MarkBass CL 810, Обзор

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the LMII. When you compare them back-
to-back, you can definitely tell that they
come from the same family, and they do
share some strong sonic characteristics.
The Classic 300 is more focused in the
mids, and definitely has a greater sense of
“sonic texture.” The LMII, conversely, is a
tad stronger in the low end and a little
darker through the mids. While the highs
are brighter on the LMII, they sing a bit
more coming from the Classic 300, and
are very rich. The LMII is known for its
killer midrange punch, especially in the
low-midrange. But the Classic 300
actually
has greater note-to-note
articulation in the meat of the midrange.
The LMII may technically be the more
clear of the two, but the impact and
distinction (in the mids) offered up by the
Classic 300 is just amazing. With the pre-
gain set a bit higher on the 300, the
articulation though the mids got
even better (surpassing the LMII).
The slap tone of the Classic 300
was very intriguing, and featured a
ton of harmonic content (which
might actually be a bit hard to
control). But this amp is probably
going to appeal more to heavy-
handed
fingerstyle and
pick-wielding players.
If Marco’s goal was to capture the
sonic impact of a classic SVT, but
offer more modern tone-shaping
controls, features, and safety
/maintenance improvements, he
has
definitely succeeded.
Compared to an SVT-VR, the
Classic 300 captures a lot of the
same midrange focus, and sounds
much more like an SVT than does
the more traditionally designed all-
tube Reeves Custom 225 (also
reviewed in this issue). By contrast,
the Reeves is bigger and deeper in
the lows, and more clear and open
in the midrange. Actually, the
same can be said for the
Mesa/Boogie Bass 400 (equipped
with KT-88’s), and the Sadowsky
SA200, which are more similar to
the Reeves than to the Classic 300.
The Classic 300 seems to fall
somewhere between the Fat and
Clean settings on the Sadowsky,
with more midrange focus and a
more aggressive attack than the
SA200. Conversely, the Sadowsky
is more smooth, full, and even,
and can cop a wider range of tones.
On a whim, I also compared the
Classic 300 to the GK Fusion 550.
Each has a similar low end, and similar
harmonic content, though the Fusion
ends up sounding more quick and clear.
PRESSED INTO DUTY
The Classic 300 and CL 108 went out to
their first gig about a day after I received
them. I brought along a backup rig, in
case things didn’t go well, or if I had too
hard of a time dialing in proper tone. I
needn’t have bothered. Right out of the
box (literally), the Markbass Classic
Monster took control and never let me
down. The tone is appreciably full
and rich, with a certain warmth
that I have come to associate with a
tube output section. But it was also
quite clear and controlled, with
good high-end extension. I did find
myself boosting the low-mids just a
tad, but other than that, I left it set
fairly flat (with the bias set to High
Fidelity). At this and subsequent
gigs, I managed to try a number of
different basses through this rig.
While they all sounded good, the
“instant classic” combination was
with my Roscoe Beck V. That bass
was just made for this rig (and,
interestingly, is a bit of a hybrid
blend of classic and modern designs
in its own right).
The Classic 300 does not do an
over-the-top overdrive, but you can
dial in some extra grit/growl, and
certainly a good deal of added
harmonic content. My preferred
setting was with the pre-gain run
pretty hot, which adds some
excitement, but is not what you
would call distorted or overdriven.
The EQ controls are not overly
powerful, with useful function over
most of their range. The Low, Mid-
Low, and Mid-Hi sounded better to
my ears as a cut than as a boost
(though slight boosts worked very
well on all three). The High control
worked very well and sounded
musical with both more extreme
boost and cut. The boost added
high-end sparkle without getting
harsh, and the cut mimicked a
passive tone roll-off nicely.
The mix of fullness, punch, and
articulation definitely reminded me of
another – yet far smaller – Markbass head: