Members TimesOfGrace Posted December 14, 2006 Members Share Posted December 14, 2006 You seem to be very knowledgable about the old Ampeg V series amps, so I figured you would be the man to ask. I have a 1970 Ampeg VT-22 and have been running a mismatched speaker load with it for the last year or so. The two speakers in the combo are wired for 16 ohms and the extension cab is a Marshall 4x12 wired for 8 ohms. I have been running the amp set at 8 ohms for quite some time and have never really been completely comfortable running this set up with a mismatched speaker load. My question is whether or not this is safe or am I going to ruin my transformer running the amp like this. Any advice you could provide would be greatly appreciated! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TimesOfGrace Posted December 15, 2006 Author Members Share Posted December 15, 2006 Just bumping this to the top Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members thenakedarab Posted December 15, 2006 Members Share Posted December 15, 2006 I believe you're running at 6 ohm total load, and should be fine. Though it would be better to run two 16 ohm cabs for a total load of 8 ohm. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members erik92da Posted December 15, 2006 Members Share Posted December 15, 2006 That amp has a 4 ohm setting right? That what I would use. The way you have it now it not going to hurt the transformer, but it might run your tubes a little hotter. You dont really need to add extra stress to the tubes, these amps do a good job of that themselves Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ZachOmega Posted December 15, 2006 Members Share Posted December 15, 2006 +1If I HAD to run it that way, I'd run it in 4 ohms. This will run the tubes slightly (VERY slightly) overbiased which will result in a slightly cooler operation.Personally, I stick to the never mismatch impedance rule. I know some amps can handle it or even encouraged it (Fender), but why take chances? Plus, Ampeg parts are considerably harder to come by and more expensive to replace than Fender parts. -Zach OmegaP.S. I'm flattered by all of this recent Ampeg attention. I used to hang out on some Ampeg forums and even wrote a short article on my take of the V series. I also used to hang out in the Amps forum, but too many posts and not enough real information lead me here. Originally posted by erik92da That amp has a 4 ohm setting right? That what I would use. The way you have it now it not going to hurt the transformer, but it might run your tubes a little hotter. You dont really need to add extra stress to the tubes, these amps do a good job of that themselves Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members thenakedarab Posted December 15, 2006 Members Share Posted December 15, 2006 Originally posted by erik92da That amp has a 4 ohm setting right? That what I would use. The way you have it now it not going to hurt the transformer, but it might run your tubes a little hotter. You dont really need to add extra stress to the tubes, these amps do a good job of that themselves Very true. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TimesOfGrace Posted December 15, 2006 Author Members Share Posted December 15, 2006 Thanks for the advice everyone and Zach I actually noticed that you had posted some very useful info in an Ampeg forum that I was poking around in the other day and figured I would ask. By the way, I was hoping to have a grounded plug put on sometime soon. Is that an easy installation on these amps? Thanks again for the help everybody! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ZachOmega Posted December 15, 2006 Members Share Posted December 15, 2006 Yes, and I'd consider it necessary. On the VT22 I owned, the ground/polarity cap exploded (I'm not even exaggerating. I have it saved in a sealed container). Basically, you install the cord...I like to run the black/hot lead to the switch while running the neutral to the other end of the primary or to the fuse depending on the amp. Ground the cable firmly. I also check my grounding with a multimeter. Anything above 15 ohms from the tip of the ground to the chassis and you did something wrong. I like to use the mounting bolts for the transformer as a convenient ground point. Use star and lock washers to make sure that connection is as firm as it can be.Snip one end of the polarity cap. You are done. -Zach Omega Originally posted by TimesOfGrace Thanks for the advice everyone and Zach I actually noticed that you had posted some very useful info in an Ampeg forum that I was poking around in the other day and figured I would ask. By the way, I was hoping to have a grounded plug put on sometime soon. Is that an easy installation on these amps? Thanks again for the help everybody! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members TimesOfGrace Posted December 15, 2006 Author Members Share Posted December 15, 2006 Thanks for the help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members slc_dan Posted December 15, 2006 Members Share Posted December 15, 2006 sounds like you know mucho about the vt22, that's great. The tech in slc kinda sucks, so I've been thinking about learning more about this amp I love so much, and just reconditioning everything. Replaced the power tubes with the jj6l6gc's, and didn't notice much difference, been getting a bit of staticy noise when I turn the amp on, "camp fire" noises? I've read that's a bad preaamp tube. The preamp section of this thing has some weird tubes, where is the best place to get them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ZachOmega Posted December 15, 2006 Members Share Posted December 15, 2006 SLC is on my {censored}list for useless help...although I won't pin this on them...They didn't actually build the VT22...They simply bought the Ampeg name. Camp fire noises could be a bad preamp tube or just as likely an arcing cap or shot plate resistor. You could start an entirely new thread for people who want advice on where to order tubes. I've heard good things about triodeelectronics.com and I've personally had great customer service with tubesandmore.com.-Zach OmegaOriginally posted by slc_dan sounds like you know mucho about the vt22, that's great. The tech in slc kinda sucks, so I've been thinking about learning more about this amp I love so much, and just reconditioning everything. Replaced the power tubes with the jj6l6gc's, and didn't notice much difference, been getting a bit of staticy noise when I turn the amp on, "camp fire" noises? I've read that's a bad preaamp tube. The preamp section of this thing has some weird tubes, where is the best place to get them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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