BATTLE of the Reel to Reel Tape Recorder GUITAR AMPS

In this video, we will respond to some viewer requests to show my latest reel to reel guitar amp conversion played through an external speaker. And while we're at it, we'll compare the tone to the LAST reel to reel series filament guitar amp I created a couple years back. For the demos we will use this Mike Boblett made custom barn wood cabinet, made from 200-year-old reclaimed white pine, with a 1960 Jensen P-10T AlNiCo 5 Concert speaker. Vote below. What's your favorite reel to reel guitar amp conversion?
WATCH these amps get made:
$19 TRASHED Reel to Reel - Guitar Amp or Restoration? • $19 TRASHED Reel to Re...
JUNK Tape Recorder TRANSFORMED to Guitar Amp - UPCYCLED MAGIC! • Converting a JUNK Tape...
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[@earthstrong-43.72]

The first one by a couple miles, easy. The second one sounded terrible, then ok, then fizzy and tinny again. Sounded good with the gain backed off though. I want that first one, it sounds fantastic. Great work Brad.

[@TheGuitologist]

The second one has too much gain really. It's going into a blocking distortion almost on one of the stages when cranked. I liked that about it when I first built it, as it gave it almost a big muff fuzz character, but doing this comparison, I'm thinking of going back into the lunchbox one and fiddling with it, but I have some other projects to get to first.

[@earthstrong-43.72]

@@TheGuitologist i was given an old tube radio. From the late 40's? I've been thinking about trying to make a guitar amp from it, but I'm not qualified. My son is an electrician, but says it's too different from wiring walls and businesses. Edit: only live once, i might just double down on safety and give it a go sooner than later.

[@moonboogien8908]

Agreed

[@timmooney7528]

@@earthstrong-43.72 Check out the radio conversions done by Terry at his channel, D-Lab. He does a good job explaining the process and theory without getting too technical. I think he's making modular boards to build DIY amps from. His style is different than Brad's but there's time enough to watch both.

[@earthstrong-43.72]

@@timmooney7528 thank you very much. I really appreciate the info. I'm familiar with the name but haven't seen much of the channel. I'll look into it, thank you again.

[@ronnie5129]

Hard to choose one,, I like them both, A great video here on what you can do with Different items that were Not made to do this, One man's trash, is another mans Treasure, Rock On, Cousin Figel

[@troybaker1099]

As soon as I saw this video posted, I immediately stopped what I was doing to watch this! Love this shit! Those little amps are killer man.

[@christopherguzzi1316]

I like them both for different reasons. Overall, the tape recorder amp had a cleaner sound but with some nice breakup. The lunch box amp had more of a fuzz tone.

[@evanwilliams8908]

Wow the first amp surprised my by how much gain it had.

[@wadereynoldsgm]

The first one sounds great! I really like it and that speaker cab too. Great classic rock tonality.

[@wadereynoldsgm]

The second one, the lunchbox isn't bad either, just more fuzzy than I care for, but it has its place.

[@74dartman13]

It's hard to decide which one I liked better. They both sounded awesome in their own way!👍😎🎸🎶

[@michaelmiller1965]

I liked both amps but the lunch box had something I liked a little more. I thought the video and sound quality was good. Love your work man.

[@thedogefather]

I enjoyed the tone of both, the first was much more a general use sounding tone. the 2nd was much more compressed and fuzzy and would really sound neat for lead tones in a more vintage context, but maybe not my everyday go to! great stuff as always man!

[@angelomelitc]

Nice guitar playing Brad. I like the new tape recorder amp more than the lunchbox one. By the way nice pants also. Take care and thanks much.

[@rancid216]

Since everyone is talking about the amps I guess I would say the quality of video and the sound seems fine. So whatever you are using works just fine. Now for the amps I liked the first one.

[@scotthewitt6047]

Camera has very nice color and clarity like the focusing on the closeups. Either those amps are awesome sounding or you play through anything and make it sound great

[@scotthewitt6047]

First amp by far

[@allanallan4791]

Killer amps. I bet they'd work great together in stereo.

[@bryancruthers5641]

So glad you showed up in my feed. First one hands down. Keep it up!

