These Go to 11 - The Guitar Amp Thread

[tbone_ 13,991]

I need a 2x12 cab what should I get? Need something versatile 

Mojotone with v30s

[AnotherUTFan 9,576]

Fuck ya!

[hullabelew 3,698]

Fuck ya!

Damn, that Les Paul is gorgeous

[Foggy Notion 1,198]

10 hours ago, AnotherUTFan said:

Fuck ya!

AUTF,

Thoughts on the Marshall? Whatcha think?

[AnotherUTFan 9,576]

The Marshall sounds like Rock and Roll heaven, and is a completely different animal than all my Fenders.

The bad. Its noisy as fuck. Its reasonably quiet with nothing in the inputs, but starts to hum as soon as you put the jumper in. (The jumper that was included caused a squeal actually, but we had another on hand luckily). You plug a guitar in and it hums louder, add in the pedalboard and, well. Of course as soon as you hit a chord it melts aeay into bliss.

Transparent. It brings out the differences in all those Gibsons in a more drastic way than the Fenders. I now see why there are so many similar sounding pickups on the market. With an amp like this you will hear every subtle difference. I had fun playing all those guitars through it, it's rare that I have that many out at once. For one thing, the V that sounds week through the Super sounds like a screaming lead machine through this, I still need to tame that one with a pickup swap. Still not sure what I'm gonna do there.

Sustain and crunch for days. Play any chord and just sit there waiting to see if it will ever fade out. Add a touch of Shaggy Screamer and forget about it. Our drummer and I were just laughing at how ridiculously long those chords would ring. Oh, and you can make it feedback in an instant.

I played most of the practice with a fairly trebely set up I had found as pretty common online. Our drummer loved the sound of it, but after practice said he was having a hard time hearing his snare over it because it was bbn I the same frequency range. So we spent an hour after practice jamming and tweaking the settings. A little less presence, more bass, roll back the lead volume and up the normal, etc. I think we got it dialed in pretty tight by the time we left.

That Explorer sounds like it was made for it. I may figure out what those pickups are and put a set in the V.

It's not a forgiving amp. If you play like shit your gonna sound like shit, and if you play well your gonna sound incredible. I did a little of both last night.

The Rumble 350 did fine as loud as the Marshall is, but I'm glad I have the 50 watt version.

Everybody agreed that this is the sound we're looking for. Our drummer records all the practices, hence the mic on the cabinet, and I'll be interested to hear it on playback later this morning. Then again Saturday after tweaking it last night.

I do need to figure out how to get that hum under control, but maybe that's just the nature of the beast.

[tbone_ 13,991]

I didn’t think it is. I’d get it checked.

Did we establish whether this was a newer one or vintage? Is it hand wired or PCB?

[AnotherUTFan 9,576]

I didn’t think it is. I’d get it checked.

 

Did we establish whether this was a newer one or vintage? Is it hand wired or PCB?

To be honest, the building we are in is ancient with old wiring and all the other bands I know complain about the power there too. My Super makes noises in there that it doesnt at home even though we have a power conditioner. I think the instrument cables are picking up signals since its quiet with none plugged in.

 

I think it's about an 8 year old reissue, hand wired.

 

[Mojo Hand 4,580]

Does it hum if you don't jumper it and just use one or the other input? 

[AnotherUTFan 9,576]

^^^I was trying to remember if I tried that this morning. I'll find out Saturday.

[Buzzrock 14,785]

We’re gonna need some audio samples of practice since you’re recording them all.

[AnotherUTFan 9,576]

When it's ready there will be plenty. It's only been a few months and we're still feeling our way. 7 original songs so far. 3 are done and fairly tight, and the other 4 in various stages of development. When it's time it will be time.

[BrickHorn 18,072]

I actually sent my Swart in for service because it hums when nothing’s plugged in.  Their response: “It’s a high-gain amp, dipshit.” (Paraphrasing - they were far more polite than that, of course.)

But it was worth the hassle.  The whole troubleshooting process revealed some faulty wiring in our house.  

Edited April 26, 2019 by BrickHorn

[Buzzrock 14,785]

Found a good use for an old Windows tablet:

[Deej 76,221]

40 minutes ago, BrickHorn said:

I actually sent my Swart in for service because it hums when nothing’s plugged in.  Their response: “It’s a high-gain amp, dipshit.” (Paraphrasing - they were far more polite than that, of course.)

But it was worth the hassle.  The whole troubleshooting process revealed some faulty wiring in our house.  

I would have fully expected a Soup Nazi-like, "No Swart for you!!!" response. 

