NAD - Bugera V5 Infinium

[C-ville Brent]

My new Bugera V5 Infinium arrived today (Sweetwater: ordered Monday evening on my porch Wednesday around noon) and thought I'd share. I've
been mostly an acoustic player (like > 95%+), but started out with an Electra about 40 years ago and still enjoy noodling on them at home. I didn't really need another amp, but... you know.

I got off early from work, brought it in the house and over the next several hours unboxed and unwrapped it. It has an attractive vintage appearance and is touted as having vintage tone. The V5 is a basic, 5 watt amp with a single 12AX7 preamp and one EL84 power amp tube - volume, tone, gain, and reverb. The construction seems solid - no flaws in grill cloth or tolex. Knobs and handle feel substantial.

I turned it on and let it warm up a while. I've only played a Fender Player Telecaster through it and so far I'm very pleased - various gain and volume settings. The cleans with reverb (digital of course) up (noon) was very clear, musical, and had some depth. The higher gain settings provided a nice, "vintagey" overdrive without a lot of apparent compression or sustain. Many reviews I read and saw/heard described it as being a dark sounding amp, but mine didn't sound that way to me with tone control at noon - I haven't played it with humbuckers yet. It has lower power settings, but I just had it on the 5 watt. Turns out I have a snow day tomorrow so will experiment a little more.

I still own and play several lower watt tube amp heads - Orange Micro Dark (hybrid), Bugera G20, Randall RD5H Diavlo, and Marshall Origin 20. I have some SS combos, but for me the feel and tone of low watt tube amps is very appealing. The V5 is one of the least expensive tube combo amps I've found. Bugera seems to have a reputation of poor quality for some folks, but I've had my G20 for 3 years and no problems (it hasn't been used to play out so really can't speak to how it would fare in that scenario). If you read reviews on guitars, amps, cars, or just about anything else, there will be a number of folks who got a lemon or just aren't happy with the product.

I'm a bit of a tinkerer and have a Celestion Eight 15, several different 12AX7s, and a pair of Genalex GL EL84s for the V5, but so far I like the sound enough that I'm not in a rush to make the changes.

[dnf777]

Nice! Those low-watt amps are really nice. I like the way you can drive them at reasonable volume. Enjoy!

[ChrisN]

I've had mine a couple of years now and like it fine. It's a little dark sounding played clean with humbuckers. I've played around with different preamp tubes (12AY7, 12AT7), and, though it could be the placebo effect, I thought the HBs sounded livelier with either those, compared to the 12AX7.

I tried to get a fuller 8" sound just to see if I could, and I believe I went with a Jensen 4 ohm, but sent it back when I found it didn't seem to sound any different. I had a spare 8" 8 ohm Vox Bulldog speaker (used in their S/S Pathfinder 15R amp, which I also have/like), so I put that into the 4 ohm Bugera and, again recognizing the placebo factor, I like the Bulldog for what seems like a bigger/fuller sound and it remains in place. Could all be my imagination, but I'm having fun.

I also tried the Bugera V5 with a Bugera 8 ohm 12" speaker/cab, which effectively cut the power output by half, to 2.5 watts. Played clean, it just sounded like a louder version of the smaller speaker, no tonal difference, so I sold off the cab/speaker.

I really like it best with single coils and some of that very usable reverb. Have fun with it. I don't see mine going anywhere.

[fwphoto]

Got mine earlier this year to go with an Epiphone es339. (Humbuckers)

I've been strictly an acoustic guitar guy for 50+ years but the band I was playing with lost its electric player so I decided it was time to try it.

I didn't want to spend a lot right away so the Bugera V5 represented a good price point. I got a Bugera AC60 a while back because I was getting tired hauling my Genz-Benz Shenandoah 85 around. I'm really happy with it so the V5 seemed like a good choice. It's heavier than the AC60 but considerably lighter than the other tube amps I was looking at. I will mic it to the board anyway so I didn't really need more power.

It sounded pretty good right out of the box but after reading a bunch of reviews decided to swap out the OEM speaker with an Eminence Patriot. Made an very audible difference that I thought was well worth it! At some point I'll do some tube swapping especially because with only 2 tubes, it'll be cheap & easy to do.

I'm very happy with it. I've had a number of electric players with legendary, vintage tube amps tell me they like my sound. I think its been a great amp to learn on. Might spring for a "better" amp later on, but for now it seems to "punch well above its weight" &, IMO, represents a good, bang-for-the-buck tube amp.

