3

4/1/2013 9:13:23 AM

4

I'm Krallum and I approved this message.

4/1/2013 9:15:53 AM

Quote :

" Fair enough, but there's a reason that 50+ year old Fender amps are still being used on every stage in the world. They're handmade, American amps that are built to take a beating and easy to fix."

Yea I know they are extremely popular, Clapton used one by itself to record the entire 461 Ocean Boulevard album. However like I said, I want to start new with Tubes and I'm not dropping $999 for a 5W Clapton Signature Amp

Quote :

"Groove Tubes is not a manufacturer. They're a front brand that rebadges tubes from other manufacturers with a significant markup depending on format."

Really? Well it doesn't surprise me since I didn't know the brand besides seeing it listed on MF. Do you recommend Russian Tubes when I do get replacements? Or finding some NOS vintage ones?

BTW why does MF carry JJ and GT as two separate companies instead of just listing GTs as a model. Is that so they can mark up GTs more?

Quote :

"The Super Champ X2 has a 10" speaker"

yea I realized this last night after posting it, but passed out and forgot to come back and fix it lol Thanks for the info on it though, I'll have to check the specs to make sure the tubes can drive that 12" without a problem. Although they are made to plug into an external cab, so I HIGHLY doubt that 12" Greenback would be an issue. However I'll have to wait 30 days before I get into that to make sure I want this amp and not something else during the 30 day period.


Thanks for the info on the tubes and yea I found the Tube Store last night.

4/1/2013 11:50:41 AM

Quote :

"Yea I know they are extremely popular, Clapton used one by itself to record the entire 461 Ocean Boulevard album. However like I said, I want to start new with Tubes and I'm not dropping $999 for a 5W Clapton Signature Amp"

I understand if you want to start with a brand new amp that has a warranty, etc., but I wouldn't get a new PCB amp just because you want new tubes. You can get a new set of your choice of tubes for around $50. It's like buying a new Strat starter pack because you want a new cable. I will say that while the warranty on the Super Champ may be 1-2 years, the tube warranty will be 90 days max. The old Champs also have tube rectifiers, which make a big difference in the amp's touch sensitivity.

Quote :

"Really? Well it doesn't surprise me since I didn't know the brand besides seeing it listed on MF. Do you recommend Russian Tubes when I do get replacements? Or finding some NOS vintage ones?"

All new tubes are Russian, Chinese, or Slovakian. My preference of brand depends on what tube type. I like the new Tung-Sol 6V6, JJs for EL84s, and TADs for 6L6s. 12AX/T/Y7 I like JJ and EHX.

NOS tubes will cost as much, if not more, than your amp, and won't make a huge difference in an amp that is mostly shaped in tone by a digital preamp. With that said, it can be fun to buy a lot of old tubes for cheap on eBay just to see if there are any winners.

Quote :

"I'll have to check the specs to make sure the tubes can drive that 12" without a problem. Although they are made to plug into an external cab, so I HIGHLY doubt that 12" Greenback would be an issue. However I'll have to wait 30 days before I get into that to make sure I want this amp and not something else during the 30 day period."

The only issues to worry about with speakers are power handling and resistance. The Super Champ is only 15 watts, so literally any 12" speaker can handle that power. The lowest power-handling 12" I know is the Celestion Blue at 15 watts, and it's an extremely efficient speaker that has been used in 15 watt Vox amps for years. Resistance is just a matter of buying the right model.

However, unlike older Fender amps, an alternate speaker size baffle board for the Super Champ is likely something that will have to be custom fabricated. I'd just buy a 10" Greenback, because you'll spend as much getting the baffle board built as you will just buying another speaker. Does the Crate have a jack on the back to use it as an extension cab? If not, you can solder one up pretty easily.

4/1/2013 12:44:40 PM

nah the Crate GX65 doesn't have a Cabinet Line In, although with how the Super-Champ X2 is wired in the back with the stock speaker, it would be EXTREMELY easy to wire the crate amp up as a cabinet.

Also about NOS tubes, that is one of the things I was thinking is getting some random 6V6s on EBay for a cheapish price and seeing how they sounded sort of for shits and giggles.

