El Toro's Official Guitarded Thread...

[wattage13]

Just scored a little Peavey Royal 8 that I am making into a head for a nice Lopoline 1x12 cab (Celestion G12H 70th Anniv) I have. I also got a Lovepedal PP800 (purple Plexi) pedal in trade. Supposed to be a sick pedal, don't use many pedals but I am getting ready to do some recording again so I figure I might as well build a little arsenal.

[PAF Pro]

Like Kane from the Kung-Fu TV series, 'Pro is still on a musical journey, searching for that "perfect" amplifier....

The guy I deal with for instrument repairs and sales(20 years, now has his own store/shop) is a Kustom amp dealer.Spoke with him about them, I only knew of them as the amps that CCR used. Tried out a Coupe model, nice amp....good clean tones, but just not enough "under the hood" so to speak.

Tried a Defender 112.....again, great amplifier, but just not enough gain/overdrive. I'm not a fan of effects/overdrive pedals.....guitar, cord, amplifier. Simple.

He mentioned somthing about how he could get a Double Cross head in for me to try...suggested I check it out on Kustom's website. Did so, and am currently frothing at the mouth......from the demo, it appears this thing has EVERYTHING I'm looking for.

Anyone here had a go at one of these beasts?

[wattage13]

No real experience with Kustom but it looks impressive on paper. Have you looked at the Peavey JSX?

[PAF Pro]

Funny that you mention the Peavey JSX....Kustom's lead design man, James Brown(yes, I chuckled too) is the same man that did the lead design for the JSX, XXX and the 5150. was involved in their Classic series and the original Transtube stuff...was with Peavey for 18 years.

I'm guessing that Kustom waved more $$$ in from of him than Hartley did.

Yes, I've tried the JSX.....great amp, but just doesn't have the "it" factor in the sound for me.

That Double Cross may very well be what I'm looking for.

[Liquid Boom Boom]

Toro, how long does it take you to build a guitar like that LP?

There's been a Gibson Flying V(black/white pickguard) on the wall at guitar center for at least 6-8 mos. It's got EMG's in it, I've noodled on it before and it's for $799. I'm going by there today and offering 400 for it and see what happens.

Then its off to find a divorce lawyer 'cause I'll probably need one.

[lerxstcat]

Funny that you mention the Peavey JSX....Kustom's lead design man, James Brown(yes, I chuckled too) is the same man that did the lead design for the JSX, XXX and the 5150. was involved in their Classic series and the original Transtube stuff...was with Peavey for 18 years.

I'm guessing that Kustom waved more $$$ in from of him than Hartley did.

Yes, I've tried the JSX.....great amp, but just doesn't have the "it" factor in the sound for me.

That Double Cross may very well be what I'm looking for.

What was the JSX missing, for you? did you try the El34 version or the 6L6 version?

Thing about Peavey amps is that they are biased extremely cold from the factory, to extend tube life. Your tech can bias them hotter yet still in the safe zone and the amp will be a lot punchier.

As for online soundclips, don't make a decision based on them. Try out the amps you're thinking of buying personally, or buy an amp with a money-back return option so you're not stuck with something that sounds better on paper than it does in your playing space. Which is most of them.

[Mattfig]

Funny that you mention the Peavey JSX....Kustom's lead design man, James Brown(yes, I chuckled too) is the same man that did the lead design for the JSX, XXX and the 5150. was involved in their Classic series and the original Transtube stuff...was with Peavey for 18 years.

I'm guessing that Kustom waved more $$$ in from of him than Hartley did.

Yes, I've tried the JSX.....great amp, but just doesn't have the "it" factor in the sound for me.

That Double Cross may very well be what I'm looking for.

What was the JSX missing, for you? did you try the El34 version or the 6L6 version?

Thing about Peavey amps is that they are biased extremely cold from the factory, to extend tube life. Your tech can bias them hotter yet still in the safe zone and the amp will be a lot punchier.

As for online soundclips, don't make a decision based on them. Try out the amps you're thinking of buying personally, or buy an amp with a money-back return option so you're not stuck with something that sounds better on paper than it does in your playing space. Which is most of them.

