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

Ampeg Venture V3 300W Bass Solid State Amp Head

£449.00 £583.00

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Available to Order

Ampeg Venture V7 700W Bass Solid State Amp Head

£719.00 £930.00

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In Stock

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Ampeg Venture V12 1200W Bass Solid State Amp Head

£799.00 £899.00

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Ashdown RM 800 EVO III Bass Solid State Amp Head

£799.00

FREE Delivery

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Ashdown Original EVO 300 Solid State Amp Head

£359.00 £399.00

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FREE Delivery

In Stock

Ashdown Studio Mini Rig 2x10 Bass Combo Solid State Amp

£699.00 £799.00

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Ashdown Studio 8 30W Solid State Bass Combo Tweed

£149.00

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New Arrival

Ashdown OriginAL C112-300 1x12 300W Solid State Bass Combo Amp (Pre-Owned)

£449.00

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Nearly New

Ampeg SVT-CL Valve Amp Head (Nearly New) #211SV3L7337000035

£1,999.00 £2,640.00

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Ampeg 50th Anniversary Heritage SVT Valve Amp Head

£3,999.00 £4,150.00

FREE Delivery

Available to Order

(9)

£59.00 £65.00

Out of Stock

Ashdown Studio 8 30W Bass Combo Solid State Amp

£149.00

Out of Stock

£809.00

Out of Stock

£479.00 £695.00

Out of Stock

Vox VX 50 Bass Combo

£229.00 £249.00

Out of Stock

Trace Elliot ELF 2X8 Bass Cabinet

£499.00 £549.00

Out of Stock

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

£449.00

Out of Stock

Blackstar Unity Bass 120 Watt Combo Solid State Amp

(1)

£379.00

Out of Stock

Darkglass Microtubes 900 v2 Solid State Bass Amp Head

£1,069.00

Out of Stock

Laney Richter Bass R410 Bass Cabinet

£309.00 £349.00

Out of Stock

Mark Bass MB58R 104 ENERGY 800W 8 Ohm 4x10 Neodymium Custom Speakers Bass Cabinet

£859.00

Out of Stock

Trace Elliot 110 Lightweight Bass Cabinet

(3)

£279.00 £365.00

Out of Stock

Vox Amplug 3 Bass

£47.00

Out of Stock

Vox Amplug 3 Modern Bass

£47.00

Out of Stock

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Ampeg Venture V3 300W Bass Solid State Amp Head

Ampeg Venture V7 700W Bass Solid State Amp Head

Ampeg Venture V12 1200W Bass Solid State Amp Head

Ashdown RM 800 EVO III Bass Solid State Amp Head

Ashdown Original EVO 300 Solid State Amp Head

Ashdown Studio Mini Rig 2x10 Bass Combo Solid State Amp

Ashdown Studio 8 30W Solid State Bass Combo Tweed

Ashdown OriginAL C112-300 1x12 300W Solid State Bass Combo Amp (Pre-Owned)

Ampeg SVT-CL Valve Amp Head (Nearly New) #211SV3L7337000035

Ampeg 50th Anniversary Heritage SVT Valve Amp Head

Ashdown CTM-100 Custom 100w Bass Valve Amp Head

Ashdown CTM 15 15 Watt Valve Mini Bass Amp Head

Ashdown LB 30 2.N 30 Watt Bass Valve Amp Head

Palmer Pocket Amp Bass Portable Bass Preamp

Seymour Duncan Powerstage 700 Pedalboard Bass Solid State Amp

Laney LX10B Combo Practice Amp

Ashdown Studio 8 30W Bass Combo Solid State Amp

Mark Bass New York 121 400W 8 Ohm 1x12 Bass Cabinet

Darkglass Alpha Omega 500 Solid State Amp Head

Mark Bass Standard 102HF 2X10 Bass Cabinet

Darkglass D112N Lightweight 112 Bass Cabinet

Mark Bass MB58R 102 ENERGY 400W 8 Ohm 2x10 Neodymium Custom Speakers Bass Cabinet

Aguilar Tone Hammer 350 Bass Head

Mark Bass Micromark 801 1X8 Solid State Bass Amp Combo

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

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

Aguilar Tone Hammer 700 Bass Head

Blackstar Unity Bass 30 Combo Solid State Amp

Aguilar SL112 SL Series Lightweight 1x12 Bass Cabinet 8 Ohm

Trace Elliot ELF 1x8 Combo Solid State Bass Amp

Vox VX 50 Bass Combo

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

Laney Richter Bass R410 Bass Cabinet

Mark Bass MB58R 104 ENERGY 800W 8 Ohm 4x10 Neodymium Custom Speakers Bass Cabinet

Trace Elliot 110 Lightweight Bass Cabinet

Vox Amplug 3 Bass

Vox Amplug 3 Modern Bass

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