Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
- Thread starter Jeff Seal
- Start date
Hoss
Joyfulnoiseologist
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
hmmmm....
i'd want three channels...clean and crunch and dirt...each with an eq and boost option & reverb & tremelo...with a stompbox to do the switching and the boosting and the reverb & tremelo...individual volumes and a master gain...true bypass fx loop and a mute.
clean like a bassman, crunch like a rec, and dirt like an AC-30...
something that could switch from 30watts to 50watts to 100watts would be awesome...
available in a head, 2x12, or my fave...4x10
hmmmm....
i'd want three channels...clean and crunch and dirt...each with an eq and boost option & reverb & tremelo...with a stompbox to do the switching and the boosting and the reverb & tremelo...individual volumes and a master gain...true bypass fx loop and a mute.
clean like a bassman, crunch like a rec, and dirt like an AC-30...
something that could switch from 30watts to 50watts to 100watts would be awesome...
available in a head, 2x12, or my fave...4x10
Lee_M.
Brockburst Toneologist
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
Scott is a friend of mine. He makes a phenomenal amp. I'm glad you like his stuff!
Scott is a friend of mine. He makes a phenomenal amp. I'm glad you like his stuff!
DirrtyCraig said:Hmm this is a cool thread, ok lets see:
Ultimate amp features:
1) Handmade craftsman ship for under $2000
2) 3 channels, clean, rhythm and lead, preferably with a lead boost.
3) Separate volumes for each channel
4) Custom options such as color and tolex coverings
5) Half-power options without having to remove tubes
6) Adjustable effects loop, fully bypassable or boost/cut +-4-20db
7) All tube of course!
8) SRV to Brown sound to Metal in one amp.
...oh wait already found this amp....
DirrtyCraig
New member
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
Any friend of Scotts is a friend of mine. The guys makes amazing stuff and is a joy to work with.
Any friend of Scotts is a friend of mine. The guys makes amazing stuff and is a joy to work with.
L
Lewguitar
Guest
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
I like it simple.
My idea of the Ultimate Amp would the Vox AC 30 or Matchless DC 30...but with great tube driven Fender style spring reverb.
An amp that I can just plug into and then control everything with my touch and the volume control of my guitar.
I'm not looking for hugely overdriven tones, but if I do want that, I'd like the amp to repond well with a Boss DS-1 or TS-808.
Two channels, one that will both stay clean with humbuckers and one that will break up more easily especially with single coils would be nice.
I have my dual channel blackface Fender set up that way. One channel breaks up easier and I'll often plug my single coils into that one.
I like the 250 pf - 500 pf treble cap and a pair of .02 caps for the mids and bass control.
Variable negative feedback is nice.
4 x EL84 tubes.
A master volume control that works or none at all.
Lew
I like it simple.
My idea of the Ultimate Amp would the Vox AC 30 or Matchless DC 30...but with great tube driven Fender style spring reverb.
An amp that I can just plug into and then control everything with my touch and the volume control of my guitar.
I'm not looking for hugely overdriven tones, but if I do want that, I'd like the amp to repond well with a Boss DS-1 or TS-808.
Two channels, one that will both stay clean with humbuckers and one that will break up more easily especially with single coils would be nice.
I have my dual channel blackface Fender set up that way. One channel breaks up easier and I'll often plug my single coils into that one.
I like the 250 pf - 500 pf treble cap and a pair of .02 caps for the mids and bass control.
Variable negative feedback is nice.
4 x EL84 tubes.
A master volume control that works or none at all.
Lew
tone?
New member
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
for me the problem isnt so much in finding a good amp. i mean you want good rock tone, get a old marshall or some other boutique amps out there such as THD, you want a good clean sound get a old FEnder.
what is important to me is practicality. Can someone make an amp like this to play in a bedroom or single room. there is a huge amount of guitarists that play locked inside a bedroom that want that awesome tone at lower volumes.
can you deliver that??
i dont want to blow my ears out everytime i want good tone.
hows that?
i dont think that anyone has really done something for that except maybe THD . i also agree with the self biasing option. too much money to spend all the time!
for me the problem isnt so much in finding a good amp. i mean you want good rock tone, get a old marshall or some other boutique amps out there such as THD, you want a good clean sound get a old FEnder.
what is important to me is practicality. Can someone make an amp like this to play in a bedroom or single room. there is a huge amount of guitarists that play locked inside a bedroom that want that awesome tone at lower volumes.
can you deliver that??
i dont want to blow my ears out everytime i want good tone.
hows that?
i dont think that anyone has really done something for that except maybe THD . i also agree with the self biasing option. too much money to spend all the time!
