Amplified Music Products BH-420 Head

I've had this amp new since spring 1986. I've had other amps but so far this is the one I choose to keep. It has a very clean sound through the XLR direct output. Great crossover capabilities. I play through two 8" subwoofer monitors at home for practice and an Ampeg speaker enclosure one with 4x10. On outdoor gigs I'll add a 15". Real tight sound! Too bad the company's no longer around. I'd like to find another reliable amp like this that's more updated, mine is a bit worn out looking. Other players laugh, saying it looked too much like a dinosaur until they played through it. The parametric eq is simple but has an amazing broad range of adjustments for the different styles of music I'm involved with. I've only had one problem, the second month that year that I used it at a club gig,Ibanez 1305 it crapped out on me. The repairs took 9 days because of parts. But during that time they upgraded some circuits and componants. I've never had any problems since then.

Ibanez 1305 five string w/active p/u Dean Markley bass strings
.127 on the bottom .047 on top

It broke down the second month of use in summer 1986. Got it repaired and upgraded under warentee. Never had any problems since then.

They were the best the time they stayed in business. Took care of me "a nobody" answered my questions and stayed in contact till the repairs were finished.

been playing since high school, started with a P bass, Traynor amp with an Ampeg SVT-9 Speaker (real heavy) had lots of different rigs since then but so far a great hunk of junk!

I have the smaller version of this one, AMP BH-260 but I thought it might go well under this also. If not, feel free to make a own heading for it and move this one.

This one is basically the same as the bigger one, biggest difference is that this one does not have that much power. Also this one does not have a limiter. BH260 has anyway in its backpanel following equipment: Pre-EQ Direct output, Post EQ Line out, Effects send and return, Biamp outputs for low and high freqs, pwr amp input, headphones jack, two speaker outputs, electricity jack and a fuse.

In the front panel there is +10dB and + 0 dB inputs, Volume, Enhance button, Bass & Treble setting, 3-way EQ , Tone and power switch.

I?ve been using mine in rehearsals and touring for six years without problems playing rock and metal. It is basically everything I want a bass amp to be. Simple and solid.
And yes, it has all the power I need.. normally I use a 15" + 4x10" cabinets with it and it
surely makes right kind of noise. I do have a case made just for it and yes, it weights a bit.

I ?ve been using 80?s Ibanez roadstar and roadster basses with it. Very good combination. Tone I get these is grooving and yet it has lots of low freqs (not humming by any sense, very tight) with nicely clean high freqs. I also use Carl Martin effect pedals (the fuzz, compressor, Delayla) and they truly match together. I tend to put allmost everything from the low freqs on and also everything from the high freqs also and then turn a bit of the "tone" to the high side.

Had just a couple of moments when it didn?t say a word but these went off when it got warmed up.

they are not anymore there so I have no opinion.

There was a time when I was selling it but thank god I came to my senses! If it broke up I ?d find a new one.. if you see one, don?t hesitate to buy it! A great tool for a bassist. Even sounds reasonable with guitar also!

The amp itself holds well to my taste in music(metal,rock,grunge). 2 channels, one at -10dB, an effects loop and headphone jack and 2 recording outputs. It has a limiter and gain control, 4 band EQ and volume, crossover and volume control. I use this amp for band practice and at parties and it gives me the power i need- even though i am underpowering the cab (yamaha 2x10)

Peavey Foundation 2000 with the high end EMGs. It suits my style well with a good warm low end sound (play metal). The amp is ver versatile in sounds whether you use a pick, finger or slap. I generally dont turn the amp up past half, so I do not have any distorion in the sound but if you do crank it youll get distorion. The distorting sound is genrally a humming/buzzing.

The real only time it crapped out was at band practice, and all that fixed it was letting it warm up. This is a solid amp, definately road worthy. Has survived from about the early 80s to 2006 and still going strong for me. And i would definately take to a gig without back up

Never had to deal with AMP, i think they went under

Been plaging for 2 years, and if it was gone i'd get something new. I love that it still plays like a dream. The only thing i hate is that it makes me look like im from the 80s.

This is approximately a 1986 model. I bought it new from a music store that was going out of business for slightly less than the wholesale price(I paid $410.00). A very reliable, quiet and powerful amplifier that got me through all of the metal years in L.A., at least from '88 til the scene died in the early 90's.
Single channel, 400 watts into 4 ohms, worked great pushing a vintage Ampeg 8x10 cabinet. The most elaborate eq section that I've ever seen on a bass amp. Has a very clean sound, similar to a Gallien-Krueger 800RB without the bi-amp ability. Works well for jazz and lots of other styles,although I've found that I prefer the slightly warmer sound of a tube pre-amp section, such as the Ampeg SVT-3 pro or the SWR SM-400. Wish it was stereo like the SM-400. Otherwise, a great sounding, perfectly reliable amp after 19 years of steady use.

Bought brand new in 1983.

Use it with a 5 string Warwick Thumb and an ampeg cabinet. Very versatile. Have had numerous sound guys tell me it's the quietest bass amp they've ever dealt with.

Has survived 23 years of hard use in Army bands all over the world - inside, outside, hot, cold, rained on, knocked over - never a problem.

Early on (1984-1985) I was concerned at how hot it got (fry an egg hot). AMP was quick to respond to my letter and assured me it wasn't a problem. Too bad they're gone.

