" Is This Amp Worth Fixing? " - Lyle, I've seen enough of your videos to know that ANY project you take on will get the same loving care. I mean finger-cleaning the control panel with WD40 AND cleaning the knobs, who does that ??? This amp sounds great. I hate to see neglected equipment. You'd think that a working musician would at least tighten a nut when it needs tightening. Thank you for taking care of it.
It's incredible that someone used this amp to that condition and STILL are willing to pay to have it for a few more years. They must love that amp. Which tells you something about the amplifier! 😉
I gigged the EL34 version of this amp for about eight years. It needed occasional work but sounded amazing. They are also fairly popular in studios because of the dirt you can get by cranking the clean channel. I oftentimes wondered how popular this amp would be if someone built a point to point or otherwise robust version.
Old ReverbRockets are great sounding amps. I’ve never gone inside or even played one of these newer ones but I took care of a few on a three month RCA album session with The Silos years ago. They had very picky, highly tuned ears for guitar tone.
Hey dude hope you are healing up well. A friend of mine manufactures straws that fit these aerosol cans. And the great thing is the straws come in 45 and 90° angle tips and can also be customized to some degree. They have saved me so much time when it comes to working on PCB mounted pots.
Excellent video Lyle, love following your trace for faults, tech info etc...This amp will entertain for a little while longer thanks to you..Great job.. Hope your arm is feeling better..Ed..uk..😀
Those original reverberockets with 6v6s are about as close as ampeg got to fender in terms of sound, and even then it's still distinctive, and the trem and longpan reverb are to die for...that was my first "real" guitar amp starting out in the mid-90s for $100...before that I played through a karaoke machine lol...ended up trading it for a '71 super bassman which I still have to this day so I guess it was a good deal...I still think about that ampeg though
I LOVE LOVE LOVE this channel. I have a zillion channels on multiple devices and I spend my time watching this. Love it. I have heard a phrase on another guitar channel that I like very much….I will use my two amps in front of me as a reference…my $3,000 Plexi has been built UP to a standard….my $1,000 Studio Series Amp has been built DOWN to a price point.
another great video on an amp i own but mine has 6L6 tubes in it.... don't play it very much these days because it's so damn heavy just like the silver jubilee and TSL with 2-12's .... but those amps sound so good
Had one of those amps; it was a great little amp that sounded terrific. Sold it to a guy that was hounding me for it.....who proceeded to take the advice of some online guru and destroyed the thing with a mismatch of tubes and other components. The guy called me, whining that he was having problems with it. I offered to buy it back from him on the condition that he didn't mess with it, and that I would pay for it to be inspected by my amp tech. Never heard back from him, but my amp tech called me a few days later and told me the guy had brought it in and tried to tell him he'd bought it from me like that. My amp tech threw him out of his shop....
I had one of these (the tremolo version) back in the day and they actually sound pretty nice. But I got rid of every circuit board amp I own except for an 81 JCM800. Not worth the repair headaches.
These are decent-ish amps for what they are. Being worth fixing is totally up to owner. Fixing to resell likely won't be worth it, but if they want to continue to use it, it's likely worth the bill in most cases. More or less similar quality to the lower priced PCB Fenders, but perhaps a bit better sounding, to some.
4:00 If you stop pulling the knobs off, your wrist might get better quicker. 4:16, try using the "knob puller" more often to aid a quick recovery. Jokes aside, another great video. Thanks mate.
The condition of this amp is exactly why I take a little time every 6 months and clean my amp, tighten all screws, knobs etc make sure tubes are seated properly and check the screws on the speakers too
Bought one of these brand new in the late nineties when the first landed. First gen had far less physical protection for tubes. Fast failure got it replaced under warranty with a second revision. Still had the frequent problem with tubes going microphonic in this amp. And after selling it later to a friend who didn’t take any care of amps, it was soon destroyed in so many ways like the one you are repairing. They were cheap. Price and quality. Nothing like a twin.
