having amp fixed

[mbengs1]

I had my amp fixed months ago because it sounded to trebly or spikey. I plan to have my amp serviced once a year by the same guy. is it reasonable to ask to modify the amp to my tastes? or will the average amp tech refuse to make custom mods to amps. i just want to cut out the treble way down. but i get the feeling he can't take out more treble than what was originally there. no modding to my taste. just bring it back to the original condition. do you understand me?

[t_e_l_e]

do you understand me?

 

nope

 

[Phil O'Keefe]

I had my amp fixed months ago because it sounded to trebly or spikey. I plan to have my amp serviced once a year by the same guy. is it reasonable to ask to modify the amp to my tastes? or will the average amp tech refuse to make custom mods to amps. i just want to cut out the treble way down. but i get the feeling he can't take out more treble than what was originally there. no modding to my taste. just bring it back to the original condition. do you understand me?

 

It will depend on at least three factors - what the amp model is, what you'd like to have done, and who the tech is. Not all amps are easily modified - some are much harder to work on than others (P2P vs PCB, tube vs solid state, etc.) and not all techs are willing to take on modification jobs as opposed to repair work. If it's a tricky amp to work on and a difficult and complicated modification you want done, expect to pay more for the job, and to have a harder time finding a tech who is willing to do the work.

 

I used to manage an equipment repair shop at one point in another lifetime. We did amp mods too. Not all techs know how to mod amps, and some are better at coming up with mods than others. However, there are plenty of mod ideas floating around out there, and a good tech will probably know of a lot of them. You can probably find some with a Google search.

 

If your amp's tone stack was modified previously, or some other work was done to make the amp less bright, he should be able to undo that and put it back to where it was originally. If you want less treble than stock, that shouldn't be too hard to do either - again, depending on the model of the amp.

 

You'll probably get the best answers to your question in this particular case by just talking it over with your tech. Tell them what you want and see if they can accommodate you. If not, maybe consider a different tech - if not for the annual servicing, then at least for the mods.

[DeepEnd]

I'd suggest you invest in an EQ pedal or trade in your amp.

[WRGKMC]

I'll second what Phil says. I repaired amps for a living. Older tube amp designs which have point to point wiring are based on generic amp types and many mods can be adapted from other circuits that are similar.

 

Solid State, forget it, especially if its something newer. You cant find schematics for the new ones and they don't list the specific part numbers on most. Many manufacturers go to great lengths making the amps tamper proof. They put their own part numbers on the parts so you have to buy replacements from them only, and most wont sell you the parts because they only replace entire boards. Even if you know what you're doing any changes made can have dire consequences in other parts of the circuitry. You can do repairs on dozens using the same parts and then you get some transistors that have out of spec values and the amp goes up in smoke.

 

Been there and done it. I even compared transistors on a load line analyzer to match them and still had problems. This is because the entire circuit ages and components vary in tolerance over time. Putting a new part in an old circuit may not work like it did when the amp had all new components. SS amps run on low voltages and its not like you can stick different preamp or power resistors in them and nit have to redesign all the support circuitry back to and including the power supply.

 

If its something that's been around a long time and the tech has developed tricks, (often through necessity making non OEM parts work) or found better substitute parts, then he may be able to improve reliability. Beefing up the power caps, doing some minor tone mods, or maybe putting in an effects loop may be possible with some amps.

 

But you also risk turning that same amp into a bon fire sticking parts in there that weren't part of the computer model they were built around. In solid state it doesn't take much variance in parts to convert a good amp into a piece of junk. The parts specs may have the same values but just a slight different in resistance and the entire amp goes south.

 

I have done mods on both SS and tube amps, but I always add the clause that the repair warrantee is void. If the guy takes it home and sticks a pedal in the effects loop and cranks the signal up to 100 degrees and blows the amp, its his tough luck. I don't want him bringing it back and trying to get a refund or a free repair. Of course all mods today voids the manufacturers warrantee if it has one, and it also devalues most amps as well.

 

My suggestion if its an old tube head and you can Google up the mods available, then its likely something that can be safely done. From there its up to you trusting the tech to know what's he's doing. Most will know what they can and cant do and most techs I know are honest when asked. Tell him what you're looking to do first. If you don't know, He wont know what suggestions to offer. By the number of posts you put on this site,

 

I'm not sure you know what you want so listen to his opinions. If he thinks the amp is junk and its better to sell it and upgrade, then that's likely the safest and least expensive route. You also need to realize and amp tech cant turn a profit. Unless he's charging you $75~ $125 an hour he's probably not a professional. Some mots can take quite a bit of time. When you're looking at a couple of hours work on an amp that isn't worth $200 then you're just throwing your money out the window for no good reason.

[Top.Echelon]

. is it reasonable to ask to modify the amp to my tastes?

No. Just look around as long as it takes to find the amp that satisfies you.

 

It makes no logical sense at all to waste your money on modifying an amp to sound like a different amp.

 

I purchased my Diezel Herbert in June of 2005 and I couldn't be happier with it to this.

