iv been playing guitar for about 3 years and have switched up gear like no other. i started off playing surf music drifted to alternative rock and now im back again......... im in the process of selling my 100w all tube stack and my sg (which is not a gibson btw) and most my rig, mainly because im not satisfied with its tone, and its just too damn loud. and so i figure i should go back to the basics, a nice guitar and a nice clean/warm tube amp.

as for the guitar iv decided on a jaguar or jazzmaster (not sure which yet) probably AVRI. my first guitar i ever played was a AVRI fender jazzmaster in samash (nice guitar that is) never got to plug it in but still....... i played a jay turser surfmaster for a while, so i know i like the body shape......... i played my friends American telecaster and i loved how it sounded..

as for the amp i would like something with onboard reverb and tremelo. I want something loud enough to play with a band and play in clubs and what not but quiet enough my ears wont bleed when i play at home. im also going to college next fall, so ill probably be using one of those pocket pods in the dorm and this amp when i play out. i want the amp to be warm and clean and lush. when cranked breakup is kool with me. i was looking at the fender deluxe reverb RI, VOX AC15cc, and Amped (jet reverberockets gemeni ect)

so if you guys could help me out i would greatly appreciate it. Im hoping to be able to still crank some rock tunes out of the new amp (not balls to the wall metal more like classic rock) with the help of my proco rat. after all my gear is sold ill have a budget of +/- 1400.

and i am proud to say that i paid for all my gear my self and up front, im very proud of that fact because most of the kids i know where given their huge amps and guitars for good grades, but i worked my butt off and bought my gear(with the exception of a randall combo i had a while back). so buying this gear is pretty personal to me.

like i said im going to stick to the surf/ska genre and what ever my rat can do.

thanks in advance you guys

                    andrew

You laugh at me because I'm differnet, i laugh at you becuase you are all the same

After the past couple of months of listening to all the surf band sounds on this site, I'm starting to believe that the outboard tanks are the only way to get "that" sound.

Also, use the 'Search' function of these forums. You'll find gobs of threads dedicated to this and related topics.
Good luck!

Ryan
The Secret Samurai Website
The Secret Samurai on Facebook

This post has been removed by the author.

Last edited: Sep 23, 2009 15:40:33

so far iv collected that i should save up some more money until i get into at least the $2000 range

as to address the half stack piggyback thing, iv always thought of a piggyback as being an amp head with a 2x12 and a half stack is a 4x12 cab i don't really know to be honest. i did say i wanted a bassman head last march.......i joined a local band and the bassman wouldn't work so i got myself the all tube half stack, the bands pretty much gone south (aka emo) so i quit and i want to go back to the roots, a good guitar and a good amp. and your right im young and i'm not sure what kind of music i want to get into and i probably will end up changing in a year or two who knows, but right now i want a reliable guitar and a reliable amp. unfortunately the nearest guitar store is about an hour away, with the exception of the one we have in town which has a policy that you cant touch anything unless you have the cash in hand which i understand but it makes it hard for me to try things so iv always based my gear iv bought off of reviews and forums because i have no way of trying most pieces of gear so most my gear purchases come from ebay so any advice i can receive from people who have, and people who have experience is valued by me greatly.

so any advice you guys can give me i greatly appreciated. i was hoping if you guys could describe each amps tonal qualities to help me choose which one is right for me.

im sorry if i approached this forum wrong.

You laugh at me because I'm differnet, i laugh at you becuase you are all the same

Riptide
im sorry if i approached this forum wrong.

Nothing to be sorry about, you approached this forum right. Some members just aren't as concerned with presenting their opinions and info in a polite manner. And I'm not saying that it's necessary to do so, but the original poster should not take that as an indication that they've done anything wrong.

Ask away, that's what we're here for. But by all means make use of the archives, lots of good stuff in there.

Danny Snyder

"With great reverb comes great responsibility" - Uncle Leo

I am now playing trumpet with Prince Buster tribute band 'Balzac'

Playing keys and guitar with Combo Tezeta

Formerly a guitarist in The TomorrowMen and Meshugga Beach Party

Latest surf project - Now That's What I Call SURF

I think you need to take this advice from Zak to heart Riptide...