Pliers with parallel jaws are handly for squeezing the tabs down on those pots; I've got several sizes of miniature Channel-Lock style pliers, one of which is only about 4 inches long. (When I was a kid, the plumbers and mechanics I knew all called them "water-pump pliers").
Great video,with again some tips/advices.It's a shame,to the condition this amp came to you.Like it was played before,only in a barn or so. You're right on the build quality of this amp,the cabinet is much cooler as the amp inside,allthough its sound isn't bad anyway. I presume this amp is a Reverborocket 212 version(which i own also,but in a very good condition also because it's stored in a flightcase). I also owned a Ampeg SJ 12R (the little brother),which had an orange JBL/Fender 12" speaker,which sounded killer in this amp,only the volume was too much,for a livingroom situation.First i was thinking about a mastervolume update in this amp,but because of the PCB board this would become a hassle. So i changed the 2 EL 34 powertubes to a pair of TAD pentode Tone Bones and changed the 2 ECC 83'S to ECC 82(old GE's) and this did the trick.The amp was much more usefull in volume and it sounded even better and cleaner.
Haha ! Love the tape trick for the bulb, ive been doing that for years. Funny ill watch other people try to get the bulbs out and its hard not say anything to them hehe.
What do these Ampegs sound like ? Or based off ? Ive never tried an Ampeg in all my years and im curious. Back in the 90s i saw these every now and then, but its been a long time since ive seen anyone using an Ampeg tube guitar amp onstage.
Got my 212R in 2016, what would the bias mV setting be for these? I have a Tube Doctor Bias Master now, didn’t have one in 2016 when I put new 6L6s in it. Haven’t really used it since so there has been zero wear and tear on the output tubes. Thanks for this video btw!👍🏽
Maybe, maybe not. At least there's a cabinet, chassis and speaker that can be recycled. I'm recycling a fried DSL201 chassis and cab for a 2204/AB763 w/ spring reverb build currently. No channel switching internally, just two inputs. I use a Radial Twin City for things like that. It's not perfect and I have lots of holes to fill in the chassis, but it's cosmetically great.
I was watching you spray the pots out, I made a bent tube for my spay can so it hooks around 180° at the end. It comes in very handy for just that sort of thing.
@@PsionicAudio , At work we've got a small plastic bin full of probably more than 80 various plastic spray tubes, but when you want to find one to fit a specific can of cleaner, solvent or lube there never seems to be one of the exact right size.....😖
I prefer use of a syringe for applying control cleaner, instead of a spray can. Squirt a little bit of cleaner into the cap off of the can or any other small plastic cup, and suck it up into the syringe. I do find that you can't leave most control cleaners in the syringe inbetween usage because most ordinary syringes are not particularly solvent safe and the rubber gaskets tend to swell. If anybody knows of a good source for solvent safe syringes, please share!
Pcb, colorful pot shafts, wire dress and pcb ground methods reminded me of CRATE amps I have worked on. Those pots are no longer available. I pirated pots off another trashed chassis I kept for parts.
I haven't tried using it yet, but I bought some JB Weld CA glue (small s superglue) that is UltraViolet activated (you can find it at Home Dumpo nowadays). It *will* cure on its own in 24 hours, even in deep cracks where the light doesn't penetrate, but it should be useful in situations where you need the parts to hold together on their own immediately until a deeper full cure can take place. The SuperGlue brand has a supposedly similar "ZapFix" glue, but when I tried buying some at the local job lot store, the glue all turned out to be hard as a rock inside the unopened tubes. (It'd be nice if manufacturers put some kind of date code that you could interpret, or at least look up online, on all of their glue packaging). PS, For a non-CA UV-curing glue I really like Rapid Fix, but be advised that it won't cure in deep cracks where light doesn't penetrate; the company claims it won't harden in the bottle on its own for 2 years.
Another great video ty! Point of interest got my attention immediately. You mentioned older amps use lead solder only. I have an early 80's Mesa. When I started doing minor maintenance, I used 60/40 solder. How serious of a mistake was this? 😨 . Your tech info on all of your videos are so useful. Ty!!!
