What Have You Heard or Played Lately that Made You Go, "WOW!"

Have any cool amps crossed your path recently that perked up your ears and given you GAS? Have you rediscovered an amp that you already own and tweak it to do something you didn't know it would do? Share your stories here.

I picked up a champ 600 from the used pile at my local GC for the incredible price of $50...( it was "scuffed and dirty" lol) a little elbow grease and Elmer's and it looks almost new..

It sounded pretty good, (well played in I suspect..)so I back burnerd any mods.

Over Easter week I went to PA to visit some friends, we went to a flea market..and a guy had a bunch of electronics stuff, including a big box of tubes.

I started looking thru it, and he asked what I was looking for" guitar amp stuff"
Oh he said, let me see..he rooted around a bit, and pulled out two GE 6v6s and a RCA coke bottle 6L6..then he pulled out a bag from under the table with about a dozen US made preamp tubes in it including two GE 12AX7s along with some AT7s and AU7s..any idea if they are good? Oh yea..I test em...they are decent...umm how much?...let me see..3 power tubes, bag of little guys..I dunno..$10 bucks?
They sound incredible it's like a whole different amp...

I picked up a champ 600 from the used pile at my local GC for the incredible price of $50...( it was "scuffed and dirty" lol) a little elbow grease and Elmer's and it looks almost new..

It sounded pretty good, (well played in I suspect..)so I back burnerd any mods.

Over Easter week I went to PA to visit some friends, we went to a flea market..and a guy had a bunch of electronics stuff, including a big box of tubes.

I started looking thru it, and he asked what I was looking for" guitar amp stuff"
Oh he said, let me see..he rooted around a bit, and pulled out two GE 6v6s and a RCA coke bottle 6L6..then he pulled out a bag from under the table with about a dozen US made preamp tubes in it including two GE AX7, along with some AT7s and AU7s..any idea if they are good? Oh yea..I test em...they are decent...umm how much?...let me see..3 power tubes, bag of little guys..I dunno..$10 bucks?
They sound incredible it's like a whole different amp...

I've got a Marshall Class 5 that I put a early 70's Mullard 12ax7 in...What a difference.

I'm still blown away by a Dr Z Mazerati that a friend owns. I've played several Z's but this one is special.

My Boomerang III looper.......WOW!

File under "yeah - we know that".....but I played a Blues Junior III at GC and realllly liked it. Then Axis29 got his NOS BJ and liked that too. (although different) It's kinda hard to justify the boutique stuff when this production line gear sounds that good.

And of course, there's my 80's Super Champ in its new 12" cabinet with Emi Can Rex. It's really made that amp into something special.

I played a princeton RI at a pawnshop. I cranked to about 7 and thought "WOW". It's still a little too loud for where I live but I'm kicking myself for not paying the $225 for it.

My Clara Super Deluxe - new to me about a week ago.

It's a tip top of the line 5e3 Deluxe clone with a vintage JBL D-130, finger jointed birch cab, PTP, running 6l6's for 30 watts.

Aside from that, I'm really liking that little Megnatone Tonemaster that Phil X plays in all the Fretted Americana YouTube demos.

my new eminence swamp thang.

My V6 Big Muff.

A mid 70's Fender Twin Reverb I have been playing lately in a local rehearsal studio. I've been using it with a Les Paul and zendrive and it sounds great. I'm now on the hunt for a good one.

Another "wow" moment was playing through a Matchless Chieftan at Ultrasound Studios in NYC a while back, but they're out of my price range at the moment. That place has some serious amps. Quite a few Trainwrecks too, but I was never lucky enough to play through one.

Believe it or not ( in my best Jack Palance voice!)
A Roland Cube 80xl and a Boss OD3.

No it isn't going to replace my tube amps, 66 Fender Deluxe Reverb and Hinson Z28 style head, BUT ...

