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  #1  
Old 01-23-2007, 10:27 PM
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Ken Smith Ken Smith is offline
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Lightbulb DB Amps..

Helloooooo.... Ok, I'll be the ice breaker here. Since coming out of retirement a few years ago I had to learn things all over again gear-wise. I have an old Sun head and a custom Cab that I used for awhile as well as my old Baby Blue SWR. Shortly after, I got an EBS 350 head and 210 cabinet. To use that, I had to turn the horn off and the treble all the way down. I did a live recording with a 60 piece concert band doing everything from Big Band Jazz/swing to Classical as well as the band/Sousa stuff.

Shortly after I got another EBS (I had a connection..) with less wattage and a 15" cab. I still turn the horn off but I am able to get the sound I need.

I have used this Shadow Pickup I got from Kolstein that is like an Underwood. It fits easily and is forgiving as well. On one Bass, I used picture frame foam tape to fill the gap and it sounded great. That was on my Batchelder Bass I used for a few years in every type of gig.

So, currently I use the EBS Drome 15 with a Shadow Pickup. I use various Basses and have to EQ each of them slightly different.

Next.....?
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Old 01-24-2007, 06:09 AM
Marcus Johnson Marcus Johnson is offline
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EA iAMP 800 Combo. Versatile, Hi-Fi, loud as sin if need be. One the the few amps that can actually do justice to my AMT mic all by itself.
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Old 01-24-2007, 06:31 AM
Jim Clark Jim Clark is offline
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AI Clarus 2R Series III. My main gig requires me to double on DB and EB, so after trying various combinations of gadgets, I finally broke down and got a 2-channel head. I previously had a Clarus I. I really like the AI heads for a variety of reasons, but I also find to to do the job quite well for EB as well. I've currently got a Wizzy 12 and a Carvin 2x10. The Wizzy has that midrange hump that people talk about and I'm not real wild about it, so I'm keeping a close eye on both the M-line Wizzy and the Wizzy 10, both of which are to be available some time in the next couple of months. With amplification being a necessity in my current gig, I have almost constant GAS for the next 'big thing'...
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Old 01-24-2007, 10:08 AM
Dwight McCartney Dwight McCartney is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Marcus Johnson View Post
EA iAMP 800 Combo. Versatile, Hi-Fi, loud as sin if need be. One the the few amps that can actually do justice to my AMT mic all by itself.
Do you use the EQ? I would be interested to see the EQ setting you usually start with.
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Old 01-24-2007, 11:43 AM
Marcus Johnson Marcus Johnson is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DMcCartney View Post
Do you use the EQ? I would be interested to see the EQ setting you usually start with.
Sure, I use it, sparingly. I start out flat in general, then I just start twiddling a bit until it sounds good, depending on the room, the band, and my mood. I also use the tone shaping switches occasionally for a quick fix on the fly.
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Old 01-24-2007, 01:59 PM
Charles Arms Charles Arms is offline
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I have been using my Eden BG rig with my DB with great results. I have the Wt-500, and I run it with one of my two 210XLTs. It sounds great with my little revolution solo.

I use a little K&K inline to match impedence, or I'll use my Presonus Acousti-Q and run it into the effects return of the Eden.

It's not the most compact rig in the world, but it works.

BTW, it is a great BG rig as well!
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Old 01-24-2007, 03:02 PM
Bob Rowlette Bob Rowlette is offline
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'97 Walter Woods Electracoustic model into Euphonic Audio cabs (Wizzy 112 or VL-208 or CxL-110). After trying many other pickups, I've settled on the Fishman Full Circle.
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Old 03-21-2008, 06:27 PM
Mike Milner Mike Milner is offline
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I was fortunate to find a used GK 200MB ( a jazz guitar player was using it!). Picked it up for $400, still had the original foot switch and carrying case. I use a Fishman pickup (mounted on the bridge) along with a Fishman Platinum Pro EQ. Works great for any jazz gig I'm on.

