Epiphone Valve Jr.

[Nelskie]

Just wondering if there were any other TheFret.Net members who've purchased or played through one of these cool little amps. They're still fairly new on the market. Myself, I couldn't resist the temptation, and ended up ordering one through Musician's Friend for a very reasonable $120.00 US. That's a whole lotta' vintage tone for a very small amount of green. I plan on posting a review at some point in the near future, which will include a bit about the amp in stock form, and then after a couple of mods: 1.) Swapping out the stock Sovteks w/ some new J & J's from Bob at Eurotubes; and 2.) Changing out the stock Weber ceramic-type speaker with a vintage-style Weber Alnico 8S. Stay tuned . . .

[Robert****]

I tried one a while ago. Nice tone! I was a little annoyed by the hum though. Maybe that hum was just a tube issue? And the looks - it looks awesome! I gotta get one.

[Nelskie]

Yeah, I know . . . that hum. It is a somewhat typical characteristic of Class "A" circuitry design, though I would assume that a large part of its presence in this amp is due to its lower-cost components, somewhat marginal grounding, and lack of adequate wire shielding. Still, I'm hoping that my planned mods take care of at least some of that. I found a good tech resource online at guitargeek.com, and this guy had pretty much spelled out his "anti-hum" mods in clear, understandable terms (even included a schematic!). So if that doesn't work, I can always bring the print-outs I made of that web forum, along with the schematic, and give it to my amp dude to figure out. Still, this amp has tons of potential, and with a few tweaks, it might just turn out to be that "diamond in the rough" low-wattage tube combo I've been looking for.

[Nelskie]

Kinda' feel like I'm talking to myself here, but I did see that a few folks had some interest in it, so I'll keep posting my trials, tribulations, and tonal discoveries with this amp.

Standard Fare: The Epiphone Valve Junior: A pre-mod review

There few feelings that are better than the one guitarists get when they buy a new piece of gear - amp, guitar, pedal, etc. Not only does it have direct tonal benefits, but it often times has the effect of re-connecting guitarists with some of the core elements of their playing. My recent, and somewhat unexpected "re-awakening" came courtesy of a little $120 Epiphone tube amp. I purchased this amp primarily as a replacement to my Vox ADVT amp, which I'd recently sold to a friend (who'd just picked up the electric). But could the Epi fill the Vox's big shoes?

Well, after a little over a month playing my Valve Jr., I can say that it's done that, and more. That being the case, I felt the time was right to, as Chef Emeril Lagasse' would say, "take it up a notch," and replace the tubes and speaker. Not that the Epi sounded bad, mind you, but because I thought it could only sound better. After a little research on the 'web, my head was literally spinning from all of the ideas. But I had to keep in mind that this was a $120 amp. Filling it with fancy upgrades and electronics might somehow spoil its lustrous simplicity. With that in mind, I set a goal: to keep the mod costs under $50. This, I felt, would still keep the "bargain" aspect of this amp in tact, and provide me with a noticable improvement in sound.

I'd read on a few web forums that the alnico (meaning aluminum / nickel / cobalt magnet vs. the the stock ceramic magnet) speaker was the way to go for this amp. Wanting something with a more of a "retro" vibe, I decided that alnico speaker was the answer to the speaker equation. Anyways - Weber had a sale on their 8" Alnico 8S about a month ago, and I bagged one for $25 ($35 incl. shipping). Jensen also makes an alnico speaker - but it's in the $75 range, and I thought that was more than a little spendy for this particular amp. Now, if you're talking a vintage Fender Champ resto - yeah, maybe I'd go that route. But for a mass-produced, Chinese-made, Class "A" wonder-rig, I'll take the Weber, thank you very much! Tube-wise, I'd worked with an outfit called Eurotubes (J & J tubes) when I re-tubed my Peavey Classic 30 last fall. The service was impeccable, and the J & J tubes I ordered from them turned my C30 into a veritable tone machine. Hoping to conjure some more of that vacuum-bottled magic, I e-mailed Bob Pletka (owner / mad amp scientist) at Eurotubes, outlining some of the songs / tones that I'd been digging while playing through this amp. As luck would have it, he'd done a few of these amps already, and knew exactly what J & J tubes would make this little Epi groove. At a reasonable $18 ($24 w/ shipping) I said "sounds good", and rec'd the tubes in the mail a few days later. Including the tubes, that brought the total cost of my new mods to $59 (w/ $16 of that in shipping). Thinking back, maybe $50 was a little on the frugal side. But a new 8" alnico speaker and some hot rod tubes for less than $60 - yeah, that's a pretty good deal. Score!

