Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Guitars, Amps and Effects => Topic started by: Brow on August 25, 2010, 09:32:40 PM
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Hey guys.
As part of my search for my new amp, I'm sure I've got on more than enough peoples nerves here asking questions all the time :lol:, I decided to bite the bullet and do the 1.5 hour drive out to Sounds Great Music in Cheadle to try out some stuff and see if anything caught my eye. I took my own Gibson Les Paul Standard with AIV Mules as it's a guitar I'm very familiar with.
I only managed to try 4 amps, 2 heads and 2 combos, and I think I've finally decided on something! :D
Splawn Quick Rod head - This was the 1st amp I tried when I got there. It was into a Diamond Amplification 4x12 cab (not sure what speakers it had) and it pretty much hit the nail on the head of what I'm looking for tone wise. I was extremely surprised by the clean channel, going by reviews I was expecting something barely more than 'useable', and think it'd sound even better with something with single coils. The OD channels (with it's various modes and 'gears') will cover everything from AC/DC Crunch upto 'modded Marshall' 80s style levels of gain. It may do heavier metal levels of gain, but as I don't play much of that, I didn't push it up too far. 1 thing I did notice was that no matter how high I put the gain up, you could hear every note in every chord.
Egnater Tourmaster 4100 head - This is a 10/25/50/100w switchable 4 channel head with clean, clean 2, OD1 and OD2 channels. Each channel has 3 band EQ, gain and volume controls as well as Classic/Modern modes and also a switchable contour control that gave more of a mid scoop to the tone. Either clean could be setup from a very clean (and slightly sterile sounding sound) to something with a bit more hair to it. Set clean, the 1st 2 channels sounded good, if slightly bland, but I didn't like them at all when set with more grit. The tone really thinned out and lost any sort of fullness. OD 1 was good as a heavy rhythm channel, with JCM800 levels of gain available. OD was very similar but had even more gain on tap. I won't compare it to anything in particular as it's been a hell of a long time since I've used a high gain amp, and I wouldn't know what it compares to tonally :lol: While sounding perfectly ok, both OD channels were very loose and had quite a fizzy sounding top end that I couldn't seem to EQ out.
Splawn Street Rod combo - This is a 40w 1x12 combo with pretty much the same features as the head I tried. The clean channel was good, but didn't have the same fullness as the head did. I know this is down to the 4x12 Vs the 1x12, but the combo also lacked the gain control that the Quick Rod had. It didn't really add gain, it seemed to add mids and fullness that the combo lacked. The same thing with the OD channels really, a perfectly good tone but just seemed to lack something compared to the head. For alot of people this combo may be a better option as I was able to crank the amp alot higher than I was the head, without using the loop master volume trick atleast, which would make it more user friendly in the real world of gigs.
Hughes & Kettner Switchblade combo - This is a valve combo with built in FX and MIDI capability to store all your amp, FX and volume settings into 128 MIDI switchable patches. It had 4 amp modes Clean, Crunch, Lead and Ultra all of which, imo sounded dreadful. I really struggled to get a sound of this amp that I found useable, let alone something I liked. The clean sounds very very bland, the crunch very thin and brittle. The higher gain tones sounded very fake, almost like a cheap distortion pedal. For someone that uses more FX, this may be an ideal amp as it'd let you use pretty much nothing other than the amp, as long as you'd have the time to sit and tweak everything as it looked like a very indepth amp, but it's definitely not for me.
Based on this, I think I'm going to pickup the Quick Rod at the weekend :D
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If you see Greg at that place say hello.
I used to be very tempted by splawn, but from what i've read, the quickrod sounded really bright I think, and the nitro super dark. I went for something else in the end as i couldnt try the splawns out. The other thing I don't like about the splawn is that you HAVE to use the footswitch to go through the gears right?
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If you see Greg at that place say hello.
I used to be very tempted by splawn, but from what i've read, the quickrod sounded really bright I think, and the nitro super dark. I went for something else in the end as i couldnt try the splawns out. The other thing I don't like about the splawn is that you HAVE to use the footswitch to go through the gears right?
To be honest, I was expecting the same thing before I tried 1. Most, if not all, of the clips and videos I can find of them they're tweaked for a thinner more cutting tone. The EQ controls on it were very good, and I had no difficulty filling out the tone with some bass and low mids, while keeping a nice bright (but not shrill) top end.
The footswitch shipped with the Splawn allows Clean/OD, OD1/OD2 and solo boost to be changed from the 3 button footswitch, and changing between gears on the amp directly. By using a switching system, or 2 2 channel footswitches, it allows you to change between OD1/OD2 and solo boost on 1 footswitch and Clean/OD and Low Gear/High Gear on the 2nd footswitch.