Cheers & Happy Easter all.
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Old 05-02-2008, 09:55 AM
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Joe Hakim Joe Hakim is offline
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I've been using my GKMB150 combo for 13 years and I've never had a problem with it. Run it with an Underwood on my German bass.
I'm currently looking for a good doubling rig, as the GK isn't the best at louder volumes with electric bass.
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Old 05-02-2008, 09:30 PM
Greg Clinkingbeard Greg Clinkingbeard is offline
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To update my situation, I'm using an AI Focus 2R III into an EA Wizzy 10, occasionally an AI Contra EX. I think this is a big improvement over anything I've tried so I'll be with this for a long, long time. The Wizzy is great on pork chop at moderate volumes so this is a good doubling rig for me. I had a GK for awhile and liked it, although it is a different animal.
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  #11  
Old 05-05-2017, 11:12 AM
Gerry Grable Gerry Grable is offline
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Default New Amp.

Well, its over. My GK 200ma amp bit the dust. I tried to prolong its life but, as the tech guy said, it is fried.
Now good news. I bought a new Fender Rumble 100 combo for $299. It's been great with the 16 piece band that I play with ( my Jazz bass sounds pretty good, too). I'm playing an old Saffran (Wilfer) 7/8 (luthier's assessment) with a copper foil Gage pick-up. The sound is clean, no noise and the amp is very light and easy on my old bones.
My only complaint is that my bass has developed a Ab (plus or minus) wolf tone (I wonder if it was the dry air in my music room this past winter?) which I barely hear when I play sans amp. I've been experimenting with my MXR 10 band equalizer using the amp's convenient Effects jacks. I don't know if this is a good idea since the amp has four equalizer controls. It may be over-kill. I'm a plug it in and play kind of guy when it comes to electronics.
Thanks. Gerry
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  #12  
Old 08-02-2017, 12:36 PM
Gerry Grable Gerry Grable is offline
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Default Rumble 100 update

I'm still having trouble getting a good, dependable setting on my big band gig. I've given up the 10- Band equalizer and am just using the amp itself. I'm still not sure how to use the special controls: the three Bright, Contour, Vintage buttons, and whether or not they can be used together in combinations? Also the Overdrive: Drive and Level knobs. I just turn them off while on the gig. I don't think I need overdrive for jazz. Then there's the Gain control. Should I use it with only the bass, low mid, high mid and treble EQs or turn it off?
I have the copper Gage pickup. Could it be going? I also have a pesky wolf tone that seems to come and go.
I know it sounds like one of those TV drug commercials but: Other than (a list of a dozen bad reactions) it's a very good product for the money 🤔.
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  #13  
Old 08-14-2017, 12:18 PM
Eric Hochberg Eric Hochberg is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Gerry Grable View Post
I'm still having trouble getting a good, dependable setting on my big band gig. I've given up the 10- Band equalizer and am just using the amp itself. I'm still not sure how to use the special controls: the three Bright, Contour, Vintage buttons, and whether or not they can be used together in combinations? Also the Overdrive: Drive and Level knobs. I just turn them off while on the gig. I don't think I need overdrive for jazz. Then there's the Gain control. Should I use it with only the bass, low mid, high mid and treble EQs or turn it off?
I have the copper Gage pickup. Could it be going? I also have a pesky wolf tone that seems to come and go.
I know it sounds like one of those TV drug commercials but: Other than (a list of a dozen bad reactions) it's a very good product for the money 🤔.
I used that amp for a week and decided it did not have the eq capabilities to get me the sound I need. I use a Stat B pickup which is very full range and the Rumbles primary sound seemed to be a very deep, boomy, bass tone, without the usable mids I like. The Realist pickup is very low-end pronounced, producing few usable mids or highs, and I can see where that could be a bigger problem whencombined with the Rumble.

The only way to judge the various controls on an amp are to take some time and experiment with them. One thing I disliked about the gain control was that it doesn't shut the volume off when turned all the way counter clockwise. A very strange feature. The amp doesn't have a mute control, either.
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  #14  
Old 02-03-2020, 02:07 PM
NickArran NickArran is offline
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Mmm, so I spent £320 on a realist sound clip .... and Ken Smith uses a £74 shadow!


Anyway just a mention for PJB bass amps. The flight case is very transparent. Head to head with an AE coda it was hard to choose, but the PJB works well with electric bass ( in a gentle HiFi way). Not loud though. I need an extra powered extension cab playing in a sextet ( electric guitar and piano, and acdrummercwo's into big bands)
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