You Vote: BOG EL34 vs. 6550

[Billy Batz]

yeah the speakers arent the greatest, but being that theyre 75 watters I'm assuming theyre only helping keep the amp cleaner than a lower wattage speaker. In which case there'd be even more gain.

I dont think high wattage speakers sound less distorted as much as they just feel cleaner. Especially the low end. Going back and forth between my H30-55hz cab and my buddies 300W marshall cab it mainly feels different. Its not like the 300W cab sounds like you turned the gain knob down. Follow me?

I cant understate how important the guitar and pickups are in getting that cleanness as well. Any stock pickups in a Fender are not nearly going to be as clean and clear as the pickups youd find in a late 60s fender. None that Ive played anyway. And to me thats a big part of the rubberyness you hate. If I follow you right anyway. Also you took out your brite cap. I know it sounds horrible below 7ish but with my rigg its only slightly hotter then your recording on 10 so backing off that volume with the brite cap cleans up the fuzziness.

[Tone-Freak]

I was listining to BOG last night and it is not as clean as the sound clips I have heard its a little more distorted.

[Roe]

have anyone tried mixing el34s and 6550s - using one pair of each?

[basile865]

Who Knows is definitely a cleaner smoother gain than that buzzy thing I had going on. Mine is crunchy and his gain is much tighter and smooth. Its like comparing a distortion pedal to a tube screamer in a sense.

Granted, some songs are really distorted, like power of soul, but he was using the fuzz face.

[shakti]

Here ya go

SW1 - Split/Share - the bright channel coupler is always on 22n because I like it like that
SW2 - 5000/none/500 brite cap
SW3 - .68/none/330u V2 Ck
SW4 - 33k/500p vs 56k/250p stack
SW5 - .022/.1 output couplers

I used to have a pot that changed the NFB resistor value from 10k to 110k. Its gone.

Dan,

that's very cool! Do you have a photo of the inside, showing the arrangements of the switched components? I had an idea to do this sort of amp several years ago, but never got around to building one (let alone being able to work out a decent layout for all those switches...). I thought about using push/pull switching pots on the front, but switches on the back is probably just as good. What you've got there is basically a Marshall Plexi Machine - virtually all the different '68-'69 variations available at the flick of a few switches! Way to go!

[shakti]

Oh, and do you get any problems with extra noise due to the layout and switches?

[Billy Batz]

No not really. I dont have any crazy extra amount of wire. It literally is a strait shot fromt he boards to the switches. No noiser then my other amps. Maybe a very small pop on some of the switches when you flick em. Doesnt bother me. I dont have any other photos. Its the same amp Ive been talking about here since I joined. The others in my signature where built after I was a member here. It kinda sat for a long time after I built my 67 then started the 45/100 but I rediscovered it after I got tired of the 67 for 2 strait years. New panels and the purple headcab I used to have the 67 in and a new life. It really does sound as good as the others. Just different. The switches are fun but I do tend to go all lead or all bass. Just liek I used to have the NFB dial but I just left it about where a stock 47k/8ohm setup would be so I took it out.

The filtering is low. I think 50/16/16/16/16. Dont remember exactly. There are times I wish I could up it to stock 69 but just like the 6550s I dont like it with my LP. Maybe Ill build the 69 kit one of these days. I have way too many amps now.

The switches are all done in a way that theyre easy to add. But I dont want to hijackl the thread about that.

[basile865]

feel free dan, I think we've laid the 6550 thing to rest.

Two points I'd like to make in support of the EL34 suprisingly,

1.) My pickups def. have more output than my friends 69's

2.) I have the stock marshall EL34's. I read that some EL34's have more headroom, and I'm sure have a better sound quality.

[Tone-Freak]

one thing to consider is when you chain amps together as they go down the chain the signal changes and the amps don't sound the same. The middle amp in the chain is the one with the mics on it so it could be EL34's but a weaker signal going to it making less distortion

[Billy Batz]

Thats something Ive brought up more than a few times. Especially about getting a cleaner signal. When you couple the input resisotrs together on 2 or more sets of inputs you keep lessening the strength of the input signal and you attenuate the high end as well. End result. Each amp you chain to lowers the gain and warms up the sound. Not by leaps and bounds but by a significnt amount. You can get similar results by jumping the left channel lo input to the right channel high input and then just keep the volume of the right channel on 0. I do that. But I have another amp stacked above and below that amp so I can keep going too.