@@PsionicAudio I will never use anything but 60/40, unless they bring out a non-leaded kind that actually works. I tried a little bit of the non-leaded kind, and I just hated it. "I'll take the health risks for 50, Alex."
@@jameshenz1780 If you ever mix lead and lead free, the biggest issue is incompatible flux. I've seen it immediately form weird corrosion. Dunno the longevity of that situation, but it's probably ok and repairable.
@@joellebrodeur1015 I was throwing mine in the back of a van and touring with it (with no case) - so it was probably my fault. But they’re huge knobs and cheap pots so they’re likely break at some point. I ended up making a cardboard/duct tape case for it eventually.
You can see immediately, on the very first reflowed connection, if the solder you're using and the original solder on the board are not going to play well together. An immediate, grainy, frosty, whitish solder connection is the result.
BTW, Never-Dull polishing wadding works well for cleaning chrome-plated amp faceplates without damaging the silkscreening. Does anyone sell repro faceplates (like those for Fenders) to overlay on the control panel of badly rusted vintage Ampegs? I've got a rusty,, crusty original Gemini; got a similarly rusty Gibson RV19 Falcon as well.....
As per, your magic made it fly and, Lyle, your playing is always cool... ...and thanx for yet another great video 😎 BTW, in your opinion do longer plates in preamp tubes (Typically 12AX7's) affect tone and if so how so? (thanx in advance)
Johnny, you're very kind. Thanks. There is a perception among tube peeps that long plates are more prone to microphonics, and that slightly lines up with my experience (though I've encountered plenty of microphonic short plate tubes). I suspect that while the plate length is the most visible difference the actual issue is the grid wires in the tube. I haven't gone down that rabbit hole too much as there are so many variables in how the 12AX7 design spec (behavior in circuit not mechanical design) is achieved and it's hard to keep track of every little factor. And ultimately it's kind of pointless. Is the tube microphonic? Is it noisy? Does it have the gain factor needed? Does it positively or negatively change the sound? Lots of current production tubes of varying plate lengths/structures pass those tests. If a tube sounds better or worse I don't think it's just down to plate length as a sole variable. I know that sidesteps your question. But it's reality. Use what sounds good to you.
@@PsionicAudio No, you answered my question quite utterly and reinforced my theory that nifty looking gear can enable a mad scientist thing in musical creation and playing (and that magic) Thanx matey
Hey there, when you're spraying the Deoxit into the pots, it looks like you're spraying sort of in behind rather than down the shaft itself. Can you explain what you're up to there? I have the same amp and I'm about to attempt to clean it up. Thanks!
How much is an original worth, and not the reissue, I have one and the amp has never been worked on, the reverb is called echo and it does have a foot switch,someone cut the wire to it, but it still works just not optimum,this amp has a voice of it's own and sits well in the mix.
Someone brought me a Gibson GA-15RVT Explorer to be repaired. It was a basket case. Bad OP and bad inter-stage transformer which was previously replaced but bad again. Tubes and tube sockets were junk. Guy was a broke musician and thought I was gonna fix it for charity.
Didnt Ken Fischer (Trainwreck) design or have something to do with the originals? I remember watching an interview shot in his basement where he mentions working at Ampeg and I swear I he said he worked on this amp (not the reissue.) Lyle, I'm curious to hear your thoughts on Mr Fischer and his work (frankly also H. A. Dumble and Bob Gjika if you have anything to say)
@@PsionicAudioMea culpa. Very interesting, especially since apparently he and Ken were pals... I've never seen a gut shot; I'm guessing maybe you saw one of his amps while he was in Memphis in the early 90's. I saw he put out videos with some bizarre opinions on amp building... Almost completely defying the laws of physics at times. More important, you good sir would have a customer if I was in the Memphis area.
It looks like the owner is going for a road warrior faux vintage look, letting filth build up, maybe knocking it around a bit, not realizing how vulnerable board mounted pots are. Jeeeeeze...
I read "somewhere" recently about using machine oil to address questionable tube pin/socket interfaces. I would normally just using contact cleaner -- what are you thoughts about using oil?
