So how to start? Well I think Ken Fisher is a genius. I know you all know this by now but I am a little late to the party. Probably because getting to play one of his amps is extremely hard to do.
Anyhow I just got an Express built by Richie Hall that was originally made for wreck boy. Words cant descried how good this amp is. I have been waiting for an amp this good all my life. The Express does everything I have ever wanted out of an amp. I see why Ken called it “Express”. This is such a player’s amp, every little thing about your playing is connected to the power coming out of the wall. I can’t believe how loud the amp is for how light and small it is. I will stand on a soapbox and say this is the best amp ever!
I do feel lucky to have got and amp that is made so well, everything about it is so close to the real thing. Thank you Richie!
This amp has been traveled and played and unfortunately when i got the amp some of the tubes have seen better days. The power tubes are fine but a couple of pre amp tubes are done. Sad news is I took out a RFT that was in V2 to move it to V1 and one of the legs broke off. Super bummed, not the cheapest tube. I have a box ( mullard, tung-sol, EH, GT’s, ect..)of tubes and I have tried them all and what I thought were still good don’t seem to be cutting it in this amp. I have noticed that if a tube is a little bit microphonic, in a Express it becomes extremely microphonic.
I am looking for advise on what are the best pre tubes and power for the Express. The power tubes right now are Philips 6CA7. and the pre amps are Tung-sol- Sylvania- and a 7025 that just says USA on it.
I will post some clips soon.
Cheers.
Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
Moderators: pompeiisneaks, Colossal
Re: Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
Glad you like it. It was built to be played. 
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PlinytheWelder
- Posts: 205
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- Location: North Jersey
Re: Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
As far as tubes go, in my Express I have a Tung-Sol RI in V1, a NOS Tung-Sol in V2 and a Nos (80's) Mullard 12AT7 CV /CV 4034 in the PI slot.
I've run all sorts of tubes in V1 and the limiting factor is noise in these amps. V1 separates the good tube from the pretenders. I have some good NOS tubes that work in V1 , but the Tung-Sol re issues just make the amp more touch sensitive. You have to go through alot to find a quiet one, but the same with NOS, too. I like these, they make the amp bark more...
The Mullard 12AT7 ( military white box CV4024 '80's stock and about $35) is my favorite tube in this LPT phase inverter slot. It's a unique tube that just sounds right here to me. YMMV. I have it in all my amps.
I've run all sorts of tubes in V1 and the limiting factor is noise in these amps. V1 separates the good tube from the pretenders. I have some good NOS tubes that work in V1 , but the Tung-Sol re issues just make the amp more touch sensitive. You have to go through alot to find a quiet one, but the same with NOS, too. I like these, they make the amp bark more...
The Mullard 12AT7 ( military white box CV4024 '80's stock and about $35) is my favorite tube in this LPT phase inverter slot. It's a unique tube that just sounds right here to me. YMMV. I have it in all my amps.
Gary
Re: Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
I am going to try the 12at7 for V3, it might tame the gain a little? worth trying. I am curious if anyone has tried the preferred 7025's from the tube store. they say the sound like early EI 12ax7.
Re: Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
i know the thing to do with this amp is put everything to 12 o'clock and put the bright switch on, but man is this bright. I can't seem to even click the bright switch on for a second before my head is ripped off with treble. Any tricks for taming this down?
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Gibsonman63
- Posts: 1033
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Re: Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
A really long guitar cable.Flash wrote:i know the thing to do with this amp is put everything to 12 o'clock and put the bright switch on, but man is this bright. I can't seem to even click the bright switch on for a second before my head is ripped off with treble. Any tricks for taming this down?
Maybe different speakers, especially if you are using V30s.
If you decide to get under the hood, I liked polystyrene caps for my bright caps. It seemed to smooth things out in a nice way.
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Cliff Schecht
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Re: Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
I never liked that recommended setting. I put the highs on 2.5-3.5 (out of 10), mids on 2-4 and bass on 5-7. Presence is tweaked to taste but usually around 3-4. Bright switch is always on high (500pf). I play telecasters with maple necks so I gotta tame the highs a bit.
Cliff Schecht - Circuit P.I.
Re: Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
My cab has a mix of V30 and greenbacks. I have been running mine T:3 M:5 B:5 P:2 and bright switch off. I know i could tweak the circuit but i am not touching a thing on this amp. I am thinking that some RFT's might bring the treble down. I would like to run the bright switch because it brings the amp alive but i just don't ever see this happening. I am playing a r8 les paul.
Re: Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
My two cents.... Use Dimpletop/Siemens/RFT EL34's and get rid of that Sylvania tube. Also use a long guitar cable with a capacity in the range of 2000-4000pf depending on your pickups. Many modern multi meters can measure the capacity.
With these changes you should be able to use the bright switch on the brightest setting and have great tone.
The US 6CA7's are great tubes but not for the express. Richie builds great stuff...Have fun!
