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I'm a 6L6 guy, I always have been. Specifically, a Boogie devotee.

I use my Rectoverb most of the time for the channel switching, but it's a compromise. I forget how much I love my Mark IIA until I have the chance to sit down with it, crank it up, and go through all of its tones. It's not the version, the Mark IIC version is generally a much better amp, it's this particular amp.

It was made made in '79. It has noisey channel switching and the reverb is spotty, at best. Even with that, the amp just screams with harmonically rich tones in the gain channel like no other amp that I've ever owned. I've searched for something that will outdo it, but I haven't found it yet. I've played through a ton of different stuff, but I haven't found one that can compete with this amp.

I tell you this to encourage you to make an amp purchase more like a guitar purchase. If you assume that all the amps made in the same year, the same series, from the same manufacturer, etc., are just alike, think again. Play through more than one, as many as you can, to find the one that you like the best. To my ears, there are some that are just head-and-shoulders better than the others that seem to be just like it.

100000

You're saying that a guy shouldn't simply buy a DRRI online, he should actually go to a store and play several DRRI's and pick the best one. Not all DRRI vs DRRI, SR VS SR, Bassmans Vs. Bassman, etc. sound alike? One might sound better than the another!?


Originally Posted by Guitar ToadYou're saying that a guy shouldn't simply buy a DRRI online, he should actually go to a store and play several DRRI's and pick the best one. Not all DRRI vs DRRI, SR VS SR, Bassmans Vs. Bassman, etc. sound alike? One might sound better than the another!?

yep, thats what he's saying.....i find it to hold true as well... i remember having 2 blonde 60s bassman heads and 2x12 cabs in front of me at guitar center......one sounded great, and the other was just awful

I think this has always been the case...some amp brands moreso than others. Marshalls for example... especially the NMVs...all of them sound pretty good, but a smaller percentage are the tone gawds. Some of the best quot;stockquot; ones I've heard on average have been the SuperBass models and 1987s...better to my ears than most of the Superleads I've tried (again stock). Can't just grab one based on the name/model.

Another thing is speaker break in....takes awhile and those amps in the store prolly sound better than one you would buy online (assuming it's been cared for) at first cos they have been played quite a bit already.

This is so true, definitely something I have experienced myself. It all boils down to the tolerance of the parts. Two amps of the same make and model may have the same spec'd value parts in them, but those parts can vary in their actual value by /- 5% to 10%. It may not seem like a lot but when it comes to high voltage signals in tube amps, it can mean the difference between a gem and a dog.


Originally Posted by Guitar ToadYou're saying that a guy shouldn't simply buy a DRRI online, he should actually go to a store and play several DRRI's and pick the best one. Not all DRRI vs DRRI, SR VS SR, Bassmans Vs. Bassman, etc. sound alike? One might sound better than the another!?

I think it's really important to try something out before you buy it. I can't see how that is anything other than common sense.

I've owned at least 5 Marshall JMP MV series amps, each one was very different from each other. I've had friends who have had identical amps that sounded completely different. Buying a guitar with a hand shaped neck sight unseen is ludicrous.

You're the consumer, you're paying to get the item you want, not what the dealer is willing to send you.

EDIT: For the sake of discussion...

Don't amps do go through a tonal QC check? OR circuit QC before the amps are shipped for sale. Doesn't Fender (insert amp maker here) have some mechanism to catch the dog's to make sure that the differences between amps are minimal?

Nevertheless, Try before you buy.


Originally Posted by Guitar ToadEDIT: For the sake of discussion...

Don't amps do go through a tonal QC check? OR circuit QC before the amps are shipped for sale. Doesn't Fender (insert amp maker here) have some mechanism to catch the dog's to make sure that the differences between amps are minimal?

Nevertheless, Try before you buy.

What may be a dog to one may be a gem to another. Remember, tone is in the ear of the listener much like beauty is in the eye of the beer holder.


Originally Posted by Guitar ToadEDIT: For the sake of discussion...

Don't amps do go through a tonal QC check? OR circuit QC before the amps are shipped for sale. Doesn't Fender (insert amp maker here) have some mechanism to catch the dog's to make sure that the differences between amps are minimal?

Nevertheless, Try before you buy.

I'd doubt it, they're probably checked to make sure they work, but quot;workingquot; and quot;working for youquot; are entirely different things.


Originally Posted by ErikHWhat may be a dog to one may be a gem to another. Remember, tone is in the ear of the listener much like beauty is in the eye of the beer holder.

The more beer you drink before you test an amp will make the amp more beautiful? how many beers do you recommend before amp shopping assuming you have designated driver to drive you around?

/- 10% tolerance on componants and different tubes can lead to alot of variation.

i dont buy any guitar or amp online. if i cant play it first, i dont want it. the only exception is the 5e3 i got from scott, but i trust his ears, so much so i might have a second celtic amp soon. i even tried out four crate power blocks before i bought one, didnt hear a bit of difference but ya never know.


Originally Posted by Guitar ToadThe more beer you drink before you test an amp will make the amp more beautiful? how many beers do you recommend before amp shopping assuming you have designated driver to drive you around?
Start with 3 just to loosen up a little. That way you can still distinquish a good tone and not spend all your money on some POS. Now, if you decide to go shopping after a 12 pack, you may end up walking out with a 15 watt 8quot; speaker combo thinking you just purchased the answer to all your 100 watt stack problems.

For the sake of arguement: You apply this even to Bogner, Komet, Dr. Z, Fargen? You would never try one these before buying?

To me, it doesn't matter which amp company we're talking about, boutique or otherwise. I want to hear it before I buy it because quot;identicalquot; amps can sound completely different from each other.

As for QC, I'm sure that they all have a range of tolerance. Some will be at the bottom of the acceptable range, some will far exceed it. If possible, I want to find the amp that exceeds just the acceptable level. As others have mentioned, tone is a subjective thing, and I'm looking for the one that makes my ears go crazy with delight.


Originally Posted by HamerPlyrTo me, it doesn't matter which amp company we're talking about, boutique or otherwise. I want to hear it before I buy it because quot;identicalquot; amps can sound completely different from each other.

1 gazillion.

Is amp making QC any better now? If modern tolerances are /-10% today, what were they in 1965 or 1975? were you more likely to get a dud in the vintage days than now?


Originally Posted by Guitar ToadIs amp making QC any better now? If modern tolerances are /-10% today, what were they in 1965 or 1975? were you more likely to get a dud in the vintage days than now?

I don't know...but seems to me these guys weren't making nearly as many amps as they do today...and that would def factor in...if ya can't take as much time...chances are more crap is gonna slip through.

5000 a year of certain model amp vs. 50000 a year.....(thats just a figure I threw out..dont have a clue how many of certain amps are made per year)

I think that a repair guy would be in a better position to answer your question, T. They get to see enough of them to tell how often they break down, what breaks, differences in tone, etc.

All that I can tell you is based on just playing through various amps here and there. To my ears, it's about the same today as it has been in the past from a tone standpoint. There were just as many sub-par amps vs. great amps in the past as there are today. Good Ol' Day Syndrome trys to tell me that all of the old amps sounded great, but my ears tell me something different.

Try before you buy? Don't shop on ebay lest you end up with a dud? Unless you know how to turn a dog into a gem. I certainly don't know how to do that, yet.

Good thread HamerPlyr, Rob. Thanks for starting it.