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Post by benttop (Steve) on Apr 3, 2006 14:14:36 GMT -7
OK, I’ve been thinking about this for a couple weeks, and I did it today. I traded my Mazerati for a 6545 head! It was a “slow-blow impulse” buy – saw a used 6545 advertised where I got my Mazerati and started thinking about it. Listened to clips, looked at what folks had to say, and decided that it was more in line with what I was trying to do. But I needed a play test first, so I went down this morning and played it. Not too much of the Vox vib on the 45 side, and I’ll miss that, but it DOES have its own vib which I found to be pretty cool. I’m used to using attenuators for a bit-o-hair so I’m quite sure I’ll be able to get this dialed up to the sound I have in my head. For the moment, I’m going to have to either use one of my THD cabs (prolly a 2x12 since the 4x12 weighs a TON) or my old Rivera 4x10 with Fender replacement speakers in it. Have to try all of that first. So – this negates all of the testing I’ve been doing for the last two months, and gives me reason to keep my head buried in the basement for a while longer. Got an RC Booster at the same time, so that’s another series of tests that I need to make. Yikes! So that’s my story and I’m sticking to it. ;D
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Post by billyguitar on Apr 3, 2006 14:23:55 GMT -7
Cool! Keep us up to date.
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Apr 3, 2006 14:30:55 GMT -7
Cool! Keep us up to date. Yep - about to go down and do the shakedown cruise with my Strat.
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Apr 3, 2006 22:45:09 GMT -7
OK, got the Avatar up - now to put in that Mullard EF-86 I just ordered...
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Apr 4, 2006 14:08:40 GMT -7
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Post by cementman on Apr 4, 2006 15:41:27 GMT -7
yeah i thought that was you. the old guy from the northwest. hey, yer really gettin it. i am thinkin you probly got it on very low on the master cos i can hear a slight pik/string/overtone on yer riffs. which would be likely on a very low setup with a pedal. whole lot of volume range with this amp it seems. reason i commented is i bought a used 2004 from a fellow in wisconsin and will get it tomorrow. which cabs /spkrs are you using or did i overlook that. thanks for putting that on, got a real kick, you can squeal and squall that rag. see ya
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Apr 4, 2006 16:17:19 GMT -7
yeah i thought that was you. the old guy from the northwest. hey, yer really gettin it. i am thinkin you probly got it on very low on the master cos i can hear a slight pik/string/overtone on yer riffs. which would be likely on a very low setup with a pedal. whole lot of volume range with this amp it seems. reason i commented is i bought a used 2004 from a fellow in wisconsin and will get it tomorrow. which cabs /spkrs are you using or did i overlook that. thanks for putting that on, got a real kick, you can squeal and squall that rag. see ya Ayuh, the old guy all right.. Those clips were done with my THD 2x12 cab. I think I'll play a set with my 4x10 cab though - I tried it this afternoon and it really sounds great, especially for the neck pickup tones.
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Post by cementman on Apr 5, 2006 11:15:28 GMT -7
great looking singer you have with you, by the way. did you say somewhere you had a Nash? my 6545 came today. i had forgotten how good the z ef86 amps sound. i drove down to dallas and sold a z-28 4/10 combo because it was too big to carry around. i owned at one point a kt45 and a route 66 but never had the right spkr cabs for them. got a great deal on this and it is perfect. my son will use it in his band also. this one has a mazda ef86 in it. the ones i owned before had svetlana and one of them was microphonic. geuss dr z decided to upgrade his tubes since then. great buy...
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Apr 5, 2006 11:21:20 GMT -7
great looking singer you have with you, by the way. did you say somewhere you had a Nash? my 6545 came today. i had forgotten how good the z ef86 amps sound. i drove down to dallas and sold a z-28 4/10 combo because it was too big to carry around. i owned at one point a kt45 and a route 66 but never had the right spkr cabs for them. got a great deal on this and it is perfect. my son will use it in his band also. this one has a mazda ef86 in it. the ones i owned before had svetlana and one of them was microphonic. geuss dr z decided to upgrade his tubes since then. great buy... Thanks, I'll let her know she has a fan... No I have a couple of Groshes here. And a couple of PRS's. My Bent Top Custom is my main axe and has been for over ten years. I just got a Grosh Tele, and then two weeks later acquired a PRS Singlecut in a nifty trade, so I'm swimming in nice guitars here. I just ordered two of those NOS Mullard EF-86's so that I have a main and a backup. Not that I think my 6545 sounds bad, but I want to hear what these Mullards sound like. I'm hearing good things in that regard. Since this 6545 is used, I'm not real certain of the condition of the tubes, although the amp sounds pretty good. Not sure what's in there at this time - I still need to pull the chassis and do an inspection/check bias/etc.