4/1/2013 2:23:25 PM

8

I'm Krallum and I approved this message.

4/1/2013 2:23:43 PM

You're going to put NOS tubes in a $50 Crate amp?

*claps*

4/1/2013 2:25:30 PM

Quote :

"Also about NOS tubes, that is one of the things I was thinking is getting some random 6V6s on EBay for a cheapish price and seeing how they sounded sort of for shits and giggles."

Please note that "old" tubes and NOS tubes are completely different things.

This is another reason to get a single-ended amp. You can shove any tube in there and see what happens. If you shove random pairs of tubes into an amp biased for normal matched pairs, some wonky (read: damaging) shit could happen. It's funny to me that you're buying the new amp because you want new tubes, but your idea is to shove any busted old pair of tubes from eBay in there to see what it sounds like.

[Edited on April 1, 2013 at 2:34 PM. Reason : 3]

4/1/2013 2:30:50 PM

Excuse my possible noobness, but is single-ended the same as Class A?

If so ive always much preferred their sound.

4/1/2013 2:51:53 PM

Quote :

"You're going to put NOS tubes in a $50 Crate amp?"

Try to also freshen up on your reading skills, I have two amps. A Crate GX65 (solid state only, so please show me how to put any tubes in it) and a Fender Super-Champ X2.

4/1/2013 2:55:29 PM

^^ AFAIK, all single-ended (single power tube) amps run Class A. Multi-tube amps can also be Class A, but many more of those are Class AB.

4/1/2013 2:59:16 PM

Quote :

"Try to also freshen up on your reading skills, I have two amps. A Crate GX65 (solid state only, so please show me how to put any tubes in it) and a Fender Super-Champ X2."

The BlackDog response to this would be:

"Well with my extensive electrical engineering abilities I should be able to rig up some t00bz as a preamp here, so your attempt at correcting me is utter fail. Here is a collection of wikipedia articles referencing several manufacturers who already offer hybrid amps, so this has me thinking, could I do this myself?"

My response though is simply:

"Fair enough, you're right. The only Crate amp I ever had was a tube amp, and it was alright, but it wasn't worth shit so I can only assume yours isn't either. I would ask you to freshen up your writing skills though, because you tend to ramble about multiple subjects simultaneously, and furthermore add to the confusion with a plethora of annoying links. I'm not invested enough in this thread to properly parse everything, so again I apologize for my transgression."

Please accept my humble offerings O King of Pillz.

[Edited on April 1, 2013 at 3:07 PM. Reason : -]

4/1/2013 3:07:08 PM

Quote :

"Please accept my humble offerings O King of Pillz."

You boys have got to get a better way to try and agitate me, because pills are almost at a year absent from my life. When you say something like that it just makes me happy/proud to know I have been strong enough to fight the addiction.





[Edited on April 1, 2013 at 3:19 PM. Reason : _]

4/1/2013 3:18:25 PM

Ok then, "get a haircut." I can see your fucking Jonas Brothers reflection in your glossy "ax" on page 1.

4/1/2013 3:19:56 PM

Your next response is get a haircut? So now you are looking at pictures from 5+ years ago in my gallery? Nice...


Here is something more recent you can find something to talk shit about:





[Edited on April 1, 2013 at 3:21 PM. Reason : _]

4/1/2013 3:20:58 PM

Quote :

"freshen up on your reading skills"

4/1/2013 3:21:56 PM

good job, only took you 3 tries

and I don't see myself in any of those pictures, not to mention the guitar is not flat..

4/1/2013 3:24:29 PM

You don't see the bicycle helmet-shaped mop on your fucking head here? And you dare suggest you aren't on meds?

Before you say anything, here:

4/1/2013 3:27:07 PM

vinylbandit, if you like Marshall this is a pretty bad ass video (40+ mins long though)

http://youtu.be/WeerxAO3oRU

^ nope (and I know what I look like), especially since I was wearing a hat during taking those pictures. Do you also think those are socks to the bottom left?

I don't need to prove anything to TDub about my sobriety, think I shoot heroin for all I care.






