Hello everybody. Ignazio Vagnone from Jensen Speakers here. First of all, Rhett, awesome contents here. Extremely useful concepts, explained in a plain, straightforward fashion, and of course, great tones all over the place. Thank you, I do think this kind of presentations have a lot of value for the community. Small amps with small speakers can do wonders in a studio setting. A cool mic setup and an appropriate use of the proximity effect can transfer to tape some of the biggest tones ever. There are countless, incredible guitar tones recorded with small cranked amps. Joe Walsh's Funk #49 is a premium example. Very inspiring video! Allow me a couple of words about the speakers in the Falcon line: both the FA5 and FA20 have a Jensen Blackbird 40 "Reinforced Alnico" speaker. The FA5 has the 10" version while the FA20 has the 12". Very similar speakers, same magnet, same voice coil, same membrane style... just smaller in the 10" version. You may think the Blackbird 40 range as a louder, stronger version of the old Jensen P10Q and P12Q. The BB40 speakers are "vintege voiced" with the typical sparkle of the "50's inspired" speakers, but because of a 30% stronger ("reinforced Alnico") magnet than their ancestors, they are more efficient across the whole range, tighter and more powerful in the bass range. If anyone is interested in knowing more about... just hit me! Always ready for some tech/tone talk!
I just put a pair of P12R's in an open back 2x12 mainly to use with a Dr Z EZG amp (think tweaked fender super). They sound great, and their "inefficiency" is really an asset allowing the amp cook a little more without killing you with volume. I often wonder there aren't more "inefficient" speakers made by design/purpose for that, but maybe it's technically not doable? Thanks!
@@AdamGotheridge Glad you liked the P12R! Yep, with less than 94dB sensitivity (1W/1mt) they are really low in efficiency, and that spec certainly helps pushing the amp without killing your eardrums (and your neighbours). They are abour 6dB quieter than your average contemporary 12", be it Jensen, Celestion or anyone else. However, I remember that there was a speaker on the market with a big attenuator knob over the magnet, that basically reduced the magnet flux, this progressivaly attenuating the speaker's SPL. There was very little interest from the market (maybe also because it was quite expensive) so I doubt that's a viable way. A speaker's tone is a very delicate balance between very simple factors. Some factors may reduce the sensitivity, but they will impact the tone. Ultimately, the attenuation technology has evolved SO good, that with the latest generation of reactive-load based attenuators, I truly believe you don't need to look elsewhere. A good one will sound nearly as good as the amp in its "sweet spot", just quieter. And if you don't need it, you just unplug/bypass it. A speaker is a harder committment. We use the Fryette Power Station PS2-A on a daily basis in our development and demo rooms in the factory. I have one at home as well and I still wonder how the heck I could have survived without it for all these years!
@@JensenSpeakersVideos Thank you very much for the thorough explanation. Powerstation on the list, and I'll probably wonder how I got by with one as well. 🙏
@@AdamGotheridge Thank you! I just love sharing what we've learned in so many years of tone researches! I'd be very curious to hear your thoughs on the PS... we love it for so many reasons: 1) it's a great sounding reactive load, if you want to connect your amp straight into your DAW. 2) The loaded down signal will then be amped back with the 2x6L6 AB Class push/pull pentode 60W power stage. In such way I can tame very powerful amps, but can also amp up small amps, such as my 1964 vintage Princeton Reverb. I love finding its sweet spot, that is usually too quiet for gigging, and then push it up as loud as I need! 3) having an effect loop, you can insert ambience effects AFTER the amp's natural overdrive. Even if those amps do not have an efx loop. 4) it works great as a tube power amp for digital or analog preamps and ampless pedalboards. In essence, not the most affordable option as an attenuator? No, but for all it does (and does it really well) we think it's very, very attractive.
I don't have a lot of amps, but I have a 100 watt Ampeg V5 that sounds okay and a Behringer combo with a tube power amp that sounds great, but in mine and some of my friend's opinions my little 20 watt solid state Orange amp has the best tone and that is probably what I'm going to start using for recording.
After years of videos about how and where to mic the cabinets - for the first time I've seen someone moving the mic when the music was playing. What a great demonstration of how huge effect the position of the mic has! Thanks!
It would definitely be sick to see a Gibson Falcon 5 vs 20 comparison in a full band/venue context. The headroom discussion in my opinion can't be had enough, because it varies so wildly with so many factors.
I so agree with this! I play most gigs with either a Princeton Reverb or a ~15 watt Filmosound…I always feel plenty loud, and have no idea why people thing more wattage is needed…even for clean tones. Would love to see that broken down in a real gig setting.
I have been gigging with a 5 watt 70s fender champ. No full drumset, mostly percussion. I fill in a lot of low end and get a nice warm tone close miced. I get more low end putting my gig bags behind the open back. My overdrive is set to lower the bass and boost. Love it!
Your videos are like mini documentaries these days. Great production value (and content, of course). I've got two ~20 watt amps and two ~5 watt amps. The latter - a Fender Custom 57 Champ, and a Vox AC4HW - are probably my favorites for the reasons you mentioned.
I bought a Fender Champion 600 reissue amp when they first came out. Five watts one 12AX7 and one 6V6. I run my pedalboard through this amp into 12", 2x12, 2x10, and 15" speakers depending on the sound I am going for. I love to crank the amp to get the 6V6 cookin'. You are absolutely right Rhett, little amps can give you a huge recorded sound
Great episode, Rhett! I adopted the “less is more” strategy a few years ago based on a thought that most of the records that I love were recorded with smaller amps. I had a local amp builder design a class A 20 watt “Princeton” 12” speaker with tube trem and reverb, selectable negative feedback, and a mid tone control. The touch response is in extremely dynamic and the amount of varied tones is almost endless. I can play any gig, and still have bedroom volumes. Yes, back in the old days they didn’t have great sound reinforcement and you had to have monster PA’s and amps onstage. It’s a brave new world, yet we’re still rocking tube technology with these amazing little amplifiers and a good mic. Keep up the good work, love the channel!
I used to own a Fender Twin Reverb until I realized that I never needed that much volume/power. I then traded it in for a Fender Blues Deluxe and, again, knew that I didn't need that much of an amp. Finally I got a Fender Champion 600. At 5 watts it's perfect for my needs; home practice, jamming and recording. It only features two inputs, Low and High and a single volume. I play it with a Boss digital reverb and a Tube Screamer and that's all I need to get the sound I want. And let's not forget that Derek and the Dominoes recorded Layla with a couple of Champs...
