project_c Posted August 2, 2017 Share Posted August 2, 2017 [quote name='super al' timestamp='1501693433' post='3346651'] I've just gone through this whole thread thinking "am I the only one who could just about afford a Commando 15?" Then "boom" we got one at last! The budget TE that failed me on more than one occasion and baffled the shop that tried to fix it. I eventually gave up and went for an ashdown mag combo which was lovely! [/quote] Yeah, Im surprised mine is still going to be honest, i'm pretty sure the 'deep' button is not working properly but other than that it's fine, i think it's voiced really well for crappy home acoustics. Plus it's massive so I use it as a desk extension. And my cats use it as a scratching post, I've given up trying to deal with that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
project_c Posted August 3, 2017 Share Posted August 3, 2017 [quote name='Merton' timestamp='1501703786' post='3346803'] My first proper bass amp, wish I hadn't sold it a few years ago. I keep looking out for the very very rare Commando head just for nostalgic reasons really.... [/quote] Didn't even know those existed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue Posted August 3, 2017 Share Posted August 3, 2017 (edited) Always thought they looked cool. Love that day glow lime green. Never played through one. Blue Edited August 4, 2017 by blue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted August 3, 2017 Share Posted August 3, 2017 (edited) [quote name='TheGreek' timestamp='1501619755' post='3346030'] ([i]Cos I bought most of it is not an acceptable answer BTW[/i]) [/quote] But that is exactly why I don't have trace gear!! Only sold cos of weight, I have a bad back from sporting abuse years ago. Given a choice of an ideal it would be trace sound all day long but I can't deal with the weight. A lot of our gigs are parties and festivals where parking is not remotely near the stage so carrying lightweight cabs makes life easier and less stressful. I also find it easier to change out amps than basses in the search for perfect sound. Partly cos my basses are all lefty so harder to buy and sell, but I have no emotional attachment to amps and pedals the way I do a bass. I may acquire a trace head to go with my ashdown lightweight cabs in future but I do worry about reliability, putting a twenty plus years old amp head in to my set up seems like introducing the most likely point of failure. While I love trace sound I found my small gk backline combo excellent and loved my old but cumbersome Hartke kickback, at the moment ashdown RM series seems to be giving what I need, it's up to me to introduce compression etc to get close to that trace punch. There's a lot of good quality choice about with amps now and the second hand market offers great value. Edited August 3, 2017 by uk_lefty Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KevB Posted August 3, 2017 Share Posted August 3, 2017 This was my rig before the 4x10 had to go, guessing somewhere around 2004 as I hadn't even got my faithful US jazz by then. That P's a japanese copy as well. [URL=http://s30.photobucket.com/user/KevB64/media/cropIMG_0285.jpg.html][IMG]http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c307/KevB64/cropIMG_0285.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gareth Posted August 3, 2017 Share Posted August 3, 2017 Great gear I had an all valve V6 and one sold for about £900 on eBay in Swansea last week. Someone got a wonderfully powerful and tone full amp Still got TE tranny amps and they give me all the power and tone I need nowadays Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted August 3, 2017 Share Posted August 3, 2017 [quote name='skankdelvar' timestamp='1501692107' post='3346636'] Probably just me but I could never get a sound I liked. [/quote] Definitely not just you. There's a reason they're cheap as chips these days, although the nostalgia card for some folk will up the price. A bit like godawful late 70s Fenders... Having said that, if the sound works for you and you can live with the weight, then bingo - a cheap big rig And the Class D trolling? Don't even start me on that... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue Posted August 4, 2017 Share Posted August 4, 2017 If I ever defect from GK, I'm partnering with Orange. And I'll run my bass through 2 of their guitar heads. Blue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bazzbass Posted August 4, 2017 Share Posted August 4, 2017 coz we wisened up? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leschirons Posted August 4, 2017 Share Posted August 4, 2017 Series 6 300watt head and a pair of 4x10 cabs. That florescent tube in front was beautiful and so was the sound. Was using mainly Status at the time despite not being a huge fan of Mark King. Never had one problem with it. Loved it. Went to Eden, then Mark bass and now on ultra light GB shuttle rig but then I am 65 with a shot back, knees and arthritis 😂 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JapanAxe Posted August 4, 2017 Share Posted August 4, 2017 (edited) When I was in the market for a serious bass amp (2000, give or take) I tried a Trace 2x10 combo, probably with a 7-band graphic. I could not get rid of the over-bright sound, or dial in any warmth. Went to the next shop and tried an Ashdown ABM500 2x10 combo, and there it was. I ended up buying the 1x15 version, and gigged that for at least 10 years. (I didn't become dissatisfied with the Ashdown until I bought a TC450 head pretty much on a whim, and realised how much the Ashdown had been masking the funky mids that I could suddenly hear.) Edited August 4, 2017 by JapanAxe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted August 4, 2017 Share Posted August 4, 2017 I've had a bit of TE gear pass through my hands. It started with an AH250 series 6 head, then an MP-11 programmable graphic eq and a V8 amp. Currently have a hexavalve amp which I haven't yet played through. TE's a mixed bag - some great stuff and some stuff that is a bit...mmmkay. I didn't like any of the series 6 stuff they made but the SMX preamp was pretty good. The V8 was monstrous - so much low end it wasn't controllable with the onboard eq. The MP11 was a nice idea but could only be used in a mono, full range system. I would like to try an early MkIV head at some point and see whether it's