Touch Sensitivity/Gain/Dynamics of a Komet/Trainwreck

[Shawn S.]

What I'm going into now really is asking for a single channel single amp thing that allows different grits and gains with the volume knob. But it's still got to sparkle while cleaning up well, and I don't want a huge volume decrease when I turn down, a slight one is best.

I am not sure if a Tweed would do this right.

The clips of the komets have really impressed me, that's really what I'm looking for, although an effects loop would be top, because I do use reverb and delay as effects, everything else I'm using now is just gain boxes, which would become obselete.

So is there anything out there that does better than the komet, or does as well for less money? Or is it any amp? What amps are recommended that can do this, if there is any? Maybe some with effects loops?

Also, I play a lot of jazz, it'd still be nice to have high-headroom for jazzy stuff with balls in the low end.

I've gone through channel switchers, and the channels are often too inconsistent, and time after time, even through great rigs, I still come back to a Deluxe Reverb using with pedals and it gets the closest, but I'm not there yet.

 

[rick13]

If you can find an amp made by Adam Stark.......take a hard look. really, really good simple amps that love pedals. Lots of crunch, back off the volume and it cleans up with lot's of rich tones. I have a Komet KF50, surprising clean tones but a much different animal . What channel switchers have you looked at? CarolAnn, Bruno,TwoRock......those can give you what you seek.
Rick

 

[Shawn S.]

If you can find an amp made by Adam Stark.......take a hard look. really, really good simple amps that love pedals. Lots of crunch, back off the volume and it cleans up with lot's of rich tones. I have a Komet KF50, surprising clean tones but a much different animal . What channel switchers have you looked at? CarolAnn, Bruno,TwoRock......those can give you what you seek.
Rick

See, thing is there is a budget, and nothing rediculous either, I just can't afford it. What about the Reeves amps(Hiwatts)?

Thanks for the info. What is the KF50? I had a Fuchs, which was okay, it's just that any channel switcher I have sounds like two different amps, and I REALLY like to use the variable gain adjustment you get with an amp and a volume control - not sure if it's the guitar or not, but it just looses all the nice clean sounds when you turn it down on the guitar. Channel switchers are too different, if that makes sense, either there's a big loss of bass, or there's too much of a drastic different EQ wise between a clean and a crunch/mean

 

[rick13]

what's your realistic budget ? There is some great gear for sale now at very low, giveaway pricing. You may be closer than you think.
Rick

 

[Geetarpicker]

A Trainwreck Express is worlds away from a Deluxe Reverb which is also a nice amp. However I think a Trainwreck Express is one of the best amps EVER made for working the sound, clean to dirty from your guitar. To me that's it's #1 appeal. No, you won't get huge high headroom jazz tones but you will get sparkly usable cleans by simply backing off the guitar with the right pickups and smooth taper pots. The slight volume drop for clean will be there, but is less than anything else I've ever played. Still, the only reasonably priced option is a clone and not all clones of these are created equal by ANY means. Try to find a good one built by a respected builder to check out...

Here are some Trainwreck videos I did of my original, and the amp is set nearly the same in all of these and it's just changes at the guitar.

Clean with a Gretsch (guitar left at one setting):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U36UxwiHaI&feature=channel_page

Clean to moderate dirt with a Strat (a few volume changes):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mL75YzhAcJ4&feature=channel_page

Clean to high gain with a Les Paul (probably 20+ knob & switch changes in this one):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2_12Ler9B8&feature=channel_page

 

[highrise]

^^^ This guy is who you need to listen to.




It's hard to adjust the volume while you're actually playing. Get a volume pedal and it's like a distortion pedal built inside in a wah.

Theres no better way.

 

[sickboy79]

What I'm going into now really is asking for a single channel single amp thing that allows different grits and gains with the volume knob. But it's still got to sparkle while cleaning up well, and I don't want a huge volume decrease when I turn down, a slight one is best.

I cannot personally speak for a Komet as I've never played one. I know the traits you describe are things that it excells at - Dynamics, touch sensitivity. Clean to mean with a roll of the volume. In my opinion - there are a lot of amps that do this - it just depends on the flavor of tone you want. Amps that do those tricks for me: Matchless, Bad Cat, Top Hat, Budda, Divided By 13, vintage Fenders, vintage Marshalls, vintage Voxes, etc - the list is actually quite long!!! There a lot of others as well.

What are examples of sounds you are going for? More Marshall like flavors? More Fender like tones? You mentioned the Deluxe Reverb so I'm assuming you dig Fender tones. Voxey? A mix of all the above? How much gain to you need?

