Members ForrestS Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 I found a THD Univalve 15W for $499. I played it and i think it sounds awesome. What are your thoughts about this amp? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members golfnerd Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 It's a great amp. Lots of fun to experiment with different tubes. Bombproof build quality and top notch customer service. But...do NOT be fooled by the low wattage....it IS LOUD. Even with the hot plate engaged, it was louder than you could talk - not a bedroom amp - at least in MHO. Cleans were very nice, but the amp breaks up pretty early. My fav tubes were 6V6 and EL34. I was running mine thru a 2x12 with Celestion G12H-80 speakers in a cab built along the lines of a G-Flex cab. I loved the amp and regret selling it. 499 is a good price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GCDEF Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 It's a novelty item with no real practical application. Unless you want to use one sound all night, it's useless for gigging, and with all the digital technology and other amps with similar technology, the tube swapping thing is really just a gimmick. I guess it depends what you're looking for, but to me it was the most over-hyped, impractical amp I think I've ever owned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Bob Savage Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 I found a THD Univalve 15W for $499. I played it and i think it sounds awesome. What are your thoughts about this amp? It's a nice little amp that's gimmicky to people who believe it should be capable of automated tube changes on the fly. If you like the amps voicing then swapping tubes allows you to further fine tune the amp to your taste. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Miter Gauge Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 It's a novelty item with no real practical application. Unless you want to use one sound all night, it's useless for gigging, and with all the digital technology and other amps with similar technology, the tube swapping thing is really just a gimmick. I guess it depends what you're looking for, but to me it was the most over-hyped, impractical amp I think I've ever owned. Lot's of people gig with vintage fender and marshall amps that each have one sound so I'm not sure the univalve would be at much of a disadvantage in that respect right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ForrestS Posted August 28, 2012 Author Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 Unless you want to use one sound all night,. What do you mean an amp with only one sound? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cliff Fiscal Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 It's a great recording amp, and can work well in some live applications. I enjoyed playing with mine, but ultimately found it bright. Couldn't really dial it out either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DaveGrima Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 I love mine. I got it used as well for $450! I dont believe the tube swapping thing is a gimmick. I've tried various types of tubes in mine and have found it really changes the sound of the amp, even with different brands of the same tube type. It also changes the overall wattage and headroom. It can get some beautiful clean tones depending on the pre-amp tubes used. I think thats where it really outshines it competitors, like the Orange TT for instance. Id say go for it for $500. Its a very well built American made tube amp with a built in Hot Plate. Compare it to other similarly priced 15w small tube heads, NightTrain, TinyTerror, etc and I think it comes out ahead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Miter Gauge Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 I love mine. I got it used as well for $450! I dont belive the tube swapping thing is a gimmick. I've tried various types of tubes in mine and have found it really changes the sound of the amp, even with different brands of the same tube type. It also changes the overall wattage and headroom.Id say go for it for $500. Its a very well built American made tube amp with a built in Hot Plate. Compare it to other similarly priced 15w small tube heads, NightTrain, TinyTerror, etc and I think it comes out ahead. I agree about it being kind of bright but I didn't mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members DaveGrima Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 I dont notice any overly bright sounds on mine that cant be adjusted with the treble/bass knobs and/or guitar tone. I use overdrive pedals with the rock channel a lot and that allows for further tone shaping. But yeah, YMMV, but I don't really think its an especially bright amp. Of course the tubes your using are gonna affect the EQ quite a bit. My favorite set-up so far is a Tung-Sol 6V6, GrooveTube 12ax7 in V1 and a NOS RCA 12ax7 in V2. Ive tried {censored}loads of different pre-amp tubes, including some NOS and I really like the Groove Tube the best in V1. Go figure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ForrestS Posted August 28, 2012 Author Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 I agree about it being kind of bright but I didn't mind. Are you suggesting that it may seem like it has to much treble? I haven't decided what cab i want to get. I know that well have a great influence on the tone as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GCDEF Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 What do you mean an amp with only one sound? I mean even though it has clean and dirty channels, so to speak, you can't change between them, and the one I had at least didn't clean up well at all by rolling the guitar's volume back. It didn't have enough clean headroom to hang with a drummer, so you're pretty much stuck with that one distorted sound. