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Origin Effects BassRig Ampeg B15 Fliptop recreation
- Thread starter Quatschmacher
- Start date
Thanks! Will have to try both once I can get it. Selling some stuff to fund the purchase.
I can imagine you’ll be happy with it- it really does something special! I think the only thing I wouldn’t recommend it for is trying to dial in a really large low-end. It is naturally pretty tight down low (and even moreso through the Cab-sim). This is one of the most obvious differences to the Super Vintage, which is has much more big bass on tap. The Fifteen does respond well to active basses with bass boost before it though (you’ll just want to turn the Drive down), but the Bass control on the pedal itself is relatively limited. That’s not to say it’s thin-sounding, it’s just that there is more power in the mids.
Just got mine and used in on a gig on friday. It sounded really good in the PA. Tight in the sound and it took overdrive well. P bass and B-15 just works. 
Two things I’ve had to really focus on with the Fifteen are compression and the LF knob.
Throwing an Empress Bass comp in front of the Fifteen was a game changer. Tamed some of the woolyness for lack of a better word. Really brought a refinement to the pedal.
The other thing was tapering some of the low end with the LF knob. Helped define the lower mids which this pedal is heavy on.
In hindsight, all the cats that were recording the B-15 were hitting outboard compression.
Did some blind shoot outs at home. Tracked the same song using different preamp and pedal combos. Mixed tracks up and listened. Repeatedly the 15/comp combo came out on top. Did it with 3 different songs. There’s a sweetness going on that’s really musical.
Having said that the SV/Jive and SV/DCX are pretty great too.
My 2 cents. Worth every penny.
Throwing an Empress Bass comp in front of the Fifteen was a game changer. Tamed some of the woolyness for lack of a better word. Really brought a refinement to the pedal.
The other thing was tapering some of the low end with the LF knob. Helped define the lower mids which this pedal is heavy on.
In hindsight, all the cats that were recording the B-15 were hitting outboard compression.
Did some blind shoot outs at home. Tracked the same song using different preamp and pedal combos. Mixed tracks up and listened. Repeatedly the 15/comp combo came out on top. Did it with 3 different songs. There’s a sweetness going on that’s really musical.
Having said that the SV/Jive and SV/DCX are pretty great too.
My 2 cents. Worth every penny.
I heard someone say that the Fifteen is very addictive and playing along with IEM’s to prerecorded audio (on apple music) the bass and saturation just dissolves into the mix (my way of describing this is very food related thinking like “soul stock cube” or “bass roux”) The saturation fattens and thickens things and the tone blends into the whole ensemble.
Have 15 owners found this to be a fair description of what’s happening with this pedal? I’ve always fancied trying the SV but the fifteen feels like it would suit my band (and playing style) better adding thickness without needing the brighter top end. As an example I run Four on the floor pedal with the Haf dials back to about 2.4/2.8kHz for that type of reduced bite up top.
Have 15 owners found this to be a fair description of what’s happening with this pedal? I’ve always fancied trying the SV but the fifteen feels like it would suit my band (and playing style) better adding thickness without needing the brighter top end. As an example I run Four on the floor pedal with the Haf dials back to about 2.4/2.8kHz for that type of reduced bite up top.
maybe i can run my gf's kawai digital concert piano through one of these, i bet that would sound cool
I think the Fifteen has a clearer and more open top end than the SV until you turn on the cab-sim, and the SV is definitely inherently thicker-sounding ("burly" might be a good word for the SV). The Fifteen is very midrange-centric even without the cab-sim, and the cab-sim significantly cuts both lows and highs while adding a bump in the low-mids so focuses the sound even more into the mids. I would agree with your first paragraph- the tone is very sweet and addictive, and blends effortlessly into a mix, especially with a bit of saturation.
I assume this is running from the 1/4" rather than DI, since the LF doesn't affect the DI sound?Two things I’ve had to really focus on with the Fifteen are compression and the LF knob.
Throwing an Empress Bass comp in front of the Fifteen was a game changer. Tamed some of the woolyness for lack of a better word. Really brought a refinement to the pedal.
The other thing was tapering some of the low end with the LF knob. Helped define the lower mids which this pedal is heavy on.
In hindsight, all the cats that were recording the B-15 were hitting outboard compression.
