japetus
Moderator
Clock is always right twice a day
headlessdeadguy
Well-known member
Did you replace the preamp tube?
CrystalSky
Well-known member
Broken/stopped clock, iirc. That’s actually an answer to a riddle
headlessdeadguy
Well-known member
XXX or Archon 50 will work. I have one of those Transtube amps that only works on 10. Sounds pretty good but it’s been banished to the floor in the garage. A good preamp pedal and a Quilter or Blackstar Amped 1 is also a good option. One of Griff’s VH 140 C pedals would quench the thirst.
Charvel1975
Active member
glpg80
Well-known member
Iconic el34
Triple XXX
JVM410
Ampeg VI-1002
Randall V2
Triple XXX
JVM410
Ampeg VI-1002
Randall V2
romanianreaper
Well-known member
I have a Marshall Silver Jubillee Mini and 5150-III 6L6 50watt Stealth for tube amps and my Orange Super Crush 100 Combo I use for gigs. Ypu should have him give one of those a try. They sound great and are solid state and loud when needed. I have mine at under half for gigs. The clean channel sounds amazing too.
TheGreatGreen
Well-known member
I mean let's be honest here. What he really needs at MINIMUM is a pair of Wizard Hell Razors running a quad of KT120's in stereo at 200 watts each, both amps driving a pair of 4x12 cabs for four cabs in total, and an Axe-Fx III in the loops to run effects. That's a pretty decent starter rig that should get him off the ground I think.
Seriously though, if the cab is only cutting out at "low volumes" then it could just be a bad volume pot or something like that. I'd order some Peavey Funk Out or similar and spray it directly into the pot while twisting it around. Wait a few minutes and turn the amp on and see if the problem persists.
I bought that same amp used a while back, Peavey Transtube Supreme head, and it had scratchy pots that would cut out. I did the Funk Out treatment and the pots have been flawless and scratch free ever since.
edit: dang I should have read farther into the thread. Looks like the pot cleaning didn't solve the volume drop issue. Sorry about that.
Seriously though, if the cab is only cutting out at "low volumes" then it could just be a bad volume pot or something like that. I'd order some Peavey Funk Out or similar and spray it directly into the pot while twisting it around. Wait a few minutes and turn the amp on and see if the problem persists.
I bought that same amp used a while back, Peavey Transtube Supreme head, and it had scratchy pots that would cut out. I did the Funk Out treatment and the pots have been flawless and scratch free ever since.
edit: dang I should have read farther into the thread. Looks like the pot cleaning didn't solve the volume drop issue. Sorry about that.
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N
Navigator
Member
Great point here, given that this guy doesn't sound like one of the tube amp tone chasers that many of us seem to be.
This is actually an interesting thread. Here's a guy who has been happy with his amp and content to stay with it. How rare is that?
glpg80
Well-known member
What do you recommend to someone like that who is completely content with what he likes?
He should consider it a blessing honestly. This shit gets expensive really fast.
N
Navigator
Member
So true. That's how I was thinking of it. It's so easy to spend a lot of time chasing gear. It can sometimes take away the time that might be better spent playing, recording, creating.
glpg80
Well-known member
I feel like he’d get frustrated with menus and all of the options if all he likes is just one solid state amp and a 4x12.
N
Navigator
Member
That's a good point too. There's a lot to be said for keeping it simple.
SFW
Well-known member
Metalhex
Well-known member
I would have your friend look into the Hughes and Kettner BlackSpirit amp. It does a wide range of gain types with built in effects. Then if he digs it, I have one that is in great working order that I would be willing to sell.
cobrahead1030
Well-known member
I'm wanting to recommend a XXX or even Ultra + in this situation...
But given what he's used to, I wouldn't discount the Peavey XXL. Similar layout to the XXX, but in a solid state package he may be more comfortable getting along with. While it isn't an amp that's likely to blow most of us away, it's a good SS high gain option with a decent clean channel to boot. I played in a band with a guy who had one for a few years, and never had any complaints about how he sounded.
But given what he's used to, I wouldn't discount the Peavey XXL. Similar layout to the XXX, but in a solid state package he may be more comfortable getting along with. While it isn't an amp that's likely to blow most of us away, it's a good SS high gain option with a decent clean channel to boot. I played in a band with a guy who had one for a few years, and never had any complaints about how he sounded.
C
chrisgr
Active member
If he loves that amp, why not just get another one? I see GC has like three of them in the used section for $300. If he is looking for something different, he should go out and try different amps to see what he likes or go on youtube and watch some demos of amps he is interested in. You also shouldn't have that big of a problem finding a tech to diagnose what the problem is. You don't have to take it to a guitar amp tech, it's solid state so any electrical repair tech would be able to check it out.
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MadAsAHatter
Well-known member
He's been poking around at amps and mentioned being interested in a 5150 the other day. Though I don't know if he realizes the number of variants just in the 5150 line. Plus extra if you take in the 6505's. At least we have a good starting point. And from what he was saying it sounds like he has the OG 5150 tone in mind. I don't think he'd be disappointed with any of them. So if that's the direction he's leaning it'll likely be more a matter of which one he can get a good deal on.
