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School Me On SVT’s

it's one thing to have one at home, but it's whole other experience to play on a huge stage in front of a large audience with an SVT through the 810 turned up kinda loud. Especially if it's a rockin' gig. The first time I had this happen it was like an epiphany. It's the best.
 
Starting with Wasnex's unabashed statement about how SVTs suck, he sure has wasted a lot of time and energy on them... I don't get it....

Obviously I am nuts :roflmao:

If it's not clear, the 810 is the part of the equation that does not work well for me. I think my SVTs sound pretty good through more full-range cabs.

FYI, I made the MTI work. I bought an Orban 672A and biamped the SVT into a Fender Twin Reverb loaded with JBL E120. If you think an Ampeg and 810 is too much hassle, try stacking a Twin loaded with JBLs on top. The Twin gave me the nice clear mids and extended highs I like, and the 810 worked really well as a woofer.
 
Obviously I am nuts :roflmao:

If it's not clear, the 810 is the part of the equation that does not work well for me. I think my SVTs sound pretty good through more full-range cabs.

FYI, I made the MTI work. I bought an Orban 672A and biamped the SVT into a Fender Twin Reverb loaded with JBL E120. If you think an Ampeg and 810 is too much hassle, try stacking a Twin loaded with JBLs on top. The Twin gave me the nice clear mids and extended highs I like, and the 810 worked really well as a woofer.

The 4ohm D410XLT Eden that I have works well for this. It's not light but still lighter than an Ampeg 810 and it has plenty of capacity. The low-mid hump isn't a problem to me. I turn the tweeter down close to off.
 
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An Ampeg SVT. I’ve been playing bass for 45 years and I’ve never had an SVT and I think I want one. For at home use only. I would never want to move it. What are reliable years, etc.? Thanks for the help!

Quite frankly, if your main idea is for "at home" use, I believe that I would go for the V4B.100 watts and sounds great! This coming from a guy who has played SVTs for the last 45 or so years. Not to mention that your back will thank you!! Good Luck and Cheers!!!
 
Quite frankly, if your main idea is for "at home" use, I believe that I would go for the V4B.100 watts and sounds great! This coming from a guy who has played SVTs for the last 45 or so years. Not to mention that your back will thank you!! Good Luck and Cheers!!!

Those are great too, especially if you can get one for a price that makes sense. Before I bought my current SVT-II, I shopped for both for a while. Considering what I paid vs. what sellers were asking for V4 and V4Bs the SVT-II made more sense to me.

A PF50T maybe.
 
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Make it more fun with a pair of late 60’s or early 70’s 8x10’s and crank it up and blow your neighbors away! I keep these in my garage to keep cockroaches away.
 

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The SVT head with the fridge is made for live performance on a big stage. It's big, heavy and loud. I was really impressed with Ampeg's new Rocket series amps and they would be my first choice right now for a home practice amp.They sound terrific. I am not an Ampeg guy at all either. I have played on primary Hartke, GK And GB amps for almost 40 years.
 
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SVT's are great live on a big stage situation. Personally, I love how they sound. They're not the clearest sounding amp, but they sound massive.

For home use, in a small living room, an SVT wouldn't be my first choice. There's plenty of smaller amps these days that'll do similar things that the SVT does, but at lower volume, less space, and fewer repairs.
 
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I used to do a weekly rehearsal in studio with a SVT with a decent modern 15” cab (I have forgotten the brand). I fell in love with how great it sounded at low to moderate volumes, even with DB. It would do great as a home studio amp with the right cab. It also might also be a overdoing it a bit. I’m perfectly happy with my pf-20t myself though: smaller, cheaper and a very handy post transformer di.
 
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