Using a guitar amp as a bass amp

George · Post by **George** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 2:46 pm

This is not a parody!

Is it possible to do this? I have a 30W 2x6L6 combo amp lying around (not dissimilar to a Hot Rod Deluxe), and I'm thinking of buying a cheap bass soon.

Is bass through a guitar amp a no-go? What problems could it cause?

ekwatts · Post by **ekwatts** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 2:48 pm

It's like butt sex. You're not really supposed to do it, and things can go wrong, but it can also be awesome if you're happy with the risks.

laterallateral · Post by **laterallateral** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 2:49 pm

George wrote:This is not a parody!

Is it possible to do this? I have a 30W 2x6L6 combo amp lying around (not dissimilar to a Hot Rod Deluxe), and I'm thinking of buying a cheap bass soon.

Is bass through a guitar amp a no-go? What problems could it cause?

Nah, like I said earlier, just don't run it trough the stock speaker unless you're willing to destroy it.

George · Post by **George** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 2:55 pm

so a big flabby bass speaker swap would be okay?

laterallateral · Post by **laterallateral** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 3:03 pm

George wrote:so a big flabby bass speaker swap would be okay?

if you can manage it, I guess. Other solution is to run it out into a proper bass cab.

Gabriel · Post by **Gabriel** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 3:46 pm

If you've got a little money to spend for around Â£50-80 these peavey bass amps are actually pretty good.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Peavey-TNT-11 ... 20d230e1c2

George · Post by **George** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 3:49 pm

sounds good gabriel. i think that's a better angle: whats cheap bass combo should i buy?

is there a bass equivalent of the Fender Mustang amps yet? maybe one of those peaveys and a sansamp clone might be better.

Gabriel · Post by **Gabriel** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 3:54 pm

This is going to go cheap.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ashdown-Elect ... 4d0be34e43

If you want a sansamp clone I've heard really good things about the behringer BDI, I've got the paradrive clone ADI and it's really useful.

George · Post by **George** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 4:28 pm

Gabriel wrote:This is going to go cheap.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ashdown-Elect ... 4d0be34e43

If you want a sansamp clone I've heard really good things about the behringer BDI, I've got the paradrive clone ADI and it's really useful.

nice thanks

think i might put a bid on this

Concretebadger · Post by **Concretebadger** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 4:57 pm

I know some amps will get killed by a bass guitar signal but it depends on the amp, doesn't it? Since the Fender Bassman was initially intended as a bass amp, I'm guessing that a vintage-spec Jazz- or Precision-bass without active pickups/preamps and all that modern stuff should do okay.

The issue could be as simple as whether it's loud enough, or has the right sound for a modern style of bass playing. I'm guessing a bass through a Bassman would be rather midrangey while an Ampeg, Hartke or other 'modern' bass amp would have more bottom end. It might be a pain in terms of mixing and sound levels. Maybe?

Didn't Peter Hook play through a 50 or 100 watt guitar head and 4x12 back in the day? I don't have a bad thing to say about Joy Division's bass riffs - they sound fantastic.

71Smallbox · Post by **71Smallbox** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 7:14 pm

Concretebadger wrote:I know some amps will get killed by a bass guitar signal but it depends on the amp, doesn't it?

No, it will just kill the speakers voice coils and cones. The only difference between a guitar amp and a bass amp are what frequencies it boosts and which it diminishes. You can run any guitar amp as a bass amp as long as you run it through speakers meant for bass. The amp circuit itself will not fry. My old bandmate used to use a Sovtek Mig100 for bass through his ampeg 4x10, it sounded AWESOME.

George · Post by **George** » Mon Apr 29, 2013 10:29 pm

George wrote:
Gabriel wrote:This is going to go cheap.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ashdown-Elect ... 4d0be34e43

If you want a sansamp clone I've heard really good things about the behringer BDI, I've got the paradrive clone ADI and it's really useful.
nice thanks

think i might put a bid on this

lol forgot to bid. lost out on a bargain. i dont think that guys gonna break even. Â£47 and only Â£20 for courier. he's gonna make about Â£20 at a stretch.

honeyiscool · Post by **honeyiscool** » Tue Apr 30, 2013 12:17 am

It should be fine for the most part. I mean, people play 7-string guitars and stuff on their normal guitar amps and rarely think about it. However, you have to be careful when you're playing at volume because there's a chance you'll exceed the capabilities of the speakers with the greater sound energy that bass notes produce. So basically, you'll be fine in your living room but if you're trying to crank it in front of a drummer and you're already at 6 or 7, you might think about not pushing it any further.

But if you have beefy speakers on your guitar amp, they will not be hurt too much by bass frequencies. I have an Eminence Ramrod in my Peavey Envoy and really, that thing can handle bass just fine since it is spec'd much higher than what the amp can put out.

TexasSwede · Post by **TexasSwede** » Tue Apr 30, 2013 12:36 am

71Smallbox wrote:No, it will just kill the speakers voice coils and cones... You can run any guitar amp as a bass amp as long as you run it through speakers meant for bass... The amp circuit itself will not fry.

Simply put, This ^^^

RonnieHornschuh · Post by **RonnieHornschuh** » Tue Apr 30, 2013 10:10 pm

My bass sounded really good through my Hot Rod Deluxe. If I want a vintage tube tone I still use my AC15 from time to time.

ProcessedMeatMan · Post by **ProcessedMeatMan** » Wed May 01, 2013 3:41 am

I've got some experience with this...

You can play a bass through (almost) any guitar amp, no problem. I've done it with a Vox AC30, Diezel Schmidt and a Mesa/Boogie tremoverb. Watch out with tube amps though. The tone gets fizzy/overdriven too quickly at loud volumes (EL34s come to mind).

However, you will want to use a bass cabinet. Infrequent use at low volume won't hurt a guitar cab too badly, but extended periods of play, especially at high volume, will kill most speakers voiced for guitar. Something about air movement and diaphragm size (amp science). I haven't fried anything yet, but I don't crank that shit. I've got an SVT and an 8x10 for that.

honeyiscool · Post by **honeyiscool** » Wed May 01, 2013 6:40 pm

On the other hand, if you need to loosen up a new guitar speaker, playing bass at moderate volumes through them is a great way of doing so.

71Smallbox · Post by **71Smallbox** » Wed May 01, 2013 6:48 pm

honeyiscool wrote:On the other hand, if you need to loosen up a new guitar speaker, playing bass at moderate volumes through them is a great way of doing so.

Just don't do it loudly!

Using a guitar amp as a bass amp

Using a guitar amp as a bass amp

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