highwayone Posted June 13, 2015 Share Posted June 13, 2015 Any good? Currently using an orange terror through an orange obc410 but love the retro look of the svt'so but would have substance over style!! Seen a few cheap svt-450's around so didn't know what the general view of them is? Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted June 13, 2015 Share Posted June 13, 2015 I used an SVT 450 the other night. Was through an Ampeg 810. A magnificent sound. Quite surprised about the eq though - using just the regular, and not the graphic, I had bass on 1, mids on 6 abd treble on 7, gain on 6. Was a great sound but like I say, surprised I had to back off on the lows that much. And this wasn`t or my gnarly, trebly punk band, this was rock, Black Stone Cherry, Foo Fighters type stuff I was standing in on. Maybe a lot of the great sound was generated by the cab, but whatever, I liked it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted June 13, 2015 Share Posted June 13, 2015 [quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1434196456' post='2797522'] I used an SVT 450 the other night. Was through an Ampeg 810. A magnificent sound. Quite surprised about the eq though - using just the regular, and not the graphic, I had bass on 1, mids on 6 abd treble on 7, gain on 6. Was a great sound but like I say, surprised I had to back off on the lows that much. And this wasn`t or my gnarly, trebly punk band, this was rock, Black Stone Cherry, Foo Fighters type stuff I was standing in on. Maybe a lot of the great sound was generated by the cab, but whatever, I liked it. [/quote] That's very interesting, as I've never used an SVT-CL or VR [i]without [/i]it being through an Ampeg 8X10... you don't think that all this time it's the [i]cab [/i]that's been responsible for 'that' sound, do you?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
highwayone Posted June 13, 2015 Author Share Posted June 13, 2015 [quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1434196456' post='2797522'] I used an SVT 450 the other night. Was through an Ampeg 810. A magnificent sound. Quite surprised about the eq though - using just the regular, and not the graphic, I had bass on 1, mids on 6 abd treble on 7, gain on 6. Was a great sound but like I say, surprised I had to back off on the lows that much. And this wasn`t or my gnarly, trebly punk band, this was rock, Black Stone Cherry, Foo Fighters type stuff I was standing in on. Maybe a lot of the great sound was generated by the cab, but whatever, I liked it. [/quote] Cheers for the info Lozz, as you keep nicking the basses I like the look of thought I'd think about swapping rigs lol! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbowskill Posted June 13, 2015 Share Posted June 13, 2015 i use a Cl trough a ampeg 6x10 mids at 3,treble noon and the bass never goes past a quarter (punky rock style) .i dont find it very usable with the bass half way or past.......... odd eq in the ampegs,all seems to be about the mids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davehux Posted June 13, 2015 Share Posted June 13, 2015 Just a small point. The SVT450 is a solid state amp, while the CL and VR are the all valve heads. Apples and Oranges? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skidder652003 Posted June 13, 2015 Share Posted June 13, 2015 SVT 450 is a very different beast from the VST-CL or VST-VR,. the 450 being a solid state box of c*ap ccompared to the considerably more expensive ( to buy and maintain) all tube 300W SVT and CL models. it really is apples and rare fillet steak, bear it in mind! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Handwired Posted June 14, 2015 Share Posted June 14, 2015 I've owned or played just about every Ampeg SVT and to my ears the 450 is by far the worst. In a word, 'Bland'. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brensabre79 Posted June 15, 2015 Share Posted June 15, 2015 The 450 was the first Ampeg I played through, and it was at a festival, and I really liked the sound on stage a lot. However, now I've tried the VST and CL too. I'm afraid the 450 is just a taste of that Ampeg sound that you're clearly won over by - it's not bad at all for a wholly solid state amp - but after a while you'll want more of that tone and there's only one place to get it in spades. It's not cheap and it's not lightweight either. It's a bit like having a real fresh ground coffee vs freeze dried instant. Your first ever cup of coffee may have been an instant, and it tasted good until one day someone gave you a proper cup of fresh coffee. After that, an instant might wake you up a bit with a caffiene hit, but you won't be savouring the flavour, you'll just be wondering where the nearest coffee shop is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Handwired Posted June 15, 2015 Share Posted June 15, 2015 [quote name='brensabre79' timestamp='1434374364' post='2798987'] The 450 was the first Ampeg I played through, and it was at a festival, and I really liked the sound on stage a lot. However, now I've tried the VST and CL too. I'm afraid the 450 is just a taste of that Ampeg sound that you're clearly won over by - it's not bad at all for a wholly solid state amp - but after a while you'll want more of that tone and there's only one place to get it in spades. It's not cheap and it's not lightweight either. It's a bit like having a real fresh ground coffee vs freeze dried instant. Your first ever cup of coffee may have been an instant, and it tasted good until one day someone gave you a proper cup of fresh coffee. After that, an instant might wake you up a bit with a caffiene hit, but you won't be savouring the flavour, you'll just be wondering where the nearest coffee shop is. [/quote]Nice analogy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reverend Posted June 19, 2015 Share Posted June 19, 2015 Well... horses for courses :-) Funny, I went to a rehearsal last night, and to my dismay they had a big old Ampeg stack - I've literally never gotten a sound I like out of an Ampeg rig - all low mids and muddy rubbish. Turned it on, and lo and behold it sounded absolutely great! Really well defined, bags of power, loved it. Was just about to change my opinion of these amps, and then noticed it was an SVT-200T - a solid state one. Couldn't believe how much better this sounded to me than all the valve SVTs I've had to play through at every festival where they just get one in as standard. Obviously, everyone else isn't wrong - it's just weird how much I don't get on with Ampeg valve heads. Other valve heads, no issues. I remember using a Marshall VBA stack at a gig and nearly soiling myself with joy. I remember a massive all valve silver Fender Bassman rig that blew my mind. Anyway, screw these valve heads these days. They're not designed for human beings to lift. Will stick to my GK MB500. Try before you buy, yo! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BruceBass3901 Posted June 20, 2015 Share Posted June 20, 2015 I have to say that I have played through a couple of Ampeg rigs (both valve and solid state) and have never really gotten on with them. I just find that they don't give me what I want. If I was shopping for an all valve amp to get that valve 'heft' to my sound, I would either go with a Fender Super Bassman 300 or an Ashdown CTM 300. I own a CTM 300 and it is hands down the best sounding amp that I have ever played through and I have played through my fair share of both valve and solid state. While I haven't had the chance to play through an SVT-450, I have read very few positive reviews of them, so try one and make your own decision if it is for you, but definitely try some others to compare it to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Handwired Posted June 21, 2015 Share Posted June 21, 2015 In most situations choosing the right cab is more important than the head. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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