[Edited on April 1, 2013 at 3:31 PM. Reason : _]

4/1/2013 3:28:50 PM

So who is that reflected on your guitar?

[Edited on April 1, 2013 at 3:32 PM. Reason : with a camera in his hands]

4/1/2013 3:32:02 PM

whose feet are those? all I see is a bush (I know where I was) and I just showed you a recent picture..



[Edited on April 1, 2013 at 3:34 PM. Reason : _]

4/1/2013 3:34:08 PM

This is starting to piss me off.

4/1/2013 3:40:59 PM

hey willy, troll elsewhere

4/1/2013 3:53:56 PM

I think this thread is pretty much impossible to troll.

As is this user.

4/1/2013 3:57:58 PM

failure....

4/1/2013 5:30:38 PM

At this point truly I don't care about BlackDog's guitar, his guitar knowledge, or his lack thereof.

But ill be damned if someone tells me they can't see his afro, arm, and camera in the thing's reflection.

I'm the one getting trolled you blind motherfuckers!

4/1/2013 8:47:10 PM

I've never thought Marshall amps were worth a damn.

4/2/2013 2:57:05 AM

The only Marshall that's not completely worthless is an 80's JCM 800.

Also, I would like to thank Black Dog for providing endless entertainment. No one else on this site gives off such an aura of douchebaggery.

4/2/2013 9:26:20 PM

99% of Marshall amps' distortion sounds like an electric razor in a metal mixing bowl.

4/2/2013 10:20:30 PM

vinylbandit, what do you think of this Hughes and Kettner TubeMeister 5? I could get a restocked one for roughly what I have in the Super-Champ X2 (with the 3 year coverage).

Quote :

" Expressive tone and soulful sound right at your fingertips. The TubeMeister 5 tube guitar combo is a testament to the wisdom and passion of Mr. Hughes and Herr Kettner. The preamp has a wealth of sonic riches. A flip of the Drive switch is all it takes to go from clean to mean. The power amp sports oversized transformers and a 12BH7 dual triode that operates in push-pull mode. Housed in a single glass envelope, these two tube systems deliver a devastating one-two punch that will rock your tone! The TubeMeister 5 is super compact, but offers delivers the same response and transcendent tone as the head. Housed in a custom-designed enclosure with a Celestion 8" speaker. If you need to keep it soft in the studio the Red Box and power-soak are on board to feed true power amp tone straight to the desk. Features One channel + Drive One 8" Celestion speaker Warm tube tone with phenomenal dynamic range that sweeps from sparkling clean to throaty crunch Harmonically rich tube distortion and the gain reserves to go from edgy overdrive to soaring lead sounds Passive voicing section with separately tweaked frequency response for CLEAN and DRIVE Preamp section sporting one 12AX7 tube 12BH7 dual triode push pull power section pumps out real 5 watts that rock Oversized transformers that allow greater headroom on CLEAN and more punch on DRIVE tones Automatic/switchable Power Soak with Silent-Recording-Function Call or click to get a jaw-dropping wallop. "

How much better would you say that is? Is it as versatile as the Super-Champ is? With the Super-Champ you can achieve a lot of sounds that would normally require pedals and that is one of the big selling points on it, plus it being a tube amp.


I was also looking at the VHT Special 6, but I'm not familiar with that brand.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/amplifiers-effects/vht-special-6-ultra-6w-1x12-hand-wired-tube-guitar-combo-amp#






[Edited on April 4, 2013 at 3:10 PM. Reason : _]

4/4/2013 3:01:33 PM

Well I was right, they are Groove Tubes and not standard JJ's. They also claimed to be matched (label on the tubes say that), so they should be identical to this set: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessories/groove-tubes-gold-series-gt-6v6-r-matched-power-tubes







and here is the Ragin' Cajun I put in:




RC on the left, stock Fender "Instrumental Speaker" on the right.





I was going to do a tube rebias, but ended up not having time and having the speaker out really doesn't make any difference when getting to the chassis.

The rebias will be my next project, although I believe it voids the warranty, while a speaker change obviously does not.

