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Post by fatcontroller on Jul 15, 2008 20:51:35 GMT -7
New guy here. Stang Ray head on the way to Wisconsin from California. Due in on Friday. I'm all sorts of excited. My wife asked me which amp I was going to play my new '55 Thin Skin Tele through, and I replied "the one I just bought but which hasn't arrived yet..." She said "You're SICK! You have a SICKNESS!" Couldn't agree more I previously owned a Maz Sr. reverb combo, but sold it after a few months and a few gigs - just wasn't me and I had a hard time dialing in "the sweet spot" (to my ear, anyway) as the environment changed. I also had come to think of reverb in that combo as a liability: sounded great when it wasn't feeding back, but it fed back anytime it was turned above "2" or I was playing at stage volumes. Also decided head/cab was the way to go. Current stuff: '62 RI Jazzmaster, aforementioned Tele, Gibby 335, '63 Gibby 125 TDC, Savage Macht 12 head, '68 Garnett Pro head, '95 Matchless 2x10 cab (re-branded Celestion g10L's), Avatar 1x12 open-backed cab (G12H), EarCandy 1x12 closed-back (Vintage 30), tu-2, super hard-on, octafuzz, dm-2. Wondering two things: head is badged on back of chasis as "made exclusively for willcut guitars." Is this type of badging common? Also wondering if anyone has any thoughts about the G12H or the Matchless 2x10 G10L's being a better match for the Stang Ray. A Celestion Gold is in the future, but the not-very-near-future - I need to replenish my kids' college fund before I can spend it again Thanks and nice to make the forum's acquaintance! Chris
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Post by T-R☼CK ♫ on Jul 15, 2008 21:20:56 GMT -7
Wives....Either they get it, or they don't...Thankfully, mine does (after Z-fest...finally)... She said, "Now I know, you are not alone".. ;D Don't worry Bruthr....When she see's that "Stoopid, happy grin"....She will......... BTW...I have not seen a "Made exclusively for" badge to date...Must be a new thang...Waaaay cooo tho.
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Post by awesome on Jul 15, 2008 21:46:44 GMT -7
i saw one on ebay that had the "Made exclusively for" on it. i was wondering the same thing myself.
kind of weird that they would do that in the first place.
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Jul 15, 2008 22:14:34 GMT -7
Welcome fatcontroller! I think you'll find the Stang Ray works great with a lot of speakers, especially with the Tele, but most folks feel the favorite is the Celestion Alnico Blue, with the Alnico Gold right up there even with it. I have both here and love both. But the 'ray sounds pretty great through other speakers. I know I've seen several folks mention the G12H here, as well as the Z-Best (which has a G12H and a V30). I'm thinking those tens might be righteous though...
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Post by telejas on Jul 15, 2008 23:09:29 GMT -7
What he (^^^^^) said... and welcome!
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Post by fatcontroller on Jul 16, 2008 4:43:24 GMT -7
Wives....Either they get it, or they don't... My wife is great - she was laughing while calling me sick. I think she knows there are people like me, but thinks that the representative sample is skewed to make abnormal behavior seem normal - sort of like Richard Pryor and Lenny Bruce setting the standard for appropriate dinner-table conversation...
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Post by fatcontroller on Jul 16, 2008 4:45:00 GMT -7
i saw one on ebay that had the "Made exclusively for" on it. i was wondering the same thing myself. kind of weird that they would do that in the first place. The Bay was the source of The Ray. Wonder if we were looking at the same thing? And it is weird - I wonder if it was applied by the shop or the Doc?
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Post by fatcontroller on Jul 16, 2008 4:51:42 GMT -7
What he (^^^^^) said... and welcome! Thanks Benttop & Telejas - the nice thing about the 2x10 cab is that it weighs like twelve pounds. I've sworn off 2x12 cabs - I'm too old and I hurt too bad to be lugging one of those around. So no Blues or Z-beasts for me. The Gold does seem to be where it's at, but I'll see how my ears respond to what I have before I decide I need to add more to my pile of depreciation.
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Post by bluzman on Jul 16, 2008 10:35:19 GMT -7
You're SICK! You have a SICKNESS!" Couldn't agree more The ease of the disease gives more comfort than the cure... Welcome!!
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Jul 16, 2008 11:44:09 GMT -7
Heh... the disease is put into temporary remission by a good strong shot of tone.
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Post by T-R☼CK ♫ on Jul 17, 2008 4:59:37 GMT -7
sort of like Richard Pryor and Lenny Bruce setting the standard for appropriate dinner-table conversation...
