Help a Head/Cab Newbie on a Budget

S

SamRobison

Sep 7, 2023
2
4
281
#1
Looking for a little gear advice and some basic schooling here. I've been playing forever but have recently been gigging more than expected. I play a Rumble 40 on stage in the small clubs my band books. With the DI, it works fine for the most part. Of course, not all venues have the option. I am itching for more power and punch, and with some bigger outdoor gigs booked this Fall, I am eager to get set up with a better rig.

I'd like a head and cab (for the tone, power, and look), but can't really find good resources for where and how to start. Maybe one of you would be willing to school me a little this weekend. I'll offer some details below.

I play in a folk/rock 6-piece band. With two guitars, fiddle, accordion, vocals, and a great drummer, I sometimes get buried. We play at most two gigs a month, mostly in small venues, 20 - 50 people, occasionally more.

I play an '86 MIJ Fender J-Bass that the previous owner put active pick-ups on (which I love). I've got "half-rounds" on it (which I also love). Okay, I like a tone that's big in the low end, but clear in the mid/high (like everyone). I do a lot of dancing around up on the neck. My style is less informed by rock than by jazz. But I more or less play country. I am looking for depth and clarity (like everyone). I do not run any effects, no pedals.

What I don't know: How to pair a head and a cab thoughtfully. How do I, for example, run a 500w head through a 1x10 risking blowing it? Would I want to? If I am running only 250w (which seems like all I would need, right?), is there an ideal cab/speaker set up? Should I pick a 2x10 over a 1x15 for any reason? Is a 2x or a 1x enough for increasingly larger rooms?

And the kicker, I don't want to/can't spend more than 500 dollars or so--I'm a small-time farmer and adjunct professor--so, broke. (A TC Electronics 250 head on a Rumble 1x15, for example, would keep me close to budget).

Who can solve this bass/budget puzzle? Thanks so much for your time.
 
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#3
Keep reading/researching and the picture will come into focus for you. I think that there are many "right answers" out there, but your budget will be a little tricky in terms of putting together a big n' healthy rig.

How much rig you actually need will depend on whether you'll be running any of your sound through your band's PA. If the PA is supporting your sound, you'll only need an amp to act as your stage monitor.

Matching a head and cab(s)... More or less make sure that the minimum ohms (resistance) that your head requires will be provided by the speaker(s) you run it through. Keep in mind that a pair of 8 ohm cabinets together will give your head only a 4 ohm load (and not 16 ohms). It's okay to use a head requiring a minimum 4 ohm load to run a single 8 ohm cab though.

The rig I use to do everything is a 500 watt head - GK MB 500 - running a pair of 2x10 cabs that I usually stack vertically (end on end) with the head up on top. I can make all the sound I need with this layout, even outdoors with no PA support, but I can also use only one cab if I'm playing a smaller setting. This is just what works for me. Plenty of amp for any occasion without it being total overkill.

Agree with the recommendation above in post #2 :thumbsup:
 
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#4
Great responses so far....

I'll add some general "good to know" kinda stuff:

Sensitivity and surface area of moving cones= loud... not only "watts". Yes you need power (watts) to make sound; but sensitivity is a number representing how loud those watts are.
Like posted above, 101db in a 210 is a nice spec. (Umm, which 210 has that kind of sensitivity IDK).
Decibels are logarithmic... generally speaking 3dB is where we tend to notice a difference, 6dB is quite a difference, 10dB is a big difference.

The speakers are where the rubber meets the road, so to speak. Lots if folks will agree (some will not, but this is MY advice, so I admit others' may surely be different) spend most of the budget on the "best" cabinet that leaves room for a cheap 200+ watt amp. Sorta a TB trope, but "a not-great amp through a good cab is workable; a GREAT amp through a not-great cab is, well, not great"

Bigger, kinda heavy older gear is really inexpensive on the local used market, cash and carry, like FB Marketplace and Craigslist.

300 watts and an efficient 1x15 will get the vast majority of players very far down the road on their musical journey.
 
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#5
H Nighttrain said:
Suggest you buy older, heavier used gear in your area; $500 won't go far with new gear (with the standard caveats of buying used gear).

In that price range I'd look for a higher efficiency cab (101 dB or more, likely a 2x10 or 2x12) with an amp in the 300-350W (at 4 ohms) range.
Click to expand...

Oh, heck yeah. I checked the Rumble 40 manual but don't see a "line level out"...hoping we could slave an external power amp and enclosure. If you live nearby, I'll give you a power amp.

Riis
 
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#7
Welcome to Talkbass, Sam! Not sure which part you're in, but I spent a day or two in Havre and drove across most of the state in 2010, and I didn't see any Bass Amp shops around to try one, so your best bet is to have one shipped. ;)

The "decibel" information above is good, and the simplest summary I can add is that you have to double the power/watts to gain 3 dB in Sound Pressure Level (SPL), which also happens to be the "just noticeable loudness difference" in human hearing. "Twice as loud" requires a 10 dB gain, which takes about 9 times as much power/watts! That's why speaker sensitivity is so important - if one speaker's sensitivity is +3 dB over another (not uncommon), the higher sensitivity is like "Doubling" your amp's power.