Frank

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by fwphoto

...It sounded pretty good right out of the box but after reading a bunch of reviews decided to swap out the OEM speaker with an Eminence Patriot. Made a very audible difference that I thought was well worth it! At some point I'll do some tube swapping especially because with only 2 tubes, it'll be cheap & easy to do.

I'm very happy with it. I've had a number of electric players with legendary, vintage tube amps tell me they like my sound...

I also did the swap for an Eminence Patriot 820H speaker in mine, and paired it up with a set of these:

https://www.thetubestore.com/bugera-v5-premium-package

Did a similar upgrade on my first-generation "blue-light" V22 combo (Eminence Swamp Thang, same tubes, mild rebias - FYI the Infinium amps are self-biasing) and I get the same reaction (along with some understandable consternation) from the local pickers - the Bugera V-Series is an unbeatable bargain, and they've long since shaken off the initial production gremlins that gave them a bad reputation in the early-2K's...

[fwphoto]

I just added a Mullard 12ax7 to my TC Electronic UniTune tuner order from Sweetwater. Can't wait to roll it into the V5. I'm about ready to re-tube an old Dynaco preamp I have & will get a quad of matched & balanced Mullard 12ax7 tubes for it, possibly from the Tube Depot. When I do, I'm going to get a Genelex Gold Lion EL84 for the V5, too. They don't seem to stock the Genelex at thetubestore.com.

Once the tubes are swapped out I'm pretty much done with mods for the V5. All, including the amp, for under $300! :-)

Frank

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by fwphoto

I just added a Mullard 12ax7 to my TC Electronic UniTune tuner order from Sweetwater. Can't wait to roll it into the V5...I'm going to get a Genelex Gold Lion EL84 for the V5, too. They don't seem to stock the Genelex at thetubestore.com...

Strongly recommend the Preferred Series 7189 from tubestore.com, Soviet-era mil-surplus stuff (think Russian JAN equivalent) and as bulletproof as the name implies - been using them in both my Bugeras for the last ten years...

[fwphoto]

Thanks Steve!

Those Pref. Series 7189 tubes certainly get good reviews. Think I'll give 'em a try.

Frank

[phcorrigan]

I have a V22 Infinium that I'm very happy with. I did swap the stock tubes for JJs, however.

[C-ville Brent]

You folks have provided lots of good information. There is information on V5 mods, but due to my technical limitations, mine will be restricted to tube/speaker experiments. I'll have some time off over the holidays and hope to try a few. I'm glad the EH 12ax7 swap worked out. I've got a few current production tubes, and including the EH so that seems like a good place to start.

I had a chance to play with the V5 yesterday. I used a CabLink to run it through 2 8-ohm 1x12 cabs at 4-ohm (Celestion Greenback and V-Type). Also played a HB guitar (Jackson JS11 w/ DiMarzio Distortion (b) and Air Norton (n) through both stock speaker and the 1x12 cabs.

It sounded fuller, brighter, and more open with the 2 larger cabs as would be expected. The extra output of the humbuckers over the single coil Tele resulted in a gainier tone at various points on the gain knob, again, as would be expected.

My initial takeaways with these experiences are the humbuckers worked out well for most of the range. At the upper end of the gain range, the tone seemed to darken and get a little boomy. This seemed true with both the stock speaker and the external cabs. The Player Telecaster (MIM) seems to be working better with this amp right now.

I'm going to try a couple pedals today if I get the time: Behringer EQ, OCD-Ge, and TS5 (Ibanez Soundtank - don't laugh now).

I'm assuming the gain is greatly influenced by the preamp tube. I don't have any NOS, but do have new production JJ, EH, Tung Sol, and Mullard. For power tubes, I have a pair of Genalex Gold Lion and JJ EL84s. I also have a Celestion Eight 15 standing by.

I would really like to hear of any further experiences any of you have with tube or speaker swaps, and I'll try to share experiences I have as well. I agree that this is a very nice little tube combo, especially for the price. I'm trying to enhance its potential without risking severe shock or damaging the amp.

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by C-ville Brent

...I had a chance to play with the V5 yesterday...played a HB guitar (Jackson JS11 w/ DiMarzio Distortion (b) and Air Norton (n) through both stock speaker and the 1x12 cabs.

It sounded fuller, brighter, and more open with the 2 larger cabs as would be expected. The extra output of the humbuckers over the single coil Tele resulted in a gainier tone at various points on the gain knob, again as would be expected.

