Little Walter Vintage 50W Combo - WOW!

Daniel Morris · Post by **Daniel Morris** » 1 May 2011 11:24 am

After a UPS problem, my Little Walter amp arrived safely. I fired it up, only to find there was some ringing/crackling sort of noise, especially as the notes decayed. I called Phil, the amp's builder, as I was bummed that something was amiss with my brand new amp. Well... Phil is very responsive, and although I have no real experience with tube amps, he was very gracious and informative, and said it must be a bad tube. (I had a hunch that could be the issue, but in recent years I've purchased "boutique" equipment that either didn't do what I wanted or needed, or simply didn't cotton well to steel guitar, so I feared worse).
At any rate, I had already bought some replacement tubes, as Phil suggested, and finally one of them worked well and the amp sounds fantastic. Even my (non-musician) wife, who typically might not hear what I hear, commented on how nice and clear the tone was. The sound is full and rich, a great bass response, and now I can't wait to gig with this amp.
I want to thank Phil Bradbury for his above-and-beyond customer service - I would have been at a loss without his help. Thanks also to Paul Franklin and Dan Tyack - you guys were right, this is a fabulous amp.
Unsolicited, uncompensated endorsement for:
http://littlewaltertubeamps.com/index.html
I am now a happy camper.....

Bo Borland · Post by **Bo Borland** » 1 May 2011 3:52 pm

I heard one a few weeks ago in a club situation, it sounded awesome.

Andy Schick · Post by **Andy Schick** » 1 May 2011 4:52 pm

Any pics to share?

PLEASE

Daniel Morris · Post by **Daniel Morris** » 1 May 2011 5:08 pm

Hmmm, well, I don't have any of myself with my amp, BUT if you scroll down on this page, you'll see what I got: http://littlewaltertubeamps.com/page8.html
That extra baffle was suggested by Phil, because I simply couldn't decide between a 12" or 15" speaker.
Paul and Dan went with a 12" (or two), but I decided on the BW 1501-4 (amp and speaker are both 4 ohms); the baffle allows me to simply take out that speaker, install the baffle, then put in a 12". Don't know that I will, but it's great to have the option, rather than two cabinets.

Andy Schick · Post by **Andy Schick** » 6 May 2011 5:43 pm

Daniel, Lets hear your rig.

Daniel Morris · Post by **Daniel Morris** » 6 May 2011 5:48 pm

Hi, Andy. Getting sound up here may take some doing for me. I'm not technically or mechanically gifted; I do want to record something for Phil, the builder, and if it all works, I'll add a link here.

Bill Leff · Post by **Bill Leff** » 7 May 2011 9:42 am

Is there a handle on it so you can carry it, or is just too pretty to take on a gig?

Daniel Morris · Post by **Daniel Morris** » 7 May 2011 12:51 pm

Actually, I'm really looking forward to using the amp out! There is a handle; in the pictures, it would be on the left. That's the most sensible way to carry it.
However, that meant setting the amp down on its side at times, and that wouldn't do. Apparently some other guys with combos asked Phil to put another set of feet on the right side (opposite the handle), and that's what he did for mine, too. I'm waiting on a D2F cover, which includes an extra flap to cover the right side as well (cover will slide over the handle side). Should take care of the whole amp.

chris ivey · Post by **chris ivey** » 8 May 2011 9:27 am

i assume these amps are pricey. wouldn't the builder check each amp before it goes out? ...a design based around tubes and it comes with a bad tube? i hope you were compen$ated for it.

Daniel Morris · Post by **Daniel Morris** » 8 May 2011 10:29 am

Absolutely, Chris.
I believe what Phil told me, that it worked fine when he checked it out. He removed the tubes for shipping, but has since told me he may rethink that.
He said I will be receiving a 6SC7 replacement as soon as he gets more, and thus far, Phil has given me no reason to think he's not a man of his word. I'd find it very hard to believe that someone of Vince Gill's stature - and, I'd assume, means - would deal with a builder whose product was less than stellar.