Remember that none of these liquids conduct electricity so you want them completely gone after cleaning. Oil would be the worst possible case, clinging to the metal and insulating completely.
You just painted a picture that can probably never be unseen. Personally I wouldn't want to handle, or play, a guitar owned by a guy who would let his amp get into that bad a condition.
I hope you at least quoted the F U price for this work. I would want to kill myself if I had to work on this kind of garbage, it's disgusting. Are your shots up to date? That thing might give you the clap if you're not careful.
Well, its all part of the service, and since its the first thing a customer sees when they return to pick up the amp, that impression is very important. I think Lyle would probably agree with that.
It is exceedingly unlikely that you could catch C-19 from that amp, or any other, as dirty as it is. (I, too, wonder how someone would let it get so so beat up and broken.)
wait? there are still people believing in that Planned - demic?? 🤣 there will be mask wearers forever now...too... if there was such a scary chance you'd get it that easily?? would they be telling you to Order in your Food? have it delivered by taxi drivers??? 🤣 Think?? It was all BS....when you " finally " figure it out? You can go back to Living without FEAR..which is all you would get .... any disease with at 99.* % survival / or chance of serious illness isn't a Pandemic level threat.... they had to test you to tell you your sick ( and the guy who made the test said the test won't work properly as it isn't for that use )... it was all brainwashing and lies ( which are already proven and have been exposed for over 2 years )... but go on being fooled...as your obviously never going to believe Facts and Real Science ( not the Stupid Science they tell you to follow )...🤣
Honestly, nothing wrong with driving reverb with an Op-amp, IMO, provided the circuit has a decent design. I don't really think the driver side adds much to the sound, and the Op-amp is more efficient and, in many cases, more reliable. Solid state isn't always bad.
The '90s Reverberockets are coming to end of life for their electrolytics; otherwise they're a great deal. Just never, under any circumstances, engage that awful "drive" channel.
" Is This Amp Worth Fixing? " - Lyle, I've seen enough of your videos to know that ANY project you take on will get the same loving care. I mean finger-cleaning the control panel with WD40 AND cleaning the knobs, who does that ??? This amp sounds great. I hate to see neglected equipment. You'd think that a working musician would at least tighten a nut when it needs tightening. Thank you for taking care of it.
It's incredible that someone used this amp to that condition and STILL are willing to pay to have it for a few more years. They must love that amp. Which tells you something about the amplifier! 😉
I gigged the EL34 version of this amp for about eight years. It needed occasional work but sounded amazing. They are also fairly popular in studios because of the dirt you can get by cranking the clean channel. I oftentimes wondered how popular this amp would be if someone built a point to point or otherwise robust version.
Are the older 60’s ones similar circuit wise?
@@jazzblasterrrNo, the 60’s ones are completely different. These amps are akin to Ampeg/SLM’s version of a Hot Rod Deluxe or Deville.
Old ReverbRockets are great sounding amps. I’ve never gone inside or even played one of these newer ones but I took care of a few on a three month RCA album session with The Silos years ago. They had very picky, highly tuned ears for guitar tone.
Hey dude hope you are healing up well. A friend of mine manufactures straws that fit these aerosol cans. And the great thing is the straws come in 45 and 90° angle tips and can also be customized to some degree. They have saved me so much time when it comes to working on PCB mounted pots.
That's a good idea. I've always bent mine, and it's not ideal.
Your mission statement , just like your channel and your work are pure class ....thank you and congrats
Excellent video Lyle, love following your trace for faults, tech info etc...This amp will entertain for a little while longer thanks to you..Great job.. Hope your arm is feeling better..Ed..uk..😀
I always learn something new watching your videos. I really apreciate the work you put into them so we all can learn and enjoy. Thanks!!
This amp always worth it 🤩
I have the 50 watt and 100 watt versions in good shape. Great amps.
My ‘61 Reverberocket rescued from the trash is my best sounding recording amp. The reverb and Tremolo can make a whole room pulse.