I've bought and sold a few 5 watt tube amps, my favorite is the Swart Atomic Jr. All tube with a tube reverb and one tone control, 8 inch Weber speaker, my tone search is completed.
I used to have a 8 watt ( I think) 1954 Gibsonette. It was great and truly all I needed....except when you played somewhere that didn't mic amps. Right now I'm really enjoying my Fender Excelsior.
Sounds great. Sadly, these new Gibson amps are incredibly expensive in Australia. I also have some reservations regarding the durability given that the tubes are mounted on the circuit board etc.
I had a Vox AC4TV 4 watt amp and that thing was great. I gave it to my nephew when I bought my Hot Rod deluxe, but I played that little Vox for a few years and a ton of gigs. I simply mic’d it up to the PA. I am very intrigued by this Gibson amp. I agree their old amps were fantastic.
This sentiment is exactly why my main amp is a Carr Mercury V... I use it in the 4 watt mode for all sessions and studio work, and even mic'd up small gigs. And then I can pop it into full 16 watt mode for all other gigs! Small amps are great.
Rhett…….. I have the Falcon 20 (12 watt) reason I got purchased it was because I love the history aspect and I’ve never had a amp with a Tremolo 😎 It all takes my Keeley noble screamer fantastic !
Not a 5 watt amp but my 1 watt Marshall DSL-1 has been a pleasant surprise. It fills the room and I’m able to turn it up not damage my ears or bother my neighbors. Great little home amp for a smaller space. I had bigger amps including a Marshall DSL-40 and Peavey Classic 50 which are 40 & 50 watts respectively and neither sounded anywhere near as nice as my 1 watt DSL-1 for home playing at non-gigging volumes.
I'm actually looking at that as an amp option right now. Glad to see a real world review of it. I'm burnt out on the modeling stuff and want something simple, and don't need 40 watts or 100 watts to fill my bedroom.
I like that you keep reminding us about "moving air". That's all that is happening with a speaker. It vibrates the air and that vibration is what hits our eardrums (or mic) and gives the perception of sound. Large amps (speaker cabinets) are made for big areas that have more "air" in the room. If you're working off of a mic or in a smaller room, then there is obviously less "air" needed.
Many years ago, An old musician friend of mine used to place his microphone towards the outer surface area of the speaker cone. i never questioned it and i just took it onboard as good practice. It is nice to see a full demonstration of the different types of mic placement.
I really wanted one of these until a few youtubers opened them up to show the pre amp tubes fixed to the pcb. You can't even see that the amp has pre amp tubes from the back. Plus there were a few other build design choices that lead me to believe these new Gibson amps wont last 15 years.. Id rather buy a vintage one for half the price and be twice as nice. These do sound good though. And look cool. But when a reputable amp builder on youtube opens one up and says the Stage Right tube amps are easier to service and built to the same quality, I lost the urge for one of these.
It's interesting time for the reviewing & influencing profession who get tgere hands on advance releases. They're going to have to adapt to the likelihood someone qualified to fully assess a new amp is eventually going to have sight of the circuit and report on YT the implications of the build. (Now THAT is a gamechanger! 😁)
I’ve made the switch to smaller amps A) because I don’t have a crew … transporting them is easier on the back and B) more practical for at home. I’ve been ripping through a marshal DSL15 and to this day … it’s been my favourite amp. Havnt recorded off of it yet.. but I’m excited too!
Great video. I don't play but I dabble in building amps for friends that do. One thing worth mentioning as a case for larger (but still probably "small" in the grand scheme of things) amps is how single ended (Class A) amps like this (single 6v6 output tube) have a very different sound when compared to larger push/pull (class AB) amps that start around the 15-20W range using a pair of 6V6 output tubes (think the Fender Deluxe series, or even the Falcon 20 you mention). Single ended amps have a very smooth sound that emphasizes even order harmonics and tend to respond well to overdrive (or just cranking the volume) with a very predictable, linear transition from clean to breakup. Most guitarists love this behavior because it gives these amps a great "touch response"... you can go from clean to OD by just controlling your pick attack and maybe rolling in a little volume knob on the guitar. However, push/pull amps introduce a new critical component to the signal path and that's the phase inverter. Single ended amps don't have/need one but push pull has to have this amplifcation stage to split/invert the signal to drive the two output tubes. The fun begins when you start to play around with different styles of phase inverter... there's more than one way to implement this stage and each one has unique properties that can provide interesting "color" to the sound. You can get assymetrical clipping and phase misalignment to generate more interesting harmonics in the final sound. This is part of what is responsible for the mythical reputations early deluxe amps have... The phase inverter circuits continued to evolve from the 5b3 to the 5e3 to the silver and black face deluxes and beyond... each revision trying to make a more "perfect" phase inverter for clean playing, but "more perfect" is sometimes less interesting when OD/distorted sound is concerned.
A truly salient point... so would it be possible to make a variable phase inverter circuit that could produce a more "perfect" inverter sound for clean applications and something a bit more wonky for distortion?
@@ethericlimerick2992 I don't see why not. You would want to play with the relative gains of each half of the wave (to make them clip assymetrically) and perhaps you could mess with the crossover point to introduce more phase delay for half of the signal ... that can add all sorts of nasty odd order harmonics to the singnal if that's what you're going for. Doing something like this would require significant knowlege of how the phase inverter circuits work though... I would quickly come up against the limits of my knowlege.
Completely agree. I don’t care for the sound of 10” speakers, but a 5 to 10 watt 12” sounds perfect. I love that more amp makers are doing smaller watt amps with modern features built in. The new 20 watt Soldano sounds fantastic and can go from very quiet to loud as hell. Magnatone makes a really nice small watt amp as well, and many others.
Yeah, my first amp was an old Peavey 'Valve King' 5W all tube, but unfortunately it only had a 8" speaker... I upgraded the cheap stock one to a nice Celestion, but I also 'modded' it so I could plug it into a broken Peavey Solid State 12" combo that I used as a 'speaker cabinet' ;)
@@versnellingspookie G5 here.. But I only like the clean channel.. not so crazy about the reverb or dirt channels.. I add that stuff from my board.. And I have a creamback Celestion 12… never played through a greenback.. but I heard that they’re awesome..
