JUST GOT A VH4!!!!!

[dooredge]

Don't be so quick to dump it man! Took me a good week or two and some preamp tubes to fall in love with my Herbert! Glad I pulled it from the classifieds when I did. It is not going anywhere anytime soon.

 

[mindseye]

Took me two weeks to really dial my old vh4 in but man was it worth it!!!!

 

[acalaf]

I am sure you guys assume I am insane, but I assure you I am not, well, maybe a little picky though.

this is crazy. give it a little time please. your ears and body have not even adjusted. I've never played a vh4 but this just seems too drastic a measure. Put some 6l6's first or something.

 

[cardinal]

Agree with those saying give it time. First time I plugged into a VH4, I thought WTF? Very very strange feel to the amp. But after fighting with it a bit, I figured out how to adjust to it. They're great amps, and if you like the voicing, give the feel a bit more time.

 

[mooncobra]

Agree with those saying give it time. First time I plugged into a VH4, I thought WTF? Very very strange feel to the amp. But after fighting with it a bit, I figured out how to adjust to it. They're great amps, and if you like the voicing, give the feel a bit more time.

you guys are right, I was being a little rushed, I am going to play it for a few more days before I make any decisions. after a few hours it was a lot better than when I first started playing it.

 

[metalmaniac93]

Congrats!!! I have never really like the VH4, as far as what I was looking for!

 

[FourT6and2]

lol @ boosting a VH4

Stupid amounts of gain and wicked tight already. But whatever works for you.

Try these settings (but depends on speakers, I used G12-65s and sometimes Greenbacks or V30s). Also, VH4 gets along better with lower output pickups (below 10k).

CHANNEL 3:

Gain: 2:00
Volume: 1:00
Treble: 2:00
Mids: 100%
Bass: 10:00
Presence: 1:30
Deep: 10:30
Master: 10:30 - 11:00

Heaven.

 

[Anonymous]

Did you get it from the dude I referred you to?

no, never got message from you? been having issues with rig talk messages.

I am not liking the VH4, used to have one with kt88s, this one has el34s. I am super picky about things, the amp sounds great, no doubt about it, but the feel is what gets me. I have some mcp black irons that sound great also, but they feel odd to me. I have an idea in my head, the way things feel like fretboard, pickups, amp, etc. if it is not how I like or am used to, I usually part ways with the gear, so you will see it shortly in the classifieds!!!

am i the only one that read interpreted that HE USED to have one with 88's. this new one HAS el34 tubes?

4k amp. 80 dollar boost.


i know that'll stir the pot!

 

[JimmyBlind]

The VH4 comes alive with a boost in my opinion.

Agreed.

The VH4 is pretty dry on its own. I've got my VH4 absolutely screaming with overdrive & compression out front.

Not sure why someone Lol'd above. There are tones you simply cannot create without driving the input signal into a valve amplifier. I drive the input signal so that I don't have to use 'stupid amounts of (preamp) gain'. I get much better note/chord clarity & pick attack that way.

 

[Joeytpg]

I have a VH4 and I understand what you mean. You can try to change all the tubes in the world and try all the boosts in the world but if the CHARACTER of the amp and the FEEL of it is not your thing you'll end up flipping it neither way.

IMO an amp must talk to you from the very beginning. If you can swap glass and make it even BETTER, then awesome, but the initial interaction must be flawless imo.

 

[Shiny_Surface]

Not sure why someone Lol'd above. There are tones you simply cannot create without driving the input signal into a valve amplifier. I drive the input signal so that I don't have to use 'stupid amounts of (preamp) gain'. I get much better note/chord clarity & pick attack that way.

I agree, boosting adds a nice scrape edge to the pick attack that sounds different than an amp's high gain alone and can be appealing to some in certain circumstances.

I have a VH4 and I understand what you mean. You can try to change all the tubes in the world and try all the boosts in the world but if the CHARACTER of the amp and the FEEL of it is not your thing you'll end up flipping it neither way.

IMO an amp must talk to you from the very beginning. If you can swap glass and make it even BETTER, then awesome, but the initial interaction must be flawless imo.

