WARNING - Lengthy Post To Follow! :arrow:
Well, I've been watching for a *cheap* (inexpensive) 5 string bass for a while now, & I have been eying the 5 string Rogue at M-friend. It was selling for $129. but when I checked it out yesterday, they had it listed for $110.00 & free ship!
I couldn't resist. I already have a bass cab (2x10), so all I needed at this point was a head. So again, the cheapest listed was the Behringer 1800 Ultrabass; it has good reviews, I have heard it played before in a local store, so I also purchased that. Here's where it gets a bit ugly... $152.99 & $18.00 ship ----Or So I Was Led To Believe During Checkout... :?
All went well, I left the house, came back a few hrs. later & checked the email, only to find a surprise waiting for me. Seems M-Friend "mis-calculated" the shipping cost by over $70 on the head. I called billing & got involved in a nightmare discussion with a "bubble gum chewing bimbo", (sorry, I cleaned it up as best I could) :mrgreen:
After going back & forth awhile she put me on hold for a minute; came back & tells me that all shipping charges are dropped, I will be getting it for $152.99. Wahh??? After an approx. 8 min. heated discussion over $70 ship, all of a sudden it is now shipped for free?
I asked for a confirmation email, as I wanted this deal in writing. So here it is, over 18 hrs. later, & no follow-up email that the shipping is corrected, & no correction to my account, even though I was assured that she was immediately fowarding the corrections to the billing/charge dept.
I don't usually bad-mouth a company on forums, but this is the second time that they pulled this on me. I bought a guitar, same type deal a couple of years ago & got stiffed on the shipping charges.
It took me quite a while to get that one straightened out, & I fear the same thing is going to happen again. I guess the moral of this story is maybe to place phone orders instead of web orders. Web orders are so easy & convenient for me, so I prefer that.
I have spent a small fortune w/ these guys over the years, so this kind of treatment is hard to take, after dropping so much cash there..
But I may be thru w/ M-Friend after this one - I don't know, we'll see how things turn out. Sorry, I just had to vent. On a positive note, they do have about the best prices anywhere, that's why I keep returning. :roll:
At any rate, I can't wait to get the bass/amp & start jamming! :)
Any Rogue owners on here?
No Rogue owner but congrats on that new bass! :D
And send us pictures and sound clips!
8)
Well we all shine on--like the moon and the stars and the sun.
-- John Lennon
I'd love to hear about that head/cab combo when you get it in. I've got my eye on that and would love a first hand account.
Oh, and congrats on the new gear!
Update! The stuff came yesterday, so here goes;
First, M-Friend didn't pack the head in anything except the factory box that it came in, I was upset about that. You mean, they are trying to charge me $70 ship on that head & then it isn't even in a shipping box?!?!? Just had to let that out... :x
Now, on to the good stuff!
The Bass - Man 'O Man, is this thing sweet! I must have gotten lucky & got a good one. It feels like melted butter in my hands. No setup required, it plays so easy it is amazing. Balanced nice, the vol/tone knobs are smooth in the rotation, not like my $600 Ibanez that came with a "rough spot" on 2 of the pots. :roll:
It has a very nice warm tone, & when you treble up the pots, you can really get a hot slap bass out of it. Pickups seem like they could be a bit hotter w/ the gain output, but maybe I need to adjust them up a bit. We'll see. Not a flaw in the finish.
On the downside, if it is a downside. The neck seems kinda long, but maybe that's just me. I'm 5'9", & maybe my arms are short for it. It isn't that it is uncomfortable to play, but that it is...noticeable... I can live with it, though. Oh, and the frets are sharp on the edges, guess I need to smooth them out a bit.
But, other than that, I am extremely pleased! I Would definantly buy again, & if the price goes down again (it is back at $129) I may actually purchase a second one! :mrgreen:
The Amp - Another great piece! I love the versatility of it. Sounds great; I am pumping 2 10" @ 8 ohms right now, so I can't comment on what a 4 x 12 might sound like, but I can only imagine it would be even better! The Compression feature is nice, 7 band EQ responsive.
It also has this cool "Ultrabass" feature, which when switched in & turned up, give you a neat effect my friend calls "tursing". I don't believe that means anything as far as the description of the sound, so I will try to clarify; It is sort of a slight "warble", maybe like 2 strings of the same pitch with one very slightly out of tune.
It is a cool & interesting effect, & would have it's place in rock/jazz/prog/avant garde/ etc. I know I didn't explain it very well, but I hope you get the idea. All in all, very cool! It's like I got an effects box w/out having to pay extra for one!
2 button footswitch included, 1 for the 2nd channel, 1 for the Ultrabass feature.
I give this combo a "thumbs up"! :D I would buy again! :D
Would this setup stand up to heavy gigging? Don't know that answer, most likely not unless you really took care of it. It would probably stand up to my style of heavy gigging, because I really baby all my equip. My 25 year old equipment looks just about as good as my new stuff does.
Just wanted to give you all an update, hope you enjoyed following along!
Enjoy!
