• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Is Ampeg gone to the dogs.

gary mitchell

gary mitchell

Jul 14, 2008
2,020
1,671
austin texas
#1
I was in the Bass Emporium picking up my Pbass after having Bartolini pickups installed, so while I as waiting I was looking at amps. Iam thinking of getting rid of my SWR 700 workingpro head. I was looking at a Ampeg head for around 1200 bucks the guy told me Ampeg is now being made in China and he has had a bunch come back to be service because of something going wrong with them, he said they are great amps if you can find an older one. Is this true, I know my SWR is made in Mexico. So now Iam thinking on a 6are 900 watt Genz Benz with a Bergino are how ever you spell it 412 cab.
 
#7
Most of the old standards have gone to the dogs; Ampeg, SWR, Eden.
Trace has resurrected, but rarely heard about. GK's gone thru some rough waters, but pulling thru. Glad to hear Hartke has finally(after many years) taken a turn for the better -hearing nothing but bang for buck raves on their newest products. Both GK and Hartke have outstanding ownership as well.
I've often thought that if you want that classic SWR/Eden sound, look at Thunderfunk and Bergantino.
 
#9
nothing is made the same way it was twnety years ago... cars, radios, computers, instrumesnts, amps...mayne something new doesnt fit your taste or peronal liking...but to say it has "gone to the dogs" is a far stretch in my opinion
 
#10
All companies have their growing pains when they do a major change as Ampeg has... Im sure they will rebound ..
and actually in the process while under new leadership...
I am not an Ampeg User even though my username may suggest that these days.. I use another brand of gear..
But Ampeg is having some issue that will be or in the process of being ironed out . IMO..
 
#13
I recently "upgraded" from an Ampeg B2RE to an Ampeg SVT-4 PRO (a few years old) and I gotta say it doesn't have the power or "umph" that I think it should have. Also, the 5 frequency knob seems to make no difference in the sound whatsoever, no matter where I set it. Is this normal? Do yourself a favor and find yourself a 30 year old Peavey Mark 4 head - one can't go wrong with these workhorses!
 
#14
AndyW83 said:
nothing is made the same way it was twnety years ago... cars, radios, computers, instrumesnts, amps...mayne something new doesnt fit your taste or peronal liking...but to say it has "gone to the dogs" is a far stretch in my opinion
Click to expand...

Yes - cars, radios and computers are all an order of magnitude better today then they were 20 years ago. Ampeg...?

Ampeg is a business, nothing more. Businesses make decisions. Some decisions are good, some are *bad*. It seems Ampeg has been in the throes of the latter for a while, living mostly on brand cachet (The company I work for is suffering from the exact same problem).

They may bounce back (Like Fender did, post CBS), they may not. Acoustic amps leap to mind - just because it has the label and look does *not* mean that it has the quality or mojo. And frankly, I *hate* it when venerated US companies that offshore their production.
 
#16
ampeg is no longer being made in vietnam. they now make most of their stuff in south korea, with a small "heritage" shop they started earlier this year in washington state.

so what happened was ampeg got sold to loud technologies, which was run by a total idiot named jaime engen. he moved them to vietnam and rushed product onto the market. this product sometimes worked great, and often worked badly. people lost confidence in ampeg as a result. so did i. however, after he bankrupted the company, he was rightly fired, and the new guy (pyotr belov from blackheart amps) actually seems to know what he's doing. quality got higher, and for my money is actually pretty good now. sure, sometimes you'll get a bum amp, but from what i can see their qc is much higher now. so i'm gaining confidence in ampeg again.

this confidence comes from not just fewer reported qc problems on here and harmony central and the like, but the fact that i fly a lot and use rented ampegs, and the only ones i ever had problems with were nampegs. but i haven't had a problem in a long time, so i'm pretty satisfied that qc is back up to where it should be for the korean ampegs. and from reports i've heard, the heritage amps and cabs are even better, especially the cabs. having said that, my personal ampegs are vintage ;)
 
#17
one thing i noticed is that the PRO series Mid selectors on all of their amps do not have the eefect that the earlier NON PRO amps did . .ala the SVT2 and SVT3 nonpros.. I like the Non Pro sound myself..
And I never thought the SVT 4 sounded as loud as it should..a the amount of watts it says it has... But it could be the gain structure and get up of the gain knobs.. Dont worry too much about the LED input blinking.. let it blink and turn it up..


80'sRocker said:
I recently "upgraded" from an Ampeg B2RE to an Ampeg SVT-4 PRO (a few years old) and I gotta say it doesn't have the power or "umph" that I think it should have. Also, the 5 frequency knob seems to make no difference in the sound whatsoever, no matter where I set it. Is this normal? Do yourself a favor and find yourself a 30 year old Peavey Mark 4 head - one can't go wrong with these workhorses!
Click to expand...
 
#19
bassguppy said:
I tried the new SVT7-PRO. Very nice, seems like good build quality and loud. I think with the move overseas and production hiicups they burned alot of bridges. They are bringing some production back to the USA though.
Click to expand...

I had no gas for an amp when I went looking for some new effects. I plugged into a SVT 7 Pro and went home with it instead.;)

The mid conrol is supposed to be -20 to +10. I think the boost is more in the "6" range. If you have a cab without a big mid scoop it has plenty of control.
 
#20
Plstrns said:
I had no gas for an amp when I went looking for some new effects. I plugged into a SVT 7 Pro and went home with it instead.;)

The mid conrol is supposed to be -20 to +10. I think the boost is more in the "6" range. If you have a cab without a big mid scoop it has plenty of control.
Click to expand...
got to try one of those. i keep hoping sam ash or gc will get them but they don't yet. but i imagine the 7 pro has some voicing to it where it's not dead flat. none of their amps are, really. they can be made to get real close, but zeroing out the controls won't get you flat.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back