like a PA amp for bass as I believe they were designed as. I'm hoping the hexavalve will be like the Mesa Boogie Bass 400 I used to own, but lighter. We'll see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrenochrome Posted August 4, 2017 Share Posted August 4, 2017 ...because I now have an Orange/TC Electronics rig that is much smaller, lighter, and as loud as an equivalent affordable TE rig. TE gear I've borrowed before has been good, and a little TE Boxer 30 combo is my preferred backline for my acoustic gigs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted August 4, 2017 Share Posted August 4, 2017 I had an SMX preamp as part of my rig many years ago, and loved it. The flexibility was great and the dual band compressor was an excellent feature. If Trace were to build the SMX preamp features (or some of them at least) into a lightweight Class D head, I would definitely be in the market for one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2112 Posted August 5, 2017 Share Posted August 5, 2017 (edited) I have owned Trace Gear in the past and played a lot of their old range. I had a 7-band head and a 4x10" cab. Jesus wept, that thing would go bloody loud. In the end I shifted it for an Ashdown MK500. I read that when Mark went to Ashdown, he asked them to recreate the sound of his old TE kit. How true that is, I don't know but the MK500 had all the cut and sizzle of the TE but it was less than half the weight. The world has moved on from giant green Trace rigs to a trend for smaller, lighter stuff. Given that everyone seems to use bass amps for monitors and DI to the board when playing live so there is no need for the blowaway power of a Trace Elliot rig nowadays. Edited August 5, 2017 by Chris2112 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivansc Posted August 5, 2017 Share Posted August 5, 2017 [quote name='blue' timestamp='1501808344' post='3347526'] If I ever defect from GK, I'm partnering with Orange. And I'll run my bass through 2 of their guitar heads. Blue [/quote] I used to have an Orange Graphic 120 back in the day. Partnered with a 2x15" Altec Lansing pre-production prototype cabinet with one speaker facing up one down in a sealed box. Speakers faced a pair of parabolic reflectors that fired the sound forward. Never seen another but man that thing just THREW the sound out. Played the old Hammersmith Odeon with it in pre-Apollo days & it filled the place without a PA hookup! Amazing. I sold the cabinet in the UK before emigrating to the US & then had to sell the amp to make rent money in the US. Mind you it wold be way too heavy for me these days. SO well built though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimR Posted August 5, 2017 Share Posted August 5, 2017 (edited) [quote name='Rich' timestamp='1501861757' post='3347890'] I had an SMX preamp as part of my rig many years ago, and loved it. The flexibility was great and the dual band compressor was an excellent feature. If Trace were to build the SMX preamp features (or some of them at least) into a lightweight Class D head, I would definitely be in the market for one. [/quote] I think there are circuit diagrams on the web. It shouldn't be too hard to knock a preamp up in a stomp box. . Edited August 5, 2017 by TimR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GarethFlatlands Posted August 5, 2017 Share Posted August 5, 2017 Like all the TE gear I've played but the weight is a huge issue since a back injury and constant fatigue so I can't see me ever getting anything by them unless it was very close by and I could keep it at the practice room. The EQ sliders always confuse me too, I never know where to start! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sonic_Groove Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 [quote name='Rich' timestamp='1501861757' post='3347890'] I had an SMX preamp as part of my rig many years ago, and loved it. The flexibility was great and the dual band compressor was an excellent feature. If Trace were to build the SMX preamp features (or some of them at least) into a lightweight Class D head, I would definitely be in the market for one. [/quote] [quote name='TimR' timestamp='1501927256' post='3348253'] I think there are circuit diagrams on the web. It shouldn't be too hard to knock a preamp up in a stomp box. . [/quote] Like this? https://www.thomann.de/gb/trace_elliot_multipedal_transit_b.htm B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimR Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 Wow. Stick that infront of your class D and Bareface and it's back to 80s slap heaven... ... or not... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MoJo Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 [quote name='Rich' timestamp='1501627836' post='3346131'] Speak for yourself I'm still Class-D'ing it, and still perfectly happy. And most importantly, my back loves me. [/quote] Me too. Fender Rumble 500v3 + Rumble 210 cab. Louder than I will ever need, no 'heft' deficiency and the combo is a one hand lift Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ead Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 Personally not a fan. Also not disappointed with my class D amp and Barefaced cabs which I just use for on stage monitoring and practice sessions as I play through the PA at gigs. Really not keen on the design either, just a personal thing I guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost_Bass Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 Yesterday i walked in my studio and remembered this thread when i noticed my old battered Boxer15 so i do still own TE gear! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spike Vincent Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 (edited) I have one.A proper one with the black painted finish, none of yer carpet nonsense. Can't say it gets out of the house much because there is a Ford Granada hiding inside it, at least that would explain the weight. [attachment=250867:trace.jpg] Edited August 7, 2017 by Spike Vincent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimR Posted August 7, 2017 Share Posted August 7, 2017 Brilliant. I think the Ford Granada estate and the Volvo estate where the transport of choice for Bass players with 8x10"s in the 80s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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