Last but not least, and I don't mean to sound like an asshole, but you should get out there and try out as many guitars and amps as you can instead of asking total strangers for advice on your next purchase. I know what works for me, but I have no idea what will or won't work for you. Neither does anyone else here.

I'd say just about everybody here loves getting new gear or bargains or whatever, but, and this is a big "but" that "tone" or "sound" you hear in your head that you want, no-one else hears it except you.

Another thought - next year is going to be your freshman year at college? I'd say stick to the pod and not worry about the big amp. Start a band your sophomore year when you have a better idea of what your time constraints and workload is. Bank the money and earn some interest.

$.02

Danny Snyder

"With great reverb comes great responsibility" - Uncle Leo

I am now playing trumpet with Prince Buster tribute band 'Balzac'

Playing keys and guitar with Combo Tezeta

Formerly a guitarist in The TomorrowMen and Meshugga Beach Party

Latest surf project - Now That's What I Call SURF

thank you for clearing up the terminology for me zak

i see where your coming from, and your absolutely right, theres nothing like trying it out in person, when i get the rare chance to do specially like you said if getting ready to drop a load of my hard earned cash on some gear

i like this forum because to me anyways (eventhough im more of a lurker learning new things more so than contributing) its more like a dysfunctional family where as harmony central is like walking out in the middle nyc and holding up a sign.....

your description/reasoning of the amps was very helpfull! and from videos and sound clips iv heard of the twin it can also be used in other genres of music other than surf.... i did not know about the volume thing on the fenders where they kind of stop getting louder, i kind of had an idea about the decibel difference....but i wasn't quite sure

after some thought / attempting to watch Oceans 13 dannySnyder's $.02
is probably the best thing for me to do right now, score an AVRI Jag or Jazzy and use a pod until my sophomore year all the while my amp cash will gain interest and i can save a little more and score a vintage twin later on down the road

Haha just don't do what I did - drop out of college to go on a cross-country tour with a punk rock band in mid-winter, in a van with no heating and a leaky exhaust, getting into fistfights with other members every few hundred miles just to stay warm, siphoning gas along the way and doing the ol' dine 'n' dash!

haha it sounds like an adventure, but ill take your advice and stay in school!

thank you very much for your input and advice zak and also thank you dannysnyder for your $.02

You laugh at me because I'm differnet, i laugh at you becuase you are all the same

If I had US$1200-$1400 to spend on a surf setup, I'd be looking for an amp in the $500-$600 range and a guitar in the $500-$600 range. In my opinion, the amp is where most of the "surf tone" originates. I would look into a cool Silverface Fender...there are several tube powered combos with built in reverb from that era. Personally, I would try to locate a cool Silverface Bassman in decent shape. A great Silverface should set you back $500-$600. If you have a speaker cab already, keep it for awhile...if not, and you choose a piggy-back Fender amp, you'll need a cab and speakers.

The Fender "Crafted in Japan" (CIJ) Jaguars, Jazzmaster and even the Mustangs are pretty decent surf machines. You can find a decent CIJ Fender in the $500-$600 range on the EBAY.

Once you get your Fender tube amp, you'll probably need a going-over by a qualified tech: that'll run two to three hundred $$$ easily. Get new tubes and capacitors installed if you need them.

Now, re: reverberation: the Fender outboard unit is awesome and is truly where the soul of surf resides. But, there are other options and pedals and such out there. The digital pedals do not sound like the tank, but they do offer relatively inexpensive reverberation...and they are durable like a brick.

For years and years, I had an old $30 solid state St. George Reverb Unit...it served me fine through late High School and College days...I didn't really get a "real" Fender reverb until much later...

For someone soon to begin college, I would consider a surf rig in the $1000-$1200 range, and save the rest for "the unexpected stuff" like guitar strings and gasoline and top ramen noodles and stuff like that...

good luck man, and welcome to sg101
-dp