I need help with a lightweight rig...

[Musicman20]

Right..this is gonna be a long one.

Ive been looking at review after review.

I have now got a list of 3 normal volume heads that are possibilities:

Shuttlemax 6.0, Little Mark 3, Little Mark Tube.

The cabs I was thinking are below (cab might come a few months down the line)

Epifani 2x12, Shroeder 2x12, GB 2x12

The cab HAS to be lightweight.....otherwise there is no point. I have VERY heavy cabs already!

I have another option....EVEN louder heads:

Shuttlemax 12.0, Little Mark 800, Little Mark Tube 800.

How loud do I really need to go?! I mean, 500W at 4ohms for the MB stuff means I need a good cab to handle that power.

Do any UK bassists regularly use that much power? What cab would be best for an 800W head?

With the GB its more of a case of having enough cabs! But do i seriously need 1200W? A volume reality check is needed!

I did some searches but these are the options Im left with.

PS - Id love a Berg but they dont do a 2x12 ....

Please assist experts!

Edited May 15, 2009 by Musicman20

[Happy Jack]

Form follows function.

What type of music do you play?
What size of venue do you play it at?
Do your ears often bleed by the end of the gig?

OK, scratch the last one.

[Musicman20]

Hey

I play mainly pretty heavy punk...but I definitely dont play simple punk.

I would like something that can do most styles, from rock to funk to punk etc etc. I use Fender Jap P bass, 2 x Stingrays 3 band eq and soon to be a USA Fender Jazz. So pretty much the tradtional style of basses. I use a pick mainly...but Im getting much quicker with my fingers and slap is getting better too.

I play venues that arent really that massive. I currently own a Orange AD200b so I have tube gain on tap with that. I just want something different and more modern/clean for at home use and gigs where I really cannot justify taking out my Orange...or that we dont have enough space! I love the Orange but its size and value put me off taking it sometimes.

So yeah....small to medium venues I guess. I am challenging two guitarists with half stacks and a loud drummer. The old Trace I sold was ok at 8Ohms (280W ish) at most venues..and at 4Ohms (400W) it had wads of power left. Im guessing, but not 100%, that a MB 500W will be damn loud....even though its tiny!

Thanks

[dannybuoy]

Yeah, the 500w heads should be plenty loud enough. I run a VT Bass pedal into my Markbass when I need a little extra tubey grit for pickstyle punk stuff. You should be able to get a similar effect by cranking the gain on the Shuttle 6.0 or LM Tube.

[Noisyjon]

On the cab front, what about the Barefaced Big One for price and performance?

And on the amp front I'm thinking about a lighter amp myself and am facing the same dilema as you.
I'm fancying the GB Shuttle 6.0 at this moment in time but I keep looking at 2 rack unit size amp heads i.e. GK RB700/1001, Thunderfunk, Aguilar AG500-SC, Ampeg SVT-3, etc. There's just so much choice out there.
I have been recommended the GK amp heads from a few different people I must say.

Good luck and let us know what you go for in the end.

JTB.

[Happy Jack]

Tonight I'll be playing: Lakland Duck Dunn --> DHA VT2 Twin --> Eden WTX-260 --> Barefaced Big One (Serial No. #1 ).

The pub's pretty small, but they like their music LOUD. I'll be amazed if I get the Volume knob past the 10 o'clock position.

The DD weighs 7.5lbs, the VT2 is 1lb, the WTX is 3.5lbs = 12.0lbs the lot. The cab weighs 45lbs ... but it's on wheels.

Did you say you wanted a light weight rig?

[DirkThrust]

For an even lighter rig how about 1 or 2 Barefaced Compacts? These are 1x15 and weigh only about 30lbs and are very easy to carry. I had a Schroeder 1212L and sold it as soon as I had used a Compact for the first time.

The Compact is probably not as apparently loud as the Schroeder, which is fairly mid prominent, but produce a more even response that goes down further and is very efficient. At 8 ohms you could drive a pair with any of the heads you mention and that would give you an ear bleedingly loud rig. At £425 delivered they are also probably cheaper than any of the cabs you list.

Edited May 16, 2009 by AndyMartin

[Musky]

Don't get too hung up on the wattage. A 1000w amp is only going to be 3db louder than a 500w one, which is pretty much the minimum most people will appreciate as being louder. The difference between 400w and 500w will be imperceptible. The speakers will make a bigger difference to volume, depending on their sensitivity and ability to reproduce bottom end at volume. Alex has put up a pretty decent FAQ on this on his site - [url="http://www.barefacedbass.com/technical.html"]http://www.barefacedbass.com/technical.html[/url]