17 posts
http://www.cornfordamps.com/carrera.htmI have to say that if I can get the required £££ together....One of these will be on my shopping list for sure.
The sweetest tones when you get the gain and master dialed in with such an incredible range just using the guitars volume control. The difference between the EL84 and the 6V6 is also quite noticable. The EL84 gives you a real AC30 kind of twang and the 6V6 gives you a real rich/smooth and gentle break-up with a real full bottom end and yet a clarity in the mids and top end that left me holding my breath and wishing I had my Levinson on hand and an extra hour or 3 to just play.
MMMmmm....Wonder how much the wife would sell for?????
Wow - seriously positive review.
Looks interesting - had my eye on a Cornford low wattage amp for a while now.
That's good stuff! AD, Fing, you should both get one! Seriously good amps!
Myself.. I'm on more of a Budda quest these days. Somewhere, there's a Superdrive 18 with my name on it! ;)
DreamTheaterRules — Dec 30, 2009Somewhere, there's a Superdrive 18 with my name on it! ;)
There it is!!!! :D
Ahhhhh, Corn fed GAS! I also got bit by that bug a couple weeks ago, lol, can't fault ya. I briefly played a used MK50 Head that showed up at a local GC. Damn fine sounding amp but pricey (3k USED, WTF do they go for NEW? :o I know they're rare over here but crikey ;)), no shock its still sitting there.
I've also since played a new Egnater Rebel 30 though and am prolly gonna pick it up tomorrow (its a head, never been a big combo guy). It kinda had the same vibe as that Cornford I played but for a much more practical price. 6V6 and EL84s in a 30 watt head. SWEET cleans to aggressive crunch for $655 (15% off w/trades again right now at the center). I've got a Fender 2x12 cab with a V30 and CL80 in it that needs some luv, the Eggy is the perfect partner for it. Life is good. :)
MK50 head is £1859 new in the UK. That's $2985 at today's exchange rate. By the time you add import duty and shipping cost's....I can see a final figure of around $3.5k quite easily. The best amp cornford make IMHO is the Hellcat head. Same price as the MK for a 2 channel reverb head at 35 watts which is VERY conservative as it's actually louder than the MK!!! Sounds a whole bunch sweeter too (again IMHO).
The only downside to the Carrera is that it's only available as a 1x12 combo. If you could buy it as a head, it would be at home right now.
Actually, there is another downside.....£950!!! :o (that's $1510 folks!!!!!)
Kabala, I really like my Rebel 20 but would gladly pay some $$ to trade up to a 30 head. The two channels and reverb make it worth the difference too me. If I could trade up for $150 or so (difference in street price, and the difference in what I paid and what you are paying) I'd upgrade right now.
p.s. Check bias on the power tubes after you get it. Adjusting that can improve the tone significantly. And, might want to through a Tong Sol in V1. :)
Yeah, I guess you would be taking a loss on the trade up, even with the 15% off plus your amps credit, would still leave a little more than the $150ish you're wanting to shell out (prolly more like double that the way they rape our trade in's). You have restraint my friend - once bitten, I seldom let something stop me from buying (within' reason).
Its not THAT big an upgrade over the 20 though, not sure if I was already a 20 owner I'd splurge, but not owning either yet, why not get the 30. From the little time I played 'em both, I do think the 30 is a notch better for both cleans and crunch, especially running it into a better cab. Can't wait.
I don't have a tool to check the bias, but really, I thought the stock tubes and tone was great, and for the most part, I'll be using it for the cleans and possibly that smooth blues kinda thing, the Q-Rod covers the dirtier blues to the brown sound to full on hairy.
yeah, I'd never trade it in. I was thinking more sell mine and buy a used R30. That should be doable somewhere around $150. Hopefully...
Or you could try to find the magical forest... ;) ;D
p.s. All the biasing takes is a DMM. he put contact points on it to make it easy. And, I've heard comments that one or both channels were slightly out of "spec" on many of them. Since its just a quick turn of a small screwdriver to adjust it, it's VERY easy to do. And, even if it's right on spec, you may like it better with a little adjustment. Just saying, you don't have to be an amp tech or "mod guy" to do it on these. Bruce made it easy (as it should be on adjustable bias amps!).
Craig, that could be the ticket too. ;) If I play one and it blows me away (as I expect) I'd gladly sell the Rebel and a couple pedals and a cab or two if needed.
You know, we have one of those meters at work, I'll nab it for the weekend when I leave tomorrow. Will have to search for the breakdown (where the points/contacts are to check, what the desired bias is, etc). What does the V1 slot cover? The gain channel?
I'll see what I can find on the 30. The V1 in the 20 is not the position everyone thought because the three 12AX7s aren't in line, they're in an L shape config. Also, don't have much to do at work tomorrow ;) so I'll find the preferred voltages for each PT set, and pics, if I can. Then, just remember to "check out the range" of voltages because you WILL hear a difference as you dial, even within the range.
Thanks.
I found what I needed this morn, even a handy pic posted on photobucket (cant get link to work), looks simple enuff even for me. Already tossed the meter in my car so I don't forget it today, lol. Seems like quite a few new Rebel owners check their bias and sure enough are finding them a little on the cold side, so good call...I'll pick up a Tungsol for V1, get both sides (6V6/EL84) to 40mv and be done with it. (=
V1 input tube shared between CH1 & CH2.
V2 second tube in CH2
V3 second tube in CH1
V4 Effects Loop send and return