[@blakjack3053]

Reminds me of a time in 1974, when I was 14, my first electric guitar and amp I created by using a Panasonic reel to reel and an acoustic guitar. I taped the recording microphone to the inside of the guitar's sound hole and when I set the tape recorder to record and cranked the recording volume I got enough distortion to sound more like my favorite band like Black Sabbath when playing Iron man.

[@philc.352]

The sound was similar for both to me. They both sound great! Would like to hear a run through of SSH as opposed to HH. focusing on the S. Good picking B.

[@phillipbainbridge9107]

I've always been a fan of the lunchbox. It may be a bit over the top, but no one amp you've done has sounded the same as the last.

[@JimmyBen]

I like both. The first would probably cut better in a mix. Maybe knock off a bit of low frequency somewhere to tighten it up. The second was cool too, with thick lower mids and some velcro fuzz. Both would be excellent tools.

[@PrinceWesterburg]

Loved the first one, the second one, as you know, just needs a small cap putting in the signal path up front.

[@TheGuitologist]

Not sure what it needs exactly, but there's a bit of almost blocking distortion happening, so gain needs to be tweaked. I'll go back through it eventually.

[@devilspalm16]

Woah, it sounds amazing!

[@RHR-221b]

Thank you, Brad. This valued upload of yours takes me back to 1974, when I 'experimented' with two reel-to-reels, to encapture (!) a stereophonic sound. That worked for a while, until I tried to create an 'echo chamber' within and 'without 'the tape machines .... Ended up buying a Watkins Copicat. Problem solved. As always: Stay free, B. I remain, Rab 🍻 😎 🌠

[@RHR-221b]

PS. I prefer your first conversion. *Sonically: From your mind to mine.* Bye for now, Brad. Rab 🎲 🌠

[@VashStarwind]

They both sound awesome. The lunch box amp looks the coolest tho ha. Great playing also. Maybe in the future, if you are doing more stationary shots like that again, maybe consider turning off autofocus on your camera, and it wont change the focus around every few seconds. Idk. I like the noodling around parts of your vids a lot.

[@JaniceLalla]

Nice to hear you play!

[@TheGuitologist]

Thanks Janice. Good to see you, as always.

Love the tape recorder. For a few seconds at 04:24 just before you put the volume up, it was pure Green Manalishi. Sounded great after, too. The lunch box one is a bit thinner, but still has a lovely tone. Nice work.

[@EliseoCaporale]

Wow Brad!!! Great sounding amps but... Your guitar playing tho... It's fire!!! 🔥 Greetings from a Uruguayan viewer. Keep it up with the amplifier videos!

[@TheGuitologist]

If the political madness continues in my country, I might escape to yours eventually. Uruguay looks like a wonderful place to live.

[@EliseoCaporale]

@@TheGuitologist well, as always it's not as good as it looks from the outside... We have our problems. But all around I'd say it's the best country in South America to live right now in economic and political terms, along with Chile probably.

[@tenlittleindians]

The lunch box totally crushed this peanut butter and jelly jam. It needs a "hey mom, where's my Twinkie" reverb switch.

[@DeadKoby]

The little series string amps can really have a neat sound. I've scratch built a few of them. The circuit is sort of designed to get the most volume out of wimpy power tubes, so getting it to distort is easy!

[@skullheadwater9839]

There's a few 50's Silvertone R2R that used a 12AX7, 12AU7, 6V6 and 6X5, virtually the same chassis as that silvertone amp you converted a few years ago. I think you called the video a restoration love affair or something like that. I built one of them like a single ended 6V6 with the front end of a deluxe , well sort of. I used 2 inputs, one was an EF86 and the other was half of a 12AX7. each channel had a volume and there was a master tone like a deluxe, the channels combined then go thru the other half of the 12AX7 right into the 6V6. What's cool is like a deluxe you can use the volumes to blend more or less from each channel and depending which channel you plug into it changes the tones you can get. I am about to convert a Bogen H30 PA from 1949 all octal and do a similar front end but use a 6SJ7 in one channel and 6SF5 for the other with a volume for each and shared tone. Another 6SF5 will come next then I want to do a 6SN7 or 6SL7 phase inverter (whichever sounds better) into the pair of 6L6Gs. I have a feeling that is gonna be sweet.

[@thedude5744]

I like the first one better. Has a nicer all around sound. But I do like fuzzy compressed sound of the lunchbox too. Keep it up Brad! Love your channel!

