Ampeg vs. Ashdown

cheyenne · Post by **cheyenne** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 4:32 pm

OK, Coming Jan.1st 2006 I'm officially retiring from my 10 piece Blues band.

Wont be playing live except for very special occasions. I will be doing some semi-pro recording here locally. Im looking to replace the big rigs with a small, good sounding combo. I like the Ampeg B100R and have recently been interested in the Ashdown MAG C115-300.

Keep in mind, I've personally never heard these amps myself, but am just going by reviews I've read, and by post's here on the forum.

Help me out, I like Ampeg, and have used an Ampeg B2 quite a bit, but I really have been hearing good things about the Ashdown amps,I like the retro look and the control layout.

Which way should I go ??? I know there are some diehard Ampeg fans here, how about some Ashdown users???

jnbass · Post by **jnbass** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 5:06 pm

I got both-can't say I'm an Ashdown guy tho.

I'm a sort of Ampeg SB-12 through a D120 kinda guy.

Depends what and how loud you're gonna play.

rickenbrother · Post by **rickenbrother** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 5:19 pm

I've never played through an Ashdown...I am curious to find out how they sound.

redvette · Post by **redvette** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 7:05 pm

I have the Ashdown 300 watt amp that is probably the same as the one in the combo. I use an Avatar 212 cabinet with it. The Ashdown sounds great to me and has a wide range of control features. I particularly like the input meter which is handy if you use a Sansamp or the like. You can always set the input level precisely.

bob_atherton · Post by **bob_atherton** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 11:34 pm

I'm an Ashdown guy through & through. I think they have the perfect ballance tonally for Rics. Also in the UK they are good value.

A nice flexible rig would be the 500 head, the 2 x 10 cab & the compact 1 x 15 cab.

Use the full rig for larger gigs plus use the DI out. Medium gigs as above no DI, small gigs & recording just the 2 x 10 cab on its end for a mini stack

grayk · Post by **grayk** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 11:36 pm

My Ashdown is excellent. I use ABM not MAG so cant really say too much about them. Go to a store and try one out. I use a 300w head and a 2x10 ABM cab and that is well enough for most of my gigs. I carry them in, amp in one hand and cab in the other. Back breaking, hernia inducing, van requiring 8x10 or 2x15 dinosaur cabs are a thing of the past for me. I'm sure as a studio combo it would be great for you. I think it would probably seriously impress you in a gig situation as well.

bob_atherton · Post by **bob_atherton** » Fri Apr 22, 2005 11:37 pm

Sorry Scott, just read your post fully.

I think they do a MAG 2x10 combo. That would be my favorite

rictified · Post by **rictified** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 6:17 am

I've seen a lot of different amps come and go in the 38 years I've been playing. The one constant bass amp that everyone has always used and is actually more popular now than it has ever been is Ampeg. They're built like tanks and sound great and are very conservatively rated and are the standard by which all other bass amps are judged.
I have three 30+ year old Ampeg 8 X 10 cabs with all original speakers in them, and have two late 70's SVT heads and a 87 skunkworks SVT head that perform flawlessly and get gigged constantly. I even have an Ampeg amp from 1959 that I use in my bedroom that still sounds great and works great. I have other Ampeg stuff but I think that is enough.
I dropped an all tube 85 lb. SVT head onto a concrete sidewalk once from the top of an 8 X 10 cab (4 ft.) and it didn't hurt it at all, just dented a metal corner, these are some of the reasons I use them besides how they sound.

robcollins · Post by **robcollins** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 6:27 am

I have an Ashdown ABM C110-300 EVO II combo and love it.

Both the sound & build quality are excellent and it's very compact.

The best way I can describe the "Ashdown' sound is a mixure of retro and modern (especially the ABM range with the variable valve mix control)

rickengrowl · Post by **rickengrowl** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 6:27 am

Hi,
I have owned a B-100R then I switched to an Ashdown MAG 300. My 4003 sounded generally thicker with the Ashdown than with the Ampeg. The Ashdown is also much louder.
Cheers
JL

rictified · Post by **rictified** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 6:32 am

Jean how many watts is the MAG 300? The Ampeg is 100. If it is a 300 watt head a fair comparison would be with an SVT not B-100R which is an entry level Ampeg although they do sound nice for small stages.

rickengrowl · Post by **rickengrowl** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 6:39 am

Yeah, the MAG300 is exactly rated at 307W @ 4 ohms.
You can't make a fair loudness comparison with SVT either, since all-tube amps always sound much louder that solid-state ones at equal power rating.
I chose to add the argument of loudness because, at least here, the price of a B-100R and that of a MAG300 (with its cab) are pretty similar.

Cheers,
JL

cheyenne · Post by **cheyenne** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 7:57 am

Heres the link to the specifics, sorry, should have posted it to begin with. Sounds like a nice amp.

http://www.ashdownmusic.com/bass/detail.asp?ID=77

cheyenne · Post by **cheyenne** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 7:59 am

I love the retro look and the rotary knobs instead of sliders.

rickengrowl · Post by **rickengrowl** » Sat Apr 23, 2005 8:07 am

Scott,
The amp section of the combo you're thinking of is exactly the same as my MAG-300R head.
The pros are : tone capabilities, deep sound in a general way (reminds me of my old Sunn Concert Bass head), light weight, on/off switch for EQ (useful if you ever use an external preamp, such as SansAmp).
The cons : power button on rear side, useless harmonizer (not sounding interesting, at least for me).
This amp has been for more than 1 year now, with daily use at rather high volume, and I experienced nothing wrong with it.
Paid the whole rig less than 700 EUR.
Cheers,
JL