That seems like a great amp but at 1500 dollars, I think you could get an original Falcon from the early 60s with Reverb and tremolo (and still low power) for a lot less money and if you're lucky it may still have some nice RCA pre amp tubes in it.
No, it's NOT! This amp is NOT worth 1.5k dollars, not even half of it. This amp could be sold with profit at 300 bucks, but you're paying over 5x of that because it's "gibsun".
@@JohnWiku yeah, I was being a little polite. I think you could get three 60s Falcons for that price and still buy a Happy Meal. I do think it is a nice amp though I wonder how big a reverb tank is in that cab.
You don't need to spend $1.5-2k for a good 5 watt. Plenty of old decent quality fender champs out there for $400 right now.. If you do a little research you can find ones with modifications that make them even better than stock.
I was very interested in the new Gibson amps until I saw a TH-cam video that had images of the guts of these amps. They are not designed well and will be very difficult to service. I want an American made 5-12 watt tube amp with a great master volume or power scaling. I also want tube driven reverb and tremolo. Harmonic tube driven Tremolo for the win! Swart seems to be the only real option for me.
Totally with you regarding small amps in the studio. So flexible and versatile. I for one would enjoy seeing the 20 watt in a 3 or 4 piece setting. I’m pretty sure it will do alright.
$1500!!! Get the Monoprice 15 Watt instead instead...its never leaving the house anyway, nobody will know. Sounds great and its been as low as $240 in the last year. Get a Fender twin for anything else. Gibson has lost its mind.
Thank you Rhett for the amazingly informative primer on microphone placement. And thanks for the great tones. I'm trying to lose Sweetwater's number so I don't buy anymore gear...but I always find it again. The tones on the last bit you played were real-deal and the playing was superb.
Looking at frequency response of a 10" vs 12" guitar speaker you'll notice a fuller response in the mids and lower mids of a 10"speaker. The 10" speaker has more tone. Making it tone superior. A 10" speaker however isn't as loud due to being 2" smaller. I prefer 2x10 cabinets over all other guitar cabinets
The reference to a 10" speaker having more tone than a 12". Does that apply across the board or is that unique to the specific amp used in the video (with it's limited power and cab size)? Cheers.
@montygibbon1905 as l mentioned, looking at the frequency response graph. But better than that listen to a 10 vs 12. As far as amp wattage , 5 watts is plenty of power, it will breakup quickly. It won't be loud/clean as a 15 watt amp
@@Jeff-fx5vu I own a 2x10 Laney VC30 (UK model with Jensens) and a 1x10 Strauss SVT-20 which is a non-master volume combo with a 1x10 Eminence...um.. can't remember. And tube driven tremolo. I'm astonished at how loud and full these amps sound next to my larger 1x12 combos
@mattgilbert7347 the other think l notice is 12" speaker tend to project the sound around and behind the amp more than a 10" 10" project the sound out or more directional. 10"s are great.
My favorite 5watt is loaned out to my dad, and 1990s Gibson LP Jr reissue amp, I do have an Epiphone valve junior head I use every now and then and a tiny old 60s silvertone that's 5 or less , they're just fun to play, I've used the Gibson to gig with and it was fine for a coffee house gigs or miked for larger rooms
@@ericandrews1661 Yeah, I’m eventually going to use this to play shows, as my band is slowly transitioning out of the local bars and into the city venues…
@@Onlyanaccountessentially a mess boogie mark, its a Princeton reverb with a bassman power section with its tremolo function deleted and the knobs replaced with a mid control and a master volume. It also has a power amp mute function and a preamp out that’s voiced like the almbec F2B preamp of David gilmour fame. As part of that it’ll also have a switchable preamp B+ level for headroom control. I’m thinking of other features like presence, graphic EQ and an FX loop but I think I’ll leave most of that for now as it’ll add a lot of complexity and a need to rearrange the circuit board.
This video is just another reason I subscribed . Learning about how to mic an amp was knowledge I really thought I would never really need , oh how wrong I was !
Another favorite trick of mine to get a bigger sound is to run the small amp through a 1X12 or 2X10 or even a 4X10 cab. Really opens them up. That's if they have a speaker/out jack. I have been known to add them to smaller amps.
For a small amp sound heard over a drummer, check out the Dr Z Z-Plus. It is designed like a single-ended Fender Champ with two amp circuits in parallel. Since it is single-ended Class A, it doesn't cancel out even-order harmonics which I believe is part of the small amp sound. It is switchable between 7 and 15 watts and can be heard over a drummer if necessary. It was designed for Joe Walsh to get the Fender Champ sound at stage volume. It is a pretty clever amp design.
And I like stout clean tones. It drives me nuts if everything falls apart when you crank that thing. Nothing below 30W for me. And definitely not those overpriced Gibson Blues Juniors...@@SamBrockmann
I was initially very excited to see these. Theyre advertised as hardwired but definitely aren't. they look and sound awesome but be careful as there is a reason no dealer or youtubers have shown the inside.
Agree with others that your sweet solo on this intro certainly had some MK feel but still your own. Cool little amp and you made it sound clear and huge.
I want to know what you guys will say when you discover that this amp is a repackaged 150 dollar Monoprice chinese tube amp 🤣🤣 Because you paid over 10x and says gibsun, it's a magical tone now 🤣🤣🤣
Hey, i have the 15watt Monoprice. It really is similar! Seriously mounting tubes on printed circuit boards inside the amp? Not even the Monoprice stage right is that bad
Rhett, thank you for your continued top-notch content. Having just picked up a 5f1 clone, I was curious about what you’d cover in the video. I am grateful to have learned as much as I did about mics and mic placement when recording low wattage amps.
Be careful 🙏 these Gibson Amps are Junk !!! The electronics inside are of such as the Peavey's Classic 30/50 s , Fender's Juniors/ Deluxe circuit, etc. Oh, there's nothing ( Hand Wire ) like the rear chassis printing reads !!! Preassembled circuit boards that a factory 🏭 worker installs in cabinets !!! 😢😢😢😢😢. Gibson took the Mesa Boogie company and turned it into a Toy 🧸🪀🧸🪀 factory where the price of toys are ridiculously stupid !!!!
2000$ ... You can get a custom-made amp with you're wish specs from switzerland for this money. Gibson, is a lifestyle company for investors and collectors. Not musicians anymore. PLEASE, don't advertise their stuff anymore. Thank you.
