5e7 bandmaster vs 6g16 vibroverb?

[glblues]

i currently have a 5e7 bandmaster which i use in my blues bands, but i find that i do need a bit of a cleaner sound and sometimes a bit more punchy sound for certain applications and a bit of a tighter bass.
yes, i like the slightly dirty cleans that my 5e7 gives me, but not all the time, if you get my meaning.
at the same time, i find that blackfaces are a bit too clean for my likes, hence the idea to build a 6g16 vibroverb, an inbetween tweed and BF. plus with the reverb and trem in it. its the perfet grab and go amp.
the problem is that i cant find any reviews of the circuit. experiences from people who have built one or used one or any reasonable youtube clips of the sound, this has been immensely frustrating. so i am unwilling to take the plunge without at least hearing some clips of it.
is the volume going to be similar? will i get more clean headroom or similar?
can anyone help out here?

[Wally]

And welcome to the TDPRI..
Generally speaking, yes the 6G12 should yield soncis that have a bit more headroom. A lot depends on the speakers. I was reading a thread somewhere yesterday where it was mentioned that although Alnico speakers have great breakup characteristics and have wonderful solo(non band) sonics, sometimes a ceramic will help a tweed circuit punch through in a band situation. YOu might try some ceramics...unless you are already using them.
The guitar used also can make a difference in how the circuit and speaker sound, right? Teles through that Bandmaster will cut better than a thicker sounding humbucking guitar.

[glblues]

hey, thanks for replying :)

i have weber 10a125s and mercury magnetics in the amp if that helps.

i have sovteks in them which might add to the problem, but they shouldnt affect the headroom. (?)

[Wally]

IF you like the dynamic nature of the 5E7...touch sensitivity....and want to experiment, try some punchy ceramics...10F125's or 10F150's... in that amp. I don't know what Sovtek tube you are running or what preamp tubes you have in there, but some JJ or CED 6L6's with proper biasing might yield firmer punch and headroom if they are properly biased.
Are you running a 12AY7 in V1? If you have a 12AX7 in that position, that tube yields a lot of gain in that circuit/position. There won't be much headroom with a 12 AX7. Even a 12AT7 would help there, but the 12AY7 is the tube that the schematic calls for.
All of these experiments are a lot cheaper than a new build. On the other hand, building a 6G16 shouldn't be a waste of time.

[Guitarslinger1]

Originally Posted by Wally

IF you like the dynamic nature of the 5E7...touch sensitivity....and want to experiment, try some punchy ceramics...10F125's or 10F150's... in that amp. I don't know what Sovtek tube you are running or what preamp tubes you have in there, but some JJ or CED 6L6's with proper biasing might yield firmer punch and headroom if they are properly biased.
Are you running a 12AY7 in V1? If you have a 12AX7 in that position, that tube yields a lot of gain in that circuit/position. There won't be much headroom with a 12 AX7. Even a 12AT7 would help there, but the 12AY7 is the tube that the schematic calls for.
All of these experiments are a lot cheaper than a new build. On the other hand, building a 6G16 shouldn't be a waste of time.

+1 on the 12AY7 in V1.

Also you can switch to a GZ34 rectifier. This will boost the voltages, giving more headroom and tighter bass over the 5U4. Of course you would need to re-bias the amp.

There are several mods that could be done. The one to start with would be moving the center tap of the OT to the hot side of the choke, like it is done on a 5F6A and most Fenders following. This allows the amp to open up quite a bit.

If you don't already have screen resistors on the power tubes, that would be a good thing to do.

There are several other reversible mods that could be done as well.