What's wrong with Ampeg?

[Bongolation]

When I got my new SVT-AV Classic it had a couple of funny cosmetic quirks. The metal screen on the back didn't fit in the opening in the amp case so someone at the factory apparently bashed it in with a mallet, bending the screen and digging into the tolex all along the bottom edge. On the top, someone installed the tolex over the top of a cigarette butt. Then it looked like they smashed it down with a hammer to try and hide it. I never opened it up to see what the inside looked like, I was afraid to. And this is their top of the line.

Well, this is exactly the kind of stuff I was talking about. "Funny" to you, but not to me!

Ampeg's attitude seemed to be, "If it works, ship it. Don't sweat the small stuff."

Do you know when this was made? I'm working on the assumption that this kind of bad-attitude stuff was the result of a period of employee/management problems, but maybe I'm being too generous here.

 

[bryan bailey]

The way I see it, Ampeg heads, twenty thumbs up, most of their cabs, not so good.

 

[Brendan]

The way I see it, Ampeg heads, twenty thumbs up, most of their cabs, not so good.

That's the way I see it as well. Seriously, Ampeg head and Eden cabs together are the shiz in so many different ways; they compliment each other pefectly. I dig it so much.

 

[Special_Ed]

Hmmmm........ maybe someone is not quite knowing what they are talking about here?

I like to refer to Ampeg as "Cratepeg", so maybe that shows an opinion or two...about changes in tone, construction, etc.

BUT, one thing about it, is I find they DO make power. I can't hold that against them.

I don't know where the deal about 375 vs 450 watts comes from, but THAT part isnt true in my experience fixing units.

As to why the unit sounds "quiet"? I have no idea, but it isn't lack of available power. Must be a tonality thing.


BTW, its a "3PRO" not a "pro 3", so maybe he hasn't ever seen one..........

You're a newbie.

 

[BassBeat33]

so what about ampeg preamps? are they worth it? or should we look into other brands ?

 

[notanaggie]

You're a newbie.

Whatever floats your boat, dude.

Cute emoticons do not equal having a clue.......you might bear that in mind for the future.

 

[Eric Moesle]

Over 300 helpful posts, and he's called a newbie. Real smart.

ANYWAY . . . .

The Ampeg SVP-CL preamp is real nice if you like the Ampeg sound. Quiet, punchy. Unfortunately, the SVP-PRO's are hissy monsters usually, at least all of the one's I've tried, and as others have posted here at Talkbass. Some claim to have quieted the Pro's down by replacing to a different set of tubes, but I've personally yet to hear one.

 

[Funky Doctor]

The sound just isn't for me. Sure it's got a great classic rock tone, but that's all i like. I don't like the sound of their non-classic lines really at all either. It's all personal pref.

Funny you should mention that. I use an ampeg preamp and I can get a great funky modern sound out of it. Sure, it hums, it's noisy (not hissy), and the graphic eq clips easily, but I love it. I seriously love it. But then again, I am blessed with a kickass power amp and a wonderful speaker cabinet, so yeah... I am not a fan at all of Ampeg cabinets.

 

[dood]

I am not a fan of Ampeg cabs either, but I am really stoked with my '97 SVT2pro. yeah, sure its heavy, but I really am getting very modern tones from it. People keep saying that the tone of SVT's is muddy.. well I guess it can be if you whack the bass control hard up.. its centred around 40hz isn't it? wooooof woooooof tone!
I keep my EQ's fairl 12 o clock ish and crank the volume to make the poweramp valves work a bit. Chuck the Amp through a seriously good cab (I refer to the Accugroove threads) and this really is a tone I have been looking for, for a long time.
So much so, I bought an SVP .. i think it is a 2000 model, so , like my SVT has the black front with the blue pin stripe on.

the only bad thing I could say, is that the SVP (being second hand) was found to have nasty valves in, throttling the last ounce of any dynamics or tone out of the poor li'l thang. I'm yet to upgrade to some REALLY sexy NOS valves, but even with a spare set, this baby sounds much better.
(er, ok it still has a hum.. and a little hiss.. but hey, its valves, and I can live with that)

 

[Funky Doctor]

Werd dood. Yeah good to hear I'm not the only freak who likes something enough to put up with hum.