 

[quinnamps]

I can only speak of a Komet 80 that Kenny once owned....Get one. Perhaps the best clean up with volume amps I have ever played. Not too sure it would be appropriate for jazz settings but honestly I have not tried. As for harmonic content, chime, and dynamics.....it's an amazingly great amp. If I had the means to own this amp I would in one hot second. This one here was owned by Kenny so it's value is pretty steep but the ones that were not owned by kenny are surely much less.
If I had my druthers I would be buying this amp....and I am not the typical amp "buying" type of guy.
HIH

 

[fyler]

THD Flexi 50

voiced differently, and not as gainy as an Express, but it has similar dynamics.


my desert island amp.

 

[stratovarius]

I can only speak of a Komet 80 that Kenny once owned...

Diane?

 

[Shawn S.]

THD Flexi 50

voiced differently, and not as gainy as an Express, but it has similar dynamics.


my desert island amp.

Thanks. That's what I considered well. A better price, easy to change for different flavors, and a place where reverb and effects can exist in harmony with distortion....

I like the Deluxe Reverb I think because I've had it so long. I'm used to play it, and it sounds "right" to me, even though it doesn't do without pedals what I want, and even then, it could use a little more. I like it because it stays clean really well for jazz stuff, and it allows me to throw anything at it and still not break my back, and keep everyone who wants all kinds of sounds (like at a church setting) happy. I like it, but I need more "oomph". There's clips around, but I like the very mild clipping that you get with certain amps, something on the top, something crispy. Something that best describes what I'd like as a "clean" sound with rolling volume up for more is the tone that Scott Henderson gets on "Smelly Ol' Dog Blues". It's great. He's using a matchless, but they're outta my price range, limited in features, and seem to only sound like a matchless. Which isn't a bad thing, but I'd like something that is flexible.

I'm not dead-set on anything, but I know there are clips out there that the flexi does this in, it has an effects loop (and a boost to top), is flexible with tubes and tube sounds, and is on the more affordable/feature side.

I think anything I get I'll by default run in conjunction with the deluxe reverb. I kinda dig that sound, and it's always been there for me, maybe it'll help with the "top end crispy" sound, blending in a beautiful clean.

 

[Shawn S.]

...Divided By 13, vintage Fenders, vintage Marshalls, vintage Voxes

Why do you suppose vintage does it better?

The Deluxe Reverb can do it, but the grit and gain just aren't there. Not without boost, and even then, often too much in the mid-range.

 

[blastastick]

Are Komets the same as a Trainwreck? The clips I heard, the Trainwreck sounded way different and more musical? Is this true?

 

[ebenezer]

I own a Komet Concorde and absolutely love it! Touch sensitivity in spades. If your looking for a lower priced on, I played a Red Iron T-rex the other day that had the same vibe as the Komet and sparkled when you cleaned it up. I personally liked the clean better on the t-rex, but nothing, I repeat NOTHING in my opinion beats the brutality of rock that breaths through the Concorde! The T-rex is a 30 watter so it doesn't have the high headroom you might want but has some exceptioal cleans.

 

[blastastick]

How are they compared to a Traiinwreck? I noticed the OP put Komet/Trainwreck, which might indicate they are the same thing. Is ths true?

 

[Shawn S.]

I don't think they're the same. But they are similar in the way they respond dymanically, which is what I'm looking for.

 

[Geetarpicker]

From my experience the Komet leans a little more towards the clean side than the Wreck. I played a Ken Fischer tweaked Komet 60 that seemed more agressive, stiffer, and brighter than my Wreck. It was however and amp you can work from the guitar quite well, but it was almost Marshall superlead 100 loud and an attenuator would be a must. Also, like wrecks I feel Komets and Trainwrecks sound best on 4x12s which isn't nearly as user friendly as the little Deluxe Reverb.

I guess the Komets get compared to Trainwrecks as Ken Fischer was in on some of the development and circuit tweaking. Others I'm sure know more details on it.

The Komet might be more your cup of tea. However you might need to find some amps to borrow and check out, as these amps like most really need to be played in person to see if they work for you.

 

[Shawn S.]

Finding a Komet will be the real hunt.

 

[guitarsam]

Hot cats can do what you're looking for in an quasi two channel amp. I haven't played a flexi 50 but I have a univalve. It's also capable of what you're looking for. The flexi 50 is on my list of amps to buy.

 

[blastastick]

What about the Carol Ann amps, or other people who make a more aggresive Trainwreck style amp. The Komet does not sound like the Trainwreck to me so much.