Recommend me a good head/cab for my Sterling HS?

[RandomEvent]

I've only really played with combo amps, but now I feel like I should be looking into getting a head and a cabinet. I'm not very knowledgeable about this sort of thing though. Ideally, my mind is picturing something small. Like, a head that is 300 - 500 W and one 2x12 cabinet. Is something like that good for playing small, coffee house type shows? Also, I don't know many things about heads/cabs, such as 8 ohm vs 4 ohm, etc.

I've thought about asking at other forums too, but most of them just say to read an FAQ or direct you to some general site about this kind of thing. I know you fellow EBMMers are really good about this type of thing though, and generally willing to help a noob like me out. I hope so, anyway! Thanks in advance for any advice or info you could give me.

Also, if it matters, what I originally was planning to go with was an LMII and maybe an Aguliar or Epifani cab that was 2x10 or 2x12. If you can recommend me some stuff, or maybe explain what I should look for, I'd be happy. Also, I'd like something that's easy to work with, as far as EQ goes. I've been told LMII's are pretty easy to get along with.

 

[BluesBassPlayer]

Don't overlook or dis combos. I have and use a Mesa Walkabout 12 combo for almost any gig. Its perfect for small clubs and coffee houses. You can easily expand the system by adding another cab. You can also remove the head from the cab and use it with a very small cab for small acoustic jams and practice. The Epifani ul2 110 is an excellent small cab.

If you serious about going separates. I also have a Mesa MPulse 600 head and two Aguilar 12 cabs. Honestly, they dont see much action since I got the Walkabout.

 

[RandomEvent]

Thank you for the advice. Honestly, I still like the combo I have, but it's a bit too small I think. It's a Yorkville Bassmaster 100. I will definitely consider combos, but I've just wanted to try the LMII pretty much, which is what has made me consider heads and cabs instead of combos in the first place. I just want to try something different I guess. I will look into an Epifani combo though.

 

[Baird]

I will probablt be one of many EBers that recommend Markbass, but I recently bought a MB F1 and my Ampeg head has been under my bed since.

I think MB heads with Bergantino cabs are the best sounding combination possible, but Bergs are really expensive. I have beem playing my MB through Ampeg (MIA) 2x10 cans and it sounds amazing.

One word of advise is that the MB DI is terrible IMO. Invest in a Sadowsky or Aguliar DI/Pre or something similar if you gig and need direct capabilities.

Have fun though! Shopping for a new rig is always a great experience.

 

[oli@bass]

Just a bit over a week ago I bought a MarkBass F1/Standard 104 HR to replace an SWR GrandPrix/Stereo 800/Henry 8x8 rig. I love it.

 

[Thornton Davis]

Check out the new Genz-Benz Shuttle 6.0 head and Neox 212 cabinet.

You will be blown away with tone, power, lack of weight and outstanding customer support.

Both EBMM and Genz-Benz customer support are two of the best in the industry. That's why I only use EBMM basses and G-B amplification.

TD

 

[AnthonyD]

Check out Avatar cabs - and don't let the "great value" fool you, they're amazing.

With the LMK II on a knapsack, you can easily carry an Avatar Neo 2x10 in one hand - it mates well with MarkBass and sounds phenomenal.

More than a few guys around here have good experience with them.

 

[RandomEvent]

I've seen some good prices on used Avatar stuff, so I'll give it a try. I'm probably gonna end up getting a LMII also. Thanks again.

 

[Aussie Mark]

good for playing small, coffee house type shows

I originally was planning to go with was an LMII and maybe an Aguliar or Epifani cab that was 2x10 or 2x12.

An LMII with a 2x10 or 2x12 would be perfect for that type of gig, and would also handle small bars, as well as almost any gig where you have PA support. It all boils down to your preference in terms of cabinet manufacturer, and your budget.

 

[RandomEvent]

Ok, after some research, I have a question. What are the ohms for? The only thing I've seem to grasp is that 4 ohms push more power and wattage than 8 ohms. Is this the whole point, or is there other things I don't understand about that?

And what are PA and DI exactly? I know what they stand for, but how do they relate to gigging? Sorry for the noob questions.

