danbowskill Posted January 22, 2023 Share Posted January 22, 2023 (edited) Unfortunately I fried my Svt pro3 head last night 😭. Now im after another old school lump not costing an arm and a leg... I was interested in these heads years ago and one has just popped up, hardly any reviews on it.Theres a little bit of a write up from waterofthetyne on here (2008). Anyone have any experience with these? Reliability mainly 👍 Edited January 22, 2023 by danbowskill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mudpup Posted January 22, 2023 Share Posted January 22, 2023 There are a few threads on Talkbass. I was looking at one of these a while back as I'm a fan of old school rock amps but there seems to be a lot of reliability issues with them (unless of course it's the same 4 people having tube issues posting all over the web). In the end I arrived at a Mesa Big Block 750 and love it to bits but they don't show up very often. Recently I swapped another amp for an Orange 4 Stroke and am enjoying that as much as my Mesa. It sounds huge and has a great eq. Might be worth having a look around for one of those? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbowskill Posted January 22, 2023 Author Share Posted January 22, 2023 I had the 4stroke but couldn't get it to work for me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thodrik Posted January 23, 2023 Share Posted January 23, 2023 I really like the SVT 3 Pros. There is someone selling another on the marketplace here for a decent price. My nephew has one and it is great. He was looking at a bunch of options including second hand Ashdown ABMs, Warwick Tubepaths, Orange 4 four stroke. The Ampeg won out in the end just because 'it is an Ampeg and Ampegs are cool'. Funnily enough I have also ended up with a Mesa Big Block 750! Took me years to find one though. Frankly, I don't think that I will ever be selling that. In terms of the Warwick, I have only tried the 5.1 which I thought was really nice however I only played one show with it (it belonged to someone else). For a decent price I would say it was worth a try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lw. Posted January 23, 2023 Share Posted January 23, 2023 Those old Warwick amps were great - the Tubepath models were the top of the Warwick range in the early 00's weren't they? I used to gig with a budget end "Sonic" series amp and it was super reliable for years (they just needed to not have one of the chassis screws in above where the fan was). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbowskill Posted January 23, 2023 Author Share Posted January 23, 2023 I've gone and bought it so fingers crossed it's reliable....I'm sure it'll sound great Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassmanPaul Posted January 23, 2023 Share Posted January 23, 2023 Merely for interest: how did you manage to blow your SVT? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbowskill Posted January 23, 2023 Author Share Posted January 23, 2023 (edited) I adjusted the MOSFETs after lots or reading up on it....had them all pretty much spot on at 20-23mv average on each after tiniest of a turn on the trim pot (literally just touched it) ...left it running half HR no probs , then I put the mutli meter clips on a MOSFET to double check for piece of mind and when it touched the MOSFET it made a crack n quick flash under the board.reading on similar issues it looks like it might be a pricey job to correct 🤦. I'll be popping it up on here for spares n repairs, might be easier fix than I think... But doubt it. It's an immaculate amp as well 😒gutted Edited January 23, 2023 by danbowskill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassmanPaul Posted January 23, 2023 Share Posted January 23, 2023 Why did you feel that the MOSFET bias needed adjustment in the first place? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbowskill Posted January 23, 2023 Author Share Posted January 23, 2023 (edited) Idle hands, read lots on how the 3 pro sounds vastly better with correct bias 😒...they were incredibly low tbf , averaging at 3 MV each. Edited January 23, 2023 by danbowskill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agedhorse Posted January 23, 2023 Share Posted January 23, 2023 Too much reading DIY service posts on the internet? 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pow_22 Posted February 3, 2023 Share Posted February 3, 2023 (edited) Thread resurrection but just wondered how you are finding the tubepath? I had the 5.1 years ago but it got badly damaged in transit and never really got it working to its full potential but what i did hear sounded great. Reminded me very much of the Mesa Big Block 750 in that it had a very valvey growly tone to it Edited February 3, 2023 by Pow_22 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbowskill Posted February 3, 2023 Author Share Posted February 3, 2023 (edited) Arrived in the post from DPD like it had been forklifted 😡 The fuse's had all come out and 2 holders were broke,rack ear bent round and top Damaged... surprisingly the inners weren't to bad ,and the face. Managed to patch it up just to test (it works thank god).... And the sound was absolutely wonderful 😁. I won't get to try it properly until it's back from repairs. But in that short tryout I was mighty impressed Edited February 3, 2023 by danbowskill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pow_22 Posted February 3, 2023 Share Posted February 3, 2023 Thats almost exactly