[Buzzrock 14,785]

Speaking of high gain: I like the high gain sounds out of my Blackstar better than anything I’ve found on the Katana. At least so far. Having that tablet dedicated to it will make it much easier to explore.

[tbone_ 13,991]

Found a good use for an old Windows tablet:

Where do the tubes go?

[Buzzrock 14,785]

They’re really tiny, you can’t see em

[Buzzrock 14,785]

New favorite setup: run Spotify out to the AUX in on the Katana and jam away.

[Deej 76,221]

My dumb self just remembered that the Thunderbolt was originally intended as a bass amp. So tonight, it's getting some bass action.

[BoomMF 1,396]

.

[Grandioso 2,592]

 

[phdhorn 6,224]

On 4/24/2019 at 10:35 PM, AnotherUTFan said:

Fuck ya!

Nice assemblage!

Did the bass misbehave or something?

[noharleyyet 2,826]

1 hour ago, Grandioso said:

 

...friend zone.

[Buzzrock 14,785]

Pretty much the cleanest '67 Deluxe you'll ever see (@ 7:10)

 

[Buzzrock 14,785]

Fuck me. Hadn't plugged anything in in awhile (shame on me) so with the kids at camp this week I figured I'd plug in for a bit. Everything I have sounds like shit and I don't remember how to play anything. I hate those days.

Makes me want to sell everything but my Strat and start over. I think I really just want three sounds: SRV (clean and dirty), AC/DC, and Ghost. 

[tbone_ 13,991]

That is all you need. I’ve spent years chasing those and I have it now in a very simple setup.

[Buzzrock 14,785]

That is all you need. I’ve spent years chasing those and I have it now in a very simple setup.

Do tell

[tbone_ 13,991]

Fender tube amp - I use an old silver face Dual Showman, but that’s just a twin as a head so a twin, or deluxe or hell probably a Blues Jr would work just fine. I think the old hand wired ones have the most mojo to my ears though. I use a cabinet with V 30s.

 

Strat - HSS, with the H coil tapped so position 2 is single now. I have old Bill Lawrence singles in the neck and middle, which are pretty hot, and a Duncan Custom in the bridge. I’m sure a whole bunch of pickup combinations would work. Interestingly my strat came as an SSS for 20 years, but recently I pulled the pickguard off and it was routed to accept a HB. So I just changed the pickguard, threw in the Duncan and walla.

 

Bogner Lagrange - dirt pedal (Marshall in a box, sounds fantastic through a twin). Set to medium gain, vintage, variac on. This pedal also has a clean boost which is how you get the dirty srv stuff.

 

Freaking Sick Electronics - 30 volt overdrive. - for the nastier stuff. It’ll do Ghost no problem. Really versatile pedal built by a local guy I know here in Phoenix. The cross eyed guy on YouTube has some review demos of it. It’ll do lots of things but I mainly use it for the heavier sounds.

 

Chorus or delay as needed.

 

That setup will really do anything. Super clean bluesy sound strait in on neck or bridge pickup, kick on the clean boost for dirty blues, kick on the Lagrange and use your volume knob to adjust your crunch to taste. Kick on the 30 volt for the heaviosity.

 

Really couldn’t be simpler or more versatile. Dudes in my band never compliment my playing (as they shouldn’t), but they do compliment the tone often.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[tbone_ 13,991]

I also have an old Boogie .22 Caliber head I use sometimes. Sounds great too. Btw, paid $450 each for that and the Dual Showman off Reverb. With the pedals that are out today, I don’t know that expensive amps are necessarily needed.

[Deej 76,221]

Pretty sure I could get by with just my 68 Custom Princeton Reverb. Just a great amp. And my old Silverface Champ. But what would be the fun in that?

[BoomMF 1,396]

45 minutes ago, tbone_ said:

I also have an old Boogie .22 Caliber head I use sometimes. Sounds great too. Btw, paid $450 each for that and the Dual Showman off Reverb. With the pedals that are out today, I don’t know that expensive amps are necessarily needed.

 

That word. lol

[tbone_ 13,991]

Good point.

[tbone_ 13,991]

Anyone ever played an Ashdown Peacemaker? I’ve always thought they were cool looking but you don’t see them around much

[Buzzrock 14,785]

Wrong thread but regarding the Strat I’ve been tempted to get a SSS loaded pick guard to swap out the Seymour Duncan HH setup in my American Strat. I have four other guitars with humbuckers and I love the way my Fender feels (and it was my first good electric). Just haven’t pulled the trigger. This video is what gave me the idea. 

