SWR Workingman's 10

I won't go into the features as you can read all about what dials it has below. It is simply a small cube(borg-like) bass combo that I would have never ever thought I would have bought until I saw it and played it.

I do wish it had a tube pre-amp, but other than that, this amp is stacked with features both dial wise and input/outputwise on the back.

For practice sessions and small cofeehouse gigs, it works very well. 80 watts is not a lot for bass but these are 80 watts clean where the amp can actually handle the output, not 80 watss where the amp is ready to blow-up.

I have to give it a ten, because it has all these features and more.

Very clean and modern bass sound. Not quite as fat as I would like but still very good. The back metal panel does vibrate at higher volumes but I got that fixed under warrantee. SWR approved it.

It's not as fat as my Interstellar Overdrive effects unit, but then again nothing is.

Totally reliable. That small 10" speaker can handle 4 string bass. I am not sure about 5 string bass though.

No problem with getting the screws tightened on the back so stop the rattling and it was covered under warrantee. Yes, I'm picky when it comes to my gear.

This is the part that is excellent. When I bought my Interstellar Overdrive, I was very happy with it, so I sent SWR a short letter telling them how happy I was with Stella. They mailed me a reply letter with a free SWR T-shirt which was incredibly nice of them to do.

With this WM10, they sent me a free Instruction Manual as the store I bought mine at could not find it. Really nice of SWR!

I sent them my CD with my single "Interstellar Overdrive." dedicated to this pre-amp/effects unit. Electronica yes, but a good song all the same. If you want to hear it, go to:

http://www.mp3.com/newdeltacity

Honestly, I never planned to buy a bass combo, becuase any combo I played through was either portable but not loud enough, loud but very heavy and bulky, or just shitty. This combo chnaged my mind and it wasn't a fortune either. I love its cube shape and how portable it is.

If you want to hear my more rock oriented songs done with my gear, go to:

http://www.mp3.com/victoryplanet

I just got a 2000/2001 amp from guitar center, so this might be a bit soon to write a review, but I'll write if anything comes up that's noteworthy to prospective buyers. Anyway, it's an 80W bass amp with volume, effects blend, 'aural enhancer,' low, mid, high. The eq works great, there's nothing wrong with it at all. On some amps I feel like the highs don't get high enough so everything sounds muddy, but these have great respons. Aural enhancer's cool too, as far as i can tell it just brings up some of the low end that's too low for the eq. I play mostly ska/punk, with a bit of metal, a bit of reggae, hip-hop, etc., and it suits me fine. As far as wattage goes, it's more than enough for me (I play by myself mostly, sometimes with my guitar playing friends, sometimes with a drummer), but as far as speaker size goes, it really isn't. If you turn the volume all the way up there's a bit of speaker distortion, but it doesn't seem damaging. The only feature i wish it had would be a gain AND a volume so I can manipulate the sounds a little bit more, but i wouldn't expect one on a 10".

I use it with a squier p-special, and i love it. It's great at making the differences between the jazz and precision pickup noticeable. The fender bassman 25 didn't really do that. As far as sounds go, it can get a really smooth low sound, the kind that you can't hear the string being plucked, just a deep sound, which i like for some ska. But you can also get a real punchy sound with your fingers and a strong pop if you're using a pick.

It looks like it would never break, but that's nothing to go on. So don't ask me. I wouldn't gig with it without a backup because I don't gig. I'm a college boy. But it wouldn't be loud enough without an extension cab anyway because of the 10" speaker problem, it has trouble holding its own over fairly soft drums as it is.

Never dealt with them, but they gave me a 1 year warranty and have a swell website. Guitar center sells swr stuff, and they're EVERYWHERE.

I've been playing bass for a year or two, off an on, and I got this amp for 3 reasons: size, wattage, and tone. It's a 30 lb. 16" cube, so it fits in my dorm room, it's 80 bloody watts, which is a helluvalot more than the bassman 25 that's the same size or the bassman 60 for that matter, which is as big as a mature yak. It's got tone that's as nice as the 50 watt ampegs i tried (which are bigger and heavier), though it sounds very un-vintage (very hi-fi and clear compared to them). And, since I have to carry it everywhere, it's 30 lbs., doesn't take up much space on public transportation, and has a metal grille. If it were stolen or lost i wouldn't buy another one because it's $400 friggin dollars and i'm in college, folks. But if money was not an issue, heck yes i'd buy another. I would also buy a car and some food.

This amp can handle lows mids and highs very well. Comes with effect loop(very rarily seen on bass heads an channel switching. You can also plug it through other speakers witch is one of the best features.
I use this amp against a drumset an Marshall Halfstack and it can handle it.