Great video as always! In October, I had the chance of seeing Theo Katzman live in Paris, and I was blown away by Packy Lundholm's sound, and he was playing on a blues junior! It was sounding huge, especially on the fuzzy parts, and even if we were in a small venue, I checked and he's alwazys playing a blues jr for that tour, even for the bigger venues!
Agree - smaller amps work great live - if you have a PA and Monitor system. I owned a Dr. Z Mini Z (1-5 watt) and a Princeton and Princeton Reverb. I did a show with the Mini Z, but we had great monitors with the PA so we could all hear. Perfect recording amp for exactly what you're saying - it goes into Power tube distortion at levels you can talk over, but through a Mic sounds glorious. We had a birthday party gig Saturday, and no amps in the PA - we were the opening act and it was vocals only in the PA. That's where having a larger amp (65 Tremolux) helped and PA owner mixed from the front 30 feet back and we had a great blend and could hear each other. But then, a Tremolux is only 35 watts... Worth trying the Gibson into other speaker cabs - it's why most folks with a Fender Champ swap the RCA for a 1/4" speaker jack...
Hi Rhett, great video, super informative and well explained! I dont know exactly what you mean by "big" sound in this particular case but one thing that could explain your hunch could be related to the fact that a smaller speaker, has naturally a lower weight, since its less cone, less magnet, less coil, etc. This means the whole transducing mechanism is easier to move, which in turn means it will have a lesser inertial resistance every time the movement of the system changes (that is both in direction as well as speed). All this means that the speaker will be overall more responsive to transients (fast changes in level, frequency, and phase of sound or group of sounds). This "responsiveness" could be experienced as a "fuller" or "bigger" sound.
I would love to see a shoutout video of the practicality of using lower watt amps at a venue. Even perhaps micing the 5 watt amp and sending it through the pa to fill the space more
These are fantastic sounds man. The ribben that far off really captured the character of the trem. Thats a revelation for me. A ribbon because its quiet... smh... never considered it. Great video as usual man, thanks❤
First amp I ever had was a Crate GX-15 I believe. Loved that thing. Had a great gain tone and wasn't too loud. You could record it if you wanted to. It was only 12 watts according to the manual. Never had a problem with it. Was built like a little mini truck. Man I miss that thing.
Recently been recording with a very small Marshall amp with a SM57, sounds great and am very happy with the results- you really do not need anything big for recording-specially home studios! Great video-I subscribed
It truly IS a Five Watt World! ;)
😂
😉
If there are no Marshalls, yes.
“What are we, some kinda 5-watt blues junior?”
Mesa is now owned by Gibson. So this a Mesa?
Hello everybody. Ignazio Vagnone from Jensen Speakers here.
First of all, Rhett, awesome contents here. Extremely useful concepts, explained in a plain, straightforward fashion, and of course, great tones all over the place. Thank you, I do think this kind of presentations have a lot of value for the community.
Small amps with small speakers can do wonders in a studio setting. A cool mic setup and an appropriate use of the proximity effect can transfer to tape some of the biggest tones ever. There are countless, incredible guitar tones recorded with small cranked amps. Joe Walsh's Funk #49 is a premium example. Very inspiring video!
Allow me a couple of words about the speakers in the Falcon line: both the FA5 and FA20 have a Jensen Blackbird 40 "Reinforced Alnico" speaker. The FA5 has the 10" version while the FA20 has the 12".
Very similar speakers, same magnet, same voice coil, same membrane style... just smaller in the 10" version.
You may think the Blackbird 40 range as a louder, stronger version of the old Jensen P10Q and P12Q.
The BB40 speakers are "vintege voiced" with the typical sparkle of the "50's inspired" speakers, but because of a 30% stronger ("reinforced Alnico") magnet than their ancestors, they are more efficient across the whole range, tighter and more powerful in the bass range.
If anyone is interested in knowing more about... just hit me! Always ready for some tech/tone talk!
I just put a pair of P12R's in an open back 2x12 mainly to use with a Dr Z EZG amp (think tweaked fender super). They sound great, and their "inefficiency" is really an asset allowing the amp cook a little more without killing you with volume. I often wonder there aren't more "inefficient" speakers made by design/purpose for that, but maybe it's technically not doable? Thanks!
@@AdamGotheridge Glad you liked the P12R! Yep, with less than 94dB sensitivity (1W/1mt) they are really low in efficiency, and that spec certainly helps pushing the amp without killing your eardrums (and your neighbours). They are abour 6dB quieter than your average contemporary 12", be it Jensen, Celestion or anyone else.
However, I remember that there was a speaker on the market with a big attenuator knob over the magnet, that basically reduced the magnet flux, this progressivaly attenuating the speaker's SPL. There was very little interest from the market (maybe also because it was quite expensive) so I doubt that's a viable way.
A speaker's tone is a very delicate balance between very simple factors. Some factors may reduce the sensitivity, but they will impact the tone.
Ultimately, the attenuation technology has evolved SO good, that with the latest generation of reactive-load based attenuators, I truly believe you don't need to look elsewhere. A good one will sound nearly as good as the amp in its "sweet spot", just quieter. And if you don't need it, you just unplug/bypass it. A speaker is a harder committment. We use the Fryette Power Station PS2-A on a daily basis in our development and demo rooms in the factory. I have one at home as well and I still wonder how the heck I could have survived without it for all these years!
@@JensenSpeakersVideos Thank you very much for the thorough explanation. Powerstation on the list, and I'll probably wonder how I got by with one as well. 🙏
@@AdamGotheridge Thank you! I just love sharing what we've learned in so many years of tone researches!
I'd be very curious to hear your thoughs on the PS... we love it for so many reasons:
1) it's a great sounding reactive load, if you want to connect your amp straight into your DAW.
2) The loaded down signal will then be amped back with the 2x6L6 AB Class push/pull pentode 60W power stage. In such way I can tame very powerful amps, but can also amp up small amps, such as my 1964 vintage Princeton Reverb. I love finding its sweet spot, that is usually too quiet for gigging, and then push it up as loud as I need!
3) having an effect loop, you can insert ambience effects AFTER the amp's natural overdrive. Even if those amps do not have an efx loop.
4) it works great as a tube power amp for digital or analog preamps and ampless pedalboards.
