Vintage tube Bass amp Question

[koffee_iv]

Are vintage tube bass amps able to deliver thunder down in a very low hz range for low tunings?

If so which ones?

Thanks

[doctord02]

Not a lot of personal experience here, but I'd say the Ampeg SVT, 200 and 400 watt Hiwatt DR series, Fender PS300 and PS400, and Sunn 2000 will all cause your bowels to move uncontrollably with the proper cabs and bass.

The problem is you will need a road crew or back surgery, 'cause they all weigh a ton. The tried and true standard is the SVT, which clocks in around 85 lbs I think.

While I am building a Hiwatt DR201 style amp for my GF, and she's into downtuned overdriven stoner metal, for maximum clean thump I'd go for a big BIG solid state head, maybe a GK 1001RB or a preamp and a rack poweramp.

[koffee_iv]

The problem is you will need a road crew or back surgery, 'cause they all weigh a ton. The tried and true standard is the SVT, which clocks in around 85 lbs I think.

While I am building a Hiwatt DR201 style amp for my GF, and she's into downtuned overdriven stoner metal, for maximum clean thump I'd go for a big BIG solid state head, maybe a GK 1001RB or a preamp and a rack poweramp.

I am interested in building tube pre-amps based on vintage amps and powering them with a SS power amp for volume at a reasonable price.

Currently we're running the bass into a pedal for texture (ibanez PD7 phat hed) and then a compressor/Eq and then into the board to play out the JBL mains. Not very portable.

My Idea was to make a 300watt combo with the tube pre.... but only if it's going to shake yer guts.

Thanks

[Bernardduur]

I got a Dynacord BassKing for free and man, that one can go LOW!

Asked Dynacord and they delivered the schematic very quickly! With my other bass amps (Ampeg and Fender Bassman) I am not scared to put em over my guitar cabs, with the BassKing I already hear my speakers flap on high notes........ that thing has some serious bass!

I think it is mainly due to the T filter that removes some mids but by that emphasises the bass and treble.

[selloutrr]

the preamp shapes your tone the rumble you seem concerned about is in the output section and speaker cabs ability to reproduce that tone without distortion or bottoming out (fatting). you can run a 1000 watt head into a cab that stucks and still be thin or into a quality cab and play low b til u have to poop. as a rule you want to over power and not starve a speaker within reason of course. more air you move (speaker surface area) the lower louder you can go but 300w is small if its solid state. what you described a tube pre with 300w solid state output you should be able to get a good idea of what you will end up with at any music store. that setup makes up more then 1/2 the bass amp market (club / bar size setup). you should be able to buy something used for a fraction of the cost to build.
does the ibanez pedal come out at line level? if so just add a power amp and cab. use your bass as your tone and volume knobs.

[Firestorm]

An interesting side note:

When the original SVTs were produced. there weren't any speakers that could handle the fundamental E or A. As it turns out. 55% of the sound wasn't at the fundamental, but at the harmonic, so those original cabs were supposedly tuned to the harmonic frequencies. It focuses the amp on the midrange (which you can hear better) rather than the bottom,

Look at the Ampeg circuits and you'll see an emphasis on midrange, even in the preamp. If you want bottom, look at the Marshall bass circuits (almost the same as tweed Fender). When I build bass amps, I put in one channel of each. If you run that into a SS output, you should have what you want.

Personally, I don't do solid-state. Tube power amps behind these preamps can be spectacular, but you can't use 6L6 (Fender's mistake): 6550 at least, or KT88 even better. But they get heavy -- you need an awful lot of iron to make 200-plus watts with tubes.

[wscrane]

My Idea was to make a 300watt combo with the tube pre.... but only if it's going to shake yer guts.

The number of speakers is a huge factor in bass reproduction. You get almost an extra 3dB of low end from "mutual coupling" every time you double the speaker area (up to a limit.)

The only problem with more speakers is that you end up with a response that gets increasingly peaked around the resonance. Thats the reason why old Marshalls and the SVT needed a trebly eq.

In theory you could make a 2x10 combo that would sound just like an SVT but it would take a 1200W amp and speakers with enough xmax to handle it.

[Jana]

I don't know if there is anything that can move air like an SVT driving a pair of V4B cabinets. Remember those? They had 2 -15's in them, the cabinet was a folded horn arrangement. They worked really well for bass bins for a PA too.

[stubbyfex]

A while back I built a "monster bass" head. I used four KT88's for about 200 watts of pure tone. The output transformer was a behemoth 30 pound Hammond Hi-Fi transformer that could go down to 20 hz at full power! I also used a toroid power transformer. The front end was similar to a Marshall super bass model. Wow, that thing would shake the walls! I put it in a Marshall sized head box. The weight wasn't too bad, about 50 lbs. I also added a line out jack so if more was wanted, the pa could be utilized.

[M Fowler]

Now thats a Bass amp.

Not sure what bass amp I want to build still looking but It must have four to six 6550 tubes.

Mark

[jbrew73]

A while back I built a "monster bass" head. I used four KT88's for about 200 watts of pure tone. The output transformer was a behemoth 30 pound Hammond Hi-Fi transformer that could go down to 20 hz at full power! I also used a toroid power transformer. The front end was similar to a Marshall super bass model. Wow, that thing would shake the walls! I put it in a Marshall sized head box. The weight wasn't too bad, about 50 lbs. I also added a line out jack so if more was wanted, the pa could be utilized.

i'd like to see more pics of that beast

[stubbyfex]

Here are some more pics, first a rear shot, and some internal ones too.
Thanks for looking!

[xk49w]

Lacing cord. Nice. It's great for harnesses.

[Wayne]

Lacing cord. Nice. It's great for harnesses.

UGH! The last time I saw this stuff, it was being wrapped over knotted ropes by yours truly to secure the knots on some marine hardware. Swore that if my hands ever healed up from pulling all those wraps tight, I'd never touch the stuff again.

It does, however, make sharp looking harnesses, and that is a sharp looking amp. Maybe if I ever overcome my deep rooted trauma, I'll try it in it's proper application and make a good lookin amp like that one!

W

[doctord02]

Stubby, that is schweet! Much cleaner wiring than mine, but conceptually very similar. My OT isnt quite that massive tho - jimminy, thats some serious iron.
I'm also using a toroid PT, 4xKT88's, a Fender PS160 OT and a Weber SLO chassis.