I know this has been talked about before, but being a guitar player,
I thought I'd throw my 2 cents in.
I use an AMpeg V-4 which I got in the mid 70's, and if you want that
'69 to '76 tone that we all love and wish they would go back to, this is the amp.
I know they used SVT's which is a larger version, and really a bass amp.
However, finding good tubes that match the Ampeg originals are hard to find.
I wonder why Ampeg doesn't make guitar amps like these anymore.
I also have an Mesa Simul Class MARK III with an EQ bulit in. Great amp.
YOu can get any tone, really. If you want the sound of SOme Girls, ER, Undercover,
Dirty Work, this is it. I think Fender Twins are floating those records, too.
Howver, when I run the Boogie through the Ampeg like they did in ''78 and SNL,
this tone will stop people in their tracks. IN fact, I've had musicians
and non-musicians comment on the tone this gets.
That's why the '78 tour has a slight different guitar tone than the others.
'81 and '82 were Boogie heads through, I believe, Electro-Voice cabinets.
Boogie heads are great. Not sure about those cabinets, as I've never played through one. That Ampeg crunch is totally gone. Listen to El Mocambo side
and Still LIfe and compare.
Gutiar wise, I used Telecasters, Strats, and Les PAuls, but now I use
a MusicMan Silhoutte and a telecaster with a b-sting bender.
ANyone else run a Boogie and an Ampeg together? I think it can't be beat.
However, it beats up my back every time I gig.
Thanks for letting me ramble.

tomk Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> However, finding good tubes that match the Ampeg
> originals are hard to find.
> I wonder why Ampeg doesn't make guitar amps like
> these anymore.

This is not true: the 7027A tubes used in Ampeg VT-22's and VT-40 are exactly the same as any other 6L6-type tube. The 7027 has two extra pins, but these are shorted out anyway. The 7027A was just a marketing gadget for Ampeg, as they claimed the 7027 to have more power and more wattage. In fact, a 7027 is just a regular rebranded 6L6. If you want to change tubes, you can use any decent 6L6 tube, but beware: Ampegs run really hot (500 volts is nothing!) so the tubes have to be rugged. NOS JAN are best (Philips JAN are affordable and good, and even lowers the output a bit which is good for these Ampegs), Groove Tubes are good too. Don't use anything cheap. Just pop em in, rebias, and off you go.

Mathijs

On a slightly different note, I wonder if anyone can think of an amplifier that can produce those early 70s Ampeg SVT tones, but that comes in a small package. For example, I am looking for a 50W combo which can produce the sound of the late 60s / early 70s Stones and Faces. I have tried out various vintage and new amplifiers, including the original SVT's, HiWatts, Fender Twins and Bluesman, Orange, etc etc, but have never found the perfect trade-off between tone and portability.

As Tomk has commented, it is hardly practicable to lug a great big stack system around. Particularly when you don't have a crew of roadies and a fleet of lorries to do all the work for you.

Depends on how portable you want it: a Jet 12 is 15 watts, a R12 Reverberocket about 18 watts, and most Gemini's between 20 and 40 watts. All carry one 12" speaker and weigh nothing. only problem is the pre-amp tubes, they can be hard to find unless you buy on the internet. For true Stones sound in a portable package there's only one way to go: the 60 watt ampeg V-2, which is basically half a V-4. The head weighs about 15 kilos, add a Boogie Thiele cab and there you go.

Mathijs

Mathijs Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Depends on how portable you want it: a Jet 12 is
> 15 watts, a R12 Reverberocket about 18 watts, and
> most Gemini's between 20 and 40 watts. All carry
> one 12" speaker and weigh nothing. only problem is
> the pre-amp tubes, they can be hard to find unless
> you buy on the internet. For true Stones sound in
> a portable package there's only one way to go: the
> 60 watt ampeg V-2, which is basically half a V-4.
> The head weighs about 15 kilos, add a Boogie
> Thiele cab and there you go.
>
> Mathijs


Gosh, the stuff you know Mathijs! - your brain must be like a musical encyclopedia!!

Regards,

Ian.



Rolling Stones Tribute

Play Rolling Stones

Mathijas,

Regarding the Ampeg tubes, I was told this by a few amp repairmen
when I was changing them a few years ago. I was just going by what
they were telling me. However, when I did replace them,
some of the "'75 -tour crunch" was missing.
Not enough to lose any sleep over, but the tone was a little different.
By the way, mine has master volume that was put in in the back of the head.
Thanks for the info.
More later.
Off to see Bob Dylan tonight.

I've been collecting amps for years and I must admit that the best combination I ever found, using Tellys, Strats and Pauls was a two amp set:
one one side a vintage 50W Hiwatt 2X12 combo for the clean attack and headroom linked to a blackface Fender Bassman piggyback head running through a 4X12 old Marshall cab for the little crunch we all like...
Just KILLER tone... Give it a try!

tomk Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Mathijas,
>
> Regarding the Ampeg tubes, I was told this by a
> few amp repairmen
> when I was changing them a few years ago. I was
> just going by what
> they were telling me. However, when I did replace
> them,
> some of the "'75 -tour crunch" was missing.

Chec this out:

[www.triodeel.com]
[www.babymonoxide.com]

Did you replace the tubes with new tubes, or NOS? IN my opinion there's not ONE tube manufacturer today who is capable of making tubes like in the 70's. Al new tubes sound harsher with less bass, and they don't break up as nicely. NOS is the way to go if you want the genuine 80's sound, and for your Ampeg you can't go wrong with the Philips JAN NOS, they cost about $20 a piece and are excellent.

Mathijs

I already have a Fender Bassman 50 head which does give me a KILLER tone. I also have a Gibson Goldtone amp which gives a brilliant tone in a small package. However, I would still like to get something a bit closer to the SVT sound but in an easy to carry combo. From what Mathijs says, it sounds like there is nothing perfect at the moment. Thanks anyway - but I'll keep my eyes posted.

sjs12 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
>However, I would still like to get
> something a bit closer to the SVT sound but in an
> easy to carry combo. From what Mathijs says, it
> sounds like there is nothing perfect at the
> moment. Thanks anyway - but I'll keep my eyes
> posted.

The smallest available SVT-type is the Ampeg VT-120, a 60 watt single 12" speaker combo. Unfortunately these are very hard to find.

Mathijs

Although I wouldn't really recommend it,
EBAY has few Ampeg V-40s on there from time to time.
I'm talking about the EBAY in the States.
I wouldn't recommend buying an amp there,
but I did buy a guitar on EBAY, and it turned out great, So did the other guitar player in my band.
My drummer, however, got burned on a cymbal.
If you do decide to get one, put some wheels on it...
and get a good deal on a chiropractor.

Ebay is an option for Americans, but I wouldn't recommend shipping an 80 pound heavy amp by airmail! Also, the US' current is 110 volts while we have 220 - 240 volts. For Europeans the best place to find Ampegs is Germany, as they were imported in Germany in the 70's in large numbers, while the rest of Europe didn't have a dealership.

Mathijs

You can pop in *any* good matched pair of 6L6-GC 7581, 5881, 6L6-WGB, or KT66 into your Ampeg V amp without any modifications, because the socket is actually wired for 6L6's!!

But be careful to do it the other way round. First always check how the sockets are wired in your amp. Sometimes those pins not in use are used as a base to connect grid stop resistors or other variations.

The rough difference between 6L6-GC and 7027a is that the 7027a has 5watt more of plate dissipation (35 instead of 30 watts), i.e. more power.