In essence, not the most affordable option as an attenuator? No, but for all it does (and does it really well) we think it's very, very attractive.
I don't have a lot of amps, but I have a 100 watt Ampeg V5 that sounds okay and a Behringer combo with a tube power amp that sounds great, but in mine and some of my friend's opinions my little 20 watt solid state Orange amp has the best tone and that is probably what I'm going to start using for recording.
After years of videos about how and where to mic the cabinets - for the first time I've seen someone moving the mic when the music was playing. What a great demonstration of how huge effect the position of the mic has! Thanks!
Amen! This was awesome.
It's not a 5 watt amp though it's 7 watts, and $1500 is not cheap. Gibson is out of their minds with their prices.
And they’re built like crap.
Wow yeah I just checked the price too... who is dropping 1.5k on a tiny amp?
There are way better more affordable options that don't say Gibson on them
Good thing there are plenty of budget options!
I'll stick to my 15 watts with 12 inch speakers thanks!
for real , i don't get it , why so expensive
Intro was like dire straights and fleetwood mac had a crossover. Digging it.
That formula arrives at ‘Khurangbin’
During the whole intro I was waiting for that „Sultans of Swing“ turnaround but it never came. 😅
it reminded me of Don’t Panic by Coldplay
The backing riff was also a bit like ‘The Wall’
@@JojoFryrocksYeah I noticed that too !
It would definitely be sick to see a Gibson Falcon 5 vs 20 comparison in a full band/venue context. The headroom discussion in my opinion can't be had enough, because it varies so wildly with so many factors.
I so agree with this! I play most gigs with either a Princeton Reverb or a ~15 watt Filmosound…I always feel plenty loud, and have no idea why people thing more wattage is needed…even for clean tones. Would love to see that broken down in a real gig setting.
@@jamiebarnesmusic Fine for gigs in SMALL venues.
Try it in an arena or stadium setting.
@@bricefleckenstein9666...and how many of us are playing arenas?? 😂😂😂 goys...
Thanks Rhett.... I never really understood how to mic my amps. Thank you for that awesome illustration! Now I know what to listen for.
For as good as Rhett is on guitar, he is twice the teacher. He's got the gift for explaining and demonstrating.
Drums sounding crispy man. Your tracks are levelling up by the week !
Yeah, the drums are definitely noteworthy, really nice sound.
Thanks! Shoutout to Chris Marks for playing
Digging the mic tips. Over the cone, more treble; closer to the cloth, more bass. Cool.
Bass dependent on mic’s proximity effect
I have been gigging with a 5 watt 70s fender champ. No full drumset, mostly percussion. I fill in a lot of low end and get a nice warm tone close miced. I get more low end putting my gig bags behind the open back. My overdrive is set to lower the bass and boost. Love it!
So rad!
Currently I’m running two ac4’s in stereo for home use. Love it!
Your videos are like mini documentaries these days. Great production value (and content, of course).
I've got two ~20 watt amps and two ~5 watt amps. The latter - a Fender Custom 57 Champ, and a Vox AC4HW - are probably my favorites for the reasons you mentioned.
I bought a Fender Champion 600 reissue amp when they first came out. Five watts one 12AX7 and one 6V6. I run my pedalboard through this amp into 12", 2x12, 2x10, and 15" speakers depending on the sound I am going for. I love to crank the amp to get the 6V6 cookin'. You are absolutely right Rhett, little amps can give you a huge recorded sound
These Intros keep getting even better, lovely ❤
Gorgeous tones. That reverb on the intro was to die for.
Great episode, Rhett! I adopted the “less is more” strategy a few years ago based on a thought that most of the records that I love were recorded with smaller amps. I had a local amp builder design a class A 20 watt “Princeton” 12” speaker with tube trem and reverb, selectable negative feedback, and a mid tone control. The touch response is in extremely dynamic and the amount of varied tones is almost endless. I can play any gig, and still have bedroom volumes. Yes, back in the old days they didn’t have great sound reinforcement and you had to have monster PA’s and amps onstage. It’s a brave new world, yet we’re still rocking tube technology with these amazing little amplifiers and a good mic. Keep up the good work, love the channel!
I used to own a Fender Twin Reverb until I realized that I never needed that much volume/power. I then traded it in for a Fender Blues Deluxe and, again, knew that I didn't need that much of an amp. Finally I got a Fender Champion 600. At 5 watts it's perfect for my needs; home practice, jamming and recording. It only features two inputs, Low and High and a single volume. I play it with a Boss digital reverb and a Tube Screamer and that's all I need to get the sound I want. And let's not forget that Derek and the Dominoes recorded Layla with a couple of Champs...
I've bought and sold a few 5 watt tube amps, my favorite is the Swart Atomic Jr. All tube with a tube reverb and one tone control, 8 inch Weber speaker, my tone search is completed.
You’re a masterful teacher, Rhett. Thank you for all you show us!
dude the mic proximity stuff was sooooo good. I really needed that, thank you so much
I used to have a 8 watt ( I think) 1954 Gibsonette. It was great and truly all I needed....except when you played somewhere that didn't mic amps. Right now I'm really enjoying my Fender Excelsior.
Sounds great. Sadly, these new Gibson amps are incredibly expensive in Australia. I also have some reservations regarding the durability given that the tubes are mounted on the circuit board etc.
Love this track and all the layers of parts you put together. Well done.
Your explanations were easy to understand, but with enough detail to get the full picture. Well done, Rhett!
I had a Vox AC4TV 4 watt amp and that thing was great. I gave it to my nephew when I bought my Hot Rod deluxe, but I played that little Vox for a few years and a ton of gigs. I simply mic’d it up to the PA.
I am very intrigued by this Gibson amp. I agree their old amps were fantastic.
This sentiment is exactly why my main amp is a Carr Mercury V... I use it in the 4 watt mode for all sessions and studio work, and even mic'd up small gigs. And then I can pop it into full 16 watt mode for all other gigs! Small amps are great.
Sentiment is better than difference
Comparison is the thief of joy 🤣🤣🤣
Thanks Rhett. That's really encouraged me to try miking up my little Laney Cub Super 12 at home instead of using an amp modeller. 👍
Great video Rhett - particularly revealing the movement of the '57 in front of the speaker while playing!! A really awesome channel, IMHO!
Thanks Rhett for the short tutorial for micing. Helped me with amplitube :)
You should make a short out of it.
