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Who's never played through a real SVT ?

#81
Baird6869 said:
What is a "real" SVT?

Is a new SVT-CL or SVT-VR a "real" SVT?

I have always had a SVT ('70's, '80's and now a 2000 version) and love the tone.

Anyone that bashes them without trying one (or says they sound boring) are nuts. Try one on a gig and afterwards say it sucks if you don't like it. There is a reason that 90%+ of touring musicians use one.
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I played them when they were introduced and have owned one and used many as backline. I love what they do and always recommend the Joe Cocker performance at Woodstock so you can hear a P-Bass through one circa 1969. It is not a truth that 90%+ of touring bassists use them though. I have been to too many concerts where there isn't one in sight. A percentage of bassists in several genres of music, yes. But not of all touring bassists. There's a lot of Aguilar and Eden out there just to name two.:)
 
#84
bkeating said:
my interpretation of a "real SVT" includes playing through two 8x10 cabinets as ampeg originally intended.
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A good point. No, I've never played through the two cabinet setup. I've played with the one cab setup a lot. Mostly due to space consideration on stage and in the vehicle, I run just a Schroeder 4x10 and an SVT-II (my regular gig rig) -- and that'll knock down small children at 20 feet.
 
#86
JimmyM said:
Nah, it's not a good point. The 2-cab thing was kind of a ripoff. Those cabs were rated for 250w, but trust me, they can take more than that.
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Since the 2-cab setup was the original intended version (although not many people had the vehicle to move one of those monsters, much less two), I think it would be interesting to hear just how much more pant-leg-flapping you'd get from having two of them. I think it is an interesting point. Maybe not a make-or-break point in regard to "real SVT" definitions, but interesting.

But the fact is that many people here haven't even heard a true tube output SVT through ANY cab, which is a cryin' shame.....
 
#89
Until last Saturday night (8/9/08) I had not.

That night my band played a double bill, and the bassist in the other band offered to let me play through his early '70s SVT sitting atop a vintage Ampeg 8 X 10" monster cabinet.

It was the best sounding stand-alone rig I have ever played through. I used my Modulus Quantum 5 (Bartolini equipped and modded by Mike Lull) and he told me to set it however I wanted - said I couldn't hurt it. Well everyone else was loud in that room, so I cranked that bad boy up and I was grinning from ear-to-ear all set long. It seemd the louder it got, the more the tone opened up. It was incredible. Tone for days.... The mids were tubular and deep, the bottom was thunderous (not like 18" thunder, but still huge) and the top end sparkled.

The only problem? I want one of those rigs NOW. Dammit.
 
#91
I've done the 2x810 cabinet thing with my '76. It's good. Really good. A serious wall of sound. :D

My definition of "real SVT" would be any amp that's just an SVT. This includes everything from '69 to Skunkworks. The others are internally and inherently different amps. I could probably stretch the definition to include any all-tube SVTs. Though the CL sounds quite different from the old ones, the vibe is pretty similar.
 
#95
duke12 said:
There are gear "icons" -- the Fender P and J are icons. So is the SVT and the B-15.

And I'd tell you my 64 Fender J is magic, at least it makes me play better seemingly by magic.... :)
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I understand - playing an instrument that you have confidence in is always a plus. Same for amps, speakers, etc. it's always a plus to have good, solid gear behind you.

BUT - there is no magic gear. You can talk SVT, P, Frankenbass, and mention all the other icons you want. Everyday gear in the hands of an excellent player sounds excellent. Superb gear in the hands of a beginner sounds like a beginner.

I have a '63 P that I have owned since 1967. I can tell you - it ain't magic. It's a nice bass with good action and sound, but it doesn't sound significantly better than the completely stock MIM Jazz I bought a few years ago for less than $300. It just sounds different.

sedan_dad said:
Then again ,if this question was asked of ANY other brand or model of amp do you think it would have generated 5 pages of responses in 2 days?
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Sure, yes, I think that if you asked a similar question about any of the "iconic' pieces of equipment, you could get a similar volume of response on TB. The way the question is asked has a lot to do with it.
 
#99
Pilgrim said:
I've played electric bass since 1967 and never played through an SVT.

I don't feel deprived. There is no magic piece of equipment. It makes me wonder why the original question was asked.
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I never have played through one, i KNOW they are magical, I´ve heard hundreds of them, I know i want one, i know that it has the tone i hear in my head, i´ve never been close to Charlize Theron :atoz:, i don´t have to be close to her to know that she´s perfect :cool:

Just think about Juan Alderete´s miked amp tone on L´via L´Viaquez - Francis the mute (Album) - The Mars Volta :eek:

See...as some TBér signature says: "...opinions are like @-holes, everybody´s got one" :p
 

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