Has been a great amp. Not many $700 investments last this long.

Such USEFUL features and POWER packed into this subtle looking box. Bought this very used and it had some problems when I bought it, but they are intermitent. One, the power stays on when you switch it off. Two, sometimes there's no sound at all until you crank the volume and gain to 7 or 8 and then it crackles and eventually punches through (gotta give the b string a good SLAP). I've managed to work around these issues mainly because the company doesn't exist any more and I've had a hell of a time finding a manual or internal diagrams. When it's working, it's a beauty, sounds very TUBE-LIKE for a solid state amp. EQ is only 4 bands but frequency range is quite nice. Best amp head I've ever had! Just wish I knew how to fix this puppy.

Sounds crisp and clean, even at high volumes. Enhance button adds a nice highend boost but I personally prefer to stick with the EQ for finding a tone. Good bottom, good mid, crisp top. Very nice sounding amp.

As mentioned, I do have the 2 problems, but they do come and go. I've used the amp at shows before, but I've had it go dead on me at a couple gigs too. Not fun, that's why I NEED to get this baby fixed. I wish the company was still around.

How long ago did this company go out of business. I've heard something of the AMP SWR connection too, what's that all about?

I run this with a mesa boogie 4x10. When it works, it's the best. Can't be trusted on account of the malfunctions mentioned here. ANYONE know how to get this bad boy fixed? I'd love to have a good working amp, and I cannot afford to buy one.

I bought it used in 95. Run it with a Yorkville 1x18 and an ampeg 2x10. Sounds fat and generally pretty good. Has two channels, one is direct, and the other is boosted by 10dB. Two four ohm speaker outlets, headphone jack, power amp input, high and low frequency biamp outputs, an effects loop, and pre and post eq recording outputs. Its got a semiparametric equalizer, a built in limiter with "enhance", an effect which is pedal or button operated and tightens up the upper end giving a tube-y sound with lots of lower-end punch (some say its a tad eighties-cheesy, but i personally like it). It has a tone balancer, and an adjustable crossover selector. Lots of power in this unit, clean crisp sound from 5dB to 90dB. Turn it up loud, and people a block away will be calling the cops.

I use it clean and sometimes with envelope filter, echo box, or octaver, and it occasionally gurgles when cranked with the limiter turned off entirely. I use a Fender Jazz with out of phase pickups through it, and the cleanliness of the sound from the BH420 presents the music well. When listening to it, you can pretty much immediately tell this is not a tube amp, but it does sound remarkably fat for a solid state unit. This amp can make a natural distortion by cranking the gain, but playing loud and hard like this makes it sound like its going to blow something. The enhance feature is nice, but the sound is definitely eighties/early nineties. It hums a bit when cranked up, but overall is pretty smooth. Despite all this though, its still lacking in what I would call "roundness of feel". A good tube amp, though more expensive, still blows this away.

Aside from the odd blown fuse, this thing has never failed. It was well used before it came my way, and I have played probably over a thousand hours since i bought it. It has never crapped out on me, unlike my own and friends' more expensive SWR, Ampeg and Fender bass amps.

Never had to attempt to contact them, but I understand they are not around.

I've been playing over 20 years, and have owned several bass amps, many of which I still have. Compared to other amps, it holds its own, especially in the reliability department. Lost or stolen, I would try to replace it, I have already been trying to find another one for years, as its utility in the studio is great. I love its reliability, and versatility, and the fact that it stay clean even when cranked. It provides an even, clean tone for recording and sounds quite smooth in studio. I also dislike a few things though, I hate how it weighs about 30 pounds all crammed into one corner of the amp case, making it darn near impossible to carry evenly. I wish the equalizer had more channels, four isnt enough, and a tube preamp would have been nice. It also could use a little eye candy, its just black on black, with no handle.

These amps were also sold under the GIBSON brand in the early 90's. I had one, sold it, and now regret it. I've also heard there is an A.M.P. - SWR connection, like it was the same engineers, but I'm not sure.

Prototype of the "modern" bass sound. Clean, hi-fi.

all solid state.

out of bidness

I think these are the best kept secret bass heads around. Probably selling in the $175-250 range, but compare to SWR heads @ $1000 us

I'm not sure what year it was made in, probably mid nineties.
400 watts into 4 ohms, awesome Parametric eq, bi ampable, efx loop included. Tone balance, crossover and limiter. It also has a very good DI, which you can use in its pre or post EQ forms. a lot of stuff

This is an extremely versatile head, hard to get though. I play mostly rock, and it has a very warm song, almost tube like, which is perfect for my taste. A great thing is that th amp WILL NEVER DISTORT, giving you endless clean tone. It is also extremely quiet in operation.

There is a footswitchable option called "enhance", which gives you a modern sound when pressed, a growly sound when depressed. Great feature.

The EQ is very broad, and allows for an extensive variety of tones.

I have had it for over 5 months, no problems. Very sturdy and dependable, barely heats up.

N/A, the company is Defunct.

A.W.E.S.O.M.E.!!!!!!!

I play my Washburn XB-200 through it, coming out of a Yorkville 2x10 and i get pretty loud and warm. It is an amazing head, no matter the price tag. I only know another guy who owns it, and uses the same setup (2x10), he is also in love with it.
I am looking to expand a bit and buy a 1x15, I'll keep you posted.

Oh, and if you see one, don't hesitate, BUY IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!