I wouldn’t call myself a bassist, though I do think the bass lines I’ve written over the last couple of years have improved.
At one point, during the recording of Cold the Winter’s Skylines and the Horizon EP, I made use of a 2×10 Fender Rumble 100, which had an XLR out for recording direct. However, it took up a fair amount of room, and room came at a premium.
After some looking, and some guidance from Nich, my sales engineer at Sweetwater, I ended up buying a Fender Rumble Studio 40.
This small modeling amp sits tucked away under the corner of my recording desk and provides ample volume when I’m writing a bassline.
There are numerous bass amp models and cabinets to choose from, which is convenient when it comes to tailoring the bass sound I might want. This can easily be gone through using an app on my iPhone and then saved as a new preset should I find something different. There are numerous effects, including a looper, that sound pretty good, but I generally use plugins for effects so I can tweak things after the fact.
There are two XLR outs on the back, one for PRE (unaffected signal) and one for POST (run through the effects). I do primarily use the POST out so I can use the modeling, but if I ever find a good amp sim for bass on my PC, I could see myself easily changing to PRE and using it.
I certainly don’t use the Studio 40 to its fullest potential, but if I were in a band, it’d likely be something I would make better use of.
There is a Stage 800 version of this amp so you could have all of the same effects, models, and features but at a considerably louder volume. I’ve just never come anywhere close to hitting halfway to the max on my Studio 40 to ever think of needing anything louder.
Looking at sold prices on Reverb.com as of 1/7/24, they generally sell for around the $200-$250 mark. That’s pretty solid for an amp that has two DI options and gives you a solid in-room sound.
I might be a believer in tube amps and effects, but I’ve yet to ever come remotely close to feeling like this little amp hasn’t been worth every penny I paid for it.