I have been getting some amazing tones out of the Cube, the Boss OD3 works really well with the Cube too.
I don't like all the amp models,but the JC Clean, Tweed, Vox and Marshall models sound great, the onboard reverb , chorus, phase, flange, tremolo all sound great, still working with the delay but it's good.

I paid $350 new for the Cube80XL, got a like new Boss OD3 for $50 and it's the most fun I've had in a long time.

And I'm running my Roland GR55 synth into the aux input in the back, it's a neutral input so the GR55 sounds good through that.

Fender Blues Deville 4x10 Reissue!

Marshall Class 5. I was completely surprised by it. And, I'm not a Marshall guy, in the least.

I recently played a friends blues junior that was in a custom hand made pine cabinet. Looked beautiful, sounded beautiful, all around awesome little amp.

As Lance says, I recently picked up a Blues Jr NOW. I love it. Very portable and good tone.

But, a few months ago I was out in California visiting some family... I dropped into a local music store (as traveling musicians are want to do) and played a '65 ES-125 though a used Twin Reverb Reissue. That was heavenly tone, even at the low volumes I was using in the store. But it's hard to justify another big amp right now...

I am VERY intrigued by the new Fender Excelsior. Can't wait to try one in person!

Plugged into a 67 (not RI) Princeton Reverb and just fell in love. Like the kids say - OMG! Sweetest tone my guitars have ever made. All original. Been stored in a basement. It's slightly moldy. Offered him $400 for it and he said "OK". It was his dad's, and has been dormant for 10 years.
My 95 Delux Reverb 112 that I never really bonded with, is for sale.

Once I played through a No-master-volume Silverface Super Reverb with Alnicos I knew this was it. Tone heaven! I got myself one and every day that goes by I grow happier.


Fender Blues Deville 4x10 Reissue!

Very close to awsome as well.

Really REALLY loving a relic tweed Blues Junior that I got in trade a week or two ago.

Anything you build & tweak yourself. Also a 65 Ampeg Reverberocket turned up all the way in a huge garage.

Heard...not played recently
Tele out of prescription Z.......and some greenbacks....just phenom..it was all there..

I have a 65 non reverb deluxe that had new tubes in it and i re tubed it with Nos RCA 6v6's
various Nos and anos preamp tubes and a mullard GZ34 and wow its like a different amp.
My current favourite.

What a difference with the NOS tubes.

Last amp that really made me sit up and pay attention was the Swart Space Tone Jr -- 5 watts, reverb -- just a great-sounding little amp.

The Traynor YGM3 Guitarmate I picked p for a Franklin a few weeks ago.

My Vox AC15C1. Had it about amonth now, and the Honeymoon ain't close to over. I've gigged it a ton, and done a couple of rehearsals with it, and I just flat love this little amp. Gigging it again tomorrow night. Every time I look at it I want to plug it in. I just love it so damn much.

All these deals in this thread - 67 Princeton Reverb for $400, YGM3 for $100, PRRI for $225. I'd bet that helps the wow factor...

Posted this in the other instruments forum. The first time though it blew me away.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRM26I8Y3KY

OK what am I doing wrong?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRM26I8Y3KY

My new DRRI that I got Monday. It sounds so good already, can't wait to put some miles on it and break it in.

The Gretsch Duojet through a TRRI. I bought the Gretsch a month ago. Still love it.

As Lance says, I recently picked up a Blues Jr NOW. I love it. Very portable and good tone.

But, a few months ago I was out in California visiting some family... I dropped into a local music store (as traveling musicians are want to do) and played a '65 ES-125 though a used Twin Reverb Reissue. That was heavenly tone, even at the low volumes I was using in the store. But it's hard to justify another big amp right now...

I am VERY intrigued by the new Fender Excelsior. Can't wait to try one in person!

Agreed on the Excelsior! It's a super awesome looking amp! (sounding too)

An Orange Twin Terror amp...WOW!!!

