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TC Electronic Thrust BQ500 500-watt Compact Bass Head

500-watt Bass Amplifier Head with 4-band EQ, Onboard Compressor, Balanced DI, and Worldwide Power Switching
$339.00

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TC Electronic Thrust BQ500 500-watt Compact Bass Head
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Ultralight 500-watt Class D Bass Head/DI

Endless tone sculpting and 500 real watts in a featherweight 5-pound steel chassis, the TC Electronic Thrust BQ500 bass amp/DI is the mobile bass player's dream turned reality. The Thrust BQ500's MOSFET preamp and capable tone stack give this Class D bass head the warmth and touch dynamics of a classic tube amp, fed into a speaker cab, PA, or headphones for silent practice. Thrust BQ500's 4-band EQ section provides plenty of scoop or boost to sweeten any bass tone, and its onboard compressor delivers instant dynamic control for smoother, more moving performances. You also get an 1/8-inch aux input for jamming and phrase training, a pre-/post-EQ balanced XLR out plus locking speakON speaker output, and automatic power switching for worldwide operation, all at an unheard-of price, with the TC Thrust BQ500 from Sweetwater.

Lightweight and portable

The TC Thrust BQ500 is mobilized to move at a moment's notice. Pop this compact bass head in a backpack or gear bag for the ultimate portable gigging solution. Its onboard 4-band EQ and compression pack all the tone-shaping power you need for pickup gigs. And with its speakON, direct XLR, and headphone outputs, the Thrust BQ500 offers limitless options for practice and performance.

Enough juice to fill a room

Paired with a stage-worthy speaker cab, the Thrust BQ500 can competently fill a room. Though its 500-watt output is best suited for small to medium-sized venues, its balanced XLR out feeds your stage tone — EQ, compression, and all — directly into a PA for untapped performance power. This XLR out saves the need for a traditional direct box, eliminating one more piece of gear from your bass EDC.

Great for practice

The Thrust BQ500 is just as sweet as a practice tool. Plug in your phone and pop on some headphones and start testing the waters with new tones or new material. The BQ500's headphone output automatically mutes the cab if connected, so there's never a need to modify your performance rig when you feel like a little late-night jamming.

TC Electronic Thrust BQ500 Bass Amplifier Head Features:

  • 500-watt Class D bass head/DI
  • Lightweight and compact
  • Fits easily in a backpack or gear bag
  • MOSFET preamp unlocks tubelike warmth and touch dynamics
  • 4-band EQ scoops and boosts to your every whim
  • Simple onboard compressor smooths out performances
  • Balanced XLR output with pre-/post-EQ switch feeds your colored or uncolored tone into a PA
  • Secure locking speakON speaker out (4 ohms minimum)
  • 1/8-inch headphone out plus aux in for silent practice
  • Worldwide power switching for interruption-free performance anywhere on the planet

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Warranty Info

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Tech Specs

  • Type: Solid State
  • Number of Channels: Single channel
  • Total Power: 500W
  • EQ: 4-band EQ
  • Inputs: 1 x 1/4", 1 x 1/8" (aux)
  • Outputs: 1 x SpeakON, 1 x XLR (direct out)
  • Headphones: 1 x 1/8"
  • Power Source: Standard IEC power supply
  • Height: 2.7"
  • Width: 10"
  • Depth: 9.2"
  • Weight: 5.1 lbs.
  • Manufacturer Part Number: 000-CQS02-00010

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Customer Reviews

Write your review
Rated 5/5

Great Bang for the Buck!

I've wanted this for a while and was not disappointed! I replaced my old Kustom head with this and made my Carvin 400w 15" rattle the earth! I look forward to the adventures and thunder bass!!!
Rated 5/5

Tc electronic, BQ 500

These are great little amps, I own 2-500s, and 1-250, watt... when you run through a quality cabinet, they sound great, I've played some large, party's, and clubs and always had,plenty of reliable, low-end power..
Music background: Bass player
Rated 5/5

Value beyond compare

I've read and thought the same as a few other reviewers commented, that at this price point, that power rating is almost certainly an exaggeration. Wrong. I'm amazed. Replaced an aging SWR bass350(watts) and hoped it would at least match it's power. No doubt, this TC BQ500 easily proves it's much more powerful. Some have hashed over oddities in frequency centers of the tone controls, and yes, I've got things dialed far away from flat to get that thunder and snarl I look for in tone. So what? It sounds just great through a 112 neo with a tweeter section. The Thrust compression is a nice icing on the cake, and does a very nice job for a single knob compressor. When I plug in cab #2, another 112 neo, I call this my little "thunder stack".
I thought, for the money, if it was a little underrated, it would make a nice little practice head for the home studio. Nope. Used it in a wide variety of live settings throughout a very busy summer of gigging, including 500+ capacity venues running 20 - 30K watts FOH and fly rigs, and still average under 1/2 volume, so the headroom is there.
Thanks to this amp head, I've crossed an 800+ watt big dog off my wish list, as anything more than the 500 watts this little beauty punches out with solid clarity is just not necessary for me.
This is almost certainly the best bang for buck in a compact, hard hitting bass head with just the right amount of tone shaping.
Music background: 40+ year bassist, semi-pro.
Rated 5/5

Dig this little thing!

Bought this a few months ago to replace my broken amp. It sounds good, not amazing. But for the price I am VERY happy! I also love the built in compressor! The aux in is also a nice feature for practicing along with tracks on your phone. I'm using this with a 4x10 Hartke cabinet and it is loud! If your on a budget and looking for a new bass head, I highly recommend this!
Rated 5/5

Nice head amplifier

I wasn't very sure about this product but it is very good an easy to operate very affordable and super easy to carry light weight.
Music background: Bassist around 20 years
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