Ampeg BA-115HP 115 Combo

I wont list all features since previous reviews already has, but the there are a couple of things I really like;
- the mute switch and the inbuilt tuner is perfect when on stage. I often slap on my double bass which sometimes brings it slightly out of tune (especially when I use gut strings).
- this is not a high tech combo with 1047626746212 different potts, buttons, switches etc - you dont have to be a rocket scientist to make it sound good. Just plug in and play - its Ampeg sound.
- I bought becasue of it's portability. This thing is quite easy to move around. The casters are great.

Well as I stated before it is Ampeg sound. I mainly play double bass with it and I really like the deep bass it produces.
It is good for small and medium size gigs. The 220 watts isnt enough for bigger plaeces. On the other hand on bigger gigs there's backline.
It sounds much better (with double bass that is) than all the others I had (Randall, GK, Sun, EBS, Peavy, Trace Elliot etc).

I've owned it for about two years now and it only failed once - the fuse blew just before a gig. I replaced it and that was it.

Not much to say here since it is fit.

I've played bass for about 20 years now. This is the best combo I ever owned. If it was stolen I would buy a new one.
With my double bass it just works great an I love the deep bass i t produces - suites the styles blues and rockabilly perfectly.

I don't like a lot of extra crap on amplifiers that I own. They never usually sound as good as pedals, so this amp was perfect. It has the selector switch to dial in the sound that you want, it has a built in tuner with mute switch (This has come in real handy on stage.), it has a tweeter adjustment on the back that is great, and it also has the cd input for practice.

I use both an SRX 4 string with active pickups and an LTD with active pickups. Both of these basses really push this amp and it sounds great. This amp is loud enough to compete with a custom DW drum set with the volume between 3 and 4 with out using a mic. I've seen a lot of people talk about the noise level of the tweeter. You will only notice this while in a quiet place. Not a problem on stage.

I never had an issue with this amp for over 7 months and I have never relyed on having a backup, But during a new years gig I must have blown something because the speakers started to distort. I don't know if it had something to do with playing a 5 hour gig and trying to compete with a DSL 50 Marshall halfstack. It might also have been because I had the gain set up a little high, although after 7 months it never was an issue.

I have never had a better experiance with such a large company. I contacted AMPEG directly for support and they were really helpful. They sent me a replacement(BA115HPT instead of the HP model) as soon as they could because I told them that I needed if for a gig. It took about 5 days. The only problem was that the replacement that I received was a refurbished amplifier and it didn't work when I first turned it on. Once the support was contacted again, they were so appologetic that they put a rush on sending out another one. Haven't got it yet but for the way it sounds I hope that I don't have to get something else.

For how often I play, two or three times a month for about 4 hours and practice 6 or 7 hours a week, this amp performed great. I just hope that the 2nd replacement that I get works. I would perfer to use ampeg equiptment instead of something like Hartke or Peavey.

The amp dosen't have a whole lot of options. It has a mute switch which is good for using the built in tuner while on stage, It has a cd player input for practicing at home, and XLR output to hook up to a PA. It also has a 5 position tone switch that helps to dial in the sound that you want.

I use a ESP bass with active pickups. When the bass eq is turned up this really puts out some low end, Great for rock. With a little bit of adjustment and turning up the horn on the back, It puts out a great slap bass sound.

Have not had a problem with it yet. Owned it for only a short time thou.

Haven't had to use it yet.

There has been a lot of reviews about this amp that say that the 220 watt output dosent seem to be much. When I play with my band I connect to a PA through the XLR so volume is not an issue. All of our amps are only used as monitors since we all either mic our amplifiers or use the built in DI. Playing in the local bars my old amp, a 120 watt Hartke kickback 15, competed with a Marshall DSL50 with a 4X12 and a fender 40watt deluxe and held its own, so I can't wait to hear how this ampeg will do.

I think I bought this amp around 2003-2004. It is supposed to be 200 watts or more. It has very basic controls, which are all I need. Gain, Low, Mid, High, Master. It has a Style switch which makes a nice variety of tones.

I play an old 1985 ESP 4-string.

