Small Ampeg

[Rooster009]

You’ve already got the SVT, so just get a 212av cab and enjoy it. Overall it’s less money than any other Ampeg combo that you’re likely to find. Also the tone will be much closer to the SVT/810 rig you already have. Research the 212av cab here on TB and you’ll find that a lot of people compare its tone as really close to the 810. It’s also 4 ohms.

 

[john_g]

I have two 210AV cabs and when i dont use my SVT (which is most of the gigs to be honest), i use my Quilter BB00. In the past I used my Markbass Little Mark II and got a great, light, and easy to move setup.

 

[_Some Dude]

You’ve already got the SVT, so just get a 212av cab and enjoy it. Overall it’s less money than any other Ampeg combo that you’re likely to find. Also the tone will be much closer to the SVT/810 rig you already have. Research the 212av cab here on TB and you’ll find that a lot of people compare its tone as really close to the 810. It’s also 4 ohms.

I've actually got a 212AV on order and am waiting for it to arrive.

Now I'm on the hunt for a portable grab and go kinda thing.

 

[Kijuer]

I have a Micro VR with a 2nd 210AV cab.
I don't play metal, but I still have to deal with 2 loud guitarists and a f***ing aggressive drummer, and for my needs it works great for stage monitoring purposes too. Actually, I haven't been using my Mesa wall-shattering rig since I got the 2nd Ampeg can for how good it is.
YMMV.

 

[Up the dose]

This is where Ampeg really drops the ball. They make the arena touring band gold standard amp in the SVT and they make the gold standard recording amp in either the B15, or B12, but their attempts to create an amp for the club date musician always seems to fall short. I like a warm tubey tone and the Streamliner 900 with a GK 212 cab has a lot of what the like about the SVT and the entire rig weighs about half the weight of the SVT head and easily handles all the club dates. I would really like to add the new Ampeg pedal on the front end at some point, but I'm very happy with the current setup. It can wait.

 

[freedomryder]

I've actually got a 212AV on order and am waiting for it to arrive.

Now I'm on the hunt for a portable grab and go kinda thing.

I bet your WD800 and the 212AV will sound great together (as well as the SVT of course.. I know mine does!)

 

[Rip Van Dan]

For context, my main rig is an SVT + 810. I like it a lot. I play rock/metal.

I want to get something smaller for where the big rig isn't exactly appropriate... basement rehearsal, livingroom jams, gigs in the attic, stuff like that.

I'm leaning towards a PF500+PF210 or an RB210. Maybe even a Micro-VR. I'd like the ability to eventually throw another cab under either option.

I'm not looking for smallest/lightest possible, I'm looking for best quality sound at around the size of a 210.

Could also be talked into a 115 if it'd sound better than the 210.

I'd suggest you grab a DNS-210 by DNA if you can find it. Trick is going to be finding it. David has been "shuttering the business" due to parts no longer made that he used in his amps. He actually made a DNA-800 for me in 2021 when his factory didn't have any completed amps on hand and were waiting on parts. He had the parts on-hand himself, so he built one for me. Unfortunately he announced he was "shuttering the business" a couple of months ago.

New, the street price for a DNS-210 was $849, I see one of the newer ones for sale on Reverb for $549. I use that 210 for all my indoor venues because it's super clear, clean, articulate, and damn LOUD! Bass response will play a 34Hz fundamental and bottom end sounds tight and focused, not boomy. It handles 700-watts rms and mine is an 8Ωone because I have an old Eden WT500/800 amp that bridges at 800-watts into it. I've never needed to run the master on the Eden above 10:30 even in the largest indoor venues.

Besides that big class A/B Eden amp, I also have a DNA-800 class D amp that will deliver 400-watts into 8Ω or 800-watts into either 4Ω or 2Ω. So far, I've used that for my small and medium gigs with my DNS-210 and that 400-watts is more than enough to get it to giggable levels. Haven't played a large venue with it yet but I think it will be fine. I can run both my DNS-210 and my DNS-410 with it at the same time if I want, but have never needed to use more than one or the other. Did stack it once when I first got it in 2019 because I wasn't sure the 210 would handle that size room on its own. My 410 just ended up being an extremely expensive amp stand for that gig as the DNS-210 was more than enough.