Dude! That's a hell of a pocket groove at 3:55! A great producer here in Memphis (John Hampton) always told me 'little amp, big sound".
I loved that part. Do you know players in that style? I'd love to learn that.
Great video - you packed in a LOT of useful information, we heard an amp demo, and we even got a cool intro jam! A+
Great video! Really love the playing in this one. Nice to hear some fenders played through these amps.
Rhett……..
I have the Falcon 20 (12 watt) reason I got purchased it was because I love the history aspect and I’ve never had a amp with a Tremolo 😎
It all takes my Keeley noble screamer fantastic !
Not a 5 watt amp but my 1 watt Marshall DSL-1 has been a pleasant surprise. It fills the room and I’m able to turn it up not damage my ears or bother my neighbors. Great little home amp for a smaller space. I had bigger amps including a Marshall DSL-40 and Peavey Classic 50 which are 40 & 50 watts respectively and neither sounded anywhere near as nice as my 1 watt DSL-1 for home playing at non-gigging volumes.
I'm actually looking at that as an amp option right now. Glad to see a real world review of it. I'm burnt out on the modeling stuff and want something simple, and don't need 40 watts or 100 watts to fill my bedroom.
I like that you keep reminding us about "moving air". That's all that is happening with a speaker. It vibrates the air and that vibration is what hits our eardrums (or mic) and gives the perception of sound. Large amps (speaker cabinets) are made for big areas that have more "air" in the room. If you're working off of a mic or in a smaller room, then there is obviously less "air" needed.
Many years ago, An old musician friend of mine used to place his microphone towards the outer surface area of the speaker cone. i never questioned it and i just took it onboard as good practice. It is nice to see a full demonstration of the different types of mic placement.
Hey Rhett, great explanation about the mic location. I've never seen it before and it was so didactic. Congratulations!
I really wanted one of these until a few youtubers opened them up to show the pre amp tubes fixed to the pcb. You can't even see that the amp has pre amp tubes from the back.
Plus there were a few other build design choices that lead me to believe these new Gibson amps wont last 15 years..
Id rather buy a vintage one for half the price and be twice as nice.
These do sound good though. And look cool. But when a reputable amp builder on youtube opens one up and says the Stage Right tube amps are easier to service and built to the same quality, I lost the urge for one of these.
Saw this as well, very disappointing. A five watt amp is high on my wish list but it won’t be this one even though it sounds great
Totally agree…
It's interesting time for the reviewing & influencing profession who get tgere hands on advance releases.
They're going to have to adapt to the likelihood someone qualified to fully assess a new amp is eventually going to have sight of the circuit and report on YT the implications of the build.
(Now THAT is a gamechanger! 😁)
Yep. My Joyo Sweet Baby 5 Watt Champ clone is easier to service.
@@mattgilbert7347 easier and or possible to service……
@Rhett I’m liking the new things you’re doing with the channel!
I’ve made the switch to smaller amps A) because I don’t have a crew … transporting them is easier on the back and B) more practical for at home. I’ve been ripping through a marshal DSL15 and to this day … it’s been my favourite amp. Havnt recorded off of it yet.. but I’m excited too!
Great video. I don't play but I dabble in building amps for friends that do. One thing worth mentioning as a case for larger (but still probably "small" in the grand scheme of things) amps is how single ended (Class A) amps like this (single 6v6 output tube) have a very different sound when compared to larger push/pull (class AB) amps that start around the 15-20W range using a pair of 6V6 output tubes (think the Fender Deluxe series, or even the Falcon 20 you mention). Single ended amps have a very smooth sound that emphasizes even order harmonics and tend to respond well to overdrive (or just cranking the volume) with a very predictable, linear transition from clean to breakup. Most guitarists love this behavior because it gives these amps a great "touch response"... you can go from clean to OD by just controlling your pick attack and maybe rolling in a little volume knob on the guitar.
However, push/pull amps introduce a new critical component to the signal path and that's the phase inverter. Single ended amps don't have/need one but push pull has to have this amplifcation stage to split/invert the signal to drive the two output tubes. The fun begins when you start to play around with different styles of phase inverter... there's more than one way to implement this stage and each one has unique properties that can provide interesting "color" to the sound. You can get assymetrical clipping and phase misalignment to generate more interesting harmonics in the final sound. This is part of what is responsible for the mythical reputations early deluxe amps have... The phase inverter circuits continued to evolve from the 5b3 to the 5e3 to the silver and black face deluxes and beyond... each revision trying to make a more "perfect" phase inverter for clean playing, but "more perfect" is sometimes less interesting when OD/distorted sound is concerned.
Excellent post good sir.
Thank you for sharing your talent with us, lcan relate!
A truly salient point... so would it be possible to make a variable phase inverter circuit that could produce a more "perfect" inverter sound for clean applications and something a bit more wonky for distortion?
@@ethericlimerick2992 I don't see why not. You would want to play with the relative gains of each half of the wave (to make them clip assymetrically) and perhaps you could mess with the crossover point to introduce more phase delay for half of the signal ... that can add all sorts of nasty odd order harmonics to the singnal if that's what you're going for. Doing something like this would require significant knowlege of how the phase inverter circuits work though... I would quickly come up against the limits of my knowlege.
Completely agree. I don’t care for the sound of 10” speakers, but a 5 to 10 watt 12” sounds perfect. I love that more amp makers are doing smaller watt amps with modern features built in. The new 20 watt Soldano sounds fantastic and can go from very quiet to loud as hell. Magnatone makes a really nice small watt amp as well, and many others.
Yeah, my first amp was an old Peavey 'Valve King' 5W all tube, but unfortunately it only had a 8" speaker... I upgraded the cheap stock one to a nice Celestion, but I also 'modded' it so I could plug it into a broken Peavey Solid State 12" combo that I used as a 'speaker cabinet' ;)
Really nice video with quite usefull information about mic placement. Thanks Rhett!
Intro was awesome. Your room has come quite the distance since I started following you too!!
Yeah man..! I use a 5 watt Bugera with a built in attenuator for at home use… $300 and it kicks butt with a single 12” Celestion..👍🏼
Same here… V5 Bugera into 1x12” celestion greenback cab…couldn’t be happier
I have a Bugera G5 with a FX Loop.
Whats the name of the model?