My stepson's Jagstang that my wife adn I bought him for a birthday 5 or 6 years ago, put some flatwounds on there, flipped it to out of phase and put it through the Champ 600 and a Devi-Ever Ruby(Tonebender) and just got the most wicked rock and soul rhythm going. Fender on Fender sound...can't beat it.

Have any cool amps crossed your path recently that perked up your ears and given you GAS? Have you rediscovered an amp that you already own and tweak it to do something you didn't know it would do? Share your stories here.

Yes Mr Paul in Colorado.

1. I put 6V6 (JJs) in a Super Reverb & found the results to be fantastic, better than any Deluxe ever. THe cabinet is also converted to 12-10. Cool amp

2. I bought a master volume, 77 pro reverb 212. I spent my life being a stupid snob, swearing by blackface & very early silverface circuits. This ultra linear 70 watts amp was like the plague for me - everything you could ever hate. Guess what? It sounds gorheous, as good or better than most of my amps... with any guitar, any situation. Pure bliss....Guess I'm still an idiot after all these years...:roll:

Posted this in the other instruments forum. The first time though it blew me away.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRM26I8Y3KY

OK what am I doing wrong?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRM26I8Y3KY

You take the text after the = sign, in this case 'oRM26I8Y3KY', and paste it in between the tags.

Like Zo:
[YOUTUBE]oRM26I8Y3KY

It looks like this:
Open bracket YOUTUBE]oRM26I8Y3KY[/YOUTUBE close bracket

Gadow Nashville with Fralins thru a 50 watt Marshall JMD:1 head. Of course it does rock and metal, but I am really surprised by the clean and edge of breakup tones. It also has very usable verb, delay with tap, and modulation. So no pedal board needed for me.
I didn't think I was a Marshall guy until I played it. I decided to take a flyer on it because of the huge price drop and I'm really glad that I did.

You take the text after the = sign, in this case 'oRM26I8Y3KY', and paste it in between the tags.

Like Zo:
[YOUTUBE]oRM26I8Y3KY

It looks like this:
Open bracket YOUTUBE]oRM26I8Y3KY[/YOUTUBE close bracket

Thanks.

I traded my 97 MIM Strat for a 1980 Marshall Club and Country 4145 that was converted to head only, but I have a few 4x 12 cabs and and old peavey 6 x 10 cabinet that this thing sounds great with. The amp came stock with 4 10s and is 100 watt all tube.

My daughter came over and she played her 71 SG through the Marshall and I played my Paul though my Traynor yba 3 and the traynor is louder but that Marshall sound with those humbuckers WOW! Those Gibson sounded great as did my Peavey Predator with p90s, I have to try it with my other predator with singles.
I know this is a fender forum but this has been one of my best trades, the Strat had sat in the case for over a year and the guy that got it was happy as could be.
The homemade case is ok but this thing screams... first Marshall I ever owned and am impressed. There is not a lot of info on them that I could find.
I would like to get the original cabinet dimensions so I could build a version of 4 10s and matching head

My brand new Muchxs amp with 12 inch speaker. Pure sonic bliss at levels my wife can live with.

I rediscovered my Rivera S120-210 recently. I realized that you could put a dirt pedal in the "Slavemaster" loop and it opened a lot of possibilites. And I got a TC G-Major effects unit to go in the stereo loop. I'm still experimenting with it, but I think I've found a great gig rig.

There is a guitar center, not saying where, that has one of the best modern DRRIs I have heard. I have played it side by side with other DRRIs and it has an enhancing quality and sustain which can make an average sounding guitar just sound amazing. I was playing a telecaster the other night through it and had I not known I would have bought the guitar based on the tone I was getting. I then swapped to another DRRI and the tele sounded mediocre at best. It is a one of a kind amazing sound Fender amp. I am negotiating trading my DRRI in along with some cash to get this amp.

