Ampeg R-12R Reverberocket

1961 Reverb Rocket, 1x12, Volume, Tone, Reverb, Speed, Intensity, foot switch for reverb and tremolo. This amp has the basic "vintage" controls that you need to get a great blues or jazz sound. 1x12 Jensen speaker(original). It is original, stamped May, 1961 on the inside of the back cover. Used to be Grandpa Pat's, thanks grandpa.

When my 69 Twin caught on fire, I began to use the amp extensively, it sounds fantastic. Using a Strat with Texas specials you get the SRV sound you need. Very sensitive and clear.(tubes havent been changed in 20 yrs.) Turn the tone to 0 and reverb to 0 and using a Les Paul, you get the sweet tones of Reverend William F. Gibbons and the ZZ Top reformation church. Add a Danelectro Fab tone and you have the sounds from "Live Fandango" Jail House Rock. The sound is to beat - I a have seen this amp going for $500 at Guitar center(the vintage section), it was handed down from my grandpa and it sat at the house for years before I fired it up. Was he playing ZZ top at those square dances in the 60's though? maybe he was...

No problems yet....the tubes are bizarre, hope you never have to find NOS tubes for this...if you do need them ..look on the internet, they are out there. It used to have a bad buzz, but a re-seated the tubes and it was gone.(I also said a few Texas Blues prayers..it worked).

N/A. Pull the back panel and you will see a point to point hand wiring job that would make Dr. Z and Leo Fender smile.

Sounds as gob as a black face Fender Reverb. As for Re-issue AMPEQ's...sorry..lets not go there. Overal ratting is a 10+, for what you would pay to get this amp it is worth it..chicken head knobs and all. It has a great Jazz sound also with adding some reverb. Here I go - I think it sounds as #$@% good as any old Fender out there - it is only 25-30 Watts. Sound must be a function of the original Jensen speaker and hand wired magic added to it. Grandpa bought it at a pawn shop along with a 55 Les Paul Jr(I still have). He paid $60 for both in the early 60's. New tubes would probably do wonders. Very Light AMP. It did get the Ultimate nod of approval from Cleveland guitar God, Mr. Glenn Schwartz(James Gang, PG&E) and local Cleveland guitar zen master Micheal Bay. I heard next week's surmound at the ZZ Top Reformation Church by Willy F. Gibbons will be on the good deeds of the AMPEQ Reverb Rocket. Get your Les Paul or Strat, turn the AMP to 10 and place your hands on it brothers for some soul healing.....

This is an original early-60's reverbrocket. It has one channel, three inputs (guitar/mic/accordion), a volume control, a "tone" control, tremolo speed/intensity, and reverb (they call it "echo dimension"). It runs on two 7591 power amp tubes (used very rarely in amps...it's a hi-fi tube) and puts out about 25 watts. It has an excellent tone and a reverb that I find superior to any Fender built-in reverb, but not as nice as my '63 Fender reverb tank. The interior is really clean and solid looking, comparable to a tweed Fender or any other quality tube amp from the 50's or early 60's.

I used to use this amp at blues gigs with a Telecaster. I guess I didn't mind putting it on "7" and playing quietly because the band wasn't really loud. Now I play in a surf band, and man, we're LOUD, so the ampeg doesn't do stage duty any more. Nonetheless, this is an awesome amp. The clean sounds easily rival Fender's smaller combos (like Deluxe reverbs) and the overdriven sound is a bit like a tweed Fender but a little clearer and more "hi-fi" because of the 7591 tubes. Only complaint is that in some places the reverb picks up the radio. It's totally silent in a well-grounded environment.

When I got this amp it had an original Jensen alnico speaker. It sounded like a dream until I fried the speaker. Since then, I've gone through a bunch of 12" speakers trying to find one that sounds as good. I tried an Eminence and it sucked, I tried a different Jensen (ceramic) and it wasn't really right, either. Naylor speakers are pretty good, but man I wish I'd taken better care of that original Jensen. Otherwise, like anything else I've owned from the early 60's, it takes a beating and never complains. Now THAT'S American quality workmanship, not like that printed-circuit-board crap they make now.

