Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Hey guys!

I've been thinking about finding a Sunn Amp for my ricky because I've heard really good things about them. They seem to have sorta a growl (from what I have heard, and yes I know the ric as ENOUGH growl on its own lol) but I'm not sure if I should spend the money on getting one. I haven't been able to find one to test it and I wanted to know what you guys think. What kind of sound do they have ? What model would be the best if I should get one? I use a ampeg right now but when I heard that they have sorta a growl/overdriven sound you could get out of them, I wanted to learn more about it. Anybody have any info?

Thanks!!

I think Geddy used a Sunn amp and an Ampeg in stereo, at least way back when...

I always wanted to try a vintage Sunn: a Coliseum, Sorado, or a 200s would be sweet.

I've heard that the Sunn Coliseum Lead Head is good for bass. I've had my eye on that one but haven't got to test it yet

My Sentura II with 2-15" D130F JBL cabinet sounds nice with a bass plugged into it ...
There is a specific Sunn head for bass the name of which escapes me for the moment ... oh, I think it's the Model T, IIRC. Sunn reissued them not too long ago, but I've not played through either an original or reissue.

I have a 1975 Sunn Model T and a 610 Sunn cabinet. I used two of those for guitar (Les Paul) on tour with Rory Gallagher. I still have one of the two. I use the Model T head and an 810 Behringer cab to play and record bass now.

They are great rigs IMO but I have played bass through some very cool more modern gear that weighs less and that is more portable. That is the way I would go if I was playing bass in a band. Small, great tone, loud and light.

those old sunn heads sure looked like the old fender 400ps amps from 1970-'72. i wonder if fender copied sunn for the external layout or the other way round ?

I had a Sunn 200S way back when. Big fat KT88 tube tone. If I remember correctly it had just volume, bass, treble and two switches for hi and low boost. I could burn up a pair of JBL D140s in a hurry with the very boomy tone we had back then. Hope you get to play through one and hear the vintage monster.

nextcliffburton wrote:I've heard that the Sunn Coliseum Lead Head is good for bass. I've had my eye on that one but haven't got to test it yet

Used one (or two at once) in the past and still have one. But it's relegated to keyboard amp duty now. Not long ago i brought it to practice and used it out of nostalgia. I was disappointed with the tone. Maybe we just liked 'em back then cause they were decently powerful?

VRICKY63 wrote:I had a Sunn 200S way back when. Big fat KT88 tube tone. If I remember correctly it had just volume, bass, treble and two switches for hi and low boost. I could burn up a pair of JBL D140s in a hurry with the very boomy tone we had back then. Hope you get to play through one and hear the vintage monster.

Yessir! Sweet and easier to handle than the 2000s. If you are looking, the Sorado is the same amp inside as the 200s.

But all this said, the knock on Sunns was always that there TOO CLEAN. You didn't see many guitarists using them for that reason. And bass players "complained" that they had to really crank 'em to get that growl. One reason you'd see a lot of folks using a couple of 200s heads rather than a single 2000s.

The Model T's do have a master volume, because of that feature they can be overdriven. They are great amps for guitar, especially Les Pauls. They also work well for bass IMO but I think there are better amps being made these days for bass.

BAD RONBO, KiLLeR DWaRfS wrote:those old sunn heads sure looked like the old fender 400ps amps from 1970-'72. i wonder if fender copied sunn for the external layout or the other way round ?

Neither. It's just a case of form follows function.Chassis on the bottom to improve heat dissipation, and weight balance.

The old Sunns were used by a lot of bass players back in the day for some great tones. Geddy used a 2000S up loud on the bridge pickup and an SVT on the neck pickup for a balanced tone. I've used this setup myself and I think it is more important to getting his sound than a RIC bass is. Noel Redding from the Jimi Hendrix Experience used to use Sunn amps too after the first album. Those two guys used rounds. Another player that used them with flats was the bass player from America.

When low on the volume they are clean with a wide frequency response. When you get them up just past halfway, they start to overdrive and get a distinctive growl that is very cool. The 200S is rated at 60 watts RMS, and the 2000S 120 watts RMS. They sound best through the original 2x15 JBL equipped cabinets, which are very loud and efficient, though they throw the sound out more than an SVT type cabinet, and you can often turn it up too loud as a result since you don't hear the volume right on stage. There were many models that were the 200S with a different name, or a very close facsimile of that theme. The early ones used Dynaco transformers and they have a sweeter sound than the later ones which used Schumacher transformers and higher voltages. The cutoff is around 1969 or so. The Sunn guitar amps can be used for bass too and sound good. For guitar use, I personally don't like any of the vintage Sunns.....too bright and clean, and the overdrive is hard when you do decide to turn it up. If you look for an old Sunn, they are around. Modern bass amps are more versatile and sound better in some ways. Most players like the greatly reduced weight and increased versatility enough to not bother with the vintage tube bass amp.

If any of you haven't played a vintage Sunn and want to, and are located in the Portland, Oregon area, feel free to send me a PM and you can come by and try mine out, or other locals. There are quite a few people in this area into vintage Sunns. Also, you should check out the Sunn amp forum at Ampage if you want to learn more about them.

http://sunn.ampage.org/sdp/

Greg

i never much liked speakers such as JBL with the metal dust caps. i found them more harsh and tinny sounding compared to the paper cap. this is why i prefered EV or eminence for my bass rigs.

BAD RONBO, KiLLeR DWaRfS wrote:i never much liked speakers such as JBL with the metal dust caps. i found them more harsh and tinny sounding compared to the paper cap. this is why i prefered EV or eminence for my bass rigs.

Then you really wouldn't like the Hartke aluminum cone speakers!

BAD RONBO, KiLLeR DWaRfS wrote:i never much liked speakers such as JBL with the metal dust caps. i found them more harsh and tinny sounding compared to the paper cap. this is why i prefered EV or eminence for my bass rigs.

I'm just the opposite. I grew up using JBL and Altec aluminum dust cap speakers. I now use Weber Neo 12s with aluminum caps. I really like the the smooth tone of all these speakers and the Hartkes. Aluminum speakers have a very wide tone range and are easy to EQ to what I like.

I I just bought a Coliseum Lead for my '76 4001. I'll let you know how it sounds.