If you have a bad tube would the buzz/hum be the same at any volume or be more prevalent the louder you turn the gain/master? Also will fluorescent lights cause a buzz/hum?
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2013 Ampeg V-4B 100W Reissue Pt2
- Thread starter Chef
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If you have a bad tube would the buzz/hum be the same at any volume or be more prevalent the louder you turn the gain/master? Also will fluorescent lights cause a buzz/hum?
1) It could be either.
2) Fluorescent light will absolutely cause a buzz or hum.
Here are some guidelines for what to look for when a tube has an issue.
Thanks for that bit of info. I have a buzz goin on with mine too and I'm just trying to figure some things out so I don't send it back for a replacement if not needed. With the gain and master turned low I don't have much if any noise but the more I turn them up the more noise I get. More so with the gain than the master.Also when I touch the strings on my bass it goes away completely. I also do have a fluorescent light in my apartment.
Turn the light off
edit:
and keep your fingers on the strings
do you have a single coil pickup?
Mine has no more hum in it than my SVT. I suggest trying it at a different location as well. I've had hums at home sometimes and not had hums on a gig. My problem turned out to be dimmers since I forbade flourescent lights in our house.
If the noise goes away completely when you are touching your stings, the problem is not the amp. If it mostly goes away, there will always be some hum, it could be that that a tube is marginal.
The noise is getting into your bass or your instrument cable. Turning up the gain on the amp is revealing the issue. Tone control adjustments will also bring out the hum.
Try the bass in another room that is on a different circuit (circuit breaker or fuse). The wiring, a bad junction box behind the wall, a motor, heater, air conditioner, washer, dryer, light dimmer, a source of noise in a neighbors apartment, a neon sign, even a power transformer out in the street, are all possible sources of noise. There are a lot of possibilities.
As was suggested, turn off the lights and see if it makes a difference. A strong source of noise can overpower whatever is done in the amp to keep noise out.
Next thing to try is another instrument cable. Check that the jack nuts are tight at each end. Be careful not to scratch anything, check with your fingers. Don't use pliers!
If you have another bass, try that in the amp. Single coil pickups are more susceptible to picking up noise. Standing in a different direction, pointing the pickups away from a noise source, can help. If the bass has an issue, there may be a bad ground wire (connected to the bridge), solder joint, or the bass cavity needs better shielding.
Thanks for the help guys. I'm thinking it's probably a combination of old wiring in my apartment, the fluorescent light and there's a possibility of a grounding issue with my bass. I bought it used and the previous owner changed the pickup and bridge himself. I'm gonna change out my cables and check my bass for grounding issues and then go from there.
If you touch the strings and it goes away then first thing to check is the ground wire from the bridge to the ground on the pots. It may be not making good contact under the bridge especially since you mentioned the bridge was replaced.
I keep asking but has anyone done a/b with a v4b and the reissue? Just curious
I received my reissue V4B today (it is the Lee Rocker contest one that I purchased from Guitar Center).
I just got a chance to tool around with it for a while and I am digging it.
Right away I thought the tone was reminiscent of my '72 V4 - and after a side by side comparison I feel they are very close. There are some differences that I expected - like the volume pot is more aggressive on the '72 - and the mid range controls sound different on the two amps. On the reissue, if the mid knob is cut - and you flip through the frequency switch, you can barely perceive a difference in tone. On the '72, there is an obvious difference between the settings at all mid switch/knob positions.
The '72 did seem to have a slightly richer tone - but I am not sure about that. My little studio room is not the best place for testing large bass amps - the room is fairly small and the walls are padded. My rigs always sound better at a gig where there is more room to breathe - and I will get to bring the V4B out this Friday and Saturday.
I also played around with my Telecaster guitar along with my reverb and Tremolo pedals - and I was very happy with how the reissue sounds with guitar as well. I was able to get it to sound very much like my old Fender Twin that I sold a few years back. I really think Ampeg is missing an opportunity if they don't re-badge some of these amps and change the tone controls a bit and market it as a guitar amp (with a counterpart speaker cab). I know they recently discontinued their guitar amp line (because the market is over-saturated with other choices) but this amplifier has a rep with guitarists as well as bassists.
