Yes. Any competent local tech will do as i's not neurosurgery nor is there any 'black art' involved.
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Ampeg B-15 thread... first ever?
- Thread starter Ben Clarke
- Start date
Hey nice one! I'd take it to Jess if its not too far- he knows every nut and bolt of it. Also- it will instantaneously improve its resale mojo.
OT: Mark- I was just wondering if that jazz in your photo is a 75 or a 75RI?
yeah i'm pretty much 99% on sending it to Jess. It needs a couple of cosmetic things as well (missing the glass plate, tolex is ripping off).
It's a 75 RI in my avatar. I sold it about a year ago, but what a great bass. I wish I hadn't sold it.
This is my latest purchase. A 67 B15N.
This is my 67 BT15C
According to the Ampeg book ,the "C" denotes the 2-15 cabinet. (column)
I'm putting the two together to make a B15NC.
I seen one pictured in the Ampeg book.
I was wondering,anyone ever play through a B15NC?
This is my 67 BT15C
According to the Ampeg book ,the "C" denotes the 2-15 cabinet. (column)
I'm putting the two together to make a B15NC.
I seen one pictured in the Ampeg book.
I was wondering,anyone ever play through a B15NC?
It's not bad ,but it's a 100 watt solid state amp so there isn't much warmth. It's clean though.
What is way-cool about that BT head is the "electroluminence" panel.
All the graphics on the control panel light up when you turn it on.
Makes it real easy to see on stage. I wish they still did that.
I'd really like to find someone who has used a B15n through this cabinet though.
It has both original CTS speakers in it and all the thin insulation also.
My head should be here any day and I can't wait.
What is way-cool about that BT head is the "electroluminence" panel.
All the graphics on the control panel light up when you turn it on.
Makes it real easy to see on stage. I wish they still did that.
I'd really like to find someone who has used a B15n through this cabinet though.
It has both original CTS speakers in it and all the thin insulation also.
My head should be here any day and I can't wait.
My Baby - 1964 B15NC. Original CTS square magnet speaker. I love it. Tone for days.
You said this was a b15nc.
I thought the 2-15' column cabs were the "C".
It's hard keeping these designations straight.
NC can be either a column type, or the C can also denote the circuit revision. i.e., B-15NB, B-15NC, etc.
Confusing, ay?
My B15s is having issues. Was playing this afternoon and it was working perfectly and then all of the sudden it starts to make popping and crackling noises. Doesn't seem to matter whether I'm playing it or even if the bass is plugged in. Totally bummed. Looks like I'll have two in the shop.
Time to resurrect this thread once more I think... my apologies.
So, I've got a line on a B-15S that will set me back $850 (will take selling some other gear to acquire) and in speaking with a friend about it... found out that he has a B-15T that he'd sell me for $200 which would NOT require me to sell anything off to get it. Here comes the unavoidable question: What do I do? Immediate gratification... or eternal bliss?!?
So, I've got a line on a B-15S that will set me back $850 (will take selling some other gear to acquire) and in speaking with a friend about it... found out that he has a B-15T that he'd sell me for $200 which would NOT require me to sell anything off to get it. Here comes the unavoidable question: What do I do? Immediate gratification... or eternal bliss?!?
As the happy owner of a B15s that's an easy question to answer. Take the bliss. Buy the B15s and sell whatever you need to to get what you really want.
Two Portaflex amps for just over a grand?!?.. it's almost a no-brainer, right?!? The B-15T has seen better days but works 100% and the B-15S is in better shape but has its share of road rash as well. They must sound good... they've been USED.
Sidebar: I always shy away from vintage gear that is just TOO clean. I mean really, if it sounded all that good it'd be pretty hard to stick in a closet for 30 years...
Sidebar: I always shy away from vintage gear that is just TOO clean. I mean really, if it sounded all that good it'd be pretty hard to stick in a closet for 30 years...
Nice! You don't see a lot of people with B-15T's. They kind of came and went. IMHO, that will make it pretty desirable in a few years when they're impossible to find (oh yeah, that's right...they already ARE impossible to find...oh well, your friend doesn't need to know)
OK. So here are my first impressions of the B-15S vs. B-15T. Skip to the summary if you’re in a hurry. (I'll post pics when I get a chance… and I apologize for the length of what follows, but I’d like your advice on how best to proceed, i.e. what to buy.)
I used a ‘90s MIJ Fender ’75 Jazz RI BTW… sunburst, maple neck w/ pearl inlays and stock (American?) J pickups, VVT controls.