@@versnellingspookie G5 here.. But I only like the clean channel.. not so crazy about the reverb or dirt channels.. I add that stuff from my board..
And I have a creamback Celestion 12… never played through a greenback.. but I heard that they’re awesome..
@@dwstoeckel4740. Same here
That seems like a great amp but at 1500 dollars, I think you could get an original Falcon from the early 60s with Reverb and tremolo (and still low power) for a lot less money and if you're lucky it may still have some nice RCA pre amp tubes in it.
No, it's NOT!
This amp is NOT worth 1.5k dollars, not even half of it. This amp could be sold with profit at 300 bucks, but you're paying over 5x of that because it's "gibsun".
@@JohnWiku yeah, I was being a little polite. I think you could get three 60s Falcons for that price and still buy a Happy Meal. I do think it is a nice amp though I wonder how big a reverb tank is in that cab.
1:35 Hey, Rhett. I really enjoy these videos, and love to see more bold and experimental songs in a band context! Love your channel, man. Cheers!
I bought a 1968 drip edge Fender Champ in late 2020 and I will never get rid of it. Sounds totally amazing!
You don't need to spend $1.5-2k for a good 5 watt. Plenty of old decent quality fender champs out there for $400 right now.. If you do a little research you can find ones with modifications that make them even better than stock.
Ones without pcb mounted tube sockets even.
And if you want a QUALITY 5w that is truly handmade…. Swart are awesome…
I was very interested in the new Gibson amps until I saw a TH-cam video that had images of the guts of these amps. They are not designed well and will be very difficult to service.
I want an American made 5-12 watt tube amp with a great master volume or power scaling. I also want tube driven reverb and tremolo. Harmonic tube driven Tremolo for the win! Swart seems to be the only real option for me.
Opinions are like …. but I have a Swart and it truly is an amazing (and quality/built like a tank) amp.
This does scale a bit 7w/3w and the Falcon 20 scales also (Full power (12 watts), Half power (5 watts), and Low power (1 watt))
Totally with you regarding small amps in the studio. So flexible and versatile. I for one would enjoy seeing the 20 watt in a 3 or 4 piece setting. I’m pretty sure it will do alright.
That was an absolutely beautiful piece of music at the beginning Rhett 👏👏👏 Always love your content 👏👍
$1500!!! Get the Monoprice 15 Watt instead instead...its never leaving the house anyway, nobody will know. Sounds great and its been as low as $240 in the last year. Get a Fender twin for anything else. Gibson has lost its mind.
Thank you Rhett for the amazingly informative primer on microphone placement. And thanks for the great tones. I'm trying to lose Sweetwater's number so I don't buy anymore gear...but I always find it again. The tones on the last bit you played were real-deal and the playing was superb.
Hello Rhett! Excellent job! Superb amp being brilliantly highlighted by you. Greetings!
It sounds great, but I'm unsure what justification there is for it to be triple the price of a Vox AC4.
I bought my Vox AC4 in a pawn shop for $85. LOL
Looking at frequency response of a 10" vs 12" guitar speaker you'll notice a fuller response in the mids and lower mids of a 10"speaker. The 10" speaker has more tone. Making it tone superior.
A 10" speaker however isn't as loud due to being 2" smaller. I prefer 2x10 cabinets over all other guitar cabinets
I'm a 2x10 ride or die fan
The reference to a 10" speaker having more tone than a 12".
Does that apply across the board or is that unique to the specific amp used in the video (with it's limited power and cab size)?
Cheers.
@montygibbon1905 as l mentioned, looking at the frequency response graph.
But better than that listen to a 10 vs 12.
As far as amp wattage , 5 watts is plenty of power, it will breakup quickly. It won't be loud/clean as a 15 watt amp
@@Jeff-fx5vu
I own a 2x10 Laney VC30 (UK model with Jensens) and a 1x10 Strauss SVT-20 which is a non-master volume combo with a 1x10 Eminence...um.. can't remember. And tube driven tremolo.
I'm astonished at how loud and full these amps sound next to my larger 1x12 combos
@mattgilbert7347 the other think l notice is 12" speaker tend to project the sound around and behind the amp more than a 10"
10" project the sound out or more directional.
10"s are great.
My favorite 5watt is loaned out to my dad, and 1990s Gibson LP Jr reissue amp, I do have an Epiphone valve junior head I use every now and then and a tiny old 60s silvertone that's 5 or less , they're just fun to play, I've used the Gibson to gig with and it was fine for a coffee house gigs or miked for larger rooms
Great work ! I've been a Blackstar fan forever . The 5 Vs. 20 watt shoot out is a must , can't wait . Keep up the great work !
Before buying a Falcon I’d recommend to take a look at the guts of the amp. It’s a bit of a train wreck…
I’m actually looking to design and build my own 100w tube amp myself soon…
I designed one, didn’t bother building it I’m currently doing a 45 watt version instead. More than enough to keep up with a band and a lot lighter
100 watts is more like it. None of this 1W or 5W stuff for me.
@@flyingrat492 Cool, what design did you initially end up with?
@@ericandrews1661 Yeah, I’m eventually going to use this to play shows, as my band is slowly transitioning out of the local bars and into the city venues…
@@Onlyanaccountessentially a mess boogie mark, its a Princeton reverb with a bassman power section with its tremolo function deleted and the knobs replaced with a mid control and a master volume. It also has a power amp mute function and a preamp out that’s voiced like the almbec F2B preamp of David gilmour fame. As part of that it’ll also have a switchable preamp B+ level for headroom control. I’m thinking of other features like presence, graphic EQ and an FX loop but I think I’ll leave most of that for now as it’ll add a lot of complexity and a need to rearrange the circuit board.
This video is just another reason I subscribed . Learning about how to mic an amp was knowledge I really thought I would never really need , oh how wrong I was !
Love this 5 watt sounds incredible.
Great demo on mic placement.
Thanks for sharing your knowledge.
Matt
Hudson Valley, NY
Love small amps, but I will not give Gibson my money. Go with a small tweed instead 🤟
It’s 1,500…Buy a Fender Pro Junior.
Another favorite trick of mine to get a bigger sound is to run the small amp through a 1X12 or 2X10 or even a 4X10 cab. Really opens them up. That's if they have a speaker/out jack. I have been known to add them to smaller amps.
