Ampeg SVT II PRO / Non Pro Owners Thread

[Bankai]

On 10/07/2020 at 18:56, Pow_22 said:

So, as of an hour ago, i joined this group 👌

Well well well, you pulled the trigger in the end. Now what may I enquire is the rationale for having two of them! 

[Pow_22]

Yes, finally got my hands on one....er two @Bankai. The one on the left is fully working/serviced but the one on the right is spares/repair. The seller wouldnt split so im flipping the broken one as is. 

[Pow_22]

Looks like I need to learn the bias procedure on these.  I fired it up through an Ampeg SVT212 AV and the amp is very quiet even with volume cranked - well maybe not VERY quiet but certainly not SVT loud.  There is also quite a bit of hum coming from the amp at idle so ill need to dig around online and find the biasing video ive seen before.

[cetera]

7 hours ago, Pow_22 said:

Yes, finally got my hands on one....er two @Bankai. The one on the left is fully working/serviced but the one on the right is spares/repair. The seller wouldnt split so im flipping the broken one as is. 

 

Saw that on eBay! Congrats!

[Pow_22]

Well, looks like as I suspected I might need to shell out on some power valves.  Trying to bias it up to the amount stated on the chasis but even at maxed out the trim pot it doesn't appear to be enough.  3 of the valves do look like they are pretty old Svetlana's whilst the other three look like newer Marshall branded 6550.  I see I can pick up a pack of 6 x Bugera 6550's for £150 but no reviews or comments on them anywhere.  Might pay the bit extra for Sovtek or JJ's?

[Niall6002]

2 hours ago, Pow_22 said:

Well, looks like as I suspected I might need to shell out on some power valves.  Trying to bias it up to the amount stated on the chasis but even at maxed out the trim pot it doesn't appear to be enough.  3 of the valves do look like they are pretty old Svetlana's whilst the other three look like newer Marshall branded 6550.  I see I can pick up a pack of 6 x Bugera 6550's for £150 but no reviews or comments on them anywhere.  Might pay the bit extra for Sovtek or JJ's?

Pay the extra for JJ’s

the improvement in tone is worth it.

when I bought mine I completely retubed it,

the difference in sound was like night and day.

[Paddy515]

Mine had been re-tubed with Mesas. Loved the tone, but disliked the weight in the end so she had to move on.

[Bankai]

Mine has KT88s instead of 6550s. Worth considering 

[Dood]

This thread isn't helping GAS for the Pro II I sold many years ago - hell, any Pro II for that matter. I don't even need one!

[Dood]

3 minutes ago, Dood said:

This thread isn't helping GAS for the Pro II I sold many years ago - hell, any Pro II for that matter. I don't even need one!

Just found a very old picture of it too! The picture was taken in 2006. I think mine was a 1999 model or something. Not sure.

[chinosots]

Hi guys!

Svt II owners club member n+1 here!

Great to find a thread devoted to the monster!

Wondering if anyone might have had the same issue as I'm looking for any hint or clue what it might be... The last 2 or 3 times I've used it, once,maybe twice over a 4 hour rehearsal, I get a noticeable dip in volume that does come back up to full volume if left alone, or a swift twist up and back of the volume knob seems to get rid of it too. 

I've tried jumpering the pre out and power amp in jacks and thought I had solved it, but had the issue again last night. Overheating? It's in a pretty well fitted rack box, but it's never been an issue before?

Obviously, best advice would be "get it to a tech who knows their s**t", but curious to know if anyone's had similar issues and if so, what it turned out to be?

Oh! And am I the only one getting continually confused by the orientation of the impedance select switch? Tell me it's the same as the power supply switches and poked-in part denotes selection!

Cheers!

Oh... And here's a wee pic of the beast along with its mates

[de003]

i've got an SVT-2 and an SVT-3, both early 90s. Both were relative bargains - the 2 came from Wunjo Guitars on Denmark Street. The price was too good to miss out on which resulted in me also having to buy a wheeled flightcase from Sound Control (when it was in the basement of Virgin) to rack the SVT so i could get it home to Oxford. (i'll also briefly annoy people by explaining that the 3 was £100 in a charity shop).

For the discussion about racking, mine is racked and has toured extensively as such. it's in a shockmount rack case, shock racks are a bit better for amps not just from a protection point of view but also because there's about an inch of air gap between all sides of the rack and the wooden case so airflow around things is better. i like it racked as it also lives with a DBX 160 compressor, a rack tuner, a 2U rack drawer (for strings, picks and batteries) and an EMO power distro.

