Do bass guitars need bass amps?

Yes generally bass guitars function best with bass guitar amps and amps designed specifically for bass guitars.

Are guitar amps and bass amps different?

Yes. Guitar amps and bass amps are different and are designed specifically to handle different frequencies and outputs from both styles of guitars.

How big of an amp do I need for bass guitar?

This will change depending on your needs, for home use a small combo or head with DI/Emulated out could be fine, for gigs a larger size and wattage combo may be better.

If I DI my bass, do I still need a bass guitar amp for gigging?

Even if you DI (directly inject, i.e. plug the bass straight into the PA) your bass, we'd recommend using an amp on stage, if only for your own monitoring purposes. Many amps offer DI outs that do not disable the speaker. This means you can both DI your bass (whilst enjoying the benefit of the amp's tone) and have your bass coming through your amp's speaker on stage.

What kind of wattage am I looking at for being enough to gig with?

We'd say a minimum of 200 watts is where you want to be and more is preferable. Bass just needs more power to be where it needs to be in a live mix. It is always better to have too much power and turn it down than to have too little power and not be heard!

For bass amps, which is better: valve amps or solid state?

Both types have their benefits and drawbacks. Valve heads have an authentic vintage sound with lots of character. However they are very heavy, expensive and require maintenance. Solid State heads have a modern sound with a tight attack and are generally cheaper and lighter than valve heads. Some would say they do not match valve amps for depth of sound and overall 'size' of sound but this is debatable. We suggest trying both and deciding from there where your tastes lie.

What type of unusual cable is it that connects some bass heads and cabinets?

Some bass heads and cabinets are connected via a Speakon cable. This type of connector, made originally by Neutrik, has a mechanism at each end to lock the cable in place. The reason for this is that on some older bass amps, the vibrations from the low bass frequencies were actually making the standard quarter inch jack cables shake loose and fall out of the amp! Speakon cables are the antidote to that embarrassing problem!

Can I play a bass guitar through an electric guitar amp?

We wouldn't advise it! Whilst it will respond and make a noise, the sound itself won't be great and worse, you may end up doing serious damage to the amp itself. Guitar amps are not and never have been designed to handle the particularly low frequencies produced by a bass guitar. You'll lose out on a lot of the bottom end, which is what a bass really needs to sound like a bass! We recommend going straight for a bass amp. It's the right tool for the job and you'll enjoy yourself more!

Bass Amps | guitarguitar

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Darkglass Alpha Omega 500 Solid State Amp Head

£719.00

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Mark Bass CMD 121H 1x12 Bass Combo Solid State Amp

£689.00 £809.00

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Darkglass D112N Lightweight 112 Bass Cabinet

£575.00 £649.00

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Vox Pathfinder Bass Combo Practice Amp

(10)

£109.00

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Mark Bass MB58R CMD 121 P 300W 1x12 Bass Combo Solid State Amp

£809.00

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Trace Elliot ELF 1x8 Combo Solid State Bass Amp

£479.00 £509.00

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Vox VX 50 Bass Combo

£229.00 £249.00

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Blackstar Unity Bass 30 Combo Solid State Amp

(2)

£249.00 £278.00

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Mark Bass MB58R 151 ENERGY 400W 8 Ohm 1x15 Neodymium Custom Speaker Bass Cabinet

£699.00

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Aguilar Tone Hammer 700 Bass Head

£1,099.00 £1,169.00

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£159.00

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Ashdown Studio Mini Rig 2x10 Bass Combo Solid State Amp

£699.00 £799.20

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Mark Bass CMB 121 Blackline Bass Combo Solid State Amp

Mark Bass CMB 151 Black Line 150W 1x15 Solid State Bass Combo Amp

Mark Bass Mini CMD 121P V Solid State Combo Bass Amp

Mark Bass Little Mark Rocker 58R Solid State Bass Amp Head

Mesa Boogie Subway D-350 Class D Solid State Bass Amp

Mesa Boogie Subway D-800+ Bass Solid State Amp (Metal Head)

Mesa Boogie Subway WD-800 Bass Solid State Amp (Metal Head)

Palmer Pocket Amp Bass Portable Bass Preamp

Orange Terror Bass Valve Amp Head (Ex-Demo) #07073-1223

Fender Rumble Studio 40

Darkglass Alpha Omega 500 Solid State Amp Head

Mark Bass CMD 121H 1x12 Bass Combo Solid State Amp

Darkglass D112N Lightweight 112 Bass Cabinet

Vox Pathfinder Bass Combo Practice Amp

Mark Bass MB58R CMD 121 P 300W 1x12 Bass Combo Solid State Amp

Trace Elliot ELF 1x8 Combo Solid State Bass Amp

Vox VX 50 Bass Combo

Blackstar Unity Bass 30 Combo Solid State Amp

Mark Bass MB58R 151 ENERGY 400W 8 Ohm 1x15 Neodymium Custom Speaker Bass Cabinet

Aguilar Tone Hammer 700 Bass Head

Trace Elliot ELF 2X8 Bass Cabinet

Mark Bass MB58R 121 P 300W 8 Ohm 1x12 Classic Ceramic Speakers Bass Cabinet

Blackstar Unity Bass 120 Watt Combo Solid State Amp

Darkglass Microtubes 900 v2 Solid State Bass Amp Head

Trace Elliot 110 Lightweight Bass Cabinet

Laney Richter Bass R410 Bass Cabinet

Rockman Bass Ace Headphone Amp

Vox Amplug 3 Bass

Aguilar Tone Hammer 500 II Solid State Bass Amp Head

Aguilar Tone Hammer 700 II Solid State Bass Amp Head

GR Amps Bass AT112H Plus Passive Cab 450w 8ohm

Laney Digbeth DBV410-4 4x10 4 Ohm Bass Cabinet

Darkglass X 900 Solid State Amp Head

Darkglass M500 DG112A Bass Combo Solid State Amp

Cort CM150B Combo Solid State Bass Amp

Cort CM20B Bass Combo Solid State Amp

Cort CM40B 40W Combo Bass Amp

Ashdown Studio Mini Rig 2x10 Bass Combo Solid State Amp

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