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Gorgar posted:On replacement tubes: does it bias them for you? peter gabriel posted:My first question would be, are you using proper speaker cables to the cab or an instrument cable? What you describe could well be the result of using an instrument cable Thanks for the replies guys. Instinctively, I would never dime an amp, it just seems like a bad idea. But, this one being low-wattage, I thought it'd be fun. I forgot to mention the tubes weren't brand new- they were just some known-to-be-working spares. I will be careful with the champ going forward with it, and maybe take it to the tech.. This is my first finicky tube amp- Luckily, to me just a novelty one I care little about. And for show and tell, here are my two stage amps: 
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Jul 7, 2017 03:40
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That is some cool gear and I thank you for sharing it. I didn't mean to come off as dogmatic before, it's just that my own Dad has drilled certain rules into my head and he just recently embarked on and completed a many-month quest to repair his MESA/Boogie MKIII which, upon blowing a power tube, also blew out several resistors and other components in the power amp section of his combo. He took it on as a fun project and spent a lot of time sourcing caps, resistors, etc. and even spent a lot of time on the phone with techs from MESA. (He also owns a pair of Fender Champs, but I don't know which ones. They have different speakers, that's all I know.) The difference between my Dad and myself is he's an actual engineer and doing something as crazy as re-capping, reconstructing, and slightly altering an amp that, to him, is a prized possession is a thing he (as a retiree) really enjoyed doing. He was the first phone call I made when my Blues Jr. went quiet on me when a basically brand-new V1 died and I feared it was possibly due to my mods on the amp. He helped me figure it out but V1 is a preamp tube and the work I did was mostly on the tone-stack and the output section, so I was very relieved when my power tubes were fine and simply swapping out V1 for another 12AX7 brought it back to life. I could take on a simple mod project, I thought; and I think I did but... Speaking for myself, had it been a power tube blow-out I'd be saving up money to take the amp to a tech and that's why I keep saying that. That said, it looks to me as though you have your amp needs covered and I hope you get your Champ sorted.
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Jul 7, 2017 07:19
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Loco posted:I did use a beefy-looking "Neutrik" cable. This is still something you need to check  A beefy guitar cable is still designed to take a tiny fraction of the power a speaker cable is and can create symptoms very much like you describe
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Jul 7, 2017 12:25
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Yes, instrument cables are not meant for high current applications. I once melted one. I don't recommend it. Similarly, while it's true that most older fender output transformers could tolerate a mismatched load (+/- 100%), I wouldn't trust a modern fender amp to be happy with it. Also Champs were always cathode biased, as far as I know.
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Jul 7, 2017 15:13
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I used to have a ton of problems with Speaker Cab cables myself. Up until like 4 years ago, where a local shop got a hold of a bunch of Fulltone products, including the speaker cables. Those speaker cables basically solved any hiss/noise issues for me. Looking at their online store, though, it appears that they don't sell them anymore, which is a darn shame, because it's been well over 4 years and those cables are still working like new.
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Jul 7, 2017 15:24
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Dr. Faustus, thanks for your replies. I don't think you came of as dogmatic (but this is the amplifier WORSHIP thread, right?) peter gabriel posted:This is still something you need to check So, I don't think it's the problem. Super good advice, though, and something I didn't think of originally, as I had just assumed it looked fine. jwh posted:Similarly, while it's true that most older fender output transformers could tolerate a mismatched load (+/- 100%), I wouldn't trust a modern fender amp to be happy with it. Anyway, thanks again for all the input, guys. I am not an engineer, and will try and stay out of my amps, going forward, for my own good. And I probably will take it to a real engineer some time.
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Jul 7, 2017 16:02
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Loco posted:
Looks good to me man, at least you can eliminate that now
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Jul 7, 2017 16:25
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So I made an impulsive decision and ripped off my grill cloth, and now I gotta re-do it. I was thinking maybe white this time? 2 Orange OB-1 500's and the monster 2x10 2x12 2x15 Electric cab. 
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Jul 7, 2017 18:22
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You hosed up m'dude, that grill cloth was sick as hell. I remember getting real jealous of it when you posted before.
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Jul 7, 2017 18:24
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The ex girlfriend painted it, and I've been looking at it for months, and every loving picture on the internet of us has it, AND the inside of the new record, I was over it. It was pretty badass though. edit: I was thinking of painting this on it. 
Pokey Araya fucked around with this message at 18:59 on Jul 7, 2017 |
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Jul 7, 2017 18:55
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Aw gently caress, yeah, I gotcha now. That's pretty awesome. I think anything in that bold, esoteric, ancient kind of style would look great and match the whole aesthetic you all have going on. I'm a sucker for that kind of thing though. I should try something like that on my holeyboard. Some artwork simple enough to not be ruined by pedals on top and just enough to look cool.
