Best Small Amps For Recording

assfortress · Post by **assfortress** » Fri Nov 18, 2005 7:11 pm

could you post a link to some information about this squak box. ive never heard of it.

soundguy · Post by **soundguy** » Fri Nov 18, 2005 8:28 pm

squawk boxes were monitoring amps meant to hook up directly to either a magnetic tape head or an optical reader on a film editing system. Both types will usually have a film head input, however you have to find one that was meant for mag stock if you want to plug and play and have it work as the impedance is closer to what a guitar wants to see. There's a million different types from a million different companies, this was the primary way people edited movies on moviolas, steenbecks and gang synchers for 40 years... Many are 1-5w single ended amps, real simple, real perfect for guitar. Some you can get cheap and will work great with a guitar, some wont work at all, the input impedance is really the primary thing to be concerned with, however if you are techy at all, they are easy enough to modify for guitar if you have the time. just beware that just because there is a jack labeled tape head or something like that it wont *necessarily* work out but many will.

dave

penelec · Post by **penelec** » Sun Nov 20, 2005 5:00 pm

I don't think I'd ever front the cash for one, but if you can borrow a Mesa lonestar Special, it's a great amp for recording. But since Shawn1272 mentioned an AC-30, I guess I can mention this. I still am a fan of the Pathfinder 15R, btw. It just takes some getting used to mic'ing it.

geetar · Post by **geetar** » Sun Nov 20, 2005 6:27 pm

Just picked a Gibson Goldtone GA 15. Little 15 watt clas A tube amp. One volume, one tone and a bright switch. Good punchy clean, but when you put a distortion pedal in front of it, it's "rock in a box"!! Paid 499.00 used locally but you can find 'em on e-bay all day for about 400.00

r0ck1r0ck2 · Post by **r0ck1r0ck2** » Sun Nov 20, 2005 6:31 pm

I'm totally in love with my Gibson Skylark GA-5 (Crestline =1962)
On/Off/Volume....
been throwing a m160 in front of it and it kills...

assfortress · Post by **assfortress** » Sun Nov 20, 2005 7:15 pm

does anyone know the differences in the skylarks(blackface/tweed, were different years better than others, etc)?

r0ck1r0ck2 · Post by **r0ck1r0ck2** » Mon Nov 21, 2005 1:18 am

i can only comment on the crestline...
Good!!/Cheap!!

did you see this page???

http://www.informatik.uni-bremen.de/~dace/gg/

s00p3rm4n · Post by **s00p3rm4n** » Mon Nov 21, 2005 2:09 am

r0ck1r0ck2 wrote:I'm totally in love with my Gibson Skylark GA-5 (Crestline =1962)
On/Off/Volume....
been throwing a m160 in front of it and it kills...

GA-5t owner.

The tremelo in this thing is INSANE. It's square wave, so it totally cuts out. But the sound is warmer than oatmeal.

The circuitry between the GA-5 (early tan-colored one), the GA-5t (dark wood with reddish material, and the later GA-5s (very plain 60's/70's style) is completely different. The tube complement is entirely different, too. I know this because I had to track down tube and transformer schematics to get my GA-5t's transformer replaced (faulty trem, sadly). But damn, how it breaks up... I threw in an octave pedal in front of it just for kicks, and damn - the speaker can handle bass frequencies! I guess the brightness of the sound is a result of the way the amp's wired, not the speaker's brightness. It made the natural overdrive grow into a small roar, but really anything I throw at it sounds like money. Like the Beatles making sweet, sweet love inside a tiny old speaker.

I also own a GA-20RVT ("minuteman"). It's got one of the prettiest clean sounds I've ever heard. Has a lovely (and totally different from GA-5t) tremelo, and a gorgeous reverb (if you find one with working reverb). Doesn't break up as easily, but it's also a class A. You can patch one channel into the other, and that will easily bring the rock sans pedal. It's got a rudimentary EQ (with surprising amounts of bass) and a loud-ass speaker. They're starting to go for bigger bucks on Ebay.

P.S. either of these amps really really <3 pedals.

I'm not sure if it's morally right to love pieces of musical equipment this much. I even patched them together once. I'm afraid to do it, for some reason. But it was so wonderful. When I get my replacement transformer popped in, I think I'll try to get both going with their wildly different tremelos around an omni mic for some hot Kevin Shields action.

inverseroom · Post by **inverseroom** » Mon Nov 21, 2005 7:56 am

s00p3rm4n wrote:GA-5t owner.
The tremelo in this thing is INSANE. It's square wave, so it totally cuts out. But the sound is warmer than oatmeal.

Oddly, my GA-5T crestline had triangle tremolo, and a very bright tone. When I was getting my local amp tech to fix it, I had to look for the schem...I did find it, but it turns out there are lots of different circuits of this same amp, some with completely different tubes. Mine had four or five tubes (I can't remember if the rectifier was a tube), some have only three...

Rufer · Post by **Rufer** » Mon Nov 21, 2005 9:19 am

I think my Vox Pathfinder 15R sounds fantastic.

r0ck1r0ck2 · Post by **r0ck1r0ck2** » Mon Nov 21, 2005 11:39 am

lesse my crestline came with a MojoTone Ceramc kinda bright but sounded cool
3 days after getting the amp i was digging threw piles of speakers at this local hawk shop and was handed an old Alnico speaker (newly reconed i should add)
$50
sounds amazing!!

i'm gonna try swapping the speakers back and forth for the hell of it...
and yes the beatles are having a nice old time in mine too!!

Ronan · Post by **Ronan** » Fri Nov 25, 2005 1:53 am

My 12 watt "Brenda K" by Jule Amps is rockin' my world lately. Its got two knobs and two switches and is insanely versatile.
http://www.juleamps.com/

Cowbell Anarchy · Post by **Cowbell Anarchy** » Sat Nov 26, 2005 6:10 pm

I made this same thread a couple weeks ago.

http://messageboard.tapeop.com/viewtopi ... c&&start=0

Though, almost everyone has made the same suggestions there as well.

r0ck1r0ck2 · Post by **r0ck1r0ck2** » Sat Nov 26, 2005 6:18 pm

it's crazy how versatile a 2 knob amp can be...
not exactly mono synth versatile but still

RefD · Post by **RefD** » Mon Nov 28, 2005 3:41 am

looks like the Vox Pathfinder 15R has been discontinued.
at least the Vox website shows that.

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