I think the reason it sounds so good could be the fact that it has been in the store longer than most amps and has been broken in well by a lot of players. It definitely has a wow factor.

Plugged into a 67 (not RI) Princeton Reverb and just fell in love. Like the kids say - OMG! Sweetest tone my guitars have ever made. All original. Been stored in a basement. It's slightly moldy. Offered him $400 for it and he said "OK". It was his dad's, and has been dormant for 10 years.
My 95 Delux Reverb 112 that I never really bonded with, is for sale.

Holy mary mother of God!

Howdy,

Dr.Z Carmen Ghia. The only other amp I use these days is my old Vibro Champ, which is only about 20% of the time. The Carmen Ghia is that good.

Got an old Roland Cube30 a few weeks back. Expected it to just be a cheap practice amp, but it's got some of the best plug-in-and-play sounds I've heard anywhere.
Compared it to my tweed Fender '57 Deluxe 5E3 and it still sounds great.

Best 100 euro I've spent in a while.

Vox AC30cc2 modded with Weber Silver Bell and Blue Dog Speakers. It's been out of commission for a while due to the fact that it needed new tubes. Got that taken care of and it's alive again and maaaaaaan.

My recently retubed '63 AC-30. I scored an Amperex Bugle Boy 12AX7 and seven Mullard BVA 12AX7s for $150 at a guitar show over the weekend. All I can say is WOW! Now if I could just find a deal on a matched quad of Valvo EL84s.

My Vox AC15C1. Had it about amonth now, and the Honeymoon ain't close to over. I've gigged it a ton, and done a couple of rehearsals with it, and I just flat love this little amp. Gigging it again tomorrow night. Every time I look at it I want to plug it in. I just love it so damn much.

Wait a minute....aren't you the guy that has always been dissatisfied with low-wattage amps? What's different about the AC15 from all the other low-power amps that didn't work for you?

I just got my Janglebox compressor about a month ago and I've been thinking about electric 12 strings again after 15 years so I brought my Janglebox and a store had a used Rickenbacker 360/12 v63. I plugged into a SF twin reverb and turned on. It was Byrds time. MAN TURNED ON THE COMPRESSOR IT NAILED THE TONE! Very little tweeking and there is something to the toasters instead of the high gain pickups!

My SFPR with BFPR innards, had it for years but just discovering it. Played it again tonite on about mid volume and man with my '62 Tele Custom RI it is about as good as it gets. These things sound like pretty big amps for what their size.

I recorded a Blues band a couple of weeks ago. One of the guitarists had modded his Fender Hot Rod Deluxe with a Jensen P12N. Definitely wow! Great tone across the whole speaker - I couldn't find a single point that sounded bad. No harsh fizzy frequencies and no boxy/nasal mid range.

Have a Valvetrain 205 Classic (1955 5F2a Princeton) which is a great amp and usually play a USA Epiphone Riviera with mini-humbbuckers and Guild Starfire IV but have finally got a Fender Telecaster....an American Vintage 52 Reissue "Coppercaster" and the single coils through the Valvetrain...WOW!

1946 Fender Deluxe, model 26. Wow

Wilde Keystones in my Tele in Series through the Tweed sim in my Roland amp. Smooth, bluesy and awesome!

I got a Fender Deluxe VM a few months ago and man that is one sweet sounding amp! I really love how she sounds when she is up around 4. I am able to keep up with my co lead's 60 watt marshall combo. It give us a great tonal balance and volume!

Nothing.

But his did make my eyes pop out of my head:
http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i223/KuuKOO/06-.jpg

Fezz what the hell is that?
Looks cool.

There's a thread in Other Guitars. It's a Bigsby Clone.

Thanks I'll give it a look. Bigsbys were made before Fenders if I rember right. Kind'a had a Fender shaped headstock. Or Fenders had kind'a Bigsby shaped headstocks.

