I gotz 2 SUNN 2000s heads, a 200s as well as the solid state 1200s. I usually just run a 2000s with 2x12 bassman cab. After getting the sunn/fender solid state 1200s I've convinced myself to sell my spare 2000s head. (It's on ebay right now!) The 1200s has great tone even with all the new crap in it. It's good enuff for live stuff but not as cool or fat n round as the 2000s but still sports the sunn logo! It's my loud loud loud head i use with twin 4x12 cabs in the crazy loud loud loud band.
I'm gonna have to go with: fender bought sunn because of lost sales which was a direct result of sunn bass heads sounding better and lasting longer. Like the story goes, they made em cause it was needed. When hartzell started to make the ss heads didn't fender continue to lose sales? Fender never really used sunn's tube design, did they? Did they even use any of sunn's solid state design's in the solid state bassman series or bxr? I didn't think so.
So when fender bought sunn did most of the old sunn tube users go to ampeg, traynor, etc.? Did most converted fender to sunn users not ever go back to fender much less the new sunn/fender line? I've tried allot of tube bass heads, that musicman hd150 was pretty bad ass as was the 70 ampeg svt 300watt cl but I've always kept the 2000s, it just sounds too dam good.
Sunn forever!
-ia