The SCX2 is loud as fuck now, but also much clearer across the entire frequency spectrum. I was afraid I was going to lose some of the highs, but they are just as clear if not clearer now. Overall I'm really happy with the Ragin' Cajun and I haven't even broken it in yet.

5/2/2013 7:41:48 PM

Once again, Groove Tubes doesn't make ANYTHING. They're rebadged tubes of one brand or another, just not JJ in this case.

A bias adjustment (aka REQUIRED MAINTENANCE) shouldn't void the warranty.

As I said before, though, if you reach in there, don't get yourself killed.

[Edited on May 2, 2013 at 8:10 PM. Reason : 3]

5/2/2013 8:09:08 PM

I must disagree.

Reach in there.

5/2/2013 8:21:31 PM

like I said before, I just repaired a Crate GX65 that required replacing multiple PCB components and I didn't kill myself during all of that work (got $100 for it). I think I can pull out this chassis and turn the pot.

Yes I know GT doesn't "make anything", but they are higher quality JJs. Just like a Trans Am vs a base Firebird.

I believe this would explain why there are GTs in it: http://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/fender-acquires-groove-tubes-157997

Quote :

"Groove Tubes was founded in 1979 and is a long-time leader in the development of high-quality amplifier tubes. The business has also grown to include development and production of microphones, accessories and other electronics. "We are pleased to announce that Groove Tubes has joined the FMIC family of brands," says Bill Mendello, Chairman and CEO of FMIC. "Under Aspen Pittman's leadership, Groove Tubes has grown from a small business to an important, internationally respected company and we look forward to fostering even more success together.""

5/2/2013 8:44:51 PM

Do you think you know more than vinylbandit or do you just enjoy talking to yourself?

I think you should each post videos of yourselves playing guitar, your equipment, and yourselves servicing your equipment.

Then there would be no need for all this armchair bickering.

5/4/2013 7:39:09 PM

What in the hell are you talking about? I have constantly asked vinylbandit for his advice on multiple things in this thread and privately through PMs... I have never claimed I knew more than him on guitars or amps. I just said I knew about how tubes work in general and in an amp (even though mine is technically a dual 6V6 tube powered amp with a DSP/SS front end with a 12AX7 tube phase inverter, although some say it is a concertina-style splitter).

Anyway this will make a few laugh, I had to send back my 2011 Artist III C-1 due to a constantly buzzing low E string. I had Guitar Center fix it twice, it was fixed both times, however after a week it would come back. Considering the guitar is kept inside my house between 69-73F at all times, there is an obvious problem present.

I ended up getting the Schecter Tempest Custom this time because I got Musician's Friend to price match it down to $399 ($300 lower than they are asking) and I always wanted it to begin with. If you consider the $50 gift card I am getting in conjunction with the price match, I got it cheaper than I already had in my C-1.

Tempest Custom looks like this:

Quote :

" Body: Double-cutaway mahogany Top: Flame maple Neck: Set 3-piece mahogany Scale: 24-3/4" Fingerboard: Ebony Frets: 22 medium Inlays: Mother-of-pearl split-crown Binding: Multi-ply Crème Bridge pickup: Seymour Duncan Custom humbucker Neck pickup: Seymour Duncan '59 humbucker Electronics: Vol/Vol/Tone (coil-splitting)/3-way switch Bridge: TonePros Tune-o-matic with stopbar tailpiece Tuners: Schecter locking with pearl buttons Hardware: Chrome Case: sold separately "

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/guitars/schecter-guitar-research-tempest-custom-electric-guitar

yeaaa!! Since I made the first thread I have gone through 4 guitars, 2 of which I have actually received and sent back; 1 was for damage out of the box and the other for the buzzing low E (1 never came off backorder).

I hope I get a cherry Tempest Custom and this is the end of having to be without a guitar (I sold my Alvarez acoustic).

5/10/2013 5:59:05 PM

and just so you know y0willy0, vinylbandit played a vital role in the selection of my SCX2 replacement speaker. I almost went with the Copperhead and he talked me into getting the Ragin Cajun instead.