That's the table at which I would love to be seated.. ;D
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Post by sae2111 on Aug 7, 2008 3:56:35 GMT -7
I was thinking the same thing
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Post by drew on Aug 9, 2008 9:35:21 GMT -7
Welcome and congrats on the ray coming your way. I've a Z 2x12 open back w/blues but am with you and like an easy lug 1x12 cab. I've a convertible open back 1x12 that's that same size as the new z 1x12/2x10 cabs. The gold is an excellent choice or you can try a less efficient speaker and push the ray hard with either alnico or ceramic. The G12h will give you that ceramic punch and immediate attack nice top end. The alnico has a smoother grind. Neither is wrong just different depending on the type of tone you want and music your playing. I've recently tried the Ray with an Eminence Tonker and was pleasantly surprise. The Tonker is a very efficient loud speaker with nice bottom and highs.
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Post by fatcontroller on Aug 24, 2008 11:35:15 GMT -7
Thanks everyone.
I sold the Matchless 2 x 10" 4 ohm can and bought an 8 ohm celestion gold to try with the Ray.
Sadly, while playing last night, the Ray started humming/buzzing loudly (had never done so before) and after about three minutes - during which I grabbed a different cable, then a different guitar and checked all connections - stopped working all together. No sound at all, no smoke or acrid smell, jewell lamp still lights up, 3 amp fuse looks good, can't see a filament in the 1/2 amp fuse. If it's the fuse, why did the fuse blow? Bad rec tube? Any thoughts before I go diggin?
I am going to cross-post this to "ask the experts". If that's bad form, apologies. As you might imagine, I'm a little anxious...
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Post by Norrin Radd on Aug 24, 2008 14:09:58 GMT -7
Thanks everyone. I sold the Matchless 2 x 10" 4 ohm can and bought an 8 ohm celestion gold to try with the Ray. Sadly, while playing last night, the Ray started humming/buzzing loudly (had never done so before) and after about three minutes - during which I grabbed a different cable, then a different guitar and checked all connections - stopped working all together. No sound at all, no smoke or acrid smell, jewell lamp still lights up, 3 amp fuse looks good, can't see a filament in the 1/2 amp fuse. If it's the fuse, why did the fuse blow? Bad rec tube? Any thoughts before I go diggin? I am going to cross-post this to "ask the experts". If that's bad form, apologies. As you might imagine, I'm a little anxious... Sorry - I have no experience with which to help you! ;D Small virtual world, ain't it?
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Post by thatstatuemoved on Aug 24, 2008 14:59:04 GMT -7
I bought a new stang ray head a couple of weeks ago from Willcutt Guitars and it had a badge on it saying it was made for Willcutt Guitars--I did not even think twice about it--no big deal to me--I am pairing my head with a z 1-12 cab with a Celestion 12H in it and I could not be happier. Love the sound--would like to try a gold, but cannot justify the cost. Anyway that is my two cents worth--enjoy your Stang Ray when you get it!!!
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Post by supafuzz on Aug 24, 2008 19:05:14 GMT -7
I bought a new stang ray head a couple of weeks ago from Willcutt Guitars and it had a badge on it saying it was made for Willcutt Guitars--I did not even think twice about it--no big deal to me--I am pairing my head with a z 1-12 cab with a Celestion 12H in it and I could not be happier. Love the sound--would like to try a gold, but cannot justify the cost. Anyway that is my two cents worth--enjoy your Stang Ray when you get it!!! I went through a slew of speakers and finally landed on the Weber 50W blue dog alnico, after hearing clips and rave reviews. It's a great speaker for this amp, especially in a 1X12 format. Much less than a gold too!
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Post by fatcontroller on Aug 25, 2008 6:47:00 GMT -7
Thanks for the replies, both re: speakers and re: dead head. To follow up on the "not working" bit, I cross-posted my concern over at "ask the experts" and titled it something like "Help, Stang Ray not working. Gulp". I followed up over on that thread with some further observations and questions. I'd appreciate it if anyone w/ helpful advice or thoughts would continue the conversation over there so I don't clutter up the board. Here it is: drzamplifiers.proboards41.com/index.cgi?board=xperts&action=display&thread=15301Much appreciated! Chris
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Post by fatcontroller on Aug 25, 2008 7:54:28 GMT -7
Small virtual world, ain't it? Hah! Hello, Greg!
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Post by gheston on Aug 25, 2008 13:39:46 GMT -7
I subscribe to the school of thought that the Stingray was developed/fine-tuned with a little guidance from some obscure country picker named Paisley, and that therefore the Stingray works very well indeed with a Telecaster guitar on the input side. Mr. Paisley can make a Telecaster do incredible things. (I hear that his roadies keep CO2 fire extinguishers handy on some of his lead breaks.)