Since I'd only had the amp for a couple of weeks, and wanted to really "hear" the differences that the upcoming mods were going to make, I decided to play the Epi in its stock form for awhile - you know, really give it a good listen. Initially, I thought that the wait would be unbearable, knowing that I could literally change the sound of the amp in an afternoon. But as the days & weeks rolled by, it began to gnaw at me less and less. Soon, it'd been a month - - then a month and a half. Aside from the previously mentioned "hum" issue, the amp really does sound good in stock form - even with the somewhat unspectacular Sovtek tubes. The factory speaker is a Weber-designed speaker, and not some AM Radio knock-off that they'd normally drop in an lower cost amp. Aside from the obvious facts of lower-end wiring & circuitry components (which can ultimately be corrected), you won't find a small tube amp anywhere near the price range, much less one that actually sounds decent.

As you know by now, this amp does not have any tonal controls, reverb, or anything else. Just (1) chicken-head volume knob. Amp afficianados, however, know that you don't need a lot of knobs to get good tone. The Class "A" design is really the key for this low-watt Epi combo, in that both the tone & gain are derived by controlling the volume of the amp, and the volume / tone controls of your guitar. Yeah - definitely old school. But it's what those cool cats at Sun and Chess studios cut their teeth on back in the 40's and 50's, and I don't think I need to go into how totally happenin' their sound was! Anyways, with all of the bling-bling available on today's new amps, it's almost funny (at least to me) that one of the hottest *new* trends is going back towards vintage designs. And in the case of the Epi -"barebones" vintage designs. Having had this amp for a couple of months now, I can clearly see why this is happening. These amps are a total kick to play through!

As for the tone, the lower volume levels (up to 11 o 'clock) produce a clean, even tone that responds very nicely to your strumming / picking nuances. However, everything you play through this amp you hear - string drag, being out-of-tune, mistakes - everything. Some might look at that as a negative, but let me tell ya' - it REALLY forces you to play better. Not only that, but sans effects, reverb, etc., you totally "hear" what you're playing. One of the first "clean" songs I played through this amp was Led Zeppelin's "Tangerine", and boy, did I ever sound like a hack. A month and half later, I can make this song chime beautifully through this amp. Practice makes perfect! And believe me, you'll love practicing with this little guy.

Another cool thing about this amp is that it responds very differently to various guitar / p'up combinations. My Squier Tele had that trademark "twangly", bright register, whereas my Epi Les Paul had a fuller, wider tone, w/ nice bite to it (thanks to the SD humbuckers). Pushing the volume past 11 o'clock, the amp begins to show the first signs of that "natural" tube overdrive. This OD gradually increases up to the 2 o'clock position, but as it does, there begins a slight, and continuing decline in the note definintion (something I will touch on in Pt. 2). Surprisingly, for 5W, this little box gets LOUD!! As the volume passes the 2 o' clock position, all the way to fully juiced, the gain / OD factor is akin to a snortin', kickin' bronco - that is, a gritty, unapologetic, almost borderline rude tone. But, is it usable? Hell yeah! Man, I grabbed my Les Paul, and roared through Brownsville Station's "Smokin' In The Boy's Room" - it was pure, rock n' roll bliss. As you move up the volume level, one important thing to keep in mind: as long as you're semi-attentive to your guitar's tone / volume controls, you can keep this little bronco under reign, and get those cool, natural, over-driven Class "A" sounds. On the flip side, if you want to throw caution to the wind, and just get plain ol' crazy with some old AC~DC, this little rig just begs for the attention!!

The bottom line is this: there's plenty of mojo to be found in the Epi Valve Junior - right out of the box. And after playing it for awhile, you'll probably find yourself wondering why all amplifiers don't have just one knob!!

Stay tuned for Part II - Rocket Surgery: A post-mod review!!

