Randall RD 20 - Older Amps You Should Own - ONE

[@RogerThat902]

You segment about recording is so on. If you're not recording with an in room mic it's super hard to not only distinguish the sound but also to hear how loud it is. It's only of the things I hate most about demos. It's basically impossible to hear how the thing actually sounds in a room the way they demo amps. Thank you for that.

[@oldguyjammin9732]

Well much appreciated Roger :) think we’ll just pin this for a while! Thanks for coming by

[@allanb1402]

Totally agree about IRs making the amps sound the same in demos. So hard to find a properly mic'd and high quality 'real world' sound demo of amp heads that aren't buried in a mix or recorded via a TwoNotes. Most of us don't use those on stage. Appreciate it sir. Thank you!

[@The_Macaroon]

"impulse responses, which I really don't understand" hahaha. Great content, great video OG. BTW I've never found the mic voice volume a problem in any of your videos

[@YigitTuncel]

Nice video, thanks for your efforts. Great sound 🎉

[@stevensavage7870]

I bought this same head , I LOVE it ! So versatile

[@RoyAttorney]

@@stevensavage7870 Did you switch out the 12AX7s? I have no usable or range of tone with the stock tubes on my RD20.

[@AkiraSpectrum]

this sounds soooooo good! I'm buying one next week.

[@oldguyjammin9732]

Nice - play it loud \m/

[@AkiraSpectrum]

will do!! thanks again! @@oldguyjammin9732

[@michaelmitchell5909]

Cool riffage man....love playing guitar, never gets old. You hear of a prs MT100 watt head at all?....supposed to be in the making

[@oldguyjammin9732]

Ya, could just spend some days playing, eating, playing some more, take a nap then get up and play some more :) You know.... I have not heard of an MT100 but am keeping my eye open for the MT15 MKII but haven’t heard about anything. Thanks for the love

[@michaelmitchell5909]

@@oldguyjammin9732 ....wow really.....a mt15 mk2?.....that should be killer!

[@RoyAttorney]

I have this model. Yours is a very nice upgrade. I would like to see even less gain for even more usable sounds such as a mix of different 12a7's from 12au/12at and 12ax at the same time...

[@oldguyjammin9732]

You’ll usually see the most change by swapping out V1, but you could also lower the gain at V1 and V2 and see what you think. When the gain gets too low it can start to suck all-around. I ended up getting rid of it because it was just too dark for my tastes. I dug the tone, but I don’t play dark metal anymore. My main amp for the last year or so has been my SLO30.

[@RoyAttorney]

@oldguyjammin9732 Lowering the gain on your amp seemed to brighten the sound to me. If lowering gain darkens the sound, how do you brighten it, add more 12ax7s/gain? Besides an EQ (in front of the amp) and pedals can also brighten the sound, no?

[@oldguyjammin9732]

@@RoyAttorney - ya, a pedal with a mid-hump tone would brighten it but let’s not confuse ‘brightness’ and ‘a dark amp’. For some, brightness and treble, or presence are the same thing, whereas a ‘dark amp’ is one that is naturally mid-scooped with tones suitable for doomy metal. Brightness usually equates to the amount of treble present. Amps that are NOT dark usually have more mid frequencies up front, with Fender probably being the best example, Marshalls are in the middle, Blackstar and kind of dark, Randalls even darker… it’s hard to change the character of an amp. Feel like I’m rambling but these subjective terms can be a mixed bag and mean different things to different people.

[@RoyAttorney]

​The Jet City 333 sounds very close for a fraction of the price.@@oldguyjammin9732

[@RoyAttorney]

​​@@oldguyjammin9732I agree, but you can put an EQ pedal in the chain to tweak the brightness.

[@RoyAttorney]

Why didn't you discuss the difference the tubes made on the boost channel? *Also did you replace the power section tubes? Mine has Ruby 6v6's. Finally, is the small transformer upgradeable? My better more lush and fuller range of gain amps transformers are all twice the size of this RD20.

[@oldguyjammin9732]

Guess I didn’t think of the boost channel discussion and may have assumed that everyone would run with the boost ‘always on’…? I did not replace power tubes. There are some really great xformer replacement vids out there, sometimes it pays off. I’ve never done it, but I’d assume that as along as it ‘specs out’ that there’d be no issue upgrading. I’d find a qualified tech and discuss it.

[@toneconsultant]

Naa. I like all the commentary. Hilarious. I also like the simple mic job. Most youtubers over produce. It sounds good, but it's not true tone. In your videos, I can tell if I want the amp or not because I can hear the true sound. Nice one and also enjoyed to hear someone actually had a clue about different preamp tubes.

