LeftyBassist.com

Hi All,

I've been dabbling in the GC used gear section again in my continual quest for tone on a budget. I've snagged an Eden WT300 and a Mesa Walkabout so far, and now I'm treading into the murky waters of preamps. I have an old Ampeg SVT IIP preamp (pic below of a similar unit) on its way to me. Initially, I plan to test it out using the power amp section of one of my current heads, but long term I will plan on pairing it with a power amp of its very own. Only problem is I have zero experience in this area. From what I can glean from TB and elsewhere, input sensitivity is pretty important. The SVT IIP has an output listed as 1 V RMS max, with 3.5 V RMS if the EQ is engaged. I see a ton of used Crest, QSC and Crown power amps out there, so I'd be very grateful for any experience you fine folks have had with such units. For example, the QSC GX5 is pretty common, looks like it would give me plenty of power, and can be snagged for a good price. It has a sensitivity of 1.2 V RMS, so I do not know if that's a good match, or not. Anyway, any advice most welcome.

Cheers,
Dave

Great find, those are really cool preamps! I use its successor, the SVP-PRO, extensively (almost exclusively), straight to the PA. I love it!

I can't really help you out with your question though, sorry. I always use it stand-alone into the PA with in-ear monitoring, and during rehearsals I go into the FX return of my EBS HD350 (I know, I know, a shame for such a great amp to be used that way, but I just like the Ampeg tone better).

Thanks for the info Jeroen!