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New Ampeg Venture Series

#1,082
johnnynitro said:
Funny how many reference the 810. But you never hear much about the 410HE. My 610s and 810s come and go. But I'll always have my veteran work horse 410HE !!
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A pair of 410HE's is a wondrous thing, as well! :bassist::bassist::bassist::thumbsup:
 
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#1,084
JimmyM said:
Well the PF500 did have some issues when it came out in 2011 but they were pretty well fixed within a year. I think the 500 is a killer amp, used to have an 800 and still have a 350 but I like my V7 better than either. The V cabs I’m not familiar with yet.
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The problems continued throughout the PF 350/500/800 series lifespan.

Maybe there were defective parts in 2011 that made it worse, but 12 years of user reviews point to a design problem with the proprietary power section, something Ampeg experienced on a systemic level compared with current, popular and easily sourced OEM's like ICEPower.
 
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#1,086
Pocket Dave said:
The problems continued throughout the PF 350/500/800 series lifespan.

Maybe there were defective parts in 2011 that made it worse, but 12 years of user reviews point to a design problem with the proprietary power section, something Ampeg experienced on a systemic level compared with current, popular and easily sourced OEM's like ICEPower.
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They had occasional breaks after the first year, but nothing any other company didn’t have. My PF800 was fantastic and my PF350 was made in 2011 and still works like a champ.
 
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#1,088
JimmyM said:
They had occasional breaks after the first year, but nothing any other company didn’t have. My PF800 was fantastic and my PF350 was made in 2011 and still works like a champ.
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You got me thinking - I've noted in product reviews what seemed like a disproportionately high fault-circuit failure rate on the PF-350/500/800 series; 'Thought I'd conduct a quick experiment comparing the PF-500, the most popular of the series, to another 500 watt class D, the Aguilar Tone Hammer 500.

In a sampling of 35 PF-500 reviews over the past 10 years, 10 mentioned the fault-circuit failure, a few repeatedly after service. That's roughly 28% of reviews mentioning the problem.

In a sampling of 35 Tone Hammer 500 reviews over the past 10 years, 1 mentioned a similar problem that was fixed after paying shipping, with a 2 week turnaround. That's roughly 3% of the sample group.

Yeah, it's a small sampling and by no means represents all users - People who are happy with a product aren't as likely to review it as those who have problems. Still, it's a much higher rate of complaints for the PF-500 and points to a continued, systemic problem with the design.

I chose these two amps because I've got one of each. I love the Ampeg for it's power and abundant Ampeg DNA. But I trust it less on gigs. Since I lean more toward the TH-500 sound and flexibility, and since I carry a backup to gigs, the Ampeg is my backup.

Though as a backup, I'd like to shave a few pounds off it just for schlepping to and from the car at home; It's heavy for a Class-D. I'll probably hit the goodwill store for a used laptop bag to replace the padded case I've got it in.
 
#1,090
I think ported cabs sound crummy below the cab tuning frequency, down where the ports are no longer working right. Although this is subjective, it's also pretty much a fact, isn't it? Does anyone agree?

One solution is to tune so low that, for example, the VB 88, 115 and 410 still work correctly down to below the fundamental of low B, and the others below low E.

The Venture cabs are a little larger than otherwise comparable popular cabs, but the above is what you get in compensation.
 
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#1,091
I did a gig recently with a backline SVT 4 Pro. I pulled out my V12 to A/B. The cabs were a SVT410HLF and a SVT115.
I disengaged the GEQ on the SVT 4 for a 1-1 comparison.
With the SGT disengaged, they sounded pretty much identical at the same settings.
I was surprised to find that the V12 had a little MORE headroom in both the preamp AND power amp.
And for all the talk of the strange volume pot taper, it's exactly the same at the SVT 4 pro.
I didn't think to compare the compressor at the time, it was during a soundcheck, so didn't have heaps of time.
It would have been really interesting to try a set on each head to feel the differences, but that would have freaked our FOH guy.

I haven't spent heaps of time with the SVT 4 before, but from this little initial test, it seemed like one could easily replace one with the other and there be minimal sonic difference.
 
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#1,094
They really should have just waited to get the correct speakon cable and then do the demo. I'd say the number 1 complaint about this new series is that hardly anyone realizes that the heads don't take the usual speakon cables. I agree that this video is embarrassing for ampeg and btw. I couldn't even watch the entire video because what's the real point if the head isn't featured with the cab?
 
#1,099
Lovep said:
I would imagine its cheaper to source a bunch of NL2 vs. NL4 connectors? IDK. It's got to be financially motivated...squeeze every cent of profit out.
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I doubt it, the cost is almost the same.
 
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