• 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.

Mesa or Ampeg

#47
I think I like them both. But I'm only talking about the big tube heads. So the 400 vs the SVT.

When I bought my first 70's SVT the guy who sold it also sold a 400. Tried them next to each other. Both were great, but I went for the SVT. Much bigger, fatter and warmer sound. The 400 sounded very metallic. The SVT was more expensive, but the sound convinced me.

Still would like to have a 400 someday. Just for variation!
 
#48
I went Mesa and got the Big Block Titan V-12 which is a hybrid amp, not all tube. They discontinued the 400+. I still see Ampeg rigs and wonder what it would be like had I gone Ampeg. I can say though, that the Mesa cabinets are much clearer from my experience and the tones I use. Whenever I have to use an Ampeg cab at a venue or when I borrow one from a friend at a show, it's always muddier, with my same bass, pedal board and head. Everything is identical except I'm using an Ampeg cabinet, and it makes a muddy difference in my tone. So I can say I'm glad I went Mesa cabinet wise. But maybe the Ampeg cabinets sound less muddy with an Ampeg head up top? I have no idea, I just never dug the Ampeg SVT, everyone told me to get a vintage one but I never found one. So I went Mesa, maybe one day I'll have an Ampeg head as well... I like hearing Ampegs when I see a band, but when I use one, I don't like it. That's just me, it's weird, maybe one day I'll change my mind.
 
#49
I like both, alot. Of course, it depends on which specific models you're talking about too. I have 1 Mesa amp, and 3 Ampeg's. Comparing say 2 similar heads, the Mesa Titan vs the Ampeg SVT 4Pro, on paper, they're very much alike, but they sound very very different. Which is better is subjective. One thing is for sure, Ampeg's line includes everything from greatness down to very yucky, while Mesa is all top notch.
 
#51
unclejam said:
ampeg just blows imho
Click to expand...
80%+ of all touring pro bassists must be idiots then.:rolleyes:



I personally am an Ampeg tube guy but Mesa makes great stuff. I like the old 400+ the best but the Titan V12 and 750 are killer amps as well.

Solid State wise, Mesa does a better Job IMO.

As stated earlier, Mesa IS expensive in Canada.

Also, Vietnamese Ampeg DOES blow IMO. Stick with older stock or used MIA.
 
#52
On the contrary, 80% of all touring pro bassists are smart for using gear that is supplied to them free of charge, if they're an endorsing artist. Didn't Mick Jagger go to school for accounting and finance? People seem to discount the possibility that maybe, just maybe, Ampeg were in the right place at the right time and provided the Stones with free equipment for their tour. Believe me, Mick was a shrewd businessman, and definitely not one to pass up an opportunity to receive sponsorship from Ampeg. The Stones took Ampeg on the road with them not because of the sound quality, but because it cost them nothing. Ampeg became a household name amongst bassists, and the company has been riding that wave of success ever since; while other companies have innovated, I'm not convinced that Ampeg has done much in the way of improving bass tone. What they've done really well is preserved "The Ampeg Tone." Now, I'm not knocking people who want "The Ampeg Tone", but IMO, companies like Mesa Boogie, Markbass, Bergantino and Aguilar have truly propelled bass into the new milennium. Ampeg will always have a place, just not in my rack...

Baird6869 said:
80%+ of all touring pro bassists must be idiots then.:rolleyes:



I personally am an Ampeg tube guy but Mesa makes great stuff. I like the old 400+ the best but the Titan V12 and 750 are killer amps as well.

Solid State wise, Mesa does a better Job IMO.

As stated earlier, Mesa IS expensive in Canada.

Also, Vietnamese Ampeg DOES blow IMO. Stick with older stock or used MIA.
Click to expand...
 
