Stepping down off the podium.
Great Product, bad SWR customer help desk.
I do not rely on them so the amp gets a 5
Model Year: 2004
Price: $340.00 (new)
Where Obtained: BM music
Volume, low, mid, high, blend, enhancer,
nice power for a small even mid sized room
I like the XLR out and the tuner out for hooking up to systems, leaving you with a monitor, good thought
Fender 1974 musicmaster
would like more LOW sound
the combo just does not push through good clean power on the low end. Very clean sounds on any style otherwise
About 25-30 lbs. through it in the car and drive.
the workingman is about easy to use
Durability:
WHY I REVIEWED THIS PRODUCT
this is the only problem I have and probably will have with the amp. Playing a stage and someone picks the amp up brushing his leg against the back of the amp, and pop.click.click. I thought what was that, the fuse cap projected itself across the stage GONE.. well that is an ender right there. called SWR they said go to the store and get another one(NO SUCH THING) end of story they were NO help. Look up "Fuses Unlimited" in Garland and have them send you a couple of fuse caps. A buck each. I replaced the fuse holder with a low profile littelfuse with a phillips head screw in fuse cap. the help at SWR actually gets this rating. Now you know how to helps yourelf with the fuse
I think I said it all. This is one fantastic cube.I have been thrilled with it. I could have played any of the venues I played in the past with the cube and extra cab I built. I recommend it as a practice amp and as a Head for an 15" or better 8 ohm cab.. I haven't tried the 10" cab from SWR but it should be a stellar performer.
Price: $360.00 (new)
Where Obtained: Saied Music in Tulsa,ok
I had gotten out of music for 15 years but decided to pick up the bass again. My old eguipment was a Peavey
Combo IV with a 15" Black Widow and a Gibson SB-3 short scale bass. When I got back into this I got a Rogue lx-200 and then decided to look for an amp locally. I looked at Crate and some others but didn't think any were as good as my old peavey until I heard this dynobox!
I was blown away by the ballsy sound this 10" cube had!
I loved the tonal range this combo had.. especially with the 2-way speaker setup. I also liked the back panel
features to include output for extra 8 ohm cabinets. I wanted something small since I travel as a medical professional and the sound is fabulous.I really love the tones I get from the P-bass lyte special. I have since built a 18" cab to go with it and it has power to spare
for some real bottom thump. I wish I'd had this rig in my gigging days. Look forward to more of that when I'm thru traveling.
1.P bass Lyte Special- Active... Got rid of the Rogue
2.Rock,blues and jazz
3.Sound is definitly superior to my old Peavey combo IV and the Kasino/215s and Kustom Challenger/EV-SRO combo that I used in the past
Easy to use Controls give much better tonals than The peavey which was better than the other amps I'd used.
I love the aural enhancement.. Mine I like at about 7 or so on the dial. Much easier to set than all the old sliders on the Combo IV
Power is excellent and is seems like more than the 130wRMS of my old setup and definitly seems more than my old Challenger combo with the 15"Electrovoice SRO
It's built like a tank and I'e carried it all over the US! I've never had a hint of trouble in the 3 years I have had it and would get another SWR in a heartbeat
I looked at a GK 115 and a peavey 112 but i like the price of this one more. Im also diggin the 10 incher, nice midrange tone
I somebody stole this id probably get something bigger cuz ive had it for a while and im doing some bigger gigs now, but i have no complaints at all. Definate high quality amp
Model Year: 2001
Price: $400.00 (new)
Where Obtained: Guitars Plus
Its got a 3-band EQ, effects blend and this nifty "aural enhancer" knob. Its 80 watts at 8 ohms, 100 watts with an 8 ohm extention speaker. Nice and loud with a preamp or active pickups.