DirrtyCraig
New member
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
I disagree, if its a good sounding amp it will sound good at any volume. check out this clip of the Splawn on half power at at an extremly low volume. So low in fact I used a 57 into my mixer and had to dime the mic input level just to get a signal. I did it late at night when the wife was sleeping in the next room. Seriously. Not my best playing, but the amp sounds killer.
http://hair-metal.com/tunes/blues_splawn.mp3
I disagree, if its a good sounding amp it will sound good at any volume. check out this clip of the Splawn on half power at at an extremly low volume. So low in fact I used a 57 into my mixer and had to dime the mic input level just to get a signal. I did it late at night when the wife was sleeping in the next room. Seriously. Not my best playing, but the amp sounds killer.
http://hair-metal.com/tunes/blues_splawn.mp3
tone?
New member
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
well DirtyCraig i have to partially agree and disagree with you on that one.
yeah if it is a good amp it will sound good low as well. but at louder volumes you will get the power tube saturation thing working which to me adds to that extra magic in the sound.
know what i mean??
with my JTM60 if you want to play blues ( ala SRV) you can play through the clean channel with a tube screamer through the front and it will give you a pretty darn good sound but i was amazed with a friend of mine that turned the clean channel all the way up without anything in the front and the sound then was far superior. really it was so cool.
well DirtyCraig i have to partially agree and disagree with you on that one.
yeah if it is a good amp it will sound good low as well. but at louder volumes you will get the power tube saturation thing working which to me adds to that extra magic in the sound.
know what i mean??
with my JTM60 if you want to play blues ( ala SRV) you can play through the clean channel with a tube screamer through the front and it will give you a pretty darn good sound but i was amazed with a friend of mine that turned the clean channel all the way up without anything in the front and the sound then was far superior. really it was so cool.
Zeppelinfan8790
New member
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
A head with two channels...Channel one would have Vox-like jangly cleans. Channel two would have Eric Claptons live Cream tone in it :laugh2: ...basically that awesome 60s Marshall tone. It would be switchable between 50 and 25 watts. I have no clue what the speakers would be...possibly greenbacks?
And maybe something like a master volume that can be switched on and off with a push/pull pot so I can get more crunch at the 50 watt setting which would be my gigging level...
Maybe thats a dumb idea, I dont know, I'm just thinking up this stuff right now. :smack: Except for what I want it to sound like, thats what I know I want.
A head with two channels...Channel one would have Vox-like jangly cleans. Channel two would have Eric Claptons live Cream tone in it :laugh2: ...basically that awesome 60s Marshall tone. It would be switchable between 50 and 25 watts. I have no clue what the speakers would be...possibly greenbacks?
And maybe something like a master volume that can be switched on and off with a push/pull pot so I can get more crunch at the 50 watt setting which would be my gigging level...
Maybe thats a dumb idea, I dont know, I'm just thinking up this stuff right now. :smack: Except for what I want it to sound like, thats what I know I want.
moog1000
New member
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
Don't know if it's possible, but I'd like an amp which had footswitchable gain stages instead of different channels. So you start off with clean, kick in maybe another gain stage for more dirt then have a full on gain setting. You'd probably have a some sort of EQ tweaks for each stage, but not a full blown set of knobs - I can't stand loads of knbs. Oh, and a solo boost facility as well..plus some reverb...
Don't know if it's possible, but I'd like an amp which had footswitchable gain stages instead of different channels. So you start off with clean, kick in maybe another gain stage for more dirt then have a full on gain setting. You'd probably have a some sort of EQ tweaks for each stage, but not a full blown set of knobs - I can't stand loads of knbs. Oh, and a solo boost facility as well..plus some reverb...
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
you need to take a close look at my Two Rock some day.
touch sensitivity if you want it, sag if you want it. string seperation, dynamic cleans, soaring leads (in my case Dumblish in nature)
I think a lot of it boils down to the transformers chosen. You can't skimp when it comes to that category. High quality products all the way around.
It needs to be a channel switcher. Big round sweet cleans on one channel, great lead tones on the other.
you need to take a close look at my Two Rock some day.
touch sensitivity if you want it, sag if you want it. string seperation, dynamic cleans, soaring leads (in my case Dumblish in nature)
I think a lot of it boils down to the transformers chosen. You can't skimp when it comes to that category. High quality products all the way around.