OK, so I know I'll catch hell for even typing the word "Bugera." But the 333XL with Tung-Sol 12AX7s and 6L6GCs sounds better than the JSX to my ear...A lot better - that is using it with a 4x12 loaded with V30s...The Bugera heads are awesome and inexpensive...

[Captain Morgan]

Anyone try the Duncan/Dimarzio/Lace noiseless P-90s? What did yall think of them?

[Mattfig]

Anyone try the Duncan/Dimarzio/Lace noiseless P-90s? What did yall think of them?

I've tried them...Go for Lollars...That's what I ended up doing and I'll never regret it... http://www.lollarguitars.com

[Captain Morgan]

Anyone try the Duncan/Dimarzio/Lace noiseless P-90s? What did yall think of them?

I've tried them...Go for Lollars...That's what I ended up doing and I'll never regret it... http://www.lollarguitars.com

I really need noiseless P-90s for my setup. Does he offer them as a custom job?

[wattage13]

Any Peavey head you get needs a better set of power tubes and a proper biasing. The JSX is a sick amp but if it has JJs in it it'll sound a bit flat, the tubes matter.

The Bugeras all sound pretty good but they are flakey, Peaveys are built far better.

[lerxstcat]

Funny that you mention the Peavey JSX....Kustom's lead design man, James Brown(yes, I chuckled too) is the same man that did the lead design for the JSX, XXX and the 5150. was involved in their Classic series and the original Transtube stuff...was with Peavey for 18 years.

I'm guessing that Kustom waved more $$$ in from of him than Hartley did.

Yes, I've tried the JSX.....great amp, but just doesn't have the "it" factor in the sound for me.

That Double Cross may very well be what I'm looking for.

What was the JSX missing, for you? did you try the El34 version or the 6L6 version?

Thing about Peavey amps is that they are biased extremely cold from the factory, to extend tube life. Your tech can bias them hotter yet still in the safe zone and the amp will be a lot punchier.

As for online soundclips, don't make a decision based on them. Try out the amps you're thinking of buying personally, or buy an amp with a money-back return option so you're not stuck with something that sounds better on paper than it does in your playing space. Which is most of them.

OK, so I know I'll catch hell for even typing the word "Bugera." But the 333XL with Tung-Sol 12AX7s and 6L6GCs sounds better than the JSX to my ear...A lot better - that is using it with a 4x12 loaded with V30s...The Bugera heads are awesome and inexpensive...

Did the JSX you A/Bed it with ALSO have Tung-Sols? Because you know those tubes make a huge difference in the sound, as would a little hotter bias. I would also tend to think the Peavey will last longer, they are just made with better components. Although I have been hearing good things about the 333XL lately.

[ElToro]

Toro, how long does it take you to build a guitar like that LP?

There's been a Gibson Flying V(black/white pickguard) on the wall at guitar center for at least 6-8 mos. It's got EMG's in it, I've noodled on it before and it's for $799. I'm going by there today and offering 400 for it and see what happens.

Then its off to find a divorce lawyer 'cause I'll probably need one.

Takes Brent just a couple months to have your guitar ready to spec!

[olivier]

bought last week , my new rock'n roll toy
telecaster custom 62

[Mattfig]

Anyone try the Duncan/Dimarzio/Lace noiseless P-90s? What did yall think of them?

I've tried them...Go for Lollars...That's what I ended up doing and I'll never regret it... http://www.lollarguitars.com

I really need noiseless P-90s for my setup. Does he offer them as a custom job?

I honestly don't know...But Jason Lollar is great at getting back to you if you send him an email....Sorry I'm not much more help...The Lollar P90s that I have are not noisey per se...But are also not labeled as "noiseless." You can't beat the tone they create...

[wattage13]

I've used the Duncan stacked P-90's. Far better than the Gibson P-100's and they can be wired parallel or in series depending on the sound you want but as good as they are they still don't beat a good pair of P-90's.