My 68 SFVC now has a full set of NOS tubes and sounds great! RCA 12AX7A, GE 6V6GT, RCA 5Y3GT. Wow. Volume on 5 with some Sparkledrive in front for low volume dirt. I love it. Not too loud. Not sure how to describe. Just wow.

Still really stuck on Jason Laughlin..

This guy is just a killer guitar player

Nothing.

But his did make my eyes pop out of my head:
http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i223/KuuKOO/06-.jpg

Whoa, that is clean. If that is somebody's clone, it is really amazing workmanship.

I am VERY intrigued by the new Fender Excelsior. Can't wait to try one in person!

I think you'll dig it John, it's toneful and a lot of fun.

Over the course of a couple weeks, I've been decking out my Pro Reverb with old tubes. I've got RCA black plates in it. It gets some pretty gnarly overdrive with those, and the cleans are really good, too. I've also got some Telefunken in the preamp section, which are excellent. I've currently got some Sylvania 12at7's on the way for it.

Well, my 66 Super Reverb has always had a "holy crap" kind of sound. Last weekend I went to an "outdoor gig" (that's the key words), and I took my Billm modded Blues Junior. I played it unmiced and cranked that thing up. It was almost as good a "holy crap" sound as the SR. (Notice the almost in the previous sentence.) I was very impressed with the Junior though. I think it could pair up with the SR on stage. SR for clean and the Junior breaking up a little bit. I've actualy done that combination at home before, I'm still thinking about a gig with that setup. I never realized how much of a difference those Billm mods made until I cranked it up. I've always had the Junior at church so I couldn't turn it up very loud. The money and time for those mods was worth it. I'm glad I have experience with tube amps though. The waiting list for Billm is almost a year long.

I have a number of amps but nothing that rocks with gain. A bass player friend sold me a Peavey VTM 60 head with the matching 4 x 12 cab for $200. What a deal for me. It's actually pretty versatile, cleans up with guitar volume but rocks hard when needed. Try one, I'm having fun with it.

Just did a bunch of diligent research looking for a small tube amp. Found a used Blues Junior green board, and scooped it up, anticipating the oncoming Billm mods to make it great. It's home. It smells like cigarettes. But it sounds decent.

2 days later, I walk into my local Long and McQuade. There is the Excelsior. I plugged it in, cranked out some riffs. Sounds great! Kind of a one trick pony though. I'm still happy with my purchase.

Then yesterday I go back in to Long and McQuade. (I'm a glutton for punishment) Sitting there is a brand spanking new, Fender Super Champ X2 head hooked up to a Mesa 2x12 cab. "Interesting," I think.

I plug in and let 'er rip.

O.M.G. This thing is incredible. It was so good, I had people gathering around clamouring to see what was making this sweet, sweet sound. Even the guys in the store came over saying, "What is that thing?"

Now I'm lost. do I sell the Blues Jr. before I do the mods and grab a Super Champ X2 combo? Did that Mesa Cabinet make THAT much difference in the sound of the amp? Do I ACTUALLY like it better than the Blues Jr.?

Grrrrrrrr......I have to stop going in that place.

First real "WOW" in a while for me. I picked up a used Seymour Duncan Twin
Tube Classic SFX-03 stomp box ( tube pre amp) and plugged into the
Power Amp In jack on the back of my Peavey Stereo Chorus 212 amp.

By bypassing the Peavey's SS preamp section, I now had the configuration of a tube pre amp combined with 270watts of power amp. WOW !! Those weird military spec tubes that Seymour Duncan uses in these, with the high voltage plate sound amazing. This makes the SS amp sound like a tube amp, and they make my tube amps sound even better.

I love the sound of my Peavey SC 212 anyway, but with the Seymour TTC hooked up with it, now, playing with the EQ, it can sound like a vintage Marshall cranked up, but at low volume. A great amp now sounding like a great old tube amp. WOW! Just freaking WOW!

