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Just thought I would share how I've been setting my Tramp up, though this is probably not new news

I run a 6L6 and I like the amp with the master wide open, VRM wide open and I regulate volume with the, er, Volume knob. Tweed mode and no phat switch. This is a fantastic sounding clean tone, and I can use pedals for dirt if needed. Until my cabinet comes, I'm running the amp through an external Lopo cab with a BBQ Alnico 12". Sounds good, but a little dark so I'm thinking the WGS ET65 will liven that up a bit, plus make it even louder.

This is a great setup. I have a small pedal board in front with a compressor, couple of drives, some modulation plus delay and reverb.

Totally kills!

Mike

Hi Mike...
Thanks for sharing your set up! I can couch for the ET65...great speaker for this little amp. And it does get pretty loud!
My settings tend to be a little on the "dirtier" side...master ~8-9, volume around 8, 'tude engaged, and treble/bass around 6-7. Fat is usually off and I adjust VRM as needed. Cleans up great with the guitar volume.

I've gone through a variety of tube combinations, and have been using a Sovtek 12AX7LPS and new production Mullard EL34 lately. Great tone...very "beefy".

Fun amp!

Hey PharmRock -

I've been curious about the EL34. I've run a KT66 which I liked a lot, really sort of creamy sounding. But the 6L6 is just the tone I like so that's what stayed. BTW I'm using a new production Telefunken 6L6 (essentially an expensive JJ) and a new production Genelex in V1. That last one helps brighten things up a bit

Fun amp indeed, my cabinet is on the way:

My experiences with the Tramp have been joyous indeed.
A loud single ended amp is just what I needed.
I wanted it well enough and had long 2 lists of parts.
I'd done it before with a big PS and two SE outputs, one preamp [dual output mono], but an old tube socket decided to have lightning in it so...
When I stumbled over a tramp schematic while researching designs, I marked and looked again and thought this would do fine [maybe even better.
Alnico-Ceramic is what it's been this week, Celestion 10'' Gold and a Goldwood 1058, in Bose 501 enclosures.
Other favorite is a Hammond 12'' Alnico, has a smaller motor though.
With acoustic impedance balancing the EV alpha 10'' is also interesting as second driver.
Left Sw in, and Bass knob switch open or closed, I'm having similar findings, and prefer the dynamic range this way, and pedal boosting.
Currently investigating the tube socket hole option, for 2x 12ax7 [two more gain stages].
I've known how speaker swaps to sound profoundly different, but the versatility of output tube swaps combined with various loading options makes it easy to "corner" this or that tube in various ways, and hear how it growls. Tramp allowed me to better clarify the sound character of output tube distortion.

It is a fine amp indeed!

The cab came VERY quickly, delivered yesterday to San Diego. I assembled it as soon as it came and haven't stopped playing it since (a lie, I did sleep last night some). In the very nice solid pine cab with the ET65 it really shines. It's as quiet as a church mouse, no self-noise that I can detect. With the big bottle Telefunken 6L6 handling power and a Genelex 12AX7 on preamp duties (both new production tubes) the Tramp sounds great all up and down the volume scale.

The big ET65 allows me to hear the amp, with little or no speaker distortion. A couple of choice pedals in front and your uncle becomes Bob. The "problem" is that I've discovered how good the 'Tube mode is cranked. There are a few modulation pedals that sound good before distortion, but reverb and delay are not among them. Darn, I guess I'll just have to play it straight

My two favorite guitars through it are my Cabronita (with TV Jones Classics) and my 2015 Les Paul Special double cut (with Alnico P-90s), though my Tele and Strat sound awesome, as does my Les Paul (GREAT big round cleans from that guitar).

I am, in a word, stoked.

So for the fun of it, I hooked up the Tramp to my Mesa Recto 212 cab. I was running a Tung Sol 12AX7 with a Tung Sol 5881...both new production tubes. Everything was dimed, fat on and tude on.

Holy freaking crap....this thing is a beast in this set up.

I went to Drop D tuning with my partscaster...using a JB Jr in the bridge...pushing the front end pretty hard. Held together really well...even the low end was pretty tight. Was able to totally dictate the degree of overdrive and distortion with pick attack. Hit a hard Drop D open D chord, got some feedback brewing, then picked softly to get some "cleanish" arpeggios over the growing feedback. Totally unreal. Its like the amp is an extension of the guitar.

Activated my Keeley-modded TS9...drive at noon, gain at 9 o'clock, tone around 1 o'clock. Added a substantial amount of "edge" to it but still very articulate and responsive. Rolling back on the guitar volume to around 6-7, or switching to the middle single coil pickup cleaned everything up rather nicely.

My goal is to get some recording done this coming week and post some samples. Perhaps play through different tube combinations as well as speakers/cabinets.

FYI...I tried the Tramp using a NOS 5751 and a 6L6... the cleans were pristine, full, and clear. Perfect clean sound...didn't care for the tude mode while using this combination. But great clean tones. In any case, another example of how versatile this amp really is.

Here's a tip for low volume playing: VRM, Master, Treble, Bass all full. Pull 'Tude and Fat and adjust Volume as needed. Because the Volume will be low, it will be clean but nice and full

The Tramp has become my favorite amp. For what I play, how I play it and what I play it with, the Tramp is beautiful. I put in an ANOS GE 6L6GC in it (along with a new production Genelex 12AX7) and I thought "This is my tone!" Big, round, detailed, deep, gorgeous in both modes, Fat switch engaged or not. With Lollar Gold Foils in my Tele through the little guy, I had found "it". I use a Keeley Tone Workstation in front for it's marvelous compressor and a great clean boost (Katana) plus Red Drive. My life is good.

But then I decided to splurge (on a hunch) for an NOS Tung Sol 5881 - the supposed Holy Grail of 5881s and pretty rare. Mike at KCA had a few (don't know if he still does) and I took the (expensive!) leap. Came today, popped it in, expecting it to be comparable to the old GE (probably made by Sylvania) and...no. It is, astonishingly, *much* better. Everything I described above in spades plus a dimensionality that I don't recall ever hearing before. Un-freakin-believable. I know the preamp tube has a lot to do with it, too, and I HIGHLY recommend the Genelex. But in an amp of this architecture, the output tube has a big say on how things sound. If I ever needed proof of that, well, now I have it.

Sorry for the ramble, but I had to share. I may put up some sound samples over the weekend if I can get to the studio.

The 5881 is a great tube for the tramp...I've used a new production Tung Sol and have been very pleased. I'll have to check out the Genelex...I've used their EL84's before and was very happy with the results.

Just received my Avatar A25 Alnico speaker that I ordered for my Marshall 18 watter. This is a Celestion Blue "clone". Tried it out in the Tramp and it sounds really good...I wouldn't say it is as good as a Blue but it had chime to it. Definitely a different flavor than the ET65 that I've been using in it. Wasn't able to push it as much as I would've liked (see my thread on my impedance switch issues). But it was a really good match for this amp.

Thanks for the info. Great to hear. In a SE amp, the single output tube is very important.
Bonus with the Tramp is that you only need to buy 1!!

_________________
Stephen
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