Hmm, sounds a bit vague, is it really down to the individual, to perhaps take the amp to a certain level which trips a component and that part is the problem from then on or down to a certain batch, if the later do they have a serial number run, sure would help if we knew that.
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Ampeg Micro VR issues poll with new video
- Thread starter fenderhutz
- Start date
Hmmm....I think I'll dump this rig ASAP. Basically, I run with a single cab and in order for me to determine if I have the problem, I will have to buy the second cab while I still have warranty on the head and try it. I definitely don't want to be forced to buy the second cab just as an experiment to find out if I have the issue. Time to go amp shopping, methinks.
It will be difficult to buy one of these now until they give a serial number run, otherwise its a lottery.
I think they should recall, otherwise people have to mess about going to service centres, etc, and making claims on warranty which may actually end up costing them.
I think they should recall, otherwise people have to mess about going to service centres, etc, and making claims on warranty which may actually end up costing them.
The correct answer is ALL (except for a couple they hand fixed). They haven't started production of the fixed units yet. I had this conversation with support already. They all POTENTIALLY have the issue, it's just if you use them with the two 210 cabs and push it. I am still processing this in disbelief, I wish you guys could have been on the tons of calls I have had with support over this.
Hmm... I was actually waiting on the "fix" before I bought one to replace the one I traded away for a '67 Bassman head. As I do have two of the cabs I have no desire to buy one, test it for the "issue" and have to send it in for service - I want one that has the fix already. WT(E+1)?
Well, this was my first Ampeg purchase, and based on the handling of this issue, will be my LAST! Come on Ampeg, you can do better than this!
J!
PS Any one want to buy a Micro half stack for cheap?
J!
PS Any one want to buy a Micro half stack for cheap?
No, it isn't dependent on playing style - it's dependent on turning the gain up to a reasonable level and having it crap out. This should be a recall. As far as I'm concerned, this amp is a lemon.
When you think bout it, Loud's official response is not unreasonable. There is a problem and they are offering a solution that is in keeping with the best of industry standards.
Unless there is a problem that puts someone's health or property at risk such as a fire hazard, there will not be a mass recall. No company would do this. I wouldn't expect Loud to do this.
If there was a mass recall, how would it be handled? Newly manufactured amps would have the fix applied at the plant. In stock amps at retailers would be modified at service centers before they are sold. Customers would be asked to return their amps under warranty if they wanted it modified. I suspect that this is what they are doing without calling it a mass recall.
It would be a nice gesture if the warranty for this problem were extended to those with this amp that are out of warranty. I suspect that they will assist these customers on a case by case basis.
It won't be long before the fix is reverse engineered or someone posts the procedure and DIY fixes are available to owners and techs.
Fenderhutz, now that they have a final fix, it is past time that someone at a senior level at Loud take ownership of your problem and ensure that you are given a fully functional amp. It is the right thing to do at this point and you've been more than patient. Perhaps AmpegUSA can help make this happen sooner rather than later.
Everyone else, the company has stated that warranty fixes are about to be put in place. This is good news.
Unless there is a problem that puts someone's health or property at risk such as a fire hazard, there will not be a mass recall. No company would do this. I wouldn't expect Loud to do this.
If there was a mass recall, how would it be handled? Newly manufactured amps would have the fix applied at the plant. In stock amps at retailers would be modified at service centers before they are sold. Customers would be asked to return their amps under warranty if they wanted it modified. I suspect that this is what they are doing without calling it a mass recall.
It would be a nice gesture if the warranty for this problem were extended to those with this amp that are out of warranty. I suspect that they will assist these customers on a case by case basis.
It won't be long before the fix is reverse engineered or someone posts the procedure and DIY fixes are available to owners and techs.
Fenderhutz, now that they have a final fix, it is past time that someone at a senior level at Loud take ownership of your problem and ensure that you are given a fully functional amp. It is the right thing to do at this point and you've been more than patient. Perhaps AmpegUSA can help make this happen sooner rather than later.
Everyone else, the company has stated that warranty fixes are about to be put in place. This is good news.
Well, there's more to these problems/defects with this head, than just a problem that occurs with two cabs or playing style.
I'm simply running one SVT210AV cab, obviously using the 8 ohm tap.
I generally kkep the Gain at 12:00 or 1:00, the volume I keep anywhere between 9:00 and 11:00; depending on the time of day/evening. The bass knob is typically between 11:00 and 1:00. And for the size of the room (roughly a little over 15' x 15' ) this rig resides in, I don't need much more out of it. And this amp should have no problem fullfilling it's duty in this room.
This head has been clipping and distorting for a few months.
I've tried my passive basses (Fender P-bass and Carvin B40) and my active MTD Kingston Z4. I played softly and gently, I played slightly more intense/harder than softly (which is my norm), I tried playing harder/heavier....same results. There seems to be no rhyme or reason for why this amp goes into this terrible distorted mess. This is a flawed, defective design.
I'm simply running one SVT210AV cab, obviously using the 8 ohm tap.
I generally kkep the Gain at 12:00 or 1:00, the volume I keep anywhere between 9:00 and 11:00; depending on the time of day/evening. The bass knob is typically between 11:00 and 1:00. And for the size of the room (roughly a little over 15' x 15' ) this rig resides in, I don't need much more out of it. And this amp should have no problem fullfilling it's duty in this room.
This head has been clipping and distorting for a few months.
I've tried my passive basses (Fender P-bass and Carvin B40) and my active MTD Kingston Z4. I played softly and gently, I played slightly more intense/harder than softly (which is my norm), I tried playing harder/heavier....same results. There seems to be no rhyme or reason for why this amp goes into this terrible distorted mess. This is a flawed, defective design.
