Staccato’51

The bass world's response to our introduction of award winning RH450 and Classic450 has been overwhelming. Now, with the help of a true world-class bass legend, we introduce our third amp to deliver instant world-class bass tone - we are proud to present our cooperation with, Tower Of Power's Rocco Prestia on Staccato'51

Think of legendary bass players and Francis Rocco Prestia features on every list. For over 40 years now Rocco's bass has been underpinning the groove for Californian funk legends Tower of Power. In that time Rocco has defined his own style and become synonymous with the much-imitated 'Finger Style Funk' that he pioneered back in the '60s and '70s.

Laura Clapp & Rocco Prestia
Laura Clapp presents the new Staccato'51 bass amp to Francis Rocco Prestia of Tower of Power. Afterwards, they talk about how it all came together and how it was to develop the amp together with TC Electronic. We also hear the response from other members of ToP including Rocco's bass tech.

Now TC and Rocco have joined forces to make Staccato'51 - a custom-tuned version of the RH450 that's been made to Rocco's exact specification and ear. It may look like the RH450 bass head, but the sound design is completely different and meets the demands of a legend like Rocco Prestia - both on stage and in the studio.

Rocco's sound design on Staccato'51 fits his legendary finger-muting technique like a glove. The full-bodied tone with plenty of highs and lows as well as the ultra fast precision response enhances the percussive elements of Rocco's playing to perfection.

In addition to the sheer tone shaping, Rocco has added a touch of our SpectraComp™ per-string compression to tighten the sound even more. And finally a touch of TubeTone™ brings out the growl of Staccato'51 when really digging into those low-end notes with his powerful right hand technique.

To achieve perfect tone, Rocco pairs his Staccato'51 with a stack of our RS cabinets - An RS410 and two RS212s - giving him both punch and enough low end to stand out on stage with the 10-piece Tower of Power band.

Uffe Hansen presents Staccato'51
Head of the TC Electronic bass division, Uffe Hansen, presents the new Staccato'51 bass amp. Uffe gives a complete rundown on the new specifications on Staccato'51

BassIda compares Staccato'51 with RH450
TC Electronic’s own bass demonstrator, the very lovely and talented Bass Ida, compares the new Staccato'51 bass amp with RH450. Ida is using RH450 and 2 x RS210's as her main rig and she is trying out Staccato'51 here for the first time.

How Rocco Prestia and TC Electronic developed the Staccato'51
Staccato'51 was created by combining the unique 'Bass Amp 2.0' capabilities of our RH450 and Rocco's decades of experience as a true bass legend. To get the sound exactly as Rocco wanted, we went through thorough tuning sessions along with countless hours of real life gigs on the road with Rocco and Tower of Power. Here's a rundown of how this unique bass amp came into being...

Rocco had been on the lookout for the ultimate bass amp. Hearing rumors about a new and very different bass amp concept – 'Bass Amp 2.0', Rocco arranged to meet with us on the Denmark leg of Tower of Power's 2009 European tour.

Rocco tried out the RH450 rig prior to the Tower of Power sound check - and liked what he heard so much that his usual rig was instantly removed from the stage the RH450 put in its place.

Shortly afterwards the idea of the customized Staccato'51 was born - Staccato because of Rocco's style of playing, '51 to represent his birth year. Next we meet with Rocco in Hollywood, to start the work on the custom tuning.

During the days of tuning, hours of intensive playing, listening and comparing was undertaken. We tested different playing styles in addition to Rocco's to make sure that the amp would work perfectly - not only for Rocco, but for any player.

Rocco took the first Staccato'51 prototype 'live' on the Japanese TOP tour (May '09). The results were extremely positive. Fine-tuning and minor tweaks finalized Staccato'51, and the rest is history.

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Bass Newsletter

Staccato'51 Review - musikmachen.de

Staccato'51 Review - musikmachen.de
tc electronic bringt mit dem neuen Bass-Verstärker Staccato ´51 und der dazugehörigen 4 x10“ Box RS 410 eine spannende und interessante Alternative für Bassisten, die das Andere suchen.

Go to the video review (in German)

RH450 Review - MusicPlayers.com

by Scott Kahn - MusicPlayers.com
The result of TC Electronic and Tannoy’s design collaboration is nothing short of brilliant - we unequivocally love this bass rig... ...The compressor sounded great, which shouldn’t come as any big surprise since TC Electronic has been doing this kind of signal processing for decades.

Read the full review

RH450 Review - Bass Player

by Jonathan Herrera - Bass Player
With the controls set for the flattest response, the RH head was beautifully textured and fast, with warm and supple mids, taut lows, and a mellow top

Read the full RH450 review

RH450 Review - Premier Guitar

by Dan Berkowitz - Premier Guitar
As far as tone, I really discovered the character of the RH450 while A/B’ing with another brand of mini-amp. One note and I was struck with the transparency of that other amp - nearly to the point of sounding sterile. In contrast, the RH450 had a warmth and tonal character that were very pleasant, yet assertive.

Read the full RH450 review

RH450 - Most Outstanding Design

RH450 - Most Outstanding Design
At the NAMM show 2009 RH450 was awarded most outstanding design by bass gear magazine

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