 

[Bankai]

I used my SVT-II Pro for a recording for the first time and I'm really happy with the result! The song isn't finished yet, but here's an excerpt of the isolated bass track accompanied only by drums. Click the below link to load it. I just love how it sounds as it comes crashing back to the open string at the end of the progression and sounds meaty as.

Defiant Bass.m4a

 

The recording was done using a Sandberg VM4 Riedel Signature, into the KT88 loaded SVTII-Pro, into a BF210S, mic'ed with a Audix i5 on-axis and an Audix D6 off-axis. I did take a DI too, but this was not used in the end.

Edited September 7, 2020 by Bankai

[Dood]

 

I'm not sure if this Instagram image will share for everyone (even though I can see it). I was in the Guitar Interactive studio recently with this beast of an amplifier. I forgot how good these sound cranked up and allowed to breath!

Doooood

[Beedster]

17 hours ago, Dood said:

 

I'm not sure if this Instagram image will share for everyone (even though I can see it). I was in the Guitar Interactive studio recently with this beast of an amplifier. I forgot how good these sound cranked up and allowed to breath!

Doooood

Great stuff Dan, very intrigued to know exactly what you mean by 'allowed to breath'......? Guess it might be a metaphor, but thought I'd ask anyway

On 07/08/2020 at 18:51, chinosots said:

Hi guys!

Svt II owners club member n+1 here!

Great to find a thread devoted to the monster!

Wondering if anyone might have had the same issue as I'm looking for any hint or clue what it might be... The last 2 or 3 times I've used it, once,maybe twice over a 4 hour rehearsal, I get a noticeable dip in volume that does come back up to full volume if left alone, or a swift twist up and back of the volume knob seems to get rid of it too. 

I've tried jumpering the pre out and power amp in jacks and thought I had solved it, but had the issue again last night. Overheating? It's in a pretty well fitted rack box, but it's never been an issue before?

Obviously, best advice would be "get it to a tech who knows their s**t", but curious to know if anyone's had similar issues and if so, what it turned out to be?

Oh! And am I the only one getting continually confused by the orientation of the impedance select switch? Tell me it's the same as the power supply switches and poked-in part denotes selection!

Cheers!

Oh... And here's a wee pic of the beast along with its mates

Wow, that's a lot of rig!

Can't help with your tech problems I'm afraid, I'm sure someone will be along soon  

[Dood]

On 08/09/2020 at 10:28, Beedster said:

Great stuff Dan, very intrigued to know exactly what you mean by 'allowed to breath'......? Guess it might be a metaphor, but thought I'd ask anyway

 

Well, the easiest way I can put it I suppose, is that some amplifiers when turned up seem to get very loud, but also harsh, fatiguing and lose the low end balls that were enjoyed at more reasonable levels. But, every SVT 2 Pro I've cranked up just seems to stay BIG past that threshold in volume. Depth, girth, whatever you wanna call it, in the studio it was like the amplifier was just stretching it's legs rather than running out of steam. 

[Pow_22]

Seems Richtone have got a job lot of tasty amps from somewhere and theres some bargains to be had including this beaut at an amazing price!

https://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/product/ampeg-svt-ii-head-case-2nd-hand-**contact-for-delivery**-a62-yampeg102269/

Also have a nice Heritage B15 too as well as a newer SVT II Pro!

https://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/product/ampeg-svt-ii-pro-head-**contact-for-delivery**-a67-w-flight-case-2nd-hand-yampeg102271/

https://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/product/ampeg-portaflex-heritage-b-15n-**contact-for-delivery**-a61-w-case-2nd-hand-yashdown102268/

 

*no affiliation whatsoever

Edited September 22, 2020 by Pow_22

[Bankai]

There must be something wrong with the SVT-2 to go for that price! 
 

Edit: I had a look through and they’ve got loads of second hand stuff in cases branded as ‘Terminal Studios’. I’m guessing it’s a backline company that’s folded and RT got the lot. That explains it

Edited September 22, 2020 by Bankai

[Geddys nose]

I got the first one from Richtone for £299 and it fires up perfectly and sounds like Thors Hammer.

Really in good condition and probably could tell some stories.

[Pow_22]

5 minutes ago, Geddys nose said:

I got the first one from Richtone for £299 and it fires up perfectly and sounds like Thors Hammer.

Really in good condition and probably could tell some stories.

