Bugera 1960 – A or B? Which was modified?
The Tone King | Sep 20, 2009 | Comments 13
Okay boys and girls … survey says …
A is the stock 1960 Bugera amp.
B is the modified 1960 Bugera amp. The modification you heard was a Tube Cascade Gain mod – similar to that of a Marshall 1959RR mod (same type of mod RR had Marshall perform to his ‘hotrodded’ Plexi head).
SO … if you like A – great – it’s a stock Bugera 1960. If you like B – you essentially like the thick tones of the famous RR mod, which was only done on a limited number of Marshall amps.
The mod is this … it allows both channels to run in series, versus the stock circuit which allows both channels to run in parallel. The modded amp gives you 4 stages of gain in series, which makes it thicker. The stock amp gives you 2 stages of gain in each channel (parallel), that don’t cascade w/ each other, which is a bit brighter & crisp, but w/ less thickness. As you know – Tone is objective – so to each their own!! Me personally – I think they both sound pretty darn good. Just depends what you’re looking for in an amp!
This mod was performed for me by amp guru and good friend, Dennis Kager, from Central Jersey Music Center (a little nook in the heart of New Jersey). Google search Dennis Kager, and you’ll be suprised to see that he had his hands in MANY popular amp designs, and is responsible for many popular circuits designs, across an array of companies – from Ampeg, to Sundown. In fact – I’m pretty sure he started Sundown and Pignose. He was also the brainchild behind the super popular Soldano / Yamaha circuit that’s ever so popular on eBay and the now gone, but highly sought after Reverend Amps (The King Snake, Hell Hound, etc.). Anyway – he’s a good guy, a GREAT tech (guru status), and a helluva friend. Thanks Dennis!
If you want this (or another) mod done, give Dennis a call and tell him TTK sent you … his shop # is 732-572-1911. Some FAQ that usually come up on this mod :
- Can I buy an amp, ship it to Dennis, have him perform the mod, and have him send it back to me – YES, of course.
- Does Dennis Kager perform other mods? YES (By the way, Dennis is a full service repair facility for guitars and amps, and is a regional repair facility for many or the larger companies).
- What other mods would you suggest for this amp? TTK suggests – A master volume mod and a mod that will cut 2 power tubes out (50/100w switch) – or a pentode / triode switch (which basically does the same).
- Please note – Dennis Kager & Central New Jersey Music Center is NOT affiliated in any way w/ TTK’s Gear Reviews. He is a good friend, and a killer amp guru. Nothing less, nothing more.
And, as usual … I hope you enjoyed the video!
If you want the link back to the video … here it is : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ffy6-eTOvNk
OH – If you want to see the back of the Bugera 212 cabinet (for the hook-up options) … here it the picture …
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Filed Under: The Gear
TTK,thanks for your efforts.Is it possible to put this 1960 head and other amps through different speaker combinations/cabs? I’d like to hear this RR moded head through an Orange 4×12 with 25 watt Celestion GB’s. I’m certain that you’re aware that speakers will make the biggest difference not only in tone but also in projection,type of distortion meaning harshness/smoothness,when the speakers distort,sustain,feedback control and for all intents and purposes actually have great bearing in an amplifiers charecteristics. Also,could you tell us what guitar/wood,pickup’s and model you’re using when you do your testing? Thanks TTK.
Ah, I was right about which one was modded. I urge people seriously interested in the mod to view TTK’s ‘pimp my plexi’ video where he plays the modded amp. The sound is a LOT better on that one. Still hard to get a clear picture from youtube, but I think this mod is definitely up my alley. I’m into the plexi for those rich, smooth, dark, gainy sounds. There isn’t another amp that does it better. At least nothing is quite the same to my ear. The ‘to mod or not to mod’ shootout had horrible sound though. Both amps sound like crap. The only thing you can do is compare the amps to each other. Then, try to imagine what the plexi actually sounds like, and maybe you can sense the diffference made by the mod.
Never saw the vid, don’t know much about Bugera. But I do know this, tone is “subjective” not “objective.” Unless of course these interweb tone gurus have adopted totalitarian principles.
Also, anybody think thetoneking.com should find some advertisers? I mean, I don’t trust reviews unless they come from a site with at least two dozen sponsers. yikes:P
I liked the A amp much better and will probably buy one and just use it stock. I will use my older digitech rp200 up front for my sounds. I have programed all 40 presets with very low settings on effects/gain to get sounds for just about any song I need. I get a nice Robin Trower bridge of sighs tone with a hint of vibrato and stack model with the gain on 1, yes one.
In my opinion the A (left one) is modified. Sound is just a little crispier. And I like it more than the muddy B amp setup.
Regards,
Thom Schoenmakers
“B” sounds much more articulate, I really like it. I bet it sounds really nice through a cab loaded with Eminence Red Coat. “A” was just too fizzy and cheap sounding to me. Perhaps swapping out the V1 to a lower gain preamp tube would be beneficial–12AT7 instead of 12AX7, played through some Celestion V30s.
I was thinking A was the modded amp. Sounded alot more tight but I think the compression was the only factor that made the modded 1960 head sound muddy.
I could tell by the gain, B was the modded amp.
I liked A better. I thought it had a much more articulate sound. B just sounded like muddy crap to me.
B sounds pretty brutal… They both sound nice though. good vid as usual!!
Haha, I thought the A sounded better. It’s just difference. It’s all preference, B could do great things for some types of stuff. Cool mod! Thanks!
The stock A amp sounds better for my style. Are the B knobs set the same as A or is B set to give the best sound from the Mod?
Awww man, I was wrong. Guess youtube makes it hard to tell for me… Just sounded like the A cab had more gain.
Also, what was the price on your Bugera 2×12?