Because 2 days after I got it I got the new BassPlayer Magazine and saw an ad for the Little Mark Rocker 500! So had to upgrade. And i have to say, I love it. It has all the tonal range the Little Mark III had with the nastiest tube overdrive fuzz I've ever heard!!! You do lose the balanced input, but I dont even own an acoustic bass so not a big deal. The only complaint I have is that theres no footswitch. It'd be really nice to go from clean to overdrive without having to turn a knob, kinda shocked they didnt provide for this. Have to say I'm totally in love with my gear now. The down side, with my 08 EBMM Sterling, the MarkBass Little Mark Rocker 500 and MarkBass 104 Cab; I really have no more excuses. If I suck, it's purely because I suck, can't blame my gear at all now...
- Thread starter Davecg2
- Start date
bovinehost
Administrator
Oh THANK YOU so much for that.
the I was GAS-free for a bit there,
Jack
the I was GAS-free for a bit there,
Jack
Boogie.Man
Well-known member
I tried three different MB combos before deciding they weren't what I was seeking. Their solid state amps just sounded a little too sterile for my personal tastes. But I'd be curious how this one sounds. I bet it sounds great. Is the tube drive pre-amp only?
Holdsg
Well-known member
The Rocker always intrigued me, but I couldn't wait 9-11 months for it to get out and into stores (sheesh). So I am still content with my LM Tube, and if I need fuzz, I dial up my Sansamp paradriver pedal for all the fuzz I want. Glad you like the Rocker, still want to try one someday.
Smallmouth_Bass
Well-known member
Does the tube drive affect the volume when you crank it?
ha, no prob, wouldnt want you running out of gas.
yea, to be honest i think your setup has more flexibility and prob a very similar sound. not sure if pedals use an actual tube and really overdrive it or if its a digital effect. thatd be the only diff i can think of. that and you can play with the clean tube sound where i can but only to a degree, once you get past 1/8 the fuzz starts to kick in.
no and yes. it doesnt effect the actual volume, but the added body from the tube makes the sound carry more, if that makes sense?
not sure how can i tell?
ya know, been thinking about this since i read this post. and im really tempted to return the rocker for a LM tube 800. then getting a big muff pie for the fuzz. in fact, that would give me more flexibility for roughly the same price with 300w more power and ive always loved the big muff fuzz. i think im going to do that. just returned the m3 for the rocker, GCs gonna be annoyed, but this will hopefully be my rig for the next 10 years and they still get the sale. i do always keep the original packaging and the stickers in place, thats a little better right?
Musicman Nut
Well-known member
Because 2 days after I got it I got the new BassPlayer Magazine and saw an ad for the Little Mark Rocker 500! So had to upgrade. And i have to say, I love it. It has all the tonal range the Little Mark III had with the nastiest tube overdrive fuzz I've ever heard!!! You do lose the balanced input, but I dont even own an acoustic bass so not a big deal. The only complaint I have is that theres no footswitch. It'd be really nice to go from clean to overdrive without having to turn a knob, kinda shocked they didnt provide for this. Have to say I'm totally in love with my gear now. The down side, with my 08 EBMM Sterling, the MarkBass Little Mark Rocker 500 and MarkBass 104 Cab; I really have no more excuses. If I suck, it's purely because I suck, can't blame my gear at all now...
I Love Mark Bass Amps, Not a Fan for The Cabs.
Norm66
Well-known member
I looked at the Rocker but decided to go with the Tube 800 instead. My plan is to buy the 8 ohm 4x10 cabinet then later on add a 2x10 cabinet for the really loud gigs. Maximum versatility and tons of clean headroom.
I still need a little crunch sometimes, has anyone had hands on time with the MB Distorsore?
I still need a little crunch sometimes, has anyone had hands on time with the MB Distorsore?
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oddjob
Well-known member
Curious (really), what don't you like about the cabs?
This doesn't make sense to me. Cabs are cabs. 4 or 8 ohm. They have their own voices. If you like a particular cab and you like a particular head, put them together. There's no magic from using a head and a cab with the same name plate. My Eden head with my Eden cabs did not sound as good as my Markbass with my Eden cabs which also sounds better than my Markbass with Markbass cabs.
Well, after about a month of buying things and returning things I finally have the final version of my gig rig. After reading some of the replies on this forum and researching a little more, I ended up going with what is now my dream rig, the Little Mark Tube 800. And I have to say I'm very pleased with my choice. I think I could have just gone with the regular Little Mark Tube, because the 800 has more headroom than I think I'll ever need, but very pleased with the tonal range and power. And again it pairs up perfectly with my Music Man Sterling. MM + MB = indescribable tone and power. I'll stop littering the forums with other brands now 
Norm66
Well-known member
Dave, is that the rear-ported 4x10 cabinet? Mine is the front ported but other than that, I have the same rig. I agree MB + MM is a great sounding combination. My first gig with it I got so many comments it was unbelievable. Nobody could believe an 800 watt amp could weigh so little.
Yep its rear ported. Ive only gotten to use it at one gig so far, but it did great. The only problem I had was I blew one of their breakers cause I was pulling a little too much juice. And I'm pretty sure I can blame that on their power not my rig. I also found that having the line out at about noon was too much for the sound guy, he kept telling me to turn down cause i was overpowering everything else in the mix (the entire first song was pretty much all bass, which i personally had no problems with
). Def a lot of power for such a tiny and lightweight amp. And i really can't imagine ever needing to push it much past 4 or 5 notches, so way more headroom than I need. Spent a lot of money, but I have my dream rig now, the only thing I can think of Id add to it, minus a few pedals I have my eye on, is a 115 STD cab. That said, it would be a total luxury buy as the rig sounds great with just the 104 cab.dmarotta
Well-known member
Norm66
Well-known member
I know what you mean about more power than you need. I think mine was on about the 4th notch in a pretty small room with no PA support. Just for giggles I'd like to a/b a 2x10 and a 1x15 with the 4x10 just to see if it adds anything significantly. I purposely got the 8 ohm cabinet so I could add a cabinet down the road but I don't really know whan I'd need it. I think a 2x10 would be better to add so I could just carry a really light 2x10 for smaller gigs and both for the really big ones.
