Hey thanks for a very thorough review. I’ve been listening to a lot of different amps lately and this Ampeg sounds the best so far. Definitely on my A-list…
Hey my friend, great video! So the connection is: from the ampeg input to the interface direct out? Could you explain this for me please? I have this amp and want to connect to a focusrite saffire pro 40. Thanks in advance
I never had overheating issues, but this head did completely die on me about a year and a half ago. I never did find anyone who could fix it so it's just been sitting in my closet ever since, unfortunately. From my reading, this is a common issue with this era of the PF amps. I understand the newer ones are more consistent, but I can't really recommend the early ones.
@@ampthebassplayer Thanks for the reply.That is what i am hearing too.Seems to be that way with a lot of bass and guitar amps in the last decade or so.
@@rca3rd It's really a shame because I quite liked the sound of the Ampeg. I've been gigging with a Rumble recently though that's been doing me just fine over the past year or so.
Hey man so the amp died on you... How did it die if it's possible to know? I'm about to purchase this amp with its 115he speaker. Would you recommend it?
Are you buying it new or used? My understanding is that once Yamaha bought the company, the newer PF's are much more reliable. I never did get mine sorted out. It's still just broken in my closet.
@@ampthebassplayer I'm buying it new, definitely. That gives me a bit of peace of mind, I guess. The most recent reviews seem to all agree that heating issues (and fault lights) have been fixed. Obviously, nowhere in the world would a production plant be free of a defect here and there (and most bad reviews seem to be shipping issues, but I'd be picking the unit at a Guitar Center). I really like the sound of the amp!
I love the sound too! I was very bummed when it died and I’m still holding onto it with the hope that I can get it working at some point. I’ve got a very itchy 410 here that needs a head to run it and it’s been operating as furniture for over a year and a half.
@@ampthebassplayer hey man just thought I'd share this with you: So I spoke with many different sales rep from Sweetwater, guitar center, american musical supply (and I tried contacting Ampeg themselves though no luck) and their Portaflex series production is still the same as it was 9 years ago. So as it seems, the "quality control" may still not be at 100%, despite the Yamaha buyout. A great number of reviews seem to lean towards a positive side, but there is still reports of the amp cutting out randomly and the fault light coming on. Interestingly, the rep at Sweetwater apparently has had the PF-500 and it failed on him too. I would expect a sales rep to hide that since they're on commission, but he was honest about it. So as it seems, the PF-500 is basically a hit or miss. With that said, I said F it... I'm not going to spend $600 on a chance. So I decided to purchase an Aguilar Tone Hammer 500 for about $200 more. Do you got any opinions about the Aguilar? I've tried to look up "bad reviews" but I was extremely amazed at how hard that was. Almost everyone, almost every forum on Talkbass and Reddit mention nothing but good things about it. And when I say "almost", what I really mean is that the bad reviews on the amp aren't from flaws or faults, but rather them not liking the sound because it wasn't their preference. But the amp still sounded good.
If you're doing this just for practice, then all you really need is the interface and a laptop. The amp is just for tone. So for recording purposes, you might run something like this, but it's a bit overkill for just practice.
Nope man, the tone is the most important thing for me :) The tone is what turns my engine on. Thank you for your answer, after your video I-m in love with that ampeg :)
Hey thanks for a very thorough review. I’ve been listening to a lot of different amps lately and this Ampeg sounds the best so far. Definitely on my A-list…
Great demo, thanks!
Hey! Great video :). Where did you find the information about safe usage without the cabinet?
+Bartosz Wilk Google.
Hey my friend, great video!
So the connection is: from the ampeg input to the interface direct out? Could you explain this for me please? I have this amp and want to connect to a focusrite saffire pro 40. Thanks in advance
Thanks for the great review!I am looking into purchasing this.Have you had any of the overheating issues i have heard about?
I never had overheating issues, but this head did completely die on me about a year and a half ago. I never did find anyone who could fix it so it's just been sitting in my closet ever since, unfortunately. From my reading, this is a common issue with this era of the PF amps. I understand the newer ones are more consistent, but I can't really recommend the early ones.
@@ampthebassplayer Thanks for the reply.That is what i am hearing too.Seems to be that way with a lot of bass and guitar amps in the last decade or so.
@@rca3rd It's really a shame because I quite liked the sound of the Ampeg. I've been gigging with a Rumble recently though that's been doing me just fine over the past year or so.
@@ampthebassplayer Yes.I have a Rumble 800 HD Head and a Rumble Studio 40.No issues with either one.Very pleases!
Hey man so the amp died on you... How did it die if it's possible to know? I'm about to purchase this amp with its 115he speaker. Would you recommend it?
Are you buying it new or used? My understanding is that once Yamaha bought the company, the newer PF's are much more reliable. I never did get mine sorted out. It's still just broken in my closet.
@@ampthebassplayer I'm buying it new, definitely. That gives me a bit of peace of mind, I guess. The most recent reviews seem to all agree that heating issues (and fault lights) have been fixed. Obviously, nowhere in the world would a production plant be free of a defect here and there (and most bad reviews seem to be shipping issues, but I'd be picking the unit at a Guitar Center). I really like the sound of the amp!
I love the sound too! I was very bummed when it died and I’m still holding onto it with the hope that I can get it working at some point. I’ve got a very itchy 410 here that needs a head to run it and it’s been operating as furniture for over a year and a half.
@@ampthebassplayer Dude I sincerely SINCERELY hope you can fix it man... I am confident you will bro!!!
@@ampthebassplayer hey man just thought I'd share this with you: So I spoke with many different sales rep from Sweetwater, guitar center, american musical supply (and I tried contacting Ampeg themselves though no luck) and their Portaflex series production is still the same as it was 9 years ago. So as it seems, the "quality control" may still not be at 100%, despite the Yamaha buyout. A great number of reviews seem to lean towards a positive side, but there is still reports of the amp cutting out randomly and the fault light coming on. Interestingly, the rep at Sweetwater apparently has had the PF-500 and it failed on him too. I would expect a sales rep to hide that since they're on commission, but he was honest about it. So as it seems, the PF-500 is basically a hit or miss.
With that said, I said F it... I'm not going to spend $600 on a chance. So I decided to purchase an Aguilar Tone Hammer 500 for about $200 more. Do you got any opinions about the Aguilar? I've tried to look up "bad reviews" but I was extremely amazed at how hard that was. Almost everyone, almost every forum on Talkbass and Reddit mention nothing but good things about it. And when I say "almost", what I really mean is that the bad reviews on the amp aren't from flaws or faults, but rather them not liking the sound because it wasn't their preference. But the amp still sounded good.
For my taste, the mid-selector needs at least one frequency between 1 and 2. BTW, is the distortion on 1 the head itself, or overdriving the Scarlett?
That is definitely the scarllet
On the scarlett there is little ring which indicates it - when it's red or yellow, the signal is clipping
How would i hook up a DI?
To a computer? I'm using an audio interface. It's a Scarlett Solo: th-cam.com/video/5wLEXCIq1q8/w-d-xo.html
Hey...you play just like us!
Good vid, subbo.
so basicaly we don't necesserily need the cabinet (if there is let's say small apartament or so), just an amp head and the interface and headphones ?
If you're doing this just for practice, then all you really need is the interface and a laptop. The amp is just for tone. So for recording purposes, you might run something like this, but it's a bit overkill for just practice.
Nope man, the tone is the most important thing for me :) The tone is what turns my engine on. Thank you for your answer, after your video I-m in love with that ampeg :)
Awesome! Well, I'm glad you found it useful!