Bass amps

roytheboy

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I've had a U-Bass for two weeks and have just had my first session with a ukulele group. Great fun!

I've read a lot of the bass forum posts and found the advice invaluable when it came to the correct approach of how to play

I've got a Fender Rumble v3 200W 1x15, and have never taken it out of the house before. It sounded really great, and even with 20+ players, it was hardly switched on

It is light (35lbs) but is rather large (deep) when there is quite a walk to the room, and there are some narrow stairs

Any suggestions about small alternatives with some real depth of sound? The Phil Jones Double4 has good reports but seems very pricey to me. Any views out there?
 
I have the Phil Jones and it's a great amp, in my opinion well worth the price. I also bought a battery. I play with a group of 25-30 twice a week and the leader is amplified. I'm sure someone will suggest the Roland Micro Cube Bass RX, $280, which uses batteries, but I have no experience with it. The other bass player in the group used a Pignose Hog 30, but he soon replaced it with an amp he bought at Costco that is much better.
 
Mike turned me on to the Phil Jones along with using a lithium battery. One in our group has the same setup and loves it also. I feel Phil Jones makes one of the cleanest sounding amps I've played in the almost 6 decades of playing.

I previously had a little Rumbler like yours. The Phil Jones blows them out of the water; no comparison. I also use it with my electrics for a clean jazz sound when needed.
 
I have an Orange Crush 25, it's not too big and loud enough for any situation I've encountered. One group I'm in recently played in a large room with about 100 in the audience and 20-25 players, I only had it about half way up and the volume on my Ubass at about 40%, it was plenty loud. The amp lists for $199.99, I got mine barely used for $120! I love it...
crush.jpg
 
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Thanks very much to all for your comments

I need to try out all the options mentioned
 
If you like the Rumble sound why not just get a Rumble 40 or Rumble 100? The 40 only weighs 18lbs. It won't get super loud but you won't need to unless you are playing with a drummer.
 
I’ve had many bass amps. If you need a battery the Phil Jones double four is the best choice. Real depth of sound needs a really big cabinet. If you want smaller and lighter fender rumble 40 would be fine. There are many excellent small bass amps if you don’t need a battery. I don’t think much of the Roland or the pignose their virtues are size and battery, not sound. For gigging when I need bigger than the double 4 I use an Ibanez promethean 300 watt amp. It’s a decent compromise for power, weight and sound. Not my favorite but easy to carry and good enough.
 
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