That's weird to see the transformers oriented in the same plane like that. It's generally regarded as a no-no, making the two transformers magnetic fields operate in the same plane like that, which is why you don't really find it on many amps. Strange that they did it.

And I don't wanna come across like I'm going out of my way to be a douche about this amp, but looking at that list of tubes, it's pretty much the same set of tubes you can drop into any amp that's designed to use EL34's or 6550's without having to think twice about it, other than the 6V6 which might have a problem with too-high plate voltages. And the preamp tube list, that's just the same list as you can put into basically any guitar or bass amp out there (except ones that use octal-based tubes like the 6SL7 and 6SN7). So it really looks like they're marketing the amp as exceptional in this regard when that's really not the case.

And I still haven't seen a schematic, but looking at the instruction manual, the section about biasing it seems kinda crazy to me. It looks like they're using a cathode current bias adjustment method, but they say that regardless of tube tube, you should bias it for 25mV when in 50W mode. That would mean that with an average of 460V on the plate, and 25mV on the cathode (assuming the sense resistors are 1ohm which is pretty standard, with 10ohms being the other common value), it's biased to dissipate about 11W, which is way too cold for any of the tube types it can run, other than 6V6's which aren't supposed to be run in 50W mode in the first place. EL34's should be dissipating about 16W, and bigger tubes like 6550's or KT100's should be dissipating more like 27W.

I really need to see a schematic. Cause unless they're doing some kinda mix of cathode bias and fixed bias at the same time, which is possible, the very notion of biasing for a set cathode voltage (which is only a guess, as to what that 25mV actually means) for all these different tube types, it's just absurd. Schematic, please!!!

I have a Flexi-50 and I love it. Best amp I have ever owned, in regards to getting the sound I'm looking for. I've also owned an OR120, Ampeg v4 and JCM 800, to give you an idea of where I'm at and what I'm rocking.

It's certianly not going to be for everybody though, but I think the THD amps sound great, and you'll likely see more people using them in years to come.

BadComrade wrote:I've been kind of interested in the Reeves amps too, because I've always liked Hiwatt amps. I listened to a ton of sound clips on their site, and none of them had the sound I want.

I agree, the soundclips are pretty uninviting on the site. But the audience is not really us, it's doctors, lawyers and blues dudes. Any bozo with a Les Paul or a Strat playing Layla is going to sound like that.

I don't think the distortion is thin, it's almost exactly like Hiwatt 103 series distortion but at manageable levels- overdrive reminds me of AC/DC meets GOAT. If the gain is cranked it sounds very Marshall-y. It records really really well. Nothing like a pedal- it sounds like an amp cranked.

The London Power Scale is different than an attenuator. Power Scale reduces the power output of the power stage without altering how it handles signals. It sounds more like a "cranked amp" to my ears at 1 watt than an Marshall Power Brake or THD Hot PLate does to a DR103 at 1 watt watts, plus it is not cooking your tubes.

BadComrade wrote:Based on everything Scott just pointed out, and your points / suggestions in regards to their sound clips and info about the Reeves amps, I'm thinking maybe I'd be better off looking in to the Reeves amps a bit more.

You can also try them out for a ten days and return them if the sound isn't what you like. I wasn't impressed the very first day, but the purple Fane replicas need about 20-30 hours of playing to break them in. After this, the amp was exactly what I was looking for. Oh, and I got the Custom 30 in black, a combo 1X12.

i have a Flexi 50, & i love it. it replaced my 100w HIWATT. yes, the Bivalve has the built in hotplate, but the master volume on the Flexi is excellent. it really should come down to the voicing. is there a dealer near you where you can try both? if you're anywhere near St. Louis, you can come over to my practice space & try out my amp: