ahpook Posted July 6, 2023 Share Posted July 6, 2023 (edited) New (Serviced) Amp Day(ish) I bought this wonderful slice of valvey goodness a couple of weeks ago, but it needed some TLC - a good clean, some reflowing, new output valves and rebiasing. That's all finished and it sounds...well, amazing, to be honest. I used to use an SVT -Pro preamp but that's now too old and badly-behaved to use. I've been after something to replace it for a while. After ruling out any flavour of SVT (too loud, too heavy), the recent reissue V4B seemed an option, but this 1997 version turned up for sale, and just seemed a better bet - cheaper than the new reissues too It does the Ampeg break-up, ludicrous amounts of bottom end and smells divine when it's all warmed up. I'm a very happy man. Edited July 6, 2023 by ahpook 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pow_22 Posted July 7, 2023 Share Posted July 7, 2023 Had one for years, superb amps with one of the 'richest' tones ive had 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reggaebass Posted July 7, 2023 Share Posted July 7, 2023 Really nice, wasn’t they made in the USA too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted July 7, 2023 Author Share Posted July 7, 2023 (edited) 1 hour ago, Reggaebass said: Really nice, wasn’t they made in the USA too They were indeed - this one in St. Louis. The construction looks top-notch, and being 90s, not an surface mount component in sight- a joy to work on. Edited July 7, 2023 by ahpook 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
northcountrybob Posted July 7, 2023 Share Posted July 7, 2023 Love the V4B. I used to own a VT22 combo which was crazy heavy. Like an ultra linear twin. Never seen this version. Looks great! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTypeV4 Posted July 8, 2023 Share Posted July 8, 2023 I was looking for one of these last year but failed after about 3 months keeping an eye out on here, FB, eBay etc but not one appeared.. I was only after the head as I wanted the SVT flavour for use at the studio but without the bother of the expensive 6550s and the weight.. In the end I bought an entire stack with a 'full fat' SVT CL, 410HE and 115E - far more than planned! Glad you've brought this lovely amplifier back to life, it's very cool indeed - hope you enjoy it as much as I do my SVT. ❤️ 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted July 8, 2023 Author Share Posted July 8, 2023 52 minutes ago, VTypeV4 said: I was looking for one of these last year but failed after about 3 months keeping an eye out on here, FB, eBay etc but not one appeared.. I was only after the head as I wanted the SVT flavour for use at the studio but without the bother of the expensive 6550s and the weight.. In the end I bought an entire stack with a 'full fat' SVT CL, 410HE and 115E - far more than planned! Glad you've brought this lovely amplifier back to life, it's very cool indeed - hope you enjoy it as much as I do my SVT. ❤️ It's certainly a lot more manageable weight-wise than an SVT Glad you got your stack though - I be it sounds formidable ! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted July 8, 2023 Author Share Posted July 8, 2023 On 07/07/2023 at 22:41, northcountrybob said: Love the V4B. I used to own a VT22 combo which was crazy heavy. Like an ultra linear twin. Never seen this version. Looks great! I like the 80/90s styling. The V4BH (which this basically is as far as I can tell) had a more classic look, but...this one has a red V. That's so much better 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassmanPaul Posted July 10, 2023 Share Posted July 10, 2023 @ahpook I hope the amp serves you well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted July 10, 2023 Author Share Posted July 10, 2023 4 hours ago, BassmanPaul said: @ahpook I hope the amp serves you well. Thank you - it's making me smile every time I play through it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VTypeV4 Posted July 11, 2023 Share Posted July 11, 2023 On 09/07/2023 at 00:29, ahpook said: It's certainly a lot more manageable weight-wise than an SVT Glad you got your stack though - I be it sounds formidable ! It's a fantastic tool, thanks. 😀 Enjoy the V4, I expect it's equally useful but with a bit more 'vintage mojo' going on - super cool. 😀 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassmanPaul Posted July 14, 2023 Share Posted July 14, 2023 Ampeg do make good sounding bass amps. I love my Sixties B15NF. Every time I play through it it makes me smile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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