Kalamazoo Bass 30 (combo, Late Version)

Added by Miles_ONeal
Create date Jan 10, 2018
Updated Jul 7, 2022

Mid-late 60s bass practice amp.

Overview Reviews (1) Gallery (2)

Item details

Power: 30 watts into 16 ohms

Speakers: 2 8 ohm Jensen C10P or C10Q (10" ceramic) in series

Weight: 46 lbs

Size: 31.5x16x10 (inches)

Inputs: 2 (identical, not high/lo)

Outputs: none

EQ / Controls: Left to Right: loudness, treble, bass, power/polarity

Features: A very basic combo.

Other Specs: 10 foot power cord, 2 prong plug

Push-pull 7591 circuit. Vertical 2x10 (Jensen (or CTS?)), front-loaded, sealed cab.
Earlier versions included horizontal speaker layouts and flip top controls in either 30W or 50W .
Kalamazoo was a budget line for Gibson, including basses, guitars, and amps.
Sound is OK, not great. Response is tapering off by the low E; don't expect much below that.

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Latest reviews

Miles_ONeal
4.00 star(s)
Jan 10, 2018

Sound: 4.00 star(s)

Build Quality: 5.00 star(s)

Features: 3.00 star(s)

Feel: 3.00 star(s)

Value: 4.00 star(s)

Pros

Pretty good tonal range.
Surprising bass for a 50 year old 2x10 cab and small amp.
Simple, well thought out circuit.
Built like a tank.

Cons

Two wire power cord; you should have it replaced with a three wire cord and grounded plug.
Less common tubes (6EU7 and 7591).
Heavy for a 30W amp.
Loses volume on a B string

It does what you need a practice amp to do. It's great for practicing by yourself or with others playing acoustic. If they're playing electric, they'll need to keep the volume down or the bass will disappear. But that's true of any low wattage bass amp. It could have a bit more low end, but not a lot more at this wattage.
There's plenty of clean headroom; I can run a booster and get double the normal max volume and it's still clean. The transformers are more than adequate.
The wiring is simpler than on the models with the flip-top controls; this is only an issue if you replace the power cord.
If it's what's available, or you just love tubes (I do), it's a great practice amp, but it's no frills. There's no DI or speaker output, and it's fairly heavy, so it's not what you want for a small gigging amp.