Well, after reading the reviews/posts by "Heartstrings", and "MichNS", I went ahead and ordered a Loudbox 100. I have used many different combinations of amps/speakers/preamps.etc. , and to be honest, I am tired of having cables,pedals,cabs,amps everywhere! So I am now in my "keep it simple" phase. The Loudbox by Fishman , from what I have read, sounds like what I am looking for. 2 independent channels thru one TRS cable, FX loop on each channel, headphone jack, tweeter control, and the feature that stood out for me, 10Mohm inputs (which I hear is great for Stickup). I am not looking for wall shaking volume(been there, done that). I just wanted a top quality small amp that reproduces the Stick tone without color. Have I made a good choice?

Hi Jim, I think you have made a very good choice; the sound of the Loudbox is very similar to the SoloAmp just a tad sweeter but the onboard reverb is not as crisp. And both of those amps IMHO sound better with the Stick than the fabled but a bit overrated Acoustic image. The bass on the AI is warmer and deeper and really amazing but for overall Stick
sound I think the other two "color" the sound less and give you the purity of the SticK
especially with the Stickup.
-j-
.~

thanks for the info. By the way, No BS, I checked out your My Space, and really dug your music. Very original and unpredictable , just the way I like it!

You'll dig the Loudbox. I'm just completely sold on Fishman amps now. The Loudbox is extremely natural and sweet sounding, and I just finished up our second gig using our new Soloamp. Just an awesome Stick amp and so dang easy to set up and tear down. I also prefer the tone of the Loudbox all-around over my AI Contra. The AI amps fill an impressive amount of area with deep bass (thanks to the downfiring woofer), but the clarity and high end sweetness of the Fishman just wins me over every time. My AI Contra is still for sale, btw.

Wow, the unexpected, unexpected goes a long way. Thanks for listening.

Back to the thread; after saying what I said about the LB-100 I thought I should get it
out of storage and see/hear instead of just remember/talk. My first impression was
an inflection of your original post (Jim)...;

I don't know if that is really possible It seems to me that the nature of electronic instruments
is to be "colored". The only way to describe the sound(s) is through color. If the sound is
really transparent and clear i.e. not colored, that sound is a kind of coloring Ok, perhaps
it is like this; if you switch to a different amplification system there is this adjustment that the
player makes to the sound and then he/she adjust' the sound manually and then tweaks
their technique a bit and that process is a kind of coloring So that happened to me
today with the LB-100 and after 10 or fifteen minuets of messing around with it somehow
I was satisfied; there were no more issues and I forgot about the amp and just played
for an hour. I think that that is an important test; to be able to get away from tweak mentality
and into playing without there being any magnetization back.
^j^
. ~

Is there an acceptable amount of low end at medium volume to cover the lowest strings on the Stick? Not looking to shake the room. Just want to be able to use the whole Stick on the Fishman.

I've not had any issues with the low range - that's why I went with the Loudbox100 instead of the higher watt Performer. When I go for lessons a couple times I've had to turn down the volume and I was not at medium volume. I typically have the gain and master around 10-11 o'clock. You will not get earth shaking bass out of it, but it matches the melody side perfectly. I've hooked up my SansAmp to get a bit deeper bass tone out of my NS, it worked fine.

It really is more of a mini-PA. Lately I've been experimenting with stereo using my AI Coda with the Fishman. You are pretty much ready for hooking up to anything with all of the input/output choices. What I love is I get a great tone at really low volumes for the small room I normally practice in - which I could not do too well with my old bass amp. Bottom line is I'm playing more than tweaking amps, which wasn't true prior to obtaining these two amps.

I was surprised to find this (Those of you outside the US might not get what I mean at first):

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp ... ies&ks=960

I got mine from a music store for less. I've heard&seen about guitar makers coming out with new brands to sell to the "Big Box" stores, but was surprised to find this. I also bought my TRS cable through the same music store, which is something I would hate to ask for at a department store.

well, testing out the Fishman Loudbox 100 with the new used stick, and I am amazed. I also have a Roland KC550, which I thought I would need to round out the low end. No way! The Loudbox has a great amount of low end. At least more than I thought it would have. I actually had to turn down the low EQ on the bass channel. I am very happy with it. Especially since it's so light , I can take it anywhere. Anyone who is looking for the perfect little solo.small gig amp. This is it! Beautiful sound with the Stickup.

I thought you'd dig it Ain't it sweet? It sounds very nice with the Alto, as well.