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Good stuff
Thanks for the run-down. Interesting. I'd have hoped for better from the HK.
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Good stuff
Thanks for the run-down. Interesting. I'd have hoped for better from the HK.
The HK and the Tourmaster are 2 of the most complicated amps I'd ever used upto that point. My main amp for the last 4 years has 3 EQ controls and a volume, so maybe it was me at fault and just not knowing how to get the best out of it.
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yeah all that need for pedals threw me.
It was back when I wanted something simple that was just in and out. nothing too fancy and no excess pedals.
interesting that it sounded better than the clips though. id like to hear one.
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yeah all that need for pedals threw me.
It was back when I wanted something simple that was just in and out. nothing too fancy and no excess pedals.
interesting that it sounded better than the clips though. id like to hear one.
I'd always liked the clips, otherwise I wouldn't have been interested in the amp, but I always felt like I'd personally want a bit more bass in the tone.
It's quite a simple amp really; just 2 channels with their own EQ and gain controls. The OD1/OD2 is a preset gain boost (so no extra tweaking needed) and the gears are a simple tweak right on the amp.
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Good stuff
Thanks for the run-down. Interesting. I'd have hoped for better from the HK.
The HK and the Tourmaster are 2 of the most complicated amps I'd ever used upto that point. My main amp for the last 4 years has 3 EQ controls and a volume, so maybe it was me at fault and just not knowing how to get the best out of it.
Some amps with lots of controls going on can take a while to dial in, but what comes more or less right out of them shouldnt be bad. You didnt like them, fair play, I've heard people not like them before (I believe Ben hates HK amps; I seem to remember him making some damning comment or other on them) and I've heard people rave about them (and egnater). I havent heard them in person myself so I dont know.
I like a tweakers amp as much as any other tweaker, but if the sound doesnt seem like it can get somewhere for you when you plug in on 5-5-5 and something sensible volume wise and appropriate for your style gain wise, its probably never going to.
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Some amps with lots of controls going on can take a while to dial in, but what comes more or less right out of them shouldnt be bad. You didnt like them, fair play, I've heard people not like them before (I believe Ben hates HK amps; I seem to remember him making some damning comment or other on them) and I've heard people rave about them (and egnater). I havent heard them in person myself so I dont know.
I like a tweakers amp as much as any other tweaker, but if the sound doesnt seem like it can get somewhere for you when you plug in on 5-5-5 and something sensible volume wise and appropriate for your style gain wise, its probably never going to.
That's where I started on all the amps I tried: EQ and gain to 12 o clock as a start point and go from there. Both the Splawns sounded Good like this, as did the Egnater, but nothing I did to the HK gave it a tone I liked much. I didn't even touch the FX tbh and I had the reverb off too on all the amps as I don't use it anyway.
I've heard clips of the switchblade where it seemed like a perfectly good amp and very versatile, it just didn't work out for me in person.
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Interesting and congrats on finding the amp you wanted!
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good choice on the Quick Rod.
If you fancy a brew or a pub lunch me and Shobet may well be about. Feel free to PM
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I'm sure the QR is awesome.
You don't wanna try any more amps before taking the plunge?
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good choice on the Quick Rod.
If you fancy a brew or a pub lunch me and Shobet may well be about. Feel free to PM
Cheers Matt.
I don't know what my plans are yet for picking it up as I have to fit it in around any plans my Dad may have, but I'll deffo keep it in mind :D
I'm sure the QR is awesome.
You don't wanna try any more amps before taking the plunge?
My main problem is that I as there's no shops around me that sell anything other than low end Marshalls (MGs and the JM Series (the new low end chinese valve amps)) I have to find specific shops that have specific amps in stock that interest me. This could well take me alot more time and travel and seeing as I've found an amp that does exactly what I'm looking for, I thought I may as well take the plunge :lol:
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Hey Brow,
I find that too. even in central london its hard to find anything that isn't as you describe.
some mesa, low end marshall, millions of tiny terrors... Angel Music has some classic marshalls i think, but if you want US boutique stuff it just isn't here. Can't even find a Cornford, and they are only made up the road.
When i went to Belgium briefly before summer, I happened to pass one shop in Antwerp maybe, and it stocked Matchless, Bad Cat... and had some Bogner cabs and all kinds of interesting. well, not MUCH more interesting stuff but more interesting than london.
its also a crying shame that sounds great are the only importers of a few brands.
