Ashdown. Crap?

[jezzaboy]

Question for ya.

Do Ashdown sound like sh*t? The reason I ask is, the only decent? amp I have ever owned is a Ashdown mag300. Before that it was all practice amp, small stuff.
It`s a few years old and one of the british ones. I took the head out of it and stuck it in a case for ease of transportation. I was in a local shop the other day and heard a guy playing through a Eden ENX260 head and a 6 x 10 Apeg cab and it sounded fantastic! But at 499 it was a bit steep, but on Thoman it`s only 395.

Told the guy that I had an Ashdown and he instantly replied Crashdown as they keep breaking down apparently. I keep spending money on guitars but I think that I should spend some cash (not a lot though) on a new head. What about Gk or Hartke? Any tips?

Jez

[Mr. Foxen]

[quote name='jezzaboy' post='578214' date='Aug 23 2009, 02:34 PM']Question for ya.

Do Ashdown sound like sh*t? The reason I ask is, the only decent? amp I have ever owned is a Ashdown mag300. Before that it was all practice amp, small stuff.
It`s a few years old and one of the british ones. I took the head out of it and stuck it in a case for ease of transportation. I was in a local shop the other day and heard a guy playing through a Eden ENX260 head and a 6 x 10 Apeg cab and it sounded fantastic! But at 499 it was a bit steep, but on Thoman it`s only 395.

Told the guy that I had an Ashdown and he instantly replied Crashdown as they keep breaking down apparently. I keep spending money on guitars but I think that I should spend some cash (not a lot though) on a new head. What about Gk or Hartke? Any tips?

Jez[/quote]

Some Ashdown's were prone to breaking like the Superfly, then they sorted it out, the rep remained. The do loads of ranges at various price points, the higher ones are great, and the cheaper ones can often be great for the price bracket. Pretty good demonstration of why many companies use a different brand for their cheaper lines. Their customer support is great too.

[phatbass787]

Love Ashdown, wouldnt use anything else and judging by the amount of top bands who i've seen using them when watching this weekends V fest coverage Im not the only one...

[waynepunkdude]

Used an Ashdown for the first time in ages and ages at a gig yesterday and remembered why I don't use them, next gig back to the Ampeg.

[neepheid]

I am not keen on the sound from their amps, I sometimes have to use them in the rehearsal rooms - a bit too warm and wooly for my taste. I have an Ashdown ABM 4x10 cab, which I am pleased with.

It's just personal preference though, I wouldn't say they're bad amps, just not agreeable to my ears.

[Protium]

[quote name='jezzaboy' post='578214' date='Aug 23 2009, 02:34 PM']Question for ya.

Do Ashdown sound like sh*t? The reason I ask is, the only decent? amp I have ever owned is a Ashdown mag300. Before that it was all practice amp, small stuff.
It`s a few years old and one of the british ones. I took the head out of it and stuck it in a case for ease of transportation. I was in a local shop the other day and heard a guy playing through a Eden ENX260 head and a 6 x 10 Apeg cab and it sounded fantastic! But at 499 it was a bit steep, but on Thoman it`s only 395.

Told the guy that I had an Ashdown and he instantly replied Crashdown as they keep breaking down apparently. I keep spending money on guitars but I think that I should spend some cash (not a lot though) on a new head. What about Gk or Hartke? Any tips?

Jez[/quote]

Seeing as you own one, does your MAG head sound like sh*t? If you are unhappy with your sound then obviously you need to change something, maybe start with the EQ. What sort of sound are you looking for?

Bear in mind what sounds fantastic in a music shop is going to sound different elsewhere (where it actually matters)

Also, I've come across more broken Hartke gear than any other make...

Edited August 23, 2009 by Protium

[Delberthot]

I managed to blow the driver in an ABM115 without driving it very hard.

Its the one and only speaker I've blown in 22 yeas of playing.

After that i sold it all as I was a bit wary of something else going wrong - plus I absolutely hated the wooly, indistinct sound and the excessive controls on the shiny chrome head.

[Protium]

[quote name='Delberthot' post='578340' date='Aug 23 2009, 05:17 PM']I managed to blow the driver in an ABM115 without driving it very hard.

Its the one and only speaker I've blown in 22 yeas of playing.

After that i sold it all as I was a bit wary of something else going wrong - plus I absolutely hated the wooly, indistinct sound and the excessive controls on the shiny chrome head.[/quote]

Unlucky with a defective part maybe?

[Machines]

Marmite.

[BT!]

in my college we have a abm evo 3 with a 8x10 cab and a ampeg svt 6 pro with 8x10 cab and ive used both.

i like the ashdown but ive always felt the ampeg had more of a punchy sound to it which i personally prefer

[Adrenochrome]

People have had wildly differing experiences with them.
Considering the vast numbers of amps/cabs in use the incidence of failures probably isn't that high.
I've had a MAG 300r head (UK) for about 5 years and I've done literally hundreds of gigs and rehearsals with it never missing a beat. My 210 extension cab sounds okayish but it's light, small and does a job.

[ezbass]

Played with Ashdown gear for 7 years without a day's problem, whilst other people's Ampegs and GKs were always breaking down. Only changed to Mark Bass because IMO Ashdown screwed the pooch with their Superfly and Little Giant designs, I wanted 500W not 2x250W.

[bassmansky]

we have been here before is it only ashdown that break down?No i dont think so.i have had my 500w abm 11 head for 18 months gigging nearly every week without it missing a beat.perhaps ive just been lucky then.with the amount of gear that ashdown sell you are bound to get a few that go wrong.As phatbass posted earlier alot of top bands use them,if they were crap you would not see them at festivals etc.probably not quite the best money can buy but still in the premier league imo.

