THIN AND HARSH SOUND OF THE HT-40 ON OVERDRIVE CHANNEL

[zibolt]

I assume your combo is an open back?

With my 2x12 (Closed) that's a lot of bass.

I can see the bass frequencies dispersing in an open open and working like that.

Glad you found a setting that works for you. That's really cool.

If you you like to try out different tubes, you might even end up liking things better.

Hi. My amp ht-40 is closed back type of combo. I tried to remove back side but soud was more less the same - still harsh and thin. I will try instal other tubes in the future. I must try how my ht-40 works with my new settings when much lauder. Thanks. Lech

[majikmojo]

no way i could run my 60 like that - but if it works then rock on

[zibolt]

no way i could run my 60 like that - but if it works then rock on

Maybe because ht-60 has got more tubes than ht-40 ( at least one more ) and because of that it sonds much fuller and creamy.

[VENTGtr]

So many factors can come into it. The instrument used, speaker type, cab/construction, etc. Not to mention music style and personal preference.

Since it was bright and harsh to you before that seems to he the tweak it needed.

Heck of a setting though.

Guess it knocks the "Start out with everything at 7 and fix from there" theory off the boat.

On my HT20, everything is set almost straight up (Highs are around 11' o'clock, Mids are around, 1 o'clock, bass is about 12 o'clock, ISF & Gain both at 12 o'clock. That's the optimal setting through the 2x12.

[majikmojo]

yea i run pretty close to vent's dials - i have heard though that Billy Gibbons uses a similar setting sometimes by running
full bass with little or no mids and treble on the amp

[VENTGtr]

Hm. Billy's a mid-scooper. Who'd'a think. Well, I guess an everything except bass-scooper...

[butdoesitdjent]

Had the same problem. I bought the amp 1-2 months ago and it sounds much better. I left it on standby overnight a few times and I think the tubes just needed a bit of usage before they worked better.
Hope this helped.

[ffooxx]

hi, here is sharing my experience with HT 40 which now sounds GREAT for hard and heavy rock of 80-90 and for my taste of course.
1st I started with preamp tubes as written before easy stuff to change like a light bulb plenty of YT videos there
My choice was: ECC803S GOLD-PIN TUNG-SOL I tested JJs, EHX but i return to TungSols for their smoothness and organics they have and for me it was night and day the amp started to talk much better
2nd after while 1-2 month I have changed the power tubes I also did the direct swap and didn't care about the bias just threw them in, the change was slightly noticeable but not as prominent as the preamps and especially in home conditions on low volume. The change I noticed was the sound just somehow cleaned up.
My choice was: Tung-Sol EL34B I bought matched quartet so I will have a second pair as reserve.
3rd after about 6 month I have changed the speaker I have tried V30, T-75 and now i play only the Lead 80 and I am happy with the setup very prominent change. Note that speaks needs to break in but it doesn't mean that they sound bad and in half a year they will sound great. The Seventy 80 supplied just doesn't sound good to my ears.

As some one there said before any part in the signal chain can influence the sound so you should start with your guitar and test only guitar straight to amp so this very least setup will help you pinpoint and distinguish the difference in the change you have done.
Then on this note couple of questions you should ask yourself
Do I have a quality strings? I use COATED ELECTRIC TITANIUM RPS HYBRID SLINKY P03122 planning to test M-STEEL HYBRID SLINKY P02922
Do I have quality pickups? I use Dimarzio Super Distortion for the type of music I play
Guitars under 600-800USD are using companies designed pickups which not always sound as good as aftermarket PUs except some metal axes where they put EMGs active electronics from start
Is electronic in in my guitar consisting of quality parts? Pots and Caps and cables?
Do I have quality cables connecting to and AMP? I use EA Lyric cables

Then last is you need to find whats suites you as we all have different tastes and ears and this can give you some thoughts to go trough and ideas you can try and test.
Bottom line HT-40 is a great amp capable of great tones so there is not a reason why you should not be happy with the amp unless the the style of music you want to play is in different realm where the amp can not go.
Hope this helps a little

[thephantum]

Echoing the above: these would be the tweaks to make, listed in the order of impact they will have on the sound, from most impact to least impact. Essentially, this is the order I would make changes:

• Speaker:
  Upgrading the speaker will give you the biggest tonal improvement for the least amount of work. In other words, the biggest bang for you buck. The speaker that comes in the HT 40 is a Celestion Seventy 80, but it is the lowest end available...a.k.a. - a "budget" Celestion. Regardless of the choice (Celestion, Eminence, Jensen, whatever), anything you upgrade to will be better. What you choose will be based on what you are playing and what sound you are going for.
  
