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Posted: Thu Mar 18, 2010 10:38 am
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Great that you got your HRDLX to work for you.

Curious - between the amp purchase and all the mods/improvements, are you at/above:

$900
$1000
$1200
>$1200

Just curious as with mods/improvements, they can make a big difference, but when you look at the all-in cost in hindsight, would you have been better off saving up for a better amp? It's a personal call and will be different for everyone, but it's good to put into perspective.

The reason I ask is something I did with a guitar. I wanted a Strat, but didn't want to pay for good one. So I good a MIM one. Pickups were junk, so I had to upgrade to Duncan Duckbuckers to have a usable guitar that wouldn't hum like crazy. Then a new bridge and saddles; a graphtech nut, locking tuners... Spent almost $850 all in by the time I was done, and probably should have just saved up and bought a newer, better Strat.

I have my gear, love it. One of our band guitarists has a HRDLX through an OCD pedal and it sounds pretty good (certainly better than his previous Hartke combo) and another has a Blues Jr. which I think sounds pretty good with him and his Rickenbacker. To each his own.

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Posted: Thu Mar 18, 2010 11:05 am
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+1 nedorama I'm thinking the same thing.
If anything, it won't help the reliability of the amp either. The PCB's in the HRD series amps are really poor quality. They are thin single sided boards that have really thin traces. They develop cold solder joints and trace lifts very easily. I would have saved more cash and bought either a better designed amp or looked for an old SF amp. I checked out the sound clips at the Omega Amp site and to honest, it really didn't blow me away. It didn't sound much different than my old HRDlx with a tube change and the bias properly set. With mine it wasn't the tone as much as the reliability even though it couldn'y cut a mix when I played with guys using DRRI or even an 18 watt Marshall combo. I get way more versatility from my Egnater, and the head and two cabs were a little under a grand. I'm looking at the Egnater Tweaker head as a backup amp. Looks really interesting.

It boils down to whatever works for you. I always look at the economic side of things too. I would have never invested $250 to mod a mediocre mid level amp no matter how cheap I got it for. I sold mine for $475 and got something I didn't have to mess with except one preamp tube to get what I wanted out of it. YMMV


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Posted: Thu Mar 18, 2010 1:10 pm
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I considered selling the amp and saving up for a different amp, but I have less than $600.00 in this amp. I'm not counting the cost of tubes, they have to be replaced periodically regardless of any modifications, and I like to try different tubes anyway. I paid $200.00 for the amp, $300.00 for the mod, and $79.99 for the speaker. Also, I enjoyed the process and learned a lot. I like the Egnator amps, as well as the SCXD and other lower wattage amps that are out there now. I would never buy a HRDLx new, there are to many better amps available in that price range and I just don't need 40 watts of output. I understand the concept of turd polishing, and I generally try to avoid it, but in this case I made minor investments over an almost two year period so the economic impact was minimal, and tone wise I think that you would be amazed at what comes out of this amp now. I am 37 years old and have been playing for as long as I can remember. I have had a lot of other amps, some good and some bad, and more guitars than I care to recall. I'm not some kid who doesn't know what good tone is.

The sound clips on the Omega site don't really do the mod justice, it is a world of difference from just a speaker and tube change. I should know, I did that first, and yes I know how to properly adjust the bias. Also, I have done an A/B comparrison with a friends stock HRDLx, and the mod is a major improvement. Anyway, I'm really pleased with the tone this amp puts out now. I don't foresee me wanting or needing a different amp anytime soon, unless of course this one craps out on me, and if that happens I'll just have to suck it up and start shopping for a new amp. Won't break my heart either way. :)

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Posted: Thu Mar 18, 2010 1:16 pm
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Or build one in the same cabinet using the existing iron. :D


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Posted: Thu Mar 18, 2010 3:00 pm
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I wouldn't mind bulding a custom amp. Maybe something along the lines of a tweed 57 twin but with onboard reverb, OD, and an effects loop. No PCB boards or SS components, all tube drive hand wired. I think that if I was going to spring for a custom build I would probably get a solid finger jointed cabinet though. :)

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Posted: Thu Mar 18, 2010 5:16 pm
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thanks for clarifying - if you're happy for $600 invested, that sounds like a good deal and it's exactly the way you want it, which is even better. I didn't know if you bought the amp new or used, which is why I had a higher range of cost.

Congrats.

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Posted: Thu Mar 18, 2010 5:17 pm
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thanks for clarifying - if you're happy for $600 invested, that sounds like a good deal and it's exactly the way you want it, which is even better. I didn't know if you bought the amp new or used, which is why I had a higher range of cost.

Congrats.

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'59? Bogen Challenger CHA-33, '65 Bandmaster, '65 Tremolux, 65 Showman;
'74 SF Princeton; '77 SF Princeton Reverb; Dr. Z Mini Z

Our band: http://www.facebook.com/thetoysband


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