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Just get a Marshall 2203 reissue and a Boss OD-1, job done :)
edit:
ok, I'm being facetious, but the point i'm trying to make is, some classic combos work so well that you hardly need to try them
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Just get a Marshall 2203 reissue and a Boss OD-1, job done :)
edit:
ok, I'm being facetious, but the point i'm trying to make is, some classic combos work so well that you hardly need to try them
Yeah, I know what you mean. I already have a JCM800 and I can't get what I want out of it. Yeah it's 1 of the 'evil and disliked:twisted:' Twin channel 1s, but it's an amp I've had for 12 years and I know it pretty much inside and out and no boost, OD or EQ that I've ever tried with it gets me close much closer to what I want than the Splawn did by plugging straight in :lol:
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Hey Brow,
I find that too. even in central london its hard to find anything that isn't as you describe.
some mesa, low end marshall, millions of tiny terrors... Angel Music has some classic marshalls i think, but if you want US boutique stuff it just isn't here. Can't even find a Cornford, and they are only made up the road.
When i went to Belgium briefly before summer, I happened to pass one shop in Antwerp maybe, and it stocked Matchless, Bad Cat... and had some Bogner cabs and all kinds of interesting. well, not MUCH more interesting stuff but more interesting than london.
its also a crying shame that sounds great are the only importers of a few brands.
I think it's pretty much the same everywhere nowadays to be honest mate. There's 2 music shops within about 15 miles of me; 1 of which sells more keyboard and pianos than anything, a few guitars and nothing in the way of amps except a 2nd hand JCM800 2203 head for which they're not asking much lessthan I'm paying for the Splawn for :lol:. The other is a bit more guitar orientated but still mainly sells Epiphones, Mexi Fenders etc as well as the odd JVM/Vintage Modern and a few Orange amps. I guess most people just stock stuff they know will sell relatively easilly and not take up too much £ value to have lying around.
The only reason I can afford anything more than these myself is because I've been saving up for the last few years, I normally don't have 2 pound coins to rub together! :lol: 8)
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i hated the switchblade head i tried, so i agree with you there.
I haven't tried the others you tried, i'd love to try a splawn at some point though.
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I think a quickrod would really do it for me tone wise. But I can't deal with their god-bothering, scriptures in the amps nonsense.
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I think a quickrod would really do it for me tone wise. But I can't deal with their god-bothering, scriptures in the amps nonsense.
+1
add to that rumours of 'fake' parts installed to make things difficult for people trying to reverse engineer and the scouring of the internet for gut photos of their own amps to get them taken down.
I'm sure ive read about people being asked to remove splawn photos from flikr or photobucket.
still, if you dont mind the god stuff and stars and stripes being inside your amp, then thats cool.
I wonder if and muslim fundamentalists build amps. i might buy one of them
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I have had mine for almost 6 yrs. Never care to look what's written inside, don't think I will. Like the friend that went to eat in Hong Kong at this restaurant where you have to catch with a net your own fish, and the chef would kill it and fix it right in front of you, because he couldn't deal with the idea of hurting this fish and watch it get cook he then decided to leave the place and eat at .... McDonald, go figure!! Brow the cabinets & speakers are very important!
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I think a quickrod would really do it for me tone wise. But I can't deal with their god-bothering, scriptures in the amps nonsense.
+1
add to that rumours of 'fake' parts installed to make things difficult for people trying to reverse engineer and the scouring of the internet for gut photos of their own amps to get them taken down.
I'm sure ive read about people being asked to remove splawn photos from flikr or photobucket.
still, if you dont mind the god stuff and stars and stripes being inside your amp, then thats cool.
I wonder if and muslim fundamentalists build amps. i might buy one of them
Doesn't bother me tbh!
As logn as I like the amp, can afford it, and it's built well then the guy can dress up as a woman while he builds them for all I care!
I don't really understand the issue of him putting fake parts in his amps or not wanting gut shots on the net. Surely the guy is entitled to protect his intellectual property? It's no different to the Klon Centaur having black goop over the circuit to protect it from being copied.
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I think a quickrod would really do it for me tone wise. But I can't deal with their god-bothering, scriptures in the amps nonsense.
+1
add to that rumours of 'fake' parts installed to make things difficult for people trying to reverse engineer and the scouring of the internet for gut photos of their own amps to get them taken down.
I'm sure ive read about people being asked to remove splawn photos from flikr or photobucket.
still, if you dont mind the god stuff and stars and stripes being inside your amp, then thats cool.
I wonder if and muslim fundamentalists build amps. i might buy one of them
Doesn't bother me tbh!
As logn as I like the amp, can afford it, and it's built well then the guy can dress up as a woman while he builds them for all I care!
I don't really understand the issue of him putting fake parts in his amps or not wanting gut shots on the net. Surely the guy is entitled to protect his intellectual property? It's no different to the Klon Centaur having black goop over the circuit to protect it from being copied.
