Torn between buying LWA500 & Tech 21 VT Bass 500

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Thinking of getting one of these - need something super light and portable. I was looking for mark bass amps, but I think I will try something new.

I've heard some awesome, rave reviews on how good the LWA sounds for its size, so just wondering.. anything bad about it? I have actually never owned a warwick amp product before only basses. Obviously this is not the top of the range amp by them but as long as it isn't terrible then I am willing to give warwick amps a shot :D

The pro's of the VT bass is that its got a more definitive sound (one I do quite like) and has 2 speaker outputs from the actual amp. Cons... bought one already and it arrived blown, so I'm a bit wary. I don't want to get another lemon.

Pro's of the LWA seems it is even SMALLER and lighter and definitely fits in a gig bag. I also like the recessed knobs so you can't knock them..and pretty light up design haha!


The VT I can get for $800 and I think the LWA about $950 so they're close in price.
 

schlobodan

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dunno the Tech but I

had a lwa 1000 which sounds nice and is very quiet and has nice compressor unit.

The 1000w of the lwa 1000 come from 2 class D amplifier units so me thinks the lwa has only 1 which should be sufficient
for most occasions:)

Especially for fretless the EQ worked wonderfully (Killer sound)

Nevertheless I got rid of it because when driven hard I perceived the sound thinner than on my Glockenklang and Hellborgs.

But as you are not looking for something high end but rather portable you probably cannot go wrong with the lwa 500 if the price is right.
 

Nachobassman

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I kinda was in the same situation, Shelby, and decided to get a VT500. The reason? I´ve been using and abusing Sansamp gear since 2001 and couldn´t be any happier, sound and quallity wise. 8:

I´m waiting for my local bass dealer to get the VT500 in store, give it a try and bring it home with a light 2x10 cab. :)
 

Henrythe8

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Can't you wait for the DarkGlass head ?
[video=youtube;6MVehYucoLE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MVehYucoLE[/video]
 
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I want that Darkglass unit.

I've messed around with an LWA500 at the shop in Nashville and it seems to fart out on notes below a low D. I've only tried one bass through it, though. A double-P Streamer that may not have been really adjusted to get a great low note out of it as the signal out of that bass is hot already. I'm supposed to try one for a few days and make a quick demo. I'll have more feedback after that. That said, I'm not sure I'd order one without playing through one first if that's possible.

I can't compare it to the Tech 21 unit because I've never played through one.
 

schlobodan

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the double p streamer in Nashville might be the sister of my white streamer:)
 
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the double p streamer in Nashville might be the sister of my white streamer:)

It's the Biohazard bass. I LOVE it.

BFonmYICYAAJUoM.jpg
 

DiMarco

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The LWA is a no frills, simple little amp. So far I am very unimpressed by 500w class D amps tho, all seem to fart out at moderate volume. In your case the Darkglass amp will surely beat both amps you mentioned, but will also cost about twice as much.

Check out a Markbass tube800 which is at only a slightly higher price level.
 
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The LWA is a no frills, simple little amp. So far I am very unimpressed by 500w class D amps tho, all seem to fart out at moderate volume. In your case the Darkglass amp will surely beat both amps you mentioned, but will also cost about twice as much.

Check out a Markbass tube800 which is at only a slightly higher price level.

I actually looked at the Mark Bass Tube 800 and almost bought one - the only reason I was going to go with Mark Bass again was to replicate my normal sound through the TTE when travelling. I am really familiar with the little marks and the TTE (both have the same analogue power section) but the tube 800 had a digital power amp, which apparently gets very harsh at loud volumes and wouldn't be anything like my TTE/little mark sound, so if I couldn't replicate that tone, I decided to go in a complete other direction and try some new brands :)

I'm chatting to the distributor about the price on a LWA 500 at the moment. Sadly I may not be able to try one, but I can try the 1000 in a local store with my new thumb and see how they gel. I imagine the 1000 will be voiced similarly?

I haven't ever had a chance to try the VT in person as well, because mine was broken on arrival and it's not stocked in stores either. Because of issues I had with the first one, I am buying in store only if I buy this. All online stores source from interstate making warranties and returns harder (as I found out the hard way) so price is now $1,200 :(

And the Darkglass... looks like it might be a tad bigger? I don't want to go any bigger and heavier than the TC RH450 that I just sold haha. I may get a Darkglass anyway someday... but not for the purpose of portability, I'd get it just cause it's Darkglass, and that's a purchase to save up a bit for anyway I'm guessing it wont be cheap :p

The other thing I stumbled across is the mesa subway D-800 - and there is actually one for sale in a store a 10 min drive away! So I could really get a feel for it before buying, something that is rare where I live - which is good because it's $1,800! :shock:

But aside from being pricey, it fits the size requirements, light and compact, headphones/aux in etc.... and has plenty of headroom. I would never need that much power but it's nice to have options haha (800w at 2ohms) Also apparently one of their guys is an ex warwick employee and the amp is made with warwick as a benchmark for tone and it plays really nicely with MEC PUP's.


