if i was to buy a relatively small bass amp...

[dubkitty]

...that's reasonably priced, what should it be?

let me be a little more specific: what i'm thinking of would probably be a head + cabinet since it seems like most combo-style amps aren't going to be adequate for playing with a loud drummer. portability is definitely a consideration; as some of you know, i'm OLD and my back sucks. regarding the head, i'm not fussy about tube vs. solid-state because i can't afford to be. i'd think that 200 watts would be a minimum requirement to get over the drums. for cabinets i'd likely be getting a used 1x15" to start with; i don't care for 10" speakers for bass. i play a fretless Jazz Bass with .105 Rotosound flats, and as you might infer i like a big, rumbly, woody, acoustic-y sound that gets growly and Husker Du-esque when i bring the bridge pickup up. what would you guys recommend? new or used?

[bubstance]

I think in terms of versatility and cheapness, nothing beats the old Lab Series amps. They work great for bass (and there are some bass specific heads), and their combos are LOUD. They had the a few models that would work excellently for carting around and cranking up, specifically the L4 head and the L11 (which is labelled as a guitar amp but is also 200W). Even the 100W models work really well and get really nasty when you crank the shit out of 'em.

Just my opinion, though.

In terms of awesomeness for low price, get a Hartke 3500 and a decent bass cab. Fuck shit up.

[Joe Gress]

What is your price range? Small 212's and 115's are relativity cheap and easy to find. I have an Avatar 210 myself mated to a GK 700 RB-II. It gets loud (not loud enough to really bring the noise though), and its fairly portable. You can find old GK 400 or 800 amps used or new (depending on how much you want to spend), and GK also has a portable MB series. A used Peavey amp can be found for cheap, but they can get heavier than you may want. Genz Benz, Augilar, and Mark Bass all have portable micro amps, but they can be 'spensive. The newer smaller amps are a little more Hifi sounding in my opinion as well.

[McSpunckle]

The new Acoustic stuff is pretty sweet. Good, fat tones and really powerful. But it might not exactly be light.

Avatar makes a good cab, and they're pretty light for their size.

Dunno about the bass stuff, but I'm pretty impressed with the build quality on my Traynor cab. It's really a bit better than my Avatar. And they're pretty cheap, and they have a good selection of neo cabs. Might be worth researching?

If you REALLY wanna go light weight, check out some of the new Class D bass amps. Genz-Benz shuttle, GK MB200/MB500, Carvin... whatever Carvin calls it. They all make matching lightweight cabs. I can attest to the GK being pretty decent, but not the others

A lot of the dudes on Talkbass are really into the Class D amps paired with a 1x12 cab-- and they're PICKY, in that all of their stuff sounds exactly the same.

[Achtane]

Seconding the HA3500, great amp. It's like 20 pounds or something.

[one bad monkey]

Depending on your budget, some of the new Gallien-Krueger MB series combos are very loud, lightweight and reasonably priced. The Markbass combos (for a little more) sound pretty decent and, while they're a "clean" amp they can get some nice vintage tones.

[Kellanium]

You're welcome

Technichally it's a guitar amp, but it rules at bass, i've played through one, little bastard gets loud!

[MaxMaps]

you sure have a lot of money to spend on gear for a poor guy

[bigchiefbc]

I got a Genz Benz Shuttle 3.0 (300 watts, weighs about 2.5 lbs), and I can play good sized-bars with a hard-hitting drummer. I looked around on eBay and craigslist and eventually found a used one for around 300 bucks. That's really not bad at all, and it sounds great. As for cabs, I run a 1x15 and a 4x10, which I spent a combined 300 bucks on (again, looking around craigslist and eBay until I found some awesome deals). It definitely can be done.

[dubkitty]

i won't be getting an amp for awhile...i'm just thinking about it and gathering data to store for reference. there's 1x15s down at Starving Musician and the Guitar Showcase Swap Shop all the time for less than $200. but the thing is, i really don't know shit about bass amps at all. i'm a guitarist who doubles on bass and loves the instrument, but i've never done anything with a bass amp other than plug into someone else's.

i haven't really been buying much lately...thinking about it a lot, yes. i'm in sell/trade/modify mode now for the most part.

[MaxMaps]

i won't be getting an amp for awhile...i'm just thinking about it and gathering data to store for reference. there's 1x15s down at Starving Musician and the Guitar Showcase Swap Shop all the time for less than $200. but the thing is, i really don't know shit about bass amps at all. i'm a guitarist who doubles on bass and loves the instrument, but i've never done anything with a bass amp other than plug into someone else's.

i haven't really been buying much lately...thinking about it a lot, yes. i'm in sell/trade/modify mode now for the most part.

IMO any amp works for a bass, fuck I have played in a lot of shitty amps and top dollar ones, its all about preference.

Combos have never sounded good or worked for me, if it was the EQ, amount of head room, or just construction of the thing something never really worked well for me when it came to combos. Plus when it came to haul the fucking things they weigh a ton, bass gear does not go easy on the weight.

That being said, a head + cab will be the best option to go as far as portability and the best sound. A huge +1 to BCBC on the Genz Benz Shuttle 3.0. I have played through both the 6.0 and 9.0 and they sound fantastic.

Spend a little more and get something good. (however this is coming from me purchasing my first tube head....I am never going back to solid state .....EVER)

[htsamurai]

if you wanna buy new hit me up! lol
acoustic stuff is ballin, for the price you really can't beat it
a b100 or b200 should suffice as per your criteria, and they're not too pricey or heavy

[dubkitty]

i've been working on the assumption that a head + cab would be the most efficient thing, both because used cabinets are so gosh-awfully common and inexpensive and because bass combos seem to be underpowered and rather heavy and oversized for their power and ability to move air. and i'm definitely planning on getting something good enough to cane relentlessly for several years, because i can't afford to do otherwise...gear i'll have to replace in a year isn't an option, because bass is a sideline for me unless someone decides i'm their huckleberry. i'll bear you in mind if i'm going for new stuff.

[univalve]

I personally will get myself the ashdown little bastard for my basement room.

[McSpunckle]

I personally will get myself the ashdown little bastard for my basement room.

That thing looks SWEET.