TC Electronic Announces RebelHead 450 Bass Head

After three decades of designing many award-winning and revolutionary products along the way — TC Electronic has now applied its considerable expertise to the bass market, with stunning results. The RebelHead450 bass head ($1395 MSRP), RebelStack cabinets (210 $695 MSRP and 212 $845 MSRP) and RebelControl ($195 MSRP) combine to deliver an incredible bass rig designed without compromise and will revolutionize the world of bass amplification. Available in Q12009, Rebelhead boasts a big sound, the best in new technology, ease of use and convenience — yet is practical, flexible and durable enough to be used on the road, in rehearsal rooms and in the studio.

RebelHead450 hides some extraordinary technology behind its more traditional fascia. TC Electronic has a long heritage of designing amps, and with its Active Power Management™ has effectively designed an amp in RebelHead450 that behaves very much like a tube amp with 450 watts of power. The unit has traditional tone controls but also includes groundbreaking features to really give the amp a personality and sound all of its own. TubeTone™ emulates all of the characteristics of a traditional tube circuit to deliver an unparalleled and rich experience, while SpectraComp™ offers the best in studio quality compression for a live situation. With its 'per string' compression, SpectraComp™ delivers more bite and punch than any other compressor in any other bass amp system. Importantly, as well at the ideal tone players can quickly and easily get the right pitch with RebelHead450's on-board Tuner. Having a tuner is a fundamental need for bass players, yet so many other amp systems lack this essential asset.

With its flexibility and portability, Rebelhead450 is the ideal amp for the studio, road and rehearsal room because bass players can easily take it anywhere they like and use it for whatever they like. With three on-board user memories they can quickly swap sounds or instruments mid gig — an instant solution for those who want to recall their favorite sonic combinations or who take more than one bass guitar with them on tour. And for the touring musician, Rebelhead450's Auto-sensing PSU means that players can plug and play safely in whatever country they are in — no fuse changing necessary. But RebelHead450 isn't just a great amp for touring; the Rehearsal Input socket allows bass players to plug in a variety of audio sources so they can play along with whatever tunes they like for practice, while the Recording Output connection, with a 96kHz direct to digital connection, also makes RebelHead450 the perfect bass solution for the recording studio. RebelHead450 is for every bass player. With over 20 years experience at the forefront of signal processing technology, TC Electronic delivers the best in cutting edge features within RebelHead450, The unit is also exceptionally easy to use with the clear layout of the front panel and easily accessible back panel. RebelHead450 appeals to all bass players, from those new to the bass right up to the professional player who appreciates the finer points of bass playing.

RebelHead450 is available as a standalone unit or combined with custom made RebelStack210 or 212 bass cabinets. Where RebelHead450 will transform the bass amp market, RebelStack is a system that will revolutionize on-stage performance. Bass players who use traditional 4 x 10 cabs are always faced with the same problem when playing live: placing a 4 x 10 cabinet on the floor means they get great bottom end but no pitch recognition. Put it on a stand and they get great pitch but no low end. The solution is to use RebelStack210's convenient vertical 4-driver stacking system that gives players the best of both worlds — great sound and pitch — and in a system that is light and portable for carrying from gig to gig. RebelStack212 is a 12" version that is as easy to stack as the 210, and both can be used in combination, making on-stage placement of cabinets a breeze.

Last but not least is the optional RebelControl remote control system. Designed as a floor controller for RebelHead450, RebelControl offers a tuner indicator, three preset foot buttons to change the three user memories, and a mute button. RebelControl is conveniently powered from the amp and is a great addition to the system.

"We built this amp with a combination of our extensive and proven TC technology and simply listening to bass players of every level, from world class session players to the hard working, amateur club circuit bassist," says Uffe Kjems Hansen, head of TC Electronics' instrument amp section, and bass player since the early 80s. "I've always loved bass so much, so when opportunity knocked and we got a chance to do RebelHead, the team and I made sure it would mean a new dawn for bass players, combining all their wishes and desires, sound and feature wise."