Tim Marcus · Post by **Tim Marcus** » 8 May 2011 11:04 am

chris ivey wrote:i assume these amps are pricey. wouldn't the builder check each amp before it goes out? ...a design based around tubes and it comes with a bad tube? i hope you were compen$ated for it.

That's certainly the elephant in the room.

Octal preamp tubes are very unreliable - its not a big surprise that one would die in shipment. They sound amazing, and they look cool, but if you own an amp that uses them you should probably invest in a backup supply of half dozen or so if you are gigging. If they don't crap out or go microphonic on you in a short time it'd be a minor miracle.

Fender switched over to pentode tubes pretty early (by the late 50's) because of these problems. My issue with octal tubes is that they are not currently in production. This means the NOS supply is literally *all there will ever be* on earth. That combined with a high failure rate and high rate of becoming microphonic makes them only really suitable for the most boutique of boutique amplifiers. It's not a working man's tube. If you have a problem with a 12ax7 you can walk 2 blocks to any music store on earth to replace it and get through your gig or session. When your octal goes bad, you've got to find a NOS dealer that you trust or have a stash on hand.

Olie Eshleman · Post by **Olie Eshleman** » 8 May 2011 11:45 am

I have an amp with a 6SN7 octal tube preamp stage, and i had trouble with these going microphonic and or just plain bad. I found some cheap russian tubes that were still in production, so I bought 4, but every single one was noisy and or microphonic. My tech said that a 12AU7 would be comparable and made adapters for them. I didn't notice a huge tone difference (except it sounded better, less noise, less microphonic) but I may try another old sylvania 6SN7 tube i found in an old TV, they were common in the V-hold circuit of old TV's.

I wonder if Phil entertains an alternate tube or adapters if NOS tubes become too expensive or problematic. Or did that particular tube have a common use that a thrifty person could find them in, tv's or radios, etc.?
Although, I suppose if you can afford a little walter amp, you can afford NOS tubes as well.

Daniel Morris · Post by **Daniel Morris** » 8 May 2011 12:13 pm

Well, I've only dealt with solid state amps, except for a brief time when I got my first Hawaiian steel 40 years ago (a Deluxe Reverb, reverb non-functional).
Phil has been very good in answering a million questions from me about tube amps, NOS tubes, etc.
He says he hopes to post some videos regarding the care and feeding of these things; he told me that old tubes are, of course, old, and may or may not work great; hence his suggestion to keep replacements for the amp's 6SC7 and 6SL7 tubes. Yes, there are new Russian made versions, which I understand work pretty well, and from what I've found, they cost nearly the same as good NOS tubes. As I don't know much about tube amps, I didn't know that tubes can just fail or become microphonic (added a word to my vocabulary), and then require replacing. But I'm hearing such a sweet sound out of this amp that a $20 tube is a reasonable maintenance fee.

Ken Fox · Post by **Ken Fox** » 8 May 2011 4:30 pm

I have used adapters as well to get rid of the noise prone octal preamp tubes. Need to get some more soon for an old Bogen I have. I tried NOS RCA and they were worse than the old tubes in it!

Even if you find some nice quiet octals these adapters are still a nice thing to have, just in case!

here is one:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ONE-NEW-Tube-adapto ... 43a4c2183c

and yet another:

http://cgi.ebay.com/12AX7-12AU7-6SN7-6S ... 43a6518be6

chris ivey · Post by **chris ivey** » 8 May 2011 4:35 pm

good...phil sounds like a good guy.

Daniel Morris · Post by **Daniel Morris** » 8 May 2011 4:45 pm

That's interesting, Ken.
Do you find that adapters change the tone or anything of the original tube?

Tim: Apparently there is a Russian manufacturer of the 6SC7 tubes. If guys like Paul Franklin, Brent Mason and Vince Gill use this amp, with these tubes, there must be a fairly good reason to go with the octal tubes.

