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Just received the elusive Ampeg B1 Combo!
- Thread starter mksolid
- Start date
Totally wish I could. This amp has an unfortunate history, the previous owner was a close friend who unexpectedly passed on several years ago. He had loaned it out to people he thought he could trust, and by the time I tracked it down, the amp was almost totally destroyed. Whatever remained of the driver is long gone. I have been restoring it mostly as a labor of love; shooting for an exact "factory" restoration, but if that isn't totally possible, I'm pretty sure that Eminence would be a pretty close replacement.
Got a lead on one of these, trying to get a friend to go check it out as it's 4h away from me. It has a broken gain pot shaft and it's missing two knobs, waiting for Loud to get back to me on replacements. I was thinking about just adding a cab to my rack B-1 but having a second would allow me to leave the rack at my church, plus give me a speaker. Definitely don't need huge volume at home.
A rare item with an even rarer audience, anyone listening? Bueller??
Peace,
Raz
A rare item with an even rarer audience, anyone listening? Bueller??
Peace,
Raz
I'm listening
The pot shouldn't be too hard to replace, but finding knobs that will fit the old pots is really difficult. Peavey uses the same shaft size (3/16" knurled) on some of their amps, you might have more luck finding some of those than the Ampeg units (they went NLA at Fliptops a few weeks after I ordered a set for my B-1.)
Ampeg has a pot for it and Full Compass or eBay should have knobs; waiting to see if my friend can arrange to check it out as they aren’t responding to my emails for some reason.I'm listening
The pot shouldn't be too hard to replace, but finding knobs that will fit the old pots is really difficult. Peavey uses the same shaft size (3/16" knurled) on some of their amps, you might have more luck finding some of those than the Ampeg units (they went NLA at Fliptops a few weeks after I ordered a set for my B-1.)
So @Razman - did this deal ever go through? I was just playing around with my B-1, and was curious to know if your deal worked out.
Unfortunately no, my friend didn’t have time and the seller wouldn’t communicate with me any more. Until next time I guess; thanks for inquiring.
Raz
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Just saw this in my local cl. Is this the amp you're talking about?
Just saw this in my local cl. Is this the amp you're talking about?
Wow, that's a clean one!! A bit overpriced though - as much as I love mine, I'm not sure I'd spend $400 on it...
Now I'm inspired to roll some more tubes through mine this weekend, this amp does respond significantly to different tubes...
I had my tech go through mine when I got it but I can't remember what he put in it. What works well for you and how does your sound change?
I found that the tubes it came with labeled as SLM "Hot Tubes" - I assume they're original, broke up pretty early and gave me more distortion than I wanted. I spent an evening recording the changes with a handful of tubes, and eventually settled on an old set of RCAs that had much lower gain. It still gives me some nice grunt, but doesn't go into flabby territory so easily. I acquired a bunch of assorted preamp tubes recently, so I'm curious to see how this amp can sound with some more tweaking.
I still need to replace the pull-switch pots in mine, they're both on the way out. It might be bad timing on my part, I haven't called LOUD to see if they're still shipping Ampeg parts, I need to do that soon...
I got my B1 for $250 NEW (some sort of annual sale at a music store near Washington DC). But $400 for a used one (they listed for $1000) is not bad at all. It's sort of like a Mesa Boogie amp, but for bass guitar! Fantastic tone for studio or live (if you run through a PA in larger rooms). Sorta rare model overall, with the B&W graphics on the older ones are a bit more desirable (subjective). I would say even $500 if it was blemish-free, all original w/ casters and a cover.
FYI... there is a bias adjustment procedure on the schematic. Be sure to calibrate it for optimum performance. My unit was way off when I first got it (floor model but new).
Loud has them! As for the combo on CL, while that may be market price, I’m still peeved I missed the other one. No $$ for that at the present time.
Thanks a ton for pointing that out, I didn't even notice it!
Curiously, there are two different bias procedures on the schematic - the first is on the preamp section (bias the preamp tubes??) and says:
"Bias adjustment: with amp in ?????? (pentode?, porridge?, portage?) mode, and no signal applied, adjust ????? (p54?, ps4?) for 0.05v +/- .04v between TP1 and TP2."
My copy of the service manual doesn't look too clear at the enlargement I need to read that print. I also don't see anything like P54 or PS4 on the parts list, and I'm resonably confident there's no porridge mode, so I think I might skip that one (unless you have a better copy to share...)
The tube board schematic says this:
Bias calibration procedure: with no signal applied and no load connected, adjust AP-1 to obtain 1mv +/- 0.2v across R30, R31, R32 and R33. That one is obviously for biasing the output transistors, and I can do that one because the parts exist in this case.
Oh Ampeg, how you've messed with us...
That has to be a typo. No need to bias the preamp tubes.
Partridge is the term you are looking for. And, when you listen to the adjustments you make it must be with this song.
Just picked up an older Hartke 410xl and powered it with the B-1; seems loud enough when cranked up a little, even at 8 ohms. I don’t think it would keep up with my drummer however, unless he played light (which I don’t think he could).
It sounded punchy and thick but lacking in ultra-lows, but it’s not the cab for that either. Engaging the ‘ultra highs’ helped make up for the absence of a HF driver. This cab produces midrange well - not the cab for getting a scooped sound IMO, but punchy mids is what you want in a good live mix anyway. At least that’s what works best for us.
A vertical 410 would be nice but got this cab for a good price and I don’t have a pressing need for a modular setup. What I DO have a pressing need for is a set of removable casters, like the Ernie Ball set, because this cab is a beast to move. Any ideas there?
Raz
It sounded punchy and thick but lacking in ultra-lows, but it’s not the cab for that either. Engaging the ‘ultra highs’ helped make up for the absence of a HF driver. This cab produces midrange well - not the cab for getting a scooped sound IMO, but punchy mids is what you want in a good live mix anyway. At least that’s what works best for us.
A vertical 410 would be nice but got this cab for a good price and I don’t have a pressing need for a modular setup. What I DO have a pressing need for is a set of removable casters, like the Ernie Ball set, because this cab is a beast to move. Any ideas there?
Raz
