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Ampeg PF 350/500 Part VII
- Thread starter Chef
- Start date
Decided to leave the v4b at home and finally did a gig with the pf350/115he; small bar, no di or mic. Singer told me I was too loud, gain and master 1.00-2.00, bass mids and high at 3.00. The stage wall was a perfect half circle. I turned my amp sideways at the drummer and dropped the master to noon. The entire stage area filled with warm bass tone. The round shape reflected it back so I could really hear it unlike the usual shooting past your knees, feel it not hear it, that gets bass players in trouble on stage.
Man, it sounded stellar. Previously I ran it at rehearsals with tone stack all at noon, dialing bass or mid as needed for different basses. JimmyM is right ( thanks!) you juice up the tone stack and that head just comes to life and headroom really opens up.
To be fair, I was using my stellar sounding 1962 jazz but that little 350 is fantastic and plenty loud. Problem is the choice I'll have to make from now on: take the v4b or the 350 and save weight and space. I guess if I need to take 2 cabs I may as well go with the valve head. Cool thing is the backup 350 will be there under the lid if need arises.
Man, it sounded stellar. Previously I ran it at rehearsals with tone stack all at noon, dialing bass or mid as needed for different basses. JimmyM is right ( thanks!) you juice up the tone stack and that head just comes to life and headroom really opens up.
To be fair, I was using my stellar sounding 1962 jazz but that little 350 is fantastic and plenty loud. Problem is the choice I'll have to make from now on: take the v4b or the 350 and save weight and space. I guess if I need to take 2 cabs I may as well go with the valve head. Cool thing is the backup 350 will be there under the lid if need arises.
I just joined after reading most of the monster threads about this amp. Here's my situation:
1. First PF500: worked and sounded great. One day the whole rehearsal room was filled with a nasty smell, like burnt plastic. We switched it off and sent it to the store.
2. Second PF500: the store loaned us another head while they sent ours for repair. It died with the fault light in a matter of minutes. In the meantime they loaned us a PF350 that worked great.
3. Repaired PF500 (took one month to arrive): I took it on tour for another bass player, with a much more aggressive style. The fault light and cutting started happening on certain notes. None of the settings of the amp were extreme. The only way to make the amp survive was to either engage the compressor, lower the gain below 8 o'clock, or lower the bass below 11 o'clock. A combination of it all, actually. This is running into one 115HE cabinet.
So - what should I do? Send it back for repair again? Should I check for the revision number in the board?
1. First PF500: worked and sounded great. One day the whole rehearsal room was filled with a nasty smell, like burnt plastic. We switched it off and sent it to the store.
2. Second PF500: the store loaned us another head while they sent ours for repair. It died with the fault light in a matter of minutes. In the meantime they loaned us a PF350 that worked great.
3. Repaired PF500 (took one month to arrive): I took it on tour for another bass player, with a much more aggressive style. The fault light and cutting started happening on certain notes. None of the settings of the amp were extreme. The only way to make the amp survive was to either engage the compressor, lower the gain below 8 o'clock, or lower the bass below 11 o'clock. A combination of it all, actually. This is running into one 115HE cabinet.
So - what should I do? Send it back for repair again? Should I check for the revision number in the board?
Absolutely you should send it back, but first I'd talk to someone at Ampeg and see if they can bypass the store here.
Thanks! I'm in Spain, which might complicate things a little. I've emailed Ampeg and the Spanish distributor. I hope they will come through.
Mostly, I wanted to make sure that the fault was not expected. The amp wasn't being abused at all, so there was really no reason for it.
I LOVE my so-portable-and-transportable-great-sounding-easy–to-hear-yourself gig rig!!
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Ampeg USA wasn't much help, they just told me to contact the distributor. However, the local store offered as much help as possible, including returning the amp for good.
Does the PF800 suffer from the same "illness"? I might simply trade up if the amp is more dependable. Does it still fit the portaflex cab? I think so.
I think the PF800 fits but not totally 100% sure. And no, it's pretty rare to hear of problems with the PF800. Honestly, I think it's the better move anyway. They sound the same but I think the balls factor is increased with the PF800 because of the extra headroom.
The PF800 fits (I have mine installed in my PF-cab) perfectly.
I agree with JimmyM, that the PF800 will be an improvement (in fact I love the sound of the pF800).
What also is very important is which cab(s) you are using.
I've tried the PF800 with different cabs (also different brands).
The differences in tone and volume are striking!
Last but not least, I find the DI of the PF800 to be too hot, that's a bit of a minor.
So, whenever there's p.a. involved I use a Tech 21 VT Bass (and I'm saving up for a good DI, like the Radial JDI to derail a bit).
>> If I had the choice, I would always go for the PF800.
I agree with JimmyM, that the PF800 will be an improvement (in fact I love the sound of the pF800).
What also is very important is which cab(s) you are using.
I've tried the PF800 with different cabs (also different brands).
The differences in tone and volume are striking!
Last but not least, I find the DI of the PF800 to be too hot, that's a bit of a minor.
So, whenever there's p.a. involved I use a Tech 21 VT Bass (and I'm saving up for a good DI, like the Radial JDI to derail a bit).
>> If I had the choice, I would always go for the PF800.
Hello
Today I got PF 350 head.
It is connected to Warwick 410 4 ohm cab.
My bass is 18 volt EMG preamp and EMG 40 DC equipped 5 string Spector
I have question.
How do you set the gain:
a) clip light doesnt turn on
b)clip light turn on and off now and than
c) clip light turns on and off almost on every note
Can you post your EQ settings on Pf 350
Today I got PF 350 head.
It is connected to Warwick 410 4 ohm cab.
My bass is 18 volt EMG preamp and EMG 40 DC equipped 5 string Spector
I have question.
How do you set the gain:
a) clip light doesnt turn on
b)clip light turn on and off now and than
c) clip light turns on and off almost on every note
Can you post your EQ settings on Pf 350
Got a good deal on a refurbished PF500 with warranty, but I'm a bit worried that I might've gotten a bad one.
Are the newer ones more reliable? How do I check if I have a "good" version?
(PS: I quite like it, but I wouldn't pay full price for one or wouldn't buy a PF800 which would cost two times that this one cost me. To get that out of the way
)
Are the newer ones more reliable? How do I check if I have a "good" version?
(PS: I quite like it, but I wouldn't pay full price for one or wouldn't buy a PF800 which would cost two times that this one cost me. To get that out of the way
)
I'd say "b) clip light turn on and off now and than"
I keep the eq mostly flat with my passive precision. Sometimes I roll off the mids a bit and boost the bass.
Love my rig and was a Fender guy...i leave it on for 3 hours at practice and we are loud...it looks great...so great that its in my office next to my desk..got a lot of comments how it looks...then i turn it on...a beast..the Ampeg growl...i like it !!
Attachments
I go 2.45-3 o clock on all the EQ knobs. Then set gain the same. Then master for volume. Tweak the EQ as desired, and play with gain for clean/grit adjusting master for output. Limit is OFF: I hate that button. The gain light means nothing to me, I use my ears. The limit light is what I watch: if it's flashing a bit, my guitar player is going to tell me I'm too loud. Ha. The master is about 1.30 at that point.
The over the top gain and EQ make this monster come alive. Thanks to JimmyM for that advice.
The over the top gain and EQ make this monster come alive. Thanks to JimmyM for that advice.
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I would start here.
Ampeg has put out several videos regarding different tones settings.
I hope that this helps.
DS
I got all of these from the Ampeg Youtube channel
I would also check out these:
Good Luck.
