Ampeg B-100R Rocket Bass Amp

As described by the other reviewers. Not very much features, but adequate for what it does.

Great, I use this amp's poweramp only, as I use an Aguilar DB680 as preamp. combined with the aguilar, this amp is capable of 'the oldest school' tones you can imagine. In addition, it is also pretty loud for a 100-watt amp.Compared to my big rig, an EBS fafner head with an ampeg 212 speaker enclosure, it sounds less clean, but way more punchy. I play this amp with either a '69 jazz bass, a gibson thunderbird or a precision. Also, it smokes when used with my EUB.

Great, have had the amp for 3 years now, never broken

never had to deal with them

I am a professional player, for the real small gigs I have an EBS drome 12' combo. The drome has more features, but doesn't sound as good with my aguilar preamp. Also, this is the most cool looking combo you can buy.(well, you could buy an ampeg B15r, which is even cooler, but way too expensive)

Failrly basic. I am a guitarist who plays bass and I was sick of borrowing amps, so I bought one. I know absolutely NOTHING about bass amps other than they need to be more powerful than guitar amps. I thought I would need about 300W but after playing through a 65W at an acoustic gig (no drummer) I decided a 150W combo would be fine. I shortlisted the Ashdown Blue range and Roland DB500 (12 inch speaker but it looks cool). I tried both of these amps and liked them both a lot. The Ashdown was just a nice powerful amp, the Roland was really odd. It was really powerful without being loud, you could almost feel the air moving before the actual note. It was ridiculously loud for 160W through a 12 inch speaker, and if I needed power in a small box then this or the Roland DB700 (this must be a seriously loud thing; I wouldn't touch a DB900 with a barge pole!) would be it. But as I couldn't decide which to buy I saw an Ampeg 100 which looked awesome, and the bass guy played it for me and it sounded different class. I think its had a bit of trouble in the past (a brand new ex demo model with a sticker on the back saying it blew up or something but its OK-work that one out!!!) which the sales bloke tried to conceal from me but I didn't really care cos its a good store with good warranties.


Anyway, features:-
Basic tone stuff, line out which is really good and er, a speaker and a power lead. Plug comes with plastic travel cover which I lost; where can I buy more of these? Nice handle. Good switch, very good switch actually. Possibly better than the eye moving switch on the back of action man's head. Possibly could use an onboard compressor but I think I'd rather use an outboard unit. Could possibly use more EQ but not from my point of view, I don't really use what I have.

Use it with a Peavey Dynabass with cheap humbuckers (I presume since the bass was cheap). Absolutely awesome sound; its my first bass amp but it sounds exactly what a bass amp should sound like IMO so it will possibly be my last as well. I don't know enough about bass amps to comment a great deal here, but I can say a few things:
-it sounds really nice with a guitar plugged in; very clean and glassy and clean; I really like very clean and loud and this is good for that. Don't think its as loud as a 100W guitar amp for guitar but I've not a lot of experience with 100W guitar amps either.
-it doesn't get a lot louder as the master gets past 1/2, just better. I have it on full all the time and it sounds so goos. Don't touch the preamp gain. To be honest I don't really care where the tone controls on this amp are if the gain and master are set well (9-10 o'clock and full) it sounds awesome whatever, just different. Tone sweep is not huge. Again I'm a little inexperienced in this field and don't really have anything to compare it to.
-for some reason you get that 1000W 18inch sub thing where it gets louder as you get further away. It has the strange ability to project with NO volume dropoff. I don't know how they've done this but its good. Probably really annoys the neighbours cos they probably get it as loud as me, then again I'm a tasteful bitchass and they probably enjoy it. I've given it a 10 because this really is ultimate bass sound for me. I haven't heard a lot but now I have no need to. Perfect.

Not had it long enough. Very heavy and solid though. Love the tolex.

Not dealt with them.

I love this amp but I've said everything you're supposed to say here in the other bits so that'll do. No rating for this because it seems a bit pointless. Ratings are poor opinions are good. Thats my opinion anyway and I rate it highly(!!!)

Two inputs (0db for passive pickups, -15db for active). Four EQ knobs (bass, mid-low, mid-high, treble), three boost buttons (bass, mid, treble), gain control, and master speaker volume control. Balanced 1/4" line out and headphone out. 100W Solid State.

I play a cheap $75 bass that I bought in India and I also use a Fender Fretless Jazz bass. Somehow, for some reason, when I play the Indian bass with this Ampeg, it sounds *just* like John Entwistle's tone from '76-'79. I loved the tone so much that I even paid $60 to get the damn bass repaired when the headstock broke. I'm not a fan of the speaker's output. It's loud (it could hold its own against my old band's guitarists' half-stacks) but just doesn't punch. However... if you feed your line out to a PA or don't require very loud volume, it's a beauty. When I record on it, I turn the the bass to 5, mid ranges to 0 and treble to 10. It'll punch through any mix. All of the above refers to regular roundwound fretted basses... now for fretless...

