iGuitar issue 6 John Petrucci (Dream Theater) and masterclass with Andy James. Learn Licks in the style of John Petrucci in the issue of Guitar Interactive Issue 5.
Exclusive interview with Judas Priest, Glenn Tipton & Richie Faulkner.
Exclusive interview and performance with Steve Hackett.
Reviews of the John Petrucci Music Man JP XI Mesa Boogie amp, Collings l-35LC, BC Rich, ESP LTD, Engl, Hi Watt Neo Vetilator Rothwell and Wampler FX pedals.
We also take a look at Patrick Eggle Acoustic, the Blueridge acoustic, also lessons on fingerstyle guitar.
Our new BASS guitar section also includes reviews on the Markbass amp, EBS and Overwater plus win free rotsound bass strings!!
THE BASSMENT_BASS GUITAR REVIEWS
T
he Swedish company
EBS has been in the
‘bass business’ since
around 1988 and this
diminutive 60 Watt
combo, launched
back in 2009, draws
on EBS’s heritage in the form of the
Classic 450. I have to admit when I first
plugged the combo in, its simple and
clear layout had me thinking that it was
going to perform like ‘any other small
boxed combo’. Well, I was pleasantly
surprised when we set up to give it
a spin. It does have an element of
‘boxiness’ to the tone when everything
is set flat, which to be honest you can’t
really get away from in a mere 20 litre
cabinet. A 10” speaker needs a certain
amount of cabinet space that helps
produce a better low-end girth. A small
combo just doesn’t have that luxury –
and in this case, the really nifty ‘kick
back’ of the combo means that more
cabinet space is lost thus compounding
the problem further.
However - and this is a big however
– it really does depend on how
a manufacturer deals with these
limitations, because if they get it right,
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EDITION 5
that can turn an OK combo in to a
great combo. EBS on this occasion
have thought this through and get the
thumbs up from Mr Fussy here!
I’ve talked about the controls in the
video already, but I do want to continue
on my current thread of thought. Let
me take you to the ‘character’ control.
Yes, it does as you may guess from
the name add ‘character’. It boosts
and cuts specific frequencies that
results in sounding really great through
the DI giving your bass a nice fat
modern tone. Whether or not this was
an intentional move by EBS, it just
so happens that when you activate
the control it gets rid of much of that
small box effect and makes the combo
cabinet sound much bigger. I think you
could close your eyes and imagine
a 15” speaker here. Again, for those
wanting technical details, a 6dB boost
at 75hz, 2.5dB cut at 800hz and a
boost of 3dB at 9Khz for brightness.
On the subject of EQ, the Bass boosts
and cuts at 100hz and the treble at
10Khz (both shelving) for a punchy
bass and nice sizzling high end through
the custom tweeter. The tweeter is
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