I plugged into my amp with a shorter cable and man was there a tone difference. I also retubed the power section of my AC30C2 and it no longer pops and whistles. It sounds incredible.

My 78 Pro Reverb is treating me good. Running a ToneBone Classic with the 7dB mid-boost engaged: distortion heaven!

Just installed a beefy 100-watt, 8-ohm, 15-inch Altec Lansing 421A speaker with Dia Cone assembly into a Thiele type sealed back cabinet.......it displaced an Electrovoice 15.

Wow, like the thread says..............

Believe it or not ( in my best Jack Palance voice!)
A Roland Cube 80xl and a Boss OD3.

No it isn't going to replace my tube amps, 66 Fender Deluxe Reverb and Hinson Z28 style head, BUT ...

I have been getting some amazing tones out of the Cube, the Boss OD3 works really well with the Cube too.
I don't like all the amp models,but the JC Clean, Tweed, Vox and Marshall models sound great, the onboard reverb , chorus, phase, flange, tremolo all sound great, still working with the delay but it's good.

I paid $350 new for the Cube80XL, got a like new Boss OD3 for $50 and it's the most fun I've had in a long time.

And I'm running my Roland GR55 synth into the aux input in the back, it's a neutral input so the GR55 sounds good through that.

I believe it. I spent a day playing a Roland Cube 80XL, a decent Yamaha Hollow body w/ P90's, and a well loved & setup Ibanez Artcore. I had an absolute blast with the amp, and I spent very little time dialing in to find about a half dozen tones I thought were outstanding. It had some decent effects too. I spent half the time dialing in what I wanted as I do on almost all of my tube amps, and more time playing. It wont replace my vintage Ampeg for a handful of sounds, or necessarily my Bandmaster, but I could actually live with the thing full time if I had to, and be quite happy. I haven't said that about a solid state in a long time.

I had a good craigslist find a little bit ago. It's a Kay model 504 with an 8" speaker. I believe the year on the schematic inside it says 1962. Has all of the original tubes from what I can tell. Just replaced the two 12ax7s and my gawd does that little guy rip with some beautiful tube saturation. Crank it back down and enjoy the unbelievable tremolo on it too!

Other than that, I recently completed a Weber '57 low powered Tweed Twin clone with a couple of adjustments and I have never been happier with my gigging sound.

There is a guitar center, not saying where, that has one of the best modern DRRIs I have heard. I have played it side by side with other DRRIs and it has an enhancing quality and sustain which can make an average sounding guitar just sound amazing. I was playing a telecaster the other night through it and had I not known I would have bought the guitar based on the tone I was getting. I then swapped to another DRRI and the tele sounded mediocre at best. It is a one of a kind amazing sound Fender amp. I am negotiating trading my DRRI in along with some cash to get this amp.

I think the reason it sounds so good could be the fact that it has been in the store longer than most amps and has been broken in well by a lot of players. It definitely has a wow factor.


We played (last Fri.) a club we had not been to in a while.I have one of the 1st year DRRI ('92? I forget, I did look it up and it was the 1st year they came out), and I got to do the "magic six" setting (w/ volume at 5) on channel 2, and WOW. I usually don't get to play that loud and it was like a new amp to me. Being an early DRRI having a good break - in period is essential. The new one in my local GC does not have the same snap at all. Nice, but not the WOW factor. I reccommend getting that amp MM. When I hit the fuzz at that setting for some Hendrix I almost fainted!! Love these amps!

For me that would be my 62 Deluxe.

I have discovered that it works best with guitars that don't have a lot of midrange and have lower output pickups, because it overdrives easily and has a lot of mids.(my Tele or Jerry Jones Shorthorn, rather than P-90 guitars for instance).

As far as pure rock amps go, it's very hard to beat.

There's a thread in Other Guitars. It's a Bigsby Clone.

