AMPEG B-12

Amplifier-wise the B15 and the B12 are identical. Cabinet-wise they're quite different. The B12 ends up being much lighter and easier to transport. It probably won't go as low as a B15 but it can still sound pretty good. I think the B12 is a very under-appreciated rig!

 

I've used both for recording and the B 12 sounds better.

 

I have a B 12 and I installed an EV speaker.. its a great amp and you can really drive the tubes w/o the high volume levels.....natural tube distortion is a thing of beauty...

 

There was something about the B12's cabinet. I used the cab with a power amp ( and a MXR line driver!) for rehearsals and the cab handled the extra power real well and this amp shook the loft. Not very portable because of the weight but I think thats part of the secret to that sound. No panel flexing in those cabinets.

 

I believe the B-12 was 22-25 watts.
And the B-15 was 30-35 watts.

The B-12 was made to go with the Ampeg Baby Bass.
And the B-15 for electric basses.

I recorded with a B-12 for years.
Used a B-15 " live".

Both sound great.

 

I have the SB-12 (String Bass) which was designed for the Ampeg Baby bass, and was rated at 22-25 watts. Very nice sounding if rather quiet by today's standards. Mojo-man, I think you may be confusing the SB-12 with the B-12.

Cheer,
Dennis

 

I don't know what the difference between a B12 and an SB12 is, if there is any...

I have an SB12 and it's been my studio staple of late.

Sounds fantastic.

 

Try this:

http://www.ggjaguar.com/b-12xt.htm

 

That is a cool amp. My brother had a similar fliptop in the early 70's with 4x12's and he used it for guitar. I got to keep the cabinet when the amp blew. It sounded great for bass. Wish I still had it!

 

Having owned one, I can tell you a better bass amp has never been made. Nearly every recording studio has one.
Wish I still had one. It is 25 butt kickin watts.

 

My very first amp was a shiny new SB12, I wish to hell I still had it.

 

The B12 was the B15 amp on a 12" cabinet, so same wattage. There was also the SB12 which was smaller with a lower power amp.

 

There's some info in the portaflex wiki on the various models including the B12XT. If you follow through the links on the side there you can find all the old sales lit, schematics, etc, if you want to check them out.

 

There's a guitar store in Eugene Or. named MacKenzie music, that a few years ago had half a dozen of the oddball portaflexs'. Including the B12XT and others. They were there for several yrs., reading this thread I checked and they had all been sold.

 

Can someone help....please. I always thought the B12 was 22-25 watts. The B15N 35 watts. The B15S 60 watts.

 

You are spot on.

I'm thinking that B-12 and SB-12 are getting mixed up in the thread and there is some general misinformation, too.

SB-12 is a lower wattage flip top for bass ~22 watts. It's not a B15 head on a smaller cab. Totally different. Single channel, even. SB-12 output transformer is much smaller than a B-15, so much so it resides inside the cage with the tubes. There may be similarities in design but they really are two different animals.

B-12 and its X variants is a guitar amp.

I think OP was meaning to ask about SB-12 and confusion set in.

I've owned an SB-12, best amp for recording I've heard to date. Never should have sold it.

 

Not quite, the B15 and B12 were the same amp, different cab. The B15S was the higher power version with a 12AX7 preamp, 7027A power amp. The SB12 is the lower power variant with 12AX7 pre/PI and 7868 power tubes. There was also the B18/B15ND (dual cab)/B15NC (column) variants which used a 6SL7 preamp but a 7199/7027A power amp and were also 50 watts. You can see all of the schematics in the wiki, the B12 and B15 share a schematic as you can see below:

 

You can't go wrong with an old Ampeg fliptop. I have a late '60s B-15N, and I've played the B-12 as well as the SB-12. They're all beautiful sounding amps. If you are lucky enough to find one in good working order at a price you can afford, jump on it. I bought mine used in 1969 (it was my first 'real' amp) and it's still going strong. Everybody who's ever heard it loves the sound.

But I also never met an Ampeg amp I didn't like…so I may not be the most unbiased opinion out there.