#54
MentalBass said:
On the contrary, 80% of all touring pro bassists are smart for using gear that is supplied to them free of charge, if they're an endorsing artist. Didn't Mick Jagger go to school for accounting and finance? People seem to discount the possibility that maybe, just maybe, Ampeg were in the right place at the right time and provided the Stones with free equipment for their tour. Believe me, Mick was a shrewd businessman, and definitely not one to pass up an opportunity to receive sponsorship from Ampeg. The Stones took Ampeg on the road with them not because of the sound quality, but because it cost them nothing. Ampeg became a household name amongst bassists, and the company has been riding that wave of success ever since; while other companies have innovated, I'm not convinced that Ampeg has done much in the way of improving bass tone. What they've done really well is preserved "The Ampeg Tone." Now, I'm not knocking people who want "The Ampeg Tone", but IMO, companies like Mesa Boogie, Markbass, Bergantino and Aguilar have truly propelled bass into the new milennium. Ampeg will always have a place, just not in my rack...
Click to expand...
Absolutely and totally untrue, and it pains me to even dignify your remarks, but in the interest of the truth, I'll forge ahead. First off, Ampeg has had a top notch reputation with bassists long before the Stones even got together. Second, the Stones were using Ampeg amps long before the SVT came out. The reason Ampeg provided the Stones with SVT's for their 69 US tour is because THEY went to Ampeg and asked if they could supply some backline for the tour. Third, had the Stones not used the SVT, its reputation as the world's finest bass amp would would have been just as strong as it is now. Keith Richards was using an SVT, too, so how come the SVT isn't the number one guitar amp? Reason...it didn't work as well. Besides, Bill Wyman has never been thought of as a particularly great bassist, so it's doubtful bassists of the time would have looked to him for equipment advice.

Not everyone likes Ampeg, and that's fine. But you're saying that the only reason anyone famous plays Ampeg is because Ampeg gives them free stuff, totally forgetting that bands who are famous have a laundry list of manufacturers offering them free stuff. It's a ridiculous statement to make. Ampeg never gave me a free anything in my life and I use it totally by choice. Even if you don't like it, Ampeg made its reputation as the best by being the best, not by buying off rock stars.
 
#55
yeah not sure if I agree with the "ampeg is only big because they give their stuff away for free". But a good point was that other companies such as Mesa and Aguilar have pushed bass amplification into the future, where Ampeg has preserved it's classic tone (although a well known and respectable tone) and whether that is the kind of tone you want or not, that's up to you. I just felt I couldn't get "out of the box" with an Ampeg. But as time goes on, I've realized I could probably warm up to one if I had the extra $$ to own one in my already large arsenal of gear.
 
#56
I think ampeg is the bee's knees for classic sounds, many of which are still used extensively in today's music.

I just prefer the modern, clearer, sound of mesa, with a lot more clean headroom (mostly talking the SVT-CL and SVT-VR, I've heard good stuff about the SVT6 and SVT8 but they don't come up all too often).
 
#57
I only recently started playing Ampeg gear even though Ive been playing a long time. It was always out of my price range so I stuck to the Peavy's and Hartke's of the world. Now that I am older and have the money, I went with Ampeg. I just absolutely loved the tone I got with my Geddy jazz bass into a new SVT Classic. And, if the older US ones sound better than that (never played one), then I would probably start yelling, oh god, oh god, yes, yes and then light up a cigarette.

So, Ampeg for me. And, to be honest, I dont even know where I would FIND a Mesa around here to try it out. Never really saw one in a store. That and the prices are crazy high too.
 
#58
Mesa for me! TBH, I don't care for Ampeg's tube amps, except the SVT-II and 70's SVT's. And while those two amps have good tone, I still wouldn't want to drag around a 90-lb amplifier!

Ampeg's mosfet amps have decent tone and good tone-shaping options, but when I owned them (I've had all but the 8-Pro), they just weren't loud enough! I kid you not, my old 300-watt 800RB was just as loud as Ampeg's 1200-watt SVT4-Pro. But then again, the 800RB is the greatest amp ever made.... :D

With Mesa amps, the solid-state models are fantastic. They're stupid-loud, and the tone shaping options are excellent, especially on the M-Pulse 600. The Big Block heads have an excellent distortion circuit, as well.

However, I'm into their tube heads, specifically the old Bass 400 non-plus. I've owned mine for months now, and I can say it's the only head I've liked more than my 800RB (which I regret selling). It's the same as the 400+, except it uses six 6550's in the power section instead of twelve 6L6GC's. However, it'll also accept 6L6's or KT-88's. The tone is huge and clear, the amp only weighs 45 pounds, and it's more than loud enough for just about anything!
 
#60
All of you complaining about Mesa's prices need to remember that all Mesa stuff is entirely hand made, in this country. Not in CHina, or Vietnam, or wherever the hell else stuff is farmed out to.

Your complaining about the price negates any accountability you have when complaining about a manufacturer moving overseas, IMHO.

Having cake. Eating it too. Sound familiar?
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back