What was your first tube amp?

My first tube amp was a Fender Deluxe Reverb. Made for a great practice amp, but that was it. Only had it for 2 years then traded up to a Mesa Boogie MKIII.

Recto Preamp/2:100 power amp

I could get it for less than a Dual Recto head at the time.

Within a couple years of getting into guitar, I picked up a Digitech 2120, which was my first introduction to tubes. Funny thing is that I didn't know about tubes or care about them at the time. I ended up trading the unit and getting an ADA MP-1, which sounded much better and was certainly more tubey than the Digitech. The ADA was capable of tones that the Digitech just could not do. I ended up selling the ADA to a friend who I was trying to get into guitar.

My first real tube amp was a Fender Blues Junior, which produced cleans that made keenly aware of how great tubes could be. Even with some descent pedals, I just couldn't find a nasty distorted tone...until I discovered the Mesa Boogie Studio Preamp with a Mesa 50/50. Playing through that wicked combo turned me on to Mesa Boogie.

Triaxis 2:90 combo.
Yeah, there was a bit of a learning curve. :lol:

Mesa Lonestar Classic. I moved up from a marshall valvestate combo which was my first amp ever. It lasted 12 years, but thankfully died so I was forced to buy something new.

Peavey Mace half stack (solid state preamp, tube power section).
Traded the head in for a JCM800 50watt.

Peavey Deuce VT. Had two in stereo. Ridiculously loud.

It's easier to say I had never owned or played a solid state amp until I built my own battery powered portable amp in the late 70's after at least 15+ years of playing through tube amps.

Brand new Deluxe Reverb. My dad bought it for me for $244.50.
Of course, in '65, they didn't put the "65" in front of the name.

Solid state amps, I had many. Most not worth mentioning. I had a Marshall Mosfet 100W but it had limitations on speaker load (cab looked like a half stack but was 2x12). I sold that for funding for the MKIII along with trade in value for the Fender DR.

After Posting in this thread last night I thought about it more and realized that my post wasn't entirely accurate. My first Amp was a Webcor Tape recorder then a Grundig Tape Recorder, than I had a Converted table top Radio with an added 8 inch spkr. Than I graduated to Bogen AM/FM Reciever (still in the days of MONO) with a 12 inch EV coax speaker ( heavy duty cast frame was their top of the line offering) that I built an Ported reflex cabinet for. My first real Guitar amp was an early 60's Gibson Falcon bought used from a High School Friend for $50.00. These were all tube amps. As I was playing larger places by the end of HS I bought used from another friend a Solid State Vox Viscount amp that I Ran from the Monitor output on the Falcon, I forgot about using this setup for a year or so until I got my Marshal 100 wtt full stack.

My first all tube amp was my current Dual Rec i picked up in '06. Before that i had a Fender RocPro 1000 head which was a single 12ax7 tube preamp and solid state power amp.

My first tube amp was my JVM which I still play and love.

I had always wanted a TriAxis though. I got it a year after the JVM. I'm SO, SO glad I didn't get the TA first. I previously had a BOSS GT-6 into a Roland Cube60 so I was used to fiddling a lot for a good tone but I think I'd be just quoting ryjan if I got the TA/2:90 first :lol:

ryjan said:

Yeah, there was a bit of a learning curve. :lol:

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The nice thing about owning a Mesa first is that the tweaking becomes natural.

The big shock for me the first time I plugged into a loud tube amp was the feel. It felt like I was wresting liquid electricity through my strings.

The second shock was learning that clean channels don't stay clean.

First one I ever played was a 1975 Fender Twin. First one I ever owned was a 1982 Carvin X100B, which I still have.

Mine was a Fender Hotrod DeVille 212.
I still have it and it's in mint condition.

VOX AC30 back in 1961, added another 1965.
8)

BluesAndBooze said:

VOX AC30 back in 1961, added another 1965.
8)

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Kick ***!
You must have been the envy of the neighborhood

Fender Hot Rod Deluxe.

Next amp was a Mesa Rectoverb. They have been all Mesa's since. Except for a heavily modded (to SLO circuit) Jet City JCA50.

Carvin Legacy 2x12 Combo

Great amp but not a great "first tube amp" to be honest.