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Help! I'm addicted to tube amps!

christw

christw

Get low!
May 11, 2008
6,417
518
Dayton OH
Disclosures
THE MADDEST SCIENTIST
#1
I'm 21 years old and have more amps than I have instruments, almost. I have eight:

-Ampeg SVT-II - Big guns. Everyone should have one.
-Peavey Alpha Bass - Bought it to use for rehearsals and save life on the 'Peg.
-B52 AT100 - I bought this with a B52 412 for only $200! A tube half stack for so cheap? Yes, please!
-Marshall JTM-60 - A rare 90's Marshall that was my first tube amp I bought off of a guitar instructor. It'll always be around.
-Hammond Organ reverb amplifier - Sounds pure Aerosmith with a strat. Nothing but an input and a speaker. Balls out all the time.
-Vox AC15 circuit adapted to one EL84 output tube - part of a trade for a bass I hated. I dig it.
-Elk Miyuki Custom 30 - Japanese amp that the factory burned down and has next to literature about it. Second ebay basket case buy. $350 in and it's working but I'm actually trying to rid myself of it.
-1950s Gibson GA-5 or Fender Champ 6SN7-6V6-5Y3 - first ebay basket case buy. $50 and I had a nice pedal-OD-able tube amp.
-(not counted:) Lowrey Starlet organ from 1964. Lotsa lotsa tubes and pretty Scooby Doo tone. Crazy!

I didn't even remember that I had half of these. One is at a rehearsal space, two are in a corner at my parent's house and five are in the room with me, but I don't look at them and go "5 TUBE AMPS!??!" because I usually only acknowledged one at a time. Still though, I have a lot of amps and I don't use them. Crap. Is it time for me to start selling again?
 
#9
KramerBassFan said:
I couldn't manage that for a 30w amp - even an Elk. :cool:

I only have three amps:

1970 something Ampeg V4
2009 Home Made Marshall Superbass
2007 5w Class A my brother built.

I have more than enough solid state gear to make up for it.... :hiding:
Click to expand...

I've got to ask, do you know a bit about Elks? I've got enough info to want to know more, but not enough to be satisfied.

Oooh, I bet that Superbass would be fun!
 
#10
I wonder how many I have in this room with me. Let's see, clockwise from my right...

Blackstar HT5
Mesa Rocket 440
Ampeg b-15
(ooh, a solid stater is next.. let's skip over it.Electric drums running through it ATM)
'65 Champ
Mesa D-180
Sound City X188
Fender 400ps
(Honorable mention? Emud tube console stereo. With a crossover before the line in, lows sent to a sub, it makes a very nice monitor amp for mixes or just listening to CDs.)

The guitar amps are actually pretty cool at low enough volumes with 4 string bass. Should sell some, can never decide which one. Too hard to replace most of them.
 
#11
Don't sell amps unless you really need to. By that I mean, you need money for loan sharks or they'll cut off your hands, need to.

That's from experience. You generally will always lose out on the deal, and you'll likely miss it later.

You've got some pretty select amps there, I'd just hold onto them. If you ever need a different tone for a recording, you've got a lot of choice there at your disposal.
 
#12
christw said:
I've got to ask, do you know a bit about Elks? I've got enough info to want to know more, but not enough to be satisfied.

Oooh, I bet that Superbass would be fun!
Click to expand...

Elk. Production based in japan in the mid to late 60's and early 70's, then the factory burned down. They made unoriginal guitars (aka copy's of the big dogs' ;) ) and amps which were, as far as i know, also modified copies of big dog amps. They never made anything HUGE power wise, or too successful. From what i read (they were loooooong before my time) they were pretty much one of those companies that you only bought their gear if you couldn't afford PRO gear of the time. Not necessarily bad, but most kids would of preferred a Fender Dual Showman to an ELK Miyuki Custom 30.

Thats about all i know. And that is why the fascinate me. <- i love random obscure companies who were only around for X years before event Y put them out of business.. Kramer guitars being proof of my love for companies such as this.

In summary - would i love to have ANY sort of old 60's obscure Japanese Transmitter tube amplifier? You betcha. But would i pay the same amount of money for a tiny japanese amp from the 60's that i could a large American Made tube amp from the 70's? Probably not. I may have lots of gear i barely need (see my profile) but i try not to abuse my green friends.

.... carry on with the thread.
 
#13
KramerBassFan said:
Elk. Production based in japan in the mid to late 60's and early 70's, then the factory burned down. They made unoriginal guitars (aka copy's of the big dogs' ;) ) and amps which were, as far as i know, also modified copies of big dog amps. They never made anything HUGE power wise, or too successful. From what i read (they were loooooong before my time) they were pretty much one of those companies that you only bought their gear if you couldn't afford PRO gear of the time. Not necessarily bad, but most kids would of preferred a Fender Dual Showman to an ELK Miyuki Custom 30.

Thats about all i know. And that is why the fascinate me. <- i love random obscure companies who were only around for X years before event Y put them out of business.. Kramer guitars being proof of my love for companies such as this.

