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VT-22: Should I

L

Low_End_Theory

Mar 5, 2008
29
0
#1
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Oh man, do I love the old VT's. I've played through the V4-B that my friend has a few times (I'm very jealous), and I love the tone. I'm guessing this isn't too far off, the only thing that concerns me a bit is the price. I guess that would be because I'm broke, and the amp's just been completely overhauled.

So, do I splurge? Help the poor college kid! Thanks!:D
 
#3
I bought one of these and I use as my guitar amp now. Love the thing to death. As for it sounding like an old V4 bass head. It will, the power section is the same thing. However, if you use it in combo form with the power section driving the 12" speakers, its not going to sound all that great...the speakers aren't that great for bass and it being an open backed cabinet. Running a bass through it will definitely not destroy the speakers though. I did it for a while when I was in high school before I knew any better. Never had a problem, but it didn't sound particularly great.

The price does seem pretty high though. I'm not sure what the market value is for one now, but they aren't very sought after by guitarists. As a point of reference, I picked mine up for $100 (probably $250 in todays dollars) and recently had to spend $250 to retube and bias it. Think $500-ish would be a fair price assuming its working properly.

Also, I don't think its a 69. Judging by the Ampeg decal, box-type pinstriping on the front plate and toggle switches it looks to be a 73-75. Not that it should have any impact on the price. Its just tricky to date Vt-22s correctly.
 
#7
bass_rig_1.jpg
 
#8
Low_End_Theory said:
That's... saddening, because I've been looking for a new gig amp for a while now. Do you mean something like biamping when you say run it thru a bass cab?
Click to expand...

No. Pretty much just unplugging the head portion from the speakers and plugging an extension bass cab into it.

There's also a company selling boxes for the power section so you can pretty much turn it into a V4 head(plus reverb). Can't remember how much they cost. Even if I did, I don't know if you'd really want to keep pumping money into the situation either. The one you're looking at is pretty overpriced.

However if I was going to use my VT-22 as a bass amp, I'd definitely go that route. Thing's heavy as $^$%# as it is without having to cart around the whole cabinet as well.
 
#9
I wouldn't. I play a V4, great amp, but that one is definitely over priced. I was considering it as well because I love my V4 and would like a VT-22 for guitar amp, but you can find them cheaper. I found one through Gbase that's like $500 or so. If you want just the head, go to ebay. You could as PBG has said pull the speaker cable, but then you have a pretty big head to lug around, and an open back cab isn't going to be the best for bass.
 
#12
if you're looking at portaflexes you almost can't look at a music store because the prices are insane, you have to go with ebay. But, if you want more wattage, theres a guy on the boston craigslist (assuming since thats where the VT-22 post was from) that's been selling a B-15R for like 6+ months now. He's asking 1200 which is too high, hence the selling for 6+ months, so you could probably talk him down if that's what youre looking for. It's 100 watts like the V4/VT-22.
 
#13
Have you (or has anyone here) tried running the dimensions of the existing box along w/the 12" speakers of choice through one of the box design programs to see if this cab might sound good for bass either sealed or w/a rear port? I suspect it's too small for a sealed box, but could be ported satisfactorily if you have some woodworking skills. Would it be impossible given the amp mounting?
 
#14
Low_End_Theory said:
Well, there's a store in my town that's selling TWO PORTAFLEXES, a GT15-c and a B-15s, so I'll definitely have a look over break. They are extremely expensive, though ($1,150 for the GT15 and $1,700:eek: for the B-15s).
Click to expand...

I found the store you're talking about, don't buy from the guy he's a douche. He buys all his stuff on CL and then resells for a higher price. He emails you and offers you half your asking price and tries to negotiate from there. Everything he has in his store is over priced by like 10-30%
 

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