I think black goop is an absolutely terrible thing to put in ANY amp and I'd never consider buy any amp that had lots of it in. Voodoo amps has apparently stopped using it to cover up mods as it was giving them a bit of a rep. Bruno amps uses a lot (pictured), and the old dumble amps had some i think... but I think its a pretty bad way of building an amp.
+1 to not caring. It's not a big deal. I'd buy an amp off Jeffrey Dahmer if it was built right.
Fake components (if anyone actually does that, its something i've read in a couple of spots but rumours are rumours) is dumb. It essentially means someone buying the amp is buying unused parts fitted in the amp due to the builders paranoia. So I don't buy the 'protecting intellectual property' argument.
I've read about people scratching component values off stuff too. meh.
I've heard that Randall Smith owns patents on all kinds of things that existed in fender amps, and subsequently marshalls, before he patented them after starting Mesa. But I guess fender probably copied them from some place, and marshall from fender, and mesa from wherever.
soldano, peavey, and mesa all have common circuits.
krank and Sovteks, maybe even Quickrod too have some common bits.
i dont really care.
to be honest, id still like to try some splawns. they seem pretty good value
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I think black goop is an absolutely terrible thing to put in ANY amp and I'd never consider buy any amp that had lots of it in. Voodoo amps has apparently stopped using it to cover up mods as it was giving them a bit of a rep. Bruno amps uses a lot (pictured), and the old dumble amps had some i think... but I think its a pretty bad way of building an amp.
+1 to not caring. It's not a big deal. I'd buy an amp off Jeffrey Dahmer if it was built right.
Fake components (if anyone actually does that, its something i've read in a couple of spots but rumours are rumours) is dumb. It essentially means someone buying the amp is buying unused parts fitted in the amp due to the builders paranoia. So I don't buy the 'protecting intellectual property' argument.
I've read about people scratching component values off stuff too. meh.
I've heard that Randall Smith owns patents on all kinds of things that existed in fender amps, and subsequently marshalls, before he patented them after starting Mesa. But I guess fender probably copied them from some place, and marshall from fender, and mesa from wherever.
soldano, peavey, and mesa all have common circuits.
krank and Sovteks, maybe even Quickrod too have some common bits.
i dont really care.
to be honest, id still like to try some splawns. they seem pretty good value
Yeah, the black goo in the pic you pictured is a bit OTT imo. I'd not thought of the extra cost that 'dummy parts' may add to a cost, but like you said yourself, it's rumours so who knows if he does it or not?
I'd heard of builders scratching off component values too, but until mentioned earlier, fitting fake parts into an amp.
Ah well, aslong as I enjoy the amp then that's all I'm fussed about tbh :D
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Ah well, aslong as I enjoy the amp then that's all I'm fussed about tbh :D
agreed!
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I think black goop is an absolutely terrible thing to put in ANY amp and I'd never consider buy any amp that had lots of it in. Voodoo amps has apparently stopped using it to cover up mods as it was giving them a bit of a rep. Bruno amps uses a lot (pictured), and the old dumble amps had some i think... but I think its a pretty bad way of building an amp.
+1 to not caring. It's not a big deal. I'd buy an amp off Jeffrey Dahmer if it was built right.
Fake components (if anyone actually does that, its something i've read in a couple of spots but rumours are rumours) is dumb. It essentially means someone buying the amp is buying unused parts fitted in the amp due to the builders paranoia. So I don't buy the 'protecting intellectual property' argument.
I've read about people scratching component values off stuff too. meh.
I've heard that Randall Smith owns patents on all kinds of things that existed in fender amps, and subsequently marshalls, before he patented them after starting Mesa. But I guess fender probably copied them from some place, and marshall from fender, and mesa from wherever.
soldano, peavey, and mesa all have common circuits.
krank and Sovteks, maybe even Quickrod too have some common bits.
i dont really care.
to be honest, id still like to try some splawns. they seem pretty good value
Yeah, the black goo in the pic you pictured is a bit OTT imo. I'd not thought of the extra cost that 'dummy parts' may add to a cost, but like you said yourself, it's rumours so who knows if he does it or not?
I'd heard of builders scratching off component values too, but until mentioned earlier, fitting fake parts into an amp.
Ah well, aslong as I enjoy the amp then that's all I'm fussed about tbh :D
Black goop. Great when you have to try to fix it!
I've also had gear in where component details have been stratched off parts.
I've also had a US company make me sign a confidentiallity agreed that states I can't even tell anyone that I've been in touch with them (oops, just broken that)!
