Gallien-Krueger 400RB 115

This was a brand new amp made in 2000.

I hoped it would have the sound of my Peavey Combo 115 but in a smaller package that I could lug around more easily.

Nice features: DI, good contour and tone controls, smart fan that doesn't come on until needed.

Seemed to have enough power, although it was a notch below the Peavey and, surprisingly, was not 2ohm capable.

I have a '69 Fender P-Bass and a Fernandes APB4. This amp got good tone out of both, although it took considerable tweaking to find the tone that was in my head.

Unfortunately, it was too noisy for my use. I play folk/acoustic/light rock in small venues and my amp has to be quiet when not actually playing. This thing hissed pretty lound, unless I turned the presence control off and the treble way down.

Also, it had a flaw that I could not live with. After being played for a while, it would start to hum, not through the speaker, but from the cabinet. The toroidal power transformer itself was humming. Worse, the problem was intermittent.

In addition to the intermittent hum, about 10 seconds after the amp was turned off, the "clip" light in the preamp section would come on and then slowly fade. Something was not right.

This product was delivered to the customer in defective condition.

Also, only 7 of the 8 speaker screws were there, one was missing.

While I was trying to get the problems with this amp resolved, the dealer got another 400RB/115 in, this one a 2001 model. I tried it out, still interested, but although the head seemed fine this second one had a rattling blown speaker in it.

Now, I have used GK heads before, rental units, and they seemed fine. I don't know what the problem was with these two amps, but it was cause for concern.

Another post on this amp wasn't very happy, and Chris from GK responded that he wished he had a chance to turn a negative experience into a postive one. Over the course of a week, I wrote a total of four emails to GK explaining the problem and asking for advice, including one to Chris asking for help turning a negative experience into a positive one. I never got a reply.

My dealer got ahold of GK for me, and GK said I should ship the amp at my expense to a repair center. This was ridiculous - a brand new product, defective from the factory, no offer to replace.

The dealer bailed me out - took the amp and gave me my money back.

Glad to be free of GK and never will darken their door again.

Been playing since 1968. Have had a lot of amps. Have a Peavey TKO and Combo 115.

I have had 4 Peaveys which were all dead reliable, and just don't understand what is going on with GK - thought I was taking a "step up" but I guess not.

An Eden Nemesis 210 is on the way to replace the GK.