I play a Samick cheapo bass with hotrodded EMG pickups and i use a Boss DS-1 distortion. This amp sound great for everything i play, except if you play jazz you'll probably want a bigger speaker for more boomy low end. It slaps good, and the horn give definition
Just straight EQ. Nothing fancy here
Built like a tank, never failed
The sound of this amp is the sound I wanted to hear when I decided that I was going to play bass. As soon as I heard it I thought "$#!+! That's going to cost me another 60 bucks!" But I didn't even hesitate! I will not ever practice on anything less than this amp! (I actually gave away the Crate (see below) to a young friend who is learning guitar.) If someone stole it I would go into mourning until I could get another. I can't think of anything about it I would want changed. I would absolutely recommend this amp to anyone just starting in bass. It's considerably more expensive then your "typical" practice amp but, in my opinion, the quality of the sound more than justifies the price.
Model Year: 2002
Price: $399.00 (new)
Where Obtained: Guitar Center
The Workingman's 10 is an 80 watt, 1x10 combo with a tweeter (horn). It's a very small package weighing only 32 pounds and being about 16"Wx14"Hx14"D. The amp is rated for 80w RMS @ 8ohms but will generate 100w RMS @ 4ohms. The top panel has the standard volume, bass, midrange, treble, something SWR calls the "Aural Enhancer", an effects blend knob and power switch. The input jack is located left of the volume knob on top of the amp. The back panel has an additional speaker output, effects send and return, a headphone jack and a tuner output. A 3-way switch changes the output from "Full Range" to "Horn Off" to "Headphones Only". Their is a balanced XLR out for true "Balanced D.I." output directly to a mixing console. The a/c line fuse is accesible on the back of the amp and is located directly over the a/c socket. On the bottom of the amp is a spring loaded handle you can pull down to raise the front of the cabinet up in the air somewhat like a stage monitor.
I have one bass - an Ibanez GSR200 with passive pickups. My first amp was a Crate BXR15 with an 8" driver and a 15w amp. From the beginning I wasn't happy with the way that sounded but at least I could hear something. After saving a little money I decided to get something a "little" better. I was originally going to invest in a 2x10 combo, but the ones I heard that I liked were just too expensive and I didn't want to wait that long. I was seriously A/B testing (for about an hour) a Fender Bassman 60 ($369) 12" driver and 60w amp with an Ampeg BA112 ($349), also a 12" driver but a 50w amp. Then the salesman brought out the SWR and the test was immediately over. As soon as I plugged in I knew instantly it was the sound I'd been looking for. The SWR has a tighter richer sound than either of the other amps, or anything else I'd heard. It also sounds cleaner at higher volumes. Most importantly it really brings out something about the fundamentals on my E string that I really like. I feel like the SWR makes my Ibanez sound like it has active pickups! I can make it as bright as I want or as boomey as I want.
It is very, very easy to get a good sound. Within five minutes you should have something you like. The controls being so basic make it really easy to experiment and then go right back to something you know. In addition the extremely well written manual has suggestions for different styles of music that, if nothing else, are a great place to start.
I don't do any live playing yet so I can't say how it would hold up during an evening of full tilt boogie. But if the solid state amp is built anything like the cabinet it should hold up pretty well. Just handling the cabinet gives you the feeling that it is very solid and well crafted. Don't stub your toe on it - you might need x-rays! Since I just got it (2/8/02) I can't really speak for long term durability. I'll try to make a point of coming back in a couple years to re-review it.
I highly recommend this amp for a loud practice or small gigs. I've never really had a problem with volume. A setting of 3 (out of 10) is all I've had to use when practicing with my friends or jamming by myself. Even that gets QUITE loud and I usually turn it down to about 2.
Compared to Fenders and Crates which were some of the ones I've looked at this is better. Compared to Gallien-Krueger, I don't know. The GKs might sound a little better simply because you're looking at the price tag the whole time.
I'd probably buy this again if it got stolen. Only reason I might not is that I may invest in a Workingman's 12 if I had the money. If they included some effects this amp would probably be a bit more convenient. The best part is probably the great sound and the worst part is probably the price. Although it's not REAL expensive, it's probably a bit more than some introductory lines of other brands. But it's well worth it. So basically it's real nice if you have the money.
