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Ampeg PF500/PF350

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#341
I've not heard this head, but my experience with Ampeg is flat eq sounds pretty good to my ear. Thats using a b100r, vb4, ba115. The gain on the other hand does seem to need to be pretty cranked. I run my b100r with the gain up around 8, but that is with a AV '57ri p-bass. I don't think that pickup is very hot. I actually can crank it to 10 without clipping the input with that bass.

Still experimenting with the vb4 but usually have the gain on the one around noon or one o'clock. EQ set pretty flat with the mids up a touch. This is thru a Mesa 4x10, obviously the type of cab is going to determine your eq settings.

The ba115.....it.s been awhile since I owned that one. It was unimpressive enough I can't remember how I use to set it.

Hoping some good reveiws come in on the new stuff.
 
#342
aborgman said:
If the EQ was like an original Portaflex instead of an SVT, nooner settings would sound great...
Click to expand...

Very true! I have far more experience with the SVT than the portaflex....but these being supposed 'portaflexes'... I can see where that would frustrate some :)

maevinj said:
Is it possible maybe this and cabinet combo (Avatar TB153) is just a bad one?? Not saying either one is bad, but maybe together just not the right combination?
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Always possible....stinks when it happens to you though! I think I just have been very lucky with my cab/head guess work. Or sticking to same brand of head/cab :ninja:

bassacechase said:
"since you don't like it so far it must be your fault." Not everyone is responding in such a way, but you catch my drift.
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bassacechase said:
Yeah, I like stuff flat. I am gonna try the suggested EQ settings in a couple hours. With the eq and gain at noon, it was not impressive. My Fender Rumble is also not impressive. So I compared the two. I don't think it is a lemon and I am unsure about how anyone could screw this up. Take a speak on cable and connect it between the amp and the cab. I am pretty sure I got it man.
See, I had no knowledge that you had to tweak like crazy to get a good tone out of an Ampeg. With that tid bit, you can guess that the M-VR isnt my thing. Now that I know better, I might really dig it.
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Different manufacturers use different center frequencies, and actually what the knobs 'do' differ as well. For many GB and MB products I run pretty flat. I wouldn't think the tweaking is that hard...it is like a a Marshall guitar amp, if you are familiar with the product you know what you like. (perhaps the problem?) The trouble is when you try to dial in a Mesa Boogie head like you would a Marshall, the knobs change things differently. I was just joking about not hooking it up right, so I hope that wasn't offensive. You don't know how many times though people say something sucks and then realize they didn't plug something in correctly, or their batteries are dying, etc.

However, there are many of us who are excited to get the product so maybe we are being a bit childish by screaming settings at you, etc. We want the product to be awesome, but maybe it isn't? It just is bittersweet that you're the guy who is telling us about the amp and you're not an 'Ampeg guy'. And there is nothing wrong with that, I am happy we have all kinds of tone choices :cool:
 
#343
Just to further add that I am not trying to down you about the Ampeg thing an example of myself would be a pbass. I use them occasionally, but I am not a huge fan of their sound but recognize others (including those I play with) do. So if I were to review a pbass and noted how I didn't like this or that, a bunch of P users would be like what the heck? Then when they found out I am a J guy they may dismiss some of my claims...

But the power rating thing has me worried. 500w, even class D should give you some shake...This lil MB200 is mighty loud @ 200 watts.
 
#344
bassacechase said:
Thanks for your advice. I figured if I peg the gain it has some balls to it. No I didn't listen to the ones at Sam Ash. I will have to investigate that.
I guess I am a little put off by the notion of "since you don't like it so far it must be your fault." Not everyone is responding in such a way, but you catch my drift.
In hindsight, if someone was telling me they didn't like a jazz or p bass, I might have a similar response. How? Why? etc.
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i agree...since you don't like it so far it must be your fault.

:D

actually, it may just not be your thing and that's cool. i think most of us who regularly use ampegs just saw that you weren't getting all you could out of it and wanted to help. i don't think anyone was indicting your tastes. if i came off that way, i certainly apologize.
 