For a small amp sound heard over a drummer, check out the Dr Z Z-Plus. It is designed like a single-ended Fender Champ with two amp circuits in parallel. Since it is single-ended Class A, it doesn't cancel out even-order harmonics which I believe is part of the small amp sound. It is switchable between 7 and 15 watts and can be heard over a drummer if necessary. It was designed for Joe Walsh to get the Fender Champ sound at stage volume. It is a pretty clever amp design.
Great amp!
Small amps lack headroom though.
Do you NEED all that headroom though? Or is it just nice to have?
@@KoaCharvel , yes, yes, I do. *Stares in metal guitarist*
And I like stout clean tones. It drives me nuts if everything falls apart when you crank that thing. Nothing below 30W for me. And definitely not those overpriced Gibson Blues Juniors...@@SamBrockmann
@LothyBluesCave , you are a man of refinement, dignity, and grace. Good on you.
I have a Roland JC22. It's a small amp and has a lot of headroom.
I was initially very excited to see these. Theyre advertised as hardwired but definitely aren't. they look and sound awesome but be careful as there is a reason no dealer or youtubers have shown the inside.
I read they are junk
Lots of TH-camrs have and the results aren’t good
Been playing twenty-something years and I still learn something new from all of your videos.
Had to watch an ad even before your 1:50 intro ended. youtube just gets better and better.
I'm getting away with Adblock again... just sayin'
It's too bad about the new Gibson amps. So many flaws in the design. They seem to sound great, but they're not gonna last.
All the amp techs are saying these Gibson amps are garbage
So you don't know how to think for yourself !!!
Agree with others that your sweet solo on this intro certainly had some MK feel but still your own. Cool little amp and you made it sound clear and huge.
Thank you for demonstrating proximity effect!! Now I get it!!
1700 bucks, no thanks, bud 😂
Goes with the price of the guitars?
For the 5 watt????😮
I want to know what you guys will say when you discover that this amp is a repackaged 150 dollar Monoprice chinese tube amp 🤣🤣
Because you paid over 10x and says gibsun, it's a magical tone now 🤣🤣🤣
Hey, i have the 15watt Monoprice. It really is similar! Seriously mounting tubes on printed circuit boards inside the amp? Not even the Monoprice stage right is that bad
Hey Rhett - It's been a while since I've seen one of your videos, your playing as improved so much!! That opening jam was spectacular!
Brilliant video. Learnt more than i have for ages. Thankyou Rhett
You probably.....can do it better with a good champ.
Look inside Rhett. Cheap Chinese pc. Hard to fix. These are insanely overpriced
Truly outstanding intro jam, homes.
Rhett, thank you for your continued top-notch content. Having just picked up a 5f1 clone, I was curious about what you’d cover in the video. I am grateful to have learned as much as I did about mics and mic placement when recording low wattage amps.
Way overpriced and from what I've seen elsewhere...not made that well. If $1500 small amps become the norm players may go digital.
Be careful 🙏 these Gibson Amps are Junk !!! The electronics inside are of such as the Peavey's Classic 30/50 s , Fender's Juniors/ Deluxe circuit, etc. Oh, there's nothing ( Hand Wire ) like the rear chassis printing reads !!! Preassembled circuit boards that a factory 🏭 worker installs in cabinets !!! 😢😢😢😢😢. Gibson took the Mesa Boogie company and turned it into a Toy 🧸🪀🧸🪀 factory where the price of toys are ridiculously stupid !!!!
I use a Vox AC10 and love it, I think there is something to said about the sound of a small amplifier. Thanks for this video Rhett you're awesome.
Love the opener. Good work!
To bad its construction is garbage..
2000$ ... You can get a custom-made amp with you're wish specs from switzerland for this money. Gibson, is a lifestyle company for investors and collectors. Not musicians anymore. PLEASE, don't advertise their stuff anymore. Thank you.
Loved the simple mic placement instructions. Great video.
great film man, a deep connection to that tone really comes thru
Really appreciate bringing us into the room to hear the conversation.
Great video as always!
In October, I had the chance of seeing Theo Katzman live in Paris, and I was blown away by Packy Lundholm's sound, and he was playing on a blues junior! It was sounding huge, especially on the fuzzy parts, and even if we were in a small venue, I checked and he's alwazys playing a blues jr for that tour, even for the bigger venues!
Agree - smaller amps work great live - if you have a PA and Monitor system. I owned a Dr. Z Mini Z (1-5 watt) and a Princeton and Princeton Reverb. I did a show with the Mini Z, but we had great monitors with the PA so we could all hear. Perfect recording amp for exactly what you're saying - it goes into Power tube distortion at levels you can talk over, but through a Mic sounds glorious.
We had a birthday party gig Saturday, and no amps in the PA - we were the opening act and it was vocals only in the PA. That's where having a larger amp (65 Tremolux) helped and PA owner mixed from the front 30 feet back and we had a great blend and could hear each other. But then, a Tremolux is only 35 watts...
Worth trying the Gibson into other speaker cabs - it's why most folks with a Fender Champ swap the RCA for a 1/4" speaker jack...
Hi Rhett, great video, super informative and well explained! I dont know exactly what you mean by "big" sound in this particular case but one thing that could explain your hunch could be related to the fact that a smaller speaker, has naturally a lower weight, since its less cone, less magnet, less coil, etc. This means the whole transducing mechanism is easier to move, which in turn means it will have a lesser inertial resistance every time the movement of the system changes (that is both in direction as well as speed). All this means that the speaker will be overall more responsive to transients (fast changes in level, frequency, and phase of sound or group of sounds). This "responsiveness" could be experienced as a "fuller" or "bigger" sound.
I would love to see a shoutout video of the practicality of using lower watt amps at a venue.
Even perhaps micing the 5 watt amp and sending it through the pa to fill the space more
These are fantastic sounds man. The ribben that far off really captured the character of the trem. Thats a revelation for me. A ribbon because its quiet... smh... never considered it. Great video as usual man, thanks❤
Nice insider info for recording... thanks Rhett.
First amp I ever had was a Crate GX-15 I believe. Loved that thing. Had a great gain tone and wasn't too loud. You could record it if you wanted to. It was only 12 watts according to the manual. Never had a problem with it. Was built like a little mini truck. Man I miss that thing.
Recently been recording with a very small Marshall amp with a SM57, sounds great and am very happy with the results- you really do not need anything big for recording-specially home studios! Great video-I subscribed