[@domoniquebrooks816]

I'm not sure which I liked more. I liked the smoother gain structure of the tape deck more, but I also preferred the overall tone of the lunchbox amp. Both sound great, and sound different from anything you can buy from a music store.

[@jcwear89]

First one sounded clearer more correctly biased and less fuzzy. Good job on the recent build!

[@jmd76family]

Great video look and sound. Thanks for showing setup!

[@gsharpe6179]

Unbelievable awesome amps ! You're giving away secrets here Brad ... they sound like 8 track it's crazy . Its what I play thru too . Nice one Guitolisist ! 🍸

[@kennethgroves6552]

Dude! sounds good. So, recently I happened upon a Roberts 1725 Reel To Reel. OMG the breakup just as it starts to clip is amazing. I am going to look for an AKAI dual tube amp set up now. Thanks for the videos. Good on you! Lastly greetings from Nevada! K-

[@Addam1978]

The first one sounded amazing!

[@MVMullins]

They both sound awesome, but I favor the first. Would love to do this to an old reel to reel I have. The only thing I can say about the camera, is that for whatever reason it kept trying to readjust focus, sometimes with more success than others. Probably a setting, but that's just a guess

[@Cautionary_Tale_Harris]

Thanks for answering my question about the speakers. (I'm still at work and got called away during the video...)

[@blkjckgtr3075]

Lunch box had more gain,both are sweet little amps,Cheers!

[@robertcampbell6253]

Sounds and looks very good

[@rawknbearbell7032]

I think the tape recorder amp that you just made might be overall better. Nice break up and a good sound. But the second smaller amp has a fuzzy quality that is just awesome. The small one sounds like it's about to explode, and that's a sound guys search for for a long time

[@TimSamoff]

This is incredible all around. Too tough to choose one.

[@mickdebergerac1143]

Great sounds, and very good playing. Brad is the guy who should be my Uncle....

[@pedraw]

The first one for distorted tone. The second on the lower gain/volume setting. I really dig the second amp design. Cheers!

[@lancelucifer4851]

I like te first one, the second was cool too, it had a Mesa Boogie sound too me.

[@justgary4342]

Looks good, sounds good, tastes weird, but my phone screen usually does. Good job, Brad!

[@rustyrobinson8027]

Good series thanks again

[@bigkm1974]

Man that first amp is killer! Id like to have that

[@rogerwilco59]

I definitely liked the first amp, but both are really cool. Now I know it wasn't tube type but the "Playtape recorder" you did 6yrs or so ago would have been nice to add in this mix.. Thanks for showing these projects. Floyd from Irving TX signing out.

[@Dongfloppy]

I was doing this back in the 80s. Take the wires off the head pickup and connect it straight to the gutter lead, sounds crazy

[@JV-no9fp]

Both sound really good ! First I thought 1st amp by a mile,but 2nd sure ain’t no slouch,yea it’s a grittier tone but I like that lol . A\V setup is working good man,crystal clear ,audio and visually,zero buffering

[@michaelmarchei8539]

Amp recording sounds great. But more importantly those pants are 🔥🔥🔥 look like furniture cloth from the 50’s / MC Hammer happy pants cut 🥴😂😂

[@R1GAMBLER]

blown out crunch ♥️

[@rothbekirkendall7756]

Reel to reel sounds great, and the lunch box sounds like it's " READY TO EAT!" I like 'em both.

[@ericgregorash6590]

The second one while a little thin on the high gain had some great attack to it lots of bite

[@lawrencelefsky4750]

They're both AWESOME! I like the first one better. The lunchbox is sick but it has more gated fuzz sound and the first one has more organic liquid breakup. I would use #1 for a whole show, kick #2 in for one or two songs.

[@PrinceWesterburg]

That sounds killer - I have a reel to reel in the loft and if you just plug a uitar in its heaven, will get it down in a minute, don't know why its up there!!! LOLz

[@Eddy63]

I liked the 1st one a little better but they both sounded pretty good ... Thx for posting ...

[@gobigrey9352]

I would have liked to hear them both slightly cleaner. The heavy overdrive got old pretty fast. Both cool as hell.

