Ampeg SVT-CL

The SVT Classic is an amplifier that offers you the true sound that Ampegy has forever made its mark on the music world. Although many amplifiers from many different companies try to approximate the sound of the Ampegs of the 60s and 70s, they don't come close to what you now have at your fingertips. The SVT-CL offers tremendous power, perfect tone, sonic variability, and sheer reliability. Not for nothing do you find this head in the gear of so many famous musicians.

In the case of this machine, it is an all-tube amplifier. In the preamplifier there are three 12AX7 tubes and two 12AU7 tubes, the final amplifier has six 6550. The total output of the SVT is equivalent to 300 W, both at 4 and 2 ohm loads.

Sonically, it is a very versatile apparatus. On the control panel you will find two inputs, which are optimized to make the instrument work best with both passive and active pickups. Behind them there is a Gain control and at the end of the panel there is a Master control for setting the preamp excitation and overall volume. Behind that are the Power and Stand-by switches, indicated by LEDs that glow red when Power is on and green when Stand-by is pressed.

In the section dedicated to adjusting the character of the tone, you'll find the classic three-band EQ, where the bass is set at 40 Hz, the mids and highs at 4 kHz. The frequencies for the Ultra Mid driver are changed according to the setting of the five-position Frequency switch, at 220, 450, 800, 1600, or 3000 Hz. In addition to the EQ, there are Ultra Hi and Ultra Lo switches, which are used to boost the bands to 8 kHz and 100 Hz, respectively. This machine offers a really wide range of settings.

There is a polarity switch on the rear panel to avoid unwanted hum, BIAS adjustment elements, a Slave-Out output from which the same signal goes to the poweramp, a balanced XLR Line-Out, and Preamp-Out and Poweramp-In connectors. These are used to get the signal from the preamp without disconnecting the end amp, or conversely to send a signal from another preamp to the end amp and bypass the SVT preamp. The last are three jacks for connecting speakers - these are one Speakon and two 6.3 jacks. The unit is designed to work with a 4 or 2 ohm load, so it is possible to connect, for example, boxes in a 2x 8 Ohm, 2x 4 Ohm, 1x 2 Ohm or 1x 4 Ohm configuration. The impedance is switchable via a switch located near the outputs.

The Ampeg SVT-CL is an amplifier that allows you to carry the classic tone on which Ampeg has based its success everywhere. Try it out and you'll see that you'll love it.