Markbass CMD 102P 300/500W 2x10 Tilt-Back Bass Combo Amp  

One of my favorite things about this amp is the simplicity of the controls. It manages to produce a wide range of sounds without need of a bunch of esoteric knobs and switches that have to be set just so. You can adjust tone on the fly without needing to stop and re-program your amp to sound good.

The best feature by far, in my opinion, is the VLE(Vintage Loudspeaker Emulator). This knob allows me to set my sound up with VLE at 0 and then once I am dialed in, I can go from Seinfeld theme slappy highs to warm, Led Zeppliny sounding low tones just by adjusting the VLE up, and I don't have to re-adjust EQ at all.

Well built, light yet sturdy, looks great. The only strange thing I might point out is that something used in construction, maybe the cab sealer or upholstery adhesive, smells an awful lot like cooking circutry. And when you are playing, the pressure inside the cab basically burps this smell out from inside the ports, giving the impression that the smell is tied to power. But after a week of solid playing, everything is fine and the smell is subsiding. Oh, and the power LED is like a tiny blue sun. Hit it with a sharpie to take it down a notch. On a dimly lit stage it can make the controlls hard to see.

I feel like it could be a bit cheaper. Then again, who doesn't wanna save money? I can't let my inner curmudgeon rate it less than a 10, because it really is a fantastic amp.

Great amp. Solid, simple, quality. Big enough for the stage, yet small enough to single hand carry. Get any sound from metal to funk out of it, with just a few knob adjustments.

This is a working musician's amp.

Not rated a 10 since it is missing a mute button, although in actual use this is not a big deal.  Great sounds, easy to dial in your sound, does not suffer from excessive options like some amps that just get in the way.

Built like a tank, weighs like a feather...amazing!

For the quality and sound of this combo, I don't think this is overpriced.

As an owner of various combo amps over the years (currently have a mesa boogie), the MarkBass has killer sound, weighs next to nothing, is built to last, and the price is appropriate (maybe even a bargain) for the quality.  You can dial in many different sounds from jazzy to growly to flat out power bass.

Tilt-back combo with two 10" B&C neodynium drivers and a piezo tweeter.  300W@8 ohms or 500W@4 ohms.  Little Mark II preamp.  Metal speaker grille.  Great light weight to power ratio.  XLR balanced out and Speakon extension cab connector.

I've been using this amp for a little over a year now and I'm impressed with the power, sound and quality.

Worth the price.

After 30+ years of using Ampegs, I've replaced my SVT with the CMD102P and 151P extension cab.  The quality is impressive and the 102P alone packs a great punch and bottom capable of keeping up with two rock guitarists and a drummer.  With the additional 151P extension cab, it's all I'll ever need.  I especially love how light it is yet so powerful.  No more carrying around 90lb heads and 140lb cabs for me.

I haven't had a chance to use this on stage yet but I think it's gonna be nice! I just got my MarkBass CDM 102P delievered to my house today. Aside from a small glitch with shippment, due to Musician's Friend phone order service not being synched with the online profile, my amp finally came today. I think I am really going to like this amp!

First thing I noticed when I pulled the 102P out of the box is that it's light. I was worried about having to carry this thing up and down stairs where I practice, but I'm not worried about that at all now. The enclosure is very solid though and the whole setup makes me think it's going to be long lasting and very durable. I don't know how MarkBass did it, but after the amps and head units I've been carrying around, this amp is going to make life a whole lot easier in the weight and structure quality. But...I couldn't wait to hear it in action. I plugged it in and set all the tone nobs to the manufacture recomended 12 o'clock, turned the gain up, started playing as I would on stage and adjusted the gain back down until the clip light stopped coming on and turned up the volume. MarkBass literature says this gives you the true tone of your bass. Truthfully I haven't heard my Ibanez BTB 5-string bass sound this good since I bought it. One of the amps I've occasionally played through is a Hartke (2) 4x10, which has always the be-all-end-all brand of bass amps for me.  But I always found my self playing with the EQ and trying to find a sweet tone I've only been thinking of but couldn't describe. I only had to turn the VPF nob on this thing and there was the sound I've been looking for! Granted, I was playing in my house, sitting three feet away, and shaking the walls, but I've got a good feeling this thing will sound great on stage!