[6STRINGS 9LIVES]

I read a review of the EPI valve junior and valve special in the oct issue of vintage guitar player.. best bang for the buck in tube amps hands down , i have not tried one yet but will , i love small tube amps , and by all accounts thus far this one has some serious tone. THE vintage guitar reviewer said "whats the list price?$199? they sent me the wrong amp". how smooth is the weber sig8 in the epi i used one in my vibro champ for a while and it was amazing esp for the price.. it sounds like a great amp with tons of hot rodding possibilities...6S9L

[Tone2TheBone]

Robert, If it doesn't hum the magic isn't there buddy. :P Its the little "flaws" that keep the bad spirits away...

[Justaguyin_nc]

I have an old Harmony tube amp thats getting to Hummmm a bit much .. maybe this little one can replace that little one.. Someplace on Harmony Central it mentions light hum till you replace the tubes. 5 watts is all I will probably ever need and at that price... why not give it a try... shoot.. that would put off the Vox 50 still another month!!

[Robert****]

The Vox 50 and the Valve JR are very different, that's for sure. Both are good, but they hardly have anything in common. I think it's healthiest to have both. :0

[Nelskie]

I knew Tone would have the mystical insight into the "secret of the hum".

[Robert****]

How does that Valve Special model sound in comparison to the "standard" - is the basic tone the same? It has some digital effects, correct? I'm just wondering if it's getting the Valve Special or not.

[Nelskie]

Robert - The Valve Special has the same wattage (5W), but with a larger speaker (10"), and DSP effects (chorus, reverb, flanger, delay), and a power standby. The VS & VJ both have speaker ext. outs in back. Here is the web link to the Epiphone website:

http://www.epiphone.com/default.asp?...ollectionID=13

If you hit the "E" logo letter in the bottom right hand part of the photo, it'll take you to a Guitar Player review. I ordered my amp through Musician's Friend, so I didn't have a chance to play each of them, and compare them head to head. I'd say that the larger speaker (10" in the Special vs. the 8" in the Valve Junior) might give you a bit of sound variance. However, I'd assume that the basic overall tone is the same.

I went with the smaller Valve Junior amp, due to already having a mid-sized tube amp in my Peavey Classic 30. The little Epi takes to pedals very nicely, so having the DSP effects wasn't really a big deal for me. Buying the smaller amp also allowed me some extra $$ to do a tube & speaker mod, and still have an extra $40 in my pocket to show for it vs. buying the Special ($220 US). My wife also thought the little Epi was "cuter", so maybe that was what swung me to the Junior instead of the Special!!! Ha ha ha!

I don't think you could go wrong with either. They're both great amps!

[Nelskie]

For those of you "dying" to know what the tube / speaker mods did for the Epi . . . well, wonder no more. Without further adieu, here's

Part II - Rocket Surgery: A post-mod review!!

Well it's been about three weeks since the J&J's and the Weber Alnico 8S speaker went into the Valve Junior. I am happy to report that the mods have produced some very definite improvements over the stock items.

While I can't specifically tell you which mod has had the biggest effect on the VJ's sound, I can say that the tone is definitely fuller now, and much more definitive. The clean sounds on the lower end of the volume scale seem to have benefited the most from the change-out. Both of my Strats sound especially nice - chimey and bright on the bridge / mid p'ups, with a nice growly bite on the neck p'up. The neck p'up on my Les Paul (a Seymour Duncan '59) also loves the low-end clean, though its voicing is a bit darker and more subdued than the Fenders. Again, the cleans stay nicely in line up to 11 o' clock or so. From 11 o'clock through 2 o'clock, the natural break-up again begins to take hold. With the new tubes & speaker, the break up was a little less "edgy", and more natural. The mids were definitley tighter, but the overall tone seemed to have opened up a lot more in this part of the volume spectrum. I think I said in my prior post that the "sweet spot" for this amp is right around 2 o'clock. In the case of the new mods, this is most definitely true. Initially, I had hoped the new tubes would produce a tighter, more intensive natural OD into the upper volume range. However, the OD / gain in the higher volume spectrum was not as pleasing as I had hoped it would be. There seemed to be a noticeable "buzziness" to the speaker when driven hard, vs. the stock speaker's more natural "bite". I spent a lot of time looking for volume / tone settings that would allow the speaker drive, but not distort too much; or, that would not become too hollow-sounding with the volume backed off. I did find a couple of settings that were OK, but felt like the amp was holding something back.