My initial takeaways with these experiences are the humbuckers worked out well for most of the range. At the upper end of the gain range, the tone seemed to darken and get a little boomy...

I'm assuming the gain is greatly influenced by the preamp tube. I don't have any NOS, but do have new production JJ, EH, Tung Sol, and Mullard. For power tubes, I have a pair of Genalex Gold Lion and JJ EL84s. I also have a Celestion Eight 15 standing by.

I would really like to hear of any further experiences any of you have with tube or speaker swaps....

I've already covered my own mods above (none of which involved getting into the circuit board) so I'll address your comments in light of my own playing experiences...

As with any amp, speaker choice - brand, size, cone material/geometry/mounting, magnet/voice coil size and construction, frame (cast/stamped), efficiency, power handling - has an influence on tone and, as you've discovered, the relationship is often highly symbiotic; while the Celestion might provide an early AC4-type tonality in the V5, other than a couple recent Vox amps I've played (AC10 and AC30S1, both of which share the same preamp topology) I personally haven't had much luck with British-voiced speakers for my style/technique - and although YMMV, my suggestion is to continue experimenting until you find your signature sound...

Getting a little out of sequence here, based on my experience with Bugera V-Series amps the preamp tubes not only have an influence on the initial gain but the power stage as well, in terms of how hard you're hitting the output tubes; although my go-to set for the V22 is Preferred Series 12AX7's (matched triodes across the board) in all three positions, I keep a Mesa SP-AX7 around for more rock-oriented stuff - V2 position if I want to get my Carlos on, and V3 if I want more power-tube saturation. Although the selection of preamp tubes you list will definitely provide different gain factors, many players are unaware that they provide different tonal emphases/responses as well - something many professional players use to fine-tune their tone - and a simple single-ended circuit like the V5 will allow you to hear these differences more readily; before you do any tube-swapping, however, I'd settle on a single speaker option - the more variables you eliminate, the more prominent the aforementioned differences become. Same goes for the power tubes, although IME when you're dealing with a low-wattage amp it's more a matter of how much (and how early) breakup or headroom you want in your tone - again, when you're looking to refine your combination focus on one variable at a time...

Finally, I - along with many V5 owners - can vouch for the fact that these little tone monsters can get a bit dark-sounding with humbuckers; keep in mind that when these circuits were first developed in the early days of the electric guitar, jazz was the music of the time and single-coils were your sole pickup option - and, as you've undoubtedly discovered, playing a period-style single-coil plank (bear in mind the Tele was in production under the Broadcaster name by 1950, and in development possibly as early as 1948) offers a fairly broad range of tone color for a single-knob circuit. Again drawing on personal experience, I get some excellent rock tones from my P-90 Les Paul goldtop - in fact, my last band played a Woodstock tribute show in 2019 where I used the LP/V5 combination straight-up, guitar-cable-amp with the Mesa preamp tube and no stompboxes - and while it's far from me to tell anyone how to spend their money , IME something with either "big" single coils (P-90, Guild "Franz," Jazzmaster, etc.) or mini-humbuckers (Firebird/Johnny Smith, Epiphone Riviera, Gretsch/TV Jones'Trons, Guild LB-1, Taylor Solidbody, etc.) makes a fine combination that'll take you from mellow jazz to country to a nice medium-brown grind and crunch with the twist of a dial or two...

As most old-time tube amp guys know, half the fun (and all the tone) is in the tweaking - good luck, and enjoy...

[C-ville Brent]

Hi Steve, thank you very much for all the information. The 820H seems to be a speaker that works well with the v5. I have an Eight 15 in an old Fender Frontline so was familiar with it for good or ill. I read the descriptions and some reviews on thetubestore's premium package with the two preferred tubes you noted - they do seem to be a step up from what is generally available through the outlets I've purchased from and the price doesn't seem prohibitive. I've been tempted to do the speaker swap while rolling the first set of tubes, but you are right to focus on one parameter at a time. Electric guitar has been strictly a hobby for the last 40 years. I used to play out about every week, acoustic and sing, but really haven't done that for the past dozen years - kind of began feeling like another job sometimes. It was quite small time - just small local bars and a few local events.

