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Ampeg Rocket Bass Combos

Did a rehearsal yesterday with the RB 15. Normally I have it on the floor and the boom is unbearable; I end up turning the bass pretty much all the way down to get rid of that.

This time I lifted it up onto a table and once it was at ear level there was much, much less of that. I added some bass back in via EQ and my onboard preamp and got a pretty sweet sound from it. This may be a salvageable relationship.

Lift the RB115 at least 18in from floor .
I found that RB115 has more low end spread out to my taste, so I sell it and get the RB112.
 
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Has anybody else found that the built in OD doesn't go low gain enough? My favorite sound is that extremely slight breakup, Motown sort of P bass with flats sound, and I find that I can only get that using the active input with a passive bass. And that drops the usable volume of my RB-110 by quite a bit. It's not a problem for me because I only want to use it at home, but I would find it annoying if I got an RB210 to use with the band.
 
Totally agree.

I'm very happy with my RB115, and I was also considering buying the RB210 for a second option or the ability to stack and chain them together via the effects loop, but there's no way I'm paying full price for the RB210 with so many people mentioning noise issues with that tweeter.

If I see it for sale used, I'll consider it depending on the price as I'm not exactly jumping at the idea of ripping out or shutting off something I paid for.
As a current owner of the Ampeg RB 115 and a former owner of the 210; both of which I hooked up the Ampeg Portaflex HF (No tweeter) extension cab too...I can say for sure that the RB 115 is just as "loud" as the 210 when both have an extension cab. In fact, I loved the tone of the RB 115 so much I sold the 210. Peace!
 
I had a chance to try out the 210 today. Yep, lots of great Ampeg 10 inch tone. The 110 is a mini 210. Of course, duh! ;) I was messing with the 210’s eq. Can the 110’s speaker take ultra low through an Ampeg pedal?

At times I wish the 110 had more power but really the 110 at 12 to 1o’clock is perfect tone and perfect solo practice volume: 80-92 dB.
 
I don't really understand how this can be since the RB-115 is rated at 200 watts with extension cab, and the RB-210 is rated at 500 watts with extension cab.

Maybe watts don't fully define "loudness"?
Correct watts have very little to do with perceived loudness . Lots has been hashed out about this on TB the last 16 years since I've been on here . My 50 watt PF 50 T can be as loud or louder than my 400 watt Demeter . Efficient speakers and enclosures . Many pieces to the puzzle . I have yet to find a gig the 50 watt Ampeg isn't loud enough to be heard .
 
I had a chance to try out the 210 today. Yep, lots of great Ampeg 10 inch tone. The 110 is a mini 210. Of course, duh! ;) I was messing with the 210’s eq. Can the 110’s speaker take ultra low through an Ampeg pedal?

At times I wish the 110 had more power but really the 110 at 12 to 1o’clock is perfect tone and perfect solo practice volume: 80-92 dB.

I have the 110 at home for practice and recording, and really love the tone. If the 210 maintains the same character, I think I'm going to have to buy one for my band. Although I hope it isn't a case of perfect bedroom tone not translating to the mix, but there's only one way to find out.

Funny thing is I have and love a GK MB110, and bought the MB210II with the hope that it would be the same but louder. To my ears it was voiced an resonated totally differently, and I had to return it.
 
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I picked up an amp stand the other day. The 110 projects so much better on the stand than flat on the floor. On the stand, the 110 has much more "authority", not up to the 210 by any means but not shabby in the least.
 
The more time I spend with my 108 the more I want to make the SCR circuitry useful. At the moment it is a push button preset effect.

On the bigger amps this feature has a gain and level (inverse clean blend?) control. I'm wondering if these are just set by fixed resistors in the 108 and essentially these features can be broken out to pots by comparing circuits across the RB line.

I can't find schematics for these amps, just flow diagrams for the circuits. I'm also wondering if the "Scrambler" circuitry varies across amps and from the stomp boxes Ampeg also market.
 
Did you get the amp? What’s the verdict?
Yes, I did. I really like the RB112 over the RB110. The 112 is just a fuller, richer sounding system. The 110 has more of a boxy sound. Since the amp just sets in my room, portability isn't a big deal so the larger size and slight increase in weight with the 112 are not really an issue for me.
 
