New amps?

CoG said:

best suggestion I ever got regarding cabs and speakers as I stared into the bottomless expensive abyss was to just pick something that's widely used and generally accepted as good for the type of stuff you mainly play, and make everything else work around that. Pretend you're endorsed

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6string6 said:

i struggle with gas a bit

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Yea there is always the GAS can't help myself.

The rabbit hole was deep initially but fortunately I have excellent amp/cab/speaker solutions for all the rigs. But can't help tinkering.

Did not mean to hijack this post.

@RWN I hope you find something that works for you. Sometimes a vendor has something close but not exactly what one wants. I too would prefer a midi interface on a Rectifier amp. Would be nice to see a rebirth of the Road King but in a smaller package like the Badlander. I doubt that would ever come to pass.

The Mark V 90W has everything I need, except I wish it had Resonance control. A parallel FX loop would be nice, too.
I wish the Mark VII had a master volume control. I know not including the rectifier tube helped it get smaller than the V, but I really prefer the tube on ch2 of my V. I do want the new Mk VII mode and updated sound of the new one, but the subtraction of so many features is unappealing, especially since it didn't reduce the price at all by leaving all those things out (also 2 less preamp tubes). I have no need for the CabClone or IRs in the VII, I already have 4 reactive load boxes and IRs I made of my speakers/mics.
The Carvin V3 actually has EVERYTHING an amp should have... except great sound. The feature set is perfect, but the sound is dark, boxy, & fizzy.
Actually, the PERFECT amp would have a switch to use each pair of 6L6's as separate speaker channels, for stereo: A stereo FX return & dual 45W power amps.
The Mk V is my main amp, but my other 2 power amps sound so different, it's impossible to get a balanced stereo image when running the Mk V send thru stereo FX to its return plus another amp's return. I'd have to buy a whole nother Mk V to have a balanced stereo pair. I use it on 45W, so it would be nice if the other 2 unused tubes could be put to work as a 2nd power amp channel.

rarebitusa said:

Yea there is always the GAS can't help myself.

The rabbit hole was deep initially but fortunately I have excellent amp/cab/speaker solutions for all the rigs. But can't help tinkering.

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ha...yeah...i still look at stuff online when im bored. but i've learned to dismiss the gas quite quickly lol...but having a couple nice guitars helps with that alot i think... i've kind of incorporated that philosophy to the rest of my life also though lol...
i actually keep thinking about selling this roadster to get an ultra cheap guitar set up...a boss katana mk2 100 lol....or even just a computer program. i already have an interface that i never use and some 3.5" studio monitors lol ....i dont play in bands....my dog doesnt like this amp when its loud lol.... i dunno....they're still cool to have. i'll probably hang on to it. just because i know that if i sell it i probably wont ever get another tube amp.

6string6 said:

well if you're too weak to to move them around and feel like they're "not appropriate" to have at home then buy something else lol
it sounds like you're already convinced you dont want one so then dont get one lol
i've thought about selling my tube amp several times and just getting something cheap...or just using an amp modelling computer program at home.
but the ONLY reason i would ever do that is just because i could get around 1500 for my tube amp and spend alot less on something cheaper lol....but i still have it lol
tube amps are awesome. and they rule lol....i never gig and dont play in a band. i still like having a nice guitar amp at home that sounds great.
i play thru a 2x12. i might get a cab clone ir at some point for running it into a computer/daw but i live in a house so i can play with a bit of volume and dont have apt neighbors and an apt manager to answer too
if i lived in an apt i would probably just get some kind of computer based stuff

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I was a full timer for 20 years and now enjoy playing and learning at home. I have a Boogie Mk 1 reissue and it's way over the top for a " bed room amp" , but I love being able to have it near me and looking at it ....ha ...
I need an attenuater and maybe somebody can recommend a cheap one that gets that cranked Boogie sound.

JimDep said:

I was a full timer for 20 years and now enjoy playing and learning at home. I have a Boogie Mk 1 reissue and it's way over the top for a " bed room amp" , but I love being able to have it near me and looking at it ....ha ...
I need an attenuater and maybe somebody can recommend a cheap one that gets that cranked Boogie sound.

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yeah i hear ya ...i dont really need my amp either and never take it anywhere...but it's nice to have lol

anyways -- i had a thd hotplate ...over 10 years ago i think.... i never really thought it accomplished much of anything other than being an extra volume knob lol. i just didn't feel like it was anything other than that. sure i could turn my amp up a bit more, but then the attenuator just turned it back down before it hit the speakers ....i just didn't see the point. so i sold it.