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Jul 7, 2017 20:02
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Loco posted:I have a Fender Champ 600 that has been eating power tubes, and I'm wondering why- I was experimenting with recording, while diming the amp, with a distortion pedal in front, and also with a 4x12 cab. The cab matches the amp's required 4 ohm minimum (was 8 ohms). Was it my fault somehow? Both tubes that blew, one after the other, resulted in some smoke. The first lasted quite a while at high volumes before it blew, while the second one popped quickly at the same volumes. The third one I put in has been working fine (I'm only using sensible volumes and the Weber speaker I bought it with, though). I'm guessing the smoke was just some PCB board or something, as I couldn't see ANY damage when opening the thing up (impressive, I thought). So do you guys think it was just coincidence that two 6L6's popped, or should I get the amp looked at, perhaps? A shot of the PCB would be great. Did the fuse blow at any point during your tube mis-adventure? I know these little Champ 600s are biased pretty hot (louder = better for selling amps in a store on a busy weekend...not so great for your tone though) and cranking an amp that runs hot in general can weed out lesser tubes. Sometimes a red-plating power tube can get so hot it will flash off steam once the amp pops a fuse to protect itself. If a component has released the magic smoke it may not be obvious either. Because the components are mounted on a pcb the evidence of a blow-out, which can be as small as the size of a pinhead, may be on the underside of the component. no dad im not gay! fucked around with this message at 11:42 on Jul 8, 2017 |
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Jul 8, 2017 11:38
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no dad im not gay! posted:A shot of the PCB would be great. Did the fuse blow at any point during your tube mis-adventure? I know these little Champ 600s are biased pretty hot (louder = better for selling amps in a store on a busy weekend...not so great for your tone though) and cranking an amp that runs hot in general can weed out lesser tubes. Sometimes a red-plating power tube can get so hot it will flash off steam once the amp pops a fuse to protect itself. Sure, here you go (One photo using flash, one without): http://imgur.com/a/HIeL8 No fuse blew. And all I see is some weird discoloration around the tube socket pins (or whatever they're called) in the middle.
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Jul 8, 2017 17:52
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Speaking of blowing up, my beloved '81 Twin Reverb decided to become a solo noise artist right before a gig Thursday. It sounds like a cover of Lou Reed's Metal Machine Music whether something is plugged in or not, and I won't have time to mess with it this weekend.  There will be pics to come when I have a chance to get in there, I'm sure.
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Jul 8, 2017 20:24
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After The War posted:Speaking of blowing up, my beloved '81 Twin Reverb decided to become a solo noise artist right before a gig Thursday. It sounds like a cover of Lou Reed's Metal Machine Music whether something is plugged in or not, and I won't have time to mess with it this weekend. Try unplugging the reverb driver tube. That's usually the culprit, if an amp goes screamo.
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Jul 9, 2017 00:33
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Cholmondeley posted:Try unplugging the reverb driver tube. That's usually the culprit, if an amp goes screamo. That's the to starter plan. I'm not hopeful, though - this doesn't sound like the reverb driver oscillation I'm used to, more like a high volume static/crackle.
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Jul 9, 2017 05:05
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Loco posted:Sure, here you go (One photo using flash, one without): http://imgur.com/a/HIeL8 Yep the board looks pretty good. But a-ha! Take a pic of the tube socket. Dollars to donuts you had a defective tube that arced between pins and deposited carbon onto the outside of the tube socket, which is conducting and allowing the event to re-occur with each subsequent tube. Odd that it wouldn't blow the fuse. Assuming the discoloration hasn't impregnated itself into the ceramic tube socket you can get some 99% isopropyl alcohol from a drug store, a q-tip, and clean. Vintage amps used phenol tube sockets that, when a failure like this would occur, could not be cleaned and had to be changed full stop. Ceramic tube sockets have been standardized in most, if not all new consumer amps. After The War posted:That's the to starter plan. I'm not hopeful, though - this doesn't sound like the reverb driver oscillation I'm used to, more like a high volume static/crackle. I'm going to hazard a guess your Twin is on caster wheels? This is at idle, correct? Take turns removing power tubes one at a time. Flip the power on, leave it in stand-by, gently remove a tube, take it out of stand-by, listen, then go back into stand-by, put that tube back in, and repeat. From there move onto the smaller 9-pin tubes starting from the right. You will have no signal from the amp if tubes (again, from right) V1, V2 and V6 are removed. Likely a severely microphonic tube. no dad im not gay! fucked around with this message at 15:01 on Jul 9, 2017 |
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Jul 9, 2017 14:55
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It's Sunday, so it's time for another Faustus Blues Jr. demo clip! (groan) I keep trying to mix it up, so this is a little more Van Halen stuff, bits of Drop Dead Legs. I just recently learned how to play it right and there's a bend in there that I have trouble with on my light-top/heavy bottom strings. I really tweaked the tone stack and with the bass up the amp really does get very loose in the low end, so I tried to keep it tight. I also maxed the Treble and upped the Presence a little more, and I'm wondering if it's too ice-picky. So, I give you "Dirty Demo #2." Since I needed to Detune to Drop-D I used the Strat Style which has a fairly appropriate Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates in the bridge. The clean-ish intro is the pickup in parallel, the rest is the same pickup in series. No added gain or EQ. Reverb added in Reaper. The timing is off a bit because I was just playing the riffs, not grooving with the drums which is what this song is so very good at.  Any comments are welcome. I feel the highs/presence are a bit much, but maybe you'll hear something different. Dr. Faustus fucked around with this message at 00:02 on Jul 10, 2017 |
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Jul 9, 2017 23:58
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Got a Champion 600 but with a hand wired 5f2a champ circuit and a Weber 8" on the way. Pretty stoked for a little lunchbox rock box.
