'64 Ampeg R12R Street Fighting Man

[chuckelator]

That's rock and roll tone right there..That thing kills.

[jamesraymondsmith]

that amp sounds really nice, that particular stones number is in an altered tuning,,dont remember which one..

[OgreDaddy]

@jamesraymondsmith

Nope, standard tuning, but capo'd on the 4th fret.

I checked the pitch against the Stones 4 Flicks DVD.

[BOULDERDP]

wow great sound.  just a strat plugged straight in and the amp cranked?

[OgreDaddy]

@BOULDERDP

Yup with capo on the 4th straight up, amp Volume and Tone wide open.

Unfortunately, doing so fried the voice coil on this original 15 watt Ampeg label CTS ceramic.

The speaker was re-coned by Weber and boxed up for preservation.

[muchavo]

whats that thing on top of it?

[OgreDaddy]

@muchavo

That's just the original Ampeg Echo and Tremolo pedal on top.

Behind the R12R on the tilt stand

is the one really cool thing my father left to me.

That's my 1952 Ampex 403-P mic preamp.

[OgreDaddy]

This really is a great little amp, but there's also something quite special about this Strat Plus and the tones it delivers. The Gold Lace Sensors are ideal for recording, but I also think the metal roller nut contributes greatly to it's tone and sustain even in quiet passages.

I certainly appreciate all the kind words.

[dkstryker]

wow you have such a good tone on this. no pedals or nothin? your just crankin the master volume?

[OgreDaddy]

@dkstryker

Yes, just running the amp wide open, but.....

the original '64 CTS 15 watt ceramic couldn't

take it and the voice coil fried the next morning.

I had Weber re-cone it and it stays in the box now for preservation.

[Roos15]

I love your playing. . would this be a good amp for playing early 70s rolling stones. exile on main street stuff

[OgreDaddy]

@Roos15

Thank you for your support!

I would say either an R12R or Gemini I would be great for that era for recording and for live work with a good P.A. and the right choice of guitar and speaker.

Both of my vintage Ampegs were factory configured with 12AX7 pre sections which gives them a more aggressive break up than with the typical Octal pre amp tubes. Finding a 64-65 version with the 12AX7 pre amp section can be tricky.

[OgreDaddy]

Just brought the R12R back from my amp tech after a minor check-up.

He cleaned the pots and checked everything over.

Looks like I'm going to need to replace the power tubes soon, but everything

is still working fine.

[dkstryker]

the Stones are the only reason why i love an Ampeg!!! i would get a vt22 just like they used to record exile on main street and then play street fighting man through that!

[OgreDaddy]

@dkstryker

Wonderful amp, but how's your back?

The R12R is about 34 pounds depending on the speaker.

[dkstryker]

haha my back is good. im 19 years old so im pretty healthy. love ampegs! wish they werent just making bass amps nowa days. they need to make guitar amps again!

[OgreDaddy]

@dkstryker

The originals are still quite reasonable and honestly the cost to build these amps

today with the same features, parts, American labor and good quality NOS glass, would be triple the price you'd pay for a well cared for original.

[adamr63]

You're good.

[beatlesquarrymen]

How do you get your guitar sounding like that and what chords???

[OgreDaddy]

Easy! Capo on the 4th fret.

GCDA

Learned a whole lot watching Keef from the Stones 4 Flicks DVD

[Scartapus]

@OgreDaddy

if you play with a capo, the metal nut cannot have any influence on your sound. ?Wouldd you say this great sound comes more from the Strat plus or from your amp ?

[OgreDaddy]

@Scartapus Good point on the capo and the metal nut, :-) but without the capo, the metal nut does make the strings ring out. This is a great guitar through any amp, but the R12R takes full advantage, delivering the cleans and giving up the goods on break-up when you dig in.

Most of the time, I leave the amp Volume at 4.5 with Tone at about 6.5-7.

[Scartapus]

@OgreDaddy Is it the version with 12ax7 and 7591 ? I've seen there is one with 6sl7 and 6V6. The schematics seem to be nearly the same.

I really love that sound and i'd like to find one of those amps but it seems difficult, especially here in France.

Maybe another model might have a similar sound ? I have seen a Jet 2 J12T from 1994 for sale.

[OgreDaddy]

@Scartapus

Mine has the 7868 power section with 12AX7 pre section.

The amps with 7591 and the Octal preamp 6Sl7's are much more common and a bit

less aggressive and closer to 18 watts.

You may find the late 64's and 65's front panel easier to find with the 12AX7 pre sections.

[OgreDaddy]

I received the re-coned original Ampeg label CTS from Weber and it looks good, but I'm keeping it safe in the box for now.

The re-cone plus return shipping ran $85.00 including upgrading the voice coil to handle 30 watts.

[OgreDaddy]

I just installed a new Weber Blue Dog AlNiCo 75 in the R12R.

It's different in a smooth way and I'm still evaluating it.

[OgreDaddy]

The Blue Dog just didn't hold together well on the low end

through this amp and really needed to see more power to sing like it is supposed to.

Last night we installed a Fane Ceramic Axiom 12" 75

and just wow!

Way tighter bottom end, great mids and nice sparkle at the top end with plenty of clean headroom and some of the best natural crunch tones I've heard from this or any amp.

[DylanBurke]

Hey are you running any pedals?

[OgreDaddy]

Hi Dylan,

No pedals! Just Guitar, Cable & Amp and the speaker begging for mercy.

[JohnnyTsak316]

nice !

[OgreDaddy]

Johnny wait till you try my REEVES!

[gabel1337]

Sounds amazing!

[OgreDaddy]

I've been in touch with Ted Weber and he tells me they can re-cone the original driver and beef it up to handle 30 watts :-)

[OgreDaddy]

Thanks for the Stars! :-)

[OgreDaddy]

Some sad news today. The original driver really wasn't meant

to handle this amp wide open, especially after 45 years. :-(

I was just sitting down to try another clip showing the cleans, reverb and trem and the amp just quit.

My friend Eric@ Viking Amps tested the speaker and

the voice coil tested open.

He fixed me up with a C-Rex for the time being, but I'm going to send out the original driver for re-coning.

[OgreDaddy]

Volume and Tone Controls wide open, Reverb on about 4,

Tremelo was on but turned down to just barely there.

'93 Strat Plus was full volume bridge pickup.

Guitar is capoed on the 4th fret.

[OgreDaddy]

Dale, You've got a wonderful sounding Tele on your clip.

[tonedr]

man that is some good tone! Loved it and great playing sir!

your friend,

dale