Actually Bigsby was looking at doing reissues and I saw some prototypes at a local guitar show a year or so ago. Been looking for them ever since and just found this (no affiliation). There are a few other models as well including at least one with a vibrato. The dealer selling these says they only have a few of the prototypes left:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Bigsby-BY50-Paul-Bigsby-Reissue-Merle-Travis-Guitar-1950-Vintage-Style-Prototype-/290703961126#vi-content

Other than that, I recently completed a Weber '57 low powered Tweed Twin clone with a couple of adjustments and I have never been happier with my gigging sound.

Gawd I wish I had the talent and guts to build one of these:cry:

What speakers are you using?

I played some steel on a recording for a local artist recently. Rather than playing through an amp, I went directly into a Line6 HD500 and direct into the board. It sounded _amazing_ when I heard it played back in the control room.

I was playing a Vox ac15 cc1 amazing amp.

I was playing a Vox ac15 cc1 amazing amp.

+1 For being age 14, or any age really, you've got a good head on your
shoulders. :smile:

My new DRRI.

I had a good craigslist find a little bit ago. It's a Kay model 504 with an 8" speaker. I believe the year on the schematic inside it says 1962. Has all of the original tubes from what I can tell. Just replaced the two 12ax7s and my gawd does that little guy rip with some beautiful tube saturation. Crank it back down and enjoy the unbelievable tremolo on it too!

Other than that, I recently completed a Weber '57 low powered Tweed Twin clone with a couple of adjustments and I have never been happier with my gigging sound.

Those, my friend, for my left nut. You don't need an extra left nut, do you?
Those are outstanding. Really nice job on that low powered TT! Beautiful.
Keith Richards uses both circuits, one for recording, the other for live. Are you a Stones fan?

Bugara V22. Got it as partial trade for a guitar. I was not expecting it to be so versatile. Covers a wide range of sounds from fender sparkle, to smokey blues to hard rock. And does each very very well. Its my 'go to' amp for all but the smallest gigs I play now. And damn it looks so cool. :cool: If they only made a smaller version (still with 12" speaker), I'd be set for all my gigs.

Then yesterday I go back in to Long and McQuade. (I'm a glutton for punishment) Sitting there is a brand spanking new, Fender Super Champ X2 head hooked up to a Mesa 2x12 cab. "Interesting," I think.

I plug in and let 'er rip.

O.M.G. This thing is incredible. It was so good, I had people gathering around clamouring to see what was making this sweet, sweet sound. Even the guys in the store came over saying, "What is that thing?"

Now I'm lost. do I sell the Blues Jr. before I do the mods and grab a Super Champ X2 combo? Did that Mesa Cabinet make THAT much difference in the sound of the amp? Do I ACTUALLY like it better than the Blues Jr.?

Grrrrrrrr......I have to stop going in that place.

Similar thing happened to me. In my case, I'd been playing an SC XD for the last 5 years and loved it. Last Jan. I picked up a Mustang III to see what it could do after some initial tweaking. Two weeks later I'm still tweaking and nothing better is coming out. It sat and collected dust until two weeks ago.

Go in to GC to hear my first X2 and was floored. Traded the Mustang and brought an X2 (the head) home. Plugged it into my cab with an older Celestion 80wt 12" and dropped to the floor. Great Fender sounds and no tweaking involved. It may hook up to the Fuse software but I could care less. This things just plain rocks.

I'd be interested in what billm has to say about the X2 but since he hasn't mentioned it I have to assume that either he's too busy, or the X2 is not a great departure from the XD. It would be nice to know if any of his XD mods would make it better. Though I can't see how (other than the speaker situation I already took care of).

[/B]

Gawd I wish I had the talent and guts to build one of these:cry:

What speakers are you using?

