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Post subject: New to forum...seeking amp advice.
Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 11:08 am
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Hey all, I was hoping someone could help me out. After playing guitar in bands for years, I decided to switch to bass :D . I am looking for a 200+ watt combo amp to pair with my "08 American P-Bass. I'm leaning towards the Hartke Hydrive 210c, Hartke VX3500, or the Bassman 250/210 combos. Any ideas on these? Or maybe another combo? I'd like to keep it around the $600-$750 range. I play Metal/Rock/Blues and need a quality gigging combo. Thanks. Any help would be appreciated.


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Post subject: Personal Preference Rules!
Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 4:01 pm
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Location: Albemarle, NC
Like choosing a fine instrument, such as your USA Jazz, amp selection is a very personal process. An amp brand and specific model can have a good reputation but you can still get a "lemon" amp that is off from all the rest. The best thing to do is PLAY through them. I've not used all the models you've mentioned, so no advice from me on which one of those would be "best" for you.

This is like asking someone to pick a mate for you.

When you play the right one for you, you'll just know.

My favorite bass amp tones of all time come from a brand you aren't even considering, namely Ampeg. By specifying "combo" and the price point of $750 you are a bit limited, but that should get you a decent combo for sure. I use combos for rehearsals, stacks for gigs. Just always have.

The Fender Bassman 250/210 is a nice combo so play one for sure to see how you like it. However, I always need a 15 inch cab in the mix to move some air. Compare the 250/115 to the 210 to make sure you really want the 210.

Some combos (like the Ampeg BA series) do not have extension speaker jacks so keep that in mind. BUT, the Fender Bassman 250 DOES have a speaker jack and that gives you the flexibility to add a 15 or 210 cab for gigs to get a bigger sound. The extension cab would need to be 8 0hm.

Another very viable combo within your price specs is the Ampeg BA300 with a 15 inch speaker for about $700. The 210 version of the same amp is $800 which is outside your limit. But remember, no extension speaker jacks. Still I prefer the Ampeg tone.

If I had to choose between having just 2-10's or having just a 1-15 I'd take the 1-15 everytime to get my traditional old-school tones. I'm not into fusion stuff. I want boom boom.

You are looking for an all around amp and the Fender or the Ampeg would be a good choices. Lots of people like Hartke but the Fender and Ampeg brands seem to hold more resale value on the auction sites than Hartke, so I'd make awfully sure I wanted to keep the Hartke rig long enough to play it for a very, very long time.


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Post subject:
Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 7:50 pm
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Thanks for the advice. I'll check out the Ampeg you wrote about. I think I'll check out Ashdown also. I like the combo idea for the portability factor.


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Post subject:
Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 7:34 am
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I'm a Hartke guy. I love the way it sounds, price is decent. I've had mine for 13 years now. I play it through a KMD cab.

For bass amps, Ashdown is deffenitely a good choice, so are Ampeg, SWR, Eden, and a host of other brands, then you have the boutique brands too: Genz Benz, Accugroove, etc. If you want boutique performance with out the price, Carvin, yes, Carvin have great bass amps. Problem with Carvin, they really don't hold their value, just like their guitars/basses.

Try out as much as you can to get the sound you want. Have fun while doing it. Good luck.

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'89 Power Jazz Bass Special-BadAssIII, EMG P/J
Project PBass-EMG PX, Schaller BM Light Tuner
'05 Aerodyne JBass
'06 Spector Legend Custom Neck Through
VT Bass
Hartke TA5000 w/XL Cabs(210, 410, 115)


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Post subject:
Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 8:16 am
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I'll take all the advice I can get. It's hard to find all the combo amps I want to try. I can find the dealers, but a lot of times they won't have the particular model on the sales floor for me to try. With everyone's insight I can focus the search down to amps recomended from experienced players. Thanks guys!


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Post subject:
Posted: Tue Aug 26, 2008 6:15 pm
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I have the Bassman 250/210 with my Highway One P bass and I love it, and so do the guys I play with. Great sound.


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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2008 12:51 pm
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big stubby wrote:
I have the Bassman 250/210 with my Highway One P bass and I love it, and so do the guys I play with. Great sound.


You know, loving something doesn't give someone an idea why you and your bandmates love it. Can you atleast elaborate so the op can figure out why you love the Bassman so much.

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Rez(# 30916)
'89 Power Jazz Bass Special-BadAssIII, EMG P/J
Project PBass-EMG PX, Schaller BM Light Tuner
'05 Aerodyne JBass
'06 Spector Legend Custom Neck Through
VT Bass
Hartke TA5000 w/XL Cabs(210, 410, 115)


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Post subject:
Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2008 1:07 pm
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I'm sorry PJB, I didn't know I needed to elaborate. The Bassman 250/210 has great sound and headroom, plenty of low end and you can really dial in any sound with the EQ, It has no problem keeping up with 2 guitars, keyboards and drummer who like to play ZEP, Skynryd and others classic rock stuff. I have been told to turn it down actually. I used to own an Ampeg ba115 and it wasn't near loud enough and it was a piece of crap as it was in the shop 3 time in one year for different reasons, but mainly because it is a piece of crap. Like I said the first time, The bassman 250/210 has great sound.


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