Markbass Little Marcus 58R 500W Bass Amp Head Black

The Markbass Little Marcus 58R is an innovative 500-watt bass head that cracks the code on power, portability and tone. The Italian-made amp is dressed in a beautiful yellow-and-black chassis that’s reminiscent of another of Italy’s wonders—the Ferrari LaFerrari sports car in Giallo Modena (yellow) with black accents. And, also like the LaFerrari, the Little Mark 58R delivers performance that is as stunning as its visual allure. Founded in 2001 by Marco De Virgiliis—who pioneered solid-state, Class-D amp design and the use of lightweight neodymium speakers in the company’s bass cabinets—Markbass is renowned for providing bassists with complex tonal options that are simultaneously simple and easy to operate.  

Lightweight and Eco Friendly
The Markbass Little Mark 58R weighs just 4.4 lb., and with a lean footprint of approximately 11″ x 3″ x 11″, it can fit into a tote bag or generous gig bag pocket. In the case of the Markbass Little Mark 58R, lightweight doesn’t mean flimsy, weak, puny or anemic. Packed with 500 watts of solid-state MPT (Mark Proprietary Technology) power, the Little Mark 58R serves up a bounty of clean headroom—enough to bring the low-end rumble for jazz ensembles, dance bands or power trios. If, like many bassists, you play a lot of different styles of music, this is an amp that can handle practically everything you throw at it. Furthermore, the Markbass Little Mark 58R can help you save the planet for future generations of bass players, as all parts are 100-percent recyclable.

Easy Ins and Outs
The Markbass Little Mark 58R makes getting sounds a pleasure for the player and a live sound crew or studio engineer. The main inputs and outputs are accessible on the front panel, and they are ringed in bright yellow boxes for swift viewing on a darkened stage. Send and Return jacks are provided for adding effects to your rig, and you can run the send pre-EQ or post-EQ for ideal tone tailoring. An XLR direct out with a ground-lift switch is also highly visible on the front panel—which will greatly relieve sound techs, who won’t have to reach behind the head and feel around for the proper output. This can be a gig saver when your band is in the midst of a quick set changeover, and your amp is positioned in the shadows of a stage’s backline.

All Controls Front and Center
The Markbass Little Mark 58R delivers a lot of sonic prospects, and all the necessary controls are available on the front panel. Output levels can be set with Gain and Master, and there’s even a dedicated volume knob for the Line Out—a handy option if the house mixer is getting too strong or too weak of a direct signal. The wide-ranging EQ section offers Low, Mid/Low, Mid/High and High. The midrange controls alone are potent enough to dial in the punch and attack you want. You can also set the 3-way rotary switch for Flat or Scooped, or control the Little Mark 58R’s mute and scooped EQ features with a footswitch. A variable Old School knob dims the high end and pumps up the mids for wayback tones from the ’60s and ’70s. The remaining goodies are power and mute switches, and an integrated bi-band limiter that manages bass frequencies but leaves mids and highs alone.

No Need to Watch Your Six
It may be a little thing, but once the power cable and speaker outs (two 1/4″ and one XLR) are connected, there is no reason to peek behind the head. There are no gig-critical buttons, switches or knobs on the back panel, so you—and/or your soundperson or tech—can position the amp head and speaker cabinet without having to leave room for someone to squeeze to the rear of the unit for troubleshooting or tweaking. If there are multiple bands setting their equipment onstage for a show, not having to negotiate the gear maze to, say, adjust the level of a direct output is one less impediment to a hassle-free performance. It’s yet another indication of how Markbass visualizes and resolves real-world obstacles that often face working bassists.