First, the condition of the B-15S ($850):
It’s pretty clean. (And AT LEAST 130lb.) The dolly board has the most tolex damage, there are a few gouges here and there on the cab but nothing major. At least two of the latches have been replaced and they are not a perfect fit and don’t “snap” closed as they should. The jacket on the 4-prong speaker plug is broken but the plug still locks into the jack. Black standby/polarity/power switches, orange lamp/red lamp. (An earlier B-15S?) The tilt-back leg is MIA and the bottom center of the speaker grille is pulled/warped upward slightly. Metal logo is there and one 1-inch long tear in the cloth near the bottom. The Response switch is intermittent when going to the flat setting from the bass setting… if you go all the way to guitar and then back to flat it’s fine. The amp has a LONG grounded AC cord (I’m talking 15ft. or better) and I’m not sure if that is original or not. The speaker is a 2 ohm Eminence Kappa and the amp was set on the 8 ohm setting when I got it. I was told it had a few rattles… one was just an extra speaker mounting nut loose inside, I think a new gasket will solve a few and the others are confined to the tube cage area… not sure if those can be fixed.
How does it sound?!? As I remember reading somewhere… “It’s a big fat “rOund” machine! The fact that it is a tube amp is obvious. Very warm. I can’t really dime it for very long in my basement or the place would fall apart (It’s got volume, I was actually surprised there.) What it does NOT have is headroom… at least what I can hear with my ductwork vibrating in concert with the amp. It even sounds “farty” above 2/3 on the volume for each channel and I’m not sure why?!? I adjusted the impedance switch to the proper 2 ohm setting (nice to have the multiple taps available) and it may have cleaned up a little but all in all I was left scratching my head a little. Maybe I need to get out my tube tester and see if something’s up there. I have an old CTS 8 ohm speaker that I’ll drop in when I get a chance to see what the amp might have sounded like stock. Don’t get me wrong… the amp was a beautiful sounding box that had just enough bite to be authoritative in the blues and classic rock styles, but modern sounding it was not.
Next, the condition of the B-15T ($200):
One latch missing, Replacement Ampeg logo badge (metal w/ italic “Ampeg” – does not match the rounded lower case text on the head – big deal), several of the silver knob faces are MIA… one was loose inside the cab), blue line and graphics on front (older or newer as far as these go?) w/ white signal path chart on top of head, stock (I think?) EV 4 ohm speaker. Tolex is of the nubby variety and is also pretty clean. Four swivel casters attached directly to the cab. It’s about half the size of the larger B-15S and probably less than half the weight. The tone controls are very good and all of the push-pull switches work. One channel and has lot’s of features (master/DI) that can be found elsewhere.
How does it compare/sound?!? Much more modern sounding. I think the tone controls onboard do almost everything that the SVT rocker switches do. It still sounds like an Ampeg if you can believe it. The 100W of output is also very loud. It’s punchy and can be overly bright or overly dark depending on how you dial it in… again, the tone controls make it very versatile. I’m not a slap player, but I was able to manage some slap-tastic squeaks and blurps from it. I felt almost as if it were permitting the Jazz bass to be a jazz more than the B-15S would allow.
Summary: I like them both for what they do and I think I really might get both. Running them with an ABY box would be ideal… they compliment each other very well. (Although, side-by-side they look like a little elephant holding its momma’s tail.)
The B-15S owner has two that are both for sale (apparently both have the 2 ohm Eminence speakers) and he’s willing to let me A/B them and choose which one I’d rather have if I just buy one… and mix/match heads/cabs. If they were $500 each I'd snag 'em both and tweak 'em to taste... but $850 a piece is a little steep to be thinking that way...
I think getting the B-15T is just a no-brainer.
Whaddaya think?!?
I used a ‘90s MIJ Fender ’75 Jazz RI BTW… sunburst, maple neck w/ pearl inlays and stock (American?) J pickups, VVT controls.
First, the condition of the B-15S ($850):
It’s pretty clean. (And AT LEAST 130lb.) The dolly board has the most tolex damage, there are a few gouges here and there on the cab but nothing major. At least two of the latches have been replaced and they are not a perfect fit and don’t “snap” closed as they should. The jacket on the 4-prong speaker plug is broken but the plug still locks into the jack. Black standby/polarity/power switches, orange lamp/red lamp. (An earlier B-15S?) The tilt-back leg is MIA and the bottom center of the speaker grille is pulled/warped upward slightly. Metal logo is there and one 1-inch long tear in the cloth near the bottom. The Response switch is intermittent when going to the flat setting from the bass setting… if you go all the way to guitar and then back to flat it’s fine. The amp has a LONG grounded AC cord (I’m talking 15ft. or better) and I’m not sure if that is original or not. The speaker is a 2 ohm Eminence Kappa and the amp was set on the 8 ohm setting when I got it. I was told it had a few rattles… one was just an extra speaker mounting nut loose inside, I think a new gasket will solve a few and the others are confined to the tube cage area… not sure if those can be fixed.
