Amp advice, please!!!

mayhem · Post by **mayhem** » Thu May 29, 2003 5:14 am

I just bought a brand new Ric 620 and I love it! Until now I've always been an acoustic guy, so the amp I have is a Fender Acoustasonic Junior, I LOVE the tone I get (with the Ricky) but the 2X8 cabinet just doesn't give me the presence I need. For now I'm going to try frankensteining a 2X12 cab with it and see if that works, but if it doesn't I'll need to shop for a new amp. Tone is EVERYTHING to me, since I have a good 2X12 cab, what head(s) would you suggest I look at (under $800.00US). The tone I'm going for is singing/harmonic sound, clean when played normally, but with good crunch when you hit the strings harder. Mid-Tones are my playground, so no tinny stuff, no metal stuff. Thanks in advance for your help! Feedback from other Ricky players welcome, please share your opinions of specific amps with Ricky guitars.

sir_andrew_of_left_coast · Thu May 29, 2003 8:06 am

Which make/model speakers are in your 2x12 cab?

mayhem · Post by **mayhem** » Thu May 29, 2003 8:29 am

I've got Peavy 5150 Sheffields in my 2X12.

toneman · Post by **toneman** » Fri May 30, 2003 6:18 am

If I were you and with that budget, try to find a late sixties or early seventies Fender head that's not a big seller like say a Bandmaster Reverb. Those can usually be found for relatively way less than a blackface era Fender. You can spend a couple hundred getting the filter caps replaced and having the circuit converted to "blackface specs" and have a decent, point to point wired amp with plenty of warmth and tone. All you'd have to do for years would be replace the tubes when they get worn.

mayhem · Post by **mayhem** » Sat May 31, 2003 8:53 am

Ok, great, cool, thanks!

Now I'm going to try something drastic, let me know if I'm an idiot for trying this. I took apart my Fender Acosutasonic Junior 40watt amp, installed all of its components into my 2x12 cab (the control panel lined up nicely along the top, like a Crate amp) and it works pretty good, gives me more presence and low tones, but not quite as nice mids and highs as the 2x8s in the original amp. So... I'm going to build a cab, install both 12s and both 8s, the Acoustasonic Junior amp, reverb box and tweeter. From here I've got two options and I don't know how to proceed. One, I can just wire the all four 16 ohm speakers to the amps 2 channels, but I think I'll lose signal. Two, I've got an 85watt RMS amplifier out of a medical ultrasond machine. This amp is supposed to not alter tone. It has two 1/4" inputs and two 1/4" outputs, its supposed to be used with 8 ohms resistance on each channel. So if I go from the Fender amp outputs to the ultrasound amp inputs, then from the ultrasound amps outputs to the four speakers (two 16 ohm speakers per output) I'm hoping I'll get more volume without messing up the tone of my Fender.

Did you follow that?

Think it'll work?

doctorwho · Post by **doctorwho** » Mon Jun 02, 2003 3:04 pm

Alex, I think Don is right-on with a silverface Bandmaster Reverb. However, if you need more power, try a late-1960s or early-1970s silverface Dual Showman Reverb; it's nearly identical sonicly to a Twin Reverb of that era.

shamustwin · Post by **shamustwin** » Mon Jun 02, 2003 5:18 pm

I usually play my Fender 2x10 or 4x10 combo with a 2x12 or 4x12 cab, for the highs and lows. Sometimes bypass the 10's entirely. IMO the 10's by themselves are painfully trebly, and this is using a guitar that's not as inherently trebly as a ric. But Fender amps are a clean, natural way to go, and I would imagine a good match for a ric.

mayhem · Post by **mayhem** » Tue Jun 03, 2003 8:40 am

One of the local used gear stores has got two vintage Bandmasters, neither with reverb. They're asking $699.00 for one and $799.00 for the other.
Prices in Canadian, so for you guys south of the border thats about $499 and $570. Both of these are silverface.

Another place has two more, with more info. 1966 Bandmaster Reverb with 2x12 cab for $1199 ($856US)
and a 1964 Bandmaster, no reverb for $600 ($428US). Both of these are blackface.

Think they're worth checking out?

360dave · Post by **360dave** » Tue Jun 03, 2003 9:14 am

You should hear my 60' brown Bandmaster....yumm

mayhem · Post by **mayhem** » Wed Jun 04, 2003 3:19 pm

sooo.... does that mean yes, they are worth checking out?

toneman · Post by **toneman** » Thu Jun 05, 2003 6:31 am

Alex; Yes, I think it would be good. Reverb I can take or leave but both are good prices! Pricews down here in L.A. are outa sight. Way too much. My little brown Deluxe I bought a year ago they were asking $1250. for. I got it for $600. because they're friends of mine(Vintage Dept. @ G.C. Hollywood). the same amp now is going for $1,650. A Deluxe Reverb is $1,900.
Too rich for my blood for a Fender....
Good luck. When in doubt, try to bargain with them. Haggle is the key word..LOL!

mayhem · Post by **mayhem** » Thu Jun 05, 2003 7:18 am

Thanks Don, I will check them out!

Sounds like you guys should be calling around in Canada to buy your vintage gear.

And haggling is what I'm all about, I'm a salesman, its what I do all day, every day!