 

[Buzzrock 14,785]

It’s crazy what the vintage fender amps are going for now. I remember a few years ago on TOS when guys were finding them on Craigslist for less than a grand. Now they are all over 2K. 

[tbone_ 13,991]

This is true of deluxes for sure. I’ve been looking for a silver face and they’ve jumped from 7-900 to 1500+ in the last couple years.

Supers seem more reasonable. There’s a black face super at my gc. In Scottsdale for $1500 and it’s been there for a while so they might deal. Those things were routinely 2k -$2500 not too long ago.

I still see silver face twins under a grand. Also bandmasters seem available for reasonable. Seems like it’s maybe the low wattage ones that have gone nuts more than the others.

[Buzzrock 14,785]

My concern with some of them is that they are just too loud (don’t @ me). Twins are known for that, and even the Hot Rod IV’s are criticized because they have to be so loud to get into the good tones and there’s no master volume.

I need some sort of Fender Vintage Amp Decoder Ring so I know what to keep an eye out for. I saw a Bandmaster head for $575 but after some research I figured out it’s the AA568 circuit which people don’t like. No wonder it’s cheap.

It would be nice to have a high - medium - low list of vintage Fenders in terms of soughtafteredness (new word). Or even a stack rank. Tweed Bassmans at the top I’d expect.

Righteous had a museum quality DR (I linked it earlier) that went for $2900. That actually doesn’t seem outrageous these days.

[Chad Fuck 17,311]

On 6/5/2019 at 5:48 PM, tbone_ said:

Fender tube amp - I use an old silver face Dual Showman, but that’s just a twin as a head so a twin, or deluxe or hell probably a Blues Jr would work just fine. I think the old hand wired ones have the most mojo to my ears though. I use a cabinet with V 30s.

 

Strat - HSS, with the H coil tapped so position 2 is single now. I have old Bill Lawrence singles in the neck and middle, which are pretty hot, and a Duncan Custom in the bridge. I’m sure a whole bunch of pickup combinations would work. Interestingly my strat came as an SSS for 20 years, but recently I pulled the pickguard off and it was routed to accept a HB. So I just changed the pickguard, threw in the Duncan and walla.

 

Bogner Lagrange - dirt pedal (Marshall in a box, sounds fantastic through a twin). Set to medium gain, vintage, variac on. This pedal also has a clean boost which is how you get the dirty srv stuff.

 

Freaking Sick Electronics - 30 volt overdrive. - for the nastier stuff. It’ll do Ghost no problem. Really versatile pedal built by a local guy I know here in Phoenix. The cross eyed guy on YouTube has some review demos of it. It’ll do lots of things but I mainly use it for the heavier sounds.

 

Chorus or delay as needed.

 

That setup will really do anything. Super clean bluesy sound strait in on neck or bridge pickup, kick on the clean boost for dirty blues, kick on the Lagrange and use your volume knob to adjust your crunch to taste. Kick on the 30 volt for the heaviosity.

 

Really couldn’t be simpler or more versatile. Dudes in my band never compliment my playing (as they shouldn’t), but they do compliment the tone often.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do you have a pic of this set up?  I'm very intrigued.

[dcbc 14,287]

2 hours ago, Buzzrock said:

My concern with some of them is that they are just too loud (don’t @ me). Twins are known for that, and even the Hot Rod IV’s are criticized because they have to be so loud to get into the good tones and there’s no master volume.

I need some sort of Fender Vintage Amp Decoder Ring so I know what to keep an eye out for. I saw a Bandmaster head for $575 but after some research I figured out it’s the AA568 circuit which people don’t like. No wonder it’s cheap.

It would be nice to have a high - medium - low list of vintage Fenders in terms of soughtafteredness (new word). Or even a stack rank. Tweed Bassmans at the top I’d expect.

Righteous had a museum quality DR (I linked it earlier) that went for $2900. That actually doesn’t seem outrageous these days.

For most vintage Fender amps until 1977 (the pull boost volume knobs started creeping in around this time), you can spend a little extra money and have the circuit tweaked to earlier specs or leave them alone and rock them.  I have a 1973 Deluxe Reverb that has been blackfaced and is rocking a 1968 Jensen C12N speaker and it sounds heavenly.

The Fender Guru website is a good resource for what changes were made to each variety of Fender amp when.  To generalize:

The smaller amps (Champ, PR, DR, and VR) underwent the fewest changes to the circuit from 1968--1977.

The larger amps had some unsettling tweaks in 1968 and 1969, which were undone in 1970.

