Ampeg B-50R Rocket Bass

Single channel, 50 watt, 12" speaker, ultimate in simplicity with 1/4" input jack, 1/4" headphone jack, volume, bass, lo-mid, high-mid and treble controls, blue power-on jewel and metal power toggle on top mounted control panel, 1/4" line out jack in back. That's it. Great retro look with blue diamond tolex covering, chrome corner protectors, chrome control plate with chicken head knobs, silver thread grill cloth, stitched-leather top mounted handle, and classic chrome Ampeg logo on the amp face above the grill. Makes me feel cooler just by association.

Tone is fantastic - clear, round and warm, and amaxingly flexible via the 4 tone controls. Very loud for a 50 watt amp, terrific for solo practice but only suitable for lower volume gigging. Absolutely no amp noise and no rattles. I play a Fender Jazz Bass, mostly jazz fusion, soft rock and contemporary worship music. Great tone for all especially the jazz stuff. For practice, I don't think I've ever had the volume over about 1.5. In gigs typically have used the line out to the house P.A. and used the amp as a monitor, which works great for me.

Built like a tank. Bought mine new in 2000, used for practice and occasional gigging over the years, and it has never, ever given me any kind of trouble whatsoever. Have used it without a backup many times and never gave it a second thought.

Never had to call them

If my B50R we're lost or stolen, I'd cry like a baby. It's like a part of my family. I really can't say anything bad about it.

I've been a self-taught guitar player for over 25 years with a bent towards blues, R&B, soul, and roots rock. I developed an interest in bass guitar a little over 10 years ago and set about teaching myself to play. Major influences have been James Jamerson, Paul McCartney, John Paul Jones, Timothy B. Schmidt, Sting, Noel Redding, many others. Though my initial choice for a bass worked out well I had a brief false start with my first amplifier, a SWR Workingmans 15. Within 30 days I came to the conclusion that the SWR was vary poor fit for me. A friend provided me with a few amps to demo, one of which was an old Ampeg B-15n. This amp was exactly what I was looking for tone-wise. He suggested I demo an Ampeg B-50R and stated that it produced tones very similar to the B-15n. My Demo ended with the purchase of a new Ampeg B-50R and I've owned the amp ever since.

The B-50R is a very simple amplifier - 50watt 1x12 combo (sealed enclosure), Volume / Bass / Low Mid / Hi Mid / Treble controls, headphone out (disables speaker when in use) 1/4" balanced or unbalanced line out. I rather enjoy the amps simplicity - this and the tone are its best features for my use.

I have used this amp for practice, recording, and gigging. When gigging I've used the amp alone I've used the line out to re-amp for more power, and I've also mic'd the amp as well all with positive results. I've had a few rigs besides this amp (GK 1001RB-II 2x10 combo, Nemesis 2x10 combo, Fender 1x15 combo) and I've always preferred this inexpensive, low powered Ampeg.

I'll give it a 7 here as it's light on features though, as noted above, it has the most important feature an amp can offer - TONE!

As I mentioned above my influences are mostly old-school styles and sounds. I would venture to guess that a great many of the tracks that I love to listen to were recorded using the very popular Ampeg B-15n amps from the 60's and 70's. The B-50R was an instant hit with me as it sounds quite like a B-15n. The tone may generally be described as warm, round, & full and the simple EQ controls are both intuitive and very effective providing a great deal of flexibility. It's also dead quiet - no hum or rattles.

Though I favored traditional Fender P-basses early on I have owned a wide selection of 4-string basses throughout my 10 years playing bass and the B-50R has matched well with all of them. I have settled in most happily with two 4-string basses - a Roscoe LG3000 (w/roundwound nickel strings) and a MusicMan Bongo 4 H/H (w/flatwound strings). Both instruments, though modern in construction and features, offer up a wide wange of classic tones with a great deal of sonic control at the instrument. Both sound exceptional through the B-50R.

I am usually rather conservative with ratings when posting reviews but, with 10 years of uninterrupted stellar performance and tone I am rating the B-50R's sound quality at 10 without reservation. This amp may not work as well for everyone but it's just right for me.

This amp has been a workhorse for me. I haven't mistreated it but I haven't babied it either. In 10 years it has never given me a moments trouble and, after countless playing hours there isn't a single vibration noise or rattle. I'll rate it's reliability at 10.

I have never had occasion or reason to contact Ampeg and so I have no opinion to offer regarding customer support.