I have the Micro VR and one 210 cab. I play both a passive Squier VM P and an active Ibanez SR505 through it, with various pedal effects. Other than the fan being a little noisy, I have no issues. YMMV.
I was going to post a comparison I did with the "unfixed" head and the "modded" head last night comparing the two as well as how the "new" modded head sounds in certain rooms but the update threw me off guard.
Briefly I can say the honeymoon period of having a working head has worn off slightly and due to the gain decrease in the "fix" it almost makes the head too "mushy" on stage now and I miss the attack and the little bit of extra clarity the head had. Now it's almost too compressed. Still sounds good, but not as good as the non modded head unless you LIKE having a woolly compressed tone at all times, not just when you dig in. Instead of sounding like a mini SVT like it used to it sounds like a pedal emulating a B15. Not horrible if you are looking for that tone, I am not.
EDIT: Yes. I HAVE owned a SVT head and a B15.
I feel like I bought a great sounding amp that fit my needs and now have settled for a working amp that sounds ok. I am going to try and work with support for another solution.
Briefly I can say the honeymoon period of having a working head has worn off slightly and due to the gain decrease in the "fix" it almost makes the head too "mushy" on stage now and I miss the attack and the little bit of extra clarity the head had. Now it's almost too compressed. Still sounds good, but not as good as the non modded head unless you LIKE having a woolly compressed tone at all times, not just when you dig in. Instead of sounding like a mini SVT like it used to it sounds like a pedal emulating a B15. Not horrible if you are looking for that tone, I am not.
EDIT: Yes. I HAVE owned a SVT head and a B15.
I feel like I bought a great sounding amp that fit my needs and now have settled for a working amp that sounds ok. I am going to try and work with support for another solution.
I don't think the PF-500 has the same front end as the Micro-VR (although the 350 apparently does), it's supposed to be more like the 7 Pro.
I know of TB'ers that use the PF350 with the 210 x 2 stack and don't have the same issues as the Micro VR. I also know of a TB'er that reported when using the PF500 with an Ampeg 4 ohm 215 cab it did the same thing these Micro VR's did. The head was used so who knows. I would possibly say unrelated.
Alright, let's take a deep breath and take a look at the situation. I apologize if the previous post sounded too corporate, but understand that we always have to be careful how we put things. Of the thousands of Micro-VRs we have sold, there are only a handful of people reporting this issue. Granted the vast majority of you are on this thread, which can sometimes make it feel like 100% of people are having an issue. That is simply not the case and we are not going to force a recall on the thousands of people who are completely happy with their Micro.
Maybe the communication got garbled, maybe we just were just (to quote one of my favorite movies) too obtuse. If you are experiencing this issue, we WILL help you.
I hate to see things get nasty. Our intention is good. We were made aware of undesirable behavior under certain playing conditions. We worked with you guys to rectify the problem. We have a solution. We want to fix Micros for people who are experiencing the issue.
Fenderhutzs unit was unique it was his original unit, we made the mods as quickly as possible and got it out to him to test. The mod was done in-house and does not represent the final modded product that will come out of manufacturing. While I am not entirely aware of all the conversations he had with support, I am sure we planned to get him the real deal when available. The fact that it is taking longer than expected is regrettable, but in order to get the legit, final mod in a pristine unit for him, it takes some time. That is also in process and he is working with support on that.
For everyone else. If you have a Micro-VR and either now have or reasonably expect to have two SVT-210AV cabinets, please contact support. They will work with you one-on-one to ensure you are happy with your Micro-VR, be it a fix now or possible replacement once units are available.
Maybe the communication got garbled, maybe we just were just (to quote one of my favorite movies) too obtuse. If you are experiencing this issue, we WILL help you.
I hate to see things get nasty. Our intention is good. We were made aware of undesirable behavior under certain playing conditions. We worked with you guys to rectify the problem. We have a solution. We want to fix Micros for people who are experiencing the issue.
Fenderhutzs unit was unique it was his original unit, we made the mods as quickly as possible and got it out to him to test. The mod was done in-house and does not represent the final modded product that will come out of manufacturing. While I am not entirely aware of all the conversations he had with support, I am sure we planned to get him the real deal when available. The fact that it is taking longer than expected is regrettable, but in order to get the legit, final mod in a pristine unit for him, it takes some time. That is also in process and he is working with support on that.
For everyone else. If you have a Micro-VR and either now have or reasonably expect to have two SVT-210AV cabinets, please contact support. They will work with you one-on-one to ensure you are happy with your Micro-VR, be it a fix now or possible replacement once units are available.
If you read my post above I don't like the modded head as much as the non modded head, and Scott hasn't replied to my email from this morning.
Just fed up of having an amp for 6 months and not getting the tone I paid for. I have given this issue a 1-2 punch with you guys going through all the hoops of proving the issue existed and testing the new modded head, but I throw in the flag and want an amp with the tone and usability I paid for. That's all.
I sent my simple request to Scott. Make the modded VR amp sound like the non modded one or replace my amp with something else. It's (modded head) too "mushy" in a band mix at gig volume.
I said this again and again. Support (Scott) has always been helpful.
Just fed up of having an amp for 6 months and not getting the tone I paid for. I have given this issue a 1-2 punch with you guys going through all the hoops of proving the issue existed and testing the new modded head, but I throw in the flag and want an amp with the tone and usability I paid for. That's all.
I sent my simple request to Scott. Make the modded VR amp sound like the non modded one or replace my amp with something else. It's (modded head) too "mushy" in a band mix at gig volume.
I said this again and again. Support (Scott) has always been helpful.
