Comments about Ampeg SVT4PRO and SWR Megoliath

IMO, there's no reason to get the SVT4Pro.

get the SVP-Pro preamp and a 1000 watt poweramp, say a carvin, and you can end up paying around 700-800 bucks depending on how much the preamp costs.


the megoliath is the shiz. i just hope you've got the vannage to haul it around. and running that poweramp bridged into the megoliath will give you 1000 watts of huge huge bass.


i'd PERSONALLY get an interstellar overdrive over the SVP....but that's just me.


jason

 

hey that's what i have and i love it... the megoliath with an svp-preamp.... i agree with warwick all the way on the preamp idea...but my vote goes for the SVP.... the cool thing is that if you want to sound like swr.. you buy another preamp, instead of another whole amplifier...
but for now the preamp/poweramp combo is cheaper, more flexible, and if you shop right, more powerful.. the svt4 is just a tube preamp with a solid state poweramp built in.... may as well buy sepearate, because i don't know anyone who can honestly say that one sounds better than the other
goodluck... and yea, that's going to sound badass

 

I've used the SVT4 on festival stages and it's a pretty nice amp if you can really use that much power on a regular basis.

 

they both the shiznit, young bull!



But instead of the SVT-4 pro I'd get a SVP-PRO and a power amp. And I'd take an Ampeg 8x10 over the SWR. My $0.02

 

That's an awfully big rig for those needs. An 8x10 looks and sounds really cool, but you're probably going to find yourself wishing you hadn't bought that big 8x10 after having to move it around a few times.

You may want to just get a 4x10 or 1x15 cabinet instead of an 8x10, and then add another later or trade up if you need to.

Just my opinion.

 

I would say go for it. Having nice gear makes you want to play more, at least in my experience! You will sound great at the gigs you play, even if they are small and lack a P.A. because you'll have massive speaker action. If at some point you decided to stop playing, you could make a good portion of your investment back on an online auction site such as eBay. (I don't like eBay, but it is way better than selling your stuff to GC)

 

yea... an 810 and 1000+ watts seems like overkill... if you plan on doing bigger stuff later, and can afford this now, i say go for it... and an 810 is a PAIN to move around.. but i think mine's worth it...

since you've seen the light and want to go preamp-poweramp seperately... you'll most likely want a solid state poweramp... the megoliath handles 600 watts per 410... so that's a 1200watt cabinet.. I have a mackie 1400, and a very popular amp on this forum is the carvin dcm1000.. crown and qsc are also options... just make sure that the output connections on your cab match the output connection on your poweramp... the mackie 1400 (not 1400i) has speakons and binding posts, carvin has speakons and 1/4"... and the megoliath has 1/4" and speakons. When you're pushing that much power... its a good idea to use speakons if you have the choice

good luck and have fun...

 

DCM1000 + interstellar overdrive + megoliath = sweet rig. this is what i would do. plus for what the SVT4PRO costs, you could get a nice conditioner, tuner, or effects.

 

id say go for the carvin power amp , and ampeg preamp svp or whatever. should be a cool amp.

 

You also may want to check out the Crown CE1000 amp. Its 1100 watts and costs $499. And Crown is a better name than Carvin, IMHO (in my humble opinion)

I think that the Ampeg SVP-PRO preamp and a Crown or Carvin poweramp is your best bet. More bass for your money, and its in a cool rack too!

But the main thing I want to say is you should probably get the Ampeg preamp. Its the same EXACT sound as the SVT-4. Its just like someone took the SVT4 and ripped out the power section. Same great ampeg tone, so if you really liked the sound of that SVT4, you should definately get the SVP-PRO preamp. The SWR interstellar overdrive is probably a good preamp also, but if you're into the Ampeg tone, you wont like SWR (most of the time)

SWR amps have a much different sound than Ampegs do. Its more of a clean "hi-fi" tone that most of us Ampeg lovers don't like. However, I said "most of the time" because you may turn out to be someone who likes SWR amps. So the best thing you can do right now is to play all the amps you can get your hands on and figure out which one sounds the best to you. I already know that Ampeg is my all time favorite amp and Ive never heard anything better, and I can sit here all day going on and on about how much I love them, but it wont help you. You have to go with what your ears tell you.

 

and one more thing I'd like to add...

my favorite thing about the whole idea of rack systems is how upgradable they are. You can add a BBE sonic maximizer or a compressor or a rackmount tuner or a power conditioner or whatever anytime you want. Theyre very flexible.

 

just don't forget to save $50-$100 for a power conditioner. you'll need it to protect that huge power amp.

 

If you want to save a rack space i would check out stewart amps. Lots'a'watts, but very light weight. The other amps mentions are great too.

 

yea, go for the 1500.. Ive heard people on this board say that its okay to double the cabinet rating in your amp, because you only use the most of the power in short bursts... what i know from experience is that i'm using a 1400watt mackie, and the cabinet hasn't given me any sign of trouble yet, and i've cranked it a few times
goodluck.. have fun with your new toys