Having said that, at least they supported their product. Many companies simply refuse to send out service manuals/ schematics.
Ironically the Chinese owned companies almost without exception refuse to send out circuit details. I say ironically as many of these make their money copying other peoples designs!
As I've pointed out to more than one company's service department, I'm hardly likely to be trying to rip their designs off and start hand building digital modelling amplifiers etc in Central London.
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I paid the deposit today, so I definitely get it tomorrow 8)
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might bump in to you there tomorrow.
I'm buying a pedal for my new MJW which I picked up in the week
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i you ever have trouble with it... I can't personally recommend sounds great for repair work.
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might bump in to you there tomorrow.
I'm buying a pedal for my new MJW which I picked up in the week
Cool!
I meant to send you a PM actually. My Dads asked me to make it as early as possible, so I'll have to pass on the beer at dinner invite for today, thanks anyway though!
If I don't see you there today, are you going to the proposed forum day in October?
i you ever have trouble with it... I can't personally recommend sounds great for repair work.
Nah, I wouldn't take it to them for works to be honest, it's just too far away.
I have a guy about 10 miles away that does all my amp work anyway so I'm sure he'd be able to manage :)
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i you ever have trouble with it... I can't personally recommend sounds great for repair work.
Ah an old story with some Soldano Avenger springs to mind ... that was you right?
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That's interesting. I own a switchblade and it killed every single marshall, mesa and everything else in the amp room at my local shop. Then again, I play much heavier stuff than you, and have the time to sit with it and get a good EQ. It's certainly suited better for more modern metal and hardcore... damn kids. 8)
To everyone their own though.
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i you ever have trouble with it... I can't personally recommend sounds great for repair work.
Ah an old story with some Soldano Avenger springs to mind ... that was you right?
yes. and people are probably bored of me bringing it up... but whatever. they pee'd on my rug.. so to speak.
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will be at the meet in Oct if I don't see you there
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That's interesting. I own a switchblade and it killed every single marshall, mesa and everything else in the amp room at my local shop. Then again, I play much heavier stuff than you, and have the time to sit with it and get a good EQ. It's certainly suited better for more modern metal and hardcore... damn kids. 8)
To everyone their own though.
Yep, horses for courses and all that stuff!
I'm generally ok at tweaking amps relatively quickly to get a sound I like (comes from being a studio engineer I guess), but aside from MESAs (which I just can't get my head around EQ wise) the switchblade combo I tried was the only amp I can remember using where I couldn't get atleast imo a useable sound from it at all. I got a passable clean tone from it, but the crunch tones on it sounded extremely thin and brittle and the more overdriven tones sounded very digital and fake, somewhat like a BOSS Metalzone pedal.
Someone said earlier that maybe the 1 I used had a problem with it, which could be the case, but either way I know that it wasn't the amp for me. If it works for you, then that's great :D
will be at the meet in Oct if I don't see you there
I was only in the shop for about 10 minutes while they checked my part exchanges worked, and then I had to shoot off again as my Dad wanted to get back home relatively quickly.
I'll see you at the meet in October though :)
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does the amp pop at all when you change channels or gears?
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yes. and people are probably bored of me bringing it up... but whatever. they pee'd on my rug.. so to speak.
That rug really tied the room together ...
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yes. and people are probably bored of me bringing it up... but whatever. they pee'd on my rug.. so to speak.
That rug really tied the room together ...
F**kin' A, man...
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does the amp pop at all when you change channels or gears?
Can't say as I've noticed it popping during clean/OD, OD1/OD2 or gear changes,
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i do really wanna try one now. gah!
i dug out my schematic and the gear switching is really neat and very simple.
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i do really wanna try one now. gah!
i dug out my schematic and the gear switching is really neat and very simple.
Well, if you're going to the proposed meeting thing on the 16th of October then I'll have it there for people to try out if they want :)
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well... that would be tempting. I live in london though. might be a long way to go
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well... that would be tempting. I live in london though. might be a long way to go
Ah right, just an idea. I have next to no idea where anyone is from, so thought I'd mention it anyway!
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Wait til you get it home and crank it up! Gear 1 OD 2 ,Presence @ noon, bass 11o'clock, Mid 11'oclock, treb 1 o'clock, and gain tween 2-3 o'clock the smile won't leave your face forever :lol: My amp does not sound bright @ all anymore after I pulled out the Tung sol pre's and replaced them with JJ Ecc83's( the high gain rated ones from eurotubes). It is a very muscular amp, you will have to turn down the mids to get it to saturate a little more. I really like my QR if you can't tell! If your amp is a 2010 it will probably come with the Valve art tubes which I have heard great things about on the Splawn forum. Enjoy.