It needs to be a channel switcher. Big round sweet cleans on one channel, great lead tones on the other.
That90'sGuy
DyzaBoyzologist
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
I have a few ideas myself. One thing I hate is amps that are 50w and higher. Unless you're a touring pro with no PA in a huge arena, you won't ever get the chance to use it. 30w is all you need to cut through the mix. I agree that pentode/triode changes the tone a bit which can be undesirable. A Class A/AB switch would be great to have. The Ultimate Tube Amp IMHO would have a built in attenuator (for low volume practice / rehearsal), an easy to use tube biasing system, and have switchable sets of tubes dedicated to particular channels.
Here's the channels:
1) Fender Blackface Super Reverb - warm, dark, smooth and breaks up for some sweet blues playing (with an overdrive) - used for funk, jazz, blues and the like - loaded with 6l6s
2) Vox AC-30 - full, chimey, top end sparkle and push - would work great for rhythm clean parts - loaded with EL84s
3) Marshall JTM-45 - fat, thick, mid oriented, compressed crunch. Love the tone, like the good 'ole plexis - rock rhythm tone - loaded with EL34s
4) Bogner 3rd channel EL34 Ecstasy lead - think Steve Vai's "Die to Live" or "For the Love of God"
Those are pretty much the tones in my head. I love smoothness and some compression on my tones. As Scott pointed out, transformers definitely have to be top notch. PTP wiring is ideal as well (just easier to fix a problem and I would imagine more durable). Articulation makes all the difference between a cheap amp and an expensive boutique. It's the feel, sag, response, that type of thing that tone connoisseuirs (spelling?) will pick apart.
I have a few ideas myself. One thing I hate is amps that are 50w and higher. Unless you're a touring pro with no PA in a huge arena, you won't ever get the chance to use it. 30w is all you need to cut through the mix. I agree that pentode/triode changes the tone a bit which can be undesirable. A Class A/AB switch would be great to have. The Ultimate Tube Amp IMHO would have a built in attenuator (for low volume practice / rehearsal), an easy to use tube biasing system, and have switchable sets of tubes dedicated to particular channels.
Here's the channels:
1) Fender Blackface Super Reverb - warm, dark, smooth and breaks up for some sweet blues playing (with an overdrive) - used for funk, jazz, blues and the like - loaded with 6l6s
2) Vox AC-30 - full, chimey, top end sparkle and push - would work great for rhythm clean parts - loaded with EL84s
3) Marshall JTM-45 - fat, thick, mid oriented, compressed crunch. Love the tone, like the good 'ole plexis - rock rhythm tone - loaded with EL34s
4) Bogner 3rd channel EL34 Ecstasy lead - think Steve Vai's "Die to Live" or "For the Love of God"
Those are pretty much the tones in my head. I love smoothness and some compression on my tones. As Scott pointed out, transformers definitely have to be top notch. PTP wiring is ideal as well (just easier to fix a problem and I would imagine more durable). Articulation makes all the difference between a cheap amp and an expensive boutique. It's the feel, sag, response, that type of thing that tone connoisseuirs (spelling?) will pick apart.
accipiter
New member
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
My dream amp would be just plugging into a couple of pre-amp tubes sent to one tube run straight to a 10" and 12" speaker, LOL, a basic straight-ahead tube amp with one channel with minimal wattage. Since a boutique amp will cost more, all I want is just a basic bare-bones no-frills tube amp that I can crank to the max without peeling myself off the floor after the first note like my 5150 does when I turn it past two on the dirty channel. I don't need a clean or dirty channel because that's what effects pedals are for, I mean why add a distortion or fuzz pedal to a dirty channel, and my Les Paul distorts on ANY clean channel so what's the use of a designated channel for either clean or dirty. Just give me one input to plug in, one volume knob and maybe a tone knob and that's it, I can run an EQ or whatever effect I want for any particular sound I'm looking for. Even if I could cut my 5150 into 1/4th of what it is-120 watts-, it would still be too much-30 watts- for what I'm looking for, just something that I can crank up at home without an earache or a knock on the door from the po'leece.
Thanks for an idea that's should be fully explored, keep us updated Bro'!