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Jul 10, 2017 02:42
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Saw one of those in the used section at my local GC, it was an older one. Didn't plug into it but it intrigued me, now I'm kinda regretting it. Cause it looks pretty dope.
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Jul 10, 2017 05:09
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After The War posted:That's the to starter plan. I'm not hopeful, though - this doesn't sound like the reverb driver oscillation I'm used to, more like a high volume static/crackle. Check the RCA cable assemblies and jacks on the reverb tank return. RCA cables are the worst things ever invented, in my opinion.
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Jul 10, 2017 14:43
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Quite A Tool posted:Saw one of those in the used section at my local GC, it was an older one. Didn't plug into it but it intrigued me, now I'm kinda regretting it. Cause it looks pretty dope. The stock one is a modern pcb with a solid state rectifier. Still sounds great from the demos I've heard. I'm not sure the exact differences between stock reissue, the vintage model or mine which has been replaced with a 5f2a circuit.
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Jul 10, 2017 15:24
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jwh posted:Check the RCA cable assemblies and jacks on the reverb tank return. I'm about to do this on my Twin, apparently it's a thing and my reverb is noisy at the moment, so I will be attempting this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUGUcEc8I24
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Jul 10, 2017 16:54
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Any Seattle based Earth fans looking for an amp because  https://instagram.com/p/BWYvNCPg02D/
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Jul 11, 2017 03:45
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no dad im not gay! posted:Take a pic of the tube socket. Dollars to donuts you had a defective tube that arced between pins and deposited carbon onto the outside of the tube socket, which is conducting and allowing the event to re-occur with each subsequent tube. Odd that it wouldn't blow the fuse. Assuming the discoloration hasn't impregnated itself into the ceramic tube socket you can get some 99% isopropyl alcohol from a drug store, a q-tip, and clean. Vintage amps used phenol tube sockets that, when a failure like this would occur, could not be cleaned and had to be changed full stop. Ceramic tube sockets have been standardized in most, if not all new consumer amps. Pardon the late reply- Here's the best shot I could get: http://imgur.com/a/etyQo I don't see anything, unfortunately.
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Jul 12, 2017 03:40
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New amp came in. 5f21a Circuit in a Fender Champion 600. Looks like some other good stuff too. 20w Weber speaker. "Classic Tone" output transformer. I think I did well for $230 based on components alone. What do you guys think of the wiring job? Does it look like it was a competent builder? On paper this seems cheaper than even the cheapest kit. I got it as a living room/coffee shop gig amp/ mod platform to learn to tinker on (saftely.)   One problem though. Sounds like balls. There is this specific notched bassy frequency that hits right behind the ears and makes me sick. I'm thinking its the 8" speaker crammed into a box meant for a 6". I have it open back now and its slightly better. It was unbearable with the back closed. Any ideas? I could get or build new cab for it but then I'd loose the tiny carry around box vibe. I found the stock 6" speaker for $20 so I'm going to try that out when it gets here. E: I accidentally quoted at first. Fixed philkop fucked around with this message at 01:17 on Jul 13, 2017 |
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Jul 13, 2017 00:44
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I don't know why he used a 10 watt 750 ohm power resistor as a cathode bias resistor- 5F2A should use a 470ohm 1 watt resistor. The amp is probably biasing too cold. edit: unless.... did he stick a 6L6 in there by accident, instead of a 6V6?
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Jul 13, 2017 21:54
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jwh posted:I don't know why he used a 10 watt 750 ohm power resistor as a cathode bias resistor- 5F2A should use a 470ohm 1 watt resistor. 6v6S, and a 5Y3S
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Jul 13, 2017 22:49
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jwh posted:I don't know why he used a 10 watt 750 ohm power resistor as a cathode bias resistor- 5F2A should use a 470ohm 1 watt resistor. Yeah that's overkill for sure
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Jul 14, 2017 00:21
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Smash it Smash hit posted:Yeah that's overkill for sure Is that something I should think about swapping out? I got this with intentions of modding/learning my way around. Or could I even just jam a 6l6 in there? I've heard that would increase headroom anyways which is a plus for me.