Ken Fox · Post by **Ken Fox** » 8 May 2011 4:57 pm

I specialize in old amp restorations. I see amps with octal tubes all the time in the shop. I personally never heard anything in the octal tubes that was any better than the newer 9 pin preamp tubes. Others might comment as well on this and I am sure are those who will disagree. I have no issue with that, we all hear things differently!
I have a friend who is a harp amp collector and we go thru this a lot with the octal tubes. He is a real tone freak for sure! He likes the adaptors and the results we have gotten. For a harp player that is an advantage as they can tube the gain up or down with any of the 12A*7 tubes.

If you like the tone, stay with it and get some good octals that will work for you. You can always get a few adaptors and 12A*7 type tubes as a backup.

Tim Marcus · Post by **Tim Marcus** » 8 May 2011 9:26 pm

Daniel Morris wrote:Tim: Apparently there is a Russian manufacturer of the 6SC7 tubes. If guys like Paul Franklin, Brent Mason and Vince Gill use this amp, with these tubes, there must be a fairly good reason to go with the octal tubes.

I think the pros use the little Walter amp not for the tube choice but because it's good marketing for little Walter. Trust me - I would GIVE Paul Franklin one of my amps if I could! A player like Paul sells amps. There is always a bit of Kool Aid involved in boutique amps - as Ken says everyone hears things differently - some players hear things out of a $300 Peavey amp that they won't hear from boutique amps. It's all about taste and perception. Having Paul play through an amp changes people's perspective in a major way.

I did not know there were current production octal tubes - I guess that's good to know. I am not really an amp servicer. I am only really familiar with the amps that led to my design and I chose pentodes because I want the amp to appeal to the boutique and working steel player.

I'd really like to see pictures of the inside of your little Walter amp chassis though! Not that I am interested in his circuit, I am just curious to see what the build quality and technique is. Can you open it up?

Mike Bagwell · Post by **Mike Bagwell** » 9 May 2011 3:55 am

Let's not forget, one of the sweetest bass amps ever made the Ampeg B15 uses octal pre amp tubes. I have in one my rehearsal space and it is sounds great. Its a cathode bias power amp with octal pre amp tubes. Theses amps are still popular with bass players. I personally haven't experienced any higher failure rate than the some of the new 12--7's that are on the market.

Mike

Franklin · Post by **Franklin** » 9 May 2011 5:18 am

Tim,

.... By marketing you must mean, I plugged into Vince's amp and then immediately ordered one...........

Daniel,

About octal tubes in the old vintage amps vs 9 pin.......In my forty something years of playing professionally I have worked many sessions.....I never saw a legendary guitarist who didn't own and use 60's and earlier vintage amps (most of them using octal tubes) for recording.......There is a big difference in an amps tone and response with and without octal tubes......The octal tube adds punch and enhances the response to a musicians picking dynamics.........

Its not just the tone of the Little Walter....its how it responds to each individual attack of the string that is so captivating...........

Don't let these guys worry you.....Phil said he found a new company who is making great sounding octal tubes........Finding good ones is not a problem......I went through several changes of groove tubes on my Mesa Boogie one year......The set I have now has lasted about seven years.......Tubes are fickle at times but nothing to worry about....The tube market is growing.

Paul

Daniel Morris · Post by **Daniel Morris** » 9 May 2011 6:27 am

Tim:
That's a nice looking amp at your site!
I can take a picture of the back side of my amp, but that much is viewable here:
http://littlewaltertubeamps.com/page22.html
I would not/cannot open anything else.
Yes, it's certainly true that we all hear things differently, as Ken mentioned. I didn't buy my amp based on who uses one; if we all hear things a tad differently, then I might not hear or even desire what a pro does. Paul and Dan helped me sort out some issues, for which I'm grateful, but ultimately it was my decision alone, and I believe I made the right one. I greatly respect Paul's talent, but as we all know, playing a black Strat won't make you sound like David Gilmour, so...

Paul:
Thanks for your input on tubes. I nearly opted for a vintage amp, but needed an effects loop, which I was told was not an option back then. So, that narrowed the field. An amp man with whom I spoke seemed pleasantly surprised to hear someone is currently building an amp with octal tubes.

