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Post by Seńor Verde on Sept 25, 2022 18:51:40 GMT -7
My favorite amp of all time is the Therapy and I know it is billed as the flavor of a low power Tweed Twin, but how close is it? More specifically, what are the sonic differences between the two? I have a Tweed Deluxe clone, but have a feeling a Tweed Deluxe is a bit different.
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Post by Paul (TRANE) on Sept 25, 2022 19:26:28 GMT -7
Here is a link to a video showing the Therapy and a Tweed Twin. I don't remember which forum member did the video. It is a very good comparison.
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Post by Ridgeback on Sept 25, 2022 20:40:18 GMT -7
I own a Therapy and spent quit a bit of time with a friend's Vicky LPTT many years ago. Given the time between and dissimilar speakers, my impressions are suspect. I feel that that they are in the same ballpark but the Doc's spin on the circuit plus the cathode biasing gives them a different feel. The tweed Deluxe and the LPTT are entirely different animals IMO. I had a Vicky Double Deluxe at the same time as my friend had the LPTT so I have a pretty good basis for that comparison.
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Post by Chilly Gibbons (Todd T.) on Sept 26, 2022 4:08:29 GMT -7
Plus the Therapy’s master volume makes an incredible difference in the range of tones available.
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Post by doctorice on Sept 26, 2022 7:11:51 GMT -7
I don't remember which forum member did the video. It is a very good comparison. I'm pretty sure it's by gotmojo.
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Post by Seńor Verde on Sept 26, 2022 7:41:05 GMT -7
Thanks guys. I've seen the video before, but sometimes things don't exactly get recreated the same in a video. As much as I really, really like the Therapy, there are times I'd like a little more fullness in the lows and lower mids. When I try different speakers than the UK V30, I lose some note definition and clarity. Thinking about trying something more pure tweed. If they are also lighter in the lows I won't bother and I'll chalk it up to Tweeds just having more mids and less lows.
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Post by premiumplus (Dave) on Sept 26, 2022 7:48:23 GMT -7
Thanks guys. I've seen the video before, but sometimes things don't exactly get recreated the same in a video. As much as I really, really like the Therapy, there are times I'd like a little more fullness in the lows and lower mids. When I try different speakers than the UK V30, I lose some note definition and clarity. Thinking about trying something more pure tweed. If they are also lighter in the lows I won't bother and I'll chalk it up to Tweeds just having more mids and less lows. I've got a Celestion Creamback Alnico that pairs beautifully with my Therapy. It's sweet on the top end and I can crank the bass up a little more with it. For me the V30 was too spikey. The Alnico Cream is much smoother and still sounds good with overdrive.
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Post by j4gitr (John) on Sept 26, 2022 11:27:37 GMT -7
I’m using a WGS Blackhawk Alnico. I can’t speak to the comparison to a tweed twin, but lots of fullness with the WGS. I also have a 2x10 Z-convertible cabinet with the z-10’s that has plenty of depth when I want to change it up a bit. Both are nice and full just different flavors.
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Post by gotmojo on Nov 5, 2022 12:05:12 GMT -7
Ha! Kinda karmic that this question arrives at this particular point in time! I only just last week listed my Therapy here in the forum and on Reverb, briefly succumbing to my recent mental-frame-of-mind regarding “must … have … less … gear”. Fortunately before it sold our Z brethren here saved me from ruin and suggested I rethink that decision, and I pulled it from the for-sale list, only to fall head over heels back in love with it now that I’ve got it out in my main room again. The video shown above was done back in 2014-15, and shows me switching back and forth with similar riffs to compare what the two amps could do with the same guitar and no pedals to confuse things; I think the Therapy did a very nice rendition of what the Twin will do. For the video I’m pretty sure I used the same mics into the same preamps into ProTools to try to get a fair comparison. However, the Twin has Jensen 12’s whereas the Z Wreck cab has Celestion blue/golds (don’t remember which one I put the mic on), so a pretty different comparison in that respect.