I play in a party band with some real pro musicians. They love the tone of my amp. On the negative side, I agree with other reviewers who say that this amp doesn't seem to have enough power. I have to crank the gain and the master up high. In our band, the soundman runs my amp through the PA with some nice subs so it is fine out front.

If this amp is what fits your budget, I would say it is pretty decent and you won't be disappointed. I have decided to shop for a more powerful amp. I am staying with the Ampeg brand because it is rated well by a lot of users. I am shopping for a half stack with a 4-10 cabinet. If you want to feel more power and volume on stage, I would recommend a 300wattt or more head with a 4-10 cabinet at least.

I am very satisfied with the sound of this amp. I like a round, full sound and it delivers. This amp only has one 15" speaker, as do most budget priced combos. As a result, the sound is not very defined when you're on stage and close to it. You have to be way out front to hear it with definition. But, again, let me say for the price, this is an excellent sounding bass amp.

It is not noisy at all.

This amp has never let me down. I have used it weekly for 3 years.

What I love about this amp is, for the money and size, it's a great sounding, reliable amp. It's not to hard to tote either

I assume the amp is a 2004/2005 since I just bought it new. I've owned a few bass amps in my life. This amp seems to have all the features I would need in a bass amp. I don't use effects for the bass, so effects loops, etc., aren't necessary. I like the built in tuner. The power "thing" is where I'm a little concerned. I haven't used the amp in a live gig yet, but in my home (and it the store where I purchased it), I had to turn the master and gain controls WAY up in order to get the volume I seemed to be missing. My brother and cousin both have this amp too. My brother has noticed the same thing. However, we agree that the tone is good.

I currently have a Fender 5-string Jazz bass (Marcus Miller). It sounds pretty good through the amplifier. It suits the style of playing I do which ranges from classic rock to country to country-rock.

No comment so far.

Haven't had to use any support yet.

I've been playing guitar and bass for more years than I can remember. I also play and am passionate about the pedal steel guitar. I think this amp will be a good one to have in my collection of instruments. I owned another Ampeg SVT (small combo amp) and loved it. I've owned Crate (which I loved), and an SWR stack...which I didn't love (though it sounded okay turned up in live situations, but it was very noisy!)

Paid $570.00 "out the door" @ Guitar Center in San Bernardino, CA.

Amp was mfd. in May 2004.

I consider Ampeg stuff versatle and I peronally love the Ampeg tone. This little combo delivers exactly that. I use it with a Fender 4-String Jazz and an Ibanez SRX300.

This little amp doesn't bogle the mind with a lot of controls. It has the basics. A three band EQ and a 5 position style control which is basicly a mid-range control. It works great though. It's 220 watts with a single 15" and a compression horn for a tweeter.

This amp the basics. It's a solid state amp w/CD inputs,headphone jack,level control for the high freq. horn, and a balanced D.I out. It also has a built in chromatic tuner which is nice and accurate, mute switch for quiet tunning or changing basses, and it also comes with removeable castors.

The castor are helpful since this thing weighs 85 pounds. It has two built in metal handles in the side of the cabinet and well as the typical strap handle mounted in the top of the cabinet.

I wish it had an effects loop and the ability to ad an extension cab.
You can run effects without the loop but I can't use my Sansamp Bass Driver DI because it seems to conlfict with the Ampeg amp and create a tone that is not real impressive. An effects loop I think should be a standard feature on an amp in this price range.

I use this amp for practice and jam sessions in a small setting. It works great for that. I would use it to gig with in a samll setting as well. Has no problem being heard with our drummer and three guitars running a 65 watt Line6, 65 watt Peavy, and a 60 watt Behringer amp.

It would not compete with guitars running anything more than 65 watts. Our drummer is a bit of a hard hitter but I hang in there no problem.

I use this amp with a Fender Jazz and an Ibanez SRX300 and it is perfect. I primarly use the #2 setting on the style control with both basses, it has a bit of a vintage / tubey / fuzzy sound on that setting and I like it a lot.

It's not noisy. The horn hardly hisses at all. You can get a little hiss when the horn volume is way up. Nothing compared to the tweeter used in the BA115. The DI out is nice and quiet to the board.

I have not heard the amp distort much but I have not ran it past 7 on a consistant bassis. I have ran wide open for a few minutes to see how loud it can get and it had a little distortion but nothing bad. I imagine that if I kept at it the distortion would have become worse as the amp getts hotter.

