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Post subject: requesting helpful advice for an (aspiring) new bass player.
Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2008 5:40 pm
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i am 41 and picking up my first string instrument and have decided to go bass instead of acoustic or electric guitar. I am looking at the Squier Vintage 70s J Bass and am trying to decide on AMPS. The dealer is trying to get me into a simple Rumble15 or 25 but a friend recently suggested the BDEC as a great way to learn.

Any feedback from bass players is GREATLY appreciated!

Thx


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Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2008 6:12 pm
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While the BDEC looks like it might have some nice features, are they really worth it to you? I see the BDEC is about $400 while a Rumble 25 goes for around $190. If you think the extra $210 is worth it then go for it.

Personally I'd rather get the rumble and spend some of the "extra" $210 on a good book with a CD. Lesson CD's usually come with jam tracks, which is really the main feature of the BDEC. You can also probably find lots of good free lessons online (YouTube).

What do you intend to use the amp for? Just solo practice? Potentially play with others? If you eventually want to play with others, keep in mind that 25-30 watts is not nearly enough for bass. So you also need to ask yourself at what point down the road would you need a bigger amp.

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Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2008 9:25 pm
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Congratulations on your decision to come to the low end.

IMO get an amp that will be able to "carry" you for a while. A combo amp in the 60-100 watt range would be sufficient. You may not think that you need that much, but if in the near future you decide to jam with a guitarist or drummer(which is a great learning tool in itself), that size will be much more adequate. Though it may struggle with a loud drummer, it's still louder than a 15-25 watter. That can/will always be your "practice" amp and then you can get the real deal 500+ watt thump machine at a later time.

This is a great bass instruction book.
http://www.amazon.com/Leonard-Bass-Meth ... 864&sr=8-1


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Posted: Fri Nov 14, 2008 10:21 pm
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Hey man,

The Squire is a pretty decent bass, great sound, great fender feel.

For amps its always good to keep in mind that you will probably use it sometime in the future for band rehearsals and giging. Try not to undersell youself amp wise just so you have something to practice with, you can always practice with something really cheap (even a guitar amp) but your live sound and rehearsal sound is where it counts, in my opinion.

Ampeg has a very cool combo out at the moment with a 15" speaker. Im from Australia so i dont know how much it is in $US but its relatively cheap. Again this depends on what price range you are looking at. You can also get some damn good Hartke's for cheap too, their paper cone amps have a great passive tone to them, and you can get a VX3500 combo (4x10" speakers @350 watts) for a great price. These amps you will be able to gig with EASILY down the track and they are great for rehearsals, they are quite small and your future guitarist wont drown you out!

Just make sure you plan for the future.

Good luck and welcome the the exclusive and wonderful world of the Electric Bass!

- Chris Frangou

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Posted: Sat Nov 15, 2008 8:19 am
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Thank you all for the feedback! greatly appreciated!


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Posted: Sat Nov 15, 2008 1:35 pm
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Just to give a bit of added perspective, I got a 50W solid state Crate (one 12") back in 1998. I'd decided to get back into music and wanted something cheap that would work for both bass and 6 string. It does the job in a purely practice setting where it's just me, or perhaps me and another guitarist who can keep the volume down. But the couple times I took it to jam in a setting with a drummer and guitars who were going to open up, it was "no contest."

Later on, I got a Line6 Lowdown -- more power at (from memory) 180W but that's about it. The single 12" speaker rattles and buzzes like crazy long before I can get enough volume in a drums/guitars setting. The amp itself probably has enough power if I wanted to drive a larger speaker in a better cabinet. Ideally, I'd use a 15" and a horn.

Even my Bassman 210/250 is a bit light (it has 2 x 10" and a horn) in a pure rock setting, but more than enough for most jazz, blues, etc. where the guitarists are playing at a "sane" volume and the drummer isn't just hammering away with tree trunks. It has the advantage that you can use an external cab (instead of the internal speakers) -- or you could use two if you got the impedances right.

To digress (sorry, once you get past 50 you tend to ramble :) back in playing days (late 60s/70s) I used a 50W Bassman head (tubes) and a 2 X 12 cab. It was mostly for lead, but it was also enough for a small venue jazz trio I played in on the side, playing bass. It would not be enough then or now in a rock outfit on bass. A tube amp is louder than solid state, so my 50W head might have had the apparent output of a solid state more in the 80W range. All of which leads me back to the present ...

... as others have suggested, an 80W to 100W solid state amp with either a 2 X 10 or 1 X 15 (horn suggested in either case) should get you started nicely. It will get you further than a small low power practice rig in that you can use it for jamming, etc. as your skills improve. If you can go as far as something like the Bassman, even better since now you're covered right up to modest gigs (or mic'ed) at modest volumes!


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Posted: Sat Nov 15, 2008 2:51 pm
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All great advice.

if that BDEC is in your price range ($400) you can get plenty of wattage in a different amp for that amount of money. I think what we're all saying here is go for wattage over features, you'll be better served in the long run.

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2008 Fender American Stratocaster
2008 Fender Deluxe Telecaster
Fender Power Jazz Bass Special 1987 (MIJ)
Egnater Renegade Head
Egnater Tourmaster 2x12 cab


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Posted: Sat Nov 15, 2008 3:51 pm
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jeffo46 wrote:
If you can't afford a 100-200 watt Fender Bass amp,then you could always go with Behringer. I believe for around $249.00 for can get a 180 watt combo which is good enough to gig with and should last you a while.


Bad idea, last time I played a new Behringer it broke down after a few hours of play. It was just a head, but it didn't last up to anything. :?


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