[@joshuataft5541]

I love the lunchbox amp so much

[@timothyb1559]

Is that a 72 year old speaker? Pretty frickin sweet! The lunchbox looking amp definitely has the sex appeal but the new amp sounds better to my tin ear. Cool cab too.

[@edmcpeake9285]

they both sounded pretty good on my tv ....i d take either one ;)

[@NoLandMandi]

it would be cool if you could use the tape pulleys to build an optical tremolo!

[@frigglebiscuit7484]

damn, both are close. the first one sounds alot like the second, but the second has a bit more of a fuzz effect, which is kinda cool.

[@darkallyrecordings4931]

I like that minor riff around 2:50 sounds EVH-ish. The sound of the new equipment is great so far. B roll turned out great. Edit - I think the Reel to Reel (1st amp) sounded the best. The second one had more of a fuzz thing going on, but honestly they both have their own thing going for them. Id say both builds are great, just a matter of taste. Nice riffs all around. This was great content. You should do this more often. 👍

[@seanwingate5734]

Tone after 2 minute is amazing

[@owenlloydwilliams]

man sounds bloody epic. Can you recommend some not so expensive old mics for someone looking at recording guitar and vocals? these sound great

[@bushmurphymusic3466]

Hey Brad, I always enjoy your videos, especially the lengthy amp repair ones. Not a fan of your politics, but to each his own. Keep up the good work !

[@jerkerfridh8189]

Being strictly singlecoil, after a couple of beers I'd go for the lunchbox and beat the crap out of It🤣 Great work, as allways Brad👍

[@phucue887]

First one ......but the second one is a whole thing of it's own ! Different is good too ...

[@rockinchairboogie3222]

Hey Brad, I like the first amp you played through. The second amp is to much like a fuzz pedal sound that gets on my nerves but the first one you played through was really good sounding. It was more overdriven, distorted rather than fuzzy.

[@rogerpennel1798]

It would be interesting if you could use the recorder portion with a tape loop to simulate the echosonic amps with slapback delay like Scotty Moore used.

[@jasonlee8497]

I like what I call ‘sticky tone’ of the second one

[@jeffkellogg76]

I think that they both sound good for what they are. I would like to hear them with a little overdrive pushing them. Not necessarily a distortion but maybe a clean overdrive

[@DarrenForbes]

2nd amp was wonderfully woolly

[@R3TR0R4V3]

Neither is better. Both sound great and bring different things to the table. 👍 The 1st one was more versatile overall, but the 2nd had it's own special mojo and got super fuzzy, almost like you had a fuzz pedal hooked up (though you obviously didn't). Pretty funky, but cool. Nice builds! 😎

[@Wolf_K]

1st one sounds quite good. The second one did have a Big Muff quality to it.

[@tamedragon66]

I've got to go with the first one. It sounded much more responsive to the pickups output, going from heavy dirt on hard picking to just a bit of grit with light string attack. I could also hear more of the harmonic tones which are crucial to the sound of overdriven tubes.

[@spacelab2756]

Definitely like the reel to reel better. More depth. Some ability to do slight breakup sounds with less gain.

[@stu-j]

Both awesome and i had to double take because it looks like your wearing a kilt lol rock on brother

[@leonthompson8988]

The first was my favorite

[@codykensington1424]

Have you heard of Winston Amps? Circa 60s or 70s, made in the USA, model names like A2 or A6. Found one local but can't find any info on them anywhere.

[@Shakeragrd1]

Both are killer...

[@keithhampton9700]

What cool way to build a tube amp! Great Job!! How much invested?

[@davidflamee]

Both brilliant, that vintage alnico speaker certainly helps deliver a great sound from both these tube amps. My preference was the first one as it didn't sound so cluttered as the second one, which, from watching, I got the impression was your favourite. Sound is such a subjective matter/science. But, back to the first one. which I thought picked up more information regarding the nuances in your playing, such as harmonics, richness, and some bell tones reminiscent of the likes of Rory Gallagher, I can't adequately explain but I'm sure you'll know what I mean. Filming was good, might be improved with extra lighting or, different settings etc. Mics were an interesting mix, one looked like a ribbon mic, I could be wrong, but, nice sound coming out of the Tascam that's for sure. I did a little experiment of my own, and that was to play the video again but this time using headphones. It hasn't changed my choice but it was a much more detailed sound overall. Top tip I'll be using headphones in future, recommended.

