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Advice needed - tiniest small gig-worthy combo


antk
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[quote name='eude' timestamp='1408461220' post='2530414']
I've heard mixed reviews of the 208 Combo, reliability has been and issue with them, but if you look hard enough you can find negative opinions on pretty much everything out there. The early batches of the MiBass 2.0 gear had a bit of a fault, which was easily fixed, but I've been very happy with mine.
I think the MiBass would give you the option to expand your rig, if you go for the combo, or the head and cab, you could add another matching cab and get the full output from the head which would give you more than enough power for most occasions.
IMHO, a MiBass setup will give you a lot more for your money than a standalone combo like the TC 208.

Ultimately though, if you've got a chance to try the gear out, then go do that before you pull the trigger.

Hope that helps dude,
Eude
[/quote]I have played the TC combos and while the 15 sounds OK the 208 has no real sound except a lack of mid bass punch. The 15 is really light but not small.

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Antk
I haven't giged this amp myself as I'm not in a band. Long story but bad hands! Anyway gigging it would depend on the band , style of music and venue. I did see a guy gigging one at a local pub not long before I got mine , sounded good but may have been using the built in DI. Was looking for a new amp at the time myself and seeing/hearing that band influenced my purchase and the price drop. Personally I play mainly metal and punk with friends at home or at our factory unit when we want to make a lot of noise and I can keep up ok. Guitarist has an AC15 and a lot of pedals! I add the 1x12 just coz I have it, but it dose add a little more umph to the bottom end. For my taste its not lacking anywhere in the sound spectrum. The EQ is active, cutting and boosting diferent frequencys on all control's. Boosting the bass controle pushes the low mids and seems to make the amp much louder, just a little tip. It sounds better with my 12 than with my 15 IMHO. If I where giging I would use an extension cab, not so much for the increased volume but as it lifts the sound wave and therefore is percived as being louder. There is a reason why the speakers in big venues are up in the air.
like I said earlier in the thread, take your own bass when you go to try amps out but not your wallet, try a few before you decide and purchase from a large shop. Most offer at the least a 7 day return/30 day exchange policy, (check this with the shop before any purchase) this will give you the chance to try with your band and thats the only way your going to know what will do the job. I like the guys in my local shop but they dont do this so I dont bye from them.
hope this helps

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Depends if you think if you can get away with a farty middley bass noise that sits along side the other instruments...
and you really shouldn't... or you want the bass to support the band sound.
This is why so many bands put out subs in their P.A so you can get a depth to the sound, which small boxey
set-ups just can't do. They may put out a level of volume but not really the sound the bass players wants to really hear and
certainly not the audience.

Always, the context is key so these combos might just about work at quiet gigs but bass reproduction is hard work
to achieve and if you want a cab to go louder, you take away the things that kills it, which is bass.
Only the player can really tell if it is working for him, in terms of the compromise they have put on themselves
which tends to be light and small enough as possible.
I doubt you'll get too many real compliments on the sound though...

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[quote name='eude' timestamp='1408611780' post='2531716']
Where abouts? I can't find them, any chance of a link?
[/quote]

No longer available: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/351128657763 :( There was a link put up in the eBay forum on the 9th - http://basschat.co.uk/topic/242809-redsub-bt5110s-are-back/ I seem to recall there were 10 allegedly available when I looked but whether or not that was a mistake or just an old listing they forgot to take down I don't know.

I like mine so much, I wish I had bought a spare head, just in case. I will not be happy if the magic smoke ever gets let out.

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I'm surprised no one has mentioned the PJB combos. The briefcase is 100w, 2 x5" and will hold its own against a quiet drummer. Add DI support through the PA and you've got a viable small combo solution. I've used mine in rehearsals and believe me, we are not a quiet band!

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Seems Beta Aivin, who I think built the original Prometheans for Ibanez, then built cheaper versions based on it for Harley Benton and RedSub are still making these clones. Not sure how you can get one in the UK however...

http://www.beta-aivin.com/English/Products/Bass/BT/English_204.html

http://www.beta-aivin.com/English/Products/Bass/BT/English_205.html

If these are as good as the RedSub that I tried, you'll be laughing!

Eude

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Interesting - they look rather like this: [url="http://www.gear4music.com/Guitar-and-Bass/RedSub-BE100-100W-Bass-Guitar-Amp-Ex-Demo/136Y"]http://www.gear4musi...mp-Ex-Demo/136Y[/url]

JPJ - I've been admiring the PJB stuff from afar... scared that if I play one I'll accidentally end up with one of those Flightcase jobbies...

Edited by antk
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New candidate on the basis that I have just spent 2 days working one in the studio.
Line 6 Lowdown 300w Combo.
I tried all the model options and settled on the 'Rock' sound. This combo has a 15" plus a tweeter
which is not attentuated - which I would miss, but I was able to get it lively enough with my mid Sweep
up pretty high. Core sounds pretty good and I had a live sound screened from the drums, and DI and
mic on the cab and the sound went down pretty well. Like all these things, I think the most serious
questions are asked when running LOUD, but these should work well for the quieter gig without rampant
gtrs to fight. Cheap 300w combo, I'd say and will do a job.