Those original reverberockets with 6v6s are about as close as ampeg got to fender in terms of sound, and even then it's still distinctive, and the trem and longpan reverb are to die for...that was my first "real" guitar amp starting out in the mid-90s for $100...before that I played through a karaoke machine lol...ended up trading it for a '71 super bassman which I still have to this day so I guess it was a good deal...I still think about that ampeg though
I LOVE LOVE LOVE this channel. I have a zillion channels on multiple devices and I spend my time watching this. Love it. I have heard a phrase on another guitar channel that I like very much….I will use my two amps in front of me as a reference…my $3,000 Plexi has been built UP to a standard….my $1,000 Studio Series Amp has been built DOWN to a price point.
another great video on an amp i own but mine has 6L6 tubes in it.... don't play it very much these days because it's so damn heavy just like the silver jubilee and TSL with 2-12's .... but those amps sound so good
Had one of those amps; it was a great little amp that sounded terrific. Sold it to a guy that was hounding me for it.....who proceeded to take the advice of some online guru and destroyed the thing with a mismatch of tubes and other components. The guy called me, whining that he was having problems with it. I offered to buy it back from him on the condition that he didn't mess with it, and that I would pay for it to be inspected by my amp tech. Never heard back from him, but my amp tech called me a few days later and told me the guy had brought it in and tried to tell him he'd bought it from me like that. My amp tech threw him out of his shop....
I had one of these (the tremolo version) back in the day and they actually sound pretty nice. But I got rid of every circuit board amp I own except for an 81 JCM800. Not worth the repair headaches.
These are decent-ish amps for what they are. Being worth fixing is totally up to owner. Fixing to resell likely won't be worth it, but if they want to continue to use it, it's likely worth the bill in most cases. More or less similar quality to the lower priced PCB Fenders, but perhaps a bit better sounding, to some.
4:00 If you stop pulling the knobs off, your wrist might get better quicker.
4:16, try using the "knob puller" more often to aid a quick recovery.
Jokes aside, another great video. Thanks mate.
"...the knob puller is also a nut tightner"
The condition of this amp is exactly why I take a little time every 6 months and clean my amp, tighten all screws, knobs etc make sure tubes are seated properly and check the screws on the speakers too
Bought one of these brand new in the late nineties when the first landed. First gen had far less physical protection for tubes. Fast failure got it replaced under warranty with a second revision. Still had the frequent problem with tubes going microphonic in this amp. And after selling it later to a friend who didn’t take any care of amps, it was soon destroyed in so many ways like the one you are repairing. They were cheap. Price and quality. Nothing like a twin.
Great drive sound, excellent reverb!
Pliers with parallel jaws are handly for squeezing the tabs down on those pots; I've got several sizes of miniature Channel-Lock style pliers, one of which is only about 4 inches long. (When I was a kid, the plumbers and mechanics I knew all called them "water-pump pliers").
Hey Lyle, greetings from Memphis. I think I have one of those pots from my boneyard if you want it.
Love the sound of that amp!!
Great video,with again some tips/advices.It's a shame,to the condition this amp came to you.Like it was played before,only in a barn or so.
You're right on the build quality of this amp,the cabinet is much cooler as the amp inside,allthough its sound isn't bad anyway.
I presume this amp is a Reverborocket 212 version(which i own also,but in a very good condition also because it's stored in a flightcase).
I also owned a Ampeg SJ 12R (the little brother),which had an orange JBL/Fender 12" speaker,which sounded killer in this amp,only the volume was too much,for a livingroom situation.First i was thinking about a mastervolume update in this amp,but because of the PCB board this would become a hassle.
So i changed the 2 EL 34 powertubes to a pair of TAD pentode Tone Bones and changed the 2 ECC 83'S to ECC 82(old GE's) and this did the trick.The amp was much more usefull in volume and it sounded even better and cleaner.
Haha ! Love the tape trick for the bulb, ive been doing that for years. Funny ill watch other people try to get the bulbs out and its hard not say anything to them hehe.
What do these Ampegs sound like ? Or based off ? Ive never tried an Ampeg in all my years and im curious. Back in the 90s i saw these every now and then, but its been a long time since ive seen anyone using an Ampeg tube guitar amp onstage.