Since I'm getting a Rocket Bass at some point, I'm undecided between the 110 and the 112. I want good tone at a low volume because of my living conditions. I get it with my Ampeg PF20 and PF112 but I want a solid state combo which is easy to bring elsewhere. The only reason I'm leaning towards the 112 is that it comes with a better speaker, Eminence I think which may have better tone at low volumes than the 110 so that's what I'm asking from anyone here that have tried or owned both. Thanks for any info.
Well, after reading the last post from darwin-bass I think it answered my question. The 112 it is.
 
I don't really understand how this can be since the RB-115 is rated at 200 watts with extension cab, and the RB-210 is rated at 500 watts with extension cab.

Maybe watts don't fully define "loudness"?
Like yourself, I asked myself the same question..."How can it be?" The strange thing for my brain was that I experienced the difference first and then asked the question second. It's "louder" and fuller. Period. It's hard to understand that myself other than saying it's due to speaker size only. I can say this, my RB-210 was "louder" than the Fender Stage 800 and my RB 115 with the 115 extension cab is "louder" than the Fender Stage in it's fullness. I tried the Orange Little Bass Thing and that was LOUD! Really loud, but there was no "fullness" for me there at all (not my tone). So, there is more than meets the eye you can say. If you have a chance to try out a rig like I said above, try it out...the RB 115 with the 115 Ampeg Portaflex cab (no horn) is really amazing.
 
My experience with the RB210. Two years ago after playing guitar for 50 years I joined a band as a bass player. I had a Tokai Hardpuncher and a Traynor SB110 combo. It sounded great. For club gigs it was loud enough. For outdoor gigs it was good as a stage monitor. I lucked into a sweet deal on a used Ibanez SRFF805 bass. The Traynor was lacking on the B string. It was OK but I needed more. After trying several different combos I bought an RB210. It was much better on the B. It was a bit boomy until I put it on an amp stand. Even though it was better I still wasn't totally happy with the B on the Ibanez. I added a used Epifani UL2 112. The RB210 fits perfectly on top of the Epifani raising it to where it gets a great tone, better than on the amp stand. The Epifani gets me the tone I was looking for on the Ibanez B. With the RB210 and the Epifani I can play at lower volume with the bass turned down a bit from where it was with just the RB210. The tone is awesome. Exactly what I was looking for. The bonus is the Tokai Hardpuncher (PBass) with flats really sings now. Nails that old time Motown tone. My main gigging bass is a Yamaha TRBX504. It sounded great with all the amps but best with the current setup. RB210 and Epifani UL2 112 is a great gigging setup. It's reasonably light. The DI out from the RB210 works great for bigger gigs. I love this setup.
 
My experience with the RB210. Two years ago after playing guitar for 50 years I joined a band as a bass player. I had a Tokai Hardpuncher and a Traynor SB110 combo. It sounded great. For club gigs it was loud enough. For outdoor gigs it was good as a stage monitor. I lucked into a sweet deal on a used Ibanez SRFF805 bass. The Traynor was lacking on the B string. It was OK but I needed more. After trying several different combos I bought an RB210. It was much better on the B. It was a bit boomy until I put it on an amp stand. Even though it was better I still wasn't totally happy with the B on the Ibanez. I added a used Epifani UL2 112. The RB210 fits perfectly on top of the Epifani raising it to where it gets a great tone, better than on the amp stand. The Epifani gets me the tone I was looking for on the Ibanez B. With the RB210 and the Epifani I can play at lower volume with the bass turned down a bit from where it was with just the RB210. The tone is awesome. Exactly what I was looking for. The bonus is the Tokai Hardpuncher (PBass) with flats really sings now. Nails that old time Motown tone. My main gigging bass is a Yamaha TRBX504. It sounded great with all the amps but best with the current setup. RB210 and Epifani UL2 112 is a great gigging setup. It's reasonably light. The DI out from the RB210 works great for bigger gigs. I love this setup.

Great review/history there, @Kerry Brown. After moving down here in the early 80s, I miss my trips to your town. How is "The Chief" rock formation doing?