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Just had a successful gig last night with my Hartke Kickback 10 that someone mentioned earlier. It was a small pub with a low ceiling and I decided to use this which I carry as emergency backup. My normal rig was in the van but as I expected it would have been overkill. Depends upon your band of course but it is surprising how little you can get away with. We play Pop/Rock and the pub would have taken about 70 people. I'm toying with replacing the speaker with something a little more capable and using it more often in small venues. The only problem is that it doesn't handle extreme bass at all well and if you crank it you need to roll off the bottom end a bit. Shoving it hard against a back wall brings the bass back up a little though, you couldn't use it on an open stage.

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[quote name='Truckstop' timestamp='1408458225' post='2530373']


SWR Workingman's 10 would be a great buy if you can find one. Can be had for £120ish and are awesome! 10" combo, plenty of volume and suitable for small gigs. DI out too so can go into the PA for larger gigs.

[/quote]

+1
I also have an SWR 4x8 extension cab - the combo sits on top perfick, and the sound is awesome

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The GK mb112-ii is a very small, light box that can gig just fine.
The fact that I have one for sale is immaterial (ahem)
;)

In all seriousness though, it's a fabulous alternative, I've owned the promethean p5110, a barefaced midget and the line 6 small combo. Bought them as portable alternatives to using my full rig, but the mb112-ii seems by far the best all round option out of those I tried.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Ugh. I'm completely racked with indecision.

So... short list so far is:

Ashdown Mibass combo - surprisingly good, and LOUD, nice tone... but I worry about the 10" speaker at gig volumes.
Ibanez P3110 - as above really... probably preferred the Ashdown tonally. Amazingly small little thing though.
Fender Rumble 100 v3 - very nice tone, amazingly light, but is 100w going to be enough... but with a 12" speaker it should be less "farty" than a 10? Also - no chance of connecting a second cab.
GK MB112 - good, but probably not as nice as the Fender, but seemed louder.
TC-E BG250 2x8 - amazingly small little thing - not convinced that it'll cope being turned up loud.

The Fender and the Ibanez can be had for peanuts... and I've seen the GK for less than £300 - so that's quite tempting, too.

Pfft. Decisions...

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[quote name='antk' timestamp='1410787563' post='2553098']
Ugh. I'm completely racked with indecision.

So... short list so far is:

Ashdown Mibass combo - surprisingly good, and LOUD, nice tone... but I worry about the 10" speaker at gig volumes.
Ibanez P3110 - as above really... probably preferred the Ashdown tonally. Amazingly small little thing though.
Fender Rumble 100 v3 - very nice tone, amazingly light, but is 100w going to be enough... but with a 12" speaker it should be less "farty" than a 10? Also - no chance of connecting a second cab.
GK MB112 - good, but probably not as nice as the Fender, but seemed louder.
TC-E BG250 2x8 - amazingly small little thing - not convinced that it'll cope being turned up loud.

The Fender and the Ibanez can be had for peanuts... and I've seen the GK for less than £300 - so that's quite tempting, too.

Pfft. Decisions...
[/quote]

Its a tough decision, I'd be tempted to go with whichever solution is more flexible, i.e. giving you the option of adding a second cab for more volume should you need it.
My 2p would be the Ashdown, but I have mentioned that previously ;)

Anyway, best of luck mate, and good work managing to audition all those prospective options, not an easy task!

Eude

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I recently used this on a decent sized stage without good bass monitoring
[font="4ea7face23a7549807c1c660#781500"]MAG C210T-300 EVO III [/font]307W 2 x 10" + tweeter bass combo and I think
it would do well with a fairly loud band. If you had it thru FOH, then it would be fine
but it would handle a pub as well on its own, within reason.

I had my doubts it could do it, but it did. I've also used an older Ashdown 115 combo
with an Evo power stage and that did well enough as well for a small one handed package
that will do a lot of gigs. Pointless, IMO, trying to get much smaller as you will hit more compromises
than it is worth.

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Cheers guys - yes, I've got a little Ashdown Peacemaker 20 as my main guitar amp (I'm only masquerading as a bass player really!) and that's been great, so I'm leaning towards the Ashdown as I know it'll be reliable.

I did like the Fender though...

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On a technical level there is no reason a 10 can't move as much air as a 12 as this depends upon how long the cone movement is as well as the area, they count equally. A 2x8 has a cone area roughly between that of a 10 and a 12.

I'm not sure it helps but you can't decide this on cone area. The power probably matters only if you start thinking of extension cabs. 100W is probably enough to drive most of these speakers into distortion at the lowest frequencies so you'll probably have to judiciously cut a little bass if you turn the amps right up.

I'd say if you intend gigging these little things then a DI out is important as you can then easily use a bit of PA support. a worthwhile extra.

Fundamentally though you should base your decision on the one you like the sound of best.

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  • 1 year later...

A bit of a late update... but... after spending a long time borrowing amps and playing straight through a PA, I finally bought a combo... not quite as small as I had originally intended, but chose a Rumble 500 in the end and it's so good!

So... thanks for the original advice - and my ears did the deciding for me (that, and the fact that my drummer can be bloody loud!).

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I'm finding my Rumble 500 combo, fantastic that it is, to be hard to get a decent sound when it's quiet so I'm going even smaller.

I have the input gain on 1 and the master on 2 and it's still really loud for my band

I know the cab I'm getting will probably go as loud, if not louder, than the Rumble but the amp is a lot lower powered so I should get a decent sound at lower levels.

Edited by Delberthot
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