If you play fretless, THIS AMP IS NOT MEANT FOR YOU. You'll get the dullest tones ever.

This amp is so solid, that there's a hole in my basement wall from it being moved.

The tone is godly. Just don't use it for big loud shows.

I'm assuming it was made this year, but who knows. It's a vintage-style bass amp. Very simple, no major bells and whistles. Gain control with indicator LEDs, 4-band EQ, master value, high/low input, headphones and line out jacks. It's a solid state amp, but you'd never know it. For a 100watt 15" amp, it is damn loud and can be cranked without noticable distortion. VERY impressive.

Incredible sound. I play in a Beatles cover band. here in the Phoenix metro area. I have been playing a Fender BXR-100 up until now, and had always struggled with getting the thing EQed right for the basses I play (Hofner Cavern, two Rickenbacker 4003s, and a Fender Jazz with active EMG pickups). I went down the aisle of bass amps, testing out each one within my prace range ($400 to 700), these included Crate, Gallien-Krueger, Ashdown, Fender, and Ampegs. I tried out two other Ampegs and wasn't incredibly impressed with the output, then just before giving up, decided to plug into this little vintage looking box that seemed more like a practice amp than one that could be used for small gigs. Wow! For an amp with so few modeling features, it's very versatile in the tones it can produce, and matches the Beatles songs I play perfectly. No noise, no distortion at any volume. Very hard to overdrive. Incredible little amp.

I've only had it a day, so I can't say for sure, but I know Ampegs to be incredibly reliable. It's solid state electronics, and seems to be built very sturdy.

Haven't had to deal with Ampeg

I've been playing for around 4 or 5 years. For the price, and the sound it produces, if it were lost, I'd definitely buy another. Seriously, I tried a few other Ampegs, and this one had the tone I was looking for. Compared to the Fender BXR-100 I have, it's is "light years" ahead in tone and overall sound quality.

brand new. some reviewers complain this amp isn't very versatile-I find it produces all the tones i could want...I play mostly rock and blues, funk, some slap, works well ,even for slap (would sound better w/a tweeter, methinks...) Would like a 1/4" external spkr jack. Plenty of power (100W) Does everything I want.

Creates a very ballsy, enveloping, harmonically-flavored rumble...very tasty! I find the sound from the 15" isn't that loud up close, but apparently VERY loud 10' + away (my bandmates are always telling me to turn down...none of us can hear anything anyways!) Very quiet amp, has 2 ported openings in back to control amount of cabinet bass projected.
Makes variations of one super nice sound...Tube-y, very fat, compressed sound...lots like James Jamerson, no distortion at any volume (this is nice!)

Seems super sturdy. The Blue Tolex covering is cool looking. Super heavy (62 lb.) Speaker does make a pop when power is turned off...so do some of my other amps. 5 year warranty. Everyone who owns an AMPEG has told me good things! Always turns on, at least, and doesn't heat up (no fan, though)

as mentioned, 5 year warranty. Haven't dealt w/ St Louis music...heard good things, though

Been playing approx. 5 years. Own an ibanez ATK-100, Samick PBass, Samick amp, old harmony amp from '60's, Epiphone Les Paul, etc....
Love the sound-SUPER LOUD< NICE BOTTOM END, looks cool too!!! No stores around here had Ampegs...tried SWR wm 10, 12 etc. even 2004 head, and tried many hartke products. Stick w/ampeg! For low-end ($500 aint bad) portable combo, this does the trick better than most. I'm super happy I got it....you should seriously consider this amp.

This is a pretty simple amp with four band EQ and low/high boost buttons. One 15 inch speaker in a small cabinet. No effects loop but it does have an unbalanced line out (great for a tuner) and a headphone socket. All solid state. It's simple but it's good.

It has a nice, warm tone, very much like an old Ampeg Portaflex combo. Not much in the way of bells and whistles but great sound none the less. Probably not the thing if you're interested in a modern, clean, clinical sounding amp.

It only a couple of weeks old so who knows? Given Ampeg's reputation it'll probably last for years.

No idea

For it's size, weight and cost I think this is a great combo. Good enough for small venues. The warmth of the sound is just what I was looking for and it's superior (IMHO) to the Eden WT-400 and Mesa Walkabout heads that I tried out (with a 1x15 Bag End cabinet).

Made in America, 2002. This amp has simple controls; if you like Spartan simplicity as I do you will love this one. 2 inputs, active or passive. It's got everything I will ever need: the unbalanced line out is the ticket;I run the line to our PA and roll with it. 100 watts into a vintage style 15 inch speaker. No effects loop or speaker extension, but does what it's designed for.