6string6 said:

anyways -- i had a thd hotplate ...over 10 years ago i think.... i never really thought it accomplished much of anything other than being an extra volume knob lol. i just didn't feel like it was anything other than that. sure i could turn my amp up a bit more, but then the attenuator just turned it back down before it hit the speakers ....i just didn't see the point. so i sold it.

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Attenuators are only useful if you need to have power tube distortion at low volume. This can only be achieved by a high output volume, then attenuating after the speaker output.
With 2+ channel amps with high gain channels, you get plenty of distortion at the preamp. Attenuators are for single channel amps that must be cranked to get a crunchy distortion, amps with no master volume, or for people who just have to have that particular sound (clean channel overdriving the preamp and power amp).
With, say, a Mark V, running channel 3 loud enough to distort the power tubes just gets harsh and abrasive. But with ch1 or ch2, you can set it to 10W, reducing the headroom of the power amp and making distortion happen at much lower volume. Then it has a master volume, so you can control the level, so an attenuator would never be needed.

DECEMBER said:

Attenuators are only useful if you need to have power tube distortion at low volume. This can only be achieved by a high output volume, then attenuating after the speaker output.
With 2+ channel amps with high gain channels, you get plenty of distortion at the preamp. Attenuators are for single channel amps that must be cranked to get a crunchy distortion, amps with no master volume, or for people who just have to have that particular sound (clean channel overdriving the preamp and power amp).
With, say, a Mark V, running channel 3 loud enough to distort the power tubes just gets harsh and abrasive. But with ch1 or ch2, you can set it to 10W, reducing the headroom of the power amp and making distortion happen at much lower volume. Then it has a master volume, so you can control the level, so an attenuator would never be needed.

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Additionally, as far as I know most "modern" amps have power amp sections with a lot of power amp negative feedback, which makes it hard to get any type of true power tube distortion. At most you'll overdrive the phase inverter. You can get some squish and saturation by driving the power section hard, but i've found it's more of a feel thing than a sound thing.

The Mark V90 will saturate the power tubes, that is what it is designed to do. The extended class A is they key. The other pair are just enhancers. You do not need to push it hard to get the power tubes to clip or to have that characteristic sound. MWDR and Roadster, you need that stage volume to get that effect. Not sure they are actually pushing the Class AB power section into distortion. The Roadster seems to work best with power tubes having the most headroom, less early gain (reds or yellows). MWDR seems to favor tubes with early distortion in the grey color codes (OK, that is with the Mesa STR440 tubes). I have tried other STR# like the STR448 (grey) and the STR445 (green) and was not all that impressed. Perhaps they provided too much early distortion. Not sure why I favor the STR440, perhaps it is familiarity as those were the stock tubes the amps shipped with. When it comes to the DR style, all of that gain and distortion you get is mostly preamp. Mark amps, there is some distortion in the power section. JP2C will sound lacking of gain if you run the reds or yellows. Same with the Badlander (when using 6L6 tubes). Both are Class AB like the DR. As for a Mark with Simul-class, you gain that tube saturation effect with what most refer to as the Class A power section. In reality, it is a Class AB circuit with the Class A region of operation extended so it is still a push-pull amplifier. This prevents the cross-over distortion issue if the power section gets pushed to hard it starts to run in Class B mode. Probably why the Mesa Class AB amps are not as hot biased as they could be, according to many who wanted to get more out of their DR amps and using alternate tubes like KT66 or KT88 or 6550 as they will require some sort of bias mod. I much prefer the pissed-off bee sound I get from the STR440, it adds character to the dual rec such that it grows on you.

Attenuators are not necessary in my opinion. I have one but only got it so I could record with it. If you live in an apartment or have house members that get annoying if you play, perhaps a practice amp is more desired. At least one that can run in silent mode and use headphones like the amp models that have the built-in cab clone or the IR cab clone. JP2C, Triple Crown, Badlander, Mark VII. Not sure what other amps have that feature. Still, I am one not fond of using headphones but I would do so if I had to keep things quiet. Even the 10W power mode of the Mark V90 is too loud. I much prefer to run any amp un-impeded as I would miss that feel you get when moving air as well as that coupling effect you get between the amp and guitar.