I definitely remember that one, I just didn’t know it was an Ampeg.
I had no idea Ampeg made basses. Now that Yamaha owns them I wonder if they will make more 
I like this kind of neck heel where the neck enters entirely into the body (like on the Yamaha SBV)
Gastonhav How do you like the GT1-B…I have the GT-1 for my electric guitars. Is the GT-1B worth picking up…?
@Holly.S This has turned into a pretty interesting research endeavor.
What is making this difficult is that Ampeg didn’t make a whole lot of any of their bass models. They tried over and over again to get into selling instruments but based on some speculative numbers I’ve come across they were never very successful.
To make things more difficult, with each new buyout the company has gone through, old records were either discarded or destroyed and the history has been rewritten to focus on the very successful core business of amplifiers.
The DA in the serial number almost certainly stands for Dan Armstrong. He was the person that designed the original Lucite bass back in 1969, as seen in the picture @terb posted. These were made circa 1969-1971 and list for anywhere between $3,500 and $6,000 but the didn’t seem to make any wood bodies at that time and none of them were made in Japan.
The mid 70’s brought us the terribly named Ampeg Stud Bass. With models of Big Stud and Little Stud. They were Japanese knock offs of Fender and Gibson. (Damn, those names are so very 70’s awful.)
From 1997-2001 there was an era of American made Guitars and then they tried again in 2005 with a reintroduction of the Dan Armstrong.
All that makes it even more confusing because yours would have been 2003 or earlier and was made in Japan which doesn’t fit into any of the (unofficial) information I could find.
This is when I got a little frustrated. I did image searches based on the picture you posted using both google image search and bing image search and still nothing. The only picture I could find on the whole internet for your bass is the one full body picture you’ve posted here.
Then I found this…
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Ampeg-Electric-Bass-Guitar-Short-Scale-MIJ-Dan-Armstrong-RI-Quilt-Maple-Rare/283840786151?hash=item42163aaee7:g:DbIAAOSwNlVejV6S
There isn’t any specific information about where or when it was made but it does go to show how rare this instrument is and it has a list price for $850.
Edit: I did find some Ampeg guitars that were Made in Japan from 1998 and 2000 using the same body shape. I meant to include that to give some reference for when it was probably made.
Not seen many Ampeg basses around, which makes it a cool instrument to have. A bass made in Japan 20 years ago is also likely a good one. Some really good basses come out if Japan. MIJ is considered as good/better as MIA or MIG to most. Ampeg likely used one of the well known factories there. If it feels good in your hands I’d say it’s a keeper for sure. Nice to have an unusual bass and nice to have a bass with a cool story behind it like yours.
@JT Absolutely! Really cool bass for so many reasons. I look forward to hearing some samples.
also check the Viking bass from Hagstrom , seems to be from this design
@eric.kiser That was some fascinating and fast research! Thanks for all the insight on my girl’s history. It may not have come up on your screen, but on that same Ebay link in the “customers also looked at…” section, there is a bass identical to mine: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Ampeg-Bass-See-description/ The description matches your findings, so it looks like the information you gave is a little more official than you thought. I bought it in 2001, so it is absolutely part of the '98-'03 Japanese line.
I forgot to mention that it is a short scale bass, which may also be part of the reason a guitar shop guy recommended it for my 13-year-old hands. It still feels perfect for me in terms of size and shape, so yes, @T_dub, this one will always stay in my bass family as the original baby.
Currently, the knobs crackle a bit when turned and the switch no longer works, though a friend and I connected a wire so that at least all of the pickups are activated. Once stores open up again, I look forward to giving her a proper tune-up.
Very cool! That didn’t come up for me yesterday. I’m glad you were able to find that and get a little more concrete information. 
the model would be a Ampeg AMB-1 Short Scale Bass
That is fortunate for you that the Brand and Model is so unknown to most, otherwise, the store that was trying to sell it, either would have kept it themselves, or sold it back to you for a price above $700. You got a real GEM there, I can see why you were mad at your sis for letting it go.
Greetings all,
I just received my Hofner Ignition Series from Sam Ash today. I’m excited to try it out.
Nice bass
I’m just getting started. This is my first bass ever. It’s awesome! Plays great! (A whole 1 day) It’s a Schecter Stilleto Extreme 4 in Black Cherry
Looks
@Holly.S Your story makes me feel guilty for having this thing. It’s a '09 P Bass that I picked up off craigslist in 2015. The story I got from the guy selling it was that it was his daughter’s and she didn’t want it when she went off to college. He said she knew he was selling it, so hopefully that’s true! If not… 
It was 6 years old when I got it though and not a scratch on it, so it definitely didn’t see much use.
looks really nice