I also tend to agree. The "best" modern production tubes tend to just be the least shitty/most reliable available. Modern day amp makers design their amps to sound good with whatever tubes currently available on the market that are reliable, sound good and are economically feasible to buy in quantity.

I expect subtle EQ shifts with tubes changes not a complete revoicing. Changing tubes when someone doesn't like an amp is turning into a cliche catch all response to remedy a negative opinion.

Although I can definitely see a problematic tube(s) out of operating spec making an amp sound bad.

 

[C1-ocaster]

Not sure why someone Lol'd above. There are tones you simply cannot create without driving the input signal into a valve amplifier. I drive the input signal so that I don't have to use 'stupid amounts of (preamp) gain'. I get much better note/chord clarity & pick attack that way.

I agree, boosting adds a nice scrape edge to the pick attack that sounds different than an amp's high gain alone and can be appealing to some in certain circumstances.

I have a VH4 and I understand what you mean. You can try to change all the tubes in the world and try all the boosts in the world but if the CHARACTER of the amp and the FEEL of it is not your thing you'll end up flipping it neither way.

IMO an amp must talk to you from the very beginning. If you can swap glass and make it even BETTER, then awesome, but the initial interaction must be flawless imo.

I also tend to agree. The "best" modern production tubes tend to just be the least shitty/most reliable available. Modern day amp makers design their amps to sound good with whatever tubes currently available on the market that are reliable, sound good and are economically feasible to buy in quantity.

I expect subtle EQ shifts with tubes changes not a complete revoicing. Changing tubes when someone doesn't like an amp is turning into a cliche catch all response to remedy a negative opinion.

Although I can definitely see a problematic tube(s) out of operating spec making an amp sound bad.

I don't have a lot of experience with tube changes, and I too once thought, what is the big deal with changing tubes, it can't really make much difference.
I've come to experience that it can make quite a nice difference.

Now I don't go over board like some who say that their amp was "transformed" in to a god like amp with just a tube change.
I think those experiences are likely because the existing tubes were shot and even putting in a new set of the same tube would have made the map better.

But a set of the right tubes can made a noticeable difference, and it's not just an eq shift.
On the amp I'm experimenting with, all the eq tweaking simply amounted to eq tweaking. It didn't change the core tonal structure, or the base "feel". I got a pair of SED winged-C's and they really did make the amp sound a good bit better.
The tone became "warmer" and the harmonic content is very much richer.

It can be costly to swap tubes. Mine were about $90 for the pair, so a quad with be pricey. But one doesn't have to go with those, there are lower cost tubes that others find very rewarding.
I decided to spend the coin so that I could have a set to try in other amps.
Turns out this low cost used map has problems that new tubes won't fix.
But even in this problematic amp the over all tone was nicely improved.

I had a new Egnater Rebel 30 combo that had a pair of EL84 and a pair of 6V6's. On that amp you can dial in nearly any mix combination of the two different tubes, 100% EL or 100% 6V6 or any percentage in between.
The tonal difference at 100% of either set is not day and night, nor becomes a completely different amp.
But, I can see who some would say that, because there IS in fact an easily noticeable difference in tonal character.
And either tube set still uses the same tone stack of either channel.

YMMV, but I'm just say'in.

 

[steve_k]

I used to roll them fucking tubes day after day. Finally, I quit. Whatever came in the amp stayed in the amp. There's just not enough difference in the preamps and power tube brands to make too much difference. Maybe a subtle change, but overall....it just wasn't worth it.

But, to go from 34's to 88's....rest assured there is plenty of change in character in an amp. That would be money well spent to get them out of this amp.

 

[glassjaw7]

I love the VH4 but maybe it's just not for you. IMO, you aren't going to go from not liking it to loving it. You might warm up to it a bit, but unless there's something wrong with it or the current tubes are just pure shit, you should know right away if you like the amp. It's not overly picky about where the controls are set (of course there are ideal settings, but it's easy to get a good tone) and it has a very distinct voicing and an immediate feel. Maybe it's just not your thing. Now trade me for my Mark IV.