On a whim picked up Ampeg GVT5H yesterday

[ParisStarlight]

Local music store had one of these used for a steal. Figured at the price how could I go wrong on a solid 5 watt, switchable to 2.5 watt, 6v6 head (especially when the previous owner installed JJ tubes already)? Got it home and plugged it in. I was very impressed. I played my Starfire through it and it was very responsive to my level of playing. I felt it kept a nice clean, tube tone all the way to 10 on the volume (which is what I wanted). If I dig in hard it got a little tube breakup, but nothing too crunchy. The eq is very responsive to changes, though I’ll admit the Baxandall style eq still has me a little confused. I know boosting bass and treble scoops mids.
All in all I think for under $200 this thing sounds wonderful and is a very responsive, warm tube tone. It feels quite solid and I would definitely trust bringing it out of the house anytime.

[Steve DeRosa]

Other than the Diamond Blue series of the '90s/early-2K's, Ampeg hasn't had much success with guitar amps in over 40 years; quite frankly, they should've taken a page from the Fender/Magnatone/Supro catalogs and expanded their "reissue" lineup, with reasonably-priced/feature-accurate renditions of the Gemini I/II, front-panel Reverberocket (not the $4K+ '63 RI version they still have cataloged - I've seen excellent-condition originals selling for one-fourth the price), Portaflex Series, et al. FYI I'm an old Ampeg guy since the mid-60's, the only post-1968 guitar amps I've ever been tempted to buy were the Diamond Blue 50W Super Jet 1x12" (trem/'verb) and 100W 2x12" Superocket combos - and why they didn't keep these two in the line as price/power/feature competition to the blackface Princeton and Twin reissues is beyond me...

FWIW Baxandall circuitry in a guitar amp takes a bit of getting used to before you really get the hang of things - FYI it was a distinguishing feature of the Linden (NJ) originals, particularly the Portaflex and Gemini Series (I probably played through several hundred of the latter in my lifetime) - but IME it's an excellent match for vintage-style guitars if your musical style requires a lot of clean headroom along with tube warmth; should work well with your Starfire as well as your Rick - and a Filter'tron Gretsch through a Baxandall-circuit Ampeg, with an American-style 12"/15" speaker, is rockabilly nirvana...

Use it well, often, and LOUD...

[ParisStarlight]

Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa

Other than the Diamond Blue series of the '90s/early-2K's, Ampeg hasn't had much success with guitar amps in over 40 years; quite frankly, they should've taken a page from the Fender/Magnatone/Supro catalogs and expanded their "reissue" lineup, with reasonably-priced/feature-accurate renditions of the Gemini I/II, front-panel Reverberocket (not the $4K+ '63 RI version they still have cataloged - I've seen excellent-condition originals selling for one-fourth the price), Portaflex Series, et al. FYI I'm an old Ampeg guy since the mid-60's, the only post-1968 guitar amps I've ever been tempted to buy were the Diamond Blue 50W Super Jet 1x12" (trem/'verb) and 100W 2x12" Superocket combos - and why they didn't keep these two in the line as price/power/feature competition to the blackface Princeton and Twin reissues is beyond me...

FWIW Baxandall circuitry in a guitar amp takes a bit of getting used to before you really get the hang of things - FYI it was a distinguishing feature of the Linden (NJ) originals, particularly the Portaflex and Gemini Series (I probably played through several hundred of the latter in my lifetime) - but IME it's an excellent match for vintage-style guitars if your musical style requires a lot of clean headroom along with tube warmth; should work well with your Starfire as well as your Rick - and a Filter'tron Gretsch through a Baxandall-circuit Ampeg, with an American-style 12"/15" speaker, is rockabilly nirvana...

Use it well, often, and LOUD...

Thanks! Hoping to plug the Ric in asap. If I didn’t have a kid it would have already happened. It’s sad in ways they haven’t had much success. I would put it partly on poor marketing, as they have a long history of good gear (even if most notably for bass). I owned a Reverbrocket reissue for a while and just never bonded with it. This, on the other hand, has me giddy from the start. It is such a warm sound and just feels the notes coming out of those single coils. I have a decent overdrive amp, this will compliment it well!