New Amp Day.

[JSett]

I've been having some issues with my Bassman. I thought I'd got it fixed (with a little help from Dr Balls) but it blew/fucked-up pretty dramatically 2 songs into my gig on Friday. We've got a lot of shows coming up so reliability is key. I bought an Orange Super Crush as a backup but it's not the tone I like...it's a 'it'll do in a pinch' amp.

I did a ton of research and remembered Jonsie on here recommending Victory. Looking at their line, and what I get out of my AB165 Bassman (ie: an extra gain stage) and deduced, with a little YouTube help, that the V30 'The Jack' was the one.

It arrived this evening and initial feelings are very very good. It's 42w, so more than loud enough, and has a weird, but also awesome half-Fender, half-Marshall vibe. The dirty channel is more gain than I'd ever know what to do with but the clean with the 'crunch' pull out pot is pretty damn close to my cranked Bassman - close enough that no one will care. I can't see me using any other setting than that to be honest and just tweak to each room. We have another gig on Thursday so it'll get an outing then and a proper test.

From what I can tell they're based not that far from me either, and they're all hand-built here. I've not opened it yet but I'm going to assume it's wild in there so going to leave it the hell alone here is the thing...



And, for some reason I also got bundled a Blackstar channel switch which I have absolutely zero use for. If someone here can use it, you can have it for free - I'll even ship it for free if you're in the UK...I've got way too much stuff here as it is

[Domm]

Congrats! I’ve had a few victory amps, a kraken and sheriff? Both were well built and did as advertised. My band is just too loud and they could not quit keep up. We need big transformer 50 watt amps to keep up with our drummer! Haha! I think the wattage on them is a bit over estimated. The power transformers are pretty small across the line.

[JSett]

Congrats! I’ve had a few victory amps, a kraken and sheriff? Both were well built and did as advertised. My band is just too loud and they could not quit keep up. We need big transformer 50 watt amps to keep up with our drummer! Haha! I think the wattage on them is a bit over estimated. The power transformers are pretty small across the line.

I think the higher gain models are a bit quieter, or seem it, due to natural tube compression and sag. I have the Bassman almost fixed and A/B'd them and, volume wise, there's not a lot in it. The Bassman isn't a very loud 50w compared to others I have tried so maybe there's that. I used to run old 70's Oranges so everything kinda feels quiet now I cut a lot of lows though to make space for the bass guitar so there's a load on power not being wasted by low end and low mids.

Our drummer is a loud fucker too, but I can get enough power to cope with him from a Hot Rod Deluxe if I EQ it right. This should be fine.

[stevejamsecono]

Nice! Welcome to the family.

I've got two, the RK50 and the Countess MK2 which is basically identical to your Jack. Both great amps, although the Countess is definitely a little less single minded and therefore easier to dial in. Really cool amps and using amp gain is a nice alternative to all the pedalheads out there.

[JSett]

Yeah I was very confused by the Countess thing until I realised it was just a rebrand. I'll still use a Blues Driver or Rat for pushed sounds but the base 'gritty clean' I can get from the Crunch setting is *chefs kiss* from the playing I've managed here before it got too late to annoy the neighbours

[DeathJag]

Bummer about the Bassman! That brand looks pretty fancy schmancy!

[JSett]

Bummer about the Bassman! That brand looks pretty fancy schmancy!

It's annoying but I will fix it and likely reserve it for recording duties as it sounds so damn glorious when it works as it should. I agree it looks a bit flashy, which is very much not my thing. I'm going to email them and ask if I can buy a spare chassis cover/top thing and delete the branding.

[JSett]

I spoke to Victory and they very kindly agreed to sell me (for quite a reasonable price) a spare top grille so I deleted the (to me) obnoxious branding. I much prefer it this way...

[marqueemoon]

The whole idea of buying a second cage to do this is pretty funny, but yeah. Much better.

[JSett]

The whole idea of buying a second cage to do this is pretty funny, but yeah. Much better.

I agree, but they only wanted £30 for it and it means if I ever sell the amp it won't be a bone of contention

[panoramic]

these amps are hella cool. I played one a while back in DC and really enjoyed it with this 74 tele deluxe i'm enamored with but afraid to pony up $2500 for.
I like that half marshall vibe a lot and wonder how marshall it would get with my jmp 11 pedal.

[JSett]

these amps are hella cool. I played one a while back in DC and really enjoyed it with this 74 tele deluxe i'm enamored with but afraid to pony up $2500 for.
I like that half marshall vibe a lot and wonder how marshall it would get with my jmp 11 pedal.

Probably quite Marshally...I tested it with a bunch of OD pedals and a Timmy (clone) made it actually even more so. Sounded like a juiced JCM800 once I EQ'd it to suit.

[panoramic]

these amps are hella cool. I played one a while back in DC and really enjoyed it with this 74 tele deluxe i'm enamored with but afraid to pony up $2500 for.
I like that half marshall vibe a lot and wonder how marshall it would get with my jmp 11 pedal.

Probably quite Marshally...I tested it with a bunch of OD pedals and a Timmy (clone) made it actually even more so. Sounded like a juiced JCM800 once I EQ'd it to suit.

sounds rad to me