I've never needed customer support, but considering how crappy new Ampeg reissues are (they aren't even CLOSE to the same circuit) I won't be counting on them.

This is a great little amp as far as 25-watters go. It's not loud enough for stage work (in my case, at least) but it sounds really good. I'd love it if the reverb tank didn't act as a radio receiver in about half the places I use it in, but oh well...I guess I should just get two more of these (they're cheap compared to early 60's Fenders...but for how much longer?) and play through three at the same time. If you ever see one of these (or a Gemini with a 15" speaker)grab it because it's a great deal for low-volume blues or rockabilly.

My amp was a 1-12 combo with 50 watts of power, channel switching, reverb and an effects loop. This amp could be used in severl diffenrt styles of music. I used it to ply funk, rock & roll, country, and jazz. It was powered by 3 12ax7 preamp tubes and 2 EL-34 power amp tubes.Getting heard over a loud drummer was not a problem with this amp. The only feature I wish this amp had was an external speaker jack.

I used a Gibson flying V for a majority of my playing through this amp. It really had a good sound that could be coaxed at all levels. I was really surprised at how much distortion this amp could produce on it's own. I stopped bringing my RAT distortion pedal.

This is where it lost me. I went through 3 pairs of power tubes in less than a year. The first was a pair of stock Sovtek's, the second a pair of Meas Boogie's(sounded best), and last a pair of Groove Tubes (noisiest). I would play with this amp at practice and the volume would just go down farther and farther. Turn it on standby for 15 minutes and the volume would return (This process would take about 2 hours). I finally sold the amp because the clean channel had more noise than the dirty(?!?)I also had the Groove Tubes in at the time.

Part of my tube problem was mine was an early model. Mine left the factory with no tube retainers on the power amp tubes. Looking at the new Ampegs they figured this out. They put what is called a tube cage around the power amp tubes. They also changed from the fragile EL-34's to a much durable 6L6. If you don't believe me look at how many more old Fenders are running than Marshalls.

I would give you guys a warning. If you buy this amp(it is a good one) i would reccommend the 6L6 version only. I think that it was an unhappy marriage of vintage vibe and contemporary features. Working musicians need relaiability not coolness. In all fairness i still play the new Ampegs. I now own a Super Jet 1-12 R With 6L6 Tubes. I use it in conjunction with my RAT distortion box. The super jet is a keeper.

Good features for the money

Like I said before, the distortion washes out the highs and it gets worse after only 1-2 months. Clean channel is still awesome. Great if you want an accoustic or strictly blues early rock sound.

Had to take it in after Nashville show, the distortion channel was fluctuating volume as well as highs. Midwest Music in Cincinnati bent over backwards to keep me happy. Great store. Handle came apart after 2 months.

Called about handle and they sent me one, COD! I didn't even bother to sign for it. If they don't stand behind their damn handles, what about the rest of it. Traded it in immediately.

Been playing 20 yrs and I hate to say that this is the worst luck I've had with an amp, but it is. It has a GREAT clean/blues/moderate distortion sound but you can't get very heavy. I traded it in for a Mesa Boogie DC-3 which I hope I'll love in 3 months as much as I do now. I would still recommend this amp for blues, jazz, and 60's rock, just have them throw in a couple of extra handles.

Great for blues classic rock style. 2 channels; 1 clean no master,2 overdrive with master volume. Reverb. 2 inputs guitar and accordian-6db adjustment. Line in/out for direct out recording or effects loop (not real good for a loop). 50W 1 12" 3 12ax7's 2 el34's Groove tube. Real cool blue tolex prism cover (gets noticed).