I decided to experiment with both my Zoom G2 multi-pedal, and of course, the ever-trusty Bad Monkey. The Zoom held some nice sounds, esp. using the cleaner palette - i.e. Fender Tweed, Roland Jazz Chorus, etc. However, the one setting that really made the amp come alive was the Fender Blackface setting - just the right amount of tightness & bite, which allowed me to explore the higher volumes, without getting totally lost in the fuzz. The next 30 minutes of playing / tweaking the Zoom produced a couple of convincing, straight-ahead rock tones - an early-era Steve Mariott Humble Pie, and a very cagy Rory Gallagher. I was pleased, and quickly saved both settings into the bank. I'd tried the Zoom with my stock setting also with good results. However, with the new mods, these two sounded especially nice. The "sweet spot", again, was right around 2 & 3 o'clock.

The Monk also did not disappoint. Using a couple of the settings gleaned from the pedal demo off of the Digi Tech website, I was able to nail a really nice SRV-ish tone with my 60's Strat, and with a little coaxing, a chunky Black Crowes-type sound with the Les Paul. One thing with the Monk is that it seemed to "soothe" a bit of the buzziness I'd experienced running the new speaker from the upper volumes to wide-open. If you remember my tip from the first review, the Epi VJ will often times "force" you into watching your volume / tone knobs. The new tubes and speakers demanded that same attention, with the variance being dependent on the amp's volume setting, the "hot-ness" of your pick-ups, and your agressiveness of your picking / strumming. If you're planning on using this amp live, or recording with it, you'll definitely want to spend a little time with each of your guitars, noting the differences in sound at various pick-up / volume / tone settings.

So now that we know the amp sounds good - - what about the "hum". Well . . . it's still there. Am I disappointed? Nah - there's too much cool stuff happening with this amp to feel let down because of a little "hum". I can hear the boutique-heads chuckling their "see, I told you so's" after reading that the hum was still there. Seriously, I wasn't expecting a Dr. Z or a Dumble for $180 bucks, and neither should you. It's a damn-fine sounding little amp even with the hum, and as our friendly Fret Net moderator / sage Tone2 would say, "if it don't hum, brother, there ain't any magic in it"!!!

Everyone has a different "ear" for tone / sound, so what I'm reporting is mostly based upon my personal preference. I should also mention that this is my first experience with an Alnico speaker, so maybe my take on some of its tonal characteristics have been biased from my almost exclusive use of amp speakers w/ ceramic-type magnets. I can really tell a difference with the cleans using the Alnico, and perhaps it's what drove me to buy it in the first place. On the flip side, a little "pedal-coaxing" has delivered some really tasty distorted tones, even though I was hoping for some of that raspy, Angus Young-type of stuff running the amp by itself, w/o any pedals. Whatever. The extra-chimey cleans really were a nice trade-off for what I didn't get on the over-driven top end. Different tubes & speakers will obviously produce different tonal effects with the VJ. One of the cool things is that you can try a few different things, and be none worse for wear cost-wise. I may try the Weber Alnico 8 later on down the road, or maybe even some different tubes.

The Final Take

So did new tubes and a new speaker change the world. Well, not really. But they did make the sky a bit bluer, and the air just a little sweeter. I'm pretty happy with the outcome, overall, though there are a couple of things I did prefer with the stock set-up - - namely, the grindy, rude distortion at the higher volume settings. Nothing a good pedal can't cure, though, which leaves me with a far superior clean sound on the lower volume spectrum, and a much "wider" tone overall. A good trade-off in my book.

Take A Bow, Valve Junior!

The Epiphone website draws some rather loose comparisons of the VJ to "boutique snob-boxes" (great term, by the way!), even though I don't think the folks making those high-end amps they're poking fun of have too much to worry about. I will, however, say that the VJ definitely does have a bit of that "boutique" pizazz, not to mention a bit of that "boutique" tone, too. The two things I found most appealing about this amp were its simplicity, and its ability to produce some very organic, very vintage-sounding tones. With all of the whiz-bang, techno-gear offerings available to today's musicians, it's almost too easy to forget how just how cool a simple, Class "A" tube amp can sound. Just listen to some of the music many of guitar's legendary players created with this simple piece of equipment (meaning a low-watt tube amp), and revel in the character and complexity of its tone! I'd also be hard-pressed not to mention how using an amp with such basic fare has not only pushed me to play better, but that it has also made me want to play more often. Both of which, at least in my eyes, are THE true calling cards of a great piece of gear.