I play mostly Contempoary Christian Rock, and Punk. Stuff along the lines of TFK, Kutless, 12 Stones on the harder end as well as RelientK, Stellar Kart, and MxPx. It works great for that.

The style setting and EQ lets me change tone for a more mellow Casting Crowns, Jeremy Camp etc. kind of stuff. The amp is very versatle but you have to like Ampeg tone. If you like a Cleaner or Brighter tone than you should look elsewere.

This amp makes a weird low freq thump when it is turned off. I found it kinda weird at first but I was told by Ampeg that it is normal. Noe of my previous amps did that.

I trust this amp to run without a back up. I have to, right now this is my only amp.

Although I have heard that Ampegs QC has gone down a little at the SLM plant in St. Louis it seems solid to me. I have run it for four months now and no problems so far.

Only dealt with the Tech Service people via e-mail. I got a response within 24 hrs. The told me that the low frequency pop is normal when I shut the amp off.

Other than that I have not had to deal with them.

Warranty is one year.

If this amp was lost or stolen I would probably get another one. I really like it. The fact that it doesn't have an effects loop kinda bothers me so it may make me look at a comparable Yorkville if I hard to replace it but it's about 90% that I would replace it with another BA115HP.

The best thing about this amp is it's tone. I love the Ampeg thing and it delivers the tone I like.

I compared this amp to my previous SWR WM15 and the tone of the BA115HP won me over. I gave up a few features that my SWR had but it just plain sounded better to me so I sold my SWR and got the Ampeg.

this amp was made in 2003. as the top reviewer said, it has 5 'styles' and i also use the second style, it really is one of the best noises i've ever heard. it has some sort of high end dial on the back, but i honestly can't tell if it makes any difference! it's got one channel, headphone socket, tres useful mute switch and tuner, and an xlr output (not necessary in smaller venues). i give it nine because its got everything i need/want.

i use a fender mexican p-bass. the sound it produces is powerful, clean, and has loads of low-end warmth and grunt. it is a bit hissy when left on but not annoyingly so. i'm not sure about the variety, but the sound i use is awesome.

i've been gigging regularly for over a year with this amp, and it hasn't given me any trouble.

haven't dealt with them

i've been playing for about 3 years, if it were stolen, i would probably save up my pennies and get an ampeg stack, i.e. a classic svt head and a classic svt cab. the amp is perfect for my needs, and it sounds lovely, thus the ten.

Well, this amp doesnt really have too many. However, what it does have, it does extremely well. The style options, which are essentially pre set eq's, so for bassists that dont know too much about technical stuff (like myself) its a really great feature, it simplifies the whole world of sound. Personally i like Style 2, as with the Sting Ray im running through it it sounds really punchy and powerful - just the sound im looking for. Asides from that, there is a chromatic tuner and a speaker mute button for noiseless onstage tuning and general fiddling, which is rather useful. This amp would get an 9 or 10 were it not for a lack of features, but lets be honest - simple is most effective.

As its an Ampeg there is the traditional ampeg tone - but that doesnt limit what this amp can do at all. The style effects, afore mentioned, ensure an extremely wide variety of sounds, from wooly low frequences (like a 60s fender) to trebly high end stuff for slappers and the like. As ive never really been into that, i prefer the lower end settings. There are low/mid/high knobs for further tailoring. The amp can at times be rather hissy, but when youre whacking up that volume show me an amp that isnt. However, when the power is upped, the tone stays faithful - no distortion that i can discern. All round, marvellous. This will make any bass sound terriffic.

Well ive had this amp a relatively short time (6 months) and it hasnt done anything untoward yet. Ampeg have a reputation for being reliable and durable, so i have no reason to expect any trouble.

Not had to use it yet! thank goodness.