Jelle
With these changes you should be able to use the bright switch on the brightest setting and have great tone.
The US 6CA7's are great tubes but not for the express. Richie builds great stuff...Have fun!
Jelle
Re: Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
Also the bright switch has more effect when the volume control is lower. The lower the volume is set the more you will notice the bright.
As the volume is turned up the less effect the bright switch has.
So,it may seem very bright if the volume is down. Like Fender or marshall amps.
Turn the control down, on a fender,listen to the brightness. Flip the switch to hear the difference. Then turn the volume control up,flip the switch and listen to the difference.
With a tele,its hard to say. I've heard some that are ultra bright. Then i've heard others that sound amazing.
So may depend on what pickups the guitar is using. If using a tele,you can use the less bright setting or middle position and have no bright on. Roll the treble back some,and less on the presence. 12 oclock may be a starting position.
But depending on the guitar and pickups used and speaker/s you can change the setting.
I know there is a difference when i use a LP compared to a strat. I usually still use the bright switch,but will change the controls settings some. But i usually have the volume cranked to 1 or 2 oclock. Jelle, i think those sylvainia are labeled tubes. I'm pretty sure they have the mullard etched code on them. I also think,like some marshalls,finding some darker sounding speakers help.
As the volume is turned up the less effect the bright switch has.
So,it may seem very bright if the volume is down. Like Fender or marshall amps.
Turn the control down, on a fender,listen to the brightness. Flip the switch to hear the difference. Then turn the volume control up,flip the switch and listen to the difference.
With a tele,its hard to say. I've heard some that are ultra bright. Then i've heard others that sound amazing.
So may depend on what pickups the guitar is using. If using a tele,you can use the less bright setting or middle position and have no bright on. Roll the treble back some,and less on the presence. 12 oclock may be a starting position.
But depending on the guitar and pickups used and speaker/s you can change the setting.
I know there is a difference when i use a LP compared to a strat. I usually still use the bright switch,but will change the controls settings some. But i usually have the volume cranked to 1 or 2 oclock. Jelle, i think those sylvainia are labeled tubes. I'm pretty sure they have the mullard etched code on them. I also think,like some marshalls,finding some darker sounding speakers help.
Re: Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
Ok, some of those US made tall plate 12ax7 tubes do not sit well in a trainwreck, IMHO. Relabeled UK stuff is a different story. They are nice.
Good call on the volume pot setting and the bright switch. This amp needs to have the volume about halfway, IMHO. Maybe an airbrake if too loud....
Good call on the volume pot setting and the bright switch. This amp needs to have the volume about halfway, IMHO. Maybe an airbrake if too loud....
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geetarpicker
- Posts: 918
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Re: Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
1) Yes, the volume control needs to be up enough that you aren't leaning on the bright cap too much. On my original that's about 12-1pm, but pots vary in taper so you may need to experiment. Keep the pot UP then try to find tubes with less gain.
2) A couple 18' or so Mogami gold cables in series sounds very good to me. Heck the (no name) 40' cord I recorded my CD with way back when had almost triple the capacitance of two modern mogamis! Some cables, like George L or Spectraflex have much less capacitance and can make the amp harsh and bright.
3) In my experience recent era "Greenbacks" are considerably brighter than the old 60s, early 70s ones with the pulsonic cones. Scumbacks seem mellower and smoother for sure. Vintage 30s are fat in some ways, but have such an upper mid spike that they are tough to get working well with a Wreck. I'd personally dump the speakers and get some Scumback M75 65 watters.
4) Grill cloth even matters, old basketweave cloth is part of the mojo in the old cabs as it's so thick it tames the highs. When I first got some Scumbacks I had to run a couple layers of felt over the speaker cutouts (along w/basketweave cloth) at least for a year or two until they were then broken in and mellowed enough I was able to remove the felt.
5) You might check your speaker cab wiring, each pair should be in series (for 32ohm) than each of these are tied in parallel at the jack. The added inductance of this type wiring mellows the highs a tad.
6) On the guitar if the volume pots are too high, say 600k or more that can make PAFs a bit shrill. Also I keep the pickup covers ON which is mellower than uncovered.
7) If there are any pedals inline (even bypassed) that are buffered that can negate the nice loading of long cable, in other words the buffers do their job to keep the highs UP but that may not be what you want. So, no buffered pedals is worth a try including tuners.
8) I've also noticed most tubes are brighter when new, and can sound smoother and darker once broken in.
With all this my original (and my two clones of it) are darn muddy with the bright switch off, just about like the bass channel of an old Marshall more like a jazz tone. Then in the 50pf position (my wrecks have 50/500) there is some workable highs, but then the 500 position works just fine and helps the clean tones considerably to match the dirty when going from clean to mean.
Boy that's alot of stuff! I ran across most of this actually when running old Plexi Marshall 100s fully dimed. They sound great that way and it helps to get workable gain, but like a wreck they can be a bit bright unless the rest of the signal chain is just right. Keep in mind even Hendrix was doing this with his coiled cords, and jumpered amp stacks just that it was probably just a happy accident of the times that it all worked out so well.
