For over two decades, Marco De Virgiliis has been trailblazing new paths for bass amplification with constant innovations and a relentless flow of products from Markbass that have gained a large and loyal following across the world of bass. Since his cutting-edge Class D breakthroughs changed the trajectory of amps in the early 2000s, De Virgiliis has made it his goal to listen to the players and evolve his creations into the perfect tools for the gigging bassist. Regardless of how ambitious his visions are, or how intangible they might seem, he somehow continues to raise the bar and accomplish them using his acute attention to detail and deep sense of curiosity in achieving his goals and expanding the Markbass line. Marco De Virgiliis in front of his new MB58R series I was lucky enough to witness this in action on June 30th of 2022, when De Virgiliis and the Markbass family unveiled their new line of MB58R products at their headquarters in beautiful Pescara, Italy. With a room full of music journalists from all over the world, De Virgiliis, legendary bassist Richard Bona, and the entire Markbass staff presented the future of their brand in stunning form. Made in Italy, the new line of amps and cabinets boasted slick new looks, curiously lightweight designs, added power, and even biodegradable materials. This was no run of the mill updating of previous releases with a new layer of paint slapped on them, this was rewriting the book of the already established brand. Having been privy to seeing a preview of these products, I was naturally thrilled when the boxes bearing the Markbass logo showed up on my front porch so I could finally test these amps out myself. Having reviewed a lot number of amps in my day, and having the lower back pain to prove it, I was shocked at how lightweight these packages were. Was there a mix up in the mailroom and I was mistakenly delivered some t-shirts and swag? Nope. It was simply the lightweight new 2x10 cabinet that somehow weighs in under 22lbs. Within minutes of unboxing the Little Mark 58R and MB58R 102 ENERGY cabinet, I already had it plugged in and was exploring the tonal options. Even leveled out and unadjusted, this amp was sounding pretty spectacular. One skill that De Virgiliis has mastered is offering a wide array of complex options on his amps but making them profoundly simple to control. This gives the player a ton of customizable freedom, while not making them consult the manual at every turn. The Little Mark 58R has a straightforward layout with control knobs for Gain, Low, Mid/Low, Mid/High, High, Master, Line Out, and Old School. With a 4-band EQ, it’s easy to adjust every little nuance of your frequency, which is expanded with the three-way rotary switch that that includes the options of a Flat, Scooped, or FSW (Footswitchable) EQ. The difference from the Flat to the Scooped setting is drastic and makes it easy to swap from a deep, rumbling tone, to a slap-ready, punchy sound. Offering 500 watt