Bloody marvellous. Such a fun amp to play, it blows away any most similar sized amps. If anything, some of the style controls are un-neccessary, i only use two...but that is just personal opinion. I cant possibly see anybody not liking or enjoying the way this amp sounds. Apart from Warwick bassists. 'Cause it doesnt have nice flashy bits. And it isnt a Techmark. If you have around #700 - #1000 to spend on amp and want something that is highly portable (casters and side handles standard), highly reliable and has that all essential nut-crunching sound factor, you cant go wrong with this fine amp.

its a 2003, its got 220 watts of Power. i'm sure its great for allsorts but i don't really have a style, just loud style i suppose, and its awesome for that! its got no output for an extra cab, but i'm Never going to need an extra cabinate because its so loud. its got a headphone jack which is v.useful.

i'm playing it with a beat up 2000 squier p-bass and proud! the styles make it quite flexible, the different sounds that you can make are..great. there are 5 'style' options and i like style 4 with plenty of low frequencies for softer songs and 2 with high frequencies for louder songs. i had the guitar for three years (only started playing with it a year ago (started a band as bass player)), sans amp, so i'm having fun now tom! my days of borrowing are over.

i made it pulse bright orange on the first day i had it by putting some really harsh effects through it, i imagine it was something breaking, but i haven't noticed anything wrong with it since, sonically. i've a years comprehensive warranty on it, so i'm not that bothered.

i've been playing for about a year, yes i know i've already got an ampeg but.....Shut up! i'm a middle class rich kid with an easy life, lets not get deep about it. i love the look of it and the power and the rich sound= it makes my beaten up squier sound like chocolate.. ps. feel free to ask me anything about it by e-mail.

I just got this amp yesterday, quite a step up from a Peavey Microbass. When I was 15 (1975) I got a Ampeg B100 combo amp brand new and I always wanted to try another ampeg. This amp has 1 15" speaker and a 1" compression tweeter. 220 watts of power, has removable casters standard and weighs 80 pounds. Two side mounted handles in addition to the top handle. Not many frills, but the ones that are there are nice, including a built in tuner and a mute button for no noise tuning up, a 5 position style switch ( EQ preset all it is really ) and the standard rotary tone controls. I tried a 115 ( the 100 watt model ) also and this one has a fair amount more volume, so the extra watts work. Also has a DI out which lets you drop your sound after the preamp into the house mix. Really, unless you play with full stack git box users running 100 watt marshalls or have a double drummer thing going, this amp should take care of your needs. I give it a 7 becuase it's not the most full featured amp in it's class out there, but it has what a playing out guy needs.

AMPEG TONE! This thing has it. I find the most useful style setting to be #2 with some highs set on the hi knobs. I like to play old school R & B with stuff like Carole King, Beach Boys, Tommy James -just oldies style feel good music and this amp dials in that sound well. I am not a slapper or popper, I play groove and fingers and thumb style so I know nothing about this amps usability for that stuff. I do know it works well for what I do play. I cant imagine anyone in a band sneering at this thing. Say what you will, but Ampeg is one of the FEW brands that guitar players respect and know about, even if they know nothing about bass. I give it an 8, and it would be a 10 in it's own category. YOu cant compare it to a SVT and a 8 by 10, but in it's own ranking it's sweet.

I'll let you know in a year. My B100 lasted forever. I sold it after 5 years becuase I just didnt use it much - no opinion as of now.

Have not dealt with them yet and hope I dont have to.

I play this right now with one those amazing Rondo music SX basses ( the SX62 MG ) and the combo of the two sounds great. My playing skills are improving and it;s time to start seeking out other musicians and making music in real time. In a past life I was a fluent sight reading alto sax player but my school would not teach bass so when I traded my sax in for a bass over the summer and came back to school in the fall I got quite the shock. ' We dont teach electric instruments HERE ". Pissed me off. Fast forward 25 years and I am still relearning my music education and getting to the point where I can hold my own with anything I hear. Time to get a group going! I bought this amp becuase it was:

PORTABLE at 80 pounds, two side handles and casters included.
TUNEFUL; it's got that warm sweet Ampeg sound.
COMPACT; I dont need to load in and load out hundreds of pounds of gear.
There are some complaints about hiss from other users - I too have some of this but this can be greatly reduced on this model by use of the back panel hi rolloff control which lets you dial off some of your highs. For slappers and poppers this may be trouble but for me I dant care becuase I dont slap and pop and probably never will. Guess what - every other amp in the store hissed a bit when cranked with the hi boost on. SHOCKING, EH!!!!!!!