VTypeV4

Great pics, Mike - nice! Glad you're keeping busy too, I know so many that have thrown the towel in after the pandemic. I've done a few shows on the SQ platform (all 7s) now and, I have to say, they were brilliant. Everything where I wanted it, plenty of hands-on controls and above all, I found them really intuitive - arguably the easiest 'walk up' compact digital I've used. I really don't have a bad word for them. 😀 My favourite of the newer generation lot also goes to A&H - this D-live back in September (much like the SQ) was fantastic - no scrabbling around to find things or adjust parameters, simply a pleasure to use. 😃 On the Digico front, I've had a few good shows on a Quantum (225?) - again much like the SD range - pretty straight forward and trouble free. I also did the Victoria Hall job again for a Christmas show and thankfully I also got an SD12 to mix on. I think Digico have got it right and feel they took a leaf out of the Yamaha book in as much, if you have used any one of their consoles, using a different model is a breeze with plenty of commonalities between them.

This thread is so old now but I thought I'd just drop a quick post to show that in 2022, my 'home / ex ITV' 02R is currently being used to mix a live album due for commercial release in April.. 😀 Still going!

My 'in use' lot at the min. Next to the sofa so close enough! From top to bottom: Recently purchased from this lovely community, a tidy '99 Yamaha Rbx765a. A great 'modern' bass. A Squier VM Jazz dating from 2006 which makes it an early one. I've had this since about 2009 and is to date the best passive bass I've ever owned. Definitely a keeper for both vintage and modern requirements. Another Squier next - this is part of an arrangement with one of my students. She preferred my old Legend (Aria) Jazz so I said we could swap for a while. It's a lovely bass, modded with a chrome work and a new scratch plate, it sees plenty of action. And lastly my good old Warwick Streamer LX5. Purchased brand new by me in 2001 when I was merely eighteen, it still delivers with that focused low-mid punch and growl. I'll be buried with this thing. There's my cheap 6-string too but that was at a friend's place so didn't make the photo. It's a KHL Wolf Bass - walnut and maple with a through neck and weighs a ton.. If you read this far, thanks for looking. 👍

I acquired this lovely little lot the other day: AH300 SMX, 4x8 and matching 1x15. Ultra compact cabs labelled as V-type extension - presumably for the 4808 and 115 V-type combos. I've had lots of trace rarities over the years (including a 4808 combo) but never seen either of these in the flesh before. It sounds superb! 😀 The little 8" drivers are Celestion BG8-60 units as found in the 4808 combo and early SWR Henry 8x8 cabs. They certainly punch well above their size might suggest - a lovely driver. The 15" is slightly less glamorous loaded with the C15H which is a custom version of the Celestion K series. They were in the 1153 and the 250 / 300w combos - a great sounding 15 despite only a modest spec. As a size reference, notice how big the Squier Jazz seems in the top pic and the horizontal format 400SMX / 2103H / 1153 in the lower one.. I've dubbed it the 'mighty mini rig'.. 😊

In the Bassman, Quilly? I put a new set of JJ 6L6s in it not long after I had it which must be about 4 years ago now. It doesn't feel like it's gone weak or soft in that time. When I bought it, it had a pair of what I assume were it's original US (GE or maybe Sylvania) valves alongside a pair of no-name Chinese or Russian tubes. I replaced the Chinese pre-amp valves with tall plate JJ ECC803 and the driver / inverter with a JJ '81 at the same time the 6L6s went in. It doesn't see extreme use or mega hours (these days, at least) so it doesn't have a tough life - it mainly sees studio work currently.

Chances are, if the centre dome is small as per the picture in the third post, the driver is original. I have a spare original Celestion for my 1153 that doesn't have the lettering. It might be worth trying to take a picture and see if there's a sticker on the magnet? The original driver should be a 'C15H' with 'custom made for trace elliot'. They're a variant of the then current K series drivers and were far from an exceptional spec but were very sweet sounding - I still love mine.

You've seen it before but I love this B&W pic of the 135 / 215 complete with the trays on the Squier bass for a vintage vibe..

My recently acquired RBX 765A - goes nicely with other Yamaha bits including various bits of outboard, my DM2000 digital mixer, several 02R digital consoles and my lovely '89 / 90 FJ1200.. 😀

Ha, thanks! ❤️ I'll keep the thread posted on the WA - I'll put a big analog mix together over the next week and report back. As for the VLA, they're one of my favourite hardware units. I had an issue with one as it had been modded (poorly!) by it's previous owner but my repair chap sorted it and has been spot on since. They have a certain character which I particularly like although they work best as a 'smoother' rather than a 'smasher'.. 😃

Good to know, they're perfect so when they're done, I'll stick another set on - I usually use Fender, Warwick or Elites..

