Hi. Just joined this forum after recently buying a secondhand bass and amp (I play g**tar as well). I had a question that maybe one of you more experienced bassists can help with. The amp is an Ampeg BA-115 combo, rated at 100W. The problem is that I need to have both the gain and master volumes set to maximum to get any kind of sound from the amp. It certainly does not sound like 100W and there is no way it would be audible over a drumkit! The sound level is identical for both the "0dB" and "-15dB" inputs. I have tried the bass through my g**tar amp, which is 60 W and it sounds a LOT louder. The bass amp has a CD input and I found that when playing a line-level signal from my MP3 player, etc. through this, the amp sounds as loud as I would expect (even louder than the guitar amp in fact). I suspected there might be a problem with the pre-amp and so to check this, I connected the MP3 to the 0dB 1/4" tele input and found that the volume was _exactly_ the same as when I plugged it into the CD-in. So my question is, does it sound like the pre-amp stage could be damaged so that it simply is not amplifying the signal from the bass pick-up ? Or is it just that this amp requires a higher input signal. The bass I am using is an entry-level Yamaha. Any help greatly appreciated!
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Newbie question: Ampeg BA-115 seems too quiet?
- Thread starter ensdms
- Start date
What kind of EQ settings are you using with your bass?
Also the speaker efficiency plays a big part in how far the power goes. Your guitar speaker is probably much more efficient making better use of the lower power. That said, a 100 watt combo wouldnt be enough to hang with a loud drummer at practice for me. IMHO its a at home unit only.
Also the speaker efficiency plays a big part in how far the power goes. Your guitar speaker is probably much more efficient making better use of the lower power. That said, a 100 watt combo wouldnt be enough to hang with a loud drummer at practice for me. IMHO its a at home unit only.
That's a puzzler. One more thing you might try is plugging your mp3 into the guitar amp and comparing with the bass volume there.
Some basses are louder than others, but this seems extreme. If your bass is considerably quieter than the mp3 through the guitar amp as well, i would say that your bass is the issue. One (easy to fix) possibility is that the pickups are too low.
Some basses are louder than others, but this seems extreme. If your bass is considerably quieter than the mp3 through the guitar amp as well, i would say that your bass is the issue. One (easy to fix) possibility is that the pickups are too low.
This combo is extremely quiet for it's size and power rating. That's just the way it is and it got worse when production moved to China.
This could be your problem. The minus 15 db should be a lot quieter than the 0 db. In case you arent aware the -15 db is for active basses. If you plug an active bass into a 0 db input it should be loud and clip the your signal pretty heavily. A passive bass into a -15 db input should be way too quiet.
100w should be audible under a drummer you wont keep up with him but you should be able to hear the bass.
Dont think so.
It's a 100 watt combo, so it's not gonna be super loud. Right on the edge of will it work with a drummer or not. Depends on the drummer and the rest of the band.
If you are getting no difference from the 0db, and the -15db input, something is wrong...
I would take it to a tech.
If you are getting no difference from the 0db, and the -15db input, something is wrong...
I would take it to a tech.
I had one of these when I started playing with my first band. IMO they are not loud enough for a 4 piece band and like said above should be used for home practice. Maybe look into getting a higher rated cabinet or halfstack. The halfstacks really get you to the desired volume for a band setting.
Sounds like something is wrong. The driver should be 4 ohms making that amp a "loud" 100 watts. I've jammed them before in a 4 piece band setting with no issues. I would check to see if the driver has been swapped for something cheap, and then take it to a tech.
BWAHAHAHA!!! Listening with your eyes? New ones and old ones sound the same to me.
Anyway, if the 0db and -15db inputs are the same volume, then it is most definitely broken and stuck in -15db mode. Probably won't be a major ordeal to get fixed, but I'm not a tech so I couldn't tell you what it is. I'm sure techs will come along soon to give you ideas, though. People can debate whether a 100w 115 amp is loud enough to hang with a band...some can use it, some can't. But your amp's broken and it's not some problem with not having enough power. At the very least it should be thumping pretty good and hold its own at a rehearsal without having to dime it.
Yes, in comparison to my guitar, the bass _is_ a little quieter, but when I plug the guitar in to the bass amp, I still have much lower volume than when it is plugged in to the guitar amp. the guitar has humbucker pickups which I guess are naturally higher output.
Well said: to you...
I see you're endorsed by Ampeg. What kind of endorsement is it? They give you money to defend their products in sites like this?
+1 to prior advice re the inputs. When it's fixed, you can get more apparent volume by increasing the mid EQ, since Ampegs have a mid-scoop baked into the preamp voicing. Or drop the bass and treble EQ and turn up the volume (assuming you don't have it dimed after everything is working properly). Tilt the combo back so it's aimed at your ears too. Good luck, Bob
scottfeldstein
Roots and fifths and a little extra.
This seems like a pretty sensible analysis. The pad is broken. When fixed you may or may not find it adequate in a rock band situation. Maybe right on the edge. Depends a lot on how loud the drummer and other instruments are playing. It might be tolerable, it might be completely buried. But the only way to really know that is to fix the input.
Doesn't matter. All the active input does is cut available gain in case you have super hot pickups that distort the preamp no matter what you do. I've never once used an active input in almost 30 years of using active pickups. And it behaves the same whether you have passive or active.
So yeah, I'd look into getting it fixed. It shouldn't be too expensive.