  Pre-amp tubes:
  Changing the preamp tubes (12AX7) will give you the second biggest improvement and is one of the easiest mods you can make. It is literally plug and play...no adjustments needed. Tubes do wear out, so eventually you'll have to do it anyway. I recommend either a TungSol or Mullard. The Tungsol is a little brighter than the Mullard, bot both are very good sounding tubes. I personally prefer the Tungsol. You can pick them up around $15-$20 USD each.
  
  Power tubes:
  The power tubes do require biasing. So this is not a matter of plug and play here. However, if your amp is a few years old, it might be time for a retube. If you are not comfortable poking around inside a live amp, take it to a tech. I have found that the Venue series really likes Winged C EL34's biased warm. The amp literally sings. Tungsol EL34's are an excellent choice as well.
  
  Just to note, if you do manage to get your hands on a few different tubes, you can audition them, find the one you like, then bring it to a tech for a bias.
  
  Transformers:
  Now we are getting into doing surgery on the amp. Based on what you are looking for, this most likely isn't necessary. But I figured I would put it here as an option. Unless you know what you are doing, it should go to a tech for this. It also starts getting expensive. Mercury Magnetics makes a specific replacement for the HT-40's output transformer. It doesn't change the tone, it just gives it more clarity and definition. The other advantage of this type of upgrade is that you can push OT harder, which makes the power tubes work harder and thus the amp sound better. It all comes at a price though...$250, just for the part. A tech might be able to get it cheaper, but you still have to pay for his/her labor. You can also install a better power transformer, which will help deliver power faster to the amp when it needs it. In addition, you can install a choke to help level out AC ripples. Again, this is all high end, fine tune, tweaking.

If I were you, I would change the speaker, then change the preamp tube. You will be amazed at how much better the amp sounds. Depending on how hard you play it/how many heat cycles it has...if the amp is less than two years old, I would leave the power tubes alone for now. Basically, wait until it needs a re-tube. If it's more, it's probably time for them to be replaced anyway.

[Emopunk]

Echoing the above: these would be the tweaks to make, listed in the order of impact they will have on the sound, from most impact to least impact. Essentially, this is the order I would make changes:

• Speaker:
  Upgrading the speaker will give you the biggest tonal improvement for the least amount of work. In other words, the biggest bang for you buck. The speaker that comes in the HT 40 is a Celestion Seventy 80, but it is the lowest end available...a.k.a. - a "budget" Celestion. Regardless of the choice (Celestion, Eminence, Jensen, whatever), anything you upgrade to will be better. What you choose will be based on what you are playing and what sound you are going for.
  
  Pre-amp tubes:
  Changing the preamp tubes (12AX7) will give you the second biggest improvement and is one of the easiest mods you can make. It is literally plug and play...no adjustments needed. Tubes do wear out, so eventually you'll have to do it anyway. I recommend either a TungSol or Mullard. The Tungsol is a little brighter than the Mullard, bot both are very good sounding tubes. I personally prefer the Tungsol. You can pick them up around $15-$20 USD each.
  
  Power tubes:
  The power tubes do require biasing. So this is not a matter of plug and play here. However, if your amp is a few years old, it might be time for a retube. If you are not comfortable poking around inside a live amp, take it to a tech. I have found that the Venue series really likes Winged C EL34's biased warm. The amp literally sings. Tungsol EL34's are an excellent choice as well.
  
  Just to note, if you do manage to get your hands on a few different tubes, you can audition them, find the one you like, then bring it to a tech for a bias.
  
  Transformers:
  Now we are getting into doing surgery on the amp. Based on what you are looking for, this most likely isn't necessary. But I figured I would put it here as an option. Unless you know what you are doing, it should go to a tech for this. It also starts getting expensive. Mercury Magnetics makes a specific replacement for the HT-40's output transformer. It doesn't change the tone, it just gives it more clarity and definition. The other advantage of this type of upgrade is that you can push OT harder, which makes the power tubes work harder and thus the amp sound better. It all comes at a price though...$250, just for the part. A tech might be able to get it cheaper, but you still have to pay for his/her labor. You can also install a better power transformer, which will help deliver power faster to the amp when it needs it. In addition, you can install a choke to help level out AC ripples. Again, this is all high end, fine tune, tweaking.

If I were you, I would change the speaker, then change the preamp tube. You will be amazed at how much better the amp sounds. Depending on how hard you play it/how many heat cycles it has...if the amp is less than two years old, I would leave the power tubes alone for now. Basically, wait until it needs a re-tube. If it's more, it's probably time for them to be replaced anyway.

This is really a great reference post. Thanks for sharing your knowledge. What speaker would you suggest for alternative rock/hard rock? Would a G12M-65 Creamback fit the bill? Thanks.