Overall I couldn't be more pleased with this amp. It's a shame that the B-50R was discontinued. I've often thought of picking up another used B-50R and may well do so in the future. If this amp were to become lost, stolen, or damaged beyond repair I would miss it a great deal and I would definitely seek out a direct replacement. Overall I rate the B-50R a solid 9.

I bought this amp brand new in 1998ish. It has the perfect modern/retro look. I've played many different styles of music though this amp and they all sound great. With a good pair of headphones you can plug them right into the jack and get great sound without disturbing the peace. The only negative thing about this amp is the ackwardness and weight. It is not extremely heavy, however because of it's square shape it can become difficult to carry.

Perfect sound quality...and loud!!! In my one bedroom apt I keep it at a .5 level. Even at a 1 on the volume knob would be pretty loud. Because of the low frequency of the bass you usually have to turn up a lot louder when playing with guitars, but this baby can keep up with the best of them. I have never gigged with this amp but I am confindant that it can fill a small venue with no problems whatsoever. This amp is good for the country, rock, blues, and raggae sound (although I'm sure it can cover all genres).

Ampeg makes the best products. I have never worried about my gear being unreliable. If anything you need to worry about the ax you are playing with not the amp. These amps are nearly indestructable. I've never once worried about this amp giving out on me during a live performance.

Never needed any customer support.

I will forever recommend Ampeg to any bass player. Overall they are the best.

Made in 97 or 98 and still kickin in 03. Great sound, so special fx but has different knobs for bass, low mid, high mid, and high. as well as a volume knob that i have never had to turn up more than 1/3 of the way! Awesome power for a small room, but have used it in a 4 car garage/workshop and it doesn't lack power or sound needed to fill a large area.

I use a modifyed Ibanez bass that is a 4-string, but fits the first 4 strings from a 5-string set. This amp is perfect from funk to metal, to hip - hop styles especially due to the many settings for the tone.

Very reliable, never had a problem. EVEN RIGGED IT AND HOOKED IT UP TO A STEREO AMP AND RAN SOME PIONEER 3 WAY / TWEETERS AND IT EVEN PUSHED THEM WITH PLENTY OF POWER (although it did cause a little bit of undesireable hiss)

never had to deal with the company or even messed with warranty info, perfectly user-friendly and takes abuse.

Been playing for about 5-6 years, self taught, don't read music, only tabs and play by ear. Love everything about it. Wish i had a compresser to even out my sloppy playing a little, as well as a quality set of cables, amp is perfect for me though!!!

Bought this amp for 429.00 from Musicians Friend.
Features are simple and straight forward--easy to use, which is one reason I bought it.
Has volume, treble, bass, low mid and high mid control knobs. Amp has a nice vintage look to it. Very classy, and, for it's 50 watt rating, it seems louder. Really. I would have to give the rating here a ten because it has just what you need to make your instrument sound great, and nothing more. As I see it, simple is better, period.

First, as far as sound goes, I should say that I do not play bass through it. I am a jazz guitarist who wanted to find a nice, not too expensive solid state amp that both looked nice and sounded great. I play a Gibson ES165 Herb Ellis Signature guitar, and this amp delivers the sound that I was looking for to a tee. Warm, full, and very responsive. It is a pretty powerful amp for 50 watts, as I stated before, and I leave the volume set on seven. Even at full tilt, there is no distortion, just a clean, warm sound. Perfect for what I was looking for--a small, great sounding amp that I could use on small gigs and for rehersal. Overall, I would rate the sound at a 9, since it is not in the same catagory as,say, an Evans, or an Acoustic Image, but then again, for the money paid, this amp really shines.

Ampeg gives a five year warranty on the amp itself, and two on the speaker, which is an Ampeg vintage 12", by the way.
If a company can give a five year warranty, they must be confident in their product. An Evans AE100, for example, which costs more than twice the price of the Ampeg, only is covered for one year. It seems that a lot of amp builders warranty their gear for only a year or two, and 30 or 90 days on the speakers. Figure that out for yourself. This amp is pretty heavy at 48 lbs., and seems to be very well built and designed.

I just got this amp a week ago, so I have not had to deal with Ampeg at all. I hope I never will

If this were lost or stolen I would buy another in a minute. This amp is perfect for what I wanted, both value-wise, and, more importantly, it has that great, full, warm sound that is perfect for an archtop guitar. I did compare other amps, and overall, this Ampeg B50R was by far the best. I am totally satisfied with it's look and it's sound. That's why we buy the things we buy, because they are right for US. It's well made, sounds great, and didn't break the bank. What else could you ask for in an amp?

