Ampeg B200R

A hidden feature on this amp is the BStock bought through GC has only a 3 Month warranty no one seems to know about! Not at GC when I bought it. The chassis is hardly supported by cheap brackets and on the first repair the tech commented on how it looked shoved and bent into the amp. Loud Technologies took over AMPEG in the middle of this decade and moved all production overseas. Horrible company. Capacitors blew at 4 months. Speaker cannot handle lows. CRAP!

I use a PBass. It sounded alright at first. Until it crapped out. It doesnt seem built to handle the load!

HORRIBLE. Taking whats left of it on the road for 2 weeks and I pray it holds up. Drilled a block in to support the chassis. I feel sick to my stomach to play it. Will have to spend $3000 in the fall and get real gear.

They extended their hidden warranty to rig the chassis and fix capacitors. They basically called me stupid for buying the B stock. Talked down to by a condesending nerd boy. They should have took it back and gave me a new one.

I have been playing semi professionally for 15 years. Played 80 shows last year with the B100r. This is my 2nd year of playing bass in a touring band. This thing is not for shows, recording, touring. Like I read somewhere it would make a great kitty litter box

Bought and probably made in 2008. As simple as you need 200w 15inch+horn combo with 12au7 preamp tube. horn can be switched off by changing the plug on the back. Mine didn't blew when changing like complained about in earlier reviews - they seemed to have fixed the problem. 4 eq knobs + 3 buttons to emphasize hi, mid, bass. DI + headphone out with own independent volume.
I use this amp for mostly rock and this is what it's best for i think. the 200w are quite loud and will do for all venues unless you're doing a stadium - just use DI and have the amp for monitor. unfortulately DI is post-eq. Very easy to handle.
Speaking of handling: with the delivered casters it is very easy to carry/roll although it is over 30kg and it has only 1 handle on top.
outfit is very oldschool: dark blue tolex and shining chrome.

I use it with Fender 78Jazzbass, some 60s kay sg shortscale, for distortion or to thicken up: sansamp bass driver. great sound by itself, nearly impossible to dial up a bad sound. everything from deep shaking dub to funky sounds. horn does very well without being annoying.
sound can be described as vintage. very very good for everything 60s/70s. goes excellent with the sansamp bass driver, which is not at all the case with my ampeg v4bh. the b200r can reach very svt-like sound - but at a reasonable weight. and whats maybe most important: it cuts very good through any sound on stage. you can almost feel it although its "just" a combo amp. much much better than the ba100t (and also does not feel as toy-ish as the ba).
for me it is actually replacing my v4bh-stack for the above reasons.

The first one delivered had issues with grounding so i sent it back. second works great for now 4 months.

Bought at music-store k??ln by mailorder. very friendly and fast with the replacement. Can say nothing about support from ampeg itself.

I am playing for nearly 20 years in different bands, doing about 20-30 gigs a year now. i played trace elliot, sad and ampeg stuff. ampeg does it. best sound for me and always to be heard on stage. this combo is best of both worlds: big "tubey" sound and easy to carry though. use no backup (ok, i would just use the sansamp ;-) ).

Pretty basic stuff here, which suits me fine. 4 x EQ knobs (Bass, Low-Mid, Mid, Treble). Bass, Mid and High boost buttons. Gain & Master volumes and a Direct Out XLR and Headphone Jack. There's a tube pre-amp and a SS power amp. 15" speaker with optional tweeter. 220 very powerful Watts of power.
I have to say, this amp sounds just great. I play regularly, outdoor gigs and average to mid-sized bars and this amp has enough balls to rock at these shows. I can get a nice deep bass or a nice funky sound. I play an Ibanez SRX690DX through this amp and they work extremely well together. Overall, I'm very happy with how versatile this amp is.

This amp sounds amazing. I just love the tone I can get from it. My Ibanez has an active EQ and I can dial in some beautiful deep tones or make it nice and punchy for slapping and popping. I play with an alt-rock/country band and you can definitely hear AND feel this amp through the rest of the band. I love the fact that it's portable and can create the sounds I want at the volumes I want. For bigger venues/shows, I go through the board via the XLR jack. I know some people find this amp heavy at 70lbs, but it's sure lighter then an 8 x 10" stack and a hell of lot easier to fit into a small car.

I haven't had any problems. I do baby all of my gear though. The amp I got was a floor model at Steve's Music. I don't carry a back-up and am comfortable doing that.

The amp comes with a 5 year warranty on the electronics and 2 on the speaker. Pretty darn good really. I haven't spoken with customer service. The store I bought the amp from can service the amp if needed, one of the benefits of not buying on-line.