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Jul 14, 2017 01:46
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I post a serious amp circuit question but of course anyone may respond: One thing I noticed and have commented is that my post-mods Blues Jr. is better in a lot of ways but in this one way, it bothers me: If I turn up the bass EQ knob, the low-end gets, as I described it to Andrew Machrone of BillM Mods: “loose, woofy, woolly, wubby, flubby." It's true. The amp had tight "British" low end before the mods and now it's demonstrably loose. I also compared the new sound to "MESA/Boogie, old Carvins, and some Fenders." I asked him if there might be any one component to blame for this. He responded. quote:Your amp should not be wubby. None of that would cost me anything but time (lots of it, unless I hit the jackpot on the first try.) You guys who know amplifiers, can you guess as to what made the amp go all loose in the low-end when it wasn't loose before? I note, it's tied directly to the bass EQ knob: the more bass I dial in, the looser it gets. Before I set off on a mission, can anyone help me figure out why a previously tight Blues Jr. is now... not tight? I like to play with full pre-amp gain and get some crunchy rock tones. It's ok but not great when the low notes go all flubby. What causes that?
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Jul 15, 2017 07:58
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no dad im not gay! posted:
So... an update! I finally had a change to gently caress with it, and it seems like the problem was not the RCAs for the reverb return... but for the footswitch. I have the reissue kind with the metal RCA jackets, and something was making contact that shouldn't have... then that overloads the noisy reverb and... SQUEEEEECCHCAASARCCHAS. Tried it for a while today without the footswitch, and everything seems fine so far. Will keep you guys appraised. Thanks for the advice, all! Since we have a pretty major show coming up next month, I'll need to run it at stage volume at some point between now and then.... 
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Jul 15, 2017 23:07
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philkop posted:Is that something I should think about swapping out? I got this with intentions of modding/learning my way around. You could swap it out for a lower value resistor, like the schematic original 470 ohm resistor. There's nothing wrong with using a larger wattage rated resistor (except perhaps for the space required, as they get bigger). As for the power tube, it depends on the output transformer. 6V6 and 6L6 aren't necessarily interchangeable- it depends on the load, the transformer, the voltage on the plate and screen, the cathode bias resistor.
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Jul 17, 2017 16:29
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Friend of mine just ordered this combination of things: Egnater Rebel 30  and the open-back Orange PPC212OB cabinet.  Bruce Egnater is cool as gently caress and that Amp has some stuff I've never seen before (a blend knob between two tube types? Neat.)
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Jul 17, 2017 16:33
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I'm having this common problem with my VIP3 amp. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X30ADp-eUBE Reading up and it's just dirty pots fixed with a quick spray of deoxit. Problem is the plastic knobs feel kinda fragile and I'm not sure how to get the spray inside them. Best advice I've found through google is "tilt amp back 45degrees and hope it gets in there. Can't just rip them out and replace them either because they're wired into a logic board for the light show and digital modelling controls. They're not typical analogue controls, instead the voltage level trips a 0-127 digital level in the software. Anyone got any thoughts?
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Jul 18, 2017 08:46
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Dang It Bhabhi! posted:Friend of mine just ordered this combination of things: That amp looks cool as hell
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Jul 18, 2017 11:22
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What are your guy's favorite pedal platform amps around $500? Looking for something loud enough for a band with a decent amount of clean headroom
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Jul 18, 2017 21:43
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Iucounu posted:What are your guy's favorite pedal platform amps around $500? Looking for something loud enough for a band with a decent amount of clean headroom Combo or head? gently caress with a Roland JC-120? I love the Traynor YBA-3 head. Gibson Lab L5. Dang It Bhabhi! fucked around with this message at 22:39 on Jul 18, 2017 |
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Jul 18, 2017 22:36
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Iucounu posted:What are your guy's favorite pedal platform amps around $500? Looking for something loud enough for a band with a decent amount of clean headroom The Orange CR-120 head is awesome and comes at around a cool 450 bucks (and I've seen it in as little as 390). If you also gotta have a speaker, I think the CR-60 combo is also good, and same price range. Last week, I recorded a guy who was running his entire operation (around 2k in between boutique and cheap pedals) out of a Roland Blues Cube 30, and he got it for like 350 bucks.
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Jul 18, 2017 22:41
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Iucounu posted:What are your guy's favorite pedal platform amps around $500? Looking for something loud enough for a band with a decent amount of clean headroom pre-transtube 80s peavey combos, usually marketed as the solo series $500 will easily get you a pair if you wanna do stereo stuff and/or be a really loud rear end in a top hat
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Jul 18, 2017 23:27
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