Any Epi Valve Jr. Fans?

[lapsteel]

Anyone out there with experience and even mod knowledge of this amp? Does it play nice with pedals?

[777mick777]

I use mine daily. It's a nice amp, it's a little bassy so i use a sho clone to bright it up.

[D.o.S.]

Awesome amp for recording/low volume situations. Dark and fairly gainy when you crank the volume.

[Holy Schnikes]

TheRiffer uses/used one pretty regular when putting B.A.T. stuff through preliminary testing. Fucked around with his setup a bit, sounded great considering it's minuscule size. I've seen a lot of info online regarding popular mods but not sure on the details.

[skullservant]

I use mine every single day in my apartment. I put a new output transformer on it and it brightened it up a little bit. I also did the JP1 mod which is just taking out a jumper and it cuts the volume just a hair but gives you about 10x more headroom and makes it brighter. I also added a psuedo-volume control to go along with the existing one, so that the original is used for gain and the other is used for volume. It started out as a head unit but I traced down a combo version and subbed my modded head into it. Totally worth the money! I've been putting mine through my 4x12 and it sounds massive for only being 5 watts.

[Mike]

Got one... love it. I play it more than all of my other amps. I run it through a 1952 Jensen P12R that I pulled from an organ, and stuck in a cabinet that a guy I knew built during the 50s. It was pretty good stock, but much more versatile modified.

First thing you need to do is fix the power supply. It is likely setup for a lower voltage than comes out of your wall, and failing to fix the issue will shorten the lifespan of your tubes, and any heat-sensitive components. Add a resistor, replace a resistor, done. You may also want to flip the amp, so the heat from the tubes doesn't go straight back up into the board. Before the mods/flip, my amp ran very hot, now it runs slightly warm to the touch.

I swapped out some components-- "upgraded" caps, metal film resistors. I added a bypassable tone control, which works ok. My favorite mod is NFB. If I recall correctly, my switch is C3/C3 lift/C3 lift + NFB. All three modes have there benefits. I also added another rotary switch to swap through values on another cap, but I forget which one. Also swapped one resistor w/ carbon comp, since it is the only position in the amp where it can benefit from the non-linear properties of a carbon comp w/ more than a 50+ voltage swing.

I added VVR, which allows you to scale the voltage to the tubes waaaay down, which lowers volume, gain, and headroom, at the expense of treble.

I also swapped out the power switch, and installed a jewel light from the 50s.

Great amp.

[Achtane]

I use mine every single day in my apartment. I put a new output transformer on it and it brightened it up a little bit. I also did the JP1 mod which is just taking out a jumper and it cuts the volume just a hair but gives you about 10x more headroom and makes it brighter. I also added a psuedo-volume control to go along with the existing one, so that the original is used for gain and the other is used for volume. It started out as a head unit but I traced down a combo version and subbed my modded head into it. Totally worth the money! I've been putting mine through my 4x12 and it sounds massive for only being 5 watts.

This thing is sweet.
And we are definitely going to need pics of yours, Mike.

[Mike]

Heh... it looks very stock... and very upside down.

I plan on etching a face plate out of some aluminum, but just haven't had a chance.

Don't make fun of my pedal board too much... heh! The First Act and the Starcaster are highly modified, and much improved. I built everything else except the Yamaha.



Here's what the VVR board looks like:

[skullservant]

Mike, is yours a V1 or otherwise? I've always been reluctant to fire up my V1, just been rolling with my V2/3

[IEatCats]

I've been considering getting one of these when I eventually get a "real" amp. They look like fun. Does the volume hold up on a 4x12 with a band, gigging?

[skullservant]

I would say probably not. But its more than enough for in an apartment/practice

[benjuro]

DOOD.
Is that a Sleep Volume 2 shirt????

[skullservant]

YES

You can get them from Robotic Empire!