Victory V40 owners - do you find it too dark?

Philtre

I've owned my Victory V40 Duchess amp for a few months now. It works fine as a pedal platform but, on its own, it seems a really dark amp.

I wind the treble control to max and lower the bass to compensate but it still seems quite dark.

How are other V40 owners finding it?

ICBM

Not an owner, but I tried one a while back... and yes - unusably dark, for me. Even with the treble full up, the mid and the bass very low it was too dull and muddy. I didn’t try it with pedals but it would make no difference, there’s just no top-end from the amp. Some people seem to like this sort of sound - its owner loves it. He also has a Blues Junior...

Philtre

I'm tending to use my Peavey Classic Mini Head 20w more these days because it's much brighter.

I guess the V40 is designed as a neutral pedal platform and the treble can come from pedals. It does get a tad brighter if the Master volume is turned past 2 o'clock. Lots of people seem to like them.

Wonder if a Tung sol 12AX7 in v1 would help (rather than a JJ)?

ICBM

Philtre said:

I guess the V40 is designed as a neutral pedal platform and the treble can come from pedals. It does get a tad brighter if the Master volume is turned past 2 o'clock. Lots of people seem to like them.

It's anything but neutral in my opinion. Getting treble from pedals won't work if the amp doesn't reproduce it - I didn't try it, but I find it unlikely since the clean sound has no top-end at all and must be deliberately rolled off, since a normal valve circuit doesn't do that.

I know a lot of people seem to like them - but that all-mid/no-treble sound must be popular or amps like the Blues Junior, Valve Junior, Cornford Harlequin or Swart AST would never have sold, and that just about covers all price points! The BJ is the world's biggest-selling valve amp...

Philtre said:

Wonder if a Tung sol 12AX7 in v1 would help (rather than a JJ)?

Maybe, but probably not much.

Philtre

What would be a comparable (clean) head, but with more treble?

djspecialist

I sold mine as I felt it sounded lifeless - not enough sparkle in the clean tone.  I get all my drive from pedals, but IMO trying to use those to compensate for the amp's basic voice is a hiding to nothing.

The replacement was a H&K Puretone which by contrast had a beautiful clean sound ... but I found the volume taper unmanageable, so moved it on.

I now have an MJW Roadstar 36, which sounds great and has a very progressive volume control.

Blueingreen

When last amp hunting I thought the format and some of the claims being made for this amp made it seem ideal.  I was really attracted by the form factor.  I'm not a cork-sniffer and thought any amp broadly in the Fender camp and getting well reviewed as a pedal platform should be just fine for me sound-wise.

But the more I checked out online demos the more doubt set in.  I just couldn't find a demo where I liked the clean sound.  "Lifeless" about sums it up.  I ended up going for a Quilter instead and could not be happier.

ICBM

Blueingreen said:

I'm not a cork-sniffer and thought any amp broadly in the Fender camp and getting well reviewed as a pedal platform should be just fine for me sound-wise.

It didn't sound anything like any Fender amp to me, not even a Blues Junior. At least, until I heard a Bassbreaker 007, which has the same sort of muddy no-treble sound... presumably this is what some people want now.

And I don't like overly bright or shrill sounds either! I just want there to be *some* top-end available.

Blueingreen

ICBM said:

Blueingreen said:

I'm not a cork-sniffer and thought any amp broadly in the Fender camp and getting well reviewed as a pedal platform should be just fine for me sound-wise.

It didn't sound anything like any Fender amp to me, not even a Blues Junior. At least, until I heard a Bassbreaker 007, which has the same sort of muddy no-treble sound... presumably this is what some people want now.

And I don't like overly bright or shrill sounds either! I just want there to be *some* top-end available.

Initial reviews I looked at used terms like "Fender like" or "basically in the Fender camp", which would have suited me just fine.  That's not what I was hearing in demos though.  To me it sounded anaemic/lacking in character.  Some people may like that very neutral sound in a pedal platform but I want my pedal platform to sound great clean as well.

  Of course I recognise that it may be unfair to judge an amp by on-line demos, but normally if an amp has a noticeable Fendery character that will come through  on-line demos. 

Philtre

Some of the YT demos sound good, and reasonably bright. But having owned a V40 for 18 months now I would describe the inbuilt sound as "boring, flat and dark". Victory are a great company with great after sales service, however.

Apparently the V40 was designed with Mick from That Pedal Show having some input. Perhaps he likes it like that because he plays a Strat through bright pedals?

Chris_J

I think Victory offered an after market mod to boost treble in the v40.... I'm sure someone on here had it installed?

Philtre

Chris_J said:

I think Victory offered an after market mod to boost treble in the v40.... I'm sure someone on here had it installed?

Interesting. I'll contact Victory.

dr.scholl

Philtre said:

Chris_J said:

I think Victory offered an after market mod to boost treble in the v40.... I'm sure someone on here had it installed?

Interesting. I'll contact Victory.

Philtre, did you found this mod exists? I'm interested :-)

AndyJP

Which speaker are you using with it?  I used to own one and with a celestion g12-65h and there was plenty of treble. Loved it. But didn't like the sound of it with a g12m creamback. Glad I changed the speaker.

TINMAN82

I contacted Victory about this recently. There is no after market mod, contrary to rumours.

Here is Martin Kidds reply:

“There are no custom modifications that Victory offer on their products; however, the current production of the V40 is brighter (and has been since around October 2016), which was achieved by removing/not fitting C21, which is just in front of the reverb switch on the PCB”

AndyJP

Could you get a tech to mod it?

I've got a 40 deluxe head at the mo. It's a lot brighter than the V40. More in the fender camp i guess but very similar to the v40

Modulus_Amps

Just locate and cut out c21. The board will be marked.
Be careful what you touch and use insulated snips 

enjo

I really like mine - it is set up as an 6L6. I bought it after hearing one live and loving the sound.

AndyJP

Yeah it cuts like mustard live.