This amp isn't exactly what I'd call feature-laden, but it does everything I need. As another reviewer said, "Volume, 4-band EQ, headphone jack, line out." It's got one pretty good 12" speaker. I don't really need anything fancier than that, since it gives me the sounds I want. It's perfect for practicing, since it's easily loud enough to be heard next to the guitars and drums, but it's still small enough to carry around without too much trouble. We've played outdoors during the summer by running our amps off a car battery with an inverter, and it handled that fine too. It still sounded just as good, the sound carried well, the battery lasted all day, and the amp was easy to cover or move if it started to rain.

I'm a huge fan of the sounds this amp makes. It's nearly silent while I'm not playing, and while I am playing, the sound is very clean and faithful to whatever's plugged into the amp. It seems pretty loud for a 50 watt amp, which is nice. I mostly use it with my Fender American Deluxe P-Bass, which I absolutely love. By fiddling with the EQ on the bass and the amp and the pickup balance on the bass, I can get a whole lot of different sounds, and all of them are good. I've found a couple tones I like more than others, mostly because of the type of music I play, but whenever I try to see if I can do something, just for the sake of trying something new, I'm never disappointed.

I would and have used this amp with no backup, and it's never occurred to me that I might want to do otherwise. I've never once had a single problem. One time, when I was moving it, my grip slipped, and the front of the amp whacked a metal fence post. I was worried that something might've happened to it, but other than the little Ampeg name plate on the front being a little loose, it turned out to be as good as when I bought it. Not that I would, but I get the impression that I could kick the amp around and roll it down a flight of stairs without having to worry too much about its safety, as long as I didn't try to put my foot through the speaker...

I've never had any reason to deal with Ampeg regarding this amp, since I've never had any problems with it. The only thing I could think of that I might want to contact them about would be to congratulate them on making this amp.

I'm not exactly sure about the price, but it was somewhere between $300 and $350 as far as I know. I don't know that it's really a feature, but it's a good-looking amp. I look at it, and it says to me, "I am a bass amp. I don't screw around." I've had it for a couple years, and I've never regretted getting it. We picked it up at the same time we got my American Deluxe P-Bass, because they just sounded so good together compared to the other stuff we tried out. I don't remember exactly what we compared the amp to, but nothing in the same price range had such a clean, bassy sound. I sometimes wish it were a little more powerful so I could just use the amp by itself when playing in clubs, but I've always managed to mic it to get around that. I've been considering getting a more powerful amp if we play more clubs, although I like the sound enough that I'll at least try running another powered speaker off the line out first. I used to work in a music store, and the only other thing I found there that I liked the sound of as much with my bass was a bigger, more powerful (much, much more expensive) Ampeg setup. Go figure.

The amp I tested in the showroom was probably manufactured in 2001. It's got all the basics, including a 1/4" balanced line out jack. However, some common features are missing -- XLR line out connector, effects loop, extension cabinet jack. I don't need those things, but there's no need to inflate the grade.

It seems like it would be pretty versatile for all different styles from the past 50 years. That's saying a lot. The extra 5% of high end slap tone you might get with a tweeter would also buy you a lot of hiss. But I'm not a slapmeister, so check it out for yourself.

There aren't any features that I wouldn't use. But I didn't like it well enough to buy it -- not because it's bad, but because the B100R seems better (more on that below). The price listed here is what it was selling for at Guitar Center in Chicago, Illinois.

It would probably have enough power for most of my rehearsals and gigs with jazz duos, trios, & quartets. In larger or louder rooms, I would mike it or take a line out and go into the PA.

Blue Tolex, is that a feature? People are getting way too excited about how the amp looks. It's just an amp. Chill out.

My current gear and sound concept obviously influenced how I reacted to the B50R, so I'll start there....

I usually play an Engelhardt C-1 upright bass with Velvet Compas 360 strings, and a Realist pickup, through an Acoustic Image Contra. I'm trying to get a 50's-era sound like Paul Chambers. I haven't really succeeded, but that's the sound I like best.

When I play bass guitar, it's a fretless 4-string Fender American Standard P-Bass, strung with an old set Fender flatwound strings. My reason for checking out the B50R is that the Acoustic Image Contra doesn't sound right for bass guitar. It puts out all the right frequencies, but it doesn't punch or thump the way it should for bass guitar. I'm looking for that classic 60's studio bass guitar sound.

