All I have to say is “WOW”. Ibanez really hit it big here…..Just Give it a try!

Click Here To Buy The Ibanez SW100 or Here to Buy The Ibanez SW115s

Today’s music stores are starting to look like Prohibition-era City Halls: Everywhere you turn, there’s a kickback. The kickback combo amplifier design has become a popular choice among today’s gigging bassists, since it can result in improved onstage monitoring. Ibanez’s kickback, the SW100, is the largest, most powerful combo in the Sound Wave series. Ibanez designed it to be an affordable full-featured combo for practicing or gigging. They designed the 1×15 SW115S extension cabinet to be used with the combo on larger gigs.

With a gig on the horizon, I sat down with the 100-watt SW100 for a bit of practicing. The control panel had all the ’shedding features I could want, including a headphone jack and rca inputs for a CD player. The rca jack is a parallel channel without its own gain or EQ knobs; the gain and EQ knobs affect only the signal coming from the bass, and volume works as a master volume control.

The SW100’s 3-position mid frequency selector seems especially well suited for players who want the ability to boost or cut specific frequencies, but who might be intimidated by graphic or semiparametric EQs. The three mid frequencies chosen were well voiced for most test basses.

Ready, Steady, Go

The 67-pound combo doesn’t have casters, which made it a little cumbersome to move around. However, kudos to Ibanez for installing three handles, making it easier to maneuver the combo into the back seat of my small sedan. The amp felt sturdy and well built, though its vinyl covering seemed susceptible to scuffing. The front-panel control layout was thoughtful, and the interior construction was excellent for a low-priced amp.

The SW100 was just right for a folk dance gig in a mid-size club. I could hear myself clearly with the combo tilted back, and it felt stable enough to withstand bumps and nudges without rolling backwards. The front-mounted DI made it quick and easy for the soundwoman to send my signal to the front-of-house, and the ground-lift switch and pre/post EQ switch allowed me to dial in a quiet, good tone. The DI does lack a level control, however. With an MM-style OLP 5-string, the combo sounded full and well balanced with the EQ flat. I found the tweeter to be a bit too hissy, so I turned it off for most of the gig.

Full Tilt

At a funky pop trio rehearsal with a hard-hitting drummer, the SW100 held its own when turned up about halfway, and the built-in limiter’s front-panel LED let me know when I was hitting the amp too hard. Playing an Epiphone Allen Woody Rumblekat, I boosted the amp’s high mids to increase the clarity of the inherently boomy bass. In the cramped rehearsal space, the kickback design also came in handy, allowing me to better hear my sound.
In our Soundroom, staffers were equally impressed with the SW100, especially given the combo’s low price. It sounded tubby and thick with a flatwound-strung Fender Precision, and it had a great slap tone with a Modulus Quantum 5-string, especially with the mids scooped at 500Hz and the high-frequency-boosting presence turned up. Depressing the sensitivity attenuated the input signal and helped ensure that the active Modulus wasn’t too hot for the SW100’s preamp. Plugging an array of effect boxes through the SW100’s rear-panel effect loop, I could control the blend of my dry and wet sounds with the front panel’s effect blend knob.

On its own, the SW100 filled the room, but adding the SW115S substantially beefed up the sound. Paired with the extension cab, the SW100 rig became a formidable and portable wall of sound, sending 145 watts through two 15″ speakers. The extension cabinet has its own piezo tweeter, but since the SW100’s tweeter provided sufficient sizzle, I switched the extension cabinet’s tweeter off.

The SW100 has all you’d want in a mid-priced combo amp—a DI, a flexible EQ, a built-in limiter, and an effect loop. Add the extension cabinet, and you have a big-sounding rig for under $700.

Click Here To Buy The Ibanez SW100 or Here to Buy The Ibanez SW115s