Got my 212R in 2016, what would the bias mV setting be for these? I have a Tube Doctor Bias Master now, didn’t have one in 2016 when I put new 6L6s in it. Haven’t really used it since so there has been zero wear and tear on the output tubes. Thanks for this video btw!👍🏽
Maybe, maybe not. At least there's a cabinet, chassis and speaker that can be recycled.
I'm recycling a fried DSL201 chassis and cab for a 2204/AB763 w/ spring reverb build currently. No channel switching internally, just two inputs. I use a Radial Twin City for things like that.
It's not perfect and I have lots of holes to fill in the chassis, but it's cosmetically great.
I was watching you spray the pots out, I made a bent tube for my spay can so it hooks around 180° at the end. It comes in very handy for just that sort of thing.
Yeah, I've got one. And a right angle one. It's just a pain to swap tubes on the Deoxit. ;)
@@PsionicAudio Well I suppose you could have 3 cans of Deoxit but that gets a bit silly, eh?
@@PsionicAudio , At work we've got a small plastic bin full of probably more than 80 various plastic spray tubes, but when you want to find one to fit a specific can of cleaner, solvent or lube there never seems to be one of the exact right size.....😖
I prefer use of a syringe for applying control cleaner, instead of a spray can. Squirt a little bit of cleaner into the cap off of the can or any other small plastic cup, and suck it up into the syringe. I do find that you can't leave most control cleaners in the syringe inbetween usage because most ordinary syringes are not particularly solvent safe and the rubber gaskets tend to swell. If anybody knows of a good source for solvent safe syringes, please share!
Pcb, colorful pot shafts, wire dress and pcb ground methods reminded me of CRATE amps I have worked on. Those pots are no longer available. I pirated pots off another trashed chassis I kept for parts.
I wrote before the end of the vid, obviously similarity to CRATE I mentioned is for good reason, both being SLM products.
@@richclayton5785 he mentioned that in the vid
That thing sounds sweet. In my experience, you can use mineral oil for that cleaning for a less toxic solution.
agreed, innox is the best product for that
I haven't tried using it yet, but I bought some JB Weld CA glue (small s superglue) that is UltraViolet activated (you can find it at Home Dumpo nowadays). It *will* cure on its own in 24 hours, even in deep cracks where the light doesn't penetrate, but it should be useful in situations where you need the parts to hold together on their own immediately until a deeper full cure can take place. The SuperGlue brand has a supposedly similar "ZapFix" glue, but when I tried buying some at the local job lot store, the glue all turned out to be hard as a rock inside the unopened tubes. (It'd be nice if manufacturers put some kind of date code that you could interpret, or at least look up online, on all of their glue packaging). PS, For a non-CA UV-curing glue I really like Rapid Fix, but be advised that it won't cure in deep cracks where light doesn't penetrate; the company claims it won't harden in the bottle on its own for 2 years.
Another great video ty! Point of interest got my attention immediately. You mentioned older amps use lead solder only. I have an early 80's Mesa. When I started doing minor maintenance, I used 60/40 solder. How serious of a mistake was this? 😨 . Your tech info on all of your videos are so useful. Ty!!!
60/40 is leaded solder. You're good.
I didn't mean 100% lead. I meant instead of the modern lead-free stuff.
Wow. A big ty. I obsess over everything.
@@PsionicAudio I will never use anything but 60/40, unless they bring out a non-leaded kind that actually works. I tried a little bit of the non-leaded kind, and I just hated it. "I'll take the health risks for 50, Alex."
@@jameshenz1780 If you ever mix lead and lead free, the biggest issue is incompatible flux. I've seen it immediately form weird corrosion. Dunno the longevity of that situation, but it's probably ok and repairable.
Had one of these years back. Sounded pretty good, but those knobs would break off if you looked at them the wrong way!
Really? I owned two (still have one of them) and never had that issue.
@@joellebrodeur1015 I was throwing mine in the back of a van and touring with it (with no case) - so it was probably my fault. But they’re huge knobs and cheap pots so they’re likely break at some point. I ended up making a cardboard/duct tape case for it eventually.
