I haven't used a tube amp as my main squeeze in 6 years - back then it was a Fender Bassman and an Ampeg Gemini.
Well, after being very impressed by an overpriced Ampeg Superjet reissue today, I pulled the BIN trigger on a Jet J-12R II. The Superjet was lush and impossibly clean and lovely, so I'm hoping the J-12 will be similar.
It's a 15Watt, 1x12, Class A w/EL84 combo with reverb like this:
These are ungodly loud and stay pretty clean, so I'll hopefully be able to keep up with my band now. It ended up coming to $250 shipped, which is awesome for a MIA all-tube combo. If I don't like it it can always go back on eBay after the holidays.
Full report when it arrives...
Last edited by Will on Thu Jan 01, 2009 1:44 am, edited 1 time in total.
Alright, I got my hands on this thing Monday and finally sorted out a random shut-down issue. It was $250 total, so I can't complain about the few simple fixes. It's not Class A, which is no big deal but I wish companies could get their literature right.
Stock, it's pretty good. The cleans are super clean and it has a lot of punch. The speaker sucks, though, and is a little under-powered for the amp. I swapped it for a Weber Alnico 12. I also put in a set of GT EL84-S's and a couple old 12AX7s I had laying around. Replacing the switch and fuse fixed the power-off problem.
It sounds really excellent for cleans. It has the general midrangy sound of a tweed Fender amp, but with almost unlimited headroom. One thing I noticed today is that, even on 10, there's almost no tube distortion - it's almost all speaker breakup. The sound is distinctly early-60's. Gritty, twangy, and woody. It's also absurdly loud for it's size. I don't think I'll have any problem keeping up with a band at rehearsal and it probably will handle most gig situations.
My only gripes are with the build. There are a couple design problems (like the power switch being right under where the chassis screw goes in). The pots and jack are a little iffy, the handle could break at any second, and the tube sockets are PCB-mounted. Speaking of which, the PCB looks like it was laid out by a monkey. Can't complain, though, as it idles dead quiet. Everything else is OK.
I think it is a good, cheap alternative to a Fender Deluxe or similar low-powered amp, the only difference being the total lack of distortion. It you're just looking for cleans (jazz or country/surf clean in particular), it's a great amp. I'll record a demo tomorrow.
Hope you don't mind me reviving an old thread but I have been searching for all the info I can find on these Ampeg Jet II Reissues and the newwer PTP J-20 amp and this one came up. I am looking for a the smallest amp I can find that can keep up with a band for rehearsals unmiked so spec wise these amps have caught my eye (seem similar to a Blues Jr but for some reason I am not too keen on them). Do you still have it and do you have any updated opinions on it over the past year? I would like something that gets a nice loud clean on the verge of break up and will use pedals if I need more distortion. I can find one of each right now locally (well within 100 miles) but unfortunately they seem a little over-priced (there seem to be some deals in the US but by the time I ship and pay duty I might as well pay more locally). Any other suggestions for what I am looking for? Thanks.
tolex reminds me of my fav ss bass amp i ever had, i loved it so much, miss it so much.
but ampeg is class. $250 shipped is great
Ya, it's so hard to tell by the reviews what to think about it. Half the people say its great build quailty and louder/cleaner than a blues jr and the other half say the opposite. The one I found is the tremolo/reverb version in mint condition but they want $500 CDN. I should just go test it out but I don't think I am going to be able to tell it if will meet my needs by trying it in someones house (cause I won't be able to crank it) and am afraid if I don't like it I will not be able to move it without taking a pretty big hit (I see them listed for 250-350 used in the US but in less pristine condition). They sure do look great though!
EDIT : I should add that the key is that I can use it for rehearsal as I already have my home practice amp needs covered (Vox AC4 - love it but did not just not quite cut it at band level and no clean whatsoever at that volume, and a Champ 600)
Will wrote:It's a fine amp, but you can do much better for $500. At $250 it was a good deal, but I wouldn't pay much more in any condition.
Thanks for the reply...found some more of your postings since about some of the issues you encountered (and I am not at all handly like you appear to be). Are there other amps you would suggest then in that price range? The Ampeg J-20 looks intriguing too (hand wired offshore with trem but no reverb, alnico speaker and solid pine cabinet) but I can only find this one new for $750 CDN. Looks good though in theory : http://www.ampeg.com/products/diamondbl ... index.html and the PGS demo is amazing (though Andy seems to make me want to buy EVERYTHING) :
The J-12 Jet is rather poorly designed and had a pretty regular problem with the filter caps. Mine's fine now, but it took a lot of work to get it there.
I'm honestly out of the current tube amp market - I'm more of a SS guy. The ones I've been impressed with have actually been Blackheart, though I'm sure there are other better options.
The J-12 Jet is rather poorly designed and had a pretty regular problem with the filter caps. Mine's fine now, but it took a lot of work to get it there.
I'm honestly out of the current tube amp market - I'm more of a SS guy. The ones I've been impressed with have actually been Blackheart, though I'm sure there are other better options.
Thanks for your help. I tried a new J-20 and it was really nice, clean and LOUD (looks awesome too!) but not extremely versatile and I prefer reverb to trem so I passed (the new price was probably OK if these had any resale value but I doubt they do, especially since they were blown out for $300 recently). So I took a chance on a Jet II J-12R (same as yours) for $300 with an upgraded Jenson speaker. The seller has great feedback and says it sounds good and does not have any issues so hopefully I will be happy with it...can't wait to get it.
