Fender bassman 250/210 combo or GK 400RB/210 combo?

[FenderBax]

hey everyone
i just need everyones opinion here.
i will be playing a fender deluxe zone V (5-string) bass. i play all kinds of music from slap style to standard finger style, jazz, rock, funk, etc. i am looking to purchase an amp and i cant determine which of these 2 to buy because i can't find them in stores to try out (they tell me i have to order it through them). so hopefully you guys can help me out here. i want a combo that has enough power to play small gigs, but i want it to have enough power to handle plugging in a larger cabnet into it in the future. i also need it to be able to handle the highs and lows especially from the 5 string bass. by the way, this bass has active pickups (if this helps any),
ps:my price range is about $900 canadian
appreciate all opinions

[DreamwaveMusic]

I personally think you should consider a 15in combo for the 5string. Nemesis (Eden) and SWR make some nice combos and are reasonably priced.

[abarnett]

I wouldn't buy a bassman for guitar. Funny enough, fender's bass amps are used for guitars(a deep guitar amp) and ampeg's guitar amps are still used for bass(a dirty bass amp). They couldn't quite branch out there.

I think the gk is good, but 15" are probably gonna be the best low end for a combo.
ampeg rocket bass is good. swr is pretty good. I like trace elliot combo's. What are you looking for though. Presence or feel?

[Whoopysnorp]

Originally Posted by abarnett

I wouldn't buy a bassman for guitar. Funny enough, fender's bass amps are used for guitars(a deep guitar amp) and ampeg's guitar amps are still used for bass(a dirty bass amp). They couldn't quite branch out there.

I think the gk is good, but 15" are probably gonna be the best low end for a combo.
ampeg rocket bass is good. swr is pretty good. I like trace elliot combo's. What are you looking for though. Presence or feel?

Well....it's pretty common to see the old tube Bassmans used as guitar amps, since they're really too low-wattage to be used as modern bass amps but they sit nicely in the guitar range, but the modern solid-state Bassmans are not the same amp at all. Fender kept the name, which I find pretty confusing, but they're your pretty standard solid state bass combo. I'm sure guitar would sound decent enough through them but they're nothing like the vintage tube Bassman heads that guitar players like.

[abarnett]

yes, I was thinking about the old ones. I don't know much about the new ones. And I said I wouldn't use it for guitar when I meant bass. Are the new ones any good?

[Whoopysnorp]

I don't think I've played one but I've walked by people messing around on them in stores. I think they're a pretty average entry-level solid-state bass combo. They should do the job though they wouldn't really be exceptional.