[@oldguyjammin9732]

Thanks man! And coming from an actual Toneconsultant that means a lot ;-) Appreciate the support \m/ rock on

[@elihue_redneckreview]

Subbed. Great playing and insight, killer tones! I'm super impressed with the Randall RD20. I have an old RG175, and RG100 (both SS), a Peavey 5150, a Valveking combo, a Fender Champion, a Marshall Origin 50, and an Orange Terror Stamp... but this is the sound I have been hearing in my mind's ear. Thanks for the demo. I look forward to checking out your other videos. Cheers Is the riff George Lynch?

[@oldguyjammin9732]

Yes, killer tone... wish it was in a modern / smaller lunchbox head, lol. Thanks for the support, hope you find some useful stuff! I like to that the riff is an original but you know how our backgrounds influence us, I am a fan of Lynch for sure as well as JYM, Romeo, Stump, Grapow, John Five, etc, etc, etc... all those old shredders, lol.

[@craigsavickislivefromsunny4000]

Awesome video, You inspired me to get one. Super loud for the bed room. I think it needs pre-amp tubes, I'm getting some serious micro-phonics. I'll have to use the chop-stick test to find the bad tube(s). I think this is one of your best quality videos too. Sound and picture are perfect. It must be time consuming, but keep making videos. Best wishes...

[@oldguyjammin9732]

Thanks Craig! Appreciate the encouragement :) without some fancier equipment getting the right mix is a bit of a trick. I’ve noticed the same thing, sometimes I nail it, sometimes I wonder WTH!?!? Ha ha. Ya, the Randall is nice with a decent clean channel that takes pedal really well. Good luck with the chopstick test!

[@craigsavickislivefromsunny4000]

@@oldguyjammin9732 Hello again, I was wondering what microphone you use and what pattern? You are about to get them amp coming from one direction and a clear voice from 90 degrees. Also, please tell me what you use to record video. Chop-stick test is in a holding pattern.

[@oldguyjammin9732]

@@craigsavickislivefromsunny4000 - We were in Dunedin a couple of years ago, real nice aside from it being July - never felt such liquid heat, lol. I use a Fifine usb mic. There weren’t many usb mics out when I started but now there are several, you’d be better off with something like a Snowball, a step up in quality I’m sure. Placement is trial and error to get an accurate representation of the amp and voice but you’ll find your sweet spot.

[@RobertMurphy-wm3ge]

Excellent tube info and I really dig your recording style. I will never use IR. I see people making videos that have recorded with an actual amp and then added IR post recording.... ummmmm WHAT? So basically they are using their amp as a super expensive DI box.. Meh whatever. To each their own. Great content

[@oldguyjammin9732]

Thanks man! Yep, I prefer a decent in room mic over the DI or IR stuff. Nothing against those guys (Sonic Studios :) but I know exactly what the ‘latest amp’ is going to sound like cause they all sound the same.

[@RobertMurphy-wm3ge]

Quick question: Did you leave tube 4 (Power amp in) the same? I am looking to swap out the two 12AX7 in the gain channel myself. Do you find the 12AY tubes to sound fuller? I agree with you comment on sounding thin. I got mine used a while ago and have thought it does sound a tad thin.

[@oldguyjammin9732]

Hmm, not sure about fuller but because the gain is less, you’re pushing either the preamp or power amp more and that’s usually a really good thing. I left all other tubes as is. I have noticed a slightly thicker tone with Fender Groove Tubes but they’re a bit pricier than the JJs. You can also call an outfit like TheTubeStore and tell them what characteristics you’re looking for, less noise, more mids, more gain, etc and they can guide your path. Like 12AX7s are max gain tubes but you get long plate versions that have even ‘more gain’ or different gain... something like that :) check out 12AX7s short plate vs long plate.

[@craigsavickislivefromsunny4000]

Hello OGJam, I was wondering, when you pulled the chassis, did you have to do anything else except the 4 screws on the bottom to get the chassis out? Have a great holiday. Thanks Craig

[@oldguyjammin9732]

I think there’s a screen on the back you have to pull but other than that, just the four bottom screws. They can stick sometimes especially if its never been out. I had one where some double sided sticky had been used, I literally used a needle to thread some floss from front to back and worked it through like slicing cheese and it freed right up.