2) A couple 18' or so Mogami gold cables in series sounds very good to me. Heck the (no name) 40' cord I recorded my CD with way back when had almost triple the capacitance of two modern mogamis! Some cables, like George L or Spectraflex have much less capacitance and can make the amp harsh and bright.
3) In my experience recent era "Greenbacks" are considerably brighter than the old 60s, early 70s ones with the pulsonic cones. Scumbacks seem mellower and smoother for sure. Vintage 30s are fat in some ways, but have such an upper mid spike that they are tough to get working well with a Wreck. I'd personally dump the speakers and get some Scumback M75 65 watters.
4) Grill cloth even matters, old basketweave cloth is part of the mojo in the old cabs as it's so thick it tames the highs. When I first got some Scumbacks I had to run a couple layers of felt over the speaker cutouts (along w/basketweave cloth) at least for a year or two until they were then broken in and mellowed enough I was able to remove the felt.
5) You might check your speaker cab wiring, each pair should be in series (for 32ohm) than each of these are tied in parallel at the jack. The added inductance of this type wiring mellows the highs a tad.
6) On the guitar if the volume pots are too high, say 600k or more that can make PAFs a bit shrill. Also I keep the pickup covers ON which is mellower than uncovered.
7) If there are any pedals inline (even bypassed) that are buffered that can negate the nice loading of long cable, in other words the buffers do their job to keep the highs UP but that may not be what you want. So, no buffered pedals is worth a try including tuners.
8) I've also noticed most tubes are brighter when new, and can sound smoother and darker once broken in.
With all this my original (and my two clones of it) are darn muddy with the bright switch off, just about like the bass channel of an old Marshall more like a jazz tone. Then in the 50pf position (my wrecks have 50/500) there is some workable highs, but then the 500 position works just fine and helps the clean tones considerably to match the dirty when going from clean to mean.
Boy that's alot of stuff! I ran across most of this actually when running old Plexi Marshall 100s fully dimed. They sound great that way and it helps to get workable gain, but like a wreck they can be a bit bright unless the rest of the signal chain is just right. Keep in mind even Hendrix was doing this with his coiled cords, and jumpered amp stacks just that it was probably just a happy accident of the times that it all worked out so well.
Re: Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
To start thanks for all the advice and info plus thank you Geetarpicker for all those helpful tips and experience.
First off I will put the volume to 12 or 1. I have been running the amp at 10 on the dial. Hopefully this helps. By the sounds of it this is the thing to do. I will also try wiring my cabs like you said. I am definitely going to buy some new cables today and give this a try; I think this might make a big difference. As for my les paul all my pots are close to 500k with paper and oil caps and wired 50’s style. The pickups are SD antiquity’s
Now that I think about it the cable must play a huge part because the first two times I played this amp I used my 30 foot bullet curly cable then the next time I used the amp I used a 20 foot regular cable and this is when I noticed how bright this amp was. So the key is to get a cable with a lot of capacitance.
I am excited to try all this stuff. I am just loving the Express amp, it is unreal how musical this amp is. I also love that it is a players amp. i also can't believe it has taken me this long to get one. i use to work at a vintage guitar store here in Toronto for 7 years and not once did i play an amp this good and i played pretty much every amp ever made. Plus i own two 1970 superleads and a 72 50 watter.
Thanks again for all you help. very much appreciated.
-Darren
First off I will put the volume to 12 or 1. I have been running the amp at 10 on the dial. Hopefully this helps. By the sounds of it this is the thing to do. I will also try wiring my cabs like you said. I am definitely going to buy some new cables today and give this a try; I think this might make a big difference. As for my les paul all my pots are close to 500k with paper and oil caps and wired 50’s style. The pickups are SD antiquity’s
Now that I think about it the cable must play a huge part because the first two times I played this amp I used my 30 foot bullet curly cable then the next time I used the amp I used a 20 foot regular cable and this is when I noticed how bright this amp was. So the key is to get a cable with a lot of capacitance.
I am excited to try all this stuff. I am just loving the Express amp, it is unreal how musical this amp is. I also love that it is a players amp. i also can't believe it has taken me this long to get one. i use to work at a vintage guitar store here in Toronto for 7 years and not once did i play an amp this good and i played pretty much every amp ever made. Plus i own two 1970 superleads and a 72 50 watter.
Thanks again for all you help. very much appreciated.
-Darren
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Gibsonman63
- Posts: 1033
- Joined: Wed May 27, 2009 1:59 pm
- Location: Texas
Re: Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
Turning up the volume will help a lot, plus you roll some highs off a tad when you dial back on your guitar volume.
Re: Got my First EXPRESS! made by Richie
besides mogami cables what are other cables with a high capacitance? does this mean cheaper cables have high capacitance? or this just means using a really long cable to cut highs?