Is it worth to upgrade this amp?

[triviani]

Hi

Last week got this little amp.



1X12ax7 and El34 tubes, which are made in china as the speaker and everything else is. It was cheap second hand, so I didn't expect much, but it has gain and master volume so it's great for home jamming..

It sounds ok when is clean, but as soon as I turn up the gain, or use dirt pedals, it starts to sound so-so..

Would you change the tubes and the speaker? Will that improve the character of the amp dirt?

For the price of the mods I would be able to get a second hand ac4tv8, so that's why I'm asking.

Thanks!!

[slagg]

short answer,yes.Tube and speaker swap do wonders.Also a correct biasing of the power tubes is huge.

[germs]

i've been in a situation that's similar, and when it comes to cheaper gear - this is what i ask myself:

is this worth it?

at the end of the day, you'll have an amp that may or may not be what you want it to be. the difference is that if you like the AC4, and could spend the same amount...just outright buying the AC4 is making more and more sense here.

[triviani]

Thanks for the answers!

Originally Posted by slagg

short answer,yes.Tube and speaker swap do wonders.Also a correct biasing of the power tubes is huge.

Do single-ended amps need tube biasing? I read somewhere here that they don't.

Originally Posted by germs

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at the end of the day, you'll have an amp that may or may not be what you want it to be. the difference is that if you like the AC4, and could spend the same amount...just outright buying the AC4 is making more and more sense here.

Not that I like much Vox amps tone, I think I'm more a blackface fan, I would be extremely happy with a Princeton! But I wonder if the ac4 will be overall a better amp than this one..

Originally Posted by andrekp

Depends whether you want to do it. A properly done amp with those tubes can sound absolutely killer - and better than an AC4. If it were mine, I'd just gut it and put a new circuit in there that sounded like I want. It could cost you less than $50 and some time, assuming you don't swap the trannies.

So if you want the challange and fun of doing the work, yeah - you can improve it.

But if that's not fun for you, then just buy the AC4 and get it over with.

Yap, I wouldn't mind to take it to the tech to change things if it's going to have a better sound. It's my home amp, don't need a Dumble for that, but just a decent sounding amp..

Thanks!

[andrekp]

Depends whether you want to do it. A properly done amp with those tubes can sound absolutely killer - and better than an AC4. If it were mine, I'd just gut it and put a new circuit in there that sounded like I want. It could cost you less than $50 and some time, assuming you don't swap the trannies.

So if you want the challange and fun of doing the work, yeah - you can improve it.

But if that's not fun for you, then just buy the AC4 and get it over with.

[badbrains]

Do you like to tinker, or do you like to play? That was the question I asked myself when in this situation. I love to tinker, and I messed around with an epiphone Valve Junior for a long time, and the sound went from crappy, to not so bad. But the money I sank into it (which wasn't all THAT much, really) I could have put towards a Swart, which I bought anyway. Now I have a killer amp, and I realize how much I miss playing.

I think there is value in taking a cheap, so-so sounding amp and trying to make it your own (disclaimer - amps have lethal voltages), but if you are a player, put your money towards the gear you actually want.