Attached is a photo showing the cabs and amps that I was comparing - along with the speaker/amp switch box that I have (and two of my favorite basses). The cabs include a Heritage 810E, two PF115LF's and a '76 V-2 (with 4x12 inch modern Eminence bass drivers). All three cab units sound very good with both V4's - and believe it or not, the dual PF's sounded the most impressive to me (at least in my little padded room).
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After our recent amp shipping discussions, I'm glad to hear that it arrived safely. The new amp looks right at home.
V2 is the tube related to the tone controls. I wonder if swapping in a different 12AX7 would make a difference in the mid shift. Another test, rather than a 12AX7, a 12AU7 would provide less gain but more drive. This could bring out more tonal expression. Then again, maybe less.
The '51 PBass is really nice.
V2 is the tube related to the tone controls. I wonder if swapping in a different 12AX7 would make a difference in the mid shift. Another test, rather than a 12AX7, a 12AU7 would provide less gain but more drive. This could bring out more tonal expression. Then again, maybe less.
The '51 PBass is really nice.
Thanks David.
The tones I want are there - so I probably won't be changing the tubes for a while. There definitely is more variation in the mids on the '72 - you can go from a warm mid cut, to Lemmy in a flick of the switch, and while like Motorhead as much as the next guy - that sound is not what I typically do.
Also - Guitar Center shipped trhe V4B an over-sized box wrapped with about 9 layers of bubble wrap. There was no hurting it in transit - it would be like punching Spongebob. The guy did forget to put the power cord in though:/
Glad you got a chance to play with it Rich.
Based on your comments, it sounds like the Reissue is a good substitute for the original. This is good as it is one less thing to buy and no cabinet matching issues.
I use mine in place of my 70's SVT and it does a great job filling in.
Based on your comments, it sounds like the Reissue is a good substitute for the original. This is good as it is one less thing to buy and no cabinet matching issues.
I use mine in place of my 70's SVT and it does a great job filling in.
Glad you got a chance to play with it Rich.
Based on your comments, it sounds like the Reissue is a good substitute for the original. This is good as it is one less thing to buy and no cabinet matching issues.
I use mine in place of my 70's SVT and it does a great job filling in.
It is Carl, in fact, it is a good replacement. I've put my '72 "V4" back in it's 212 guitar combo cab and I am putting it up for sale.
The reissue sounds just as good - and I expect it to be cheaper and easier to maintain.
This is good to hear. My memories of my 73 V4B are fuzzy after 20 years, but I thought it sounded just like my old one. As for the mids, it gets the mids I want to hear so I couldn't care less about its range 
Tried doing a NOS Raytheon in V1...was not happy that it tightened up the treble too much for my tasted and went back to the JJ. Maybe after this weekend blows over I'll try the Raytheon in V2 and see what happens.
Tried doing a NOS Raytheon in V1...was not happy that it tightened up the treble too much for my tasted and went back to the JJ. Maybe after this weekend blows over I'll try the Raytheon in V2 and see what happens.
So how would you compare clean headroom volume and the transition into overdrive between the two?
I think the clean headroom is about even.
Because the '72 does not have the Gain/Master controls, there are a lot more graduations from clean to dirty built into the reissue.
The '72's volume pot goes loud early. I don't have both amps on right now, but I had to guess, I think the reissue's Master would behave like the '72's volume knob if the gain was set between 2:00 or 3:00 (if you get my meaning).
I believe to run it like the 72 you would dime the master and use the preamp gain to control volume. Thats essentially how a vintage non-master volume v4b works
It would be interesting to A/B the V4B preamp with the SVT CL pre. Run the preamp out from the V4B into the SVT power amp and compare that to the SVT pre.
