Gallien-Krueger MB115-II 1x15" 200-watt Bass Combo Amp Reviews

I ordered this to play at our church. I wasn't sure what to get, but since it's a large sanctuary (approx. 120' x 80') with lots of soft surfaces, I picked this one. Unboxed it, plugged my bass into it, turned the volume knob up halfway, and when I plucked a string I knew that I had bought way more amp than I needed (or will ever need). I had to turn the volume down to 2 to get the sound at a reasonable level. I returned it for a smaller bass amp. If you need a TON of volume, this one is a candidate.

Really fat sounding, versatile amp, with a ton of headroom. Bought a demo amp, there was an issue, and Sweetwater sent me a new one, hassle free. I couldn't be happier with this product, or with Sweetwater's customer service. Thanks Clint Bransteter. and everyone else at Sweetwater.

I order this amp just a few days ago, and man Sweetwater got it to me fast. I have been jamming on for 3 or 4 days with friends a little jazz and blues band we have. It covers medium venues very well I used it in a church of a little over maybe 150 people this morning friends Church worked great, with a keyboard player guitarist and drummer, and 3 vocals. 200 watts still had some to spare the 15in speaker can put it out there. Its is very easy for me to dial in the sound I wanted, I fell in love with the rich low end this amp can put out it very lush. I am very happy and I want to thank Ben and the guys at Sweetwater for all the help I know I must of drove them crazy asking and bugging them, but they helped me get the sound I wanted. Wonderful job guys and thank you all very much and now you know why I only buy from Sweetwater. That is the bass I play on my new GK MB115, that I also got from Sweetwater. Man Sweetwater they are just awesome.

I purchase this amp and got it yesterday maybe around 10 o'clock morning, I called a couple of friends and we went to the Church and tried it out. Man we jam about 6 hours and didn't even know it we were having fun. This morning around 7:30 I got up and made some coffee my wife was gone to some ladies thing at church so I put some backing tracks on and played with the amp again. Both times I used the amp I used my Lakland 3TBS Hollowbody bass I got from Sweetwater and my old Ibanez Jazz bass I have had for years don't know where I got it. Well back to the GK MB115-II I must have drove Ben there at Sweetwater crazy I tried one amp out with a 12 180 watts just didn't have that shine for me. I had a MarkBass Jeff Berlin 151p combo I bought in 2008 before I heard of Sweetwater I played when I was playing gigs all over Texas at 69 years old I got tired and quit , Church is where I want to play been playing worship almost 40 years now, the Churches amp after 14 years I have been playing quit been worked on 4 time couldn't be fixed know more. So I donated the Markbass combo to them I was tired of it anyway to my ears they are a little one sound you know just not for me anymore . So went on my search like I said and man poor Ben I bugged him to death I guess and finally he asked one of his bass people, and you must remember they are all all musicians themselves and very awesome musicians, I would have saved a lot of time and Ben's time if I would have shut up and and asked and listen , the GK MB115-II 1x15 is awesome sounding very rich low end the 200 watts will get you heard, I like it a lot better then the Markbass Jeff Berlin 151p. But do yourself a favor don't be afraid to ask these a question they really know their stuff it will save you a lot of time and frustration. Sweetwater they rock

Got this for my son. He has been using a Fender Rumble 60 at high school. Now that he has graduated, he needs his own gear. Recommended by Norm Stockton. The sound is super clear, with great tone compared to the Rumble. It's also lighter and just a little smaller. Looking forward to hearing him gig with this amp!

I needed something portable that would take care of rehearsals and a small to medium room. This is a great size and weight. The tone is terrific and power is sufficient for what I do. I've truly missed the GK sound that I had with previous larger amps. Reid was a helpful salesman and answered all my questions. I'm quite happy with this amp and would recommend it.

great tone stack,easy to use, light, plenty of power, fills a decent room w/ sound, bulletproof, best gigging amp there is especially for us old guys.

I love this bass amp combo. I use it when I need to gig around town with my 5 piece reggae band. It is easy to carry around, it sounds great and is loud enough to serve as a monitor (put in on a milk crate for clearer signal). I also mike it and feed that into the mains. Sounds wonderful in both live and studio applications. It has very simple, understandable, and flexible controls that are always musical and help me dial in my sound. It looks very sharp. I kind of wish there was a metal grill instead of a cloth cover, but hey, every ounce counts when you're lugging your own gear.

This is a really good bass amp. I like the tone and tone shaping, and on top of that it can fit in your car. The 15 inch sub woofer does well handling the low B on the bass guitar. I use this amp for most small to medium size venues. It'll have you covered for those. While it won't give you enough for an "arena", it does a good job to support a jazz big band and cut through a drummer. For electric bass guitar I would highly recommend this, because it has great tone, reasonable weight, good power, and good tone shaping. To my ears, the tone is more "modern" but I like it. I'm primarily an upright player so I was a little skeptical, but it does good with the upright too. It's one of my favorite amps to play through. One of the best in my opinion. This is a very powerful amp, and gets a thumbs up from me.