 

[t_e_l_e]

first thing i would do if something is too trebly is turning down the tone knob and then maybe trying a eq pedal

and then i would suggest to get another amp if you are not happy with the one you have

and if this is all sorted out first, i would think about anything else....

 

without knowing which amp we talk about it is hard to talk about modding options and what anybody could do for you

and its not the amp alone, it is the speakers you use, if tube amp which tubes are in at which place, hell in which room you play at which volume has effect how trebly you experience your amp and at an other place it might be too dark sounding....

[mbengs1]

I have a boss ge-7 equalizer. but the range doesnt seem to be enough. i need more high and low frequencies.

[WRGKMC]

What kind of amp is it?

[t_e_l_e]

I have a boss ge-7 equalizer. but the range doesnt seem to be enough. i need more high and low frequencies.

 

then scoop the mids, which means highs and lows completely on full and the mids to the complete opposite direction, what you than need is more gain -> welcome to Nu-Metal brewtals

 

and again, what amp is it? if a ge7 and a SD1 or any other simple distortion pedal cannot get you there with the amp you have, you have the wrong amp. e.g. if you have a blues junior or the like and with the above or similar pedal combination your are not happy with your sound, you will never be able the mod the blues jr to get you there. its the complete wrong amp for this

 

get a peavey XXX or 6505 or what they are called and you have it out of the box

[mbengs1]

What kind of amp is it?

 

It's a Bugera 6262 120 watt all tube head.

[t_e_l_e]

never played such amp, but reading the produ ct description on their website:

"The gain structure and tonal character of the 6262 INFINIUM is built using the same fundamentals as the 6260 INFINIUM, but provides much more midrange content, making it perfect for 80’s-style rock and metal. You also get fully independent control of EQ, Presence and Reverb on both of the 6262 INFINIUM’s channels. Put it all together, and you’ve got one monster guitar amp on your hands – the 6262 INFINIUM! "

 

sounds to me its the complete opposite of what you are asking for, right? an amp which provides much more midrange content.....

[mbengs1]

Mine isn't the infinium, though. I got the older version. I bought it mostly for the clean channel. It's fender-y. I prefer a amp with good cleans than good distortion.

[onelife]

I would suggest trying several different amplifiers to see what, if anything, is available that will give you the sound you are looking for without the need for modification.

 

 

or… you could get yourself one of these...

 

[Phil O'Keefe]

I have a boss ge-7 equalizer. but the range doesnt seem to be enough. i need more high and low frequencies.

 

Maybe consider something like the MXR 10-band graphic EQ instead?

[mbengs1]

i don't like mxr though

[WRGKMC]

^^^ They're durable enough and the filters don't produce any oddball side effects. The boosts and cuts are probably the most natural in an EQ this size. I've had my 10 band since around 1976. Of course mine doesn't look as good as this one. Mine saw allot of constant road work and hasn't even got any paint left on it. The rubber tops on the sliders are missing too but it still works fine.

 

I don't use it on a pedal board for at least 25 years. I used it to produce more midrange drive on my Fender amp. My old Bassman doesn't have a Midrange knob and using this EQ allowed be to get some Marshall tones I couldn't get otherwise during the 80's from that amp.

 

Of course the pedal options were much more limited back then. You got most of your drive cranking a clean amp up vs using the drives and modelers you have today. I've since abandoned the attempts to make one amp sound like another and instead focusing on making an amp produce its best signature tones. I'm also lucky enough to own at least a half dozen different amps and if I want say a Marshall, Sunn, or Ampeg tone I simply power up those amps. The rest I do with pedals as needed.

 

I used plug into a Rolland S1 Sustainer which is an optical Compressor, Feed that into this.

 

 

 

Then I'd feed the EQ into this Parametric Overdrive.

 

 

 

From there I'd use an Electronic Mistress Flanger into a Multivox Echo, the ones with a mini 8 Track type cartridge.

 

I used that setup for a long time and it gave me some really good tones considering how simple it was. The Parametric filter had a huge range of frequency shaping. I still have that box too. They are pretty rare now. They weren't cheap back in the day and are selling for fairly high prices today. The unique part was you could use your foot to change all the setting. Built like a tank too. The aluminum case is around 5mm thick and its built with the highest quality class A components and Glass caps that will outlive most pedals out there.

[Phil O'Keefe]

i don't like mxr though

 

Sucks to be you...

 

 

There are other options though... maybe a used Boss EQ20?

[mbengs1]

 

Sucks to be you...

 

 

There are other options though... maybe a used Boss EQ20?

 

Yea but the EQ20 are out of production now. i dont trust second hand anymore. I shoulda got one back in 2007 when they came out.

[mbengs1]

I would suggest trying several different amplifiers to see what, if anything, is available that will give you the sound you are looking for without the need for modification.

 

 

or… you could get yourself one of these...

 

 

that amp looks like its from the 80's hehe.

[onelife]

It doesn't really matter what it looks like - It's the best and most versatile sounding amp I have ever owned. I'm confident you would find what you are looking for with one.

 

It actually came out in the late 90s.