Bass amp help please.

[yellowchuck]

I want to get a bass amp for my bass, And I didn't really know where to start so what would anyone recommend.

I want it to be 200 watts and my budget is around $300 give or take a little please help.

[dlh]

So many variables.

I'd suggest going to a large music instrument store.
Take your bass and begin plugging it in the various amps. It's best to take your bass beccause if you get a Fender off rack and you have different brand, what you hear will not be whay you'll hear when you get your amp home and plug your bass into it. Close, but no banana. All Amps are not created equally. The cab and speaker quality matter as much as the circutry.
Test them out. Most places will let you do that. If they don't, well, try someplace else.

Don't just go and buy one cuz it has a zillion knobs and buttons, has shinny chrome looking things on it and the grill clothe it awsome.

Play it first, then buy.

[Rax Jaggr]

I completely agree. Also, some locally owned stores will let you take it home and try for a day. Ask and see. If not be sure to know what the return policy is, just in case you get it home and don't like it.

[yellowchuck]

sweet, thanks for the info ill probably do that in a few days.

[johnn]

I don't know much about modern bass amps. The old ones are HEAVY. My old Peavey Mark IV Series amp is alot heavier than it was 20+ years ago, but has a lot of knobs and in/out options that I don't use, yet.
My bass player plays through a tiny Line 6, but we don't do any metal, so I leave my Marshall 100 watt at home and take a 26 lb Vox with amp simulation.
I've seen online that the speaker manufacturers have new light weight bass speakers that, if you get what you pay for, should be good.
Of course buying a rig like one you like to hear played is a good idea.
If you can get a bass player to play while you tweak the knobs and listen at a distance, it might help you choose, at the store. Distortion free at loud volume is a must, you can add distortion effects. They all sound loud untill the band gets loud. PA reinforcement has to be rugged to handle loud bass.
I doubt if this helped, but best of luck.

[rugrat]

If you were willing to spend hundred more $ you might be able to get a 220 watt ampeg combo tube amp. They are about $680 new or $500 b-stock, but I have seen them a few months old before on craigslist for $400. You can look at it at this link Ampeg: Bass Amp Series - BA115HPT

I think this is a nice amp, good sound, and makes you get big muscles and chiropractor bills.

Come on man it's only 80lbs...

It's nice amp, but it gives bad back pains.



You could get the version that's not tube for cheaper.

Well that's my two cents. Hope it helps.

[DJRecklessRick]

I use the Fender RUmble 100. Its freakin sweetness. and red lights go up under the amp when u play lol

[Prowler]

In that price range, I'd strongly suggest looking at used Peavey or Yorkville stuff. Specifically, a Peavey TNT or Yorkville Bassmaster BM-200 (older model, blue carpet) or XM-200 (Newer model, gray covering). Both brands are pretty bulletproof, and I've played through many TNT's and BM-200's that are probably as old as I am and still going strong. I used to own an XM-200 before I upgraded to a head/cab setup from the same series. It never let me down, and I actually rather like the tone of both the Yorkville and Peavey combos. They're not boutique by any stretch, but they are tough, reliable workingman gear.

It's all a matter of taste though. I know a lot of people like those Ampeg combos mentioned above, but personally, I've hated them every time I've tried one, much like just about every Ampeg I've tried. Best advice I can give you is just to try to find a few different models that suit your needs, and get the one that sounds best to you. Tone is a pretty subjective thing.

[radkins91]

prolly check out ampegs

or a roland cube 30 or 100. they make incredible guitar and bass amps.

[Sloom]

Did you get an amp yet? I'll second the Peavey Mark IV vote. I found one for $75! Get a 4 ohm cab to go with it. You can get an old Peavey 115 on craigslist for less than $150, loaded with a useable speaker. Or get an empty cab and go buy a Peavey Black Widow speaker with a 1505-4 basket assembly.

Thing is with the Mark IV, you want to run at 4 ohms so you get 210 watts out of it. It'll also run at 2 ohms and give you 300 watts. This is not a typical rating for modern amps, which generally run at 8 and 4 ohms instead. But the MK IV is a solid amp- and available cheap! It'll get you playing and meanwhile you can save up for something you'll end up running into and drooling after later. It's also pretty danged flexible as far as tones, with two switchable/combinable channels and a pretty hip EQ section (you'll want to find the footswitch, they're still available from Peavey as well as ebay, etc). You can also bi-amp with it, and its go FX loops for each channel- on the front panel. Cool beans.

This can probably all be had for $300 or less. Nice sounding rig, will survive a fall out of or down something, and will last long enough to maybe decide it's better than the used Eden WT-400 you finally scored. Maybe...

Edit: I just realized how old this thread is. Duh...