Grit on a Ampeg V-4b

Domi79

Domi79

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Oct 28, 2017
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#1
Hi Community,

So I finally bought my Ampeg V-4b. Great Amp with an AV 212 Cab, great tone and so simple. Not to much Settings on the EQ and really light. Have been fiddling around with it for a couple of days and tryed to dial in my sound.

There is one thing tough; I just seem to be unable to get that famous Grit that this Amp should deliver. I worked the gain knob, kranked the master up and tryed all feasable settings but I won't get there.... Besides the fact that I have to crank it up really loud (and get almost deaf) to break it up, the sound is not....well it just doesn't have the grit and Ampeg Sound I heard in all the Videos and Soundsamples. I also tryed to put all my EQ on the Bass to Max. Then the Signal starts to break earlier but it doesn't sound nice. Normaly I have all the EQ on the Bass on Noon... I also pluged my active Bass into the passive Plug to get a stronger Signal and to drive the Amp harder but the Grit is still not there. Since I'm much into Rock / Bluesrock / Alternative and Stoner Rock I really want that kinda sound. And I'm talking about the clean Signal, cause I'm gonna get a Stompbox for the OD-Sound anyway.

I suspect it has something to do with my Bass, which is a Ibanez SDGR SR305EB 5 String with active Pickups. I will get a Fender P-Bass soon and since all sounds I heave heard before buying the Amp where played on a P-Bass or a Jazz Bass, I just figured it must have something to do with that, or am I completely mistaken? I also wonder which Position on the Cab Switch for the Horn would be the best to get that gritty Ampeg Sound....

Well besides that you get all kind of really cool sounds out of it and I like the warmth of the Tubes. The Amp and Cab is manufactured really good and otherwise I don't have any issues. Just a great looking and impressive sounding Amp:)

Any thoughts on this? Thanks for ya help, Folks.
 
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#2
Congrats with your V4B!
What you can do is put the mids (set at 2 or 800 Hz) around 3 o'clock, bass and treble at 11 o'clock.
Set the master fairly low, lets say 10 o'clock.
Then bring up the gain.
Also put your jack in the normal input, not the minus 15 Db.

This should help.
(and try it out where you can make some noise, since the V4B/212AV can get quite loud :))

Hope this helps a bit.

EDIT: mids setting at 2 (not 2 or 3)
 
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#3
Turning up the tone controls will help. You have to drive the amp with a hot enough signal.

Try a fresh battery in your bass.

If you have a boost or even a distortion pedal try bass -> pedal -> normal input on amp.
 
#5
I don't think it has much to do with your bass unless it has an extremely weak signal. For grit at a lower volume, you have to crank the gain hard and control volume with the master. You won't get a crazy amount of dirt by doing this, but you should get some in a bass that has a decent amount of juice (I would think your Ibanez would do it). The other way is to dime the master and turn the gain knob past 11:00. The drawback to this is it's very loud, but it's glorious sounding. Here's a couple vids demonstrating it...


 
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#6
There won't be the right kind of grit at low madter, high gain settings. Turn bass all the way down, master all the way up and use the gain as your volume control. After 11:00 on the gain, grit should start to happen, keep turning it up to achieve real od. Low end makes the sound farty, not gritty. Adjust mids to get the character of grit you want. This is what I did with my 70's act and what my brother does with his 70's v4.
 
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#7
kringle77 said:
There won't be the right kind of grit at low madter, high gain settings. Turn bass all the way down, master all the way up and use the gain as your volume control. After 11:00 on the gain, grit should start to happen, keep turning it up to achieve real od. Low end makes the sound farty, not gritty. Adjust mids to get the character of grit you want. This is what I did with my 70's act and what my brother does with his 70's v4.
Click to expand...
But he specifically said he didn't want it at a higher volume, and if you go cranking master and using gain to control distortion level, you really don't have much of a choice in the matter but to be very loud.

This thread is why I use pedals instead :D
 
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#8
Yeah, I caught that and, it's also why I use pedals instead. But, if he tried my suggestion and likes the tone, he can go on the endless search for a pedal that will do it, just like the rest of us. It will never be the same though, for better or worse.

