This Variac thing is UNBELIEVABLY AMAZING

[Strat78]

Did you try bringing the wall voltage way down too, this would be potentially ground braking! Cant get my act together to try it today.

[jnew]

I will do that next time I plug in although I'm so content with exactly what it's doing now.

Phil, you mentioned before about seeing a pic where speaker cables were modded to the variac at in's and out's. Is it in this pic?

Backofamps3.jpg (405.73 KiB) Viewed 2256 times

I tried to enhance it to make sense of the mess but it's such a crappy photo?

[Strat78]

You can see that one ohmite variac has the cords ducked taped. I thought maybe those were modified for speaker cables. Actually you can see that the varaic goes to the 12301 power cord. The other variac looks normal but you can't quite make out where those cords go. Anyway the point might be mute because according to Friedman's enquiries into the matter, a variac was never used in this fashion by Ed. Not to be discouraged though, I think this thing recreates something that was happening in that early setup.

[jnew]

No way. Definitely not discouraged. When you hear it, you hear it.

I can see the power cord from the variac on the left, to the stack of heads on the left, 2nd amp from the bottom. Assuming that's 12301 which it looks to be from the front shot of this photo that I have. Is it the white stuff on the cord, where it plugs into the variac, that looked like duct tape to you?

Also, It looks like the speaker out of the middle head on the stack to the right (just below the 50 W's) has the speaker out going to the varicac on the right. But that head is a later 70's style with the plastic type inputs. Not that that matters much but it's also unplugged in the front. But there's two cables laying in front on the floor so?

If that photographer only knew.

[jnew]

Me thinks there is some correlation between this 2nd variac thing, and the way Ralle is doing his attenuation setup. I know he's got the Power Brake which I think has two very large effect resistors externally (because he smoke the originals and killed at Trannie) and then from there, there's yet another step down for when he plays at home. I don't know all his details and I know he's pretty adamant that there is no effect on the tone. As much as I trust his ears and opinion, there's just something going on and could explain that squishy, jangley, hairy, zingy, sparkly, shimmery, (trying to use everyone's term here ) special sauce thingy type shit.

[guitar007]

On a side note....it looks as though Ed's #1 still has the original '68 era choke and tranny set...and EL43s.

[jnew]

On a side note....it looks as though Ed's #1 still has the original '68 era choke and tranny set...and EL43s.

What do you mean?

[guitar007]

I just happened to make this observation. Have a look at Ed's 68 from that early Japan show pic. It *seems* to show the original choke still mounted. Compare it to this photo from the VHII session.


Here, the choke has been replaced. (I haven't really looked too closely at the OT.) So...it seems as though the original choke must have made it onto the VH1 recordings...if it was present in the Japan photos. 'Not sure if this has been discussed or nailed down yet. And...the tubes look like EL34s and not the big bottle 6CA7s. One could make the argument that EL34s were used during the VH1 sessions....seeing how all his tubes in the Japan photos are small bottle EL34 types. 'Just speculating here.

[jnew]

Good point on the tubes. Very hard to see the 78 Japan tour photo's clearly but they very well could be EL 34's. I can clearly see the choke in this VHII pic but not the 78 photo. And the OPT grand isn't really visible in either pic.

[guitar007]

I just eyeballed my 68 from the same angle and the OTs line up. Looking at an amp helps provide clearity to those old fuzzed out photos.

[fivecoyote]

And...the tubes look like EL34s and not the big bottle 6CA7s. One could make the argument that EL34s were used during the VH1 sessions....seeing how all his tubes in the Japan photos are small bottle EL34 types. 'Just speculating here.

Wow you are right!!!! Awesome observation man!