Are you running a lot of gain? I used to use a noise gate to kill the 60 cycle but I just get real quick with the vol knob these days when necessary, it is easier to deal with it that way.

The DiMarzio's are cool but they sound more like a mini-humbucker than a P-90 to me. Never saw a Lollar noiseless and never tried Lace.

[Captain Morgan]

I don't run too much gain - a lot of the humming/buzzing comes from playing clean at louder volumes. It just irks me.

Does the Duncan Stack at least sound closer to a P-90 than the P-100s and Dimarzio Virtual P90s?

[Captain Morgan]

Wattage - what kind of noisegate were you using? Was it effective at killing hum?

[wattage13]

The SD does a far better job than the P-100. P-100's do make good fridge magnets though.

I don't think the Dimarzio Virtual P-90 was the one I used (at least by name), it looks the same but I thought it was called the Blues 90. May be the same pup with a name change? I read the desciption and that's about what it sounds like. It wasn't a bad pup but to me it reminded me of a mini-hum, not as open as a P-90. That's the case with almost all the noiseless/hum cancelling versions. To me the best part of P-90's is the wirey, open sound they have and that all seems to get squashed when they go humbucking.

I used to use a Rocktron noisegate. I didn't have any P-90's for a while so I ditched it and haven't bothered since I started using them again.

Do you actually hear the hum when you are playing or is it when you stop? It might pay to get the guitar some better shielding before you do anything else but again too much shielding tends to mess with the sound too.

[Captain Morgan]

The SD does a far better job than the P-100. P-100's do make good fridge magnets though.

I don't think the Dimarzio Virtual P-90 was the one I used (at least by name), it looks the same but I thought it was called the Blues 90. May be the same pup with a name change? I read the desciption and that's about what it sounds like. It wasn't a bad pup but to me it reminded me of a mini-hum, not as open as a P-90. That's the case with almost all the noiseless/hum cancelling versions. To me the best part of P-90's is the wirey, open sound they have and that all seems to get squashed when they go humbucking.

I used to use a Rocktron noisegate. I didn't have any P-90's for a while so I ditched it and haven't bothered since I started using them again.

Do you actually hear the hum when you are playing or is it when you stop? It might pay to get the guitar some better shielding before you do anything else but again too much shielding tends to mess with the sound too.

Unfortunately a bit of both in certain cases - that's why I try to keep everything as quiet as possible. The Rocktron noisegate - would that be the HUSH pedal? Or was it an actual rack mounted noisegate?

Most of my Fenders have some issue with shielding - I've had techs look into it and it's never been worth the hassle since there would still be some grounding issues. I guess it's the nature of the guitar. That's why I'm trying not to add to the problem. I've emailed Lollar to see what he's got to offer, but as it looks the Duncans are probably going in.

[olivier]

Most of my Fenders have some issue with shielding - I've had techs look into it and it's never been worth the hassle since there would still be some grounding issues. I guess it's the nature of the guitar. That's why I'm trying not to add to the problem.

same shit for me , and i'm not too happy with all the noisegate thing . i believe it kills the "clean" sound

[Captain Morgan]

Most of my Fenders have some issue with shielding - I've had techs look into it and it's never been worth the hassle since there would still be some grounding issues. I guess it's the nature of the guitar. That's why I'm trying not to add to the problem.

same shit for me , and i'm not too happy with all the noisegate thing . i believe it kills the "clean" sound

Yeah - that's the issue I've run into a lot. I can't seem to find a noisegate that just "works" you know? I love Fender guitars to death but there's always a permanent shielding issue with them.

[lerxstcat]

oops...

[lerxstcat]

The SD does a far better job than the P-100. P-100's do make good fridge magnets though.

I don't think the Dimarzio Virtual P-90 was the one I used (at least by name), it looks the same but I thought it was called the Blues 90. May be the same pup with a name change? I read the desciption and that's about what it sounds like. It wasn't a bad pup but to me it reminded me of a mini-hum, not as open as a P-90. That's the case with almost all the noiseless/hum cancelling versions. To me the best part of P-90's is the wirey, open sound they have and that all seems to get squashed when they go humbucking.

