Ampeg GVT15-112 amp for jazz?

[Jazzman301]

I was curious if anyone had any thoughts on how well suited these amps are for providing a nice jazz tone.

Thanks for your time and information.

'Mike

[Franz 1997]

If this is an old ampeg tube amp, they generally sound very good for jazz, as ampeg aimed at the jazz player.
The snag is that they are often a rat's nest of wires inside, use obsolete tubes and components with no spares available and are generally difficult to repair, unlike old fender amps.

[Hammertone]

It's a new amp:
Ampeg | GVT15-112 Tube Amp - Tube Guitar Amplifier

The boys at Loud, having thoroughly screwed up the Ampeg legacy so far, have gone back to the well with a new series of amps that borrow heavily from the cosmetics of the Unimusic era of Ampeg amps from 1968-1972. I haven't had a chance to check these new ones out yet myself, but I'm very familiar with the older ones. I look forward to checking them out at NAMM.

This new amp is a small 15 / 7.5 watt combo, probably great for solo/duo work but underpowered if you're working with a drummer IMO.

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FWIW, old Ampeg amp circuits are dead easy to work on right up until the introduction of the relatively complicated VT-22/V-4, VT-40/V2, and SVT. I have a few combos from the Unimusic era. Some basic info, in case you come across any of these used:
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- Reverb-o-Jet (@18 watts, 1x12, too small and bright for jazz IMO)
- GU-12 (@20 watts, 1x12, excellent for jazz, like a Fender Princeton Reverb)
- G-12 (@22 watts, 1x12, excellent for jazz, like a Fender Deluxe Reverb)
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- G-20 (35 watts, 2x10, better for rock and blues IMO, like a Fender Vibrolux Reverb)
- GV-22 (35 watts, 2x12, great for jazz, like a Fender Pro Reverb)
- GV-15 (35 watts, 1x15, great for jazz, like a half-power Fender Vibrosonic Reverb)
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- VT-40 (60 watts, 4x10, a rock amp, no real Fender equivalent)
- VT-22 (120 watts, 2x12, great for jazz, like a Fender Twin Reverb)

[Jazzman301]

I plan on calling Ampeg today and asking them some questions. Thanks for the information because instead of asking how does your product compate to a Princeton or a Deluxe I can ask how they compare to some of the older Ampeg stuff...
In terms of volume I already have a Cube 80XL. It sounds somewhat Polytone like but after almost a year with it I still can't dial in the warmth I am after. Don't get me wrong its a great and very inexpensive and versitile amp for real cheap money but just not warm enough for me. Definately produces a very useable jazz tone on both the JC120 and black panel settings. But you can't dial in whats not there. So I think a small 15-20ish watt tube amp is in order. I like the Ampeg because its got a half power mode that should make it pretty good for living room volumes and I feel like you could gig with it if you mic'd it and the venue was smaller.

'Mike

[Hammertone]

Mike:
There are a couple of good guys at Ampeg, but they won't know that much about the combos I mentioned. Gregg Hopkins and Bill Moore (the guys who wrote the Ampeg book) will know way more and are available in the intertubes. And maybe the new Ampegs are fantastic; I want them to be fantastic, but I haven't tried them yet.

[OldGuitarPlayer]

The Fender Blues Jr. is an awesome little tube amp and can certainly compete with a drummer since I have used one in a 4 piece band in a small venue with no problem. Those usually run for $400 or less brand new.

[Jazzman301]

According to the people at Ampeg this amp breaks up "quite early" and would be best as a blues and rock amp. They did suggest that the GVT52 MIGHT work better especially the 2x12 combo as it has more head room. So I would say it seems that from their mouth its not really an amp that would be well suited for full time employment as a jazz amp. Hopefuly this helps someone else who might be looking at something other than Fender or high end boutique tube amps.

'Mike

[Jazzman301]

Anyone think an Ampeg j12 T would be worth while for under $300?

[Hammertone]

IMO, unless the sole purpose is to play solo guitar at home, the Jet is underpowered. I've had the experience several times of taking decent amps to jazz gigs only to discover that I needed to turn up the volume past the point of reasonable breakup.

The very compact Reverb-o-Jet with 18 watts is utterly useless for gigging (and is too damned bright for jazz, even with a dark-sounding high-efficiency speaker). The small box has a lot to do with it, I think.

The GU-12 (actually, I have two of them) with 20 watts is right on the edge, but is appealing because of its compact size and relatively light weight.

The G-12 is just right for small gigs but is a bigger box and heavier, like a Deluxe Reverb.

[jorgemg1984]

Originally Posted by OldGuitarPlayer

The Fender Blues Jr. is an awesome little tube amp and can certainly compete with a drummer since I have used one in a 4 piece band in a small venue with no problem. Those usually run for $400 or less brand new.

Had one, modded it a lot, sounded better in the end but it still was a 15w el-84 amp in a small cabinet. There are better jazz options out there I think.

[Jazzman301]

Its not really the money so much as why spend more when I there is a shot I can get the tone I am looking for by not buying Fender...

'Mike

[whiskey02]

Originally Posted by Jazzman301

I plan on calling Ampeg today and asking them some questions. Thanks for the information because instead of asking how does your product compate to a Princeton or a Deluxe I can ask how they compare to some of the older Ampeg stuff...
In terms of volume I already have a Cube 80XL. It sounds somewhat Polytone like but after almost a year with it I still can't dial in the warmth I am after. Don't get me wrong its a great and very inexpensive and versitile amp for real cheap money but just not warm enough for me. Definately produces a very useable jazz tone on both the JC120 and black panel settings. But you can't dial in whats not there. So I think a small 15-20ish watt tube amp is in order. I like the Ampeg because its got a half power mode that should make it pretty good for living room volumes and I feel like you could gig with it if you mic'd it and the venue was smaller.

'Mike

Hey Jazzman,
I believe the weak link in the Cube series amps are the stock speakers. Pick out a nice Eminence to throw in your 80xl and you might be very surprised.

[Jazzman301]

Interesting thought. I had never even considered moding a SS. I wonder what would be involved with that....hmm. Maybe a bump up to a 15" speaker...Would be cheap money to swap out a speaker...hmm.

'Mike