By 1972, pine cabinets were replaced with plywood cabinets.  Master volumes made there way into the larger amp range shortly thereafter.

By 1976, you start seeing the ultralinear output transformers in the larger amps.  If loud and squeaky clean is your thing (pedal steel players), the UL amps do that. 

Speakers vary, but I have had good luck replacing 1970s era Oxfords, Utahs, Pyles, etc. 

Lastly, Fender notoriously used up what whatever was in the parts bin.  Don't trust tube charts.  Changes to the circuit can be undone.  Don't be afraid to let someone knowledgeable work on it.  I have had great results with David Allen, but there are lots of good techs who will get these old amps sounding their best for another 50 years. 

 

As for soughtafterness, it's sometimes a function of how many were produced in the desired period vs. how great of an amp it is.  Or, it can be a little bit of both. 

 

The top of the list are the High Power Tweed Twins.  They sound amazing and weren't produced in great numbers.  The late tweed era Low Power Twins are a similar story.  Same to maybe a slightly lesser degree with the 5F6-A Tweed Bassman.  I say lesser because the Twins seem to fetch more on the vintage market.  But availability aside, I'd go for the Bassman.  The vintage market has been drawn down a bit by all of the really well done boutique models and handwired reissue models out there.  I have three boutique Fender Tweed Types (5F6-A, 5F4, and 5e3) and the Fender Custom Shop reissue of the Low Power Twin (5E8-A).  I don't think the vintage stuff has much advantage over these apart from well worn speakers.  My ears aren't good enough to really discern the difference between an old capacitor vs. a less old capacitor.  That said, there's some magic in some of those sixty year old tweed amps that elevates them, but not for what I'm willing to spend.

Edited June 7, 2019 by dcbc

[Buzzrock 14,785]

What would I do with a million dollars?



Two amps at the same time man. I used the direct out of my Boss Digital Delay pedal to drive the Boss Katana and the regular line out to the Bassbreaker. That opens up some interesting options for layering all the wacky effects in the Boss with the tube goodness of the Fender.

Having much more fun today.

[tbone_ 13,991]

Do you have a pic of this set up?  I'm very intrigued.

I’m out of town this weekend but I’ll get a couple when I get back.

[tbone_ 13,991]

Dcbc - great post. I 100% agree on let someone who knows what they are doing work on them. Anything can be undone.

 

I’ve never been too into the tweeds though. For me it’s the handwired, non master, non ultra linear silverfaces. When I got my dual, I took it into my guy (same one that builds the 30 volt overdrive mentioned above). I thought it sounded good as is. He says nah it’s a little dead. 1 week and about $150 later it sounded like God.

 

[Buzzrock 14,785]

So I finally got around to putting some earplugs in and turning the 100W Katana all the way up. Unsurprisingly, it's fucking loud. Interestingly, the 15W Bassbreaker is about as loud at full whack. More interestingly, you can't really hear it in my back yard. That's good.

The Katana started emitting some interesting smells, so I turned it off to let it cool down.

[tbone_ 13,991]

[Buzzrock 14,785]

[Deej 76,221]

Damn. I need to make a video with my Supro Thunderbolt at full volume. Ridiculous. You can hear shit rattling at the other end of the house.

Edited June 8, 2019 by Deej

[Buzzrock 14,785]

Damn. I need to make a video with my Supro Thunderbolt at full volume. Ridiculous. You can hear shit rattling at the other end of the house.

Do it! I got a little dust coming down from the ceiling when I first cranked the Katana.

[dcbc 14,287]

5 hours ago, tbone_ said:

Dcbc - great post. I 100% agree on let someone who knows what they are doing work on them. Anything can be undone.

 

I’ve never been too into the tweeds though. For me it’s the handwired, non master, non ultra linear silverfaces. When I got my dual, I took it into my guy (same one that builds the 30 volt overdrive mentioned above). I thought it sounded good as is. He says nah it’s a little dead. 1 week and about $150 later it sounded like God.

 

The Silverface amps are great.  I only still have the 73 DR, but have had a Bassman 100, Bassman 10, Vibrolux Reverb and 1967 Bandmaster.  They all were great, but I only kept the DR and went on a Tweed marathon since they all are different (moreso than I felt the BF/SF amps were.

[noharleyyet 2,826]

Listened to this Smart Belle 50 watt yesterday. Name is a somewhat clever wordplay on Dumble. A nice suede cover...sounds amazing. 

Liked it very much...

 

[noharleyyet 2,826]

...and the Arlo hot rodded Strat speaks well thru it.