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Markbass TTE or Little Mark Tube?


edoliveira
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I've just bought a new TTE500 from Thomann, as I missed out on a s/h one here and their price was only a bit more with a 3 year warranty.It arrived on Friday, so I've only had a short time with it and have been A/B'ing it with my Orange TB500.
Volume wise, they can both demolish small villages. Soundwise, I feel that the TE has a more 'complex' sound. I've never used a compressor before, but adding a bit of it seemed to sharpen up the sound. Adding more and more gain puts a small amount of grit into the tone, without it breaking up suddenly like the TB does.

I've had a Markbass LM2 and an F1 before now, and left the VLE control off, as it seemed to muddy the sound. On the TTE, the Colour control is supposed to be similar to VLE, and again, adding a bit of it seemed to enhance the sound. Full on, it did sound muddy and dull.

Hope this is of use

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if you have weight / size restrictions then the LM tubes are the way to go, although i think the TTE is still pretty light for the size, but thats because its not a full valve head right? I'm not to sure of the specs of it! I have a LM tube 800 and am so happy with its sound, I cannot compare to the TTE not heard one before, if your in london area PM me you can come and try it out sometime if you like!

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The TTE is certainly light - about 14lb. It's a 4 valve preamp/compressor with an analogue solid state power amp. Sits nicely on my BF Super 12T - about the same width, but half the depth so it doesn't catch the handle on the top rear of the cab. It's covered in perforated metal grille, so you can see the valves and a load of small LEDs glowing nicely inside:-)

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Thanks for your replies guys!! :)

James, I appreciate your proposal, but since I am based in Portugal, it is not that easy to meet you.. :)

My questions with these two models only have to do with the sound. I am used to play with Trace Elliott amps, so weight and size are no issues for sure. :) The cab I will use is a 4 Ohm Ashdown ABM 414T.
Regarding the TTE, don't you think that the perforated metal grill might be an issue for the amp's safety since it is not even rack mountable?

Many thanks!

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[quote name='davehux' timestamp='1389097433' post='2329796']
if you put it in a rack, you can't use it for warming that all important set break croisssant - and then where will you be when hunger strikes during the 3rd song of set 2??????
[/quote]
This may be the next revolution in proffessional equipment!
Add a stainless steel tray to your amp enclosure for that all-important grilled cheese sandwich or eggs over easy! Relax and enjoy while vocals and guitar quibble over who gets the blowdryer next!
Croque Monsieur? Don't mind if I do says drums!

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The LM Tube does not do grind/overdrive/ distortion at all without clipping playing some part. It does do vintagey warmth well, and mine has been ultra reliable too, but the presence of a valve does not even give you a sniff of any tonal heat at all!

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If small and tubey is what you're after, it doesn't get much tubier than the Streamliner - I had a LMIII, then a RH450, then tried an awful lot of the smaller heads (LM Tube 500, GB Shuttles, Walkabout, etc) and ended up with one. They're a particularly voiced amp, but there's some bargains going around in GB stuff at the moment, so it may be worth taking a chance...

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" I had a LMIII, then a RH450, then tried an awful lot of the smaller heads (LM Tube 500, GB Shuttles, Walkabout, etc) and ended up with one."

Do you really think the LM Tube 500 is that bad..? I have always thought that it would be like LM III but with the small valve improvement...

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[quote name='edoliveira' timestamp='1389188252' post='2331034']
" I had a LMIII, then a RH450, then tried an awful lot of the smaller heads (LM Tube 500, GB Shuttles, Walkabout, etc) and ended up with one."

Do you really think the LM Tube 500 is that bad..? I have always thought that it would be like LM III but with the small valve improvement...
[/quote]

I didn't think the LM Tube was different enough from the LM to make the permanent change - I thought the drive was fizzy and very off/on. The Streamliner's EQ catches a lot of people out (but again this does depend on the cab used, too - my Schroeder 1515L needs bass adding, but my BF Super 12 is far more accurate, and the bass needs to be attenuated) because as I said it's particularly voiced, which isn't everyone's taste, but it's very warm and tubey, and there's some great tube sounds there. I even preferred it to the Walkabout and the M-Pulse 600, which are great tubey amps.

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I've had both, and for vintage valve like tones the TTE wins hands down, but if you need more versitility go with the LMT you'll end up with a great amp whichever you choose, however the Genz Benz Streamliner beats them both and is available at an all time low price at the moment.
Also, make sure your cab is up to the job!

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Well, the cab is a 4 ohm Ashdown ABM 4*10. I firmly believe that will do the job. My previous amp was a Trace RAH 500 and the cab have always had a great behavior! Unfortunately, Trace's life has come to and end.. :( A really tragic ending, because the power section burned up and the repair is to expensive. Plus, there are no parts available for the amp anymore. I guess that everything has it's lifetime. And this amp sounded really good. It's a pity...

I guess that regarding price and quality that I will get the LMT. Thank you so much for your opinions!!! :)

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