[Robert****]

Great review Nelskie! Thanks for posting all the details - we appreciate it brother! I might get one of these one day too, although right now my mind is set on that booteek amp Dr. Z Maz Junior - an incredible amp but it ain't cheap of course. I keep getting different kinds of GAS attacks with short notice, so who knows what I might bring home! I just bought a Shure SM 57 by the way, so I'll be damned if I can't start posting decent sounding tones soon for you guys.

[Nelskie]

Robert - Glad you enjoyed the review. I had a lot of fun writing it, and of course, a lot more fun "obtaining the results" (i.e. playing). As always, we look forward to your forthcoming "sound" contributions - courtesy of that new Shure SM-57 mike. And perhaps even a *new* Dr. Z!!??? Maybe Santa will bring you one of those for Christmas!!!

[Robert****]

Well, Santa won't be hauling any Dr Z's around on his sleigh this time around, but I think he'll bring me a slick 5 GB MP3 player to comfort me with instead. I am hoping I can have a lot of fun recording-wise with the Vox, Hellhound and the SM 57.

Hey, how about some Valve JR clips there, Nelskie? There are people who want to hear it!

[Nelskie]

Absolutely! For those that are interested, I do plan on posting some VJ sound clips at some point here in the next few weeks - some w/ pedals, some w/0. Stay tuned . . .

[Tone2TheBone]

Nelski,

Ok. Tell me how you REALLY like the Epi Valve Jr.

I got some Christmas money to burn and thought about wasting it on a fasel inducted Classic Cry Baby pedal.... and then I thought....nahhhhhhhhhhhhh. I don't use effects anymore. Seriously. I'm back to straight guitar and amp. Not even any reverb. This brought on by my reacquaintance (sp) with acoustic guitar playing. The no nonsense approach to REAL guitar playing. Anywho I think I might enjoy the Class A train ride after reading your review.

[Nelskie]

Dude! Hey, the conductor's takin' tickets to Tubeville on the A-Train, and if there was ever a little engine that could, it's the Epi Valve Jr! Man, I dig that little rig to no end. When I find myself getting too wrapped up in tweaking effects, or dialing in tones in the Cyber Twin, I plug into the Epi, and BAM!, its back to the basics! Great clean tones on low vol, and a nice grind right around that 2 o'clock mark. Geez - for the deneros, it's a total no-brainer. You might also have some different preferences as far as tubes and speaker are concerned, so even with the same platform, you might just get a different vibe altogether going with something else. Or, you could just leave it stock for awhile, and be none worse for wear. Eventually, if you find yourself missing effects (for me it was a smidge o' verb), the little guy takes to pedals wonderfully. Running my Zoom G2 through it gives me the full compliment of bells & whistles, almost to the point where I think it can contend with a . . . dare I say it . . . Vox ADVT amp! The 'Monk loves this amp, too - really smooths stuff out at higher volumes.

Remember, it's totally basic fare. Just one knob, juicy Class "A" tube tone, and nothin' else.

This rig will re-connect you back to Mother Earth, my friend. Just you wait and see . . .

[Tone2TheBone]

Dude! Hey, the conductor's takin' tickets to Tubeville on the A-Train, and if there was ever a little engine that could, it's the Epi Valve Jr!

Nelski,

This is one of the best lines of written word I have ever read. You should write for Rolling Stone. LMAO

Last night all I thought about was the Valve Jr. To simulate what I thought it might sound like I dialed in the Vox AC15 on the Valvetronix (different bird I know but class A amp nonetheless) and cranked that pup up to a frothy head. Apples and oranges sure, but I wanted to get a feel for what to expect. I haven't plugged into one yet and I probably won't until I actually take it home and do it there. I don't like demo'ing amps at the shop and especially at GC. There's just too much noise all around to really hear what's going on and I'm afraid it might sway my decision. It's gotta hit my skull right. I figure if it's not for me then I can just take it back and get something else BUT I'm pretty sure I'll dig it.

Like I said I haven't played any effects at all lately, not even reverb. I just love the unadulterated sound of straight up amp in a nice airy room (ie. my tiled livingroom with high ceilings). I'm only hoping that this little amp will give me a full sound...good combo of lows and highs...from a full range speaker. If it sounds like the Dean Markley battery powered amp in clear plastic then I'll exchange it for the Wah.