'76 Ampeg B-100

Chris P. · December 22, 2008, 11:00:14 AM

Hi there,

Today I purchased a very, very, very cheap amp in a really good state. It's a very small '76 Ampeg practice combo. I think it has one 10" speaker and it only has two inputs, volume, bass, high, pilot lamp, on/off switch. It has a chrome panel, Ampeg knobs a small version of the ampeg logo (A + Ampeg) on the blue-ish silver grille. No pics yet, but can anybody tell me something about this amp?

Thanks and kind regards!

Chris P. · December 24, 2008, 10:01:53 AM

Some pics.

When removing the front (velcro) you see a cream coloured 10" speaker and a round soundhole.

dzordz · December 27, 2008, 11:57:38 AM

hello!
look nice,but 10 inch speaker....hmmmm....
how does it sound?you can get nice lows?
i'm looking for small combo for home use,but with old,vintage vibe.
fender bassmaster or maybe ampeg like that?
regards!

Basvarken · December 28, 2008, 04:29:39 AM

Quote from: Chris P on December 22, 2008, 11:00:14 AM
Hi there,

Today I purchased a very, very, very cheap amp in a really good state. It's a very small '76 Ampeg practice combo. I think it has one 10" speaker and it only has two inputs, volume, bass, high, pilot lamp, on/off switch. It has a chrome panel, Ampeg knobs a small version of the ampeg logo (A + Ampeg) on the blue-ish silver grille. No pics yet, but can anybody tell me something about this amp?

Thanks and kind regards!

I can at least tell you that it's mighty cool!
Is it a tube amp?

Chris P. · December 28, 2008, 04:47:31 AM

It's one hundred percent solid state:)

When I saw the advertisement I hoped it had some tubes, but it's just a cheap '76 practice amp. I guess it's like 50 or 60 Watts but I haven't tried it out yet that well.

The amp isn't very deep, but it has a nice vintage sound with it. I think you can compare it a bit to those cheap new Vox T-25 and T-60. They're also quite warm and vintage looking.

I love the looks of this Ampeg. Like a really small SVT. The grille cloth is real vintage Ampeg ans so is the control plate. I wonder how it will look with this mini-SVT stack. I could make a head of this combo:)

godofthunder · December 28, 2008, 06:09:28 AM

LOL my dad got me one o these for xmas back in '76 ! weighs a ton being made of partical board ! They are a whooping 15w of power. Mine distorts nicely as you turn up the volume due to the poor quality speaker. Still have it and I'd never get ride of it even though it's a POS by todays practice amp stamdards

Chris P. · December 29, 2008, 02:07:25 AM

Yes, it weights like 18 kilos or so. But it isn't that bad. I quite like the vintage sound. And otherwise a new speaker could improve it.

BTW:

I already tried an Ampeg mini stack one. It just reached my knees if we're talking heights:

nofi · December 29, 2008, 06:51:55 AM

i had one. i liked it. far from a pos. it's a practice amp after all.

Dave W · December 29, 2008, 10:10:15 AM

Quote from: Chris P on December 29, 2008, 02:07:25 AM

I already tried an Ampeg mini stack one. It just reached my knees if we're talking heights:

That looks like a scene from the movie "Attack of the 50 Foot Bassist."

(trailer..."he destroyed Tokyo in one neck dive!")

Chris P. · December 29, 2008, 10:30:10 AM

On the next pic I let go the neck and the headstock of my Bird smashes the mini-Marshall stack to smithereens.

godofthunder · January 02, 2009, 03:51:14 AM

Quote from: nofi on December 29, 2008, 06:51:55 AM
i had one. i liked it. far from a pos. it's a practice amp after all.

No insult intended but imho as a practice amp it falls far short by todays standards. back in '76 my Dad got me one for Xmas and he paid $110.00 for it ! Today for the same $ you can get a far better amp, one that if you turn the volume past 10 O'clock and play a open E the driver isn't gasping for breath !

Chris P. · January 02, 2009, 08:02:06 AM

Well, I just use it at home at low volumes. And for that purpose I like this bad Ampeg better than a modern Roland Cube in camouflage colours or something.

I don't say it's good, but it's good enough:)

godofthunder · January 02, 2009, 11:31:35 AM

i really like the way it sounds mine is quite gritty for a ss amp, i think most of that grit comes from the chintzy speaker !

lowend1 · January 04, 2009, 08:28:16 PM

There's a guy local to me who periodically puts his up on CL. I gave him the lowdown on it and told him if he needed to give it a good home, I'd give him $50 - mainly for the cool aesthetics. His price has been dropping each time he lists it, so I may wind up adopting it eventually. My bigger, older 'pegs need a little brother...

Bernardduur · March 23, 2011, 01:38:45 AM

Just to bump this topic a bit

I also got one of these amps! Got it for free and the only fee was the gas

Hooked it up and noticed that the volume knob was shot. Repaired the ground lift and now the amps works pretty fine!

Must say I really love the vintage-y feeling I get from this amp! It sounds really Ampeg, that same low mid rumble I LOVE. Also has a lot of power but the speaker is the weakest link. When I hook the unit up to my other cabs it's really powerfull!

Gotta love these old Ampeg SS's! They look cool and sound really close to the real deal!