I left my bass guitar at home, because I figured at least one of the 100 or so basses at Guitar Center would have flatwounds. Wrong. Even the violin bass had roundwounds. So I plugged in a 4-string Fender American Standard P-Bass with roundwound strings. Mostly I played it with the volume and tone knobs on the bass turned all the way up.

The sound I heard from the B50R with flat EQ settings was bright, crisp, and loud, with no extraneous noise and no mud. It had an even response throughout the range of the bass, and plenty of punch.

Compared to most of the 10-12", 50-100 watt competition, it's a great tone, and plenty loud. Most of those things sound like cardboard boxes, whereas the B50R sounds like a real amp. But I had to ask myself, is this the fat, round, warm tone everybody's raving about? I almost thought I'd plugged into an Ampeg guitar amp by mistake. But no, it was the B50R. Then I plugged into the B100R, which has a 15" speaker and a slightly larger cabinet. Aha. That's what was missing -- bottom end!

Turning up the bass EQ knob on the B50R didn't help. Yes, there was more bass, but the low notes were now much louder than the mid- to high notes. So in practical terms I couldn't boost the bass much and still get a useful tone. Maybe you'll have better luck. I wasn't very patient with the B50R, because the B100R sounded so much more like a bass amp and I didn't have to fiddle with any knobs.

Apart from the lack of rich bass output, my impression was that the B50R is pretty good at reflecting the input signal it's given. I only tried the one axe with it, but my ears told me that the amp was giving a true roundwound P-Bass sound. With flatwounds, I could see the B50R having a fatter tone, maybe even a fairly authentic Motown sound. I'm not ruling it out yet.

I give the B50R a 7 for sound quality. That's about as good as you're going to get with something in this weight and price range. If you can kick in 20% more cash, and can deal with the extra weight, you ought to at least try the B100R before buying a B50R. To my ear, the B100R rated a possible 10 for sound quality as a bass guitar amp. I'll have to bring my own axe and try them both again.

I'd give the BR-50 an honest 7. It would be a good value, and if the B50R has "your" tone, then it would be a great value. "My" tone has more bass.

bought this used but i think it was manufactured within the last couple years... features are same as described in previous posts. i'm a guitarist first but occassionally play bass and am the regular bass player for our praise and worship service. this amp was a favorite in BassPlayer magazine's combo shootout in the July '99 issue which prompted me to check it out. i was looking for a portable and affordable bass combo with good tones and this amp excels on all counts. wish it had a ground lift for the direct out and an ext. speaker but that's nit-picking... so far it hasn't been a problem. the 1-12" speaker does and amazing job. the output is good for probably 95% of what i do... it'll keep up with a drummer no problem but might have trouble if you're playing with a heavy hitter. the sound guys say the line out signal is plenty potent. the amp has just what i need... no more, no less... i love it's simplicity... giving it a 9 because for some folks it may not be the most versatile. however, i think the designers did an excellent job of designing the tone stack and response of this amp which in a way makes it more versatile (for me anyway) because i can achieve a wide variety of tones by making adjustments in playing technique and with the volume and tone controls on my bass.... in this respect it deserves high marks. i like the inherent tone of this amp so much that if i need more volume, i would probably just run from the line out into a seperate power-amp speaker cab.

i play a stock MIJ Fender p-bass that i purchased new in '88. it plays and sounds just like a p-bass should... i have a MIJ strat from the same era and these instruments are gems in terms of value and quality at any price. as for music styles... even though i'm primarily a guitarist i've made a sincere effort to play bass as a bassist trying to play for the song and do justice to the part required... as in my guitar playing i try to do a diverse range of styles. some of my favorite bassists come from the rock genre though and they include John Entwistle, Jack Bruce, Geddy Lee, Chris Squire, Barry Oakley, Tim Bogert,... there are many others... for the style of these players, this amp does the rock tone amazingly well for such a small amp. the amp is quiet when idle which is important during a worship service. the amp doesn't have a preamp / master volume setup so it's not really setup for overdrive... what it does have is plenty of "bounce" and snap. the response that this amp has reminds me of the first time i heard a really good bass player playing a p-bass through an SVT back in the late 70s... can make the bass sound like the lowest 4 strings on a concert grand piano if you want. also, this thing is very easy to get a good sound out of... if you start out with the tone controls straight up with my p-bass... it is a very good sound... i've only had to make a few tweaks here and there and it sounds awesome... no dead spots just good tone round fat tone with character... sits well in the mix and has a distinct presence that's hard to describe... very "live" sounding.

