vox ac15 vs. fender deluxe reverb
- Thread starter nathan a
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guitlouie
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Did you ever notice that the guys in the guitar store who can't play are the ones playing the LOUDEST!
This thread is spreading disinformation. The AC15 is not a Class A amplifier. A cursory review of the schematic reveals a phase inverter. It is however cathode biased, as are many Class AB amps. I just built a cathode biased Class AB amp this week and it works great. Even Fender made a cathode biased Class AB amp, the Tweed Deluxe, which is conceptually pretty similar to an AC30 (Class AB, cathode bias and no negative feedback).
Yeah sorry. I was googling something and stumbled on it. People calling AC's Class A is a pet peeve of mine, and the bit about not cathode biasing AB power sections was so out of left field, I felt it needed correction. For other googlers. Another well loved cathode biased AB amp is the 18 watt Marshall.
Patrick from Davis
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Some other notes, there are other suppliers of speakers that make models that are clones of the more expensive Celestion. Weber and Warehouse Guitar Speakers are the first two that come to mind. They are much more reasonable as far as price is concerned. Celestion tends to charge a lot for the name. If it were me, I'd get the cheaper amp and upgrade the speaker myself. I built a Deluxe Reverb, and it is a fun amp. There are several things you can do to change the sound of them. There are pages devoted to this, so I'll not go into it. I found the good old Tube screamer works nicely with the Deluxe for an overdrive pedal.
Both amps have some things to be careful about. The Vox's tend to be really hot, and the power tubes can suffer. This means you replace them a bit more often. The Fender's have an odd choice for the screen resistors. If a power tube failed the 470-ohm/1-watt screen resistors that were in the reissues caused problems, they would lose their smoke. You just replace them with some 1K-ohm/5W resistors. Cheap, easy, and everything should be fine if a power tube decides to take a dirt nap.
I have really had a lot of fun with the smaller wattage amps. They are loud enough, and you can get to the cranked sound without leveling buildings or erasing civilizations from the map.
Patrick
Both amps have some things to be careful about. The Vox's tend to be really hot, and the power tubes can suffer. This means you replace them a bit more often. The Fender's have an odd choice for the screen resistors. If a power tube failed the 470-ohm/1-watt screen resistors that were in the reissues caused problems, they would lose their smoke. You just replace them with some 1K-ohm/5W resistors. Cheap, easy, and everything should be fine if a power tube decides to take a dirt nap.
I have really had a lot of fun with the smaller wattage amps. They are loud enough, and you can get to the cranked sound without leveling buildings or erasing civilizations from the map.
Patrick
Cagey
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I'm a big fan of Warehouse Guitar Speakers. I've always found them to be exactly what they claim to be, to perform well, and as you pointed out, are very reasonably priced. Celestions used to be the "reasonable" speakers back when I was a grasshopper, but somewhere along the way they decided they were the premium brand and started charging as such. Really, they're just run-of-the-mill parts and there's no justification for their price structure. Not that there's anything wrong with them, but for what they charge you'd think they were made of unobtanium.
Another surprising value out there for those of you who wish they could still afford EVM-12Ls is the Emminence Delta Pro 12A. Very much a drop-in replacement for the 12L at half the price.
Another surprising value out there for those of you who wish they could still afford EVM-12Ls is the Emminence Delta Pro 12A. Very much a drop-in replacement for the 12L at half the price.