I use a 1994 USA Fender P-Bass with stock pickups and flatwound strings. For what I do it's perfect. I play in a working cover band that plays a little bit of everything. I love this amp. KILLER TONE!!!! Stays clean all the way up, thump and punch for days; this is a real bass amp with mucho huevos, folks. Classic tone in a cool, vintage package. Plenty loud for all styles.

It's an Ampeg. Solid as a rock. I haven't had it very long, but if my prior experience with ampeg is any indication, it will last for years. I've had an SVT solid state since 1989, never had any problems with it. But since it is fairly new, I will have to pass on this category.

I've never had any dealings with Ampeg. I've heard good things about them though.

I've been playing 15 yrs. Mostly rock, pop, blues, and funk. If it were stolen, I would be suffer deep depression and then go buy another one. It's simple and affordable and sounds great. An outstanding value, I would say.

Probably manufactured in 2001. 100 watts, 15" speaker. Plenty of knobs and buttons for EQ. 1/4" balanced line out.

My ideal is a fat, full tone that will complement piano and guitar. I don't really play styles that require roundwounds, but I tested the B-100R with both roundwound and flatwound strings. Both basses were Fender American Standard P-basses.

With roundwounds, the B100R had a pleasing, loud, full-spectrum sound -- bright highs, clear mids, fat bass. If I was still into Motorhead and the Ramones, I might have bought it. If you use roundwounds for everything, this amp is probably suitable for most styles.

With flatwounds, this amp was a major disappointment. I was hoping to hear some plunky Motown tone. All I heard was a serious lack of headroom. It was overdriving with the gain on 3. I guess the brightness of the roundwounds was masking the overdrive, because it was really obvious with flatwounds. Turning the mids all the way down helped, but it killed the tone. With flat EQ, the tone was bright, crunchy, and fuzzy. Booty-shaking bass was nowhere to be heard, because I couldn't turn up and still have a clean tone.

I didn't even bother testing the B50R with flatwounds, because the B100R was such a disappointment.

Just for kicks, I plugged the flatwound P-Bass into the Ampeg Classic and SVT350 heads, and tried them both with seven different Ampeg cabinets ranging from a 1x15 to an 8x10. I kept the EQ flat, because by then I'd decided that if I don't like the tone of an amp with everything flat, I don't like the amp.

The Ampeg heads had headroom to spare, and some of those cabs have serious rumble. What the cabs all had in common when used with those heads, with flat EQ, was an unnatural, electric sound, with too much crunchy midrange. Did the recording and production process at Motown alter the Ampeg sound beyond recognition, or was I just having a bad ear day?

Until today, I didn't think my little Acoustic Image Contra could cut it as a bass guitar amp. It's loud enough, and has plenty of bass. It just doesn't have as much punch and thump as I'd like to hear. But compared to the Ampegs, the Contra is much more faithful to the sound of the plank -- which is what I thought vintage flatwound tone was supposed to be all about. Maybe all I need to do is buy a compressor.

For crunchy roundwound rock tone, the B100R is a 10, but for flatwound tone it's a dog. Most guys use roundwounds, so as a weighted average I'll give it a 7.

Note: the price given here is what they were charging at Guitar Center in Chicago, Illinois on March 30, 2002.

I started playing cello at the age of 8 or 9, bass guitar at 15, and upright bass at 17. Now I'm 35. When I was younger, I was into 70's punk, but lately almost all I've been doing is classic jazz on upright bass. I've always liked the Motown bass sound, but it's only recently that I've tried to recreate it.

Here's the basic rundown: 1x15 combo; solid state 100 watts; hi/lo inputs; chicken knobs for gain, master, bass, mid and treble on the top deck recessed slightly below the flat top of the amp; three push button controls for "ultra bass", "ultra mid" and "ulta hi"; and a very cool looking blue power indicator light; caster inserts on the bottom corners. The whole package is wrapped in a cool looking blue diamond pattern tolex.

Not heavily feature laiden, but just enough for what you really need to do. Only gripe: the power cord doesn't detatch, and there's no provision for storage...it might be a recipe for wear-damage/breakage at some point, but it hasn't happened in two years of heavy gigging with this amp. I've never been concerned about the amp not having an external speaker output...it has plenty of volume and presence on its own, and it wasn't designed to be part of a modular component system, anyway.

I play in a 5 piece Beatles tribute band that gigs about 5-6 times a month in the SF Bay Area. I've had it for about 2 years, and I could not be happier with it's sound, features, portability and cool vibe. The B100R has plenty of power for the 100-150 person clubs/bars that I play in. Our lead guitarist occasionally asks me to turn down a bit, and I usually run the amp at 50%. The amp has two rear ports which allow you to modulate how much 'wall reinforcement' you want...closer for more and further for less....this really works well!