Man, been super busy. Sorry for the delayed response. Thanks! This was my first amp build, so it definitely took some guts! I'm just glad it worked once I was done. Luckily I had a local amp guru at the time and he guided me in the right direction on some things. Wouldn't have been possible without him. As for speakers, I just got a 4x12 on the super cheap and it has Celestions, but I can't recall what kind(Maybe G12K's?). I want to get a mix of 4 different kinds in the cab for tonal options, but with many hobbies/projects, I'm taking my time due to budget constraints. Here's a pic of the head and cab after I put new covering on it instead of the black carpet material that used to be on it. I have since installed matching grill cloth to the front of the head but don't have a pic of that yet.



Those, my friend, for my left nut. You don't need an extra left nut, do you?
Those are outstanding. Really nice job on that low powered TT! Beautiful.
Keith Richards uses both circuits, one for recording, the other for live. Are you a Stones fan?

Haha! If I'm ever out a left nut, I'll know which direction to holler! I love that little guy. Thanks for the kind words on the TT. I do like the Rolling Stones, but cannot call myself a huge fan. Not saying I don't enjoy them as I love their tunes, but don't listen to them all of the time. I did look up info on Mr. Richards while building this amp, though. Pretty much tried to find anything I could on the 5E8A circuit online out of curiosity. It paid off, that's for sure. Exactly what I was looking for in an amp!!!

Wait a minute....aren't you the guy that has always been dissatisfied with low-wattage amps? What's different about the AC15 from all the other low-power amps that didn't work for you?

Whoa! Just saw this, sorry for the loooooong delay in responding...


In short, it doesn't sound like a toy. I don't know what it is, or how they did it, but it sounds killer, and it's loud enough to gig with. Totally smokes any other low watt amp I'v tried, including boutique. Most of my dislike for low watt amps comes from being a full time gigger. Most of them just can't handle it. Not for what I need out of them. Pretty much every other small amp I've tried sounds, small. Spiky, harsh, lack of low end, and the low end that is there is loose and un-focused, especially at higher volumes. This amp just kills. I get compliments EVERY time I use it. I have one artist I back that has asked me to please not ever bring any other amp to one of his gigs.

I first bought it as an emergency stop-gap. I had thinned the heard a lot, and then my small restaurant/pub duo amp went down. I needed somehting to use in the meantime. Tried all the usual suspects in the 15 watts and under 1X10 and 1x12 combo realm, and even some off the wall stuff. Nothing came close to this amp. I still had no idea how much I'd grow to love it. I can't see myself ever being without one now.

I've had it almost a year now, and I'm still totally in love with it. Gigging it again tonite. I even took it out on tour with a national act for two weeks in October. I love it. I will admit, for larger gigs, it doesn't have the headroom to run by itself. So I use the external speaker jack and use it as a head to power a 2X12 cab that's rated at 200 watts. Plenty of punch on any stage with that happening.

I will admit, it ain't great with traditional Fender style single coils. A little stringy and grainy sounding, especially with a strat. With P-90's, it is IMO the god of all guitar amps. For the sound I'm looking for anyhow.

It is worthy to note that not only have I sated several times before owning this amp that I hated low watt amps (I did), I also stated many times that I (most of the time, there were previously two exceptions) do not get along with EL84's. Especially Vox amps. I still don't 99% of the time, but I love the sound of this amp. Vox just did everything right and nothing wrong on this one. I have seen pics of the AC15 "twin" currently out, and really want to try one, but nobody around here stocks them.

Redplate TweedyVerb

Have any cool amps crossed your path recently that perked up your ears and given you GAS? Have you rediscovered an amp that you already own and tweak it to do something you didn't know it would do? Share your stories here.

I continually like the tones that can be had from a Mesa/Boogie Lonestar Special (don't like the weight though) and I was re-inspired by Swart's AST Master 112 a couple of months ago. There's a load of them out there that haven't even been tried!

Redplate Truberb

Any guitar I own (Tele/Strat/Dano/P-90 LP) through a Vox Pathfinder 15R (straight in, as well as w/OD pedals) Not Kidding!

The honeymoon is NOT over yet! Inspirational little amp:wink: