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I was curious if anyone had any thoughts on how well suited these amps are for providing a nice jazz tone.
Thanks for your time and information.
'Mike
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11-28-2011 08:28 PM
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If this is an old ampeg tube amp, they generally sound very good for jazz, as ampeg aimed at the jazz player.
The snag is that they are often a rat's nest of wires inside, use obsolete tubes and components with no spares available and are generally difficult to repair, unlike old fender amps.
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It's a new amp:
Ampeg | GVT15-112 Tube Amp - Tube Guitar Amplifier
The boys at Loud, having thoroughly screwed up the Ampeg legacy so far, have gone back to the well with a new series of amps that borrow heavily from the cosmetics of the Unimusic era of Ampeg amps from 1968-1972. I haven't had a chance to check these new ones out yet myself, but I'm very familiar with the older ones. I look forward to checking them out at NAMM.
This new amp is a small 15 / 7.5 watt combo, probably great for solo/duo work but underpowered if you're working with a drummer IMO.
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FWIW, old Ampeg amp circuits are dead easy to work on right up until the introduction of the relatively complicated VT-22/V-4, VT-40/V2, and SVT. Wonderful amps, IMO, in case you come across any of these used:
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- Reverb-o-Jet (@18 watts, 1x12)
- GU-12 (@20 watts, 1x12, like a Fender Princeton Reverb)
- G-12 (@22 watts, 1x12, like a Fender Deluxe Reverb)
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- G-20 (35 watts, 2x10, like a Fender Vibrolux Reverb)
- GV-22 (35 watts, 2x12, like a Fender Pro Reverb)
- GV-15 (35 watts, 1x15, like a half-power Fender Vibrosonic Reverb)
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- VT-40 (60 watts, 4x10, no real Fender equivalent - quite different sounding than a Super Reverb)
- VT-22 (120 watts, 2x12, like a Fender Twin Reverb)Last edited by Hammertone; 03-21-2017 at 06:21 AM.
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I plan on calling Ampeg today and asking them some questions. Thanks for the information because instead of asking how does your product compate to a Princeton or a Deluxe I can ask how they compare to some of the older Ampeg stuff...
In terms of volume I already have a Cube 80XL. It sounds somewhat Polytone like but after almost a year with it I still can't dial in the warmth I am after. Don't get me wrong its a great and very inexpensive and versitile amp for real cheap money but just not warm enough for me. Definately produces a very useable jazz tone on both the JC120 and black panel settings. But you can't dial in whats not there. So I think a small 15-20ish watt tube amp is in order. I like the Ampeg because its got a half power mode that should make it pretty good for living room volumes and I feel like you could gig with it if you mic'd it and the venue was smaller.
'Mike
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Mike:
There are a couple of good guys at Ampeg, but they won't know that much about the combos I mentioned. Gregg Hopkins and Bill Moore (the guys who wrote the Ampeg book) will know way more and are available in the intertubes. And maybe the new Ampegs are fantastic; I want them to be fantastic, but I haven't tried them yet.
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The Fender Blues Jr. is an awesome little tube amp and can certainly compete with a drummer since I have used one in a 4 piece band in a small venue with no problem. Those usually run for $400 or less brand new.
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According to the people at Ampeg this amp breaks up "quite early" and would be best as a blues and rock amp. They did suggest that the GVT52 MIGHT work better especially the 2x12 combo as it has more head room. So I would say it seems that from their mouth its not really an amp that would be well suited for full time employment as a jazz amp. Hopefuly this helps someone else who might be looking at something other than Fender or high end boutique tube amps.
'Mike
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Anyone think an Ampeg j12 T would be worth while for under $300?
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Had one, modded it a lot, sounded better in the end but it still was a 15w el-84 amp in a small cabinet. There are better jazz options out there I think.
Originally Posted by OldGuitarPlayer
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Its not really the money so much as why spend more when I there is a shot I can get the tone I am looking for by not buying Fender...
'Mike
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Hey Jazzman, Originally Posted by Jazzman301
I believe the weak link in the Cube series amps are the stock speakers. Pick out a nice Eminence to throw in your 80xl and you might be very surprised.
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Interesting thought. I had never even considered moding a SS. I wonder what would be involved with that....hmm. Maybe a bump up to a 15" speaker...Would be cheap money to swap out a speaker...hmm.
'Mike
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I received my new GVT15-112 today. Back in 1975 I saved and finally bought at VT-22(it was very expensive back then). I played rock and roll back then and this amp delivered sound pressure in connection with two JBL K-120 12”. The amp was/is so heavy that it is not possible to handle,
I have been playing mostly jazz style guitar the last 15 years using very different amps like Fenders, Boogie. Polytone, JC-120 and a number of modeling maps. I have always needed the Ampeg head room and EQ. The reverb is also very good.
