Ashdown KBM 200 Head

like Lars mentioned: pretty much the same as the AMB series.
Tube preamp, mosfet poweramp, VU input meter (NICE!) 7 band EQ (bass, mid, trebble + 4 graphic sliders), input blend (clean to grind), mid pre-shape in/out, EQ in/out, subharmonics level + in/out switch, DI out + pre/post switch, tuner out + mute switch, sub out (for biamping), master volume.
FX loop, stereo line in, dual speaker outputs

couldn't wish for any more!

I play a '75 Fender jazz reissue and a '91 Gibson thunderbird, also owned a '76 Fender precision and an OLP MM2 5 string for a while.
I play punkrock / hardcore / rock usually with slighty overdriven tone and plenty of pick attack.
This amp is very versitile and goes from extremely clean to extremely dirty (the clean - grind knob) I played it for years with just the natural overdrive from the preamp tubes by setting the input gain to about 3 o clock and the input blend all the way to grind. This caused my VU meter to get stuck in the red area (wich is a common thing for ashdowns i've been told)
I run the KBM through an ashdown MAG 8x10 nowadays, i played it through a GK 4x10 + 1x15 for years, i bought the 8x10 mainly for the looks and the ease of having an extra stack when i'm in need of it.
I play bass for 13 years now and play in 4 bands at the moment. Played on a lot of different amplifiers but when i tried this one a had to buy it at that very moment! this was exactly the sound i had been looking for!

I've had it for 5 years now and NEVER had any problems with it.

I bought this amp while i was on tour in Germany so i'm glad i never had to use the warrany, since taveling to Berlin isn't the cheapest thing you could imagine...

I'm totally satisfied about this amp but i do use a Tech 21 SansAmp bass driver DI programmable nowadays in front of this head. The sound isn't very different from the sound i had before using the Sansamp but it makes it a whole lot easier and you'll never be depending on what the soundman makes out of it. + the fact that i can use different sounds (just different ammounts of drive mainly) makes it a usefull addition. If the Ashdown would have a good speaker emulated DI output and midi storing / switching for the drive control it would make the SansAmp allmost useless.
If this amp would break down on me i'd probably buy an ABM500 EVO, allthough i like the fact of having the origional non-EVO version for some reason and i like the fact that you don't switch the tube drive on or of, you just dial it.
And to Lars: 200 weak watts? damn, i hardly ever had my master volume above 12 o' clock and i usually get told by the soundman that my sound was awesome but i was not on the PA at all. But i'm pretty sure it's the ampeg 8x10 that needs more power to move it than the Ashdown MAG 8x10...

One of the first heads from Ashdown ever - KBM stands for "Klystron Bass Magnifier" (this was later changed to ABM), says so on the front panel as well... Otherwise, it looks just like the older ABM models with two input jacks (active/passive) and one output jack. Go to www.ashdownmusic.co.uk for a closer look at the features, they are in my opinion pretty much self-explanatory, which definitely is one of the things I like about this head - it is very easy to set up 'your' sound, there are not many features, but that's a plus for me. I really like the preamp blending knob (clean = solid state / grind = tube), for instance, as well as the possibility to inividually set up the input and output volume. It comes with an octaver as well, I never use that one though. As for the technical features: 200 watts, tube/mosfet hybrid (tube preamp), pretty handy size and weight and therefore easy to carry around. The only thing I would criticise is that 200 watts are slightly on the weak side of things sometimes, I've had it cranked all the way up on an Ampeg 8x10 cab at a gig one one occasion and it still wasn't loud enough. Otherwise, it's perfect for me.

I play a 1987 Japan Squier Jazzbass, both pickups on full volume, a TS-9 for occasional overdrive, a 4x10 cab and an Ashdown 1x15 ABM cab with a 300 watts celestion speaker. The cabs aren't the ideal solution for sure... I plan to sell those and buy an Ampeg 8x10 or 4x10 HLF instead. It definitely sounds awesome with a 8x10 cab, no complaints at all - you just should not set the EQ sliders past half, especially the lower frequencies tend "bass up" things way more than necessary and way past good. I play intense posthardcore with pop leanings (kinda), and I use slight distortion. The natural tube overdrive with the input volume turned to 3/4 is perfect, just note that the pickups on my bass have a very low output compared to more recent Fender models - I have a MIM P-Bass as well, which does not go together with the amp very well - the pickup is moch too rude, unbalanced and loud. At least I never found a good setting for that one, and the amp IS versatile, thanks to the EQ - small changes can make huge differences.

No problems so far. Seems very solid. I guess I would use it AS a backup as soon as I can afford an ABM 500 EVO II (c;

Never dealt with them.

Been playing for roundabout 15 years. Have played Laney, Trace Elliot, Fender and Hughes & Kettner heads. Would always prefer Ashdown to all those. If I could afford to I'd buy an ABM 500 EVO II - it's still cheaper than Ampeg SVT's and I can't imagine them sounding better.