JimmyM said:
But he specifically said he didn't want it at a higher volume, and if you go cranking master and using gain to control distortion level, you really don't have much of a choice in the matter but to be very loud.

This thread is why I use pedals instead :D
Click to expand...
 
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#9
Thanks everybody for the advice and the Help, it's very appreciated :) I'm gonna lock me in for a week and try out all the suggestions! Yeah I see, I guess in the End I will get the Grit I'm looking for but it will probably be to way loud :)) was hoping for the same effect /grit with lower volume. So I'm gonna use pedals as well and see if I can get a nice grit with that.

What about the Cabinet and the setting for the horn (high frequency attenuator)? I can switch from OFF to -6 to 0. Which is the best setting for a gritty sound? I guess 0, right?
 
#10
Tonally, I prefer off, the 0 setting simply doesn’t pad or reduce the horn level. The horn will emphasize the high frequencies. Fuzz pedal boosts the signal and emphasizes high frequency content. So in that case, a horn can help. It comes down to how you want to sculpt your tone.

To get grit out of a cabinet, you have to push the speakers hard into distortion. That can’t be done at a low volume.

I think that the right pedal used properly will give you what you are looking for. A clean boost pedal, for example, will saturate the input tube on the amp an provide a smooth distortion. A fuzz will provide a different type of distortion. One option that I use is a Tech21 VT Bass. You have to find what works for you.
 
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#11
Yep, you'll get the real V4 grit when you're f***n' loud! That's how it is, in my 42 years of experience with a V4B, without a master volume. Of course, I admit to being a little pedal-phobic :).
 
#12
Domi79 said:
Thanks everybody for the advice and the Help, it's very appreciated :) I'm gonna lock me in for a week and try out all the suggestions! Yeah I see, I guess in the End I will get the Grit I'm looking for but it will probably be to way loud :)) was hoping for the same effect /grit with lower volume. So I'm gonna use pedals as well and see if I can get a nice grit with that.

What about the Cabinet and the setting for the horn (high frequency attenuator)? I can switch from OFF to -6 to 0. Which is the best setting for a gritty sound? I guess 0, right?
Click to expand...
Totally off. With dirt, I think tweeters sound absolutely horrid. And without dirt, I think tweeters sound absolutely horrid on electric, though I do like them on upright.
 
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#13
Domi79 said:
Thanks everybody for the advice and the Help, it's very appreciated :) I'm gonna lock me in for a week and try out all the suggestions! Yeah I see, I guess in the End I will get the Grit I'm looking for but it will probably be to way loud :)) was hoping for the same effect /grit with lower volume. So I'm gonna use pedals as well and see if I can get a nice grit with that.

What about the Cabinet and the setting for the horn (high frequency attenuator)? I can switch from OFF to -6 to 0. Which is the best setting for a gritty sound? I guess 0, right?
Click to expand...

Do feed back, i'd be really interested to hear how you got on. I was looking at getting a V4b (or Ashdown CTM100) and was hoping on getting a decent gritty sound with gain maxed and volume at reasonable levels too
 
#14
boristhespider7 said:
Do feed back, i'd be really interested to hear how you got on. I was looking at getting a V4b (or Ashdown CTM100) and was hoping on getting a decent gritty sound with gain maxed and volume at reasonable levels too
Click to expand...
It seems to me with a master volume on the newer heads it should be more doable, vs. the "volume only" of the older V4 like I have. Of course to get that power tube grit you'll still need to be screamin' methinks. Could be pedals are your answer, as those with experience have suggested.
 
#15
boristhespider7 said:
Do feed back, i'd be really interested to hear how you got on. I was looking at getting a V4b (or Ashdown CTM100) and was hoping on getting a decent gritty sound with gain maxed and volume at reasonable levels too
Click to expand...
I would call it decent. Not quite as good as power tube grit, but better than I expected.
 
#17
JimmyM said:
But he specifically said he didn't want it at a higher volume, and if you go cranking master and using gain to control distortion level, you really don't have much of a choice in the matter but to be very loud.

This thread is why I use pedals instead :D
Click to expand...
PF50-T . Cranked up thru same cab . Pretty good grit out of the little brother at kinda normal volume
 
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