The new CL that I turned down when I got my VR had what sounded like an unreasonably loud transformer hum - the guy in the shop tried to convince me it was just something caught in the fan blades.
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I just scored a Ampeg SVT-VR
- Thread starter Rob L
- Start date
You know, I sometimes wonder if we are the only people who worry about these issues. I am guessing there are thousands of bass players out there living with a bit of hum and considering it to be quite normal. Down here I have not heard anyone complain about Ampeg other than the price - just grateful to be able to get them.
My Vietnam VR has been flawless so far, yet I sometimes worry about it because I have read on this forum that the USA ones are more reliable. Must spend more time playing and less time thinking.
My Vietnam VR has been flawless so far, yet I sometimes worry about it because I have read on this forum that the USA ones are more reliable. Must spend more time playing and less time thinking.
Right! Hey, if it's lasted this long, I'm sure it's fine. Even USA SVT's break now and then.
- Mar 18, 2006
- 185
- 23
- Disclosures
- Endorsing Artist: Ampeg Amps, Fender and Music Man basses
i had my ampeg rep send me send me one out to nashville...its an overseas model...dead silent...i love it...i get compliments on it all the time...its a sick sick sick amp!
i need some help on how to correctly set the bias on SVT VR. i noticed the VR bias is slightly different from CL head as far as indicating how the bias led light works. when i had my CL. i had set the bias to the brightest Green light and when while playing, the led light red comes on and off while the led green light stays on. now on the VR bias. i see no red lights. i set the light to the brightest green and when playing, the green light just stays on almost no movement of dimming in or out. did i set this one correctly? is this to high? or am i supposed to set the light in the mid. or am i supposed to see any red there at all? coz i don't see any red light. when adjusting them. they either no light or green light. but i don't know if this is an option that you can set it to high or low light. anyone?
If green lights don't dim I guess you've set it right, I don't know. They dim on mine when I play, but if I'm not mistaken you're supposed to set bias without any signal sent into the amp. There are no red lights on svt-vr (at least on mine). Both green lights should be strong, that's when bias is set.
i believe that would be the fan went bad. if the transformer goes bad, it will raddle or shake and will make a buzz sound. sometimes it so hard to detect where the buzz, humming or sound coming from while you here that fan going. but you can do a this test yourself to actually know which is making that noise.
you can hold the fan and turn the power on. like stick a screw driver between the fins of fan to hold it. if you hear that sound and it's loud, then you got problems with your transformers. but if you don't hear anything. then it is your fan.
i bought one about a month ago, 2008 model made in vietnam. i havent had any hum problems with it (aside from some buzz from my jazz bass, but they do that lol). the amp destroys the universe, im running it at 2 ohms with an 810E and a 215E, and its the most brutal sounding amp ive ever used.
not sure i can ever go back to solid state for rock again.
not sure i can ever go back to solid state for rock again.
This one's still here and still lovin' my Vietnam model more each day. It is still amazing me, I seem to be able to play louder than before and the other guys ask me to turn it up! This happened to me at band practice last night - I know the room well and was enjoying the practice but knowing I was much louder than in the pre-VR days, and the other members asked for more! Bliss. And that, my fellow TB'ers, is what clean headroom is all about - and my Vietnam VR has it in spades, way more than any other tube amp I have played.
I've had 3 SVT-VR's and all of them had that hum. Some more than others, but it was a louder hum than it should have been. I contacted Ampegs CS many times and what it ended up being was some bad soldering on one of the boards. They since have fixed that problem. At least they say they did.
Apparently they did have some problems with the early Vietnam production runs (as you might expect, although it shouldn't happen). Those of us who have purchased recent Vietnam models seem to be reporting silent running, no hum and no problems - in fact, perfect amps.
hey everyone. in about ten days or so. i got to have a final decision wether if i should keep my 410HLF or exchange and go with 810AV. so i need some quick response from you guys who has done a comparison between these two cab. i have never tried the 810 but so far the differences i see from the two is that the 410 has a horn that gives so much treble. compare to 810 cab.. i see no horn so i'm afraid i'm gonna lose that highs. if you guys have experiences or reasons why i should get the 810 let me know. i would really appreciate your experienced and comments on this. i'm open for any reasons as far as sound, portability, anything that i might consider. i will based this exchange on your experienced. thanks!
Nothing sounds like the classic 8x10 setup... You should try it before, it really makes bass jump out there. I love mine, except the weight of the thing.
The low hum (approx 120 hz) is a very common problem with SVT's, VR or CL. I believe that the problem is incorrect tube voltage. I can usually be fixed by re-setting the tube bias adjustment on the back of the amp. The problem is that when you set the bias to the indicated optimal setting (both led's bright green) it does not reduce the hum. But when you manually adjust it and listen for the the hum to disappear you can eliminate virtually all of the hum. I have done this on three of mine so far and it does not seem to have an adverse effect on the functionality of the amp or the tube life. -Obviously there is a trade off with the optimal efficiency and the hum in some situations and you want to keep the voltage within reasonable parameters to keep the amp from distorting too early.
They are great sounding amps. I am not sure if I lik ethe SVT II version r the SVT-VR the best. But they are all good.-That's just my 2 cents worth. Hope it helps.
andy
They are great sounding amps. I am not sure if I lik ethe SVT II version r the SVT-VR the best. But they are all good.-That's just my 2 cents worth. Hope it helps.
andy