The one in the link? Great amps the non pro II’s, mine is simply the best tone ive ever had 👌

[Geddys nose]

It does sound good and I've had most of the Valve stuff in my younger days,  My back did not need it but how could I refuse such a price .

https://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/product/ampeg-svt-ii-head-**contact-for-delivery**-a63-w-flight-case-2nd-hand-yampeg102270/

[Pow_22]

4 minutes ago, Geddys nose said:

It does sound good and I've had most of the Valve stuff in my younger days,  My back did not need it but how could I refuse such a price .

https://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/product/ampeg-svt-ii-head-**contact-for-delivery**-a63-w-flight-case-2nd-hand-yampeg102270/

Major bargain! Excellent amps

[galore]

On 16/02/2020 at 22:21, Beedster said:

Whilst I get the idea that this thread is about knowledge and experience of the SVT-II, I also think it should be in praise, so here's my thoughts on my SVT-II as posted in Donslow's original thread yesterday

Just reread that and remembered why I sold - and then bought another - SVT-II. The answer to 'what comes close' in my experience is nothing, seriously, not even the SVT-VR and the rest of the Ampeg large tube amps range. I'm no tech so can't tell you why this is, but I can say that having sold my first SVT-II, and realising my mistake, I owned two SVT (US re-issues) before realising that they can't do what this amp can do. I've also owned pretty much every large amp Mesa have made - 400+, Prodigy, Titan, M-Pulse, Big Block 750 and Buster, as well as a Aggie DB-750, some pretty nice pre-amp power amp combinations, including an Aggie DB-659 with an SVT-300 power amp (which got close), but nothing among that list makes me feel what the SVT-II makes me feel. And music for me is all about feeling, I'm not a great bass player by any means, but I love how I feel when I play bass on my own or with the band, and a huge part of that feeling for me is the tone, and the sheer psychoacoustic pleasure I get from this is irreplaceable. So for me, the SVT is an emotion machine, something that I can't quantify in mechanistic terms, but something that adds a huge amount of what is important to me into my experience of playing the bass. If I ever get to the point at which my back is too weak to carry it, I'd happily spend the £300 or so required to get a very high quality rack/trolley case for it, and if it meant a two person carry onto the stage, so be it. I use it even at small gigs, not because I need it, but because I like it (and unlike some tube amps it does quiet pretty well). 

So, the SVT-II is my emotion machine

I share this take on SVT II, I have a non pro from June 89, with a fixed power chord. I’ve been lucky enough to own and play many amps and the II non pro appears to be the one for me. I also did A/B between II non pro and VR at one point during a recording session and everyone preferred II non pro over the VR. The difference wasn’t huge but it was enough to sell the VR. The II non pro just had fuller sound, more controllable mids and better punch. I also had Mesa 400+ for a while hoping it to be a counterpart to the Ampeg but in the end didn’t live up to it in my opinion. One thing I really miss on II non pro is that it officially doesn’t do 8 ohm, it would be a lot easier to use with different cabs if it did.

[dave74200]

On 13/08/2020 at 02:51, de003 said:

i've got an SVT-2 and an SVT-3, both early 90s. Both were relative bargains - the 2 came from Wunjo Guitars on Denmark Street. The price was too good to miss out on which resulted in me also having to buy a wheeled flightcase from Sound Control (when it was in the basement of Virgin) to rack the SVT so i could get it home to Oxford. (i'll also briefly annoy people by explaining that the 3 was £100 in a charity shop).

For the discussion about racking, mine is racked and has toured extensively as such. it's in a shockmount rack case, shock racks are a bit better for amps not just from a protection point of view but also because there's about an inch of air gap between all sides of the rack and the wooden case so airflow around things is better. i like it racked as it also lives with a DBX 160 compressor, a rack tuner, a 2U rack drawer (for strings, picks and batteries) and an EMO power distro.

 

How much better would you say the 2 is than the 3? I had a 2 and loved it, now I have a 7 and a 3. I often fantasize about getting another 2, but remember the weight and the cost of valve replacement kits!!

[galore]

I owned svt 2 and svt 3 at the same time. I also played svt 3 pro on several occasions. 3 and 3 pro sound similar in my opinion, they have enough power and are portable and don’t take a lot of rack space. I enjoyed svt 3 but svt 2 is, for me, just above any other amp I have used so far and I went through quite a few. Really rich, full, even sound and the best overdrive I have ever got on bass. Sound outweighs extreme weight  of the amp for me.

Edited January 5, 2021 by galore