I did get a chance to play some this morning as the snow and cold provided me with an unexpected day off. The TS5 Tubescreamer did what it does. I actually liked the OCD-Ge a little better with the V5 although I prefer the TS5 with my Marshall Origin20H. I also ran through a Behringer 7-band EQ. With a very, very shallow U, I thought it opened up the tone nicely. Scooping the mids more produced the expected results. I felt the amp/tubes/speaker all did well with moderate gain, but at higher gain levels the bass was unpleasant, even after making eq adjustments - 8 inch speaker, but felt like similar results/limitations with 12" cabs yesterday. So what I'm hearing in this situation seems like something that different/better tubes may address. And, the V5, like all tube amps, has its own personality. I'm not looking for high gain from this amp, just trying to find where it does well and its limitations as I hear them.

Steve, I appreciate you addressing the topic of biasing. This was one of those tube amp mysteries that kept me with SS for years, ... that and being poor Once I learned a bit about it - here we go. My tubers are all lower watt models and even the two with dual output tubes don't need biasing - Bugera G20 (Infinium) and Marshall Origin 20H (fixed bias). Living in the sticks, being able to do things for yourself is just the way it is, but you have to know your limitations.

I mainly started this thread in hopes of gaining information and providing folks with similar interest in the V5 a place to share ideas and knowledge. I very much appreciate everyone's contributions. When I'm interested in a product or having a problem, I've found places like AGF as invaluable resources. I don't always post a lot myself, but sure read a lot of them.

[C-ville Brent]

And dang it Steve, I don't have a single guitar with P-90s. Just when I thought my GAS was in remission

[Steve DeRosa]

Originally Posted by C-ville Brent

...Steve, I appreciate you addressing the topic of biasing. This was one of those tube amp mysteries that kept me with SS for years...that and being poor Once I learned a bit about it - here we go. My tubers are all lower watt models and even the two with dual output tubes don't need biasing - Bugera G20 (Infinium) and Marshall Origin 20H (fixed bias). Living in the sticks, being able to do things for yourself is just the way it is, but you have to know your limitations...

While you're right to a point about the Infinium circuitry not requiring biasing there's still an optimum operating range for any replacement tubes, and I'd strongly recommend seeking out some knowledgeable advice before replacing the tubes in the G20 (as long as you don't order anything too radical - as I did with my own V22, more about which later - it should be a plug-&-play deal); by way of information "fixed bias" doesn't mean what most folks think it does, and rather than take up a whole bunch of space here I'll just post links to some material that'll clear up the mystery:

https://www.thetubestore.com/bias-types
https://www.ampvalves.co.uk/cathode-bias/
https://www.ampvalves.co.uk/fixed-bias/

Caveat: unless you know exactly what you're doing don't muck around inside an amp chassis; there are lethal voltages present (as much as 700VAC/500VDC even when the amp is turned off and unplugged) and you could quickly find yourself in the unpleasant position of playing a blonde Telecaster one minute and a golden harp the next . I was after a very specific sound from my first-generation "blue-light" Bugera V22 - a mid-60's NYC-studio "Key Club" blue-check Ampeg Gemini II tone-clone - that required very high-headroom power tubes (the aforementioned pre-Glasnost Russian mil-spec stuff), and sought out the advice/assistance of the father of two of my former students, an electronics tech with 30 years' experience who designs/builds his own audio equipment; with his guidance and input, in the course of an afternoon I was able to set up my V22 using a multimeter and the bias adjustment pot on the bottom of the chassis (not present on the Infinium amps). That said, while I can maintain this specific amp I would never attempt this with anything else - as you said, know your limitations...

Originally Posted by C-ville Brent

And dang it Steve, I don't have a single guitar with P-90s...

Save your pennies - depending whether you want a hollow or solid, $1K could get you a real keeper:

https://www.musiciansfriend.com/guit...lectric-guitar
https://www.musiciansfriend.com/guit...pin-ii-cutaway

[phcorrigan]

Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa

...rather than take up a whole bunch of space here I'll just post links to some material that'll clear up the mystery:

https://www.thetubestore.com/bias-types
https://www.ampvalves.co.uk/cathode-bias/
https://www.ampvalves.co.uk/fixed-bias/

Thanks for posting this, Steve. It cleared up a lot of things for me.

Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa

Caveat: unless you know exactly what you're doing don't muck around inside an amp chassis; there are lethal voltages present (as much as 700VAC/500VDC even when the amp is turned off and unplugged) and you could quickly find yourself in the unpleasant position of playing a blonde Telecaster one minute and a golden harp the next .

Very true. And yet, when I was about twelve to fifteen years old, I was "mucking around" with old tube TVs and radios, without adult supervision, and even making some of them work in the process! I'm not sure my parents had any idea of the voltages I was dealing with, especially the CRT voltages, which were above 15KV!