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Ampeg just dropped a bomb on Facebook...

#61
this is a very good time to be a bass player. So many nice all tube amps out there.

I have been eyeballing several of the recent products from Fender and Mesa and tending towards the 100w versions as opposed to the 300w ones. More headroom is usually a good thing, but I can probably get away with 100w sweet tube watts for most things. So, it's cool that Loud/Ampeg may be bringing back the 100w V4B. I played a few of them back in the day (and a few B25b's too), and found them much more useable than the 27-30w B15's (don't take any offence JimmyM :cool:), and while I have played SVTs in backlines, I never took to them very well (just a personal thing, no problems with the SVT rig in general). So 100 all tube watts is starting to feel like a sweet spot for me.

its funny reading this thread for another reason - for a non announced product for which we have NO insight or inside info, we sure have a lot of speculation already. Good ol' TB. :D

We'll just have to see what Loud brings to the table in Nashville next week. At least we won't have to wait long.
 
#63
Honestly PF, ever since revamping the band over the last year and a half and getting more into R&B and adding horns, our stage volume has been creeping up, and I find myself on the verge of running out of headroom with the B-15 sometimes. And I love the SVT but a 100w amp is way more up my alley. It would totally be enough for everything I do.
 
#64
JimmyM said:
Honestly PF, ever since revamping the band over the last year and a half and getting more into R&B and adding horns, our stage volume has been creeping up, and I find myself on the verge of running out of headroom with the B-15 sometimes. And I love the SVT but a 100w amp is way more up my alley. It would totally be enough for everything I do.
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I hear ya brother. 100w feels like a great sweet spot. Hope they do it right, solid competition in that spot right now between the offerings of the majors as well as boutique builders (as well as the used and "vintage" stuff). Personally, I think it's good for us players - no matter what our loyalties may be - when companies have to compete for a specific segment, keeps them on their toes, and we are the beneficiaries.

:cool:
 
#68
There are like a million actual V4B's out there, any one of which could be restored to factory spec by a qualified tech for a fraction of the price of a new Ampeg. They are really nice amps.

I'll bet anyone here a shiny nickel that whatever re-issue Ampeg comes up with is a step down in power, sound, and reliability from the real thing.
 
#73
jumbodbassman said:
my 73 V4B was my favorite amp ever and still regret trading it in.
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Same here. I used a V4B and SVT cab for all my club work from 74 until the early 80's. Assorted size venues. It was the best tone I've ever gotten from an amp/cab combination. I sold the setup when I "downsized".

I'll be all over a V4B if they do this right. Same as JimmyM said, the 100 watts would cover pretty much everything that I do.
 
#76
hodgy said:
What are the features of the Fender 100T that are so awesome that people would like to see in a theorhetical Ampeg 100 watt head?
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For me personally it would be getting the classic "warm but still pretty clean" bassman tone at a volume to fill a typical bar room/smaller club without having to run it into distortion. At that point, it would act a little guitar amp-ish in that you could run it harder/get dirtier without adding too much more volume. Not everybody wants a tube amp just to crank it, I actually prefer them for fat cleanish tone.

A "loud" sounding 100-150 watts seems to be the sweet spot for being able to do that in typical smaller gig situations where a little amp isn't enough and the SVT is total overkill. Part of it is also matching it with speakers to get the right spl for that situation. The old bassmans rated 100 watts aren't loud enough to do that, the new ones and the old v4B's are. I also think it would be a big mistake to not include an 8ohm tap considering what most bass cabs are nowdays.
 
#77
CL400Peavey said:
maybe

Two blend-able channels. One inherently natural, one with a bit more Ampeg flavored grind.

Switchable power options. Drop to 25w to drive that clean channel into break up.

No cab needed for DI to record.

I'm sure there is more.
Click to expand...

I wish I could set the bias myself, through little pots like on the SVT-VR.
I wish I could swap in 6550 instead of the 7027A, to hear how it sounds different, without having to mod it (especially since I don't know anybody I trust to make the mod here in France)
But I must say I love it the way it is anyway, because it sounds so good.
As for the lower power switch, that would be sweet, but I have a B25B for that :D
Or you can still use a less efficient cab.
 

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