Great stuff!
What would you say to someone that don't mind mixing unleaded solder with some leaded, and vice versa?
I'm asking for a friend.
You can see immediately, on the very first reflowed connection, if the solder you're using and the original solder on the board are not going to play well together. An immediate, grainy, frosty, whitish solder connection is the result.
@@goodun2974 Thanks!
Other than the fact that the solder becomes grainy and "frosted", do you think the integrity of the joints become compromised?
@@goodun2974 That's my experience as well. It's incompatible flux. I've had it measure fine, but it's dodgy for longevity.
BTW, Never-Dull polishing wadding works well for cleaning chrome-plated amp faceplates without damaging the silkscreening. Does anyone sell repro faceplates (like those for Fenders) to overlay on the control panel of badly rusted vintage Ampegs? I've got a rusty,, crusty original Gemini; got a similarly rusty Gibson RV19 Falcon as well.....
Never-Dull works well on frets, too.
As per, your magic made it fly and, Lyle, your playing is always cool...
...and thanx for yet another great video 😎
BTW, in your opinion do longer plates in preamp tubes (Typically 12AX7's)
affect tone and if so how so? (thanx in advance)
Johnny, you're very kind. Thanks.
There is a perception among tube peeps that long plates are more prone to microphonics, and that slightly lines up with my experience (though I've encountered plenty of microphonic short plate tubes).
I suspect that while the plate length is the most visible difference the actual issue is the grid wires in the tube.
I haven't gone down that rabbit hole too much as there are so many variables in how the 12AX7 design spec (behavior in circuit not mechanical design) is achieved and it's hard to keep track of every little factor.
And ultimately it's kind of pointless. Is the tube microphonic? Is it noisy? Does it have the gain factor needed? Does it positively or negatively change the sound?
Lots of current production tubes of varying plate lengths/structures pass those tests.
If a tube sounds better or worse I don't think it's just down to plate length as a sole variable.
I know that sidesteps your question. But it's reality. Use what sounds good to you.
@@PsionicAudio No, you answered my question quite utterly and reinforced my theory that nifty looking gear can enable a mad scientist thing in musical creation and playing (and that magic) Thanx matey
Hey there, when you're spraying the Deoxit into the pots, it looks like you're spraying sort of in behind rather than down the shaft itself. Can you explain what you're up to there? I have the same amp and I'm about to attempt to clean it up. Thanks!
How much is an original worth, and not the reissue, I have one and the amp has never been worked on, the reverb is called echo and it does have a foot switch,someone cut the wire to it, but it still works just not optimum,this amp has a voice of it's own and sits well in the mix.
So, no doubt the wrist strain was from previous stressful battles with grunge (?)
My experience with these amps are…muddy rhythm but a singing fat lead tone
Muddy? The R12R reissue is my primary amp. Nothing muddy about it when it's EQ'd just right. It's got a clean, warm tone.
@@joellebrodeur1015 I only ever played the old ones….I did like it
@@jasonlee8497 I haven't seen good vintage ones locally to try. I am aware vintage and reissue versions are wholly different in tone.
Someone brought me a Gibson GA-15RVT Explorer to be repaired. It was a basket case. Bad OP and bad inter-stage transformer which was previously replaced but bad again. Tubes and tube sockets were junk. Guy was a broke musician and thought I was gonna fix it for charity.
Oh no!!! You undid all his valuable relicing.😉😉😂
Didnt Ken Fischer (Trainwreck) design or have something to do with the originals? I remember watching an interview shot in his basement where he mentions working at Ampeg and I swear I he said he worked on this amp (not the reissue.) Lyle, I'm curious to hear your thoughts on Mr Fischer and his work (frankly also H. A. Dumble and Bob Gjika if you have anything to say)
Fischer and Dumble did great work.
Don’t mention Gjika in their company. Unsafe hack.
@@PsionicAudioMea culpa. Very interesting, especially since apparently he and Ken were pals... I've never seen a gut shot; I'm guessing maybe you saw one of his amps while he was in Memphis in the early 90's. I saw he put out videos with some bizarre opinions on amp building... Almost completely defying the laws of physics at times.