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Apr 5, 2006 17:25:03 GMT -7
{deleted}
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Post by terryg on Apr 7, 2006 12:54:44 GMT -7
wow, I've been out of touch longer than I thought - congrats on your 6545!
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Apr 7, 2006 13:35:55 GMT -7
Thanks terryg! I'm digging it so far. Very effective amp, this 6545! I can't wait for the next gig with my covers band - going to be some tones a flying that night!
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Post by Bill on Apr 7, 2006 13:53:18 GMT -7
Looks like you're really pumped, benttop. It's a great feeling, the anticipation of an upcoming gig when you know your new rig is gonna kill!
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Post by terryg on Apr 7, 2006 13:56:56 GMT -7
I used to use my 6545 in a covers band...there were times I didn't think I'd even need an od/distortion pedal! What a great rig! Not only tones flying, but bras & panties!
Ahh Madison, that is so true. I've just removed myself from an unfortunately hostile/negative project, and I'm back in the 'shed. It's actually kind of liberating, but I sure miss The Gig.
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Apr 7, 2006 14:08:40 GMT -7
Well yes, I am pumped. Until I discovered the Z amps, I was beginning to wonder if anyone made anything that could compare to my Flexi-50. Well this 6545 sounds a lot different from my Flexi, but it's definitley in the same league. AND it has two distinct sounds! Very cool! I've come full circle twice as it seems - started out with single channel amps, graduated to two channel amps, dumped all that for programmable rack-based preamps and power amps, dumped that for a dual channel amp, dumped those for a single channel amp, and now here I am with a dual channel amp again! I feel like a YO YO!
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Post by terryg on Apr 7, 2006 14:15:17 GMT -7
"what a long strange trip it's been"
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Apr 7, 2006 14:18:00 GMT -7
"what a long strange trip it's been" ...the story of my life!
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Post by billyguitar on Apr 7, 2006 14:41:47 GMT -7
It's all good, brother!
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Apr 8, 2006 7:47:00 GMT -7
Well I got my Mullard EF-86's here, so I yanked the original tube and stuck one in last night. Nice! It seemed to help the articulation somewhat, and it has a bit fuller sound. I'm going to keep the orignal as a backup to the second Mullard I bought for a backup... Now I need to spend some time with the rest of the tubes in that amp to see what's in there and decide if any improvement can be had from some tweaks. I really don't know how old this thing is, or how much it was used, so it perhaps could benefit from some new power tubes too. It sounds pretty good, but I've had that experience where you replace the power tubes and d'OH! Shoulda done that a while ago! Actually the only thing stopping me is that I don't have a bias probe, so I'd have to use a different method to measure the bias. Hmmm... maybe it's time to buy one of those probes.
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Post by terryg on Apr 10, 2006 13:38:48 GMT -7
Those probes are well worth it - but go cheap - I only bought the Weber tube socket thing that comes with a two-lead cord terminated in banana plugs. If you've got a half-decent DMM you're all set. This is the Weber one right here: ( weberspeakerscom.secure.powweb.com/biasrite/br_page.htm) "BR-AH (octal) with VI option." What's the original EF86 in your 6545?
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Apr 10, 2006 13:47:34 GMT -7
Those probes are well worth it - but go cheap - I only bought the Weber tube socket thing that comes with a two-lead cord terminated in banana plugs. If you've got a half-decent DMM you're all set. This is the Weber one right here: ( weberspeakerscom.secure.powweb.com/biasrite/br_page.htm) "BR-AH (octal) with VI option." What's the original EF86 in your 6545? Thanks, I'll have a look at that link. I pulled the original tube and couldn't see the markings - they were kind of rubbed partially away, but it was not especially bright at that time, so I rolled it up and put it away. I'll check it next time I think of it and it is daylight.
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Post by terryg on Apr 10, 2006 14:07:09 GMT -7
I'm guessing "Dario" for some reason. That's a decent one for sure. The Mullard is real nice - I've got it in my Z28, and I've liked it so much that I haven't pulled it out to try it in the 6545. I've got the GEC in the 6545, which is to me a bit more aggressive, and kinda perfect for me in there.
FWIW I'm running GTE34LS #5s in the back end, and I'm using a GT12AX7R2 as a phase inverter. I think I biased it at 38mA. It's warm & crunchy, and lends itself to great debate in my mind were I find myself in a position to choose just one amp - this one is a huge contender for usability and all-around great sound no matter the application.
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