Ampeg SVT3 Pro

[Nocturnal]

Does anyone here own/use one of these heads? Any former users that want to warn people away from them? Any and all insights would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Andy

[Psycho Bass Guy]

Run like hell. If you're a member of Talkbass, search for my posts about it there.

[gearHed289]

Awesome amp. I've been using the same one for 14 years. There was a problem (I forget what) the first few months I had it. It was fixed under warranty and has not given me the slightest trouble since. Hundreds of gigs... Not quite the real thing (I have a '74 SVT), but as close as you're gonna get in a 26 pound package. I recently A/B'd it against an Orange Terror Bass head and it was no contest.

[Dave W]

My older son bought his from Dale (Thunderbird) Barnes in the early days of the Pit, about 2002. It needed a minor repair after shipping and IIRC it's been in the shop once since, but it's been his go-to gig amp for years.

I had custody of it for a year when he was stationed in Korea (2003). It had a lot more preamp control variation than my Mesa Bass 400+ which can be useful, but I preferred the Mesa's tone. Call me a dinosaur.

[Nocturnal]

Thanks for the input guys. Psycho, could you give me some details please? I did a search but after 20 pages couldn't find anything connected to you.

Thanks

[Psycho Bass Guy]

Their solid state power stage regulation has a tendency to fail, and once it does, the amp will never be stable into a four ohm load again. Not every one of them does it, but once it goes, it can't ever be completely fixed without replacing the whole mother board. I was a warranty service provider for SLM and got all the parts and printed schematics directly from them when mine died. After two new sets of output transistors, it worked, but not well enough to suit me.

I traded it for an SVT cabinet to a local music store, fully disclosing its condition. I saw it back there for sale several years later, still running after not having been serviced any more (I marked it,) but all I had to do was put it on a four ohm cabinet and it started acting exactly as it had before it died the first time. So if you're going to take it easy on volume and not use a four ohm load, it's fine. Just don't expect anywhere near the volume that its "450" watt rating implies.

[Nocturnal]

Good to know. I've heard the "not loud enough" comment quite a few times, which seems odd for what is supposed to be a 450 watt head.

[chromium]

Good to know. I've heard the "not loud enough" comment quite a few times, which seems odd for what is supposed to be a 450 watt head.

Funny- that's how I got the precision bass that you tipped me off on!  The seller had an svt-3 and felt that it wasn't cutting it volume-wise for his band... so he took my old bxr-400 and svt 210 as a straight across trade.

[stiles72]

Good to know. I've heard the "not loud enough" comment quite a few times, which seems odd for what is supposed to be a 450 watt head.

I've been running a pair of 3-Pros since '99 (each pushing it's own 2x15, and each mounted in SVT-CL head housings) and have never had any volume issues. The reason people aren't getting everything out of the amp like they should is that they aren't setting the gain correctly. With the 3-Pro, don't be afraid of the red flickering light. Ignore the owners manual and crank the gain up so it's flickering with every note- not just the hard ones.  Not only do you need to run the input gain hot so your feeding the power amp - but it also controls how much signal is going out the DI if you are running to board. Without cranking it up, the soundman may compalin about weak signal.  If you need to, you can also get a little more signal bump by running the graphic EQ on and raising the overall level with the master slider. Depending on what tone you're after - raising the tube gain (power amp driver tube plate voltage) can give you a little more bite or definition as well.  For me, I go for a big deep sound and run the ultra lo engaged, cut some mids cycled at either 450 or 800, and run the tube gain at around 9:00-11:00.  Both of mine have always ran at 4 ohm loads, and put out more than enough juice to push a big low end, and IMO sound and feel like I'm running a 450 Watt amp. The tone isn't quite as sweet as an all tube SVT-Cl or 2-Pro, but in a live band context it sounds really good for being a hybrid.

As for reliability - I can't complain. Mine have been dropped and suffered all the typical bar band use and abuse that comes from regular gigging. They live in the band trailer year round and suffer all the temperature extremes associated with that. I've replaced the preamp tubes in each only once (at about the 6 year mark). I did need to get the MOSFET bias adjusted (just a bench fee) not that long ago in each because it was off and created a low level distortion sound in the power amp section- but once adjusted they are now back to normal. Other than that - I did have one of the EQ sliders replaced because I broke it off (my fault) and I had one of the DI out knobs replaced because I broke it off (my fault also).

[gearHed289]

I almost have to agree on the "not loud enough" comment, but for me it's been more like "just loud enough" with the occasional "turn it down!"  And as Stiles said, keep that red light flashing! I run the input gain at about 10 o'clock. My DI signal is super hot with the level knob below 12 o'clock at all times. Tube gain is at 3 o'clock. I never use the graphic or bright switch. Ultra lo and high are both engaged. Bass, mid, and treble are all boosted, with the mid freq in the "5" position.

[Nocturnal]

Appreciate all of the input guys. I have however gone a different route: I bought a Trace Elliot V-Type head today. Should suite my needs fine for a while and when/if I need more juice I will look at going for a larger tube head.