Ampeg SVT Blueline Club, 68 to early 70's.

[Eric Scholz]

I emailed them, but I haven't heard back yet. Hopefully they respond.

Originally Posted by Jerry J

Cool score Eric! Not a bad price at all.

I would contact Ampeg to see if you can get any info on the purple covering.

[JimmyM]

Might have to wait till after NAMM. Most of the folks who could answer are there.

[chaosMK]

This seems like a pretty cool thread, lots of great pics of these amps (most of which look like they survived natural disasters, bombings, etc).

Can anyone post some clips of how these amps actually sound?

[JimmyM]

They sound like SVT-VR's made today.

[chaosMK]

So in other words, they don't sound special.

[bigbottomend]

Originally Posted by chaosMK

This seems like a pretty cool thread, lots of great pics of these amps (most of which look like they survived natural disasters, bombings, etc).

Can anyone post some clips of how these amps actually sound?

My 73-4

Pbass with rounds
New track - taster - YouTube

Jazz with flats
Ampeg SVT + Fender Jazz Bass - YouTube

[chaosMK]

Cool stuff, thanks for posting.

[JimmyM]

Originally Posted by chaosMK

So in other words, they don't sound special.

Don't be a wiseass...that's my job

Of course they sound special! They're SVT's.

[Eric Scholz]

I found that mine sounds nothing like the VR. I didn't like SVTs when I heard the CL and VR, but then I decided to give the vintage one a shot, and needless to say, I bought it.

I also play with my amp at about 2-3 o'clock so it probably has a lot to do with the way it drives. I've noticed a lot of people seem to play them around 9 o'clock, which I guess the VR replicates pretty well

[johnk_10]

that's strange since my VR sounds identical to my '69 SVT at any volume level.

[JimmyM]

Ya, and it sounds pretty much identical to my Blue Line as well, and mine even has 6146b's. There might be slight differences, since most vintage SVT's have nice NOS tubes in them, but I have no complaints about the Sovteks they come with.

[Spencer!]

I don't have a VR to compare it with at the moment, but my '69 sounds like every other VR I've played.

[Jerry J]

Maybe this should be a question in it's own thread(?).

I'm looking at a blueline with a painted chassis so I'm thinking that it is a '71.

It's having a problem...in that it sounds like it's putting out about 25 watts. The preamp was by-passed and separate preamp was used still the same problem. The 12DW7 and two 12BH7 tubes were replaced with new tubes and still the same problem.

I'm thinking that the filament transformer is ok and that the power tranny is ok since there is some sound and it was able to be biased.

I'm just wondering if someone here has seen (heard?) this problem before? If so was it the OP transformer?

[beans-on-toast]

I would take DC voltage readings inside the amp and compare them with those on the schematic. Check that the heater voltages are correct. Check that the connections from the output transformer secondary to the speaker cabinet are wires correctly. Then go from there.

You replaced the 12DW7 and 12BH7 tubes. Make sure that they are in the correct sockets, check their position against the tube chart. If a 12AX7 for instance, was in a 12BH7 socket, the amp output would be low and distorted because of insufficient current to drive the power tubes. If the tubes are good, you could have a problem with the 12BH7 circuit.

The power amp requires 0.25 volts at the input from the pre-amp to drive the output of the power stage to 300 Watts.

[Jerry J]

Originally Posted by beans-on-toast

I would take DC voltage readings inside the amp and compare them with those on the schematic. Check that the heater voltages are correct. Check that the connections from the output transformer secondary to the speaker cabinet are wires correctly. Then go from there.

You replaced the 12DW7 and 12BH7 tubes. Make sure that they are in the correct sockets, check their position against the tube chart. If a 12AX7 for instance, was in a 12BH7 socket, the amp output would be low and distorted because of insufficient current to drive the power tubes. If the tubes are good, you could have a problem with the 12BH7 circuit.

The power amp requires 0.25 volts at the input from the pre-amp to drive the output of the power stage to 300 Watts.

Awesome! Great tips...thank you so much!

[Jerry J]

Well they got the SVT running. It turns out it was a couple of bad preamp tubes.





So I drug it home. It sounded absolutely crushing. It has a tube that is slightly microphonic and it's a little on the "well loved side" but I'm ok with that. And it came with a yellow Anvil case with NO FOAM.

I did crack the volume knob putting on the case(with no foam) which really frosted me. So I'll have to figure out what to do about that.

I'm sure I'll have lots of questions but I'll do some searches first. But if anyone knows the safe way to clean the faceplate so that I don't remove any of the blue graphics.

[beans-on-toast]

Originally Posted by Jerry J

But if anyone knows the safe way to clean the faceplate so that I don't remove any of the blue graphics.

Congrats on the new amp Jerry. The one that I posted pics of here was in a lot rougher shape when I got it. It is amazing how you can restore them.

When cleaning these faceplates, I usually start with the least aggressive approach. Removing it requires that you disassemble the pre-amp. Once all the pots, toggle switches and neon lamp are pulled out, the faceplate slides out. This is a lot of work but if you are going to clean the amp, this should be done.

I start with soap and water and go from there with different cleaners. Some bleach based bathroom cleaners do a great job without harming the paint.

The faceplate can be sanded to remove gouges. I should mention that this is a very tricky thing to pull off without ruining the faceplate. One had someone's name scratched into it and they wanted it removed. This was done with a hard rubber sanding block and wet sandpaper. I get them from an auto paint supply shop. I start with coarse emery paper and go up to 220 grit. You need to leave the metal coarse to keep the original look. I use soapy water as a lubricant. The blue painted part is routed and lies lower so it is protected. You can inlay some blue painter's tape to protect it. The sanding removes an even layer of the metal from the faceplate. As I said, when you are doing a restoration and have no choice this can be done but it is risky.

[JimmyM]

It looks like you just need a little Windex and elbow grease to clean that faceplate up. Really doesn't look all that bad from here. Don't worry about the gouges...gouges are cool. I'd trust David to work on them but I would never do it myself...too scared. And just remember to spray the rag, not the amp

[johnk_10]

i wouldn't use windex. the ammonia might remove the blue paint. a damp rag with mild soap and water is alot safer.

the nice thing about the vintage SVT's though is that the faceplates are etched with the blue paint recessed so it could always be easily repainted whereas a V4 practically wipes off if you just look at it.

[JimmyM]

As always I'll defer to you and I'll stop using Windex on it Haven't lost any paint but now it sounds like I got lucky.