So, I bit the bullet and WA's version of the famed SSL Bus compressor now sits proudly in my group compressor rack. I haven't had chance to get into it as I only put it in the rack yesterday but initial impressions are very good both in terms of sonic performance and build quality.

Looks like it might be put on recording duty tomorrow so will report back then. 😃

It's been a while since I bought a bass (probably 10 years give or take) so when this superb Yamaha came up within this lovely community, I decided something modern (allied to my Warwick and Jazz basses) would sit well. Arriving safely this morning, it turns out that it's well set up and sounds fantastic so I'm over the moon with it. Many thanks to @Delberthot

My 'new' Yamaha RBX765A has just arrived safe and sound. The Yamaha was just as described (and exceeded my expectations) plus Derek was a pleasure to deal with - a straight, honest and genuine member of this lovely community. 😃

Series 6 models were introduced around 1988 / 89 and remained in production until the more advanced SM / SMX range replaced them somewhere around 1993. If you pop the top cover off, there's often a hand written sticker or QC label on or around the transformer. I found my SMX was built in July '98 this way - see the one of the pictures about half way down the first page. The 200w output stage will have more than enough power to see you through most situations - especially if you use two cabs with it.

Your TC M1 is still a great unit despite it's slightly vintage status - I own two and still use them regularly.. I've never struggled to get an appropriate and great sounding from the M1 but found they really shine with bigger 'soundscape' type reverbs. They're equally at home in both live and studio situations although it has been a while since I've used them live. Staying with the TC theme, I also have a HOF 2 pedal that I use exclusively for 'shimmer' type reverbs. I have several vintage Yamaha SPX 90 units too which are good for a certain sound as well as some slightly newer REV500s which are far more realistic and a very capable unit. On the software front, I rather like the Valhalla plugin although the native D-Verb in Tools and Silver / Platinum Reverb in Logic have some pretty good starting points too. I've found the pre-sets need a bit of tweaking but they certainly are more than useable. Regarding brass, you might find a degree of short delay (~170ms and low feedback) allied to your favourite reverb is a winner. Personally, I've found the delay can really help it 'pop' in a mix even if it sounds a bit off when in solo.. Most importantly, experiment and see where it takes you.

I still love my SWR Goliath Jr MK3s - they sound fantastic. I don't do enough gigs for the weight to be an issue plus they're still the lightest cabs I've owned anyways. 😀

As this thread approaches ten years old (mental, I know!), I thought I'd share the latest pictures from the move over to Sun St. The studio is almost complete and ready for action with the Mac, MOTU interfaces, the A&H ML5000 and GL3000 not to mention the big Yamaha DM2K.. I've still got the two 'dual Unity' 02Rs at home of which one is part of my home recording setup and the other on standby for external jobs - it recently did a recording job at a local theatre without fuss or fault. The third now lives at a local venue..

Yes and no, personally.. The Trace Elliot SMX rig uses the matching 2103H and 1153 (2x10 & 1x15) cabs - they all seem to play reasonably well together. The cabs are a bit dated but they're still up to the job although there's not that much 'identity' to them. My other rig is a V-Type head with two SWR Goliath Jr 3s and I have to say, the SWR cabs are alot more characterful and of a higher fidelity than the Trace cabs. The SMX head through the SWRs is a killer so a bit of mixing and matching is probably a good thing..

Such lovely words - I was FOH engineer for this stage over the last few days..

Good to see the brand continued and with a new product that is likely to be taken more seriously than the Elf. I expect Peavey have done a decent job of developing this new amp in terms of power, features and reliability - maybe it's the start of a range? I know my SMX and V4 are relics of the past - irrespective of how good I think they still are! I do wonder whether they'll ever do a new 'Trace Elliot' with the old features or whether that's just nostalgia and wishful thinking on my part..?

Looks great! 😎

Excellent - enjoy! 😎 I did a review of my V4 a while back whilst also in possession of a friend's V6 also - you might find it useful.

Brilliant - try it and see! It never did Mark King any harm.. 🤣 Thanks for the kind words and I'm glad you're still getting great service from the rig. I wouldn't worry about selling the 4x10 as that 400w power stage (as I'm sure you're already aware) is more than capable of driving pretty much anything.. I still need to try the SMX through my SWR boxes as they're fantastic with the V4.. Glad you enjoyed the review. 😎