I do a music therapy group at work 3 times per week where I break out my pedals and play relaxing and ambient music on the bass. I kinda struggled with this amp for a while getting the brightness that I needed to do such a thing. I wound up changing the speaker to a 4 ohm Weber 15 but I'm not sure that is really necessary as I am getting to know the amp better. So I thought it was dull sounding and after a while, I cranked the treble all the way on the amp. I still wasn't happy with the tone on my P Bass for this ambient jamming I am doing at work. Sounded like I was under a blanket. Finally, I cranked the high mids all the way and the amp has come alive to my ears. I play it without the mid scoop and with a fairly extensive pedal board and moderate volume. It's a hit. My clients are consistently satisfied and now that I have it dialed in how I like it the tone speaks to me. Good tone makes you play better in my mind and I feel free on this amp now that I have dialed in "that tone". Keep working out your sound if you are not satisfied off the bat. I think it is in there. This amp is also very very quiet in it's noise level (it's plenty loud otherwise though I have never fully cranked it), which is a really good thing for my needs.

Very versatile bass amp which is extremely well made here in the USA and reasonably priced. Horn speaker gives a clear and sharp sound while normal setting will give you the deep low sound. If you are still not convinced this is the amp you want, watch the promotional video for this amp as it will give you a good idea about this product.

I go direct mostly but use this as a monitor.

Even stand alone it's got that good ol' GK sound.

Bought this Amp for Jazz Gigs needed something light weight but loud. Everything I was looking for and more. Thanks to Jason at sweetwater for recommending this jewel

I was expecting good, this thing is great. Your sound lives inside, it took me 2 minutes to dial in my groove. The expansion possibilities and speaker size is what got my attention to begin with. Light weight, quiet at idle, smooth, simple. Everything a person could want or need.

This amp is everything and more for a novice bassist like me. So happy with my choice and with Sweetwater's great customer service! They steered me away from a potentially disappointing choice on my part. Thank you !

Was looking for a nice growly amp for a bass~ yet could handle the cleaner and lighter tones of a keyboard and synth stack and this cabinet is wondrous. I popped a 3-input Behringer Eurorack UB502 on top and jacked in my keys and the bass all together so that I have more fine control over each unit. I added a Tech 21 Character Series pedal to the bass guitar for some more expression and really now have an amazing rig for gigs and composing.

I heard LFOs in my Roland V-Combo's synth voicing that I'd never heard before...

This amp *easily* produces the volume needed to compete with a boisterous drummer and blistering lead guitarist. And now, even when I'm holding down the bass end with the keyboards/ piano, it all cuts through and cleanly-- no woollyness or woofing like with smaller amps.

Paul Allen is just the best! He always gets back to me about my million questions in a very timely fashion. Thank you Sweetwater!!

A powerful amplifier that could fill an arena

I recently began playing with a " one man band " when...an opportunity to play a benefit for a victim of domestic violence presented it self. I told my partner since he was donating his time and P.A. all day, I could at least play a set with him. We were the second of five bands to play that day. I have never played for 200 + as was a nervous wreck. A " professional " guitarist ( in the next band to play ) was tuning up while we played,.. and when he punched his tuner off and went live his amp about blew me off the stage. This was the first time this bass amp had been used, and the licks from this guitar demanded a strong bass,..( He really sounded good ! ) I reached down and bumped it up about 3 clicks and now it was " butterfly's gone,... game on " . These benefits are fun when the " jamming " starts and we raised a fair amount of money for a worthy cause. The last act was a blue grass band with a " stand up " bass, which sounded HORRIBLE when sent through the pa,... I walked back up, powered up and handed him the other end of the instrument cable, and the Whole joint came alive again !!! I was greatly impressed at the quality and quantity of the sound produced, and I can carry this with 1 hand.

great light combo amp! it won't disappoint.

Played a gig in front of 400 last week and this amazing little amp blew the doors off the place! Great sounding amp...LOUD for its size and weight. Great tone for a 15" and a direct out for the PA. Just ordered the 112MBP powered speaker cabinet to go with it and I can't wait!!!!!!!!!!!

Excellent combo for small clubs. Tone is clean and clear and surprisingly loud. Could probably even be used in mid-sized clubs. It's a bit big (deep) for shallow stages.

Love how the Piezo horn rounds out the sound.

I love the deep tones of the bass guitar, am just beginning to play. I don't know all the in's and out's of how amps work, or the words to describe all it does. I do know I'm very happy with my Gallien-Kruieger MB115-II 1X15" 200 WATT Bass Combo. It rattles my place when it's less than half volume! I want to crank it more but don't want the neighbors complaining. I get some really cool sounds from it. Awesome punch, and the good things others say about it are true.
My Sweetwater rep, Joel Helton didn't lead me astray on this choice!
If I really amped it up and disturbed the neighbors I might be able to give it the blown away rating. I just may do that yet!

At first I loved the tone and versatility (been playing and gigging over 30 years)
I've owned and abused many amps.
This amp didn't last long enough for me to really get going. The purple ring of death came on right before I needed it for a gig. I have owned many brands, I put my money into a new rig (and not gk). Big waste!!

Sad to say it, but I recommend not purchasing this amp. This amp, along with the all the other mb series amp, is not reliable. Bought mine preowned and played it for mainly practice and few small indoor gigs. After not playing it for a month and a half, I turned it on to see the purple ring of death.. I have no idea of this could have happened because the amp literally sat in the same spot it always has, it just gave up on me. I was going to get it fixed, but the part is nearly $200.00 and I read many reviews where people git theirs fixed and it ended up going bad again. Again, its a great amp ay first but it is a big gamble and you risk it going bad on you.

Bought one to use on local gigs. It sits around a lot because I don't use it that often. Pulled it out to test it for a gig, and it was dead. On/off switch light goes to "purple", as if on "standly". Warranty repair fixed it, just before warranty expired.

A year later pulled it out again. Same thing. Dead as a doornail. The thing went south twice, just sitting there in storage.