[BTL]

I am shopping for a new amp and want some reccomendations.

I am looking for either a Half stack or a really nice complete unit. Somewhere in the range of 200+ watts, with nice fat tone that can still knock the wind out of it when you pop a G. Something in the less than 1000 bucks range. I have been looking at AMPEG and hartke amps, they are pretty nice and are winning the contest so far. Any feed back on these two brands?

Thanks

Andy

PS. I play a Peavy Fury II

[Ninong]

Check with Bojinx: http://www.reefland.com/cgi-bin/foru...nfo&userid=552

Ninong

[Bojinx]

Take this information for what it is... 'Feedback from a try-like-heck guitarist who loves deep fat tones so much that he pushes his guitar through a bass amp while goofin at the house'

Seriously though... I do not play bass, so I do not know prices but IME (and after asking some buddies), check out the Ampeg SVT series and the Bag End quads. I like Bag End and GK, and my bass-buds gave votes to Ampeg, Bag End, and SWR. They said the SWR amps may be out of your price range though.

So, out of Hartke and Ampeg, I say Ampeg SVT. I haven't heard bad about Hartke, jsut alot of good about Ampeg. But really, you have to plug your Peavey into your top choices and let your ear decide for you. No sense in letting a few dollars (or a few hundred) make that decision for you.



Let me know what you decide.

[PerryinCA]

Well, as another hack guitarist....

Personally I am a huge fan of SWR, and Gallien-Krueger...Ampeg is nice (I use an upgraded Ampeg 12x4 cab for my guitar) but I think the greatest and most stable setups come from SWR. Our bassist plays a Redhead SWR 2x10 combo with a working mans 15" box added, and it cuts clear through everything, and hits hard (plays a music-man bass). Its never overheated, even for long 5+ hours consistent practice/studio sessions. He got a really good deal used...

I just saw today a great and extremely similar package made by Gallien-Krueger in Musiciansfriend (I might get banned for saying that ) for $1050, a tad out of your price range, but an awesome setup. The snappy clarity of the 10's, and the hard hit of the 15 is near impossible to beat. Mic the 10's with a shure SM-57 for boarded shows, and you'll get a great sound with plent of low end.
Ampeg is good stuff, but I think their high end stuff is the way to go, and it tends to be pricier.

Personally I would look for a good head, and a 2-4 good 10"s in a box, and then down the road upgrade the cab or add a 15".

IMO great gear can be had used. Look at e-bay, and www.harmonycentral.com for deals.

For SWR - The workingmans series is good stuff at a great price. I'd stay away from the LA series.

Ampeg - The B2R rack mount amp is a niceone for the price. Pair is with a 4x10 cab and you'll get punchy yet defined bass. Their SVT stuff is great, but cost is up there....

Hartke - honestly not too familiar with thier line. Not to say they aren't good, just no first hand experience.

Gallien-Krueger - Honestly probably the best in terms of value. Their 2-10 combos are nice, and flexible with outside speaker outputs to add additional cabs later. They have good tone, and the pricing is great. Downside....not as well known as some of the others. They are surely gaining in popularity though.

website - http://www.gallien-krueger.com/

Like I said, I am a guitarist that fiddles around on the bass from time to time....so take it for what its worth.

-Perry

[schrocat]

Listen to Bojinx!

I had a classic SVT with 2 full cabinets. (huge)
It had more tone capability than any setup I ever heard...fat,flat...didn't matter.

The pieces were used, the cabinets needed recovering. But I soon realized that as a band, we had really bought "something" because the older and wiser musicians were always trying to snag the damn rig. "Why..." I would wonder, "...would they offer me a new setup for this old thing?!?"

After one gig in particular, a sharp turn caused one of the cabinets to fall out of a truck at 45 mph, the cabinet landed on its corner, flipped, and slid down US-1...even a big Peavey SP series would have disintegrated.
Not the Ampeg...one nick on the side, 2 speakers out of round.

God I loved that rig.

[cod]

BTL: I played bass in a surf band a while back. I ran a fender precision through a fender bassman head. The cabnet had 2 15" speakers. I bought the speaker cabnet used, I don't even know the name brand, but it sounded good, and was built like a mac truck(road worthy). If you play out, buy somthing that will hold up to being loaded and unloaded frequently(hopefully )

I've heard from people who have used them that Hartke stuff sounds good at first, but tends to have alot of premature "technical difficulties".