It suits my music and never clashes. When I turn it up all the way though it sometimes hits the metal. Keep your pugs on the back unless your using them! Good variety of sounds. Clean channel never distorted. can take any effect well. Speakers reliable.

I can always epend on this thing. I could use it without backup. Never broken down.

Yeah guitar center deals this amp an they were incredibly helpful an werent afraid to tell the truth. They support the product well and the book they gave me was also very helpful. the warranty is one month.

I've been playing for three years. best brand I've had yet. I own a combo 12 and an Ibanez T-40 5-string an a Galveston acoustic bass. I'd probably buy something else but it would definatly be a SWR. Best Speakers out there. I compared it to Crate, Hartke, and Gorilla and Its the best. Very portable and dependable, you can always add to the sound.

New 1999 model. Bass, Mid, Treble, FX Blend, and famous Aural Enhancer. Line Out, Effects S/R, etc. Small little cube 80watts in to 8ohm, about 31 lbs. Nicely constructed, looks very solid. I wish it had a gain AND master volume. It can sometimes be a little sensitive when you are using alot of tone controls and trying to play at softer volumes.

I'm a beginner bass player, but this is my fourth amp. I have had a Fender 60 (bulky, boxy sound), Then Ampeg B50R (nice sound for 1x12, not loud enough for drums), Then Ampeg B328 (nice sound and loud enough, but 57Lbs) I like the Workingman's 10 because its small, light and powerful. If you like it loud, like with drums, get the extention cabinet or some other 8ohm extra speaker cabinet. As soon as you hook up an external speaker the volume potential jumps from like 100db (usable loudnes) to over 110db!!! With just the 1x10 extension cabinet from SWR. I hit a few notes around 118db! (c-weighted, slow, on db meter) I bought the two pieces for flexibility. If I'm playing with just softer guitars in a small place I can just bring the combo and crank up the bass tone control to get a heavy sound. If I need more volume to play a larger room or with drums I will just hook up the extention speaker The combo weighs 31Lbs and the extension speaker weighs 26Lbs. They stack up and have locking corners too! Practicing by myself the hissing sometimes bothers me, but while you actually playing its not bad at all. You can switch off tweeters in the combo and the extension cabinet to cut down a little on the hissing. Hissing is heavy on headphones though, set a 12 o'clock its not too bad. Sounds fuller than my ampeg B328

Its built tough. Black carpet exterior, plastic locking corners and stong handle. I have a vibration in the back panel, but just a twist of the screwdriver took care of that. Because of the high internal pressures, SWR provides rubber plugs to put in the holes of the jacks which are not in use on the back of the amp. If they fall out or you don't put them in the air will "chirp" while passing out the holes. Knobs are recessed to minimize damage during transport.

I emailed them twice, never heard from them. Find a dealer who will take care of you IF there are any problems. I don't expect any though...

I've been playing since May of 1999. Yes, I think I would buy it again, especially for the small size and BIG SOUND (with the extension cabinet). Again this is my fourth amp I bought it for portability (I'm a wimp!) Its the loudest and nicest sounding amp that I have owned (see above list of amps) I wish it had gain AND master volume. I wish it was a little quieter on the preamp stage. Don't fully judge its potential without hooking up an extension speaker!!!!

The Workingman's 10 is a 10" speaker with a foster horn in a black, carpeted cube. It weighs about 40lbs and has a solid, top-mounted carrying handle as well as a thick wire handle/kickback stand that's spring-loaded on the bottom. The amplifier is rated at 80Watts (100Watts with Extension Speaker) and is mounted flush with the rear of the cabinet. The Workingman's 10 is small but not tiny. Pictures make it look tiny but you need to see one in person to get a good impression of it.

I use the Workingman's 10 as a practice amp so that I can get a rich, clean sound out of my practice amp and so that I don't have to give myself a hernia carting a cabinet around every time I want to go jam with some buddies. The sound is crisp and clear. The 10" speaker does a terrific job of carrying the highs while the cabinet construction really reinforces the thunder in the lows. I wasn't prepared for this amp to sound as good as it did and it pretty much converted me to SWR equipment.

The thing is a little black pillbox. It feels like it could stop a .22 rifle bullet with the carpet. The construction is phenomenal (an SWR signature trait) and the solid-state electronics feel like they'll keep going no matter what you give 'em. I'm not worried about this ever breaking down on me.

SWR is helpful and very friendly. They still remember when they were building amps inside their garage and value every single customer they have. Check out the website.

The Workingman's 10 is no stage amp and it's barely even a coffee-house cranker but if you're practicing with this at home and you sound like crap, the problem is you, not the amp :). It is a very expensive practice amplifier and shouldn't be expected to cut it at gigs. It *should* be expected to sound fantastic in the privacy of your own home and it accomplishes that with flying colors.