Did some blind shoot outs at home. Tracked the same song using different preamp and pedal combos. Mixed tracks up and listened. Repeatedly the 15/comp combo came out on top. Did it with 3 different songs. There’s a sweetness going on that’s really musical.
Having said that the SV/Jive and SV/DCX are pretty great too.
My 2 cents. Worth every penny.
I've finally had some time to compare the SV and the Fifteen in a few band rehearsals, and at least for this band I think the SV is making the cut. In a mix the SV definite has more punch and "growl" on tap while the Fifteen comes off as smoother even when set for some biting drive and that growl and punch is what's needed in this particular band. The SV may even push the Origin DCX off the board as I find in a mix the SV can get me much of the edge the DCX does (they sound distinct when soloed, but in a mix I found it was close enough with the SV). I still need to more directly compare cab-sim recordings from both in the mix.
I will say that I found I much preferred the Fifteen run into the FX Return of my amp than into the front, while with the SV I seem to be able to get what I want either way. That will be amp-dependent though (in this case I was comparing through a Mesa Walkabout)
I will say that I found I much preferred the Fifteen run into the FX Return of my amp than into the front, while with the SV I seem to be able to get what I want either way. That will be amp-dependent though (in this case I was comparing through a Mesa Walkabout)
I found that to be the case for me. DCX didn't add enough for me when I used the SV so I ended up selling my DCX.
I used the BassRig Fifteen for the first time tonight. I actually got it a couple of weeks ago but hadn't even taken it out of the box. It was a low key sub thing with a big band. Played it through my GR Bass carbon BF Cube-110 which is a combo amp that is (IMO) very neutral but definitely not sterile. It doesn't have any effect send/return, so I just plugged it right in. I left everything on the amp at noon. I rarely tweak it.
I started the rehearsal just using the amp with the pedal off. When there was a break, I started to futz with the BassRig Fifteen. I've documented my journey with Ampeg stuff including the B-15 here on TB, so not going to get into that, but a bit of the TL;DR is I owned a B-15 with a double baffle that I got from someone who worked at the Linden plant for close to 30 years. I know the B-15 sound and how it responds.
For this rehearsal I was using a Marcustico which is fairly new to me and not something I tried through my departed B-15. I tried my Rob Allen Deep 4 through the B-15 but it was too hot so I generally didn't use that amp with it. Anyway ...
When I turned the pedal on at first, nothing was happening. I realized quickly I had the blend all the way to the bass, not pedal sound. Once I got over my own mental lapse, it all made perfect sense to me. Controls? Same at the B-15 with one different name (i.e. Drive = Volume). I left the high and low cut off (my B-15 didn't have those knobs ... those came in later on other Ampeg amps).
Once I started dialing in sounds I wasn't sure if it was working. I started futzing with the low and high pass filters and blend and realized it was doing its thing. I then started to see what it can do, switched the pedal on and off to A/B with the native amp sound.
If you want a "hits you in the face" type of pedal/changing of your sound, this isn't the BassRig Fifteen nor would it be a real B-15. It's a subtle thing. I did notice it warmed up the sound and I'm sure at home with futzing and with the HPF/LPF dial in more of what the B-15 with the cab is. Yes, I know a 10" with a tweeter is not a 15" with that double baffle cab. The pedal definitely added warmth. It "distorts" like the B-15 did, but I couldn't get it to really break up the sound even with Drive cranked. On the B-15 I owned, if you turned it up much past noon (and dug in), it would do "that thing" (if you've heard a real B-15, you know what I'm talking about). I wasn't looking to distort my sound, just see what it would do. In that way, the BassRig Fifteen definitely acted more like the real thing. I was pleasantly surprised.
I did like what I heard and it definitely warrants more investigation. I need to try my '78 P with it because that's what I used for years with the B-15. I will be able to hear more of what I'm used to.
Believe me, I've tried for years to emulate the B-15 in a more portable package. Even in my limited trial tonight, this pedal had some of that magic whereas everything else I've tried hasn't. It behaved like a real B-15 (relatively speaking). I think whatever they did to emulate the tube power amp is a bit of that secret sauce I was trying for years to get. I got close with the Broughton P-15 and the TwoNotes C.A.B. M+ as that power amp thing.
