1977 Ampeg VT-22 V-4 Grounding Structure

Ampegs are fairly unique in their structure, circuits, tube compliments and even sound. One hallmark of many Ampegs from the 60s through the 70s (and possibly beyond) is their grounding structure.

A misunderstanding of the grounding setup in many of these amps can lead to a lot of frustration and teeth gnashing. This is compounded by the fact that it is hard to find an all original, untouched vintage Ampeg - it is rare to find one of these that has not been serviced to some degree.

If the amp was serviced by someone who does not have a strong understanding of how Ampegs are built, it is likely that while they may have thought they were applying good servicing techniques, they undermined the inherent structure of the amp, leading to noise, hum, poor performance and worse.

I happily have come across a completely unmolested Ampeg VT-22/V-4 which gave me the opportunity to clearly show how the tricky ground structure in the amp is set up. Hopefully this will provide you with a good understanding of how to approach these amps if you come across one - especially if it has been incorrectly serviced in the past.