Let's see your AMP!

[WeHuntKings]

yeah, the cab was cheap so i swiped it up. those sro speakers can really dish out some low-end.

[warwick.hoy]

There is no denying that. I wanted to throw more volume than my 410 could do on it's own so I traded a bunch of gear for the Kustom. But in gigging it; the casters dry rotted and broke off. I replaced them but the bolts hang down to far and need to be filed. One of the corners is missing it's cap and the tolex has worn off. So it's pretty much just sawdust at this point.

Here we go:



The rack on top of the 4x10 is not in use for my purposes. Rolling with an Ampeg SVT-CL. It's on the ground since it rattles like hell. A guitar guy told me that a lot of guys cut the powertube retaining springs off all together. Not sure if I'm trying to do that.

[Holy Schnikes]

Watched some demos of the GVT15H.. damn. I'm tempted to save. Spring reverb is kind of a must for what I play..

First off, nice to see you around mathias, been too long buddy

Second, I love my gvt15H, excellent cleans and clean-ish tones with some nice crunch when pushed. It loves pedals, EQ is super flexible, and it packs a buncha volume for a 15 watts. As for the verb, sounds great, really lush. Not quite Fender spring territory but close, like a spring/hall hybrid would be my honest assessment.

If you get serious about it, hit up Sweetwater cuz they'll knock 15-20% off if you ask real nice and mention you could get that deal at GC. Follow that up with the fact you "DESPISE GC and don't wanna give 'em your business". That approach works wonders!

Oh, you'll avoid sales tax and get free shipping too. The savings just keep piling up!

[mathias]

Saving for the GVT15H might just distract me from one of my new side projects, which is to design and build my perfect amp..

[Holy Schnikes]

Man I wish I could design and build my own, would RULE! I just turn to Dunwich Nick for that now days, easier that way haha!

[mathias]

Man I wish I could design and build my own, would RULE! I just turn to Dunwich Nick for that now days, easier that way haha!

Hah, well, right now I'm just in the research phase.

[Holy Schnikes]

Man I wish I could design and build my own, would RULE! I just turn to Dunwich Nick for that now days, easier that way haha!

Hah, well, right now I'm just in the research phase.

That 18W build you mentioned awhile back sounded top notch......

[bigchiefbc]

I've always wanted to build an amp that was just the standard non-reverb channel of the Deluxe Reverb. Whenever I've gotten a chance to play one, I always stick to the normal channel. Are there any amp builders that make that?

[new05002]

any builder could make that for you at the drop of a hat.

[Holy Schnikes]

I'd recommend Dunwich Nick for that Fender-style/Any-style build if you don't mind the grueling wait list. Shit's getting deep!

[mathias]

That 18W build you mentioned awhile back sounded top notch......

It's the eventual progression of that idea.

I want more features, but I'm sticking with a "recording volume level" 15 watt target. Classic rock amp, but not 80's modded Marshall sound -- some mix of Marshall and Fender tones that I've had in my head for awhile. Dark, bluesy voicing with lots of overdrive to dial in. Two channel, effects loop, and spring reverb make it quite a bit more complex than the Marshall 18 watt kit was. I think I've settled on KT66's as the power tube, as well, but I can always make it run anything else octal. Crazy ideas that probably won't make it into the build include an expression pedal gain control and/or wireless switching system.

^ You can see why the Ampeg head is interesting to me, it hits some of these features dead on.

[Holy Schnikes]

Based on that list of amp wants/needs, I think you'd enjoy the Ampeg for sure! The 5W is cool but short on features and power while the higher wattage models are too modern sounding with the 6L6 output section.

The 15W is where it's at with the gvt line for sure!

[mathias]

Based on that list of amp wants/needs, I think you'd enjoy the Ampeg for sure! The 5W is cool but short on features and power while the higher wattage models are too modern sounding with the 6L6 output section.

The 15W is where it's at with the gvt line for sure!

I'm definitely going to have to try it. It's too bad there's no little neighborhood guitar shops here that get stuff like this.. just Guitar Center across town (and I don't have a car.. doh..)

[new05002]

That 18W build you mentioned awhile back sounded top notch......

It's the eventual progression of that idea.

I want more features, but I'm sticking with a "recording volume level" 15 watt target. Classic rock amp, but not 80's modded Marshall sound -- some mix of Marshall and Fender tones that I've had in my head for awhile. Dark, bluesy voicing with lots of overdrive to dial in. Two channel, effects loop, and spring reverb make it quite a bit more complex than the Marshall 18 watt kit was. I think I've settled on KT66's as the power tube, as well, but I can always make it run anything else octal. Crazy ideas that probably won't make it into the build include an expression pedal gain control and/or wireless switching system.

^ You can see why the Ampeg head is interesting to me, it hits some of these features dead on.

A pair of Kt66s can easily put out 50W no problem. if 15-18W is your output range then a pair of 6v6s is where you want to be. Its not easy to under wattage the output tubes and not run them properly with respect to AB biasing. Also primary impedance of Kt66s is usually 6.6k to 8k, not something that works with other tubers like 6l6s and El34s well.

[mathias]

A pair of Kt66s can easily put out 50W no problem. if 15-18W is your output range then a pair of 6v6s is where you want to be. Its not easy to under wattage the output tubes and not run them properly with respect to AB biasing. Also primary impedance of Kt66s is usually 6.6k to 8k, not something that works with other tubers like 6l6s and El34s well.

Yeah, the "Bluesbreaker" JTM45 combo with a pair of KT66's is listed as a 50 watt amp. I'm only after parts of that sound, not trying to replicate it exactly, so I'm not married to the KT66's.

I also use an attenuator with playing at home a lot now, so I may end up just building an amp that's capable of attenuating itself (attenuator built into head). Then it'd be capable of recording, quiet it way down to play through speaker for home practicing, and still capable of playing live. Sacrilege to drive an attenuator rather than a cranked speaker, I know, but I don't really have the practice space where I'm able to crank either a 15 watt or 50 watt amp (and really, depending on speakers, they can both get really loud, the 50 watts will just get that much louder)

Edit: a single KT66 in class A configuration is going to be more like 10-15 watts, right? But it'll have lower headroom (obvs), shorter tube life. And arguably more muddy, I've heard?