Thunderbird Club

[Gaolee]

It's a little 3 knob, 9V battery powered thing about the size of a large pedal.

We had a really valuable session and things are finally beginningnto coalesce into a coherent whole.

Now we have the queen, a diva and scary old auntie -- is that the full set?

Princess? I dunno. We probably need one of those.

 

[BklynKen]

That's it right there.

Does it actually sound good?

 

[fasterpussycat]

What do you guys think? With or with out the Abalone Inlays?

Im having a hard time deciding, I really like it each way. So Im asking for All Ya’lls input on this.
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WITH

 

[GBassNorth]

What do you guys think? With or with out the Abalone Inlays?

Im having a hard time deciding, I really like it each way. So Im asking for All Ya’lls input on this.
View attachment 3346311 View attachment 3346312 View attachment 3346313 View attachment 3346314

Nice neck. I vote no dots on the fretboard, but instead use oversized side dots. Those are the only ones I ever look at.

 

[MCF]

I thought was her! We have been doing their version of Take on me.

Lake Street Dive will be touring with the Avett Brothers this summer. What a great bill.

 

[Chucky Stiletti]

The Kalamazoo Models 1 and 2 were my main jam for years! The roaring version I mentioned was built from a M2. You can get some sweet crunch from those. (A Model 2 is a Model 1 with trem.) Even though I haven't been doing a lot with amps, I still have my Kalamazoo Field Guide online.

Kalamazoo Amp Field Guide (frames)

The 6BQ5 is the American designation of the tube that's called the EL84 by the Europeans. The quietness is likely a tube, though it could be from a few other things (partially shorted OT, bad pot, resistor going south, etc.)

Gibson and Kalamazoo were very under-rated for tube amps. They never figured out how to market against the FMV triumvirate, and they'd just give up and try something else. Fender was an amp company along with being a guitar company. I viewed Gibson as a guitar company that also happened to sell amps.

funny that we should be talking about single ended EL-84 based amps...got this on the bench...no name brand
6AQ5 (6V6 ratings but a miniature base like on 84s) and a 6X4WA (6 volt filament) rect. there were so many manufacturers back then.....unusual tolex color/pattern...nicely put together though...has a GM automotive speaker..

 

[Miles_ONeal]

interestingly my Ashdown Little Bastard 30 is based on EL-84s....have never seen a bass amp use this output tube..

Another idea I waited too late to be first on. How is it?

 

[fasterpussycat]

Does it actually sound good?

A tiny plastic box with a 9V battery supply? It sounds like sh1t -- but it does the job and you can hear the drives, delays and other noises, which is important in this context.

 

[Miles_ONeal]

It's a little 3 knob, 9V battery powered thing about the size of a large pedal.

We had a really valuable session and things are finally beginningnto coalesce into a coherent whole.

Now we have the queen, a diva and scary old auntie -- is that the full set?

It's a good start. Still need a bridezilla, a sweet old grandma, and at least one teenager.

 

[Miles_ONeal]

Your website is great. Thanks for the link. I'll probably end up printing out the schematic for in case I need to do any work on it. Actually I do need to do some - it still has the old two prong zip-cord power cord.

You're welcome!

 

[GBassNorth]

funny that we should be talking about single ended EL-84 based amps...got this on the bench...no name brand
6AQ5 (6V6 ratings but a miniature base like on 84s) and a 6X4WA (6 volt filament) rect. there were so many manufacturers back then.....unusual tolex color/pattern...nicely put together though...has a GM automotive speaker..
View attachment 3346544

Yumm, lava cake!

 

[Chucky Stiletti]

Another idea I waited too late to be first on. How is it?

like it, great harmonic balance when braking up which happens at around 700mV. Voiced with emphasis around 140 and 2.2kHz. probably would work fine for a small cocktail gig...measures in at about 36Watts @ 4Ohm....been trying it into a UA Ox modeling attenuator and out into the pwr amp in of my Ashdown Klystron or SVT II with different speaker configurations......IMO, a little boutiqueish but not a bad value for 700 bucks...
probably would work well with uprights and recording..

 

[Miles_ONeal]

funny that we should be talking about single ended EL-84 based amps...got this on the bench...no name brand
6AQ5 (6V6 ratings but a miniature base like on 84s) and a 6X4WA (6 volt filament) rect. there were so many manufacturers back then.....unusual tolex color/pattern...nicely put together though...has a GM automotive speaker..
View attachment 3346544

drool
The Kalamazoo Models 1 and 2 used the 6X4. 6AQ5 is a cool tube too. Isn't the plate dissipation down-rated a couple of watts from a 6V6?

What are all the tubes for? Lots of gain stages? Fancy trem? Multiple channels? Reverb? (I don't see a tank.) That looks like the sort of thing I'd have built in my early years, right down to the in your face appearance. What's the front look like? The overall vibe is Gibson-inspired while mildly tripping.

 

[Chucky Stiletti]

drool
The Kalamazoo Models 1 and 2 used the 6X4. 6AQ5 is a cool tube too. Isn't the plate dissipation down-rated a couple of watts from a 6V6?

What are all the tubes for? Lots of gain stages? Fancy trem? Multiple channels? Reverb? (I don't see a tank.) That looks like the sort of thing I'd have built in my early years, right down to the in your face appearance. What's the front look like? The overall vibe is Gibson-inspired while mildly tripping.

may even be a Gibson....reverb tank at the bottom if you look closely..

 

[Gaolee]

funny that we should be talking about single ended EL-84 based amps...got this on the bench...no name brand
6AQ5 (6V6 ratings but a miniature base like on 84s) and a 6X4WA (6 volt filament) rect. there were so many manufacturers back then.....unusual tolex color/pattern...nicely put together though...has a GM automotive speaker..
View attachment 3346544

There's enough valves in that thing to operate an ocean liner. What do they all do?

 

[Chucky Stiletti]

There's enough valves in that thing to operate an ocean liner. What do they all do?

two channels, tremolo and reverb

 

[Gaolee]

two channels, tremolo and reverb

Ah. So two complete preamp sections and tubes to run both trem and 'verb. I like the tolex a whole lot!

 

[Chucky Stiletti]

Ah. So two complete preamp sections and tubes to run both trem and 'verb.

exactly

 

[Chucky Stiletti]

drool
The Kalamazoo Models 1 and 2 used the 6X4. 6AQ5 is a cool tube too. Isn't the plate dissipation down-rated a couple of watts from a 6V6?

What are all the tubes for? Lots of gain stages? Fancy trem? Multiple channels? Reverb? (I don't see a tank.) That looks like the sort of thing I'd have built in my early years, right down to the in your face appearance. What's the front look like? The overall vibe is Gibson-inspired while mildly tripping.

front..

 

[JIO]

Obscure LP/band alert : for all you Beefheart fans - you may or may not know about Mallard, so here's something to spark your interest. Two LP's were made in the mid 70's, I have this one and all songs including this one are great. Mark Boston (Rockette Morton) on the Fender bass.
Mallard (band) - Wikipedia ps - Chucky recommended I post this here and with this cover art... a shout-out to our Mark!


this is a fave of mine - bass very much in 'the mix'