Fine Variac on Ebay

[GAR]

Item 7546326995, 5 amp; good for up to two 100w Marshall heads

[ELVIS]

That's a good way to kill your amp...

And It won't even come close to sounding like Van Halen...


:elvis:

[ELVIS]

http://www.imagehostplus.com/v2/is.php?i=543790&img=A307.jpg


:elvis:

[BrownSound1]

A Variac will not hurt your amp. In fact it can help save tube life.

As far as sounding like VH you are probably right. I know a guy who has a 68 Plexi that just nails the VH1 tone, and he doesn't use a Variac at all.

[GAR]

You dial it down to 92 volts for thicker tone and courser-grained distortion.

AND it prolongs tube life by preventing cathode-stripping caused by peak voltages induced by spike power conditions such as going from silent operation to full chord blast at high volume.

Except for the meter, this is the exact same model variac (guts and enclosure) Ed used the first few years. Whoever gets it got a grate deal because the model WITH meter is rarer.

[BrownSound1]

Hell I wouldn't mind having that for bench use if nothing else.

Gar, if someone was going to use a Variac at the all important 90ish voltage setting on their amp, then shouldn't you bias your amp based on that voltage coming in? Seems to me you would be running cold with 90 volts coming in.

[Nitro Express]

Didn't Eddie use an Ohmite variac? If you work on tube amps yourself, the variac is needed to put new electrolytic capacitors in your amp. You need to build up the charge slowly or they blow. So the variac is also used for amp maintenance as well. On Ebay they are cheap so what the hell, get one.

A variac will damage your amp if you boost the voltage up past what the input transformer is set at. I've heard people get close to Eddie's famouse tone with sevral different amps. I even heard a guy get close to it with a stock 5150 combo.

[BrownSound1]

If you are dropping in brand new stock electrolytics you don't need to worry about forming them. However, if they are new old stock caps, that have been sitting on a shelf for a long time, then you'll have to form them. Personally I think there are plenty of good new stuff out there. For instance I see people spend way too much for "mustard" caps, when you can buy a whole set of Sozo mustard replicas for 17 bucks. Yes I know mustards aren't electrolytic, but that is just an example. :D

[ELVIS]

Well, I see no need for anyone to mess around with a variac to get a guitar tone...

Edward used it to control feedback at high volumes, not to achieve his tone...

My guitar sound is very similar to Yngwie's but my setup is entirely different than his, although I do use marshalls and HS-3's...

I can get a really nice brown sound with my MXR Phase 100 and pretty much any guitar with a humbucker...


:elvis:

[BrownSound1]

Exactly Elvis. For years and years people have thought the secret to the "brown sound" was the Variac. The Variac, by lowering voltage, would effect the tone a bit, but not on a grand scale. I think a Variac is a good idea, if for nothing else but to regulate the voltage your amp sees. Voltages will vary from venue to venue, so why not use the Variac to make sure your amp always has the same voltage going to it.

If people really want to know what Ed's amp sounds like, then listen to any number of boots that were done before VH1 came out. To my ears it really is basically a stock Marshall tone. The VH1 tone is a result of that amp going through a resistive dummy load, to a power amp, and then into the speaker cabs. On top of that there is some eq adjusting on the production end.

VHII on the other hand shows the same amp without the dummy load...hence the tone difference. I actually think the VHII tone is "browner" than the VH1 tone. It is certainly more natural sounding. I don't think Ed was as happy with the result, and went back to the dummy load for Women and Children First.

[ELVIS]

I prefer the Van Halen II tone...

[BrownSound1]

I like the VHII tone better as well..especially on Somebody Get Me A Doctor.

[Nitro Express]

I'll never forget seeing Van Halen in 1980 expecting to hear Eddies famouse tone live and being dissapointed. Eddie was still great but you are right, it was more of a straight up Marshall sound. I think Don Landee and Ted Templeman had a lot to do with the tone on those early records as Eddie did. For me, it was that crunchy slap back delay in the mix. Live, that was all gone. In fact whatever was recognizable you would hear through anything because it was coming out of Ed's fingers.

[Nitro Express]

Funny you mention Yngwie's tone. You know, I just said screw trying to emulate anyone and just hooked stuff up I liked and I ended up with a 50 Watt Marshall MK II and a DOD 250 and a 72 Strat. I wasn't trying to be Yngwie at all. I tried so many peddles and it came dow to a nice Fuzz Face I love and a DOD 250. I love the tone and the rig really reacts well to your playing as well. I can see why Yngwie likes a simular rig. Playing like Yngwie is a little more natural for me as well or Dick Dale for that matter. I love to pick fast.

Playing like Eddie was like I had to throw a switch in my head and go,"Ok, to sound like Eddie you do this and this". Eddie isn't natural for me at all. I do like ripping Eruption Yngwie style though. It sounds cool that way too. Whenever I play Van Halen stuff, I can't help but think,"You crazy son of a bitch Eddie, how did you ever come up with this shit." Man, Ed has his faults but what a Goddamned brilliant guitar player he was.

[BrownSound1]

I do love Eddie's tone on the three "Fair Warning" videos...especially on Unchained.

[ELVIS]

That live sound is alot thinner than his studio tone from those days...


:elvis:

[GAR]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7546326995

Final Price: $34.11

I have a cheapie yardsale 5 amp, and a huge Stancor 10amp and I woulda picked this one to upgrade my cheapie.

I thought it would go at least past 50 bux..