Price: $399.99 (new)
Where Obtained: Mars Music
Features aren't incredible. No built in distortion or FX or anything, but it's good enough to suit most bassists. Besides for effects people normally buy pedals... It's got a volume knob, three tone knobs (bass/midrange/treble), and effect blend knob, and what's call an aural enhancer. The last thing basically makes the sound more powerful and well, better. According to the book it's supposed to be like making a passive bass go "active."
In the back you got a speaker output plug for more power, a headphone jack, and an effect loop. You can also plug in a CD player or something into the effects loop and play along with it.
As far as power, boy does this have it. When practicing in my room I don't (can't) turn it up more than 1 without making something in my room buzz. If I turn it up to two it gets very loud and it p---es off my parents. At about half volume it gets ridiculous. I've touched the strings at that volume level in my friend's basement and it make like EVERYTHING vibrate. More than that and it rattles you spine.
As to the last question...I think this is solid state though I am not sure. It's only got 1 speaker so I don't know how or why it would be stereo. I mean you're plugging in your bass which is a mono output.
I play this with an ESP-B204 bass, which is damn cool. I have no effects at present but plan to get a multi-effects pedal sometime hopefully soon. Maybe Korg or something, email me if you have any suggestions. I play basically rock n' roll and it is very suited. I'm sure you can use it from many other styles because I've tried messing with the controls on the amp and you can get a LOT of different sounds out of it.
I haven't heard many other bass amps besides some at Mars and this was obviously better than the Crate that I sampled. How it compares to...say...Gallien-Krueger I can't say, but of course GK's are god awful expensive. This is probably the best amp for the buck. It's very quiet unless you turn on the tweeter which does emit a bit of noise, but when you're playing something you're not gonna notice anyway. I usually keep the tweeter off since it also minimizes fret noise and bass doesn't really go up to that frequency.
At high volumes its VERY clean. At Mars when the salesman cranked it I don't think I noticed any distortion. Excellent sound.
This is very easy to use. Firstly there aren't many controls. For some of the stuff in the back like the effects pedal and some strange output I don't use you might consult the manual but I've had no problem using it. Actually in the back of the manual it has different suggested settings for different styles, so I found a great sound very quickly.
This seems pretty solid. I've never dropped it or anything since I'm quite overprotective of it. But it has a nice metal grille in the front to protect the speaker. I would think it would be very reliable. I haven't had it for THAT long (about 3 or 4 months) but there's not a single scratch on it.
I played Peaveys, Fenders, Ampegs, and Hartke's. I choose the SWR after hearing several bassest use Workingman's 12's at clubs. I played one at a local store and knew it was what I wanted. I would buy another one if this one was lost and would probably buy another SWR if I ever needed more power. The best thing about this amp is its size and weight and it still puts out a big sound. There are other practice amps which cost less and weigh less, but none of them can be used with a group.
Model Year: 1998
Price: $250.00
Where Obtained: The Bass Place
Volume, Aurel Enhancer, Bass, Midrange, Treble, Effects Blend. Effects Loop. 80 watts internal speaker, 100 with external. Mono, solid state. Has enough power for mid-sized church. With a 12" Altec extention speaker, it is powerful enough for outdoor use.
I play a Guild Pilot V with flatwounds and am pleased with the sound. I have tried a Martin acoustic with it and it was suprisingly full for such a small package. It would work well for any style of music, has great tonal range from dark to bright. The sound seems more vibrant than a Roland, a Peavey and a Hartke that I have used. When practicing, I notice some hiss but never hear it when I am playing with others. I don't play loud except at home, have never turned it up past about "6". Given that its only 80 watts and a 10" speaker, I wouldn't want to use it with a guitarist pushing 100 watts and a rock drummer, but since I don't play that and was looking for an easy to move amp which would cover practice and performance, I am very pleased with it.
I have played with the settings quite a bit but find that putting every thing at "5", except when out of doors, gives me the best sound. I then can adjust tone using the pickup volumes and tone control on the bass. I can growl and plink with a few twists on the bass. I basiclly pluged it in and liked the sound.
I play about 5 to 8 hours a week and have had it for 4 months. No problems to date. At 37 lbs. it light but seems to be well built.
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