Day 5 - V40 Deluxe & Guitar: no effects

Day away from amplifiers yesterday to recover from the day in the studio. However...

Time to just let the amp do some work. No assistance from pedals.



First part of the test is with a Musicman Reflex. 

Voice 1 is a lovely full home tone, it picks up nicely with the mid kick and breaks up well with the Volume at 12. As per earlier posts it is definitely cleaner for longer than the original V40.

Switching from Low to High will be where those that have been asking for a more Silverface or Blackface sound will want to spend their time.In High mode at home, I am loving Voice 1 with the mid kick off. It reminds me of an old Twin that a friend of mine used to own.

As the Volume does more work I have to reduce the amount of reverb to make sure it doesn't over power and playing with the reverb tone is very satisfying. Although I am wondering if even more reverb could be made available to really satisfy those looking for that particular sound. Many amps with valve powered spring reverbs that I have played with in the past dare not go past the 12 o'clock position as you get lost in a wash of springy reverb mush whereas there are some surfy tones to be found in those positions on this Deluxe.

For me, the Tremolo is pretty much perfect - I like the range on both the speed and the depth. The depth goes from off to very choppy but is still usable. The speed from a usable pulse to a usable fast pulse. Hmmm, there is a usable theme there.

The conclusion for the 'new' functions is that both the reverb and tremolo are usable across the range but there are no huge extremes here. For people looking for less traditional and more whacky sounds you will still need to venture into the realms of pedals, but for those looking for usable, everyday, vintage yet modern versions then the on-board reverb and tremolo are both a joy to use.

Before I move on its worth noting that Voice 1, with the Master at 9 o'clock, the volume at 10 o'clock and the Power Low, you can get a very nice full tone at bedroom volumes which really surprised me.

On a previous post I noted that there is 'fizz' at some of the extreme gain tones with certain guitars/pedals and I wonder if what I am hearing is the 6L6s. The V40 head I normally use runs with EL34s and I have a sneaky feeling that the difference that my ears are calling fizzy is in fact the different sound of the 6L6s.. Certainly with Voice 2 and the Volume wound all the way up I personally don't find the tone as useful as I do on the V40 head. 

I have now switched to my Gordon Smith GS2. This is a modern Gordon Smith made in Northaamptonshire and I have a real soft spot for the custom wound medium output humbuckers in this guitar.
More info from Gordon Smith is available on their website.

Voice 1 High Power. Again I found myself reminded of that old Twin... neck pickup, a little more reverb and a dash of tremolo and I am in my happy place. Pop in the Mid Kick and all that lovely presence comes rushing out again.

Voice 2 with the lower output humbuckers and I am finding a nice break up way up around 2 o'clock, much higher than I am used to.Bridge pickup and now I'm into spikey post-punk territory. Time for some Vapors! The break up has that different feel to it again so I'm going back to my happy place in Voice 1. Happy accident - I forgot to turn the Volume down and now the break up is warm and lush and full. 

So all of that finds me in a really happy place = Voice 1. Volume around 1 o'clock, High Power, Tremolo depth and speed quite high, a darker reverb tone and reverb almost half way.

My favourite tuner is delayed returning by a day so I won't be putting the board together tomorrow after all. Maybe a half way step tomorrow then. And perhaps single coils.

See you later- I'm off for some fun in my happy place.


Simon is a guitarist in Salisbury Classic Rock covers band Break Cover.
Break Cover website
Break Cover Facebook

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