The Last Bass Outpost
Gear Discussion Forums => Bass Amps & Effects => Topic started by: rahock on July 31, 2008, 05:23:44 AM
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A buddy presented me with a little gift the other day(what a guy). He handed me a box with a brand new little 5 watt Roland bass amp in it.
This thing is really a gas :mrgreen: It has 4 4" speakers and it runs on AC power or 6 AA batteries, all the electronics that all their big amps have including B-15, SVT ,Bassman , Acoustic 360 and a few other sounds. It has a gain , 3 band EQ, flanger, Twah, reverb and a drum machine /metronome with about a million settings.
Most of this stuff I'll never use, but it sure is neat.
The big thing is the sound, It is suprisingly strong for a 5 watt amp and the tone is absolutely great. I never had a little baby amp like this and I'm really getting a kick out of it ;D. I love it with my Olympia ABG. Plenty of juice to cut through a half dozen unplugged acoustic guitars , harmonica and a percussion toy or two. It makes for a nice practice amp with my P basses too, but it is a really sweet acomplice for an electric/acoustic bass.
I played around with the line out, using the Roland pre amp and running through a 400 watt amp and then I tried it through the PA too. Very Nice.
Anyone in the market for a micro sized amp should give one of these things a good look :)
Rick
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Am I the only SOB on the planet who owns one of these things??
I thought this would be a huge thread with a bunch of people talking about how they love their little baby Roland. ???
I am really impressed with this thing. Has anyone else even seen or tried one?
Anyone with an electric ABG should give one of these a try.
Rick
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i saw those and they look pretty cool. however i have the hog 30 so i really don't need another small amp, tempting as it is. half a dozen guitars! at this point in my life i don't even know six guitar players anymore. ;)
i don't think there are many abg /small amp guys around here rick. however, if it said gibson... :o
just found a bunch of demo videos on you tube . this amp is VERY impressive. i had to turn it off fearing the onset of gas. :mrgreen:
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It looks nice and it has a lot of features that most small practice-size amps don't have. Still, do you need all that in a practice amp? For a $229 street price, I can't imagine a big market for it.
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i don't think there are many abg /small amp guys around here rick. however, if it said gibson... :o
;D ;D ;D
I love my cheapie abg but I only play it at home. the output is uneven when I plug in, so it's strictly acoustic for me. it's great for late night playing, sitting out on the deck or just picking it up at any time. I play as much or maybe even more than my other basses. :o
as far as small amps go, I got at 10w Crate for my birthday and it's ok. I don't know if I would've bought it myself but it's good enough for low volume playing in the family room. everything I've read about the Roland has been overwhelmingly positive
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I never saw much use for an amp this size before, although I played a little Peavy mico cube and was somewhat impressed. I probably never would have bought such a thing myself, but getting one for a gift was sure nice. This thing is suprisingly loud and the full rich bottom is absolutely amazing in such a small package. It sounds soooo nice with a lot of bass on the EQ on the Olympia ABG. It gets more dark bottom end than I've seen on any little amp..........and a lot of big ones :).
Of all the settings on it , the Bassman my favorite. This is kind of odd because it's probably my least favorite of all the amps it emulates. I'm not a big effects user either , but the flanger is pretty neat for solos and jazzy fusion stuff. It also works really well using the line out and running through a PA.
You've gotta give one of these things a try, it turned out to be a whole lot more than I expected :).
Thanks for the responses
Rick
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The guy that owns the local shop that I hang out in demo-ed it to me one day. It does sound pretty cool and had tons of features. If I needed another small practice amp I'd consider it. He also thought that as cool as it was, the price was going to keep most people from buying it.
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I played a Roland Micro-Bass Cube last weekend at a jam. It had lots of effects (I didn't use any at the jam) 100W, 12" speaker, and it was incredibly portable. It sounded GREAT!! I would love to have one but I also have a 1980's Bassman 120 Combo with a single 15. It's about three times the size and is therefore much harder to move around, but it really provides a similar function...without being as portable.
Maybe I'll get a shot at one on Ebay some day and sell the Bassman combo.
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I got to do a jam session on the single 12 model also. I was very impressed with that one too. I've got a guitar player who has several Roland amps including the 60 watt , 30 watt and 120 watt Jazz chorus guitar amps as well as the 100 watt bass amp. He's the one who bought me the little 5 watt microcube .
I'm very impressed with Rolands electronics, overall sound and dependability. For a guitar player all the emulation and effects are a much bigger deal than they would be for most bass players . Guitar and bass players who are anti-solid state may change their minds after giving some of the Roland stuff a listen.