I've been playing guitar for over 30 years now and the bass for 2. For me, this amp gives me the range of sounds and power I need to gig and practise with the band. We play roughly 30 - 40 shows a year and so far so good. I'm very impressed.

this amp appeals to those of us that like it simple. no complicated names or eq's in the tone-shaping department. just lows, mids, and highs. i do like that it has a knob for the LOW mids and a knob for the HIGH mids. this allows the bassist to emphasize mids, but also get more low end growl, or more bite, without having to dial in high treble or muffling low end. the bass, mid, treble boost buttons are pretty standard, but nice for parts where you want to stand out a little in the mix. i really made use of the headphone jack, but since this is my practice amp, i couldn't justify having a 500 dollar, 200watt amp, and then use the headphone jack most of the time. so that is why i ended up selling it. the 12au7 and switchable tweeter are GREAT additions to the tone-shaping department as well.

all-in-all, i'd say that this is the combo all other companies should be FORCED to use as a foundation... and then add or remove features here or there as they see fit. in my opinion, almost perfect as far as a combo goes. if you're in the market for an entry-intermediate level combo... it doesn't get much better than this.

the sound is classic ampeg. i have nothing wrong with that, however, i have come to appreciate classic trace elliot and aguilar more than ampeg, therefore i sold this amp.

BUT, if i had to have just one affordable bass combo in a small apartment, or just gigged with it at small clubs 3 or 4 times a year, this would be my combo of choice. for the price, you really can't get better classic ampeg tone in a portable package.

many people claim to have DOA situations... but that is the problem with internet ordering music gear from huge companies these days... quality control has to suffer a little if you're getting it for dirt cheap.

but mine was a champ while i owned it... and as far as i know it's still going strong.

not sure, but they do offer the standard warranty.

i really like this combo. it's a cheap combo, but you get what you pay for, or should anyways, and i feel i got every penny's worth with this guy. good classic ampeg sound, portable size. good for practicing at home. if you're in the market for an amp to just play at home, but don't take out to jam with too often, this is for you. also great for recording. however, if you've been playing for awhile, and need a little more versatility, look at getting a 4x10 half-stack or something. as this guy weighs 70lbs and only has one little handle up top. sure it has casters, but one handle is not cool if you move him around a lot.

I bought this amp because ive always wanted and respected the Ampeg name.However when it arrived it was a big dissapointment.the actual amp chasis was cracked on all four corners where it had been formed in the factory.The sound itself is not to bad but i do get a horrible "cracking sound" on certain notes.power wise its good.i bought this amp online ,when i complained the suppliers didnt want to know!.Ampeg is impossible to contact,i wonder if they know whats going on with there reputation and there customers!

I use a lakland active bass & precisions. The precisions perform better than the lakland through this though i do favour my lakland,I,ll have to look for another amp!

I do worry about being let down with this amp as i dont think its the quality it should be ,being an ampeg.

There is no customer support!especially from ampeg.. you try and email them!!!

Ive been playing for 30 years.ive owned Marshall, Crate (rubbish),Trace elliot (good),Hughes/Kettner ( so so),Dynacord (good)
I wouldnt buy ampeg again unless its american built.

this amp has great tone control. i play it in a jazz band. its perfect for it. i especially like the boosts. it does have a headphone jack. lot of power. i've used it in a big gym with the master level at 2. it dosn't have much special features but i like that in a combo. makes it easier to control your sound out side of the amp.

same as above

i've never had it break down. mine was fine but i've heard that i ships broken

right now i'm playing an ibanez sr800 wich pumps power, so this amp is perfect for it. i love the tones you can get with it and the versitality of those tones. you can almost say its uncaomparible. it has a unique tone in its own way. i like the simplicity. it looks awesome.

Pretty much the same features/controls as the older B100R but twice the power and a tweeter and only slightly larger. I appreciate that it came with caster wheels already installed. This amp is MUCH louder than the B100R which was surprisingly loud. 220 watts isn't really all that much but remember the single 15" speaker is 4ohms and therefore this amp does not require an extension cab for full power.

10+

The single 12au7 makes this wonderful combo warmer and richer sounding than the already warm sounding B100R.
This amp loves a P-bass with flatwounds.
This amp is for vintage fat and colorful tone.
There is no transparency here. Each note seems to ooze out as if covered in butter.

So far everything is fine.
I am lucky as I got one of the last USA made AMPEGs.

I keep hearing dreadful things about the current Chinese abominations.

I have recorded a couple of times and played one gig with this amp to date and all is well.

If anything goes wrong later I will update this but I have yet to have any of the problems that so many others are encountering with this amp.

AMPEG/SLM was great.

We will have to hope that LOUD maintains the legacy.

This is as of this writing the single best bass amp I have ever owned.
It is in the top 5 I have ever played through.

I currently own an AMPEG SVT-450H and a 410 HLF cabinet which is superb but I much prefer the B200R as the tone is far juicier.