1999 model, got mine just before they put in the nifty blue power light, I was bummed because it was too late to exchange it, I want the blue powerlight dammit!!! Other than that it sounds great, but the eq adds noticible hiss even with the volume down, but once you start playing it covers it, great swr tone... would have given it a 10 if it had pre gain and master, and a limiter (like the wm12), but since its simpler, I give it an 9, still sounds good though

sounds good with my usa jazz, and also with my yamaha bb5000. Like I said the eq is noisy though, and swr amps are sloppy with pops when you turn it on and off though, but it has a great tone. I like the sound of an amp with a tweeter, but this one has too much hiss, but thats ok, because the 10 alone handles the highs pretty good. It breaks up a bit when you crank it, thats where the limiter would have came in handy, you can crank the workingmans 12 a bit more and it handles better, but I genreally like the tone of the 10 over the 12. Still give this 10 a 10, beacause it is the best tiny amp you can buy! AURAL ENHANCER is a great knob!

I recently cut a demo with this amp, using a boss bass overdrive (set light and natural) and enahncer as the only pedals (use that live too), I stuck a sennheiser 421 mic on the speaker and it sounded great

seems pretty reliable, I actually use it to rehearse with a band, it barely cuts it volume wise, but its suprising for its size and just one 10, going up against drums and a 2x12 guitar tube amp. Last time I was wearing plugs and didnt relaize I was breaking it up the whole time, didnt seem to damage it though, and it actually sounds good with al ittle bit of breakup, very geddy lee.

never dealt with them other than emails, sometimes they answer them, sometimes they dont, but when they do it takes a long time

ive been playing a while, and the SWR bass 350 with an SWR goliath III 4x10, and SWR son of bertha 15 cabinets is my main stage rig, I wanted the swr sound in a small package for home use, and quiter rehearsals, or soemthing to take to quiet gigs and auditons. And this does EXACTLY what I want. Only thing I would ask for would be for it to have the same exact features as the workingmans 12, adding gain and master instead of just one volume, and adding the auto limiter. Actually I can live without the parametric mid (that my 350 has), cuz it sounds so good as it is. Would buy it again if I had to SWR SWR SWR SWR!

New 1999 model. Bass, Mid, Treble, FX Blend, and famous Aural Enhancer. Line Out, Effects S/R, etc. Small little cube, about 30 lbs. Nicely constructed, looks very solid.

Using this with both a P-bass and flatwounds and an active 5 for practice at home. Very detailed sound regardless of the bass. Full, warm sound when the Aural Enhancer is at 1 or 2 o'clock and rest of the tone controls are at 12 or 1. Even the 5 has good definition and the 10" speaker handles the low B pretty well. The tweeter adds a nice dimension to the amp, making it produce full and complex sounds at low volumes. Crank it up, though, and it retains that definition. Just right for backing an acoustic guitar or in a small setting.

Appears to be built like a tank. Very light, easy to carry and well balanced because its a cube. Looking forward to long years of service since it's solid state and has a strong metal grille to protect the speaker.

Haven't had to call them. Their website is pretty good, with email support for most questions.

This is a third bass amp for me, joining an Ampeg B50 and a Carvin RL210. The Carvin is at the rehearsal site and serves as my gigging amp. I practice at home with the Ampeg, but I wanted the SWR for its more modern tone when practicing, too. Hey, maybe I should have one in every room!

This model was introduced in 1998. It is a single channel combo, 80 watts, and a 10-inch speaker. Has effects loop. Three way output switch (full range, tweeter off, headphone only). Very versatile and flexible for the price range.
Not too many controls, which I like. I definitely prefer the bass, mid, treble controls instead of graphic EQ. Aural exciter is cool.

I use a Fender Standard Precision with this amp. I use it for studio recording and some live playing. Sound is great -- the aural enhancer is a nice touch, gives great transparency you don't often see from small combo amps.
The tweeter does seem to produce more noisy hiss than I like (turning it off solves the problem when you don't need the really high end). This is probably the only complaint I have with the sound. Other than that, this kicks butt over every other little combo I've tried.

Still relatively new. It seems very well constructed. Another nice plus are the rubber plugs that come with it for sealing up all unused 1/4" jacks, presumably to keep out foreign matter.

Haven't asked for any support yet.
Pretty good web page.

I'm primarily a guitar player with nearly 20 years experience, but have been becoming more enamoured with the bass. This amp definitely fits the bill for me, I would buy it again.
I compared this with several of the Crate BX series, several Peaveys (Minx, Basic, Micro, etc.), low end Ampegs. The Ampeg and Peavey Basic aren't bad, but the SWR is more portable and seems to be more flexible in terms of sound.