I used to use a Rocktron noisegate. I didn't have any P-90's for a while so I ditched it and haven't bothered since I started using them again.

Do you actually hear the hum when you are playing or is it when you stop? It might pay to get the guitar some better shielding before you do anything else but again too much shielding tends to mess with the sound too.

Unfortunately a bit of both in certain cases - that's why I try to keep everything as quiet as possible. The Rocktron noisegate - would that be the HUSH pedal? Or was it an actual rack mounted noisegate?

Most of my Fenders have some issue with shielding - I've had techs look into it and it's never been worth the hassle since there would still be some grounding issues. I guess it's the nature of the guitar. That's why I'm trying not to add to the problem. I've emailed Lollar to see what he's got to offer, but as it looks the Duncans are probably going in.

I use a Rocktron Intellifex which has the HUSh noise reduction built-in, and it works great for me. I've never even had to fuck with the presets for that. Of course I don't play Fenders either, though most of my guitars do have coil taps and I am happy with my always-chorused clean sound. You may be more picky though.

You can get the Intellifex used for about $100 or just a little more, and get great choruses, flanges and delays as well. It's not state of the art but for the noise reduction, chorus and delay alone I love mine. Pretty transparent to your tone too.

[Captain Morgan]

Huh...I'll look into that! But you're saying the Hush pedal is built in?

[lerxstcat]

Huh...I'll look into that! But you're saying the Hush pedal is built in?

Yeah, The Intellifex is a multieffects unit and since the HUSH was one of their early staples it is built in and is a great unit! Plus sweet choruses, flanges, delays, very handy unit to have. If you don't want the other effects you can just program a preset location that has the Hush only. You can also program no effects but a solo boost preset as well, or delay, noisegate and solo boost as a preset... you get the idea.

The Hush is also available separately as a pedal but if you have an effects loop I personally prefer rackmount and just leave it on. YMMV. But I, being a cheapass, would rather have the multi for the price you'd pay for a pedal, and I feel that a noise gate is better between the pre and power sections than in front of the amp. Comversely, I don't really like running pedals in the loop, though some amps have adjustable sends and returns to deal with pedals as well as line level. So that's why I prefer the rackmount version weith the Hush built in. If you don't have a loop then the pedal might be the way for you to go.

[Captain Morgan]

Huh...I'll look into that! But you're saying the Hush pedal is built in?

Yeah, The Intellifex is a multieffects unit and since the HUSH was one of their early staples it is built in and is a great unit! Plus sweet choruses, flanges, delays, very handy unit to have. If you don't want the other effects you can just program a preset location that has the Hush only. You can also program no effects but a solo boost preset as well, or delay, noisegate and solo boost as a preset... you get the idea.

The Hush is also available separately as a pedal but if you have an effects loop I personally prefer rackmount and just leave it on. YMMV. But I, being a cheapass, would rather have the multi for the price you'd pay for a pedal, and I feel that a noise gate is better between the pre and power sections than in front of the amp. Comversely, I don't really like running pedals in the loop, though some amps have adjustable sends and returns to deal with pedals as well as line level. So that's why I prefer the rackmount version weith the Hush built in. If you don't have a loop then the pedal might be the way for you to go.

I do have a loop. I was looking into a few reviews of the Hush pedal and it said that it works best in a loop instead of in front. Hmm...for $70 or so it wouldn't be bad to try it out.

[ElToro]

A Hush pedal in front will do squat. The loop is the best place for it and all your time based effects.

[Liquid Boom Boom]

A Hush pedal in front will do squat. The loop is the best place for it and all your time based effects.

my Mxr phase sounds like ass in the loop and way too strong out front. I have the knob barely turned when its out front and it is way too much. Any suggestions?

Last week I had my Groove Tubes changed to Tung Sols. Incredible. Big fat , round tone. I wish I had done this months ago.

[wattage13]

Pretty sure it was the Hush pedal, it was blue if that helps.