This amp has alot of pro features. 12AU7 tube in the pre-amp, 4-way EQ, shapable contour with three seperate enhancer buttons, clipping/compression light to limit unwanted distortion due to high output pickups (like my rickenbacker 4003), and a direct output with level control. plus, the 1x15" speaker (i disconnected the horn) sounds great.

The sound quality is very good and powerful; everything i ever expected out of an ampeg (i own a few others).

here's the deal: it's no secret that these things are getting shipped out broken. i hope the people from ampeg read this review. My amp also arrived broken, but i am lucky enough to have a reliable amp guy (dave's sound in whippany, nj). instead of returning it, i had dave look it over and dave found out that these are getting shipped out with the ground cable cut/removed. (i.e. a simple test before shipment would prove that these amps do not work). so, dave fixed mine (i.e. simply put in a gounding wire), but, the last kick in the pants, dave (like other previously authorized ampeg service centers) is no longer an authorized service center, so i had to pay out $65 to get it fixed (non-warranty work). it sounds amazing now, but what a hassle ...

good luck finding an ampeg-authorized service center anywhere near you.

i love this amp, and it completes my rig (rickenbacker 4003, tuner, boss compression, boss bass EQ, boss bass chorus split to A)Boss Bass Overdrive, Holy Grail reverb, Ampeg BA210SP, and B) Boss Super Octave, Ampeg b200r. Very powerful with the 2x10 controlling the punch, and the 1x15 (tube) driving some very heavy low-end. However, there is no excuse for lousy quality control, and poor workmanship. I really hope Ampeg reads this, and notices that they are shipping broken product.

Same as below, this bass combo is basic, and easy to use, which suits me. I really like the low, mid, and high boost, and this amp looks ULTRA cool! Ultra cool 60s vibe!! Tube pre amp is SWEEEET!

This bass works for me, playing 50s and early Beatles era rock. I play Waterstone 4 string basses, a Rickenbacker 4000 bass, and a Gibson Thunderbird through this, and the lows are amazing, but not woofy. GREAT tone.

So far so good, not sure what happened to the fellow below, but mine is solid and very durable. Has casters and is easy to transport. I will gig with it!

No need, so far.

I have been playing bass 25 years, have owned Rickanbacker amps, Acoustic, Fender, Kustom, and now Ampeg, and this is my go to amp for small to medium size gigs. I would replace it if I had to, it has the coolest retro-vibe, and sound is fantastic.

This is a new amp, made in late 2006 or 2007. On paper, it has potential - 200 watts, tube preamp, four bands of EQ and three push button switches for more tone shaping control. Master volume, XLR output and headphone jack. All in all good features for a bass combo.

Only the horn (highs) was working when it came out of the box. So it went right back in the box and back to the retailer. The replacement amp sounds fine ... but there were other quality issues with that one (see below).

I can honestly say that the quality control coming out of the factory where these are made is the lowest I've seen on any musical instrument or amplifier. The first one had a non-functioning LF driver. The second had scuffs all over the tolex and a badly bent chassis, as though it was twisted to fit into the cabinet (or dropped from a substantial height). Though it was functioning, I wouldn't rely on something treated so poorly by the manufacturer.

Product comes with a 1-year warranty, and my retailer has been taking good care of me in the process.

I've been playing for over 20 years. I've owned amps by Fender, Vox, Mesa Boogie, Hartke, and Peavey. I've owned guitars and basses by Ovation, Fender, Carvin, Epiphone, Taylor, and Ernie Ball. A pretty good assortment of gear made in the US, Mexico and China. Most of it has been very high quality (the Ovation had really soft rosewood on the fretboard, and one of the Fender amps had a PC board issue because of tube heat). This is the first product I've purchased with such severe manufacturer issues. I thought Ampeg stood for something special?

Tube Pre, bypassable horn, DI out, Ultra Lo, Mid, Hi switch. 220w
1-15 combo. Blue tolex and silver grill cloth, would have been a nice combo if it worked.

Only the Horn worked. Unable to evaluate. I used to have
a B100R and it sounded good... but this one came pre-broken.

Came out of the box with no sound from the woofer. What a drag.
This is the second SLM Electronics amp I have had come out of
the box not working. The other was a Crate v16 Palamino tube amp.
I feel like Ampeg is WAY over hyped. They have a nice sound...but
you just can't count on them. I've known 2 different people that
had Ampeg guitar amps catch on fire. Not good. Granted, I've had
a lot of bass amp problems from a myriad of manufacturers. I sent
this back and got a used Fender Bassman 100 1-15 combo. Not as pretty, but it works for sure.

I sent it back. If it comes out of the box not working, that is a bad omen for future reliability.

I've been playing about 20 years now. I wanted to love this amp,
but it really let me down. I guess I'm going to have to swear off
Ampeg and Crate. If you buy one of these, I do wish you the best
of luck. They are nice looking and I'm sure they sound good while
they work.