Ampeg SVT212AV vs Aguilar DB212 (V4BH)

[Rogulus]

Greetings from down under fellow bassists.

I come to the bass oracle needing some guidance and recommendations, I'm gonna go for a new cabinet, I love the sound of 12's, I want ceramic not neodymium and I'm running a V4BH 90's classic series Ampeg.

I've read plenty of great things about the Ampeg 212 and hear it's quite the potent pairing with the newer reissue V4B, but also similar reports on the Aguilar. I read that the SVT212 has a similar feel to that 8x10 closed cabinet sound which I'm after, don't need huge lows.

My local has a Aggie DB212 in the shop which I've been allowed to try with my head on top and it sounded okay in the showroom, very mid forward and tight, not a huge bottom end which I speculate will sit nicely in a mix but can't be sure at all as I haven't tried it in that context. The spec sheets seem to show a pretty similar frequency response, $ isn't an issue neither is country of origin, I'd love to match Ampeg head to cab but can get the Aggy alot quicker.

Would love some opinions from those who have tried both or use and gig one or the other?

Not after bergantino or mesa stuff so miss me with those!

 

[sharkbait130]

I gigged for years with an SVT Classic head and an 8 10e cab. Loved it. As geezerdom crept up on me , my back finally convinced me to drop the 90 lb. head for an 11 lb. PF 500 head. My ears had absolutely no complaints about this change. I ran this rig for about a year. Further geezerdom and a loudly complaining back finally convinced me to drop the 165 lb. cab in favor of a 2 12 av. Again , my ears had no complaints. Does it sound exactly the same as the big rig? No , but the difference is so small that even after running the big rig for years , it isn't any problem for me at all. Yes , the 2 12 av sounds remarkably like the 8 10 to the point that I really can't tell the difference between them. BTW , I have never used the horn on the 2 12.
If I woke up tomorrow 20 years younger and my back had no reason to complain , would I go back to the big rig? To be honest , I really don't know.
As far as the Aggie cab , I have never used one so I won't comment on a comparison. I do hear really good things about them though.

 

[coreyfyfe]

I had a pair of the 112AV cabs and a friend had a pair of the DB112 cabs in his studio. Having run both with my vintage V4 I'd say the Aguilar are capable of more push in the lows but I could get similar sounds from both. The ampeg are very controlled in the low end, the 810 comparison rang true for me there.

The DB cabs are very well constructed. I feel compared to my ampeg cabs they were also very heavy, but looking at the weight for the two 2x12s they aren't far off.

I no longer have the ampeg cabs though I have a couple other 2x12 and 1x12 options. My most used cab right now is a bergantino CN212. I know you said you weren't interested in neo speakers but honestly the load in/out with the neo cab is so ridiculously easy. With my more traditional 2x12 I usually pop it on top of the road case for my amp and roll them around together. Just some food for thought I suppose.

 

[Aladinsane1969]

I have an Ampeg 2x12 and I couldn't be happier. Just like the other guys, to my ears it sounds like smaller version of the 8x10 I owned. I put a set of Ernie Ball pop-out casters on it, so it's super easy to move around and light enough to carry when I need to. Plus, iit looks friggin awesome. I wouldn't trade it for anything.

 

[SirMjac28]

The Ampeg is killer can't say enough about that cab

 

[iandoublebass]

I have a Th500 with two sl 112 and also a V4b with svt 212.

they're both great for sure. But at times I found the sls to feel muted. The svt 212 definitely sounds brighter. And I think that's a good thing. So I decide to keep the th and one sl 112 for small gigs and portability and keep the v4 and the svt 212 for bigger gigs. The th into the svt is no slouch either!