Product: Sunn Coliseum
Price Paid: UNKNOWN
Submitted
10/17/2008
at
03:32pm
by
Thomas G. Jackson
Features
:
10
I traded My Sunn 2000S for a 1973 Sunn Coliseum Bass Amp.
This is the loudest amp I have ever owned or played through. It is very conservatively rated at 320 Watts R.M.S. into a 2 ohm load @ .1% THD which my bass peers is Hi-Fi. This is a Mono amp clone of an MC2300. Virtually indestructable. It's tone controls are quite unique and if all set to zero no sound comes out of the amplifier.
2 inputs, Single channel, volume,lo-bass, hi-bass, mid and treble knobs, bright switch and there are 2 slide switches to change the "voicing" of the mid-bass and treble. Rear panel features 2 speaker jacks, preamp output and power amp input jacks. Minimun speaker load is 2 ohms. Good enough for the OX, good enough for tommyjack. Solid state discreet transistors direct coupled.
If you got WHIMP speakers this amp will ferret them out and destroy them. NOT FER DA FAINTHEARTED, do not play this into 10"s unless you have plans for reconing them. Best used thru 2 cabinets like the Sunn 200S or 215S.
Sound Quality
:
10
Very clean and loud. Fender basses, a 1967 Pbass and a 1966 jazz bass reissue. I had a 1972 Ric 4001. All sounded great. Predominate speaker cabinets have been a Sunn 200s with JBL K140's and a Sunn 215S with K-140's for a 2 ohm load. Rock, Punk and jazz-Fusion. Rick Laird of Mahavishnu Orchestra, John Entwistle and James Dewar of Robin Trower Band as well as early Tower of Power Bassist all used this amp. No distortion of any kind. In Wally Heider's studio in SF I could hear the fan, it is pretty quiet, not heard on recordings though.
Reliability
:
10
NEVER EVER BROKE DOWN. NEVER HAD A BACK UP UNTIL RECENTLY. Now
I always bring a back up for any body to use but luckily not yet.
Customer Support
:
10
Becky supplied me with schematics to all Sunn amps I've owned.
Kudos to her. OUTTA BIZ-NES.
Overall Rating
:
10
Played bass since 1971. Far as I am concerned IMHO there are only three bass amps in the "BIG DOG" category: This stems from attending 171 concerts from May 1968 til today.
1. Acoustic 360/370
2. Sunn Coliseum Bass Amp
3. Ampeg SVT
To me Woodstock was "ground zero" for rock and roll and IF the brand wasn't used at Woodstock why bother???
So the Magnavox amp is not in my collection.
And here's what I currently own:
EQUIPMENT INVENTORY:
1. SUNN COLISEUM BASS AMPLIFIER, 1973
2. SUNN COLISEUM LEAD AMPLIFIER, 1975
3. SUNN MODEL T AMPLIFIER, 1973
4. SUNN CONCERT BASS AMPLIFIER, 1973
5. SUNN 200S SPEAKER CABINET WITH 2 JBL K140's, 1969
6. SUNN 215S SPEAKER CABINET WITH 2 JBL K140's, 1973
7. SUNN 215S SPEAKER CABINET WITH 2 JBL K140's, 1973
8. SWR GOLIATH III SPEAKER CABINET WITH 4 P.A.S., 2006
9. SWR 410T SPEAKER CABINET WITH 4 EMINENCE, 2005
10. FENDER BXR SPEAKER CABINET WITH 2x10, 1x18 EMINENCE, 2000
11. FENDER PRECISION BASS, 1967 WITH MAPLE FRETBOARD
12. FENDER GEDDY LEE JAZZ BASS, 2006
13. FENDER STRATOCASTER, 2006
14. GIBSON LES PAUL JUNIOR, 1957 (LEND-LEASE) TO ARIZONA BROTHER
15. YAMAHA CLASSIC GUITAR, 1980
16. ACOUSTIC 370 AMPLIFIER, 1974
17. ACOUSTIC 301HC CABINET, 1974
18. FENDER JAZZ BASS, MIM, 2002
19. ACOUSTIC 301HB CABINET, 1973
20. ACOUSTIC 450 AMPLIFIER, 1975
21. FENDER JAZZ BASS, CUSTOM SHOP, 1966
22. ACOUSTIC 140 AMPLIFIER, 1974
23. ACOUSTIC 406 WIDE CABINET, WITH 2 JBL K-140'S 1978
