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Post subject: Attn. SlapChop: Ampeg VT-22
Posted: Thu Sep 10, 2009 10:10 pm
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I remember reading a mention you made of this combo is some other thread. I was wondering where on earth you managed to dig one up? I've been looking for one for a couple of years now (not willing to buy sight unseen, so it's tough) and had no luck. If they're out there, no one's selling.

I want to strip the enamel from my teeth with it!


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Posted: Fri Sep 11, 2009 5:25 am
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Vulkan, I got mine brand new in 1973. Back then, Ampeg (owned by Selmer, a division of Magnavox) published a free paper called "Plug," which was on the take-one counter of all Ampeg dealers. They ran a contest every issue... write something about the current scene, like an album review or a critical take on a band on something - and the winner got his choice of a VT-22 or a similar bass amp.

I won in early 1973 with a review of Elton John's "Don't SHoot Me, I'm Only The Piano Player," and got the amp for free. In 1973, it listed for something like $700, a sum I couldn't even get my head around. It might as well have been a million dollars, and I felt like the baddest cat in the land when that amp arrived.

To be honest, I have not seen an actual VT-22 since I traded mine in on a 50-watt Marshall half-stack a couple years later.

But here's one eBay, where they still show up regularly:

http://tinyurl.com/mc4rnv

Why anyone would want one, I don't know. My bass player from those days attributes about 80% of his total lifetime hearing loss to standing next to that amp, it would not break up no matter what anybody did, the Ampeg-branded add-on "master volume" I bought for it was a complete joke, and even now I think you need an FAA permit to play the damn thing outside.

But talk about "taking pedals!" Man, you could run ANYTHING into that amp, and the ultra-loud clean would just spit it out in dazzling hi-fi. You shoulda heard my Les Paul Deluxe into my '74 EH Big Muff through that beast!


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Posted: Fri Sep 11, 2009 8:23 am
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The reason I ask is that I'm desperately in love with the idea of a VT-22. Ampeg guitar amps from the 70s (keep in mind that I'm but 22 years old) have always carried a mystique, and an ineffable charm in my mind. Moreover, I love the idea of deafening volume. I wear earplugs when I play with the band, and it would be nice to have an amp that would do sparkling clean at band volume. My HRDx is great; it gives me the warm, blues-type distortion I use 99% of the time. But I can't untangle the Ampeg from my mind.


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Posted: Fri Sep 11, 2009 9:20 am
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Vulkan wrote:
The reason I ask is that I'm desperately in love with the idea of a VT-22. Ampeg guitar amps from the 70s (keep in mind that I'm but 22 years old) have always carried a mystique...


Well, it was completely bad-ass for the day, and mine forced many a bar and high school dance into submission.

But if you get one, you'll be carrying more than a mystique. I think they weigh somewhere between 300 and 400 pounds (at least that's my memory), and require two men and a boy to move. Heavy, HEAVY iron in that amp, plus a very heavy cab and heavy speakers. Even the switches are extra heavy. :)

The variable mid control was ahead of it's time.


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Posted: Sat Sep 12, 2009 6:03 am
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Even though I'm young and strong, the prospect of recruiting two men and a boy to lug an Ampeg into dingy bars is somewhat...unappealing. I don't know if I can get over my lust for one though. I absolutely love the mid-70s Rolling Stones sound which, I believe, was an Ampeg product.

Perhaps I'll have to begin my search in earnest and consider buying off eBay.


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Posted: Sat Sep 12, 2009 7:18 am
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Okay, I was exaggerating... I could carry the amp myself, but, god lord... today I don't think I could. At least not very far.

Good luck searching.. let us know if you go for it.

One thing I can say... because of the weight, you can expect almost any surviving VT-22 to be pretty scuffed up. Mine got dropped and dragged regularly.


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Posted: Sun Sep 13, 2009 2:23 pm
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SlapChop wrote:
Okay, I was exaggerating... I could carry the amp myself, but, god lord... today I don't think I could. At least not very far.

Good luck searching.. let us know if you go for it.

One thing I can say... because of the weight, you can expect almost any surviving VT-22 to be pretty scuffed up. Mine got dropped and dragged regularly.


That's not really surprising. I've never been one who goes for pristine gear anyway; I'd rather a good-sounding amp than a good-looking one. Not that I'd every buy a "relic" amp, but I have no problem with dings, scratches or scuffs so long as the guts are in good condition.


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