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Topic: Victoria Regal |
Lynn Oliver
From:
Redmond, Washington USA * R.I.P.
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Posted 24 May 2007 1:59 pm |
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I've been window shopping amps and ran across the Victoria Regal. It looks like it might be a nice amp for lap steel. Has anybody tried one of these?
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Lynn Oliver
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Neil Harms
From:
Ionia, Missouri, USA
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Posted 25 May 2007 5:07 am
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I see you've already found the review from steelbender.com. I've not been able to find one of these in person yet either but would really like to try one as well. Looks like a GREAT amp for lap steel (and teles of course). I'm even more interested in the Regal II which was "released" on harmony-central.com a few months ago. The ability to swap tubes down to a single 6V6 without re-bias or any other adjustments is very compelling... Again, can't wait to try one in person.
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Buckaroo ShowPro, Quilter Aviator, (plus all that other stuff....) |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 26 May 2007 3:12 pm
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This appears to be a nice boutique amp, costing about two grand (if I'm not mistaken). Yes, it's very attractive, and I think it's probably fine for someone like a top-level (pro) player to buy such an item.
For the average player though (IMHO), I see it as pretty much a waste of money. |
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Lynn Oliver
From:
Redmond, Washington USA * R.I.P.
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Posted 26 May 2007 4:20 pm
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I mainly picked up on this amp because of the comments here about 15" speakers, along with the range of sounds in the sample files. I think the Regal runs $2795 and the Regal II $2895. But as I said, I'm just window shopping and not in the market.
OTOH, I have a Rayco that cost in the same range as the Regal, and I think it was well worth the money even though I purchased it when I was a beginner.
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Lynn Oliver
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 26 May 2007 5:45 pm
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Of course Lynn, we're just "arm-chair shopping", here! I listened to the sound files several times, and I found them to be rather "average", and that's through a set of well-powered Altec-Lansing computer speakers. I'm not saying that this isn't a good amp, I'm saying that the average player could probably do just as well buying an old Gibson amp (my fave for lap steel) for less than $1,000, have a good tech re-cap and re-tube it for another few hundred, and then you could spend the savings (about $1,000) buying some other nice little toy.  |
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Lynn Oliver
From:
Redmond, Washington USA * R.I.P.
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Posted 26 May 2007 7:48 pm
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Everybody's ears are different, and I'd have to play through one for a while to make a real judgement. OTOH, it did sound very nice through my studio monitors.
What model of Gibson amp do you like? |
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John Billings
From:
Ohio, USA
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Posted 27 May 2007 7:16 am
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| I have seen the inside of a Victoria amp. Not this model, but,,,the build quality was fabulous. |
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Jim Sliff
From:
Lawndale California, USA
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Posted 27 May 2007 8:19 am
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Victoria's are known for superb build quality and being a great take on the Fender tweed era.
That being said, it's some major bucks for a new amp. For lap steel, my favorite is the late-version (mini preamp tubes rather than octals) 5D3 Deluxe. It has slightly less gain than the later 5E3's that are more revered by guitar players, but have a thicker, juicier tone that just screams with a good lapsteel. Because they are not as hot in the collector market as 5E3's you can find player amps (cap jobs done, 3-prong plugs, maybe a few changed parts) for a grand or more LESS than the Vickie. The Deluxe will continue to rise in value - the Victoria likely will not.
To sum it up, IMO when you're talking about spending 2 grand or so on a tweed amp I don't see any reason to buy one of the "clones" when you can get a real one for the same or less.
And if I really wanted a NEW tweed amp I'd buy one of WeberVST's (tedweber.com) tweed amp kits and save a ton of money. Tweed circuits are extremely simple, and with basic electronics experience just about anyone could handle one of the tweed kits.
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No chops, but great tone
1930's/40's Rickenbacher/Rickenbacker 6&8 string lap steels
1921 Weissenborn Style 2; Hilo&Schireson hollownecks
Appalachian, Regal & Dobro squarenecks
1959 Fender 400 9+2 B6;1960's Fender 800 3+3+2; 1948 Fender Dual-8 Professional |
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John Billings
From:
Ohio, USA
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Posted 27 May 2007 8:24 am
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You're right Jim. I own two Dr. Z's, and the Maz Jr. is a favorite of mine for lap steel. And, although they're a boutique amp, Doc's prices are much more reasonable. All that said, my favorite amp for lap steel is my 56 Pro with a 15" speaker. I paid $300 for it an eon ago.
JB |
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Lynn Oliver
From:
Redmond, Washington USA * R.I.P.
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Posted 27 May 2007 11:26 am
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| Quote: |
| And if I really wanted a NEW tweed amp I'd buy one of WeberVST's (tedweber.com) tweed amp kits and save a ton of money. Tweed circuits are extremely simple, and with basic electronics experience just about anyone could handle one of the tweed kits. |
I've thought about those; as a EE with tech experience the build would be easy enough. At first blush it looks interesting, as a Weber kit is $495 compared to a Victoria 518 at $995.
However, the Weber kits are at the value end of the spectrum, so you'll probably have to figure in the cost of upgrading some of the parts (most people talk about replacing the transformer, pots, jacks, and tubes). For a top-quality kit you'd probably want something from Mission or Allen, and that puts you at $700 and up.
Given that Victoria already knows all the grounding and routing tricks, I guess you have to consider whether that is worth the extra dollars.