what happened to mine. All the internal fuse holders were completely broken. In the end, literally just to test it, I actually soldered the fuses to the remains of the holder. Love to hear how you compare this to the SVT 3pro when you get it running Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassmanPaul Posted February 3, 2023 Share Posted February 3, 2023 (edited) In your place I would be contacting the folks who shipped it for recompense or a replacement! Edited February 3, 2023 by BassmanPaul Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbowskill Posted February 3, 2023 Author Share Posted February 3, 2023 2 hours ago, BassmanPaul said: In your place I would be contacting the folks who shipped it for recompense or a replacement! It was from Andertons,tbf they have been sound with it... Had collected and are doing all repairs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbowskill Posted February 3, 2023 Author Share Posted February 3, 2023 2 hours ago, Pow_22 said: Thats almost exactly what happened to mine. All the internal fuse holders were completely broken. In the end, literally just to test it, I actually soldered the fuses to the remains of the holder. Love to hear how you compare this to the SVT 3pro when you get it running Yeah when I looked under the hood them holders looked rubbish,as if they were made from KitKat wrappers. At low levels it felt a lot clearer than the pro3...but means nothing until I hear in a band mix Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ern500evo Posted February 4, 2023 Share Posted February 4, 2023 (edited) I had a Tubepath 5.1, I bought it brand new. Wonderful sounding amp, I used it with a Warwick WCA115 and WCA210. Had a lovely rich tone to it, and was pretty versatile. I only got rid of it as I had my head turned by the whole class d thing so I traded it for something a lot smaller. Without a shadow of doubt, the stupidest musical decision I’ve ever made. Followed closely by trading my MM Bongo Stealth. From what I remember, early 10.1 versions had some reliability issues, but that’s only from what I read on forums, not personal experience. Enjoy the amp, they are for sure a bit of a hidden gem Edited February 4, 2023 by ern500evo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbowskill Posted February 4, 2023 Author Share Posted February 4, 2023 30 minutes ago, ern500evo said: I had a Tubepath 5.1, I bought it brand new. Wonderful sounding amp, I used it with a Warwick WCA115 and WCA210. Had a lovely rich tone to it, and was pretty versatile. I only got rid of it as I had my head turned by the whole class d thing so I traded it for something a lot smaller. Without a shadow of doubt, the stupidest musical decision I’ve ever made. Followed closely by trading my MM Bongo Stealth. From what I remember, early 10.1 versions had some reliability issues, but that’s only from what I read on forums, not personal experience. Enjoy the amp, they are for sure a bit of a hidden gem I hope it comes back to me...can't help but have the niggling feeling that Andertons are just going to refund me rather than repair (they did say it'll come back for repair). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ern500evo Posted February 5, 2023 Share Posted February 5, 2023 21 hours ago, danbowskill said: I hope it comes back to me...can't help but have the niggling feeling that Andertons are just going to refund me rather than repair (they did say it'll come back for repair). Fingers crossed for you. Hope you get it back. If they refund you, is it worth asking if they’d sell it to you as spares or repair? A decent amp tech may be able to sort it for a reasonable cost 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbowskill Posted February 5, 2023 Author Share Posted February 5, 2023 (edited) 1 hour ago, ern500evo said: Fingers crossed for you. Hope you get it back. If they refund you, is it worth asking if they’d sell it to you as spares or repair? A decent amp tech may be able to sort it for a reasonable cost I'm thinking that👍iTS a itch that definitely needs scratching now Edited February 5, 2023 by danbowskill 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbowskill Posted April 8, 2023 Author Share Posted April 8, 2023 (edited) Finally got my amp back... Nearly 3 months from purchase 😲. But Christ! This thing sounds phenomenal, a sleeper of a amp for sure... Does the full tube Ampeg sound with total ease+ with a few simple twists it goes straight to a super clean modern. Massively impressed 💪 Edited April 8, 2023 by danbowskill 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ern500evo Posted April 8, 2023 Share Posted April 8, 2023 They are great amps. Still kick myself for trading my 5.1 when I wanted to delve into class D amps 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pow_22 Posted April 9, 2023 Share Posted April 9, 2023 I do want to give these another go. I remember mine being almost a Mesa BB750 for nearly quarter of the price. As you say, it does the ‘tubey/valvey’ thing very well 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danbowskill Posted April 9, 2023 Author Share Posted April 9, 2023 46 minutes ago, Pow_22 said: I do want to give these another go. I remember mine being almost a Mesa BB750 for nearly quarter of the price. As you say, it does the ‘tubey/valvey’ thing very well They do seem to pop up now and then cheap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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