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mesa 400+ vs. ampeg...

#41
Originally posted by Zentner


Ampeg is probably 'one of the', if not 'the' oldest bass amplification company still in business. People have always relied on ampeg to produce a quality product. I have never seen a "quality" ampeg product, because i don't find them reliable, or in my opinion, a "good sounding amp" but then again, this is all preferance.

I have never played a 70's SVT, or anything like that, so i'm basing my knowledge purely on their newer equipment. If i had the chance to play an old SVT, perhaps my mind would change, but for now, i have seen only problems with ampeg, as for their new heads.

that is all.

~Zentner
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From what I've seen, the new Ampegs are just as reliable as any other mass manufactured bass amps. There aren't a disproportionate number of them on shop workbenches. They're not as well made as the old ones but not much built today is. Whether you like the tone is, of course, entirely subjective.
 
#42
I have another question, Is it true that Mesa tubes are not all that great? I just put a set of JJ ecc83s in my 400+ and the sound is even better than the stock soviet,(i think they are
Sovtek). It sounds a lot clearer and the punch is outta hand. And it also sounded louder at lower volume levels. Maybe I should get some Svetlanas 6l6's to really open the amp up. Has anybody else noticed this? or am I just imaginening things?
 
#45
Originally posted by RockBobby
No. It's not you. The JJ's are a great tube in all ways. I have the ECC83s and JJ 6L6GCs in mine. KILLER..!!! I just had my Bassman 135 retubed with JJ 6L6GC and adj. bias installed. Big difference. BTW, The JJs were recommnded over Svetlanas because they are more stable over time. (Less michrophonics) P.S., My 400+ preamp tubes were Chinese. (They sounded very good.)
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Cool, I just E-mailed Bob at Eurotubes. And asked him about the JJ 6L6's.
 
#46
i'm not sure where everyone's getting off on the whole "ampeg's unreliable" thing. if you go to shows and look at touring bands, and i don't mean the ones that get stuff for free from companies. i mean the ones that are dirt poor and tour 10 months out of the year, 9 times out of ten they're usually using an ampeg product of some sort.
 
#47
Originally posted by thelastofus
i'm not sure where everyone's getting off on the whole "ampeg's unreliable" thing. if you go to shows and look at touring bands, and i don't mean the ones that get stuff for free from companies. i mean the ones that are dirt poor and tour 10 months out of the year, 9 times out of ten they're usually using an ampeg product of some sort.
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Tim, I don't think anyone is bashing Ampeg. BTW, What tubes came in the SVT Classic?..I do know that my Mesa 400+ is ultra reliable. Reasonbass already has the Mesa. The JJ's are the way to go.
 
#49
Originally posted by thetaurus
so for my 400+, i'm trying to decide between either jj 6l6gc's w/ jj 12ax7's. or svetlana 6l6gc's with sovtek 12ax7lps's, or eh's. what do you reccomend for a loud, smooth, thick, rock tone that doesn't distort too easily?
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I'll go with the JJ's, these tubes will deliver what you are looking for. Talk to Bob at Eurotubes. I also had JJ's when I had an Ampeg SVP-Pro which was relailable and great sounding BTW. But I have no regrets whatsoever with my Mesa. Just look at my avatar on the left.

Oh and did u ever get that Gator Shock rack?
 
#50
cool...i've heard great things about both sets of tubes, and the jj's would be cheaper than the svets. i have alittle more looking around to do i guess before i decide.

as for the gator case, i haven't gotten it yet. i'm going to retube the amp first to make sure i want to keep it. if i do, then i'm going for the gator shock mount. if not, then i'll sell off the mesa. i'll decide after i retube though.
 
#51
pssshhhh....people now days...cant read the words "500watts" on the mesa boogie web site.

and what the f*** do you expect when your playing with a blown tube?!?!

try running your car on 3 wheels... would it go as fast? NO! and if you do want to get rid of it, give it to me! and there is no way that your mesa is lower quality than your previous amp.

Try:

*pulling your head out of your @$$.

*retubing the amp.

*apologize to your mesa.

and another thing, your mesa may sound a bit softer now than your previous amp....thats because youve lost a good bit of hearing cause the 400+ turned down the volume in your ears by turning up the volume in reallity!
 
#54
Mesa is not really lying. They said 500 transient power peaks. I wish they would re-write it though, so people can better understand the power rating. Or maybe they should just say "Th is amp is really really freaking loud!!!" :D

And to Cliff 'Em All, chill brother. This board is to help each other out, not to ridicule one another.
 
#55
I guess they're not really 'lying' per se, but they are being misleading. They know that most people just see the number and go "Wow, 500 watts, tube!" without any knowledge of what that spec actually means.
The math speaks for itself. Maximum continuous power from a 6L6 is 25W at best and there are 12 of them. Thus 300W.

Pretty much any 300W amp can do transients of 500W or more so the 400+ isn't special in that respect. I do wish they'd change that, as the 400+'s performance speaks for itself. I.E. who cares if it's a 300W amp? It still sounds great and is as loud as hell. :D
 
#56
Sorry for not answering sooner, I haven't seen this string for awhile. There were two questions directed to my post earlier.

1. Were did I get the specs for the Svetlana tubes that I wrote about?
From the Tubestore. They fixed me up.

2. The 400+ did not drive the Bergantino HT212? No. It sounded superb at low to medium volumnes but started to clip at my needed gigging volumnes. The Bergs are wonderful cabs but need lots of juice. I ended up getting a PLX and Demeter preamp. I like it a lot, but the 400+ is one of the sweetest amps I've ever tried and own. I guess one would say the Bergs are not efficient, but I think it's more like the drivers just need tons of power to make them sing. And the 400+ was just not enough from my first hand experiances on live gigs.

note: I briefly had an Epiphani 212 that I tried with the 400+ and it did the same thing. I ended up returning the Epi and moving on until I finally realized it was a power issue. I still like the Bergs much better.
 
#57
Originally posted by Mark Reccord
I guess they're not really 'lying' per se, but they are being misleading. They know that most people just see the number and go "Wow, 500 watts, tube!" without any knowledge of what that spec actually means.
The math speaks for itself. Maximum continuous power from a 6L6 is 25W at best and there are 12 of them. Thus 300W.

Pretty much any 300W amp can do transients of 500W or more so the 400+ isn't special in that respect. I do wish they'd change that, as the 400+'s performance speaks for itself. I.E. who cares if it's a 300W amp? It still sounds great and is as loud as hell. :D
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I could not have said it better myself.:)
 
#58
I think efficiency is key here. My 400+ does fantastic with the Powerhouse 1000. It also does equally well with an Eden D410XLT on top of a Sonic/EV 18. I think multi drivers gelp big time. For instance, when I tried to drive an Acme Low B-2 with my Fender 135, it crapped out like I was killing the speakers. Put the 135 on top of the Eden/Sonic stack and WOW!, It's thunderous. I would even try to use it live if my Mesa was unavailable. Or my 72 V-4 on top. KILLER....300, even 100 watts is LOUD with the right speakers. You could not have told me this a few years ago. No,I had to spend mondo bucks to learn the lesson.
 

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