Also I just PMd him about clean boost pedals and their effect on a tube amp lacking a master volume. So it is pretty obvious that I do not claim to know more than him on any subject involving guitars or amps. I said from the get go that this was my first electric guitar and obviously my first amp..


vinylbandit knows more than BlackDog about guitars and amps!!! Now are we clear on it?

5/11/2013 5:29:14 PM

I thought I had a Black Dog spotting at Ruckus when I was in town a few weeks ago but the guy sounded way too young.

5/11/2013 5:46:51 PM

I'm not currently living in Raleigh, so definitely not me.

5/11/2013 5:47:47 PM

Word. I was basically going by the hair, but as I said, this guy sounded like he was still in HS

5/11/2013 5:49:16 PM

Well I am still waiting for first hair on ball, but I got a haircut recently, so the afro is gone.

5/11/2013 6:06:02 PM

This is a really cool blog. How do I subscribe to get more frequent updates?

I'm Krallum and I approved this message.

5/11/2013 6:13:05 PM

"Add To My Topics"

oh and there was a Part 1: http://thewolfweb.com/message_topic.aspx?topic=635226


back on topic, how much difference will I hear between a Duncan JB (SH-4) and a Duncan "Custom Custom" (SH-11)?




[Edited on May 11, 2013 at 6:18 PM. Reason : _]

5/11/2013 6:14:30 PM

Any way I can get an RSS feed or anything of this sweet blog? I can't be tasked to click My topics



Btw if you want to hear how sick nasty my Iommi epiphone sounds come to the maywood tonight for some of that Live Music! vinylbandit is so amped up about

I'm Krallum and I approved this message.

5/11/2013 6:18:29 PM

I have changed my opinion on Epiphones since I posted in the original thread about them, I came close to getting an Epiphone. However I wasn't too hot on Chinese guitars (prefer Korean if it's coming from the Far East) and I got a smoking deal on the Tempest Custom ($399 + $50 Gift Card) which is a BAD ASS guitar.

5/11/2013 6:37:35 PM

^^^ Not a ton. JB will push the amp a little harder. The last humbucker guitar I had only had a JB in it, and it worked well enough as I remember. Granted, that was 10 years ago.

5/12/2013 2:32:45 AM

since we briefly strayed into amps for a page or so, can anyone tell me how badly I got ripped off selling an 80's Laney 100w tube amp w a broken "overdrive" feature and a four ten inch speaker stack for $20

If it hurts bad enough, I just found an old "suitcase" Fender vibrochamp from the early to mid sixties in my dad's old stuff.

(interestingly enough with an in-the sleeve record of "Duane Eddy and His Twangy Guitar"

[Edited on May 12, 2013 at 4:55 AM. Reason : dsf]

5/12/2013 4:54:12 AM

What do you mean by "suitcase" Vibro-Champ? As in it's been in a suitcase for thirty years?

I'd be interested if you wanted to get rid of it at any point. I love me a low-watt Fender.

---

Hard to say about the Laney. Depending on the model, it could only be worth a couple hundred bucks even in perfect shape, though a lot of people don't care about "overdrive" in an amp like that. I will say that any functional 4x10 is worth at least $150.

5/12/2013 1:23:41 PM

The SH-11 and SH-4 do have pretty close specs:

SH-11 "Custom Custom":

DC Resistance: 14.4 k
Resonant Peak: 5.2 KHz
Magnet: Alnico II Bar

SH-4 "JB"

DC Resistance: 16.4 k
Resonant Peak: 5.5 KHz
Magnet: Alnico V Bar

I doubt with my Fender SCX2 that I will notice very much difference between them. Oh btw, I got confirmation today that my Tempest Custom is shipping out tomorrow and it is going Next Day Air (fo free), so I'll have it Tuesday.

5/12/2013 1:59:52 PM

2k is a pretty significant difference in output.

For instance, there's a giant difference in sound output from a standard bridge P-90 to a standard Strat bridge pickup, and the difference is generally 1.25-1.5k.

[Edited on May 12, 2013 at 2:10 PM. Reason : 3]

5/12/2013 2:09:16 PM