is it something others have found?

[Mr Fudge]

Since getting my active Marcus Jazz I have struggled to get a consistenly good sound through my 300mag and 4x10 deep cabinet. Through my passive jazz it was simply a case of having the guitar pots up full and taking it from there.

I played in a marque on Saturday night and the rig sounded amazing, low ceilings, lots of material and bodies to soak the sound up. I dialled all the pots up on the marcus and then some on the mag and really got that deep and warm slightly driven tone. If I had of done this in a big hard surfaced pub or club the sound would have bounced around all over the place and this is when I think that "wool" can appear. Im looking at some markbass stuff because I need that alround tightness of tone that sometimes the mag looses.

I will be keeping my ashdown rig thogh as a spare and I can't complain too much because it has been a great workhorse for the last few years.