 

[dood]

Hey James! I used to be the equivalent of an obsessive/compulsive about noise in my signal.. i mean really badly.. *shocked face* "oh no! I think i may have heard one rat fart valve tinkle!"

but at full tilt, must audiences are more worried scraping themselves of the back wall after being blown across the room by Mr Bass Player & his rig of doom.. I suspect a little hiss is gonna be low on the priority list!

he he

 

[danomite64]

I have a portabass 250 head and 1-12 cabinet, and a Superjet guitar combo. I love them both; the Portabass gets way louder than the Redhead it replaced, and weighs half as much. My big rig is a Mesa 400, mainly because it's lighter than an SVT, but also because I got it cheaper than I could find a used SVT for, which to me speaks volumes about their quality.

 

[Special_Ed]

Whatever floats your boat, dude.

Cute emoticons do not equal having a clue.......you might bear that in mind for the future.

My originial post was just for humor.

You got so caught up in the "lets put the newb in his place, I'm the REAL expert" song and dance that you didn't even realize it.


p.s. Before I hit the "reply" button, I actually thought to myself, "I wonder if someone will be dumb enough to take me seriously, or will people just think its funny"

 

[Bruce Lindfield]

My originial post was just for humor.

You got so caught up in the "lets put the newb in his place, I'm the REAL expert" song and dance that you didn't even realize it.


p.s. Before I hit the "reply" button, I actually thought to myself, "I wonder if someone will be dumb enough to take me seriously, or will people just think its funny"

Definition of a troll!!

 

[Adam Barkley]

My SVT410HLF is the my favorite cab. Deep punchy and it handles a low B well (32 HZ response if I am not mistaken).

 

[dood]

Special Ed, Notanaggie, all...


Examples:-

Whatever floats your boat, dude.

Cute emoticons do not equal having a clue.......you might bear that in mind for the future.

My originial post was just for humor.

You got so caught up in the "lets put the newb in his place, I'm the REAL expert" song and dance that you didn't even realize it.


p.s. Before I hit the "reply" button, I actually thought to myself, "I wonder if someone will be dumb enough to take me seriously, or will people just think its funny"

ok, i'm not an 'admin' or moderator.. I know this isn't really the place for character bashing but knowing that sometimes it is hard to read emotions from a few lines of text, would be better to just not bother or to qualify what you are thinking with a little more detail.

for example:- Oh well I'm sorry!

could be Oh well I'm sorry! :scowl:

is not the same as

Oh well I'm sorry!

or, Oh well I'm sorry! *and* I didn't mean to offend

or

Oh well I'm sorry! *and* but tuff sh@t I think you're a t@ssp@t.

This stops wasting time with misunderstandings.

enough of the hijacking.. back to Ampeg! ;o)

 

[The 0x]

Ampegs can sound reeaally muddy and a lot of people including myself don't like that sound.

Pretty much. I like the nice clear sound of my Sunn.

 

[The 0x]

Personally, I'd take a Peavey cab over an Ampeg cab anyday!

 

[dood]

Whilst discussing the quality of Ampeg stuff, would you good folk be willing to give examples of the circumstances/gear setup that have been found to sound muddy. I'd like to see if there is any common ground?
Cheers

 

[Pickebass]

I think ampegs are not bad amps. Overall, the bass community has changed dramatically over the last 15-20 years. While ampeg has not. More or less ampeg has maintained it's "sound". Which still works great for many things. While many newer manufacturers such as Aguilar, Eden, and EBS have gone in different sonic directions.

As a result of so many choices, bass players are always searching for a better tone than previously available. Also considering the cost of components, they couldn't stay in business if they built them like they did 20 years ago.

Also due to the inventions of multistring basses, the bass players "duties" and other things the ampeg sound doesn't cut it for many. Just like any company that gets large, economies of scales must exist.

Ampeg could not maintain the customer contact level you get from Aguilar or Bergantio, because the customer base and product line is huge and many wouldn't be willing to pay the prices.

I'm personally not a huge ampeg fan anymore. I use aguilar equipment because I feel it is the next evolution that ampeg did not take. Ampeg could've chosen that direction but decided it would stay where it is. Not bad equipment... it is what it is... Ampeg

Next time you go to a rock concert, check out the bass player's svt and 810 cab