So now I think, it's between the VT Bass, Mesa D-800 and LWA 500. I am not bothered with price, as long as the product suits my needs and is well priced for what it is, instead of doing price comparisons.
 

DiMarco

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The production model of the darkglass amp might be smaller as Douglas has been tidying up the circuitry and now has lots of empty space inside the amp.

The LWA500 is REALLY small tho and would make an excellent backup amp for anyone. I wouldn't choose it as my main amp as I have fallen for all tube designs. Your tte is pretty much like this too so I expect you will find many class D designs kinda harsh sounding as there's no tube saturation going on at higher volume.
 
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The production model of the darkglass amp might be smaller as Douglas has been tidying up the circuitry and now has lots of empty space inside the amp.

The LWA500 is REALLY small tho and would make an excellent backup amp for anyone. I wouldn't choose it as my main amp as I have fallen for all tube designs. Your tte is pretty much like this too so I expect you will find many class D designs kinda harsh sounding as there's no tube saturation going on at higher volume.


Hmm, maybe I will hold off a bit then if the Darkglass will be smaller than the NAMM demo.
Yeah I use the TTE as my main amp - this is purely for rehearsals when I can't drive there and for fly out gigs where I have luggage size/weight restraints :)
 

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My 2 cents: to me is important the quality of the sound via the DI output. I use now LWA 1000, and it is nice, I get a good solid sound in front. There is nothing special with the sound itself, just a good solid amp. However, since it has 2 channels, I mix a distorted and a clean signal, and I am very happy with the result.
Darkglass - I own the B7k, and I was not very pleased with the DI out signal, so unless they improved that for the head, I would not rely on it.
Best stage experience I had with TC Electronic amp, but again, I was not happy with DI out signal - too muddy...
So I think LWA is a safe buy overall, and I would use a Sansamp BDDI or a B7K as pedal if you like that signature sound.
 

aguacollas

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Anyone has tried the Genz Benz Streamliner 900? I've read it is a really good amp.
 
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My 2 cents: to me is important the quality of the sound via the DI output. I use now LWA 1000, and it is nice, I get a good solid sound in front. There is nothing special with the sound itself, just a good solid amp. However, since it has 2 channels, I mix a distorted and a clean signal, and I am very happy with the result.
Darkglass - I own the B7k, and I was not very pleased with the DI out signal, so unless they improved that for the head, I would not rely on it.
Best stage experience I had with TC Electronic amp, but again, I was not happy with DI out signal - too muddy...
So I think LWA is a safe buy overall, and I would use a Sansamp BDDI or a B7K as pedal if you like that signature sound.

Agreed that DI is important. I never tried the DI on my TC amp to be honest, well, maybe once but only rehearsing and I can't say it was either good or bad but it did the job.

With the 2 channel thing, I kind of use that approach, but what I get sound guys to do is DI out of a darkglass preamp pedal (sometimes b7k, sometimes vintage deluxe depending on what I'm going for) and then mix that with the mic'd up cab through the PA and it turns out well.

I just got an interesting review of the LWA 500 sent to me where it states the amp is very transparent, may be good for the way I use all of my darkglass pedals.
 

Florin

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That's a sound I want to hear, please share a clip :)
 

DiMarco

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Exactly what I use for recording. You can go two ways imho... first is using D.I. for the bottom end and an all purpose mic like a shure sm57, sennheiser e609, 421 or beyer m201 to capture the timbre of your stack. Second way is using just a kick mic to capture the full range. Use a mic tha hasn't got too much of a scooped response. Sennheiser 902 and Audiotechnica atm250 are really good for this. Avoid the Audix D6 for this purpose.
 
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If you're not limited to just these two, try a Mesa Subway. I finally got to play with one a few nights ago. It drove an Ampeg 8x10 very hard with TONS of gain and volume to spare. You could get any tone out of it. Low notes were NO problem. I am buying one. There is no doubt now.

Also, it will do 2ohm which is very rare for class D amps. That's awesome if you have a couple 4ohm 4x10 cabs laying around.

Subway is badass.
 

DiMarco

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Subway is twice the price of the amps Shelby mentioned tho. Yes it is a really good amp but meh. For that kinda money there's plenty of options.
 
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