Gibson GA15RV speaker/volume

[RustleFuzz]

I have a Gibson GA15RV made in England..old Trace Elliot type amp. EL84s, 15 watt class A, Vol/Tone/Reverb controls, bright switch (usually turn this off) and half power switch.

I pulled the Vintage 30 out of it because it just seemed too loud (overall Vol) and sharp in the mids. Put in an Eminence Private Jack (greenback clone) hoping it would break up quicker and have less volume...its definately better for me but didn't quite get the amp where I was hoping (more breakup/less overall vol).

I am trying to get this amp to get dirty...somewhere along the lines of Keith Richards/Neil Young territory.

Any suggestions? Am I barking up the wrong tree with this one?

Amp is still too loud as it stands....Thanks!

[RustleFuzz]

I wanted to mention too...I am thinking about pulling the Eminence and putting in a regular greenback. I think the diff is PJ= 50w/101 SPL and Greeny 25w/96 SPL. Not sure if thats enough to really make a audible change.

Bottom line: trying to avoid buying another amp if I can get this one tamed for $100 or less.

[KC]

Ha! spent the afternoon yesterday screwing around with amps (instead of reviewing admissions manuscripts for our graduate program, which is what I was supposed to be doing). Home alone. Set up the GA15 side by side with a Lil Dawg D-luxe & let 'em rip.

Conclusion: both amps had a "sweet spot" where you could control the amount of drive with pick dynamics, back off for a clear sweet sound or bear down for drive. Both amps felt very organic & alive at this point. But the GA15 was way louder & much more forward in the mids. It would have cut through the mix much better in a band situation but needed some care with the tone control to keep from being too bright. The D-luxe was sweeter, darker, more of a classic rock/blues tone. It was also a lot quieter, probably just loud enough for a quiet gig, maybe not even that.

So maybe the sound you're after isn't what the GA15 is all about. It's definitely not a living-room amp -- by the time the crunch arrives, it's way loud. I could get the tweed deluxe working at fairly sane volumes (I ordered it with the 14-watt output transformer). It might be closer to Richards / Young sounds than that Gibson's designed to get.

[RustleFuzz]

Man the tweed deluxe has been in my sights for awhile now...I may just need to bite the bullet and get one. They always seem to be so expensive though for such a small simple amp...

[Jack]

I've got the GA40RVT which is 30 watts Class A and it is LOUD!..

Had I realized this when I bought it I probably would have gone a different route. Anyhow, no way I can get mine to break-up at home without shattering my ears so I just use pedals. Currently a Fulldrive II which has a bit of that tweed character to it and a Catalinbread DLS on the way that should take me into Marshall territory.

I've been through a bunch of speakers and wished I would have tried the Webers earlier on. I had the Blue Dog ceramic 30 and the now the Alnico 50. Both are great, but the alnico is a little smoother and I like it better. My amp uses 6L6's and the BD's are probably going to sound even better with EL84's. My other choice would be a 12H30.

[otaypanky]

Have you worked with the 2nd lower power input? And also the triode setting? I have a few of these amps, two GA15R's a GA15, and a GA30RVS. The 15R is my favorite. I find it's like having 4 amps in one because of the versatility of the 2nd input a triode setting. I typically keep it in pentode myself. It's a very touch sensitive amp. With the bright switch off you're certainly keeping the mids in the forefront.
IMHO one of the greatest amps I have ever had the fun of playing through~
If you want to get away from "loud" and "mids", I don't think you're going to like a 5E3.

[marshman]

Going from a 101dB speaker to a 96dB speaker should make a pretty signifigant difference in volume, but I imagine it'll probably still be pretty loud.

Good Luck.

[johnnylaw]

Good amp. Needs to be driven to raunch out. Mine has the stock Celestion Vintage speaker. No complaints.

To my ears there is a nastier, greasier, and earlier breakup in the triode mode, and this tames the volume greatly.

I think this amp really shines in pentode mode though. It is most lively and touch sensitive. It also displays good manners with dirt boxes.

I don't know the context/ application in which you typically find the volume a problem, but in my experience this is a wonderful bar/club gig amp where you have a small to medium stage. It holds up nicely in the mix with drums, bass, keys, horns, and guitars at live performance volumes.

A pedal might be your best option.

[RustleFuzz]

Thanks all for you input...good stuff to experiment with!