How does it sound?!? As I remember reading somewhere… “It’s a big fat “rOund” machine! The fact that it is a tube amp is obvious. Very warm. I can’t really dime it for very long in my basement or the place would fall apart (It’s got volume, I was actually surprised there.) What it does NOT have is headroom… at least what I can hear with my ductwork vibrating in concert with the amp. It even sounds “farty” above 2/3 on the volume for each channel and I’m not sure why?!? I adjusted the impedance switch to the proper 2 ohm setting (nice to have the multiple taps available) and it may have cleaned up a little but all in all I was left scratching my head a little. Maybe I need to get out my tube tester and see if something’s up there. I have an old CTS 8 ohm speaker that I’ll drop in when I get a chance to see what the amp might have sounded like stock. Don’t get me wrong… the amp was a beautiful sounding box that had just enough bite to be authoritative in the blues and classic rock styles, but modern sounding it was not.
Next, the condition of the B-15T ($200):
One latch missing, Replacement Ampeg logo badge (metal w/ italic “Ampeg” – does not match the rounded lower case text on the head – big deal), several of the silver knob faces are MIA… one was loose inside the cab), blue line and graphics on front (older or newer as far as these go?) w/ white signal path chart on top of head, stock (I think?) EV 4 ohm speaker. Tolex is of the nubby variety and is also pretty clean. Four swivel casters attached directly to the cab. It’s about half the size of the larger B-15S and probably less than half the weight. The tone controls are very good and all of the push-pull switches work. One channel and has lot’s of features (master/DI) that can be found elsewhere.
How does it compare/sound?!? Much more modern sounding. I think the tone controls onboard do almost everything that the SVT rocker switches do. It still sounds like an Ampeg if you can believe it. The 100W of output is also very loud. It’s punchy and can be overly bright or overly dark depending on how you dial it in… again, the tone controls make it very versatile. I’m not a slap player, but I was able to manage some slap-tastic squeaks and blurps from it. I felt almost as if it were permitting the Jazz bass to be a jazz more than the B-15S would allow.
Summary: I like them both for what they do and I think I really might get both. Running them with an ABY box would be ideal… they compliment each other very well. (Although, side-by-side they look like a little elephant holding its momma’s tail.)
The B-15S owner has two that are both for sale (apparently both have the 2 ohm Eminence speakers) and he’s willing to let me A/B them and choose which one I’d rather have if I just buy one… and mix/match heads/cabs. If they were $500 each I'd snag 'em both and tweak 'em to taste... but $850 a piece is a little steep to be thinking that way...
I think getting the B-15T is just a no-brainer.
Whaddaya think?!?
As a technically challenged but happy B15s owner a couple of thoughts crossed my mind. In no particular order.
* It is heavy although I doubt 130lbs. FWIW, I've found when moving mine that if I disconnect and carry the head separate from the cabinet it makes for a much easier trip.
* Again keep in mind that I'm a complete dolt when it comes to technical issues. That warning in place, why would you set the ohms setting to 2? My cabinet says on the back 8phms and I have the amp set accordingly. (pedro somewhat fearful that he's been doing something terribly wrong for some time).
* Volume/farty got to agree here but I think that's going to be the case with any B15. At least with the B15s you have a bit more headroom than with the older and more highly prized b15.
I'm quite happy with mine. If you play with guys that can control their volume and/or have some PA support I think it can be gigged with while providing some major tone and vibe.
My $.02.
* It is heavy although I doubt 130lbs. FWIW, I've found when moving mine that if I disconnect and carry the head separate from the cabinet it makes for a much easier trip.
* Again keep in mind that I'm a complete dolt when it comes to technical issues. That warning in place, why would you set the ohms setting to 2? My cabinet says on the back 8phms and I have the amp set accordingly. (pedro somewhat fearful that he's been doing something terribly wrong for some time).
* Volume/farty got to agree here but I think that's going to be the case with any B15. At least with the B15s you have a bit more headroom than with the older and more highly prized b15.
I'm quite happy with mine. If you play with guys that can control their volume and/or have some PA support I think it can be gigged with while providing some major tone and vibe.
My $.02.
Thanks for your comments!
Ampeg says it's 120lb. (not sure if that's with or without dolly.)
I did carry the head and cab down my basement steps seperately. Head was easy, cab was still very heavy w/ that Eminence speaker.
That speaker is not original and is a 2 ohm speaker... thus the 2 ohm setting. Using the head the way I found it (on 8 ohms) was actually incorrect for the speaker in the cab.
Re: farty... that's good to know. I just need to spend more time with it I think.
Ampeg says it's 120lb. (not sure if that's with or without dolly.)
I did carry the head and cab down my basement steps seperately. Head was easy, cab was still very heavy w/ that Eminence speaker.
That speaker is not original and is a 2 ohm speaker... thus the 2 ohm setting. Using the head the way I found it (on 8 ohms) was actually incorrect for the speaker in the cab.
Re: farty... that's good to know. I just need to spend more time with it I think.
I wouldn't buy the S for $850. Too much wrong with it. That's more in line with what most people pay for them in VG condition.