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GCDEF Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 Lot's of people gig with vintage fender and marshall amps that each have one sound so I'm not sure the univalve would be at much of a disadvantage in that respect right? Except the vintage Marshall and Fenders are primarily clean to moderate crunch amps with a ton of headroom, and you can use pedals to goose them if you want more distortion. With no clean headroom to speak of, but UV isn't giggable the way those amps are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GCDEF Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 I love mine. I got it used as well for $450! I dont believe the tube swapping thing is a gimmick. I've tried various types of tubes in mine and have found it really changes the sound of the amp, even with different brands of the same tube type. It also changes the overall wattage and headroom. I guess it depends what you want. Personally, I'd just get an amp that sounded the way I wanted rather than trying a bunch of different sounds in the UV trying to find the one I like. I would think once you find your sound, you're not going to be changing tubes a lot, certainly not live, and for recording modelers have far eclipsed what a Univalve can do for a fraction of the price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dman11 Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 There is a web site with some mods. I did the bright cap mod and put it on a switch to reverse to stock. It is very bright on the clean . I didn't like any pedal in front as the brightness made it harsh.I eventually sold it. It was cool and all but too bad it didn't take well to my pedals.Maybe that's not what this amp was intended for.Something to think about.On the other hand playing it straight up with a 6V6 was great for classic rock. warm and bubbly crunch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Miter Gauge Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 Are you suggesting that it may seem like it has to much treble? I haven't decided what cab i want to get. I know that well have a great influence on the tone as well. No, I wouldn't go that far, I'd say the amp was voiced kind of bright, sort of like a deluxe reverb (to my ears), not a bad thing nor a good thing - just a thing. Again, that is just my perception, others may hear it differently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ForrestS Posted August 28, 2012 Author Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 I mean even though it has clean and dirty channels, so to speak, you can't change between them, and the one I had at least didn't clean up well at all by rolling the guitar's volume back. It didn't have enough clean headroom to hang with a drummer, so you're pretty much stuck with that one distorted sound. Good thing I'm just getting this for a practice amp and some at home recording. If I'm playing live i have a carvin valve matter 100 for that. I wouldn't expect a 15W amp to begin to stand up to a drummer, that's absurd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ForrestS Posted August 28, 2012 Author Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 There is a web site with some mods. I did the bright cap mod and put it on a switch to reverse to stock. It is very bright on the clean . I didn't like any pedal in front as the brightness made it harsh.I eventually sold it. It was cool and all but too bad it didn't take well to my pedals.Maybe that's not what this amp was intended for.Something to think about.On the other hand playing it straight up with a 6V6 was great for classic rock. warm and bubbly crunch. Bummer, i like to pay around with different pedals. Do you remember what the web site was with all the mods? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GCDEF Posted August 28, 2012 Members Share Posted August 28, 2012 Good thing I'm just getting this for a practice amp and some at home recording. If I'm playing live i have a carvin valve matter 100 for that. I wouldn't expect a 15W amp to begin to stand up to a drummer, that's absurd. You asked for thoughts dude, I'm giving them to you. You didn't mention your intentions in your first post. I've actually owned one and gigged with one. I'm not making stuff up. The rock side is plenty loud. It's the clean channel that has no headroom at all. Lots of people gig with 15 watt amps. I gig with an Egnater Renegade which is switchable between 18 and 65 watts and I leave it in the 18 watt mode all the time, and I have a hard hitting drummer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ForrestS Posted August 29, 2012 Author Members Share Posted August 29, 2012 I would have expected a Class A amp to have a ton of head room. What about swapping different tubes? Might that help? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Miter Gauge Posted August 29, 2012 Members Share Posted August 29, 2012 I would have expected a Class A amp to have a ton of head room. What about swapping different tubes? Might that help? I put 12AT7s and 12AU7s in the preamp and got some addl headroom but in my experience it really didn't have a lot of headroom but then again I didn't need it for my application. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Miter Gauge Posted August 29, 2012 Members Share Posted August 29, 2012 Good thing I'm just getting this for a practice amp and some at home recording. If I'm playing live i have a carvin valve matter 100 for that. I wouldn't expect a 15W amp to begin to stand up to a drummer, that's absurd. I guess it depends on your band's stage volume but 15 watts can be really loud depending upon the amp and cabinet in question. I used to play an old fender Champ (6 watts I think) through a 4x12 cab and it would rattle the windows! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GCDEF Posted August 29, 2012 Members Share Posted August 29, 2012 I would have expected a Class A amp to have a ton of head room. What about swapping different tubes? Might that help? Not with the clean channel. It's the way it's designed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members LaXu Posted August 29, 2012 Members Share Posted August 29, 2012 I'd also say the tube swapping is a gimmick. At some point you just settle for a particular combination. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cliff Fiscal Posted August 29, 2012 Members Share Posted August 29, 2012 I'd also say the tube swapping is a gimmick. At some point you just settle for a particular combination. Therefore, it wouldn't be a gimmick. DEFINITION COP As the tube swapping does change the tone, although, I agree, that once you find a combination you like.....you rarely stray from it. Some don't hear it, but I certainly heard a drastic tone change when comparing each end of the tube combination spectrum. I heard a tonal difference from one type of power tube to another type power tube as well. A gimmick would be the ability to swap tubes without a change in tone, but claiming that there was as a selling point. gimmick: a concealed, usually devious aspect or feature of something, as a plan or deal: An offer that good must have a gimmick in it somewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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