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BGRA: SWR Baby Blue II
| Manufacturer |
SWR |
Model |
Baby Blue II |
| Reviewer |
Brian Rost |
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| Experience |
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Item owned |
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| Review Date |
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Price paid |
$1100 list, street price about $750-800 |
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Dimensions | approx. 24" x 12" x 12" |
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Wattage | 160 watts into 2 ohms |
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Speaker(s) | two 8" woofers, one 5" cone tweeter |
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Effects | side-chain effects loop |
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Controls | aural enhancer (unique to SWR) |
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Other | XLR direct out with level, tuner out, |
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The Baby Blue II is not for everyone. It is for people who want a
small, easy to move amp that has features normally found only on
bigger amps. The downside is the cost, $1100 list is a lot of cabbage
for something that looks like a "practice amp"!
The original Baby Blue used 8" speakers made by Bag End, the BB II now
uses Celestion drivers. The amplifier develops 140 watts into the
resulting 4 ohm load, you can get an extra 20 watts by adding a 4 ohm
extension cabinet. The amp is not very loud with the internal
speakers, although it sounds great, a lot of bottom and a very smooth
high end, more "buttery" than cabinets using horns rather than cone
tweeters. The 3 bands of EQ are all sweepable, so it is capable of a
lot of tonal variation; in addition it has the SWR "aural enhancer"
which is a unique control. At the highest settings, it scoops mids
while boosting highs and lows; slappers will love it. At lower
settings, it beefs up low mids for more of a "60s" tonality. The EQ
can be bypassed by pulling out on the aural enhancer knob.
The BB II has a single 12AX7 tube in the preamp which adds some
roundness to the tone, but even with the gain control cranked, it will
not give a usable tube overdrive if that's what you like.
The patching capabilities are incredible. The XLR output can be pre or
post-EQ, there is a level pot and a ground lift. Whew! There are also
a tuner out (can be used as an unbalanced pre-EQ out), a line out
(post-EQ but pre-volume, unbalanced), the effects loop and jacks for
the internal and extension speakers. The effects loop is of the
"side-chain" type, like on PA mixers. There is a "blend" control which
adjusts the balance of the dry signal and the wet signal; pulling out
the pot disconnects the loop entirely. There is no onboard
compression, but a pair of LEDs indicate whether the preamp or power
amp are clipping. There is no relay protecting the spaekers from
"thumps" on power up.
So what does it sound like? It is very "high fidelity" and will remind
you of the sound you hear on studio recordings of pop music; a full,
round tone with a clear high end and a solid punch without any
honkiness, harshness, boom or mud. It's also a sweet amp for upright
bass as it doesn't have that "boxiness" typical of most bass cabs when
used with the upright. Despite the low wattage rating, the amp has a
lot of dynamic headroom so it never feels compressed or "squashed". It
sounds so smooth that you will have to work a bit with your instrument
and the amp's EQ to get any sort of snarly, grinding tones. It gets
quite loud for it's size but you may find yourself turning the master
volume up pretty high (3/4 or more) to deal with loud guitars and
drums. Adding an extra cabinet adds a lot to the volume; a bigger box
means more volume and more bottom. With a good extension cabinet (I've
used it with a 1-15 and a 2-10) it starts showing some real muscle.
The Baby Blue II is a good amp if you need modest volume, very true
sound and a small package. As good as it sounds, it's not a great rock
and roll stage amp because of the volume limitations.
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| construction |
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| clarity |
| (100%) |
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| value |
| (80%) |
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| overall |
| (98%) |
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