Another simple but overlooked thing. Lower your pickup height. Half the strats in GC have the pickups really high. I dont know why. Theyre hot already. I have Callaham Fralin H/SRVs and I still set them .25" or less. If you ask me thats the sole reason why some shows sound dirtier than others. You look at the woodstock poster of Jimi holdng the strat up to his head and the pickups are almost flush at the neck. Other pictures of other guitars theyre higher. Ive searched all over for a good shot of the black strat and I never found that decent one again but their set low but not as low as the white woodtsock strat.

Thats makes a huge difference in how hot the sound is.

[Billy Batz]

Here's the one
http://imagecache2.allposters.com/image ... osters.jpg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

You cant see so well there but I have that poster so I can see them clearly.

[basile865]

Lucky me Sam Ash had a Blues Breaker, JTM45, 1959SLP today to mess on.

The Blues Breaker wasn't as good as a white 97 we used to have in the store that I LOVED. JTM45 was sounding really good, I would've cranked it more but the guys that work there are kinda douches and I didnt want to hear from them.

The 1959slp's normal channel sounded more muffled than mine does. I always blend the channels. If my normals on 5 then the bright is on about 2ish.

I was trying to get a feel for different speakers today but didn't really get good comparisons. I played through I think a 1960 vintage or also a 1960B Lead.

I can't decide on the best cabinet and speakers. I actually read a review that didnt like scumbacks in comparison to the celestion G12H. They said the scumbacks sounded great, but at loud volumes they got mushy and muffy, less focus than the celestions. At lower volumes the celestions were brighter but the scumbacks sounded like they had a blanket over them according to this guy.

I dont know how comfortable I am buying some aftermarket cab.

If you guys had to buy a new marshall cab for your plexi, knowing my sound, which would be best?

The options are:
1960AHW: $1200, salt n pepper grill cloth, 30W Celestion G12H, METAL handles, which I really like - my plastic ones buzz so much Ive got a ball of socks jammed in to stop it. Hell even the marshall logo on the plexi head buzz's!

1960AV: $950, standard black grill cloth, 70W Celestion Vintage 30's, Plastic Handles

1960AX $1100, LC checkered grill cloth, 25W Celestion Greenback G12M's, Plastic Handles

1960TV$1100, Pinstripe grill cloth, 25W Celestrion Greenback G12M's, Plastic Handles, 3 inches Taller than the other cabs.

[908ssp]

http://www.vintageheadbox.com/main.html

Get a better cab.

[Billy Batz]

+1. Speakers can be a choice thing but one thing is clear. Theres a lot of reasons to go with a quality aftermarket cabinet. I know of no pro's for going with a mass produced cab.

As far as the review you read. If you want to put more weight behind that one review because its in a magazine thats your decision. Im one person with one opinion but people here change out speakers for breakfast and again at lunch and theres a million speaker reviews here. But theyre not in a magazine. I dont know the particulars but I could give you a handful of reasons why that review you described would make me want to go with scumbacks.

[basile865]

Why assume it was a magazine? It was just a normal dude who owned both and wrote a review. It was on harmony central.

The only reason I thought that viewpoint could hold some water was because a good amount of people on here play high gain at low-medium volume. I cant find anyone on here who plays clean/low gain, and loud enough to have speakers fart out. Seems to me a good majority on this forum use a master volume or attenuation and are into EVH.

I can see your points for the aftermarket cab though. My marshall is buzzy as hell when I play loud. I'd probably consider weber though. I mean I cant imagine a non broken in weber sounding worse than my 75's.

Im a bit weary to buy from these ultra small companies. VintageHeadbox is built in the guy's garage and the website is cheap looking, and theres 4 testimonials. I don't mean any offense to him, but this is something that crosses a consumer's mind before dropping 4-500 dollars. It doesn't look professional. Again no offense, I'm sure the owner of the business is a member on this forum. But let's be real, that money isn't chump change and you need to feel safe when buying something like that and having it shipped from Michigan. I've bought from websites that guarantee great quality and vintage specs and really wasn't at all pleased for the money I spent. (Musikraft).

Everybody out there makes the "best"