[jezzaboy]

Thanks for all the replies. Intresting. It seems that Ashdown is no more un-reliable than anything else. I think I will get something else, possibly second hand and see if I prefer the sound to the Ashdown.

Jez

[Rich]

[quote name='Machines' post='578367' date='Aug 23 2009, 05:55 PM']Marmite.[/quote]
Very definitely. I have never managed to get a good sound from an Ashdown rig without EQing the hell out of it.

[EBS_freak]

[quote name='Rich' post='579070' date='Aug 24 2009, 02:05 PM']Very definitely. I have never managed to get a good sound from an Ashdown rig without EQing the hell out of it.[/quote]

Crashdown. Heh. I like that. Either that or Gashdown.

[JTUK]

I've used two types of Ashdown... one a little 15" combo which I hired for small gigs when my set-up hasn't been available and I've used a few on big stages which were also hired in by the sound company.

They seem to be in competition there with large Ampeg rigs and the SS makes them just a bit more resiliant..and maybe just a bit more maintenance friendly...possibly.

I preferred to see an Ashdown rather than an Ampeg, tbh..as I am always let down by the speakers in Ampeg cabs.. always seem tired or they didn't like to be pushed..
and that to me isn't the point of an 8x10...
The 15 combo was a delight to use, it goes in any boot, delivers a biggish sound and competes with a horn section...and you carry it in the one hand with the bass and gig bag in the other...what is not to like about that...
Not the sort of gig where you want to spend eons on getting 'the' sound..admittedly...

[MB1]

[quote name='Protium' post='578330' date='Aug 23 2009, 05:04 PM']Seeing as you own one, does your MAG head sound like sh*t? If you are unhappy with your sound then obviously you need to change something, maybe start with the EQ. What sort of sound are you looking for?

Bear in mind what sounds fantastic in a music shop is going to sound different elsewhere (where it actually matters)

Also, I've come across more broken Hartke gear than any other make...[/quote]

MB1.
....Hartke...Guaranteed to give you a Smokers Cough!.

[lemmywinks]

It wasn't just the Superfly heads that went kaputt. My local music shop stopped stocking Ashdown stuff (mainly the MAG stuff) because he got so many returns. He switched to Hartke gear and didn't get one broken amp or cab back
I do think the lapse in QC was limited to a brief time period though, however a reputation like that does stick.

[dangerboy]

Time for all the nasty nicknames for amp brands.

So far we've had:

Crashdown

I'd like to add:

Horrible American Rubbish That Keeps Exploding

What else have people got?

(I have no problems with Ashdown or Hartke btw - they just don't do my sound easily)

[henry norton]

[quote name='Rich' post='579070' date='Aug 24 2009, 03:05 PM']I have never managed to get a good sound from an Ashdown rig without EQing the hell out of it.[/quote]

I thought the whole point of having an eq was to use it....

[Ou7shined]

[quote name='neepheid' post='578271' date='Aug 23 2009, 03:47 PM']I am not keen on the sound from their amps, I sometimes have to use them in the rehearsal rooms - a bit too warm and wooly for my taste. I have an Ashdown ABM 4x10 cab, which I am pleased with.

It's just personal preference though, I wouldn't say they're bad amps, just not agreeable to my ears.[/quote]
Dude those Ashys at Musical Vision are knackered. You can't possibly compare all Ashdowns to those piles of gash.
That Hartke head in room 4 blew again yesterday. Is that any reflection on your Hartke that gets cared for and tucked in at night? Nit.

I'm soooooo bored at hearing that Ashdowns are woolly.
I wish you could have heard my ABM piped through my Schroeder cab it was superb - not a sniff of sheep anywhere.

A fairer description for Ashy cabs would be "old school" - after all they're basic Celestions (yours are Sica) with a bit of blue paint on them. They are never gonna be hi-fi - they are simply good at what they do but without airs and graces.

People seem to cream themselves over other famously old school sounding gear but curl their lips up at "woolly" Ashdowns - I don't get it.

I don't use Ashdown anymore (gear whoreage caught up with me) but I personally never had a bad word against them when I did.

Rich.

[bassmansky]

[quote name='lemmywinks' post='579237' date='Aug 24 2009, 04:30 PM']It wasn't just the Superfly heads that went kaputt. My local music shop stopped stocking Ashdown stuff (mainly the MAG stuff) because he got so many returns. He switched to Hartke gear and didn't get one broken amp or cab back
I do think the lapse in QC was limited to a brief time period though, however a reputation like that does stick.[/quote]
The lapse in qc was probably when they first shipped manafacture to the prc

[lemmywinks]

Just like to add that my Superfly hasn't had a single malfunction since i took all the outer casing off it. It may have been overheating (you wouldn't believe the amount of 'orrible metal i took off) plus it weighs a damn sight less now and also looks nicer IMO

I got the idea from someone on here, can't remember who but cheers anyhooow!

[Sibob]

I love my Ashdown ABM EVO II, along with my mini48 & mini15 cabs, it's done around 600-1000 gigs over 5 years and the head has only ever needed one service. Speakers have never gone!
And even when it needed a service this January just gone, Ashdown Customer Service is second to none and was uber cheap!

Never understood the 'Wooly' thing, peoples ears must be dead after years of gigging lol, I plug my passive Jazz basses into my ABM, and keeping everything pretty much flat (some boosted mids), I get growly, clear and fat tone in bucketloads!
Not to mention some smooth tube-overdrive when needed....which isn't that often...but still, nice and natural if you over-use the tube in the preamp!

Love it, never needed to even think about trying other amps!

Si