At first it seemed kind of expensive for a small rig, but I thought, "I'll try it to see if it's worth it and send it back under the 'I'm just not satisfied with it' return," ithat is if I didn't like it of course. I now think it's very much worth the money. As of now, I will not be sending this back. I will try it on stage and maybe post a performability rating later. The only reason I give it a 9 here is that I didn't have much money to but it right now but my last amp was dropped by some movers.

I give it an overall 10 here because of everything above not related to me or Musician's Friend. But I want to add a comment to my thus far unfounded concerns with my purchase. When I went to plug this amp in I noticed my hand didn't have much room to connect the back of the head to the power cable. At first I thought, "this is going to be very inconvenient." Then I began playing with the rectangle shape in the top of the encloser that I noticed when I pulled tha amp out of the box. It's finished with the same material as the rest of the enclosure so I thought, "what's that? It looks like it can be removed." After pushing and trying to pry it off with my fingers I decided to push from the inside up and, rip. No, the enclosure cover didn't rip. It's a trap door that's velcroed on. Abra Cadabra, I can now reach everything on the back with ease. Markbass really thought of the player with this design and didn't skimp on anything. They could've probably cut corners and tried selling it for the same amount but I have a feeling someone there said, "we want to make a very high quality product that our customers will love using." Well MarkBass, I think I'm going to love this very big sounding little combo.

I have written many reviews and used even more amps... Some good, some great, some were the worst things I ever played.

That being said after all the amps I have ever played; This is the amp or should I more properly say, combo amp that I have been most impressed with and most pleasurable to play.

All touring amps (and equipment for that matter) must be able to pass the three following check points.

Tone

Dependably

Portability

It has to sound good, not break, and be able to be transported.

This amp far exceeds the standards for all three.

Having a sound and over all tone that is second to none. Clear and crisp with more punch then anything I have ever played, with plenty of low end that you may not need any pre amp re-enforcement.
It seems to be a very dependable tool, (having not failed in any way over the last years shows) I did to protect my investment by purchasing the padded cases offered from Markbass.  They fit well and work as the Markbass company says they should.

At a weight under what most heads weigh, (to say nothing of the speakers) it is light and very easy to move.  Having not being built on a bulky or awkward size one can easily lift the amp with one hand and two handed caring when on the stairs of a poorly thought out club lay out are a breeze to navigate.  Portability is beyond important and most often overlooked when it comes to picking a decent amp.  All the great sound in the world won't matter at all if you can not bring it to bare on the stage.

The Italian people often known for fine workmanship on all things have now proven that amp building is well with in their grasp.

The amp is sleek looking box that gives equal nods to efficiency and style.  I happen to enjoy it's "Attack of the Killer Bee's" look that the color scheme suggest, but it offers a rather practical use in that it is far easier to read in low light the bold black letters on a yellow face then almost anything else I have ever encountered. The easy of use of the front panel of an amp is always paramount in its construction, and this amp does not let you down there.

A fairly straight forward lay out for controls having only two knobs that you may wish to read up on to fully understand what they do, but if you have a decent ear you should not have any trouble determining their values and extreme usefulness without much if any explanation.

The two onboard speakers are able to give a solid clear sound with out fear of over driving in the unpleasant way. In small clubs practice spaces the speakers have great tonal aspects to them rivaling or exceeding that of any of its competitors. The tilt back feature is excellent allowing the amp to serve as monitor and backline.  In places where you will be using the far better then average line out feature the amp pairs with an expansion 4x10 cab most smartly.  The resulting 6x10 cab will easily rival or exceed any of the leading brand name 8x10. To date I know of nothing that sounds as good and is lighter then this combo with an expansion cabinet.

The amp is a bit on the pricey side with used models selling from 900 to 1000.  I would have to say that this speaks more to a sign of how well the amp performs and is constructed then a show of greed from Markbass.  It could easily be the last combo amp you ever need buy and as the repairs are few and far between spending a bit more for quality is far better then the disappointment often had by purchasing something cheeper.

Some might remark that the amp lacks some of the features found on some lower price point amps built in compressors, over drive, sub octaves and the like and kind. It has been my experience that every built into the amp compressor on the market is less then impressive. The same can be said for over drive units, and all manner of built in effects. I am truly glad that Markbass left out these useless items that are what many amp companies call features.

Over all I would say that this amp is a worth wild purchase and is a perfect first buy for any one thinking about Markbass, or looking for a combo amp (that they can easily turn into their full stage rig buy simply buying a 4x10 cab)
The price point being set slightly higher then normal is not really a deterrent as it is exceptionally built amp that has embraced the idea of infinite convertibility