Jump to content
Why become a member? ×

worst amp you have owned or had the luck to use


stu_g

Recommended Posts

[quote name='McBass' timestamp='1475486423' post='3146193']
They replaced the chassis a year ago on my Neogorm 210, it's started to play up again. I had a TD 650 that developed a high frequency oscillation which required a new power board...their reliability sucks.
[/quote]

Yeah, I was not impressed. Loved the sound but I'd never go near EBS gear again.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Fender Musicmaster bass combo. Tiny, feeble/very low powered, open back, one volume and one tone control. Have seen a couple offered for silly money as "vintage" amps recently. Agree with those who defend Carlsboro. I used to borrow one in the 80s - can't remember the model - and it was fine. Not state of the art, but reliable and quite adequate for pub gigs. Did me whilst I saved for a Trace.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='ern500evo' timestamp='1359607767' post='1957460']
Mine was a Marshall 1x15 combo, not sure of the exact model but it was by far the worst amp I've ever owned. It was a hateful crock of sh*t. Just pure mud.
[/quote]

I'll go with the 2X10 one. A trebly nightmare.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ashdown Mag evo 2 300 watt which I suffered for three years. Every venue I played I tried every different combination on the dials. Possibly once I had a decent sound thru my 15 and 2 x 10 and that was in the open air in a marquee. Awful piece of toneless junk even thru an 8 x 10, just a slightly louder sound of a bus in a tunnel. Nearly as bad as my Fender Rumble 100 1 x 15 now also moved on, badly designed box, could have been really nice if it was built deeper.

We live and learn, huh?

Edited by LITTLEWING
Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='acidbass' timestamp='1475539137' post='3146818']
Didn't like the Genz Benz Shuttle at all - far too much gain on tap and could never get a clean tone at any sort of volume. Certainly not the worst amp I've ever owned but didn't enjoy it at all.
[/quote]

Funny, as I'd have described my Shuttle as a very clean amp

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1460743016' post='3028457'] I think the carlsbro amps were just so bland that they got a bad rep. It had one and if it had a better cab it might not of been so bad. But in combo form it was boomy and no matter what I did with the eq I couldn't make it sound right. In its defence while being a bit rubbish and not having the best tone it wasn't the worst thing I've heard. I once opened it up was so simple inside but was fairly well put together and used nearly all British parts and the transistors were USA made. Does that make it a boutique amp or future classic!? [/quote]

But what else was there in the late 70s/early 80s when these were new?

The only place I saw Ampeg rigs was on stage with bands who had a record contract.

My local music shop in the 70s was an Acoustic amps dealer but the only person I ever saw saw using one was the bass player who worked there.

For the rest of us HH and Carlsbro were pretty much the only real choices, and based on personal experience I'd have picked a Carlsbro amp every time. It was certainly way better than the no-name generic 100W transistor head I was using back then.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1475570487' post='3146915']


But what else was there in the late 70s/early 80s when these were new?

The only place I saw Ampeg rigs was on stage with bands who had a record contract.

My local music shop in the 70s was an Acoustic amps dealer but the only person I ever saw saw using one was the bass player who worked there.

For the rest of us HH and Carlsbro were pretty much the only real choices, and based on personal experience I'd have picked a Carlsbro amp every time. It was certainly way better than the no-name generic 100W transistor head I was using back then.
[/quote]
I believe my Laney Klipp was a sixties/seventies amp, though I got mine in 1988.

It blew up (because I had no clue about tube amps), which is why I ended up with a Carlsboro Stingray which, other than having to replace the bridge rectifier, worked fine. It was just a toneless box of nothing and I hated it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hartke Kilo
This biggest pile of sh*te I ever owned.
It failed mid 1st set of the 3rd gig in tried to use it at.
Sent back for repair them promptly failed 2 gigs later.
Sent back as rejected unfit for purpose.
I emailed Larry Hartke at the time & he never replied.
Total crap, I would never buy any Hartke gear again.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='MacDaddy' timestamp='1475585939' post='3147099']



I had one of these.

Marshall lead and bass head. I'm not sure in which world it actually has 100w rating.

Nasty transistor fuzz for guitars, and entirely lacking in bottom end for bass.

