Considering going back to tubes. Wondering if there has been a recent thread about the CL amp. Can't find one in a serach. If not, I'll entertain opinions and experiences here.
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Any Ampeg SVT-CL thread recently?
- Thread starter ubersku
- Start date
What reading I have done, most folks say the same. Aside from a few glitches with tubes which, from those users, have deemed it unreliable, it and the VR seem to be the flagship of tube bass amps. I had a Peavy VB-2 that died on me two weeks in on secomd use. Took six months to get fixed. It died again. That was a long time ago right after they first came out. But having Ampeg cabs, I feel the need to marry them up with the right head.
right on. either the cl or a vr is a great choice. but the non-master svt's like the vr feel just slightly more open to me. very subtle thing, although some others feel like it's not as subtle as i do. tonally i think it's a wash, though. they both sound magnificent.
The CL is a great amp. Mine was a USA model that I picked up from a road dog. Fresh tubes and a new fan, and I was off to the races. I played about 60 gigs with the CL and loved my tone every time I turned it on. The only problem I ran into was with the effects loop jacks. They corroded because I never used them. It caused intermittent problems. It was an easy fix though... with the amp off, spray some contact cleaner into the jack and push a patch cord into it a few times. Do that
I sold my CL when I found a used USA VR, but there's not a thing wrong with the CL. Buy it, you'll love it.
I sold my CL when I found a used USA VR, but there's not a thing wrong with the CL. Buy it, you'll love it.
i own a american svt classic and it sounds good and has tons of power but it has been repaired 3 times in the last year. i recently bought a 1974 ampeg v4b and i love it. it's power rating is 100 watts but dont let that fool you, it is very powerful. i use it with 900 watt 6-10 mesa boogie cabinet and it rocks. you could power 2 8-10 cabs with the v4b. the vr,cl and v4b are all great sounding heads but i prefer the v4b and is still working after 37 years, that reliability.
Buy one, you'll love it. Had mine since '06, never had any problems with it. Look at it this way, some amps take some tweaking to get a great sound. On a CL, turn every knob to noon and you may not even move them at all.
Well you got me thinking + my inherent GAS (no, not that) and I started reading stuff bout the VR the other day. Boy have I read! Thinkin' I might look for a VR now. I realize tone is subjective, but hell, if I'm going to play in that cateogry, I might as well go with the top-'o-line. Interesting closed thread here made me stop and think about a few things, but I think I am ready. Now the hard part. Finding one!
