Ampeg V4B v Ashdown CTM100

[Lozz196]

11 minutes ago, skychaserhigh said:

The reissue V4b and 212av cab is one of the best rigs you can get.

Find one, buy it and don't look back.

Yep I’ve used a few of these and it’s one of those rigs I wish I’d had.

[BassAdder60]

The SVT212AV is heavy for sure but it’s a great match for the V4B. It may be the perfect match, sure looks sexy as hell as a rig though ! 
I lugged mine around and I’m 65 !! 

[walshy]

23 minutes ago, skychaserhigh said:

The reissue V4b and 212av cab is one of the best rigs you can get.

Find one, buy it and don't look back.

It's true, this rig is simply magnificent and not that heavy. The sound it produces is amazing!

 

[walshy]

 

This is mine

[police squad]

I know I know lol

 

interesting read that article

[BassAdder60]

Another great feature is the SVT212AV cab has feet cups on the top for the V4B head to fit into. Head isn’t going anywhere! 
 

At a rowdy gig I turned away from some punters that were getting too close, I tripped and fell towards my amp. The V4B didn’t budge and stopped me from falling and breaking my bass !!

So heavy amps still have the occasional advantage !  

[Reggaebass]

On 20/07/2025 at 10:56, police squad said:

sounds like it's the Ampeg then

 

Maybe put out a wanted ad here, see how it goes, you never know someone might be moving one on 

[police squad]

I found one for sale at Andertons

Ex Demo

interest free over 9 months

trigger pulled

[BassAdder60]

Just now, police squad said:

I found one for sale at Andertons

Ex Demo

interest free over 9 months

trigger pulled

Good result 👍

[Reggaebass]

6 minutes ago, police squad said:

I found one for sale at Andertons

Ex Demo

interest free over 9 months

trigger pulled

Nice one, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed, if you are I’ll give you the money myself 😁

[police squad]

I actually have a Police gig end of next week, so it'll get a good thrashing then

[BassAdder60]

Don’t use Ultra Low or Ultra High ( it doesn’t need them ) although if you’re a pick player Ultra Low is nice to use 

Mid selector 800 HZ was my preferred 

 

It was easy to get a good tone with bass mid treble using above settings and balance gain / master volume to taste 

Mine was running master volume around 12 o clock at loud gigs and it was not breaking up which was the sound I wanted 

Naturally if you crank the input gain it will sound more raspy etc etc 

It sounds better as the night wears on as the power tubes get nice and warm 

Finally never turn it on without cab connected !!! 

Edited yesterday at 14:40 by BassAdder60

[BassmanPaul]

I agree it was an interesting read but only that. The older Version was well able to keep up with the new. In essence the old and new are two completely different amplifiers. The

'magic' of the old units may not translate to the new ones. Just because an amplifier is old doesn't mean that it is a pile of crap!  It is, after all, the older units that created the reputation

of the V4B in the first place.

 

[BassmanPaul]

54 minutes ago, police squad said:

I actually have a Police gig end of next week, so it'll get a good thrashing then

Break a string!! LOL

 

[police squad]

14 minutes ago, BassAdder60 said:

Don’t use Ultra Low or Ultra High ( it doesn’t need them ) although if you’re a pick player Ultra Low is nice to use 

Mid selector 800 HZ was my preferred 

 

It was easy to get a good tone with bass mid treble using above settings and balance gain / master volume to taste 

Mine was running master volume around 12 o clock at loud gigs and it was not breaking up which was the sound I wanted 

Naturally if you crank the input gain it will sound more raspy etc etc 

It sounds better as the night wears on as the power tubes get nice and warm 

Finally never turn it on without cab connected !!! 

I'll try those settings, thanks

Yes mainly pick player but occasionally I dip to the dark side and use fingers/thumb

Should sound epic with my HW 4003. A mate of mine played me a track recorded with his Rik and the V4B, sounded huge

[BassmanPaul]

Please let us know how the gig went. We're interested!

 

[police squad]

1 minute ago, BassmanPaul said:

Please let us know how the gig went. We're interested!

 

yes mate will do

I'll try and get some of it recorded

[skychaserhigh]

Here's a pic of mine, just because it looks cool 😎 

[The fasting showman]

6 hours ago, BassAdder60 said:

https://www.bassgearmag.com/v-4b-old-vs-new-head-to-head/
 

read all about it !! 

I found that really interesting. The valve ( tube) compliment on the old version doesn't mention the 6k11 compactron valve that drives the mid circuit. 

 

What valve does that job in the new model?

 

I've owned a couple of v4Bs, of the valve amps I had they worked well for me, paired with a Marshall vbc412 in particular. 

[BassmanPaul]

2 hours ago, The fasting showman said:

I found that really interesting. The valve ( tube) compliment on the old version doesn't mention the 6k11 compactron valve that drives the mid circuit. 

 

What valve does that job in the new model?

 

I've owned a couple of v4Bs, of the valve amps I had they worked well for me, paired with a Marshall vbc412 in particular. 

I used a Marshall 4x12 in the past whilst I still lived in the UK. It worked very well for me too. I was using a Marshall 45W amp (KT66) and a Blonde Black face Fender Bassman (6L6GC). With the Marshall amp reading the data books I concluded that the KT66 tubes could be substituted by a 6L6GC without any modifications. I swapped in a pair of the 6L6GCs and the amp worked better to my ears so I left them in there. All these years later I still have those two KT66s in my tube caddy.

 

I too remember the 6K11 tube from the schematics I have seen. It was somewhat of an odd ball even back then. I don't know the complement of the new V4B but I see no reason why the mid circuit couldn't be handled by a 6SL7. 

 

Edited yesterday at 19:18 by BassmanPaul

[police squad]

Well it turned up this morning

It's ex Demo but in great condition

I might try it out this afternoon, when I get back from shopping  er work!

[walshy]

39 minutes ago, police squad said:

Well it turned up this morning

It's ex Demo but in great condition

I might try it out this afternoon, when I get back from shopping  er work!

I reckon you'll love it mate

[police squad]

1 hour ago, walshy said:

I reckon you'll love it mate

I hope so. I've played thru a couple of full fat SVTs and loved them.

I'll try and get plugged in later today and give it a whirl

Any settings to start with?

[walshy]

I just set it flat and tweak to taste

[BassAdder60]

3 minutes ago, walshy said:

I just set it flat and tweak to taste

Yep I agree that’s the place to start 

 

Raise input gain until it’s too gnarly and start off with flat EQ and mid selector on 800 and go from there 

 

Shouldn’t be any crackles or odd noises coming from the pre amp tubes and enjoy its glory !