There are no unnecessary controls and I see why they put the HP/LP in there. I probably would have left out the high/low cut switches. If you're emulating the classic B-15 you don't need those. The V-4B, SVT, and B-25B had those switches (owned both the V-4B and B-25B). The B-15R (which I hated and sold quickly; I was hoping it would just be a louder B-15 when it came out, but it had none of the sound or mojo) had the high and low ultra switches.
These are my early impressions going in cold and only using it for maybe 45m in not the most ideal of situations.
I started the rehearsal just using the amp with the pedal off. When there was a break, I started to futz with the BassRig Fifteen. I've documented my journey with Ampeg stuff including the B-15 here on TB, so not going to get into that, but a bit of the TL;DR is I owned a B-15 with a double baffle that I got from someone who worked at the Linden plant for close to 30 years. I know the B-15 sound and how it responds.
For this rehearsal I was using a Marcustico which is fairly new to me and not something I tried through my departed B-15. I tried my Rob Allen Deep 4 through the B-15 but it was too hot so I generally didn't use that amp with it. Anyway ...
When I turned the pedal on at first, nothing was happening. I realized quickly I had the blend all the way to the bass, not pedal sound. Once I got over my own mental lapse, it all made perfect sense to me. Controls? Same at the B-15 with one different name (i.e. Drive = Volume). I left the high and low cut off (my B-15 didn't have those knobs ... those came in later on other Ampeg amps).
Once I started dialing in sounds I wasn't sure if it was working. I started futzing with the low and high pass filters and blend and realized it was doing its thing. I then started to see what it can do, switched the pedal on and off to A/B with the native amp sound.
If you want a "hits you in the face" type of pedal/changing of your sound, this isn't the BassRig Fifteen nor would it be a real B-15. It's a subtle thing. I did notice it warmed up the sound and I'm sure at home with futzing and with the HPF/LPF dial in more of what the B-15 with the cab is. Yes, I know a 10" with a tweeter is not a 15" with that double baffle cab. The pedal definitely added warmth. It "distorts" like the B-15 did, but I couldn't get it to really break up the sound even with Drive cranked. On the B-15 I owned, if you turned it up much past noon (and dug in), it would do "that thing" (if you've heard a real B-15, you know what I'm talking about). I wasn't looking to distort my sound, just see what it would do. In that way, the BassRig Fifteen definitely acted more like the real thing. I was pleasantly surprised.
I did like what I heard and it definitely warrants more investigation. I need to try my '78 P with it because that's what I used for years with the B-15. I will be able to hear more of what I'm used to.
Believe me, I've tried for years to emulate the B-15 in a more portable package. Even in my limited trial tonight, this pedal had some of that magic whereas everything else I've tried hasn't. It behaved like a real B-15 (relatively speaking). I think whatever they did to emulate the tube power amp is a bit of that secret sauce I was trying for years to get. I got close with the Broughton P-15 and the TwoNotes C.A.B. M+ as that power amp thing.
There are no unnecessary controls and I see why they put the HP/LP in there. I probably would have left out the high/low cut switches. If you're emulating the classic B-15 you don't need those. The V-4B, SVT, and B-25B had those switches (owned both the V-4B and B-25B). The B-15R (which I hated and sold quickly; I was hoping it would just be a louder B-15 when it came out, but it had none of the sound or mojo) had the high and low ultra switches.
These are my early impressions going in cold and only using it for maybe 45m in not the most ideal of situations.
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Of all the Bassrigs, the Fifteen is the most transparent when using it in front of another amp. Most of the secret sauce of the B15 sound is the cab, which of course you only get via the XLR. Those high/low cut options (that affect the amp output only) are there to try and bring some of that vibe to really deep cabs or cabs with tweeters. You probably wouldn’t want the low cut with a mini combo, but the high cut might have been worthwhile if your amp is naturally bright sounding.
The High/Low Cut switches are part of the “make my stage rig sound like the cab-sim” circuit, not there to emulate the Ultra Hi/Lo switches on other Ampeg amps. They are quick HPF/LPF to emulate the relatively extreme lack of bass and treble response from a B-15 cab while the EQ dials next to them are both standard boost/cut dials with the center being neutral. All 4 of these are post-amp sim. The manual shows response plots for all of these controls.
Bass and Treble come before parts of the “drive” circuit, so if you boost them you will get more drive and cut them you will get less drive at any given Drive setting.
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