I play a Hofner Violin bass and an Epiphone Viola (in many ways a much better bass) and a Fender American Jazz Deluxe into a Tech 21 Sansamp bass DI then into the amp. I use two fingers plucking as well as a heavy and medium pick. I am not a slap player. The gain, master, bass, mid, treble are all usually set at between 5-7 each and the ultra bass and ultra mid buttons are depressed (activiated).

The tone is very warm, fat, and rich...even without the Sansamp. Someone below mentioned the James Jamerson Motown sound and this amp along with my Jazz, does it perfectly. It's very quiet, and when really driven hard, the sound just gets fatter and a bit compressed...much like a tube amp does. The 15 inch vintage speaker has never farted out. I don't know how Ampeg designed this circuit, but it really is impressive. It seems to have much more volume than you would expect from a 100 watt bass amp. It suits my Beatles gig perfectly as I can get all the Mcartney tones out of this...the fat, round and tubby Hofner tone, and then when I need the Ricky/fender bassman tone (think Helter Skelter), I use my Jazz and roll up the mids and highs a bit and use a medium pick. I truly have not been able to make the B100r sound bad!. More than a few times, musicians/bassplayers have come up to me after a set and remarked how nice and full the bass tone has sounded and then are very suprised to see that it came from an amp about the size of a small cardboard moving box.

I'd rate it an "11" if I could.

I don't baby my gear, but then I don't toss it around carelessly either. I gig it without a backup. I has never broken down or even whimpered a slight complaint. It's the energizer bunny with tone.

I bought it used so I didn't even investigate the warranty. With no service required so far, I haven't had to deal with St. Louis Music(who makes Ampeg products) for a repair. When I've called them with technical questions about their products, they've always been friendly and informative on the phone.

I'm 42 now, and have been playing guitar and bass for most of my life. I started playing not long after the Beatles performed on Ed Sullivan! I have a professional day job that thankfully affords me the opportnity to buy any music gear I'd like. I also have an Ampeg stack and head setup...an SVT head through stacked 1x15 and 2x10 cabinets. This set up sounds awesome too, but it weighs more than any one person should ever have to move around (let alone a 42 year old person)....and so it stays home. (for chrissake, the SVT head alone weighs more than the B100r). The B100r has about 95% of the tone and about 1/10 of the weight.

I have tried to be as critical as I can...but unless you buy it looking for that modern glassy tone, this amp has the goods. All in all, it's a great package for the gigging musician who wants to make one trip from the car and have all the vintage tone and volume you would need for medium sized bars and clubs. Anything bigger venue should be mic'd or DI'd into the PA anyway. All this for $375 used makes the B100r what I beleive to be one of the best bass gear values available. You will NOT regret buying it.

This amp is two years old, I think. I bought it second-hand on eBay. The B-100R has two inputs -- low gain and high-gain (for passive or active pickups). It's got a few more features than its little brother the B-50R:
- Gain & master volume
- Bass/mid/treble boost switches
- Clipping indicator light for setting gain

The B-100R isn't much louder than the B-50R. The volume difference between a 50- and a 100-watt amp is pretty insignificant. Dig into Ampeg's website for technical info, and you'll finally find a really good explanation of the relationship between wattage and volume. In a nutshell: doubling the wattage creates a perceptable volume increase, but not much more.

I own the B-50R and the B-100R. I loved the B-50R so much I bought the 100 hoping for more volume. Nope. But the added tone possibilities are worth it as far as I'm concerned.

I'd like an external speaker jack, and the tone-boost buttons would be more handy if they were in a pedal, not on the control panel.

By the way: the amp has sockets for casters. I bought some, and am really glad I did. Get them from a hardware supply, and you'll roll your amp into a gig instead of lugging it!

I've used this amp with a stock Fender P-Bass (passive pickup) and a high-end Washburn (actives). My band plays blues, R&B, a little jazz, and a little country. In the past, I've owned Ampegs (both solid state and tube), and a Peavey TNT150. This amp has the best sound of any I've ever owned. I find it flexible, but after reading other reviews, I guess the sounds I want must all fall within a fairly narrow range (blues/R&B -- lots of bass with some string sound but not "glassy").

I've never had a problem with any Ampeg, ever. This one's no exception so far.

I'll let you know if I ever have a problem with the amp!

I've been playing since the 1960s, generally small bars, clubs and parties/receptions. Combo amps are what I'm used to, and I like this one better than any I've owned. If I lost it, I'd replace it -- no question. The look of this amp reminds me 1960 Ampegs, and it rings the right notes with me. Basic, direct, fundamental, easy to use, sounds great.