My dream amp would be just plugging into a couple of pre-amp tubes sent to one tube run straight to a 10" and 12" speaker, LOL, a basic straight-ahead tube amp with one channel with minimal wattage. Since a boutique amp will cost more, all I want is just a basic bare-bones no-frills tube amp that I can crank to the max without peeling myself off the floor after the first note like my 5150 does when I turn it past two on the dirty channel. I don't need a clean or dirty channel because that's what effects pedals are for, I mean why add a distortion or fuzz pedal to a dirty channel, and my Les Paul distorts on ANY clean channel so what's the use of a designated channel for either clean or dirty. Just give me one input to plug in, one volume knob and maybe a tone knob and that's it, I can run an EQ or whatever effect I want for any particular sound I'm looking for. Even if I could cut my 5150 into 1/4th of what it is-120 watts-, it would still be too much-30 watts- for what I'm looking for, just something that I can crank up at home without an earache or a knock on the door from the po'leece.
Thanks for an idea that's should be fully explored, keep us updated Bro'!
Nightburst
New member
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
Some things that come to mind:
#Most important of everything: It should sound good!
#Tubes!
#3 channels: clean, crunch, distortion, each with their own eq
#Sensitive knobs that respond to little tweaks
#Easy control layout
#Half power switch
#Looks are important too, a good amp should look good!
#Should take road abuse very well
#Detachable power chord
#Footswitch with volume/solo/mid boost
#Standby on the footswitch
#Easy bias system so I can change out my own tubes. Maybe even with a built in voltmeter and display!
#Reverb (not shared!)
Some things that come to mind:
#Most important of everything: It should sound good!
#Tubes!
#3 channels: clean, crunch, distortion, each with their own eq
#Sensitive knobs that respond to little tweaks
#Easy control layout
#Half power switch
#Looks are important too, a good amp should look good!
#Should take road abuse very well
#Detachable power chord
#Footswitch with volume/solo/mid boost
#Standby on the footswitch
#Easy bias system so I can change out my own tubes. Maybe even with a built in voltmeter and display!
#Reverb (not shared!)
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Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
In the Real world I'd buy a Bogner Ecstacy 101B... those amp nail the tone I've been hearing in my head and they are so damn versatile it'll make your head spin.
But designing one from the ground up I'd like to see this...
1. Preamp - Three channels, all with independent EQ. I'd like the clean channel EQ to be voiced as a Blackface Fender (twin reverb), the crunch channel to be voiced vintage Marshall, and the high-gain channel to be distinctly Bogner. And when i say "voiced" i mean i would like the tonal control frequency centers and Q to be similar to those of the amp species mentioned. I'd like the pots to be like 1 meg sealed pots so that the controls will not interact with each other. I would like Bass, Mid, treble, gain, and presence controls for the clean channel. The gainy channels would have Bass, hi-mid, low-mid (or some sort of frequency knob and boost/cut for the mids... I'm a freak about mid control), treble, presence and gain. All channels will have their own master volume control on top of all this. I'm also thinking it would be cool to have a "deep" switch on each channel as well as a "fat" switch which would throw a slightly different mid curve on each channel. like a fat clean tone for the clean channel, a Beano-ish quality to the crunch channel, and a Soldano-like howl (think Satriani) for the higain channel.
2. Power Amp - Mesa-boogie style switchable from 6L6/EL34 types with an adjustable bias pot in there. I'd prefer a quartet of tubes. normal power would be 100w but I'd like a 50-watt switch in there. The best transformers available, please.
3. Effects and external control - I'd like a tube-driven onboard spring reverb, because i like reverb in amps. I'd like the effects loop to be tube-driven as well. It would be a parallel loop with a mix knob for it, and be designed so that the loop switches from parallel to series when set to 100%. For the footswitch I'd like to be able to switch between the three channels and turn the reverb on and off. about the reverb switch... it shoudl only switch the SEND of the verb circuit which will allow the verb to trail off after i hit the off switch. the footswitch will use a multi-pin cable but i'd like 1/4 inch jacks for each function too so i can use amp/rack effects switching if need be (my boogie does this). I'd also like a built-in noise gate similar to what the Peavey JSX has. It needs to be FAST though and not mess with my tone.
4. Misc. - I'd like outputs switchable between 4, 8, and 16 ohm. I'm not sure if I want tube rectifiers but if I did I'd like to be able to switch between solid state and tube ones. I really want the gain channels to have that real liquidy, elastic feel that Bogners and Legacys have on them.
Think you can handle all that? :22:
In the Real world I'd buy a Bogner Ecstacy 101B... those amp nail the tone I've been hearing in my head and they are so damn versatile it'll make your head spin.
But designing one from the ground up I'd like to see this...