Weight is 51-lbs which is heavier than many 210's and it's also a little taller box than many, but it has taken the place of my 410 in ALL my indoor venues too. That saves lugging around a 410 for large indoor venues. For outdoor venues and music festivals I still use my DNS-410, which I bought in 2015. By the way the older DNA cabs have a Silver and Black logo like the one on my DNS-410 and the newer ones have a Gold, Silver, and Black logo. The one I just saw on Reverb has the Gold one.

Here's my DNS-210 with the 800-watt Eden amp that I run bridged into it. I bought it in December of 2019 and notice that it has the gold Logo.

 

[Rooster009]

This is where Ampeg really drops the ball. They make the arena touring band gold standard amp in the SVT and they make the gold standard recording amp in either the B15, or B12, but their attempts to create an amp for the club date musician always seems to fall short. I like a warm tubey tone and the Streamliner 900 with a GK 212 cab has a lot of what the like about the SVT and the entire rig weighs about half the weight of the SVT head and easily handles all the club dates. I would really like to add the new Ampeg pedal on the front end at some point, but I'm very happy with the current setup. It can wait.

I don’t agree with this. The V-4b and 212av is plenty for a club gig.

 

[Up the dose]

I don’t agree with this. The V-4b and 212av is plenty for a club gig.

I'll take your word on this one. I haven't tried the V4B. I was not impressed with any of the Ampeg hybrid or solid state offerings I've ever tried. There was a club that I used to play regularly that had a SVT Heritage and the 410 as the house amp and it was glorious. When the SVT wasn't available the other amp they had was a Tonehammer 500 and it could hang. I loved the Heritage but if it wasn't available I wasn't disappointed. The Aguilar had a lot of character of the SVT that I liked.

 

[JimmyM]

I can run the Ampeg PF 350 and two SVT 210 AVs and keep up with a loud band.

So, for what you're describing, I think you could do the PF 350 and one 210av.

Things may have changed, but for some reason the PF 500 does not get as much love as the PF 350 or the PF 800. So if you want bigger than 350, I suggest looking at the 800.

As always, I call into the void to query the knowledge and experience of @JimmyM for this type of question.

Hey, what do I know?

Pretty much I agree with you. And it’s not that the 500 is inferior or anything…just that I find the extra headroom in the 800 to help it with the smackdown, even at lower volumes. That said, I sold a bunch of amps during the pandemic and kept the Micro VR and 350. And the Pf50t. 350 gets the most use lately.

 

[_Some Dude]

Hey, what do I know?

Pretty much I agree with you. And it’s not that the 500 is inferior or anything…just that I find the extra headroom in the 800 to help it with the smackdown, even at lower volumes. That said, I sold a bunch of amps during the pandemic and kept the Micro VR and 350. And the Pf50t. 350 gets the most use lately.

Out of curiosity, when you were gigging an SVT/810, what was your go-to for smaller stuff?

 

[JimmyM]

Out of curiosity, when you were gigging an SVT/810, what was your go-to for smaller stuff?

It changed almost every time I got a new amp. Anything from a BA108 to an SVT 7 Pro/410he.

 

[Yahboy]

Ampeg RB112 are small ampeg to me.

With SGT ON, 0 Grit with 4 o'clock level, along with Ultra Hi ON, Bass and MID on 1 o'clock, Treble around 1.30~2.00 o'clock , giving me smooth round Vintage tone without losing some bite on Pbass (Full tone knob + .1uf cap)with Labella LTF4A loaded. To make it sound more woody, just dial back tone knob about 20%.

Meanwhile, to make it sound more compressed and heft up overall tone, just turn up the Grit to 10 o'clock and dial back the level knob to 3 o'clock along with same EQ setup. But i prefer second SGT setup on my another Pbass with Ti flat loaded.

With Jazz bass, i just turn off SGT but same EQ setup for clean J tone.