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  #46  
Old 08-26-2019, 12:30 AM
rockabilly69 rockabilly69 is offline
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Originally Posted by Sonics View Post
It's the pickups. Raw, aggressive and clear with a beautiful chime. It sounds like a contradiction...but it's TRUE!

Not a Guns And Roses fan, but that guy is a player and he gets some killer tone out of his Gretsch's!
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  #47  
Old 08-26-2019, 02:07 AM
phcorrigan phcorrigan is offline
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Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa View Post
Suggestions:
FWIW with a couple easy DIY mods - better-quality tubes, an optional speaker upgrade (the current Turbosound speaker is actually quite good - think Celestion without the sometimes-abrasive upper-mids) - you'll perk up some ears (and furrow some brows) among owners of higher-priced boutique gear. If you anticipate playing bigger houses/outdoor gigs, need more headroom for cleaner styles, or prefer the tone of the 50-watt Fender/Ampeg workhorse amps of the early/mid-60's (or the current Hot Rod DeVille), the V55 1x12" may be all the amp you'll ever need for only $50 more than its 22-watt stablemate; any one of these is an excellent match for a Gretsch, BTW - their natural response curve seems to complement the characteristic chime and twang - and I'd strongly recommend checking out one or more of them before making a final (and likely far more expensive) decision...[/LIST]
Given the choice between a new V55 Infinium and a used Fender Hot Rod Deville 60W 2x12 at about the same cost, which way would you go?
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2012 Martin HD-28V
1984 Martin Shenandoah D-2832
2018 Gretsch G5420TG
Oscar Schmidt Autoharp, unknown vintage
ToneDexter
Bugera V22 Infinium
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  #48  
Old 08-26-2019, 07:20 AM
Steve DeRosa Steve DeRosa is offline
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Originally Posted by phcorrigan View Post
Given the choice between a new V55 Infinium and a used Fender Hot Rod Deville 60W 2x12 at about the same cost, which way would you go?
Tough choice - comparable power, similar features, and I've played both; I'd say it narrows down to whether you prefer the sonic "spread" of a 2x12" cab, need the compactness of a 1x12" for smaller stages, prefer vintage versus modern cosmetics (the Bugera draws heavily from both Egnater and Bad Cat), or find the tone stack of one or the other is a better match for your instrument/style (I'm also a Gretsch player and while there are definite differences, I don't consider one "better" than the other). There is, however, a real advantage in the Bugera's Infinium circuitry - tube changes are a plug-&-play proposition, whereas a bias job (around $100 in my neck of the woods) is required when you change tubes in the DeVille - so if you plan to do some experimenting with tubes (FYI there are tonal differences between different makes/vintages that knowledgeable players use to good advantage) or just want to save a few bucks in the long run, the V55 might be a good choice...
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  #49  
Old 08-26-2019, 01:02 PM
phcorrigan phcorrigan is offline
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Thanks! (I have to add stuff because the message was to short!)
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2012 Martin HD-28V
1984 Martin Shenandoah D-2832
2018 Gretsch G5420TG
Oscar Schmidt Autoharp, unknown vintage
ToneDexter
Bugera V22 Infinium
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  #50  
Old 08-27-2019, 11:38 PM
phcorrigan phcorrigan is offline
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Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa View Post
T...the V55 might be a good choice...
Steve,

One more question: How does the V55 do as a relatively quiet practice amp?

I may be asking the impossible, but I'd like to buy one amp for both practice and playing out.

Thanks again.
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2012 Martin HD-28V
1984 Martin Shenandoah D-2832
2018 Gretsch G5420TG
Oscar Schmidt Autoharp, unknown vintage
ToneDexter
Bugera V22 Infinium
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  #51  
Old 08-28-2019, 06:38 AM
Steve DeRosa Steve DeRosa is offline
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Originally Posted by phcorrigan View Post
...How does the V55 do as a relatively quiet practice amp? I may be asking the impossible, but I'd like to buy one amp for both practice and playing out...
If you've never played a tube amp, be advised that 55 watts is a lot of power - we're talking 1000+ seat halls and outdoor gigs here - and while it's true that the late Les Paul used to play small clubs with a 100W silverface Twin (I've seen him do it) he was using low-impedance/low-power pickups to achieve a super-clean tone; considering he's the guy who arguably invented modern electric guitar I'd give him a pass here. For us lesser mortals, IME the V22 should be all you need in a dual-purpose amp - the multiple gain/volume control points allow you to achieve a full tone at virtually any level, and the pentode/triode switch not only shifts the amp into a different power range but provides a whole different set of sonic possibilities (loosely speaking, think mid-60's Fender/Ampeg "American" versus pre-Top Boost Vox "British"); as I said above I not only use mine for general at-home practice but also for halls up to 600-700 people with no problem, clean or dirty as you wish. FYI GC had it on the floor a couple days ago fir $349 brand-new - the street price when I bought mine back in 2010 - so if you're serious this might be a good time to do the deal...
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  #52  
Old 08-28-2019, 11:42 AM
phcorrigan phcorrigan is offline
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Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa View Post
FYI GC had it on the floor a couple days ago fir $349 brand-new - the street price when I bought mine back in 2010 - so if you're serious this might be a good time to do the deal...
I'm ordering a V22. GC has them mis-priced on the web page, so as soon as that is fixed they're calling me back so I can order it for $399 less 15%.
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2012 Martin HD-28V
1984 Martin Shenandoah D-2832
2018 Gretsch G5420TG
Oscar Schmidt Autoharp, unknown vintage
ToneDexter
Bugera V22 Infinium
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  #53  
Old 08-28-2019, 12:10 PM
Steve DeRosa Steve DeRosa is offline
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Looking forward to your NAD review when it arrives...
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  #54  
Old 08-30-2019, 12:08 AM
phcorrigan phcorrigan is offline
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Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa View Post
Looking forward to your NAD review when it arrives...
I just ordered it today from GC. Their price is $50 too high, but their sister company, Musician's Friend has it priced at $398 with a 15% discount on top. I expect it on Oct. 5.

I plan to play with some tube changes fairly soon, and I've read good things about the JJ EL84s. Thoughts?
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Patrick

2012 Martin HD-28V
1984 Martin Shenandoah D-2832
2018 Gretsch G5420TG
Oscar Schmidt Autoharp, unknown vintage
ToneDexter
Bugera V22 Infinium
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  #55  
Old 08-30-2019, 06:30 AM
Steve DeRosa Steve DeRosa is offline
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Originally Posted by phcorrigan View Post
...I plan to play with some tube changes fairly soon, and I've read good things about the JJ EL84s. Thoughts?
Here's the setup I've been using for the last eight years - never needed to change them, probably never will, and they're everything (and more) the reviews say they are:

https://www.thetubestore.com/bugera-v22-premium-package
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  #56  
Old 08-31-2019, 05:29 PM
phcorrigan phcorrigan is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa View Post
Here's the setup I've been using for the last eight years - never needed to change them, probably never will, and they're everything (and more) the reviews say they are:

https://www.thetubestore.com/bugera-v22-premium-package
A little rich for my pocket book, but I just ordered a matched pair of JJ EL84s and a matched trio of JJ 12AX7s.
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Patrick

2012 Martin HD-28V
1984 Martin Shenandoah D-2832
2018 Gretsch G5420TG
Oscar Schmidt Autoharp, unknown vintage
ToneDexter
Bugera V22 Infinium
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