Heavy too.
[/quote]
I've a 30W combo the same sort of vintage as that - too big for a practice amp (2x12!) and too quiet for rehearsing with anything bigger than a descant recorder trio. The only upside is it has 12" Greenbacks which theoretically should be worth a few bob, but no-one seem to want to buy them :(

Link to comment
Share on other sites

No.... Carlsbro and HH were indeed a pile of pooh...so much so, that Peavey became the preferred option.

I think my first gear was Selmer and a Voz 18..but both had seen much better days. I had marshall which was a gtr amp really and swapped it for a Hiwatt which was MUCH better.
Thankfully, I avoided having to use Carlsbro and HH and seeing them in the local rehearsal studio brings back memories of them being totally woeful.
No wonder Trace Elliot did really well..and even then, only because they were the least worst, IMO.

So, today...we don't know how lucky we are.... even if there are still some amps I wouldn't use to rehearse or practice with... :lol:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I used a TC Electronic BH550 in a rehearsal room a while ago. It wasn't absolutely hideous, but it coloured the sound of the bass to the point that it sounded like I was going through a mid 1990s floor multi fx unit. It was just a bit......yucky-sounding. I feel the TC stuff masks the true sound of your instrument in a way I really don't like.

That said, I haven't used a whole lot of different amps - but the TC sticks out as being particularly displeasing. Great effects, not so great amps, imo.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
Guest gazzatriumph

[quote name='Ed_S' timestamp='1359883893' post='1961432']
When I saw this thread appear, the first thing I thought of was making uncharitable remarks about my old ABM-500(evo3) head which is, even if maybe not the worst, certainly the most disappointing head I've ever owned. It was bought with matching 410 and 115 at some serious expense (to me, anyway) and proudly taken straight to rehearsal.. where it completely failed to cut through tonally and could barely be heard even with the taps fully open. The true disappointment was in the fact that I liked the basic tone of the amp in the shop (well.. I did buy it!) and played solo it seemed to be plenty loud enough. It wasn't. I owned it for a couple of months, rehearsed it, gigged it, poured over the instruction manual and twiddled with every control and fader it had, and still it completely failed to work for me.

The real kicker for me with Ashdown gear is that I've heard plenty of EB/MAG/ABM setups sounding just fine when in punter-mode, but have likewise borrowed plenty (sometimes even the same rig I've just heard sounding fine) that seem to turn to utter dross in my hands. So, still being conflicted when it comes to Ashdowns and with this thread in mind, when I saw a MiBass 550 in pristine second-hand nick at my local music shop yesterday I decided on the spur of the moment to give them one last chance... and having jumped in at the deep end and taken it straight from shop to rehearsal again, am oddly glad I did. Ok, it's far too quiet to be called a 550W amp, but with all the Deeps and Shapes and EQs turned off, the basic tone of the amp with the master fully open and the gain set to never hit 'red' is actually quite pleasingly smooth and translates that character well into the room, just slightly 'sitting back' in the mix but not getting lost. In terms of raw grunt, it *just* managed to hold its own at rehearsal with my 5 piece metal band so on that basis there's no way I'd risk it at a gig with that band, but I think it'll do much better in 4 piece rock covers territory and likewise I have quite high hopes for it in acoustic-duo land.

So yeah, I've finally found an Ashdown that can stay... just as they discontinue the bloody thing! :rolleyes:
[/quote]

I had an ABM 500 and ABM 6x10 cab and found it lacked volume I expected it to knock me over but was very disappointed by it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I run an ABM 500 through a VS212 cab and can destroy walls. They are fairly bass heavy amps and cabs so you have to be careful with eq and preshapes but they can sound absolutely incredible when set right. I think they'd benefit from a thumpinator or equivalent in front of them to remove some subsonic stuff.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 years later...

My first full-sized amp in about 1982 was a secondhand head made by a company called Ohm. It had a graphic eq and for some reason a built-in flanger which doubled as a pink noise generator. I was surprised to find one a few years ago still working in a rehearsal studio which I had to use and it sounded every bit as bad as I remembered.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Sound City 120 mk4.  Bought it as one of my first valve amps after being told it would be fine for bass.  Two tech services later, numerous cabs tried it was still just a hissy fartbox.  The mark 3's ive tried on the other hand have been glorious

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...