Furthermore, Dr. Z himself has been quoted as saying that an amp is only as good as its speaker(s)....actually he called the speaker the most important component, without which one would never hear an amp's true capabilities. I strongly suspect that much of the R&D was performed using twin Alnico Blues in an open-back cab.
My point (and I could be dead wrong) is that if you play a Stangray using a decent Telecaster and two Celestion Alnico Blues, the sound is probably representative of what Brad and the Dr. were aiming for.
Call me crazy, but...
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Post by fatcontroller on Aug 25, 2008 14:25:57 GMT -7
My point (and I could be dead wrong) is that if you play a Stangray using a decent Telecaster and two Celestion Alnico Blues, the sound is probably representative of what Brad and the Dr. were aiming for. If Mr Paisley or the good Dr. are available to lump my amps from the basement to the curb to the stage and back, I'll be pleased to use a 60-lb amp cab. Until that happens, it'll be a 1x12 for me, thanks! That said, I did order up a Gold...
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Post by deaconblues on Aug 30, 2008 8:06:12 GMT -7
"the nice thing about the 2x10 cab is that it weighs like twelve pounds" Twelve pounds? Is that a misprint? And you sold it? Man, that would have been a keeper for me. I recently got to hear a friend's Ray through a 2x10 Z Convertible cab. Sounds fantastic! The Z cabinet weighs well over 40 lbs though depending on how it's configured.
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Post by taswegian on Aug 30, 2008 20:14:02 GMT -7
I subscribe to the school of thought that the Stingray was developed/fine-tuned with a little guidance from some obscure country picker named Paisley, and that therefore the Stingray works very well indeed with a Telecaster guitar on the input side. Mr. Paisley can make a Telecaster do incredible things. (I hear that his roadies keep CO2 fire extinguishers handy on some of his lead breaks.) Furthermore, Dr. Z himself has been quoted as saying that an amp is only as good as its speaker(s)....actually he called the speaker the most important component, without which one would never hear an amp's true capabilities. I strongly suspect that much of the R&D was performed using twin Alnico Blues in an open-back cab. My point (and I could be dead wrong) is that if you play a Stangray using a decent Telecaster and two Celestion Alnico Blues, the sound is probably representative of what Brad and the Dr. were aiming for. Call me crazy, but... This is all true, but for me who doesn't play country and doesn't have a tele, (yet) this amp still has allure. Doc also mentioned he was going for that big CRANNNNNNNNNGGG! such as the opening chord to Beatles' "Hard Days Night". Now for me who loves the Brit pop sound, that is what I'm looking for to compliment my 70's rock tones of the 66. Again, I think the 2 blues are probably a BIG component of that sound so I'd be very keen to match up the blues with this amp. But I'd also love the versatility of a head so as to try some other combinations as well.
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Post by fatcontroller on Sept 1, 2008 8:42:22 GMT -7
"the nice thing about the 2x10 cab is that it weighs like twelve pounds" Twelve pounds? Is that a misprint? And you sold it? Sorry, I tend to speak/write somewhat hyperbolically - it weighed high-20's, depending on how accurate I believe my bathroom scale to be. It was very, very light. And yes, I did sell it. I'm as much of a sucka for the "Matchless" marquis as the next gear-geek, but I didn't think it sounded better than my Avatar G12H-loaded cab. As well, the dogbone handle on the 2x10 prevented the Z head from sitting firmly on top of the cab. Most importantly, I was anxious to try out a Celestion Gold. I ordered a 1x12 w/ the Gold and retubed the Ray (working great now - thanks everyone!) - it sounds absolutely terrific. Really lovely.
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Post by brad737 on Sept 1, 2008 9:38:06 GMT -7
Hi Fatcontroller, Welcome. I'm glad to hear your Ray is healthy again. It's not that uncommon for amps to die shortly after receiving them. Shipping companies are always kind of rough with packages. And tubes are very fragile items.
As for speakers, a friend of mine and I spent several hours trying out all sorts of amp/ speaker combos. We were both pretty surprised, but we agreed that the Stingray sounded best with a Celestion G12H30 in a closed-back cabinet. I liked the Gold next. And conventional wisdom says that alnicos sound best in open-back cabinets.
Congrats on your new amp. You're going to love it.
Brad
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Post by M Fowler on Sept 23, 2008 19:40:53 GMT -7
Fatcontroller
The StangRay is the way to go for sure. But was looking at your first note about the old amp not sounding good with reverb and I think that you could have solved that issue with either a new tube or the correct tube in that spot if not so. Sounded like it was getting to much gain on reverb driver circuit maybe a 12AX7 was in there instead of the 12AT7. Oh well you got rid of it for the Stang so that is good.
Mark
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