#345
aborgman said:
If the EQ was like an original Portaflex instead of an SVT, nooner settings would sound great...
Click to expand...
100% true about the b-15. i don't know how the eq is voiced on the pf500, but the micro vr is neither fish nor fowl...er...neither svt nor b-15. it tries to cover the whole gamut of what people consider the classic svt and b-15 tones, so the treble has a lot more range. and that's a major part of the reason why you should just forget about what direction the knobs are pointed in.
 
#346
JimmyM said:
100% true about the b-15. i don't know how the eq is voiced on the pf500, but the micro vr is neither fish nor fowl...er...neither svt nor b-15. it tries to cover the whole gamut of what people consider the classic svt and b-15 tones, so the treble has a lot more range. and that's a major part of the reason why you should just forget about what direction the knobs are pointed in.
Click to expand...


I don't mind twisting knobs, but I hate having to run the dang amp through a spectrum analyzer repeatedly to figure out where flat is. I don't care if it's at noon or 8 o'clock - just tell me where it is in the manual.
 
#349
Wow, reading all of this makes me VERY happy that I went with the Mesa Walkabout Scout. I jammed with it on Monday night, and I couldn't have been happier--killer tone (and I'm a dyed-in-the-wool Ampeg guy) and, with the 1x12 extension cab, more than enough volume.
 
#350
maevinj said:
Interesting... Starting to sound like my svt350h. Maybe I'll be saving my money for something else
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You know the SVT-350H, SVT-450H, B2R, B2RE, all have a similar preamp to the Micro VR and PF-350. A couple of the frequencies are +1/-1 according to the specs, but it wouldn't surprise me if its the same basic design. The layouts are all the same (minus the graphic). I think the cabs will have a bigger part in how the amps will sound once they are available.
 
#351
bassacechase said:
Here are some pics anyway:
Front
017.jpg

Front in the dark
Final Picture before I plugged up my bass and disappointed myself. Which then led to a really long trip to get new strings. Which then led to me cranking the ever loving piss out of the gain, causing me to second guess my dissatisfaction.

Please excuse the messy basement catch all. ;)
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One thing I also notice (and sorry if it's been mentioned) but I notice you have the mid select set on the first setting. Try bringing that back to 800hz (#3) on the selector. Also - Like Jimmy said - don't be afraid to jack up that bass knob. I personally wouldn't hike the treble over noon - but i would engage the ultra low and back the mid off to about 10:00. But for me that's just a taste thing. As with any Ampeg, be sure you crank your input gain also to where the light flickers most of the time. And for starting out - I would dial that compressor down/off until you get your tone dialed in first. Not sure how it works on these new PF's - but it could be sucking some "umppff" out. Another thing - does the FX blend have an impact on your output level? Does it need to be turned all the way off? Again like the comp, never dealt with one on an Ampeg.
 
#352
Slackerprince said:
Any new reviews on these heads?

S
Click to expand...

I was able to do some clips this weekend of my PF500 through my Avatar B210... just got to find some time to edit the one big file down into more bite size chunks. :)

aborgman said:
I don't care if it's at noon or 8 o'clock - just tell me where it is in the manual.
Click to expand...

For what it's worth, the manual "says" that 5 is flat on the EQ controls.

5sg.
 
#359
stiles72 said:
One thing I also notice (and sorry if it's been mentioned) but I notice you have the mid select set on the first setting. Try bringing that back to 800hz (#3) on the selector. Also - Like Jimmy said - don't be afraid to jack up that bass knob. I personally wouldn't hike the treble over noon - but i would engage the ultra low and back the mid off to about 10:00. But for me that's just a taste thing. As with any Ampeg, be sure you crank your input gain also to where the light flickers most of the time. And for starting out - I would dial that compressor down/off until you get your tone dialed in first. Not sure how it works on these new PF's - but it could be sucking some "umppff" out. Another thing - does the FX blend have an impact on your output level? Does it need to be turned all the way off? Again like the comp, never dealt with one on an Ampeg.
Click to expand...
Thats how the knobs were out of the box. I had never plugged into it at this point. Thanks for the advice though.
 
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