[@craigsavickislivefromsunny4000]

@@oldguyjammin9732 Lol, thanks, I'm going to clean the pots for the first time. Bye the way, have you ever used the Eurotubes low gain tubes? I saw a video, where they get better tonal quality.

[@oldguyjammin9732]

@@craigsavickislivefromsunny4000 - no I haven’t used those tubes, let us know what you think. Spray out those tube sockets while you’re at it, your pots and “new” amp will love you.

[@craigsavickislivefromsunny4000]

@@oldguyjammin9732 speaking of new amps guitar center has a bunch of used Eganater amps. I just bought my first tweeker 40 head on line this weekend. 349.00. It looks new.

[@oldguyjammin9732]

Craig Savickis: Live from Sunny Florida - holy smokin' tube deal Batman! That's an awesome amp, especially if you can open it and really let it roar once in a while. I'm flipping' jealous 🤘

[@BoyanGeorgiev666]

Just got this bad boy yesterday and I'm still trying to figure it out. Very nice, very nice amp. What pre amp tubes would you recommend, something more on the high gain side of things, though I like my clean channel to be warm and soft. The original Rubys aren't that bad to my ears, but I can only imagine how good it can sound with nice tubes in there. Regards!

[@oldguyjammin9732]

Congrats on owning a little bit of Satan \m/ ha ha, tube swaps can be hit or miss and largely depends on the condition of the existing tubes. JJs are as good as any other tube imo and relatively affordable. A set of MESA preamp and power tubes may enhance the overall aggressiveness... can’t say for sure...? There are also long plate vs short plate 12AX7s one dude from Sweetwater told me that it makes the gain higher but he may have not known himself, lol. The letter in the X position determines the gain factor in order of X, T, Y, U with Y being about 70% of max and U being about 40% of max - very clean, harmonica players love them :) The folks at TheTubeStore are extremely helpful and sell tubes at the same price as Amazon. They can point you towards tubes with different characteristics - ALL will be very subtle imo. I wouldn’t buy a Gold Pin for example cause I doubt you’d ever hear anything different worth the extra $60 you paid for it. Good luck!!

[@XXTROB]

Just found your channel recently and really enjoying it. I have a question, when you switch to the 12ay and 12au do you need to rebias or it’s just plug and go?

[@oldguyjammin9732]

Thanks and great question! Pre amp tubes (any 12A_7) are interchangeable without any concern to bias. What I’ve learned as well is that “proper biasing” is sort of for the ‘cork sniffers’ of the guitar world, lol. “Improper biasing” will make your amp sound different and increase/decrease the life of your power tubes but it won’t destroy your amp. The techs for Angus Young bias his tubes really hot (above recommended “proper...”) and his amps do fine, they just have to replace power tubes every other show or so. Some one like John Petrucci on the other hand, who uses Mesa amps, biases slightly cool and gets a whole tour out of his power tubes. I biased my Marshall below the recommended voltages (cooler) and MUCH preferred the sound, took away some of the fizzy nature of the amp. Take care \m/

[@XXTROB]

@@oldguyjammin9732 awesome! Thank you that’s the prefect answer! I saw you had replaced the power tubes in yours as well (saw the tube depot stickers) and I also ordered some jj’s to replace the rubys. I really like the was you diavlo sounded with the lower gain tubes so I had to order those as well. My dsl 20 and 6505mh don’t hurt my ears but the Randall seems too. Great review and thanks again 🤘🏼

[@XXTROB]

@@oldguyjammin9732 hi, just replaced all the tubes yesterday and what a difference! I can have the gain at max on the dirty channel and it sound great! The clean channel now is really nice and usable, loving this amp, thank you

[@oldguyjammin9732]

@@XXTROB - Rock on XX \m/

[@BoyanGeorgiev666]

@@XXTROB Hello! Can you please tell me what kind of tubes you put in your amp ? I just got the amp and want to experiment with tubes. I'm on the high gain of things, but I don't want fizzyness. I play black, death, doom metal, but I also would like a nice warm clean channel.

[@JuddLofthouse]

Looks and sounds great 👍

[@oldguyjammin9732]

Thanks Judd - thanks for the love \m/

[@JuddLofthouse]

I watch all your posts you are a great player (am green with emvy )😱😱👌👌👌

[@oldguyjammin9732]

@@JuddLofthouse - well gosh dang it, you just made my day. Thanks man \m/

[@rickclark4714]

I can’t drive 55 tone.

[@incognitoguitars9999]

Cool..

[@kiandom]

true

[@egodie7763]

Eric Clapton of The Metal