Musician Forum - Band Discussion Board - BandMix

Is it better to buy new gear, with the warranty intact, or to save money on used gear? Obviously, there's a risk with buying anything used, due to the sensitive nature of electronics, but the savings can be substantial. I'm thinking of buying a Hartke 3500 with a Hartke 4x10 cabinet, or a Peavey Tour 450 with an Ashdown 4x10 (or something along those lines). There's always a couple Hartke 3500's on Ebay, but I'm not so sure...

If you use paypal on e-bay, if the amp doesn't work the way it is described, paypal gets you your money back and then gets it from the seller. It's still a crap shoot but it helps.

ratsass wrote:If you use paypal on e-bay, if the amp doesn't work the way it is described, paypal gets you your money back and then gets it from the seller.

I like using Paypal on eBay for that reason. I also shop the online retailers' scratch and dent section. The clearance items are listed in scratch and dent, and there are great deals to be had with the clearance items. They come with full warranty, and are brand new. For example, I bought one of my favorite basses from Musician's Friend on clearance. It is an Ibanez ATK700 -- not a scratch on it, and it was perfect right out of the box. The MSRP from Ibanez on this bass was $933, and the street price new was around $750. I got the bass, gig bag, leather strap, and straplocks for around $360! Check these resourses too; you may be able to find a great deal.

I just purchased an Eden Nemesis NA 320 from Musician's Friend (factory b-stock). It hasn't arrived yet, so we'll see how this turns out. I now plan on buying an Ashdown 4X12 cabinet to go with it. Thanks for the advice.

So the Eden Nemesis arrived...great amp...nearly flawless...I am now a true believer in the whole clearance thing!

I'm glad that I could help. Now, I need to shop for an amp!!

Do you guys prefer the tube amps over solid state if so why? Im looking for something to do a med to Lg venue and I really cant decide which one suits me best. I like a clean sound on bass But Im guilty of being lazy and like to play my les paul thru my bass amp and effects. Im currently using a Fender rumble with a digitech processor and run out to the mixer.

This should really be a new topic, but...

solid state: more light-weight, more dependable, less costly both to purchase and maintain (tubes don't last forever). As far as tone is concerned, solid state amps can create a variety of tones, but...then again, I've never seen a "solid state emulation device" intended for tube amps!

tube: heavier, more likely to have issues, more expensive to both purchase and maintain (once again, tubes don't last forever). Some of the words I would use to describe tube amps regarding tone: warm, fat, three dimensional...they say tube amps have a more "musical" distortion to them.

The truth of the matter is that I use solid state. Maybe some sort of tube pre-amp, or tube emulation, but if you have to transport your gear around and depend on it time and time again, solid state all the way, dude.

CK, how's that Nemesis working out for you?

It has a really smooth tone. It's really good for slap. I like the simplicity of the "enhance" knob, as it performs a complex set of EQ adjustments simultaniously. While the compressor/limiter is a "fixed threshold" type controlled by the gain knob, it still sounds like the right amount most of the time (also, it has a bypass switch). Like I said, it's all about simplicity. There's also a dedicated headphone jack.

Good! I'm glad that amp is working out for you.

gooo2889 wrote:if you're buying used...buy from someone/somewhere, that you can play through before making a decision.

if new...shop for best price and play through similar model at local guitar store.

I think this is a good philosophy in most cases, especially if you're considering buying something used/b-stock from a vendor that you're never heard of. There are a lot of little "mom & pop" vendors online that don't tell you all sales are final, or there's a restocking fee, etc.

In the context of this particular thread, we were discussing Musician's Friend specifically. I think that all of the musicians on this site have heard of Musician's Friend, and perhaps even bought something from MF in the past. They guarantee all of their purchases for 45 days, even clearance items. I do agree with your philosophy of "play it before you buy it." However, if you find a great deal on something that you happen to need, like CK's bass amp, or my Ibanez ATK700 (retailed around $750, and I got the bass, strap locks, gigbag, and leather strap for right around $360), why not buy it if you have the opportunity to return it? In the case of my bass, the ATK700 arrived in perfect condition, and has been a great additional to my studio bass arsenal, and I use it regularly on country and jazz recordings. Sometimes, buying "sight unseen" isn't so bad. Its liberating -- perhaps you should try it sometime.

From my personal experience, I have always gotten a better price online than at a music store, and have always had good experiences buying b-stock and clearance items from MF specifically.

Yo CK, I wanted to let you know that I just ordered a B-stock Ampeg BA115HP from zZounds. I don't play live very much, but I needed an amp for when I do. Simple, but loud and effective. I'll let you know how it performs when it arrives in a few days.

1x15" Ampeg driver
1" compression horn
220 watts
Built in tuner (cool feature)
Built in limiter to protect power amp
XLR direct out
3-band shelving EQ in preamp

So is this Ampeg completely solid state, or does it have a tube pre-amp? How much does it weigh?