Yesterday I paired the two amps up next to each other once again (which I hadn’t done since the video), and once again was able to get the Therapy to essentially sound exactly similar to the old Twin, but this time through similar speakers: the Therapy through a 1-12” gold cab, and the Twin through a 1-12” blue cab (both 1-12” Dr Z cabs). There is one caveat: The Therapy is waaayyyy more malleable than the Twin, way better control over EQ/tone, and waaaaayyyy better control over getting whatever level of grind/distortion one might desire, at ANY volume, despite having a Z Brake-lite in the Twin! What a fool I was to consider letting that amp go. This is one of the Doc’s perfect gig/studio amps. Can do clean, can do dirty, can do chime, and with the superb master volume implementation, can do it all at home or gig volumes. But ….. back the original Q: How Tweed Twin is The Therapy? A: In my humble opinion, quite Tweed Twinny!
jj
note well: my Twin is from 1953, the 5C8 circuit. It only has treble and bass controls, so a fairly simple preamp section. Later versions had additional presence and mid controls, amid myriad other changes in the circuit through the years. This 5C8 is maybe only about 25 watts, actually not much louder than the tweed Deluxe, but quite full with the 2-12’s. This is perfect because in ‘55 they went up to 50 watts (the 5E8), too loud for me. I believe when most people refer to “low powered Twins”, they are referring to this 50 watt model of 1955-56. And then in ‘58 they went up to 80 watts, the “high powered Twin” (and later 100 watts)!
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Post by Seńor Verde on Nov 6, 2022 9:03:47 GMT -7
Glad we were able to talk some sense into you. Oddly, I don't prefer the Gold with my Therapy but I do like the V-Type, which a couple guys around here say sounds very much like the Gold. V-Type has more full lows to me.
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Post by gotmojo on Nov 6, 2022 13:17:47 GMT -7
Hear that. In the past I have run it a lot through a Matchless 2-12” which is a G12-30H and a greenback (I believe) somehow modified by Matchless. And that’s got more low end. But recently plugging it through the Wreck cab seemed to me to bring out some sparkle, so I like both. The 1-12” cabs were good for comparing the two amps, and I now dig the sound, so that would be an easy gig rig, head and 1-12” cab. And it has plenty of low end to may taste, and I like lows for my style, the thickness it brings. Here’s an interesting discovery (totally gear-geek stuff): I recently pulled my Z Wreck out of the combo cab. That’s the cab with a gold that I used to run this Therapy. Here’s the hipness: there is a gap in the back of the top of that cab meant for the Wreck’s control panel. Well …….. the speaker cable on the speaker is long enough to reach up thru that gap and plug into the back of the head!!! Means you don’t need a speaker cable for this particular rig! Awesome! 🤓🤓🤓🤓🤓🤓🤓🤓
jj
what a dweeb.
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Post by simpleton on Nov 6, 2022 21:33:16 GMT -7
The controls on the Therapy are incredibly effective in shaping and reshaping tone…in my memory of the amp….it had tons of bass, mids, and treble. I’m sure different speakers would emphasize different qualities, but also, don’t be put off by absurd knob positions. Here is an old sloppy video of some uber bass and mid tones with a Weber Blue Dog Ceramic
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Post by gotmojo on Nov 12, 2022 10:27:51 GMT -7
So ….. been playing this Therapy next to the Twin a bunch this past week, A/B’ing, and have it dialed in to be so very close to the Twin tone with the Twin playing through it’s original Jensen 12’s and a Brake-lite on 3. Bass @ 9:00, Mid @ 9:30-10:00, Treble @ 11:00-11:30, volume @ just before 3:00, master at noon with a Brakelite wherever you want it, but at home for me that’s on either 3 or 4. I’m guessing at a gig I’d dial the master up a bit more, then might need to dial the volume back a skosh, or maybe not even! Has a very nice clean tone with the GV dialed back (and nice compression), then perfecto solo nazz with the GV up: dial-a-nazz, if you will. As much or as little as one desires.
If any more gigs come along, I think I’m gonna be doing this rig. Lately been using the Twin or tweed Deluxe for gigs - nice, but hard to get the loudness just right with the brake-lites in there, and it’s a hard reach with a guitar on to change the brake setting. This MV on the Therapy will allow perfect loudness adjustment from the front panel - so easy!
jj
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