 

[Aussie Mark]

Ok, after some research, I have a question. What are the ohms for? The only thing I've seem to grasp is that 4 ohms push more power and wattage than 8 ohms. Is this the whole point, or is there other things I don't understand about that?

And what are PA and DI exactly? I know what they stand for, but how do they relate to gigging? Sorry for the noob questions.

Ohms is resistance. Think of ohms as a hose pipe connected to a faucet. In the world of ohms, the smaller the number, the smaller the resistance, which means the bigger the hose pipe. The bigger the hose pipe, the easier it is for the water to flow. So, less resistance (less ohms) = more flow.

What this means in amp and speaker cabinet terms is that a lower ohms rating (ie. less resistance) for a speaker cabinet will allow more power to flow from the amp. All things being equal, a 4 ohm speaker cabinet will suck more power from an amp than an 8 ohm cabinet.

For example, the LMII is rated 500 watts @ 4 ohms, and 300 watts @ 8 ohms. So, if you connect the LMII to a 4 ohm speaker cabinet, you will potentially have 500 watts available, but an 8 ohm cab will only have the potential to allow 300 watts to flow from the same LMII.

There is another complicated aspect of ohms that I could go into here, but best not to overload you all at once. Suffice to say, two 8 ohm cabinets connected together will result in a total resistance of 4 ohms, which means that even with 8 ohm cabs it is possible to utilise the full 500 watts from an LMII.

"PA" stands for "public address system", which is basically the amps, speakers and other equipment that are used for vocals and other instruments. When you're at a concert, those big speaker stacks on either side of the stage or suspended from the ceiling are part of the PA. If you're playing in a coffee house, your singers would be using a PA, but the other instruments would most likely only use their own amps. As you start playing bigger venues, your bass rig won't fill the room, so you would supplement your bass rig by also running your bass signal to the PA.

"DI" stands for "direct input", and means sending a separate signal from your bass or bass rig to the PA, in addition to the signal that is going to your bass rig. A DI can mean a separate little box that you plug your bass into before it goes to your amp, or it can be an ouput from your bass amp that then goes to the PA.

 

[oli@bass]

Wow, nice write up, Mark!

 

[RandomEvent]

Thanks very much for this detailed write up!

 

[kirkm24]

Check out Avatar cabs - and don't let the "great value" fool you, they're amazing.

With the LMK II on a knapsack, you can easily carry an Avatar Neo 2x10 in one hand - it mates well with MarkBass and sounds phenomenal.

More than a few guys around here have good experience with them.

+1

Avatar cabs are great; especially for the price. I had a 2x12 of theirs that IMO was every bit as good in build and sound quality as some of the higher priced boutique cabinets.

 

[phatduckk]

i also ahve and love the Little Mark 2. its a pretty amazing little amp.

as far as cabs go... I've used my little mark with an Aguilar 4x10 and an Avatar 2x12 and it sounded great through both cabs.

Avatar cabs are a pretty awesome value. Ive purchased 5 different cabs from the (guitar and bass) and have always been happy.

 

[PzoLover]

go to the garden

the Eden WT550 is a great amp and the Eden 2x12 is a fine cab as are 2 eden 1x12 cabs ... reasonable to move and great sounding stuff
Good luck
ATB
/PL
my next consideration due to good reports here about MB stuff is an MB Jeff Berlin 1x15 combo plus an Eden D112XLTcab with my SR5 H/Ps once I get fingers moving again

 

[RandomEvent]

They had a Eden 4x10 cab at my GC for 299 used. I hear it would have been a great deal if I had bought it, but I don't need something so big.

 

[kmk42019]

Ive played the LMII with a markbass 2x10 and GK 1001-RBII through a 4x10 Avatar cab(@ 4 Ohms). I personally like the GK avatar setup a little bit more than the LMII, but thats a matter of opinion(GK head pushes the cab wonderfully). Both are great heads and cabs and you cant really go wrong.

 

[RandomEvent]

Now I'm actually considering a combo. Anyone have any experiences with MarkBass combos? Specifically the CMD121P or the MiniMark? Those are small, but supposedly you can use them for smaller, coffee house type gigs. That's pretty much what I want. Just wondering if anyone here has used them for that purpose.