This small(not very Ampeg like) practical amp gives me the best of both worlds. Finally, it may look and sound like the real thing (Ampeg V4) but it lacks the feel and some details compared to the old US made stuff.
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Old Ampegs are killer amps. I had a '65 Gemini that I really regret selling. But you can still find them for not much money. I've been toying with the idea of picking up an old Jet or Reverberocket and replacing the transformers and running 6L6's in it and putting a really efficient speaker in it. You could also check out old Sano amps. I've heard those are very similar to the old Ampegs.
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I own a 66 Gemini II and a 66 Reverberocket 2. Found both for under $500.00. If you want a classic Ampeg sound, go for an old one, it won't break the bank and the sound for Jazz is wonderful!
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i have a late 90's Ampeg Jet it is 15 watts and sounds great for jazz. Real warm and just enough touch sensitive break up to sound like the early 50's. I recommend it!
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Since this old thread was resurected I will chime in. I have a 67 Ampeg Reveberocket II and man this amp is just awesome. By far the best sounding spring reverb I have ever heard in person. VERY happy i did NOT buy a Fender. $560 and in very good shape it was a steal.
'Mike
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I resurrected this thread since I just received an Ampeg GVT52-112 today. I was going to go with a portable solid state amp (e.g. Henriksens, Acoustic Image, etc.) but couldn't pass up on a great deal offered by a dealer on this amp.
I know that it's not the same as GVT15-112 in OP's post but I spent some time A/B'ed both in the store; the clean tones were quite equivalent at the same volume.
I especially like the Baxandall EQ in these amps although I thought it was just a gimmick and didn't like it at first. You will have to spend some time adjusting its settings to find your tone.
I never tried old Ampegs - which I bet are killer amps - but I'm thinking about offloading my Allen Accomplice amp since Ampeg is more versatile to me and dead quiet for a tube amp. It can do pretty much what my Allen amp can do and more.
These amps are being discontinued by Ampeg and can be found at a deep discount so, for those of you looking for a bargain, you should give this amp a try.
Just my 2 cents though.
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My understanding is that they were built by Ampeg. Originally Posted by jasonc
This is pretty funny. When Ampeg introduced its "helmet-head" combos in the late '60s and early '70s, they came and went so quickly that many people don't even know they existed. It looks like the current owners of Ampegs are tipping their hat to the Unimusic era and doing the same thing. Ha! Originally Posted by woodbury
Last edited by Hammertone; 09-10-2013 at 09:56 PM.
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I just got one GVT15-112 also. Didn't know they were on the verge of being discontinued. They are quite cheap though at the moment over at Thomann which could be due to this fact. Definitely has a nice mellow clean sound and responsive eq possibilities, reverb becomes a bit deep to quickly on the dial. A plus for the true bypass footswitching of fx loop and reverb and the half power mode.
My amp had a hum in the fx loop when it was engaged so it's being repaired under warranty at the moment to fix that. Several users I've talked to had this also, so I opted for repair instead of taking my chances of changing it to a new amp with the same problem. I liked it enough to give it a chance instead of just getting my money back immediately. When I get the amp back and it has got broken in fully I will try to do some review of it.
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for those who want to know, about the bug in the fx/reverb:
just got a reply from the tech about the fx/reverb bug:
The fix is only applicable to boards built before Rev D00, and involves removing C36 and C37, then soldering 2x 2200uF caps in parallel with D16 and D17
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Have a GVT15 head coming...discounted to $249...will run it through a Weber 1 x 12" cab.
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I have had my GVT15-112 for about three years now and have found it to be a great amp. My only issue has been finding the right speaker for it as it came with a Celestion 70/80 that I felt was holding the amp back. Kind of like tires on a new sedan; The tires are fine but the company settled on an all-around tire, rather than a nice tire. So, I went through a few high-end expensive speakers but finally found, by chance, that an old Utah (Pyle) speaker that came out of my 1977 Twin Reverb really showcased this amp's tone best.
Until I put the Utah I found this amp's cabinet to be too bassy. With the Utah speaker It has a very nice balanced sound that allows me to really accentuate the mids that I like. I feel the Utah also responds better to changes in the Baxandall EQ but this could all be in my head. I'm not saying the Utah is a great speaker, rather that the Utah is a very good speaker for this amp.
Either way, I have found that just because you buy a fancy or expensive speaker doesn't mean it's always the best speaker for the cabinet.
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