Ampeg PF-500 Portaflex Reviews

Not reliable

It used to be a nice little amp with huge output. Very "ampegy" sounding. But after about two years of occasional usage it stop working during concert. Since it was after warranty I managed to repair it with the help of trusted electrician who repairs all my stuff. It seemed that it is working. But then after another year I tried using it and it suddenly turns off during playing. A restart helps just for a moment. There is some flaw in the design I think. Before I'll figure out what is the nature of the problem I cannot recommend this product.

Great Ampeg sound

Again in Ampeg and I am not disappointed at all. After SVT3 and Micro VR I Jumped into Hartke, what was the reason to buy powerfull and not so heavy amp to feed 4x12 cab and the results are fantastic. Very satisfied with level control for FX loop. This amp is really loud.

The Ampeg sound for less than 5 kg

Excellent quality, beautiful head.

Plugged to a Mark Bass 2x10 @4ohms, it gives a very powerful sound. With all knobs to 12'o clock, you already recognise the Ampeg sound. Add a bit of basses, medium selector to 2, dig a bit. There you are!!!! Booom.

Can be played without load, only with headphone. The AUX is very useful for playing late at night. The DI is good, you can also send the preamp sound out of the head.

Really happy with this amp.

Amazing sound

Used mainly on stage

Only one Con, a little bit loudy fan but the amp provides great sound its my to go amp for gigs in small and big venues also!

Useful options on the back, the pad helped a lot quite a few times, speaok on and jack for your cabinet!

im telling you again this thing is great!

Good amp for the price

First of all, this amp is a real Ampeg and it gives you that round sound which you are waiting for from Ampeg amps. It powerful enough for practicing with any band and small gigs as well. I use it with Ampeg PF-115HE and they are a great pair!

The cons are very noisy fan and noise of the amp itself at higher volume level.

Overall – it’s a good amp for the price!

Oh My God...

this amp has completely surpassed my expectations. The tone that it can produce is so broad, while still holding onto that distinct "Ampeg sound". I could not recommened this amp enough.

Great sounding ampeg

Sounds great, has many features, it's light... I use this to tour so I don't have to carry around a valve amp.

I'm really happy with it.

Only downside, although that has nothing to do with the item itself, is that it's carrying bag is EXPENSIVE.

After less than a year of use, a broken button, at the back. Never ever ever overdrive the input volume, the DI will vomit ?

Great amp head, does it's job and much more. Good sound and great portability.

Real Ampeg tone!

Well I waited to have some gigs with this "little" one before writing a review. I chose this head because whenever I played an Ampeg rig it was the perfect tone and feels for me, nothing came close to it. At first I was a bit skeptical about the size and weight - it can not deliver the power and tone I need but I was totally wrong. I use it with an SVT410HE + a Hartke HD210 cabs, so I have a 6x10" at 4 ohms, playing a loud metal band with two guitars (Mesa Dual Rectifier + Kemper) and my mates complain about my volume being too loud (gain and master volume at 11 o'clock). I don't had any problems with the head cutting out (many horror stories you can read on the internet) I guess it can happen if the gain is not set properly - you have to adjust the gain until the point the peak light start flashing, than back it up a bit. The other thing is the mid control, this only works if the level is boosted or cut, if you leave it around 12 o'clock you can change frequencies and nothing will happen. I recomend to purchase it with the PF500/800 bag. All in all this is the best Class D amp if you like the Ampeg tone. Check it out.

hard worker, Ampeq quality,

Great Amp!

This a true Ampeg. Real Ampeg sound, solid construction and very easy to achieve a great sound.

The preamp is great. Punchy ampeg sound!

The compressor is very useful. Very transparent when bellow 50%. Squashes when above 50% for slapping, as expected.

The EQ is very well balanced throughout the frequency. It's very easy to achieve a great sound.

I think that, for a 500watt amp, there should be a little more headroom. But not a major problem.

Pros:

Ampeg tone. Ease of use. Solid construction. Great EQ. Great preamp. Good compressor.

Cons:

Low headroom for a 500watt amp.

Vintage tone in a modern head!

I love this amp, you're able to get an old vintage tone wihtout breaking the bank....or your back!

Super lightweight but it sure packs a punch!

very hard to find a fault with this amp, it looks great and sounds great!

very portable but poor sound and quality

This thing is just to midrangy! What ever you do you can't remove this anoying midrange, kept it for like 2 weeks and sold it.

A good basic amp

Before getting the PF500 I had been using an Ampeg SVT200T solid state full size 350 watt head for 20+ years. I loved that amp and frankly still would if it wasn't so damn big & heavy. So I was hoping that the PF500 would have the same tone. Sadly it doesn't really and the EQ is much less useful. The Ultra Lo and Ultra Hi buttons are useless because the Ultra Lo also adds a high boost (!). The compressor isn't good enough really as a bass really needs a 2 band compressor for best performance. If I was Ampeg I'd ditch the compressor and the FX blend knob and use the spare space for 2 more EQ bands.

Having said all this, I do like the PF500 because it has been reliable and sounds good when driven with a bass with good active EQ. It also fits nicely into the gig bag for the TC Electronic RH450. Paired with a couple of Gallien Krueger Neo 112 Mk2 cabinets it makes a nice compact rig that can be carried from car to venue in 1 trip.

PS: The front panel LED is pink/purple (not blue) ;-)

Ampeg quality in build and sound

The amp is powerful enough for large venues yet light enough to be carried in its bag with one hand. It sits on top of the Portaflex cabinet, which can either be a 1 x 15 making for easy carrying, or the heavier PF-410. I love the big valve amps that Ampeg make but at my stage of life those really need a roadie to manage and I am happier with my Portaflex 500. For practising at home it's ideal as it has a minijack input for my iphone or computer and a headphones out connection, so that I can learn songs more easily and practise anytime of day or night.

Bought this with the Ampeg PF-210HE Portaflex and they are a match made in heaven. The head screws on to the cabinet lid which can be flipped over then to store the head safely inside the cab. The head being screwed onto the cabinet also ensures it is safely secured.

In terms of sound I am getting some lovely tones off the EQs and its well able to handle the low B String.

Ampeg Pf-500 Portaflex

The Ampeg Pf-500 Portaflex is very nice and has such a great tone. I use it with a Gallien Krueger 2*10 box with 8 ohm. Thats enough for practice and when this is not enogh you can get another 8 ohm box for the amp.

I like the weight of 5 kg, so the amp is not to lightweight and will fall down from the box because of the vibrations. The quality of the Ampeg Pf-500 is very nice, too. The compressor do his job and the light under the Ampeg lettering looks realy cool and you can see the knobs when it is dark on the stage.

I think the Ampeg Pf-500 is a realy nice amp for those which want a great tone and dont want to carry to much.