Currently he is playing a Bruno boutique tube amp with 40-45 watts (huge watts) and I will admit, I think it sounds a bit better (warmer would be the better word here) than the Roland stuff . But the Roland stuff is easier to control when you take the volume up and down. Their stuff is not really not much of a comprimise for a tube lover.
Rick
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hey rick, you actually plug in your olympia to practice? ;) btw i just put some light gauge ghs bronzes on mine to give the neck a rest.
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hey rick, you actually plug in your olympia to practice? ;) btw i just put some light gauge ghs bronzes on mine to give the neck a rest.
Oh yeah, plugged in is really the only way to get anything out of those LaBella tapes (which are now close to three years old and still souding just fine) :)
Rick
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Oh yeah, plugged in is really the only way to get anything out of those LaBella tapes (which are now close to three years old and still souding just fine) :)
Rick
I have an Applause AE-40 short scale and I put D'Addario Chromes on it. Nice sound, and loud enough to practice with - even with a couple of acoustic guitars - without amplification.
In this pic, it still had the original phosphor rounds on it.
(http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j306/apowell1/Electric%20Basses/Applause.jpg)
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I want the Vox Amplug Bass! It's like a pocket size AC100:)
And I'm waiting for the new 300W all tubes 4x12 BassCube.
;)
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I have an Applause AE-40 short scale and I put D'Addario Chromes on it. Nice sound, and loud enough to practice with - even with a couple of acoustic guitars - without amplification.
In this pic, it still had the original phosphor rounds on it.
(http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j306/apowell1/Electric%20Basses/Applause.jpg)
I almost did a set of D'addario Chromes on my Olympia :). I've got a set on my 70 P and my 51 P RI and I like them a lot.
Nofi, talked me in to the La'bella tapes and I have no regrets at all. I lost a bit of unplugged volume, but plugged in they produce the warmest, woody sound I think you can get. I've also got an Earthwood with bronze rounds for the unplugged stuff and it has pretty much spoiled me for unplugged volume and tone. I just don't like to take it out of the house too much.
Rick
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FYI, LaBella Tapewounds are 40-98 roundwounds underneath that nylon outer wrapping.
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i always thought the tape made up a good bit of the size. nice to verify that. ;) there is an urban bass legend if you will that those labellas have ripped tops and bridges off of abg's, in particular tacomas. :P never had a bit of trouble though.
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Yeah, I remember a couple of years back someone sent me a link to a TB thread where some guy claimed LaBella tapes caved in the top of his ABG (can't remember the brand). Utter nonsense. They feel a little stiff due to the bulk of the nylon, but they're very low tension. Actual string tension is based on weight, and the nylon adds next to nothing to the weight. So they're as low tension as you'd expect any extra-light round set to be. Years ago when I tried TI flats on my Gibson EB-0L, I had to tighten the truss rod when I replaced the LaBella tapes with the TIs and loosen it again when I put the LaBellas back on.
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IME the outer diameter of tapewounds can be a real problem with threading through the bridge on those AEBs. Their string holes tend to run on the small side, so if I were to try tapes on mine, I'd probably get a light gauge set. The D'Addarios on that AE-40 above just barely went through the bridge, and even to do that I had to take a blade and scrape off the silk at the ball end and work them around to get them through! They are the .045-.100 set, and they just made it...without a layer of tape on top.
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That is the light gauge set. It's the only tapewound set they offer. IIRC GHS and Status have smaller diameter sets but they won't sound like LaBellas.
Rotosounds are only offered in a similar large diameter but IMO they don't sound very good.
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Tapewound strings are certainly not everyones cup of tea. Decades ago when I was into the boinky, zingy sound , I put a set on my 70 P. I was using Rotosound rounds and when I put the tapes on, I absolutely hated them. Lost volume, no zing, no boink! I pulled them off the same day and swore I would never use them again.
But , things change :). No more zing and boink for me. La'Bella tapes on an electric/ABG are very uprightish. You can still get some brightness out of them, but that's not what they're best at. Nice smooth, warm and woody lows. I have gotten so many compliments on my sound (particularly from other bass players), since I put the tapes on :) Without a doubt, the most dramatic change I have ever witnessed from selecting a different string.
Everyone thinks my cheap ass Olympia is some high priced exotic instrument :mrgreen:. I think my hardshell Tacoma case may actually be worth more than the bass itself.
Rick