From eslawson@juno.com Mon Nov 19 18:41:45 2001
Subject:Re: one more try : KBR-M tube?

I recall posting this before, but I'll give an update with some more
details.

This summer I replaced the stock 12AX7 in my KBRm with a NOS Mullard
12AX7 tube from the 1960's which I bought from eBay. I could not tell a
huge difference but it did provide an improvement in the tube drive I am
getting from the KBRm. The Mullard has a crisper bite to it with more
mids and highs coming through with the overdrive than I was getting from
the stock tube.

One down side which seems to have been accentuated by the Mullard: It is
very easy to hit overkill on the overdrive. What I mean by this is that
I am getting more drive from the tube earlier than with the stock tube.
It sounds pretty good, but when I go to 888888888 at full volume it is a
HEAVY sound and seems to almost break up in a non-pleasing fashion like
solid state amp clipping. I'm not sure if this is the tube or the SS amp
in the KBRm hitting its ceiling. Backing off the volume helps compensate
but I have to monitor it closely. Soundmen tell me they hear me
overdriving the rig but when I hear it on tape (we record every show and
burn CDs for postmortem analysis) it sounds like a nasty old B3 screaming
in the mix. One thing I have to watch with the snarling sound is to keep
my playing simple so it does not overwhelm the mix.

I use an XK2 with V5 (mainly as a backup set of drawbars). The XK2 is
loud as can be at only 50% gain. I am usually setting the pre gain on
the KBRm at about 2 o'clock and the post between 12:00 and 2:00 and I get
all the drive I need. When I kick in the chorus (I use either C1 or C3),
the gain seems to get a 25% boost so I usually baseline my gain settings
with 888888888 with C3 and adjust from there. But I also use mellow
settings quite a bit, like 008000000 or 800000004 so I need to make sure
these can cut as well. One problem with the loud organ is that it dwarfs
my digital piano a lot of times. I really try to use the piano to
baseline how loud the organ should be, but in the heat of the moment, the
organ usually gets cranking and out of balance to the piano. An area for
improvement in my rig.

By the way, I have been using the KBRm for over two years (I have one of
the first ones made) and it has given me ZERO problems (knock on wood).
I am very pleased with this amp and it is a very compact solution for my
rig.

After reading all the positive reviews, I believe that the Speakeasy
preamp may well be the answer to my tube preamp woes, whether using it
with my Motion Sound rig or with my 122. I had a long talk with Steve
Hayes the other day and he seems to have a great product and a great
philosophy going on with his company. While he is perfectly willing to
customize to my exact requirements, he recommends keeping it simple vs.
spending all my money on mods I may not end up using. So I will probably
start with one of his basic pedals to check it out.

Regards,
Eric
http://www.phatalbert.com