In summary - would i love to have ANY sort of old 60's obscure Japanese Transmitter tube amplifier? You betcha. But would i pay the same amount of money for a tiny japanese amp from the 60's that i could a large American Made tube amp from the 70's? Probably not. I may have lots of gear i barely need (see my profile) but i try not to abuse my green friends.

.... carry on with the thread.
Click to expand...

I understand. I love to have the secret weapon of an obscure amp to give me my sound and my tone. (I think of my sound as playing style based and my tone just my favorite tone for a given band.)

I knew about all that you told me except that they made guitars. I briefly corresponded with a guy who worked in the factory along with a fellow owner. Didn't help that both of them were, uh, a little out of the ordinary.

For me it's all been an issue of too many green friends in my late teens. I had too much money and too little restraint. I ran through more amps and guitars than I could remember and I'm only 21. Lost most of the cash and most of the gear. Now I've very few green friends and a few more amps than I really thought. I think I'm coming close to the point of liquidating the tubers. There are also a few solid state amps. Well, actually just one, a GK 1001RB. But I really want this Gibson and.... argh. GAS. :p
 
#14
"too many tube amps" :eek: ?

that's crazy talk mister, like...

"there are too many planets twixt me `n the ex" :rolleyes::D

= EBS ValveDrive pedal
= Alamo 'Paragon' combo
= Ampeg B15-R combo + fliptops.net 1x15" ext. cab
= Pignose B100VH
= Mesa D-180
= Mesa Buster
= Marshall VBA400
= 2 Alembic F-2B's & 2 Demeter VTHF-300M's

Still want...

= EBS Classic T90
= Ashdown L'il B*st*rd
 
#15
christw said:
I understand. I love to have the secret weapon of an obscure amp to give me my sound and my tone. (I think of my sound as playing style based and my tone just my favorite tone for a given band.)

I knew about all that you told me except that they made guitars. I briefly corresponded with a guy who worked in the factory along with a fellow owner. Didn't help that both of them were, uh, a little out of the ordinary.

For me it's all been an issue of too many green friends in my late teens. I had too much money and too little restraint. I ran through more amps and guitars than I could remember and I'm only 21. Lost most of the cash and most of the gear. Now I've very few green friends and a few more amps than I really thought. I think I'm coming close to the point of liquidating the tubers. There are also a few solid state amps. Well, actually just one, a GK 1001RB. But I really want this Gibson and.... argh. GAS. :p
Click to expand...


I didn't know they made guitars either, until earlier, when i found an ELK SG on Ebay... and man it looked nice! :eek:

I still have plenty of green friends left over from my Graduation.. and it helps that i get all of my gear used/abused, and i fix it up.. such as the $100 Ampeg V4.. :hiding:
 
#16
notduane said:
"too many tube amps" :eek: ?

that's crazy talk mister, like...

"there are too many planets twixt me `n the ex" :rolleyes::D

= EBS ValveDrive pedal
= Alamo 'Paragon' combo
= Ampeg B15-R combo + fliptops.net 1x15" ext. cab
= Pignose B100VH
= Mesa D-180
= Mesa Buster
= Marshall VBA400
= 2 Alembic F-2B's & 2 Demeter VTHF-300M's

Still want...

= EBS Classic T90
= Ashdown L'il B*st*rd
Click to expand...

An alamo Paragon? educate me, matey.
 
#17
KramerBassFan said:
I didn't know they made guitars either, until earlier, when i found an ELK SG on Ebay... and man it looked nice! :eek:

I still have plenty of green friends left over from my Graduation.. and it helps that i get all of my gear used/abused, and i fix it up.. such as the $100 Ampeg V4.. :hiding:
Click to expand...

I got the Elk for $100 and fixed it up. It just took more work than two techs could handle! (Three techs and the last one fixed it right. The others tried to put a band-aid on a leg wound.) The GA-5 was $40 I think with $50 in work. The organ amp I made into a standalone head complete with a walnut head box my brother made for it. I also had quite a collection of AlNiCo's and boxes for a while. Picked them up at flea markets for $5-$15 and easily doubled my money.

Basically, I never buy used either. I trade or buy used. I like it this way. Harder to lose money so quickly. :p
 
#18
KramerBassFan said:
An alamo Paragon? educate me, matey.
Click to expand...

Arrrgh ;) ...

= Invalid Link Removed

= I had (iirc) an Alamo 2x10" combo during tech school. All tube. Like a Showman
knock-off (Bass and G**t*r inputs). Just the thing to throw in a Pinto Rustabout
wagon and go jammin' on the weekends. Loved the tone and it was stoopid cheap.

= Fast forward...nevermind how many years :p . Found the dual channel all tube
1x12" Paragon 'Bass' combo on an online vintage store. Figured it would make a
good practice amp for my doubleneck (vs. firin' up 2 300 watt Demeters :rolleyes: )

(sorry for the crappy pic)
 

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