I have an opportunity to buy an AER Bingo amplifier for 650 euros.
I've been researching the amplifier for a bit and it is generally
considered a very good acoustic amplifier. I know the sound from my
friends Compact 60 amp and I like it very much. The only thing I was
wondering about is whether or not the current compact 60/2 model is in
any way different from the old Bingo models. I did find out that the
Bingo only has two effects instead of four on the compact 60/2, but
that is of no concern since I will use an external effectsdevice.
-Do you guys think 650 euro is a fair price for a relatively old amp
(don't know the exact year, but it's a Bingo so it has to be before
the compact 60 models)?
-Do you know if there are any differences between the old and the new
models?
-Has anyone had negative issues with the AER Bingo/Compact 60 amp?
Thanks in advance for your consideration.
Kind regards,
Ivo
paying 60% of the new stock price and owning an prob > 10 year old peace
of electronics, that has no special myth ... i would not do it.
maybe for 400 but not for 650.
Regards,
Zoran
You can surely get a gently-used Compact 60/2 for that kind of money.
I recently bought one for $700US.
Al
I have some experience of these as I have a pair of Compact 60s (with
the earlier reverb) and a friend who I play with has a Bingo and a
Compact 60. His Compact 60 failed and the main board was replaced
under warranty so he landed up with the upgraded effect/reverb
circuit.
The extra effects have never been useful to him and anyway you say
that you would not use them either.
The Bingo is very nearly as good as the Compact 60. I believe the
amplifier is slightly less powerful at 50 watts rather than 60 but
that's unnoticeable in practice. I also have an AER Alpha which is
rated at 40W and that seems only slightly less powerful in typical
playing situations. (However the Alpha, unlike the Bingo and Compact
60, is not a full 2 channel amp.)
I think all these models use a similar Beyma 8" loudspeaker.
The Bingo's sound is fractionally less good to my ears than the 60 but
still very clean and it works well if a singer needs to use it.
However I do think 650 Euro is very expensive for such an old amp. It
would be wise to check you can get service backup if ever needed. In
the UK my friend's experience of AER's support was very good.
Guy
And Bingo was its name-O