bought this used in a pawn shop and have only played out with it a couple times so far but it seems to be a sturdy piece of gear construction wise... very solid, no rattles, and good hardware... looks cool too. can't really give it a fair rating on reliablity since i really haven't had it that long. coming from a pawn shop there's no telling how the previous owner took care their equipment... so far, so good.

haven't had to use them... haven't had the amp that long and bought it used... they do have a good website where you can download a manual though so i'll give them a 6 for the helpful website.

well, i don't really bill myself as a bass player but i did do quite a bit of research before buying which i always do no matter what the purchase. i've been a musician most of my life, playing mostly guitar for 32 years. still, i take pride in my performance no matter what the instrument or style and since i'm playing more bass these days, i've spent some time "thinking" like a bass player and trying to learn some of the tricks of the trade. most of my other gear revolves around guitar, both electric and acoustic... i have an extensive collection of strats, teles, and vintage Fender amps plus about every stomp box imaginable. if it were stolen i would definitely buy one again. although i got this one at a barain price used, i wouldn't hesitate to pay the new purchase price which is somewhere around $400 or less at Guitar Center. Compared to the competition it's a bargain. Other amps that I compared this to were the 50W Fender bass amps, Crate, GK MB150, Carvin. I chose this one for its tone, simplicity, value, and compactness. The only thing that came close was the GK and Carvin. The GK has a lot more features and sounds great too, and is probably more versatile but costs significantly more. The Carvin was the AG100D which is actually and acoustic guitar amp but can also handle bass duties so it's not entirely a fair comparison... the Carvin is an amazing amp as well when it comes to the "utility amp" catagory. the only things i don't like about the amp are fairly minor and that's the fact that it doesn't have a ground lift switch for the direct (an XLR connector would've been nice too) but then those types of things would no doubt add to the cost but i would be willing to pay for it... also, it doesn't have an external speaker out which would be nice. but really, if i need more volume, i'll just run out of the direct out into the PA or a stand alone power amp / cab setup.

4 band EQ, low, low-mid, high-mid, and highs. 50W into a 12" speaker. Headphone jack, line out. That's about it. I wish there was more tonal shaping capability, but it's designed to be a simple amp.

Played my DeArmond Pilot Pro, passive pickups with active EQ through it. I'm into a wide range of music - classic to modern rock, jazz, electronic, folk, etc. The Ampeg provides a very "classic" tone. I'm definitely a fan of more modern bass tones, so I was somewhat disappointed with the Ampeg. It's very good at what it does - classic 60's - 70's bass sounds. If this is what you're going for, you'll probably love it. If you want more tonal variety, it may be a bit limited. Pretty loud for 50W, but I think if you were playing any heavier rock you'd have to be working with a pretty gentle drummer to pull off a gig with it. For vanilla retro-rock bass sounds I give it a 10. For my tastes I'd probably go with a 7 or 8.

Only had it for a week before I returned it, but it looks like it's built to last. With Ampeg's reputation and good warranty, I think it would be very dependable.

5 or 6 year warranty. Never had to contact them though.

Been playing for about 15 years off an on. Over the years I've owned an early 80's Ampeg SVT with 8x10 cab. I've also had a Guild Pilot bass and a '62 Precision. The B50 seems like a great amp for classic rock and blues tones. You could probably pull off practices and perhaps small gigs with it. However, if you like more "modern" bass tones or like a wide tonal variety from your equipment, the Ampeg may be somewhat limited. For $349 though, it's a good little amp.

Volume, 4 eq knobs, headphone jack, and balanced/unbalanced line out. Even though it doesn't have an XLR out, the line out jack will give a balanced signal if you use a TRS-->XLR cable. So yes, you can record direct successfully with this amp. I give it a 10 because I don't think it needs anything else.

The other reviewers are right on, this is a great sounding amp. Has a great, deep plunky old school sound when used with precision basses, and but can also do the out front, cut through the mix sound when used with active pickups. Other amps in its price range (the 50-100 watt fenders, crates, peaveys, etc.) just make dull thudding sounds compared to the B50-R. Listen to the bass on soul/funk songs from the 60's and 70's - it nails that sound - clear, rich, deep, and groovin.

I've had if for six months - so far, nothing has gone wrong with it.

Never dealt with them.

I'd definitely buy it again. In fact, when I need more power, I'll probably buy another one and run them stereo.