Which Amp For Me?

[SECONDandBOWERY]

I know there's only so much you guys can help with this since what the answer to this question would really boil down to me having playing to play all the great T.Wreck variations, but here it goes anyway.

Which T.Wreck (or T.Wreck-esque amp - I'm not a snob about whether the original circuit was a Wreck or a derivitive) will work best for my situation here? I'm looking for an amp to replace my bandmate's solid state Peavey. I'll be able to live with the fact that it doesn't have as much gain as the Peavey, but I would still like it to be gainy enough to get lots of great distortion.

Here is a link to a recording of our band (be warned - there's no solos or complex chords/riffs. Just really straightforward rock'n'roll). I'm basically going for a sound that's a little bit looser, and has more bass (but doesn't sound chunky or heavy - just a fuller sound). I guess some bass will be added by the tube warmth.

http://media.putfile.com/The-Gotcha-Guy ... cond-Delay

So of all the variations out there - which one would best suit this kind of stuff?

Thanks in Advance!

Rock'n'Roll,
--Andy

[Moose]

Well, nobody can tell you what amp is perfect for you, so take this with a grain of salt.

I think you'd like a liverpool. Think AC30 on steroids. With a little tweaking, maybe even AC30 'roid rage.

Express amps seem to be the rage here, and they are unbelievably fun to play, but they were designed as the ultimate rock and roll lead amp. They're super touch sensetive, can go from clean to scream with pick attack, and they raise the hair on the back of your neck.

However, an express is not forgiving. And it's a tough rhythm amp, especially if you're not used to using volume knobs, rolling in and out, or any of that. And, the express is a bright, lead amp, not something focused on bottom end and low-mids.

The liverpool is also very touch sensetive, but it has a bit more chime, a bit darker sound, and can be tuned to have more Grrrr in the preamp so it doesn't sound totally AC30. And that poweramp makes a GREAT rhythm amp -- I use an 18watt version of it myself. And, make no bones about it, it'll still do the 'roid rage thing if you need it to.

The big thing is, your style music seems to be using a lot of AC30 tones, these days, so I believe it would fit nicely.

[SECONDandBOWERY]

Well, nobody can tell you what amp is perfect for you, so take this with a grain of salt.

Yeah, I know. I just wanted to get some opinions. If I do the Liverpool like you reccomend, I'll probably build the 36watt version and install a half power switch (or maybe I'll power scale the damn thing!). Also, instead of using four EL84s, I'd use two 6DZ7s.

Thanks!

Any other opinions?

Rock'n'Roll,
--Andy

[Allynmey]

Second, How big are the clubs you play? How aggressive is the drummer?

Allynmey

[SECONDandBOWERY]

Allynmey: Since we're all kids, it can range from a friend's living room to a 4,000 square foot club, but that's for now. We have been getting offered bigger and bigger gigs, though we've had to pass them up because of sceduling problems. I doubt we'll ever play an arena, but the larger venues are a destinct possiblity. The drummer isn't playing with all of his might, but he plays pretty loud.

Why?

Rock'n'Roll,
--Andy

[Allynmey]

Second, a small club with a light drummer can be done with an 18 watt. A Medium sized club without mic'ing the amps is 36 watt territory. If they mic the amps an 18 watt is still good. You band sounds like you should be using a ac-30 sounding amp. The Trainwreck (like Moose said) is a rock and roll Monster. Think Glam lead guitarist. I am almost deaf after twenty minutes with the volume on "4". I think I know why KF used all those caps...there is an incredible amount of stored energy on tap. If you hit a lot of low notes or strum chords quickly it doesn't fart out. It seems to be laughing at you and saying "you'll have to do better than that, pal"

The only way I can describe it.

Allynmey

[SECONDandBOWERY]

Are the power tubes the only difference between the Liverpool and the Express?

Also, are there any sound clips of a Liverpool floating around? I haven't seen one.

Also, also, what about a Rocket?

Rock'n'Roll,
--Andy

[Topcat]

Yes, I'm interested in hpw the Rocket compares to the other 2 'Wrecks.

Also, it seems most guys here seem to focus mostly on the Express and 'Pool builds as opposed to much about the Rocket. Is there any reason for this or simply that most guys want the more gainy amps?

Thanks, Terry

[LeftyStrat]

I think it is because the least is known about the Rocket. I lot of people tried to build the Express in the early days (see all the variant schems) with limited success. Once the Francesca pictures came out, many people had success.

We have grainy gut shots of a Liverpool, and armed with the knowledge of Francesca, I would bet many people will have success with the Liverpool.

But all we have on the Rocket is a schematic Mark Abbot pieced together from various posts on the old Yahoo board.

The Rocket is the most rare of the three, and supposedly Ken built the original for himself as a sort of AC30 on steroids. I definitely want to give it a try after I finish my Express and a Liverpool, but it will probably require a bit of tweaking.

I think Mark may be the only person on here who has built one, so maybe he can chime in.

[Topcat]

AH, that's very interesting Lefty. I'm new here so I always wondered. That makes a lot of sense.

Thanks, Terry

[Mark]

Dear LeftyStrat

I have built prototypes of all three amps and my favourite Trainwreck with Fender single coil pickups is the Rocket. As you'd expect it doesn't have as much gain as the Express, but it did sound a lot like former TWreck member "Rocket" amplifer's of the same name.

I found that the Liverpool and the Express favoured 4 X 12" cabs while the Rocket sounded really good with an open back cab.

Anyway, a few other members have built these amps and perhaps can chime in their results. Hopefully one day we'll see the insides of a Rocket, though I suspect it won't be the same as seeing the Francesca pictures.

Logic tells me the amp is almost identical to an AC-30 bar the Trainwreck power suppy, which does bear some resemblence to an early Marshall power supply.

Anyway...........

[908ssp]

I played a great rocket clone a couple weeks ago. Really a terrific sounding amp the thing that impressed me the most was the bass. It sounded strong defined clear and at the same time the top end was all AC30 chimmey resonate sweet. Wish I could give more specifics but I was asked not to. But if this wets your whistle this is an amp worthy of the Trainwreck name that's for sure.

[LeftyStrat]

Thanks for the info Mark and Alex, sounds like a Rocket build will be in my future. I love the idea of an AC30 vibe with good bass and single coil friendly.

So the power section is pretty much a stock AC30. It's basically the bright channel of a top boost AC30 with tonestack and PI tweaks. The power supply is tube rectified, and is that a choke I see in the malou pics?