The 5D3 sounds interesting... |
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Jim Sliff
From:
Lawndale California, USA
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Posted 27 May 2007 12:34 pm
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| Quote: |
| most people talk about replacing the transformer, pots, jacks, and tubes |
I haven't heard of any transformer issues, and that's easy enough anyway, as you could just sub anything from Mercury Magnetics - I doubt there'd be much cost difference, if any. Pots and jacks are an issue no matter where you get them and you're talking minimal money. As far as tubes, that's where personal preference comes into play and youjust order it sans tubes, use your own choice, and there you go. Again, these are all minimal-dollar issues. You'd have the same issues with a new boutique amp - surprisingly, most use the same production pots and jacksas everyone else; very few install NOS tubes unless you order it that way, and I would think anyone wanting a tweed-type amp would be educated as far as tubes,bias, etc. - otherwise it's really the wrong type of amp to have. If you can't do minor tweaks yourself vintage-style tube amps are a bad choice IMO.
_________________
No chops, but great tone
1930's/40's Rickenbacher/Rickenbacker 6&8 string lap steels
1921 Weissenborn Style 2; Hilo&Schireson hollownecks
Appalachian, Regal & Dobro squarenecks
1959 Fender 400 9+2 B6;1960's Fender 800 3+3+2; 1948 Fender Dual-8 Professional |
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Lynn Oliver
From:
Redmond, Washington USA * R.I.P.
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Posted 28 May 2007 10:33 pm
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How about the Fender 57 Deluxe? Although it is the 5E3 model it is a grand less then the Regal II.
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Neil Harms
From:
Ionia, Missouri, USA
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Posted 30 May 2007 4:34 am
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| Noticed the July 2007 issue of Guitar World magazine had a review of the Regal II amp and some video of it on their DVD. So... I spent my lunch money on a copy. Not sure what I'll do with the rest of the magazine but then I always learn a little something useful. As always it's a little hard to tell how good it sounds from tiny little speakers but.... It sounded pretty darn good. I really think the Regal II would come close to being worth the price with its ability to mix and match power tubes or just run one 6V6 or one 6L6, etc. Anywhere from 5 to 35 watts of power (depending on tube compliment) with great reverb and trem and a 15 inch speaker is a hard act to follow. Sure it's pricey but if you consider you're getting several versatile amps stuffed in there, it starts to look a little more reasonable. Note, I did say "a little"... My two bits. I really want to hear one of these in person. (Note: As for the regular Regal without the power amp abilities... Much harder for me to justify the price on that one.) |
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Lynn Oliver
From:
Redmond, Washington USA * R.I.P.
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Posted 31 May 2007 10:20 pm
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Neil, I got a copy of the magazine you mentioned, and the amp does seem to sound good on the CD. I agree that the Regal II is much more interesting than the original. It's odd that the Victoria web site still has not been updated.
By the time I'm ready to make a purchase I'm sure there will be a whole different generation of amps available. It'll be interesting to hear what Mark does with the field coil speakers. |
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Randy Phelps
From:
California, USA
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Posted 31 May 2007 11:43 pm
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I played the regal at Sylvan music about 2 months ago and I've built a weber kit (5f2a) and I own a tone king imperial (a boutique combo of both tweed and blackface deluxe)... and I own a fender blues deluxe from the early 90's.... this only qualifies me to have an opinion, but at least I have touched and played all of these beasts...
The Regal is worth the price. It is beautifully built and sounds terrific. For lap steel (I played a gretsch and bill lawrence tele through it) it would be great and while the drive does come relatively early (a 5e3 thing) this thing is friggin loud!
While I did not open up the guts, I have on other victorias and they are nicely done... if you gig and have dough or if you just want a 'lifetime' amp... this is a good choice.
As for the kits... I heard all the negativity about the cheap this and the cheap that on the weber and decided I would build mine completely stock... it turned out great, it sounds very good and the cabinet is beautiful.. it is cool for lap steel around the house and I could mic it if I was gonna play out with it... I bought and built it because I was curious, and i wanted to try it... I ended up selling my champ because the 5f2a was much better (and I built it)
The weber stuff is bare bones, but doable and you end up with a great amp.... is it as good as a boutique or original? Nope. But, it is great and totally useful.
You do get what you pay for! if you are an EE and work slow and read up and ask lots of questions you can probably make one as good. If you want a serious kit amp, the vickys are cool, Allen, Mission etc all make wonderful kits and they'll sound good if you do a really good job...
The new fender stuff sounds good (especially with some tweaking) but most are pcb construction using wave soldering and some more cost effective components (hence lower price) I heard a rumor that Fender farms out their hand wired amps, but I cannot verify...
Analogy:
1) Newer Fenders = Cake from Costco--> good tasting, pretty good ingredients, generally a good experience, but probably not collectable, not as rich sounding.
2) Regal or similar boutique = Cake from super fancy bakery---> super rich, extreme attention to detail, personal customer service and all that that entails
3) Weber kit = cake mix. it can turn out cool if you follow the layout and have some skills
4) other kits or self source = cake with fancier ingredients of higher pedigree... if you are an EE you'd be best off getting the original schematic and layout for an 5e3 and sourcing the materials yourself. There is tons of help on the internet for this and you'd get potentially awesome results from this...
this is a time and money equation--> if you have lots of time and can do it yourself... cool! But if your time is worth something to you, you will not save money making your own!
If you gig 4 nights a week, consider the Fender as if when it breaks or is stolen or has Pina Colada spilt on it, no harm done.
If you lots of dough and dabble but want a great amp. The regal is a good calll.... Most boutique amps do not hold their original value... however original Fender tweed amps and black face amps continue to grow in value...
On the 15" combo side... you can pick up a Gomez G amp for about 1400.00 that you can get Dario to tweak to taste and it will blow your mind...
The good news is this is the best time in history to be buying gear, if there is a downside it is all the great choices... it makes it hard to decide... have fun window shopping... I did for about 3 months before I picked my Tone King and while it would be fun to have a carr rambler or a bf deluxe, I am totally happy and love my amp more every day.... |
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