More important, you good sir would have a customer if I was in the Memphis area.
@ 31 seconds into the vid... I'll take it (!) 😛
It looks like the owner is going for a road warrior faux vintage look, letting filth build up, maybe knocking it around a bit, not realizing how vulnerable board mounted pots are.
Jeeeeeze...
I notice you didn't comment on the speakers. Were they stock Ampeg speakers? Those are kinda crappy. Would it be worth upgrading?
Yes. I had Eminence Wizards in my Ampeg R212-R. Switched out later for a Celestion G12H-30 & a Ruby Alnico.
I read "somewhere" recently about using machine oil to address questionable tube pin/socket interfaces. I would normally just using contact cleaner -- what are you thoughts about using oil?
That is a terrible awful no good very bad idea.
Contact cleaner shouldn't even be used in sockets unless you then flush it out with isopropyl alcohol.
@@PsionicAudio Thank you. It sounded dodgy to me...
Remember that none of these liquids conduct electricity so you want them completely gone after cleaning. Oil would be the worst possible case, clinging to the metal and insulating completely.
What would this repair cost?
build quality is rough, pcb mounted power valves never a good sign.
GET AN AMP COVER PEOPLE! NOT HARD>
I know. Even covering it with a small furniture moving pad helps.
I don't understand how players let their equipment get in this bad of shape...
It makes me wonder if they can even competently wipe their own a$$...
The old "Counter culture" BS at its finest, across interests there's a segment of society that finds it "cool" to be dirty, it's part of their "art"
You just painted a picture that can probably never be unseen. Personally I wouldn't want to handle, or play, a guitar owned by a guy who would let his amp get into that bad a condition.
Some are simply unaware of the amazing power of a damp cloth!
I hope you at least quoted the F U price for this work. I would want to kill myself if I had to work on this kind of garbage, it's disgusting. Are your shots up to date? That thing might give you the clap if you're not careful.
Eh, I wouldn't spent 5¢ on that amp, nothing classic about it. To each thier own.
You shouldn’t have to clean the exterior of any amp. I’d make anyone clean their crappy amp up before I’d touch it, especially post-Covid.
It's hard to train pigs to clean up their own sty..! 😂😂
Well, its all part of the service, and since its the first thing a customer sees when they return to pick up the amp, that impression is very important.
I think Lyle would probably agree with that.
It is exceedingly unlikely that you could catch C-19 from that amp, or any other, as dirty as it is. (I, too, wonder how someone would let it get so so beat up and broken.)
wait? there are still people believing in that Planned - demic?? 🤣
there will be mask wearers forever now...too... if there was such a scary chance you'd get it that easily?? would they be telling you to Order in your Food? have it delivered by taxi drivers??? 🤣 Think?? It was all BS....when you " finally " figure it out? You can go back to Living without FEAR..which is all you would get .... any disease with at 99.* % survival / or chance of serious illness isn't a Pandemic level threat.... they had to test you to tell you your sick ( and the guy who made the test said the test won't work properly as it isn't for that use )... it was all brainwashing and lies ( which are already proven and have been exposed for over 2 years )... but go on being fooled...as your obviously never going to believe Facts and Real Science ( not the Stupid Science they tell you to follow )...🤣
But it's more sensible with the knobs off, and you're making money for it.
They drive the reverb tank with an *op-amp*? Shame on them. Obviously these are Reverb-o-rockets in name only....
Honestly, nothing wrong with driving reverb with an Op-amp, IMO, provided the circuit has a decent design. I don't really think the driver side adds much to the sound, and the Op-amp is more efficient and, in many cases, more reliable. Solid state isn't always bad.
@@JD0x0 I agree. But I bet it's easier to get oscillation with those higher frequencies. I suppose more careful component replacements are in order.
The '90s Reverberockets are coming to end of life for their electrolytics; otherwise they're a great deal.
Just never, under any circumstances, engage that awful "drive" channel.