Bill Leff · Post by **Bill Leff** » 9 May 2011 6:30 am

David Barnes makes amps based on old Valco designs and uses octal preamp tubes:

http://www.vintage47amps.com

Here's what he as to say about octal preamps (note - he's NOT a steel player and doesn't design amps for steel players):

" This question recently came in and although asked related to slide playing the actual issue has to do with old low fidelity circuits and the contrast to later high fidelity amps.
retro sign

. I have several low power amps that I use for steel guitars, and sometimes, harmonica. The hand-wired ones like the old Lafayette-75 deliver a more complex, pleasing tone. Three of my favorite steels are Valco products; the 40's National Princess,1960 Gretsch Jet Mainliner and 1961 Supro Jet Airliner. I tend to roll back the tone for the Fender Champ and others due to ice pick highs. It seems that archaic technology works best with these things. Many amps make a harsh tearing sound while sliding up the neck when three or more strings are struck. A smooth focused slide tone is what I'm seeking. If you have any info or opinions please let me know?

I often get emails from lapsteel players regarding what you're saying here, or at least some variation on what you're writing me about. I have also had quite a few players come to my shop and try amps with their different model slide guitars (applies to harps also), so I hear a lot of trial/tribulation amp search stories as well. To best explain, I would like to share a little amplifier history first so you may better understand the tone specific problems facing vintage guitar and harmonica players.

Hawaiian lapsteel guitar music became popular in the late 1920's and continued to be so up through WWII and faded at the close of the 1940's and into the early 1950's. Televised Rock and Roll --------
was the "final nail in the coffin" so to speak. The music industry enjoyed a very long run catering to the demand for Hawaiian records, guitars and amplifiers. National lead the way, Gibson followed and Valco built and badged their guitars and amplifiers under contracts with smaller labels and brand name marketers ie, Supro, Oahu (a sheet music publishing company) Dickerson, Bronson etc.

So in the "hay days" of Hawaiian, quite often the lap guitar was paired with a matching amplifier as a set. Most of the early laps inherently were extremely bright treble/brittle high toned. Naturally, having a metal slide fretting and moving over the strings lends to that fact. Glass slide a tad less and bone somewhat less brittle. Early guitar amplifiers were just audio amplifier circuits applied to use with a guitar. They were very basic low fidelity and good only at amplifying a narrow mid low portion of the audio frequency bandwidth.

None of the early guitar amplifier builders designed circuits for their creations. They simply borrowed from audio circuit sample recommendations found in the back of the tube manuals. These were supplied by the tube manufacturers to encourage proper use and consumption of their tube products, or so it seems. But everybody building amplifiers had access to these schematics. After forty years of poking around in old amplifiers I see nothing but repeated variations of designs right out of the back of the tube manuals. Even Leo Fender's first few years with his "Woody" , Champ and Deluxe you see designs provided from the samples in the manuals (Leo was a good business man, but a sparky he was not).

This was a marriage made in heaven. A brittle high steel on steel guitar, played into an amplifier that could not reproduce high treble frequencies, producing a very sweet mellow singy sustain (Bronson nailed it with their trade name saying "Bronson, the singing electric company"). It didn't get any better and hasn't gotten any better than that since, and here is why.

As radio gave way to television, electronics started to finally "grow up" so to speak and move from low fidelity sound reproduction into hi frequency sound reproduction (Hi Fi). Everybody in electronics started working on ways to reproduce more of the audio frequency bandwidth. Higher treble frequency designs were quickly adopted as the new standard, now we could reproduce more of the audio range our ear could hear at an affordable price in mass production quantity.

Fender was probably the first instrument amplifier builder to borrow from the new technology and incorporate higher frequency enhancements into his amp designs. Prior to Fender all instrument amplifier builders looked to radio for ideas. Fender had is eye on television for influence, which you see in his square television faced cabinets, a first in the industry. With Fender's success in the market, all other builders had no choice but to follow or be left behind so amp designs across the board got the television look and the high fidelity treble bright enhancements.

