Gibson Falcon GA-19 Tips?

[Zim]

Hey All,
Got this Gibson Falcon incoming. Should be here in a couple weeks, I am stoked!.

Anyways, it has an old Fender Speaker in it, the original long gone. I was wondering what you guys would suggest? I was already suggested an Emi C-Rex by one TGP'er, so what else would Falcon owners suggest?

Also, where is a good place to buy NOS tubes?

And where can I find a cover for it? Road Case?

And any other tips you guys might have. Already have the 3 prong plug. Oh, are those the right knobs?

 

[tfunster]

Hey All,
Got this Gibson Falcon incoming. Should be here in a couple weeks, I am stoked!.

Anyways, it has an old Fender Speaker in it, the original long gone. I was wondering what you guys would suggest? I was already suggested an Emi C-Rex by one TGP'er, so what else would Falcon owners suggest?

Also, where is a good place to buy NOS tubes?

And where can I find a cover for it? Road Case?

And any other tips you guys might have. Already have the 3 prong plug. Oh, are those the right knobs?

It looks as though you have the same Falcon as I do. The Falcon's circuit changed over the years and some owners say their Falcon is warm and crunchy while others (like myself) says theirs are VERY bright and clean.

If yours is bright and clean, then I would suggest the Cannabis Rex. If not, probably a Weber would be best.

I bought a bunch of RCA 6EU7's and 6C4's off of ebay. 6C4's are pretty cheap, 6EU7's are a bit more. I believe www.angela.com sometimes have NOS 6EU7's.

If you go to the yahoo user group Alt.Guitar.Amps and search for GA-19RVT, you'll find a bunch of information on your amp as well as mods for tweaking it to "tweed" specs.

I had my amp tweaked and it went from extremely bright and clean, to slightly warmer and raging. I might try to mod it to be somewhere in between.

Enjoy though, they are cool sounding amps with great verb and trem.

 

[Zim]

Thanks for the info tfunster.


I should also ask, what OD's work well with this amp?

 

[Gene]

I have a 1964 GA19RVT. It was bright and I made some mods to it. It is one of my favorite amps now.

I found this amp to take OD/boost type pedals extremely well. The pedal disappears to my ears with this amp.

 

[Zim]

Thanks Gene, thats good to hear. My main boost is an early 4 knob PTP Red Snapper that I love. I got it from a fellow TGP'er and it is about the only pedal that will never leave my board.

 

[Gene]

What year is your Falcon? I use the Xotic boost but I've tried a bunch with it and they all sounded good through the Falcon. The original Jensen speaker sounds much better than the reissue Jensens to my ear.

 

[erksin]

You can find covers at Tuki - I was the first guy to send them the specs for a Falcon cover...

The Red Snapper should sound pretty nice through the Falcon - just about the only dirt pedals that mine didn't get along with were the AC Booster (too dark/muddy) and the Hotcake (too mid-scooped).

 

[erksin]

What year is your Falcon? I use the Xotic boost but I've tried a bunch with it and they all sounded good through the Falcon. The original Jensen speaker sounds much better than the reissue Jensens to my ear.

His looks to be a mid-late '64...

 

[Gene]

His looks to be a mid-late '64...

The knobs?

 

[erksin]

The knobs?

The knobs, tolex, and size of the rear panel. Could be an early '65, but the trannies will tell for sure once he gets it.

 

[Gene]

Mine is a early 64 and has the bell knobs and shorter rear panel.

 

[erksin]

Mine is a early 64 and has the bell knobs and shorter rear panel.

Jensen or CTS speaker..?

 

[Zim]

It'll be a couple weeks before it gets here. (the seller is out of town until then) But I will get every and any code I can and post them. I'm really excited about this amp. I had a Skylark years ago that I wish I would have kept, it had the best trem ever! It made a sweet slide amp. I let it ago because I was affraid I couldn't find tubes for it. As soon as I find out what tubes are in this one, I'll buy as any pre's I can afford or have it modded for 12AX7's, but I think I'd rather keep it stocked.

 

[erksin]

It'll be a couple weeks before it gets here. (the seller is out of town until then) But I will get every and any code I can and post them. I'm really excited about this amp. I had a Skylark years ago that I wish I would have kept, it had the best trem ever! It made a sweet slide amp. I let it ago because I was affraid I couldn't find tubes for it. As soon as I find out what tubes are in this one, I'll buy as any pre's I can afford or have it modded for 12AX7's, but I think I'd rather keep it stocked.

Stay with the 6EU7s if you can - I think they are the key to the amp...

 

[Gene]

Jensen or CTS speaker..?

Jensen C12R date code 220418.

The reverb hummed on this baby and by flipping the reverb pan around, I was able to tame the hum to a very low level where you can't hear it unless you put your face in the amp. But it still hums a bit. Have you heard of anything to completely get the reverb to stop humming?

 

[Gene]

have it modded for 12AX7's

Don't do that. Just my opinion but I don't like to hack vintage amps. If you have to hack it, you probably have the wrong amp anyway. Keep it original and get another one that meets your criteria. And if you are like me, get another one than another, than another... ;-) It is a sickness but a sickness many TGPers know and have.

 

[Zim]

Modding it for 12AX7's isn't because I want to, it is more so because they are easier tubes to find than the originals, I plan on keeping it stocked, but if it gets too costly and hard to find, I will have to mod it, but thats only in the extreme. I plan on keeping this amp forever along with a new Richter 5E3. Those are my keepers.

 

[Gene]

6EU7s are not hard to find. All the vendors I know have them. Not much more than a decent 12AX7s either.

 

[J Purcell]

Check with Mike at KCA Tubes. He'll probably have what you need.

 

[erksin]

Jensen C12R date code 220418.

The reverb hummed on this baby and by flipping the reverb pan around, I was able to tame the hum to a very low level where you can't hear it unless you put your face in the amp. But it still hums a bit. Have you heard of anything to completely get the reverb to stop humming?

Could be the driver tube, could be your grounding in the guitar, could be filter caps, etc...

When was the last time you had it gone over by a tech?