Just a wee bit over your price but I just saw this listing and can't believe it hasn't been scooped up. I bought one of these new in '86 and to this day remain amazed by it... GK 200MB Bass Combo (1984)
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It sounds rough with no music stores around, but I think it honestly can be a worthy trip and maybe you can hit someone up on this forum who lives near you or a family/friend who likes music as well to come with you and help hear all the amps. The higher up rumbles may be louder for you. Personally as someone else said a lot of the Hartke and Ampeg combos are cool, I really liked this Ampeg micro CL stack, it's out of your price range though sadly and I only tried it at a store, and also almost all GC have some older amps, they are a giant pain in the butt to ship for sellers so almost always people moving just sell it to GC. Good luck dude!
I think the new Peavey Max 100 is a nice little option if you get with a softer drummer or gig. Great tone and surprisingly good volume
I have an old Rumble 30 and a newer Rumble 100. I had to change the speaker out in both after a while because of buzzing. Never drove them hard. But also, I could never get the tone I wanted out of these. The Rumble 100 would probably be fine volume-wise in the house. But I with always go with the theory, buy more than what you think you’ll need so you don’t have to buy it twice… and I’d guess with the 40 you will eventually.
Rumble 40 is great to jam at home. If you ever want to play with a drummer, you will probably have to upgrade either way.
I have one of the Acoustic B100C's, which I got on sale at GC this past spring for $229 new, and here's what I think - for starters, yes, it is connected with GC & MF, made in China, etc. However, if I'm not mistaken, the Rumble and Rockets are also made in China, so maybe a moot point. Yes, it's actually double the weight of the Rumble 40 - 37 lbs vs 18. I have it on an inexpensive 14" by 14" floor dolly, so no problem moving it around. I'm 65, but 6'2", 195, so I can still lift something like that with ease. Now here are 3 reasons why I like it - 1) it has the controls in the front. I like to sit down when I'm noodling around, and it's just easier to manipulate knobs, etc. 2) has the tilt back capability, which is a nice option 3) it has the DI/XLR function, which can plug direct into a PA, if need be. It's a pretty loud amp, but also sounds good in a quieter mode. Just my two cents here - nothing wrong with the Rumbles or Rockets, lots of guys and gals play them. I'm fully aware that many bassists sort of look down on the current line of Acoustics - they certainly aren't in line with the original Acoustic Control company products out of Van Nuys, CA. BTW, my very first bass amp was the Acoustic Control 136 combo, which I bought in 1974, also played through a 370 head with an SVT bottom. Yes, that was a killer combination!
Same company.
I don’t recommend acoustic tbh. The ampeg rocket series or orange crush combo with small speaker will be sufficient and imo they sound professional (at bedroom volume)
I jumped on the B100c about 6 this morning. Just felt like it was too good a deal to pass. And to quote "more power, I want it louder" Quiet Riot (or maybe Tim the Tool Man Taylor) But seriously, I still need cables and would like maybe a couple pedals, strap and locks, and ... Seeing lots of love for the Rumbles.
So what's the problem with it do you think, the speaker, cab, pre-amp or power portion? Wouldn't a pedal or 2 make the tone better? And if you don't mind, why hasn't anybody said anything about tube amps? I'm asking all of that as the guy that's never played a bass or electric period so obviously knows more than anybody.
There's nothing wrong with them, but when you're trying to compare a budget, practice combo to an iconic stack that powered stadium tours, well, it's always going to stack against the combo amp.
The preamp on the B100C sounds great to me. I briefly had their BPDI which is basically the same preamp in a pedal and I loved the tone. I'm not a huge overdrive person, but I liked it and would definitely have used it and the notch filter gave you all sorts of variety of sounds.
Unfortunately it was noisy as hell and had to go back. I'm pretty sure that's exclusive to the pedals (power supply, in particular), so I wouldn't worry about that.
Anyway, like you mention, it has an effects loop, so, no matter what, you can always use whatever preamp you want with it.