That is why you get the ear piercing high and the unpleasant scratching slide sounds when playing your collector Hawaiian style lap steel guitar into any amp built after about 1950-54. Unless you have an old primitive low fidelity amplifier from the 1930-40's your going to get a very disappointing tone from your instrument. Valco carried some of their old designs until 1958 before caving in to the Fender influence with their 1959 year model line up. Playing a 1960's built lapsteel into a 60's built amplifier does not bring out the best tones the instrument is capable of producing. Ampeg was the last builder to abandon the old school octal tube preamp designs, holding them over into the 1960's (Peter Frampton used those octal Ampegs).

For all of the above reasons I choose only to build 1954 and earlier octal preamp Valco circuit designs. I try my best to offer something exclusively for the collector of old instruments so they can reproduce the tones that are heard on the old original recordings from the days when those instruments were new. Otherwise we all sound like Fender, and I do believe the world has enough Fender sounding amplifiers already.

One last historic tid bit to ponder. Fender's most popular rock and blues guitar amp was the 1959 Bassman. Jim Marshall actually copied that design as his first amplifier, he just put British tubes in his and it sounded different enough to not sound like the bassman. His timing was right in kicking off the "British music invasion" as it has become known. But think about what happened here. A Bass amp, that was a flop as a bass amp, becomes the blues rock amp of choice and also influences the British sound invasion as their favorite guitar amp, not as bass amp, a guitar amp. Well to make a good bass amp you have to go backwards a bit in terms of Hi-Fi technology. You have to pass a lot of low frequency and filter out the high frequencies. In other words, you go back to the low fi. Looks a lot like what we already had before we modernized to hi fi.

Lastly, Vintage amp is a relative term. Relative to your age vintage could be 1980, if your 20 years old. I personally do not see an amp that was used in 1965 as vintage since I was buying those out of the music store new amp display. They were actually pretty HI FI modern. To correctly separate amplifiers I use this system;

Pre WWII = Primitive low fi
Post WWII = Primitive low fi with tone controlling frequency cut added
1950's = Early hi fi , broader/higher audio frequency response
1960's = Hi Fi with added effects enhancements like tremolo and reverb
1970 = End of tube amps and beginning of solid state amplifier corruption
2000 = Resurrection of tube amplifier appreciation and way to much focus on the 1960's
Today =To many Fender/Marshal based tube amplifier clones

That's my story and I'm stickin' to it!

Hope you enjoyed the journey and hope there is an old amp in your future.

Sincerely, David Barnes

Daniel Morris · Post by **Daniel Morris** » 9 May 2011 7:22 am

Wow, very cool stuff, Bill!

Tim Marcus · Post by **Tim Marcus** » 9 May 2011 7:45 am

The tube market is growing - this is true.

I may be a different kind of amp builder. I work with a modern engineering company during the day when I am not on the road, and I see the future coming. As soon as they pass ROHS here in the states and eventually abroad, the era of vacuum tube production will be over forever. Vacuum tubes can only be made in countries with loosely regulated environmental standards. As soon as those countries (specifically Russia and china) pack it in, the only tubes on earth will be the ones we have in hand.

I am 32, so by the time I am 40 years into my own career there may not be any tubes in production - but I'm still going to want to use my amp! I avoided octal tubes mostly out of paranoia for the future

Daniel - I would not worry about opening up that amp. I read a little on the little Walter site about his products. I'd really like to see his wiring and cap choices, but I was able to learn some things about his amp construction.

Daniel Morris · Post by **Daniel Morris** » 9 May 2011 8:01 am

Tim:
I make no secret of the fact that I am tech/mech-challenged, so please pardon me on that issue.
It's why I defer to others more knowledgeable than myself, particularly those I believe I can trust.
You could certainly contact Phil - he's very good about replying and helping out. I cannot speak for him as to whether he will go into details about the amp's innards, but please check with him.
Thanks.