On another positive note, I may have gotten his Transtube up and running again. I doubt the jacks have been cleaned in the 30 or so years he's owned the amp. After 2 cleanings, yesterday I decided to give them one more round in case there was still some lingering gunk causing interference. I played for a good hour plus after that and about 45 minutes this morning with no volume issues. I'll play on it more to see if the issue comes back, but fingers crossed that all is good to go.
If his amp is indeed good to go he may not bother with looking for a replacement. Or if he's still interested it could at least give him more time to shop around.
On another positive note, I may have gotten his Transtube up and running again. I doubt the jacks have been cleaned in the 30 or so years he's owned the amp. After 2 cleanings, yesterday I decided to give them one more round in case there was still some lingering gunk causing interference. I played for a good hour plus after that and about 45 minutes this morning with no volume issues. I'll play on it more to see if the issue comes back, but fingers crossed that all is good to go.
If his amp is indeed good to go he may not bother with looking for a replacement. Or if he's still interested it could at least give him more time to shop around.
MadAsAHatter
Well-known member
Unfortunately I got my hopes up too soon that one last cleaning of the jack fixed the issue. It came back the following day after my previous post. So we're back to my fried looking for a new amp.
I just finished talking to him about what sound he would be going for and what he may be interested. One thing I got from him (or at least realized) was he doesn't know the first thing about tube amps, or amps in general. Like to the point I was explaining the difference between the preamp and power sections of a amp. He's also at square one with how to dial in a tone. He told me he didn't really know what he was doing when he got the Transtube, copied the setting in the manual for a "medium crunch" and left it there. He said since the settings came from the manual it must be a good sound.
That explains why his settings sounded like muffled farts to me. IME, rarely has good tone settings come straight from the manual. I'd also suspect he'd do similar with a new amp. Either take settings from the manual and assume they're good until he acclimates to them or use the settings from the Transtube and hope for the best.
I took a couple of things from that conversation. One; and he said so as well is he's not much of a knob turner. He said when there's too many knobs or options he doesn't know what to do and gets lost. The other thing I took from it was he doesn't really have any particular tone in mind. Or at least wouldn't know how to identify or describe what he's want to go for.
He still mentioned a 5150/6505, but started getting a little overwhelmed when I was describing all the different variants. And he didn't seem to know really what they sounded like. It was more like he knew Peavey and knew Eddie used them. That was about the extent of it.
I'm not trying to knock his lack of experience; it is what it is. Just providing more background of where he's coming from. I'm definitely going to be amp shopping with him to help him figure out what tones he likes and narrow down choices. I really want him to be happy with whatever he ends up with.
So for sure he'll want something that's straight forward feature wise and relatively easy to dial in a good tone. Or at least have well established good tone settings he can copy. This is the list I got going from what I can think of and suggestions from y'all so far.
I just finished talking to him about what sound he would be going for and what he may be interested. One thing I got from him (or at least realized) was he doesn't know the first thing about tube amps, or amps in general. Like to the point I was explaining the difference between the preamp and power sections of a amp. He's also at square one with how to dial in a tone. He told me he didn't really know what he was doing when he got the Transtube, copied the setting in the manual for a "medium crunch" and left it there. He said since the settings came from the manual it must be a good sound.
That explains why his settings sounded like muffled farts to me. IME, rarely has good tone settings come straight from the manual. I'd also suspect he'd do similar with a new amp. Either take settings from the manual and assume they're good until he acclimates to them or use the settings from the Transtube and hope for the best.
I took a couple of things from that conversation. One; and he said so as well is he's not much of a knob turner. He said when there's too many knobs or options he doesn't know what to do and gets lost. The other thing I took from it was he doesn't really have any particular tone in mind. Or at least wouldn't know how to identify or describe what he's want to go for.
He still mentioned a 5150/6505, but started getting a little overwhelmed when I was describing all the different variants. And he didn't seem to know really what they sounded like. It was more like he knew Peavey and knew Eddie used them. That was about the extent of it.
I'm not trying to knock his lack of experience; it is what it is. Just providing more background of where he's coming from. I'm definitely going to be amp shopping with him to help him figure out what tones he likes and narrow down choices. I really want him to be happy with whatever he ends up with.
So for sure he'll want something that's straight forward feature wise and relatively easy to dial in a good tone. Or at least have well established good tone settings he can copy. This is the list I got going from what I can think of and suggestions from y'all so far.
- Any 6505/5150 type variants (which one would be best to start with?)
- PRS MT100 or Archon
- Marshall DSL or other Marshall style with simple features/controls
- ENGL Fireball
- Synergy SYN50 + 2 modules of his liking (if it wouldn't be choice overload for him)
- Maybe a Mesa Triple Crown (I've heard they're easier to dial in than a Recto or Mark)