If you want to go head and cab, I'd say 350W @ 4 Ohm and a single 12" 8 Ohm speaker would be a reasonable minimum, and allows you to add another 8 Ohm speaker later. With your budget, it would be difficult to find a decent amp/cab pair.

You may want to look at a combo upgrade - either bump the budget a little to get a Fender Rumble 200, or upgrade you R40 to the R100.

I'd save a little more to go the head & cab route, and surely there's something laying around the homestead that you can convert to $$$s?

Just my thoughts, and good luck,

Bill
 
#8
SamRobison said:
Looking for a little gear advice and some basic schooling here. I've been playing forever but have recently been gigging more than expected. I play a Rumble 40 on stage in the small clubs my band books. With the DI, it works fine for the most part. Of course, not all venues have the option. I am itching for more power and punch, and with some bigger outdoor gigs booked this Fall, I am eager to get set up with a better rig.

I'd like a head and cab (for the tone, power, and look), but can't really find good resources for where and how to start. Maybe one of you would be willing to school me a little this weekend. I'll offer some details below.

I play in a folk/rock 6-piece band. With two guitars, fiddle, accordion, vocals, and a great drummer, I sometimes get buried. We play at most two gigs a month, mostly in small venues, 20 - 50 people, occasionally more.

I play an '86 MIJ Fender J-Bass that the previous owner put active pick-ups on (which I love). I've got "half-rounds" on it (which I also love). Okay, I like a tone that's big in the low end, but clear in the mid/high (like everyone). I do a lot of dancing around up on the neck. My style is less informed by rock than by jazz. But I more or less play country. I am looking for depth and clarity (like everyone). I do not run any effects, no pedals.

What I don't know: How to pair a head and a cab thoughtfully. How do I, for example, run a 500w head through a 1x10 risking blowing it? Would I want to? If I am running only 250w (which seems like all I would need, right?), is there an ideal cab/speaker set up? Should I pick a 2x10 over a 1x15 for any reason? Is a 2x or a 1x enough for increasingly larger rooms?

And the kicker, I don't want to/can't spend more than 500 dollars or so--I'm a small-time farmer and adjunct professor--so, broke. (A TC Electronics 250 head on a Rumble 1x15, for example, would keep me close to budget).

Who can solve this bass/budget puzzle? Thanks so much for your time.
Click to expand...
 
#9
SamRobison said:
Looking for a little gear advice and some basic schooling here. I've been playing forever but have recently been gigging more than expected. I play a Rumble 40 on stage in the small clubs my band books. With the DI, it works fine for the most part. Of course, not all venues have the option. I am itching for more power and punch, and with some bigger outdoor gigs booked this Fall, I am eager to get set up with a better rig.

I'd like a head and cab (for the tone, power, and look), but can't really find good resources for where and how to start. Maybe one of you would be willing to school me a little this weekend. I'll offer some details below.

I play in a folk/rock 6-piece band. With two guitars, fiddle, accordion, vocals, and a great drummer, I sometimes get buried. We play at most two gigs a month, mostly in small venues, 20 - 50 people, occasionally more.

I play an '86 MIJ Fender J-Bass that the previous owner put active pick-ups on (which I love). I've got "half-rounds" on it (which I also love). Okay, I like a tone that's big in the low end, but clear in the mid/high (like everyone). I do a lot of dancing around up on the neck. My style is less informed by rock than by jazz. But I more or less play country. I am looking for depth and clarity (like everyone). I do not run any effects, no pedals.

What I don't know: How to pair a head and a cab thoughtfully. How do I, for example, run a 500w head through a 1x10 risking blowing it? Would I want to? If I am running only 250w (which seems like all I would need, right?), is there an ideal cab/speaker set up? Should I pick a 2x10 over a 1x15 for any reason? Is a 2x or a 1x enough for increasingly larger rooms?

And the kicker, I don't want to/can't spend more than 500 dollars or so--I'm a small-time farmer and adjunct professor--so, broke. (A TC Electronics 250 head on a Rumble 1x15, for example, would keep me close to budget).

Who can solve this bass/budget puzzle? Thanks so much for your time.
Click to expand...
For your budget I'd stick with a combo amp. You get more for your $$$. Check out the PEAVEY MAX 250 w/1x15" or the MAX300 w/2x10s. $499 and $549 respectfully and either will bury your Rumble 40.
 
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#13
I heard a rockabilly band outside not long ago. The guy was playing an upright through a Rumble 100 and it did just fine. I would think that a rumble 100 would do you just fine and would stay well within your budget. I realize that you are wanting a head/cab combination but, I can't think of much of anything NEW that would be in your price range. If you really want to bring more rig, the rumble 200 will more than do the job. I play in a classic pop 6 piece band (bass, drums, kb, guitar, sax, lead singer) without PA support, and my Rumble 500C works great.

Used is another thing altogether. With it you pays your money and takes your chances.
 
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