Bass amps for Live work

[Chili]

We got the kid a bass and practice amp for christmas. He's into it and practicing and coming up to speed. He will be playing in the school jazz band which means school auditoriums and gyms. On top of that, a friend of mine wants to do EJ covers and asked if I'd play bass. I think that would be way cool. (Of course, doing EJ covers in Austin is probably blasphemous, but...)

Now I'm starting to look at bass amps for the kid and myself to gig with. I saw a Hartke amp head and 4x10 on CL for a great price, any opinions? Would it hold up in a school auditorium? Medium size bar? Is Hartke locked into any one kind of tonal niche?? I know next to nothing about bass amps.

thanks ya'll

[fat_fleet]

How much do you wanna spend? It will take him a long time to outgrow a mid-level Ampeg head like a B2RE (What I use).

ampeg b2re | eBay

Then he can work his way on up the SVT-PRO chain.

You'll be looking at higher wattages than what cuts it with a guitar head. You can compete with a drummer with a 50 watt tube guitar head. Bass, not so much. You'll want at least 300 watts for most modern musics.

[fat_fleet]

Ampeg B2RE

Hey look! One in central Austin for $325!
Ampeg B2RE Bass Amplifier Head
Just give me your money, I'll do the shopping for ya.

[Greg_L]

EJ = Elton John?

[fat_fleet]

EJ = Elton John?

That's what I assumed too. In that case he will need a 1000W monster beast.

[Chili]

This is Austin, not Liverpool. Eric Johnson.

[Chili]

Hey look! One in central Austin for $325!
Ampeg B2RE Bass Amplifier Head
Just give me your money, I'll do the shopping for ya.

I'd like to keep it under $500. For that head, not much room to buy a cab. I wouldn't mind an Ampeg if I can find a good deal. Not sure about a combo; I'm leaning more towards a head and cab. I don't know why.

[CoolCat]

The Ampeg PF350 is the same output in 250watt/8ohm as the B2RE, on clearance at $254 brand new, $299 LIST. A lot of good reviews. PF350 in 4ohm/350watt, B2R is 450@4ohm. Has a nice limiter and eq, and audio headphone & stereo in 1/8". Enough for smaller gigs, has line out for the larger gigs.

[snow lizard]

For bang for the buck at that price point I wouldn't overlook GK combos.

[Lt. Bob]

The Ampeg PF350 is the same output in 250watt/8ohm as the B2RE, on clearance at $254 brand new, $299 LIST. A lot of good reviews. PF350 in 4ohm/350watt, B2R is 450@4ohm. Has a nice limiter and eq, and audio headphone & stereo in 1/8". Enough for smaller gigs, has line out for the larger gigs.

250 isn't enough in my opinion. The B2R would be a better choice but you'll want to make sure you get a 4 ohm cab.
I use a SWR SM400S that I got on the bay for 250 bucks.
It sounds meh into 8 ohms .... much less power .... but bridged it does 500 watts at 4 ohms and it freakin' roars.
The difference is night and day. It's one of the best bass amps I've ever used into 4 ohms but blah when it's an 8ohm load.

ummmm .... there's this new thing I just read a review on ..... looks interesting and cheap.
Overton Flyweight 500 Micro Amp Review - Premier Guitar
$375 street for 500 watts!

Oh ..... and I like Hartke bass amps. They pretty much kick ass ..... especially the older ones. If you can get a great deal on one I'd snap it up as long as it's enough wattage .......350 at least.