WOW what reverb! From light to Drainage tunnel echo! Better than I've heard on most fenders at higher prices. Beautiful clean channel. Overdrive as good or better than Fender Hot Rods, almost as good as Marshall JTM30 with much better reverb and clean. Use Lone Star Strat, Epi LP Custom, Jackson w/EMGs. Play Blues/classic rock. Get all kinds of positive comments on the sound and all I use is the amp and a Danelectro Daddy'O. With all distortion cranked can almost reach METAL land. Great controlled feedback, chirps etc.. A little noisy on overdrive channel in the studio. Overdrive channel washes highs a bit.

Seems to be built tough. Metal corners, muti layer leather carry strap. Gig with it a couple of times a month. Thought about selling it but fell in love after first full volume gig.

1 year warranty. Hope I don't find out.

Unless you need full metal, try it. Been playing 20yrs and it is probably most versatile. Compared it to above amps and chose it hands down. The only thing I would think of replacing it with would be a rack processor amp cabinet setup or digital modeling amp(but I don't need those). Less is more in this case.

This is the new 'retro' look amp line from Ampeg. It has 1 12 inch speaker (there's also a 2 12 config),and channel switching between two channels. The first channel is straight volume, no master. The second has the usual volume and gain. The reverb sounds very good, as close to fender as i've heard on the newer amps. The channels and 'verb are footswitchable. The other controls are bass, mid and treble. they actually function differently betwwen channels, with the gain channel not haiving as much mid boost. There's also a standby next to the power switch. It has two inputs, the first, labled guitar, is balanced at 0db- the second labled accordion has a -6db cut. There's a line in/out for fx as well. The retro tolex looks great, and the amp is very sturdily built. Tube-wise it has three 12ax7's and two el34's. (groove tube supplied)

The only reason i tried this amp to begin with was because i needed a spare, and the store owner had had this amp for a year and wanted to move it out, so he offered it to me for $275. Well, what the hell, right? i'd been using a peavey delta blues that served me real well, but i play five hours a night, three nights a week and i was a little nervous about the peavey holding up. SO... i tried the amp in the store with a 335 and it really sounded nice! the list was over $800 for the ampeg so $275 was a great deal, i thought.
The first night i got it on stage, however, i was in for a shock- it sang, it screamed, it purred...i use a '57 strat reissue and an epiphone les paul standard, and they sounded better than i'd ever heard them before! i'm in a house band at a notoriously rough club, and man, if they don't like you, you know it right away- and even the crowd was saying things like 'kickass sounds, dude!'
with the strat, the clean channel stays shimmery clean up 'til 6 or so, then it starts to get that bite that bites harder when you dig in to the strings- laying back keeps the chords sparkling on top. The bass response is nice and tight, no breakup at all. on the gain channel, it was a cakewalk to get the SRV sound- using the neck pickup even put out a scorching ritchie blackmore howl.
the les paul was a whole different story tho- on the clean channel on 6, i would swear it was running through a bassman- no real distortion, but the stinging and biting it put out felt like billy gibbons or clapton with the bluesbreakers- i haven't run it through the gain channel yet (no need) but i'm sure it'll be more of the same.

i've had this amp for three months now- so that's 36 five hour nights at high volume in a smoke filled, humid sticky environment with no problems- it has a five year warranty but since i haven't needed it, i don't know how responsive the company is.

the amp came with a little booklet on tube amp care which i thought was a good idea- but again, i haven't had any dealings with the company, so i don't know what their servive is like.

i've been playing 20 years- i have a couple of strats, a epiphone les paul standard, and old ibanez les paul custom as well as an ibanez korina flying 'v' and a samick copy of a gibson super 400, which is a monster- they ALL sound better through this ampeg!
i retired the peavey delta blues after i heard the full power of the reverbrocket- in fact, i'm going to see how much i can get in trade on it 'twords the 2-12 reverbrocket!
what i love most about this amp is it's sound- absolutly outstanding. i can't really find anything to dislike about it- maybe i wish they came in different colors? i absolutely love this amp.