1. Preamp - Three channels, all with independent EQ. I'd like the clean channel EQ to be voiced as a Blackface Fender (twin reverb), the crunch channel to be voiced vintage Marshall, and the high-gain channel to be distinctly Bogner. And when i say "voiced" i mean i would like the tonal control frequency centers and Q to be similar to those of the amp species mentioned. I'd like the pots to be like 1 meg sealed pots so that the controls will not interact with each other. I would like Bass, Mid, treble, gain, and presence controls for the clean channel. The gainy channels would have Bass, hi-mid, low-mid (or some sort of frequency knob and boost/cut for the mids... I'm a freak about mid control), treble, presence and gain. All channels will have their own master volume control on top of all this. I'm also thinking it would be cool to have a "deep" switch on each channel as well as a "fat" switch which would throw a slightly different mid curve on each channel. like a fat clean tone for the clean channel, a Beano-ish quality to the crunch channel, and a Soldano-like howl (think Satriani) for the higain channel.
2. Power Amp - Mesa-boogie style switchable from 6L6/EL34 types with an adjustable bias pot in there. I'd prefer a quartet of tubes. normal power would be 100w but I'd like a 50-watt switch in there. The best transformers available, please.
3. Effects and external control - I'd like a tube-driven onboard spring reverb, because i like reverb in amps. I'd like the effects loop to be tube-driven as well. It would be a parallel loop with a mix knob for it, and be designed so that the loop switches from parallel to series when set to 100%. For the footswitch I'd like to be able to switch between the three channels and turn the reverb on and off. about the reverb switch... it shoudl only switch the SEND of the verb circuit which will allow the verb to trail off after i hit the off switch. the footswitch will use a multi-pin cable but i'd like 1/4 inch jacks for each function too so i can use amp/rack effects switching if need be (my boogie does this). I'd also like a built-in noise gate similar to what the Peavey JSX has. It needs to be FAST though and not mess with my tone.
4. Misc. - I'd like outputs switchable between 4, 8, and 16 ohm. I'm not sure if I want tube rectifiers but if I did I'd like to be able to switch between solid state and tube ones. I really want the gain channels to have that real liquidy, elastic feel that Bogners and Legacys have on them.
Think you can handle all that? :22:
aleclee
Major General GAS
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
If you can develop a sufficiently modular design, it would be cool to let folks mix & match features. I wouldn't suggest going beyond a "menu" of stuff because if you get too much into one-off features, you'll likely lose your shirt.
An example of such an approach is what James Peters is doing with his Dual Channel amps. He has 4-5 preamps and lets you choose 2. You have your choice of 6L6 or EL34 output sections. An FX loop is standard on the Peters but you could make yours optional for those folks who think that loops suck tone.
My $0.02, IMHO, FWIW, YMMV, etc.
If you can develop a sufficiently modular design, it would be cool to let folks mix & match features. I wouldn't suggest going beyond a "menu" of stuff because if you get too much into one-off features, you'll likely lose your shirt.
An example of such an approach is what James Peters is doing with his Dual Channel amps. He has 4-5 preamps and lets you choose 2. You have your choice of 6L6 or EL34 output sections. An FX loop is standard on the Peters but you could make yours optional for those folks who think that loops suck tone.
My $0.02, IMHO, FWIW, YMMV, etc.
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skyydogg01
Active member
Re: Ultimate tube amp.....what do you want?
ok, my 2 cents:
2 channels - footswitchable
channel one - fender clean to vox overdrive
channel two - marshall 70's overdrive to high gain (pick your favorite)
both with their own gain, volume, bass, mid, treble, presence and reverb
STEREO serial effects loop (mono out/stereo in)
spring reverb to come after the effects loop
2 - 50 watt power sections independently switchable to 6L6/EL34 biasing and 4/8/16 ohm output.
2 X 12 3/4 back combo design with the ability to add external speakers.
this would be the first of it's kind on the market. the only thing close is the mesa recto pre-amp and the 50/50 power amp ... all rackmounted.
ok, my 2 cents:
2 channels - footswitchable
channel one - fender clean to vox overdrive
channel two - marshall 70's overdrive to high gain (pick your favorite)
both with their own gain, volume, bass, mid, treble, presence and reverb
STEREO serial effects loop (mono out/stereo in)
spring reverb to come after the effects loop
2 - 50 watt power sections independently switchable to 6L6/EL34 biasing and 4/8/16 ohm output.
2 X 12 3/4 back combo design with the ability to add external speakers.
this would be the first of it's kind on the market. the only thing close is the mesa recto pre-amp and the 50/50 power amp ... all rackmounted.