[@truthtobehonest]

I like the first one myself.

[@utubehound69]

The 1st one sounds better the 2nd one looks better nice Pile O Guitars in the corner... the audio & cam work sounds & looks good .

[@ibanezleftyclub]

First one for sure, the second one sounds more like a fuzz box and thin. Both could use more bass though. I’d be curious if they could drive a 4x12.

[@BobBlec]

I'd imagine you could, as long as the impedance matched. It probably wouldn't drive the speakers to their sweet spot, though; more power would be needed...

[@rlwdaman1]

I prefer the first but they both sound killer! Are there and tube amp kits for a novice like myself to attempt this? My Alf lunch box would bday fantastic platform! I bought my niece an Orange Micro Terror and got a little jealous at the tone considering the size.

[@deandee8082]

to my ears the smaller one or the second one is slightly tighter? they both sound excellent tho, prolly time to build and market a bunch of lunchbox amps make a few bucks... they sound damn good

[@themk7587]

Both sound good. To me the lunch box has a bit of a sixties fuzz tone to it.

[@teeKeri]

Let us listen to a slide guitar comparison between the two. Thx ♥

[@jwhite1016aol]

A few years back you ran a guitar signal into a kids karaoke machine and I always thought that tone was great, you still have that? I tried to figure out which video it was but couldn't if anyone else does help me out.

[@TheGuitologist]

Was it a Fisher Price tape recorder?

[@canigetachannel]

I hope you're well. Peace

[@browndog666ify]

Dude!! You nailed the sound!! I hope you made notes 🙏 (Auto-focus is a bit of a curse on an otherwise great video.) First amp was a bit more ballsyer. Wicked bottom end & lower mids. Second amp had bit of sag initially, cool old sound. Video Sound is definitely in the pocket now. 👍

[@TheGuitologist]

Autofocus on this camera is like autocorrect on my iPhone.

[@waynebake1123]

The 1st is more versatile. The 2nd has a fizzy overdrive to it. I like that sound, it's different and I appreciate it for that. I wouldn't change the 2nd amp, it has a unique character. It's hard to get a fizzy overdrive that isn't too trebly and glassy/brittle sounding.

[@macgyver77777]

The new gear did the job IMHO. Not sure if you were using autofocus or had assistance running the cam. As you were moving about, the focus was trying to decide what to pinpoint. The Tascam seemed to work as expected. I didn't hear as much compression as I was expecting. Bet you learn a lot from this when you review the raw recording. Looking forward to more content!

[@macgyver77777]

Just based on your reactions, I think you appreciated the first one more. I on the other hand liked the lunchbox version. It was never an apples to apples "comparison" and we all like what we like. Enjoyed the vid!

[@timmooney7528]

Is that at a PRS? I'm curious to hear a Tele through those amps.

[@phil2756]

Have you used that cab before? (Sorry if I sound like a noob) but yeah the new mics sound great. Might wanna turn off auto focus on that cam at least when you're just playing guitar in one spot, it's jumping around a bit.

[@TheGuitologist]

No. I have not used that cab on the channel in the past. I got the cab as payment for doing some work for the dude who made it. It's made from 200-year-old reclaimed white pine from a torn down barn.

[@mark5150ty]

The audio sounds great but the picture of the camera is kind of bad

[@TheGuitologist]

Agreed. The DSLR autofocus was going haywire because of me passing back and forth in front of the window.

[@mark5150ty]

@@TheGuitologist is there a way to turn the autofocus off?

[@TheGuitologist]

@@mark5150ty Yes. But I have to put it into manual focus and dial in the focus based on where I'm going to be standing and it's not that easy to do on the tiny built-in monitor. And then you're stuck with whatever the focus is, so if you move, you have to manually refocus. I'm still experimenting. I might use this cam on on talking head stuff from now on.

[@davidsmith3736]

I thought the video was good overall at least with alto focus you can move around and still be in focus and Btw,I liked the first amp better.

[@mark5150ty]

@@davidsmith3736 I like the lunch box better

[@stepvanjoe3469]

I like them both for different reasons, the lunch box amp would probably make a good lo-fi harp amp the reel to reel seems more versatile but without playing first hand hard to pass a negative thought about them other than the gain in the lunch box may be a bit much as others have stated