Post by doveman on Jun 1, 2012 18:58:10 GMT -7
Purchased the 2008 head used exactly 4 weeks ago. I wasn't quite satisifed with the amp when cranked ... man it's a loud 32 watts. Done a lot of experimentation but I think for the most part I'm done and I think I've found my way to a good place. I have two other really good amps right now that match my style really well. A 30w tweed and an ODS style amp ... both very different. Having done a lot of experimentation, I have come to a comfortable set up for this amp. Learned the following:
So ... I think this dude is ready for some recording and maybe a couple of jam sessions soon. That's when you can really tell but I feel pretty good about it now. I have a variety of guitars too ... LP, Tele, Strat, semi-hollow ... so grab a couple of guitars and one of three amp flavors and head out. Life is good! I do appreciate all the help ... I know probably driving everyone nuts ... but thanks everyone! Nice forum ...
- The amp is a different style and doesn't necessarily cover the same ground I'm used to as directly. But I have been getting comfortable with this new sound ... it's definitely another flavor but I like it. It covers different territory and that's a good thing.
- 1st most successful adjustment: Adding the bias points so that I could safely adjust the bias was the single most effective change. It was biased a little cold for me and now it's working better.
- 2nd most successful adjustment: While I've not been a fan of attenuators, this Brake Lite is pretty good. It makes this amp manageable. I actually settled on 1/4 inch jacks on both ends of the BL ... but mounting it in the cab. So it needs two short speaker cables to use it. I want to be able to use it with my old speaker plate that allows 4-8-16 ohm variations of one or two 12" speakers. Also, sneaking up on it from the max attenuation settings works pretty well ... good advice.
- 5AR4 slightly beats out the 5U4GB for me. It may be that I can quite get it biased hot enough but the slightly tighter 5AR4 just works a bit better at higher volumes for my style I think.
- If I can really crank it up I like it without pedals but two of my pedals seem to excel with it a great deal ... Timmy (no surprise) and the Xotic BB (sort of surprised). The BB has always been tight for me but that seems to work well with this amp cranked up.
- 12AX7LPS pulled out but it is back in there, as well.
- I would like to do the VariWattFx scaling project but probably won't to keep the amp as original as possible.
- Studio Slips (like the rest of my amps) are under construction right now. Those will complete the project nicely I think.
So ... I think this dude is ready for some recording and maybe a couple of jam sessions soon. That's when you can really tell but I feel pretty good about it now. I have a variety of guitars too ... LP, Tele, Strat, semi-hollow ... so grab a couple of guitars and one of three amp flavors and head out. Life is good! I do appreciate all the help ... I know probably driving everyone nuts ... but thanks everyone! Nice forum ...