Best of 2017: Top 10 Reader Favorite Bass Amps
We covered a whole lot of new gear stories in 2017, which really kicked off during the 2017 Winter NAMM Show in January.
Here are the top 10 reader favorite bass amp stories for the year.
After introducing the prototype last year, Markbass has unveiled the final version of the EVO 1 bass amp. The innovative head unit offers six amp tones over two channels: one clean and one distorted. “Bass players have always been inspired by the possibility to mix two amplifiers tones and to blend clean and distorted sounds…
2. Verellen Amps Meatflip Flip-Top Bass Combo Amp
Ben Verellen of Verellen Amps has shared his latest creation called the Meatflip. Designed as a custom build for a customer, the 100-watt amp puts the company’s flagship Meatsmoke preamp into a flip top bass combo. Now Verellen will offer the design in a small production run. The Meatflip preamp will have foot switchable clean…
3. Ashdown Engineering B-Social Lite Desktop Bass Amp
One of the biggest hits of NAMM 2015 was the B-Social desktop bass amp. This year Ashdown expanded the range with the B-Social Lite, which they describe as the best aspects of the original in a smaller package. “It makes the amp more affordable,” says Ashdown’s Lee Alexander. “It doesn’t have wireless feature for the…
4. Trace Elliot ELF Micro Bass Amp
Trace Elliot is back in a big way in a tiny package. The ELF bass amplifier weighs in at just 1.6 pounds and produces 200 continuous watts RMS at 4 ohms. Its input section has three regions of operation: uncompressed, variable multiband compression, and overdrive. The three-band EQ section has the company’s proprietary filters with…
5. Vox Amps VX50 BA Tube Bass Combo Amp
Vox Amps has unveiled the VX50 series of amps including the VX50 BA, a compact vacuum tube bass amp. The 50-watt amp is fitted with a new tube called the NuTube. “By using Nutube, the new vacuum tube, this amp achieves 50W of high output power while being more compact, lightweight, and power-efficient,” Vox writes….
6. Phil Jones Bass D-1000 Amp and C9 Bass Cabinet
Phil Jones Bass has unveiled two new additions to their line up with the D-1000 bass amp and the C9 bass speaker cabinet. Each builds upon their predecessors with more power and portability. The D-1000 is rated at 1,000 watts while weighing in at just 5.3 pounds. Housed in an anodized black aluminum chassis, the…
7. Vanderkley Amps Spartan Bass Amp and 210LNT Neolite Cabinet
Vanderkley Amps has unveiled two new products: the Spartan bass amp and the 210LNT cabinet. Unveiled at the London Bass Guitar Show, the Spartan was designed for “tone, power, and simplicity.” “The Spartan is the perfect match for my Neolite bass cabinets, which offer effortless power handling and are able to very clearly project the…
8. Siegmund Amplifiers Big Boy 300 Watt Bass Amp
Tube amp fans have a new option to check out with the Siegmund Amplifiers Big Boy 300. The 300-watt bass amp is hand wired point-point and described as being simple in design and function to create “the purest and most musical bass tones.” “The Big Boy has silky smooth big warm lively tube sound packing…
9. Darkglass Electronics Microtubes 500 Bass Head, and DG210C and DG410C Cabinets
Darkglass Electronics has a new rig to offer after announcing the Microtubes 500 bass head and expanding into the realm of cabinets with the DG210C and DG410C. The new head unit is the smaller brother of the Microtubes 900 and carries many of the same features at 500 watts and a lower price point. The…
10. Vox Adio Air BS Portable Bluetooth Bass Amp
Vox has introduced the Adio Air BS, a compact and portable bass amp that is equipped with Bluetooth technology. It weighs in at just under seven pounds and is powered by an adapter or AA batteries. The 50-watt amp features a ported design that enhances its low-frequency response. Its pair of 3-inch speakers is also…
