I agree - the EVM-12L is my preferred speaker also.  I compared it with Celestion greenback, vintage 30, and classic lead 80, Eminence Red Fang, Mesa Boogie's black shadow.

The cleans and OD from the EVM are stellar.

According to Kevin O'Connor from London Power and Power Scaling, matched tubes are not necessary.  He states that matched tubes sound more crisp or harsh with increase amounts of odd order harmonics.  Also, matched tubes will drift toward unmatched over time.  He states that the asymmetries in unmatched tubes give a more warm sound and are more desirable.

These comments come at the bottom of a long web page of faq's.  It's worth reading the whole page to better understand tube amps and which tubes can be substituted.  See  www.londonpower.com/faq.htm.  The specific discussion regarding matched tubes is at the very bottom of the page.

I've bent a number of tube pins and have just bent them back and put them to use.  The pins are not brittle.   If a pin were to break off and stick in the slot, it would not be too difficult to push it out from the inside of the amp chassis.

There was no duty fee for my Overtone I received last December.  Nor was there duty on the DC30 I ordered 18 months ago.  These were both kits that needed assembly.

Greg B.

According to Kevin O'Connor from London Power and Power Scaling, matched tubes are not necessary.  He states that matched tubes sound more crisp or harsh with increase amounts of odd order harmonics.  Also, matched tubes will drift toward unmatched over time.  He states that the asymmetries in unmatched tubes give a more warm sound and are more desirable.

These comments come at the bottom of a long web page of faq's.  It's worth reading the whole page to better understand tube amps and which tubes can be substituted.  See  www.londonpower.com/faq.htm.  The specific discussion regarding matched tubes is at the very bottom of the page.

I tried some KT77s in my Overtone.  The sound was very similar to the 6L6s.  The KT77s seems to run hot and after about a month one tube failed, so I'm back to 6L6s.

Greg B.

I used a 15-30 watt soldering iron.  I was concerned about higher wattage and heat causing damage to components.  I had no trouble assembling both the DC30 and the Overtone with a simple low wattage (cheap) soldering iron. 

The Overtone is a complicated build compared to other tube amp kits.  If this is your first attempt it could be rather daunting, but if you carefully attend to every detail it truly is a satifying (and even addictive) project when you hear the results of your hard work.

Thanks.  I like the option of opening the back panel for easy access.  The connections need to be solid to avoid vibrations in the cabinet.


I just connected the Overtone with the G-Major in a stereo set up.  I used an SWR Baby Blue Bass Head (12ax7 preamp and solid state power section) into a 15" bass/PA speaker from Warehouse Guitar Speakers (www.warehousespeakers.com).  The SWR is very transparent and the sound, using a ping pong delay to compare, was very similar coming from the two speakers. 

I set the EQ flat on the slave amp (SWR) and set the volume on the slave amp to match the volume of the Overtone.  The Overtone then functions as the master amp, that is, the volume and tone knobs control both amps.   

A stereo set up like this adds a very pleasing spatial dimension to some already great sounds from the Overtone.   This will definitely be part of my set up.

If you have an extra amp and an optional stereo effect(s) in the loop, give this a try and let me know what you think.

Greg B.

The red wood in front is Padauk.  The middle is curly maple.  The back is purple heart.  I didn't have enough of one type of wood to build this cabinet, so I used some left overs from which I built a couple guitars. 

I've attached some pictures of the combo cab I built with the G-Major installed in the cab.  I'm not using the Classic Lead speaker now.  I have the EVM-12L installed.

I have both the Overtone and the DC30.  I assembled each one as kits from Ceriatone.  No doubt about it,  the DC30 is a great amp.  I'm glad I have the fortune of owning both amps.  The DC30 is very loud.  I'm installing a powerscaling mod to access those great Class A overdrive tones.

I have some pictures that I'll try to include soon.

Another nice feature of the G-Major is the possibility of a stereo set up.  The reverbs, delays, chorus, etc take on a new dimension when another (transparent) amp takes the other output signal from the G-Major to a speaker.

I haven't tried this yet but I will soon. 

When I play in a larger auditorium, I generally connect an extra speaker to the Overtone.  Even this (in a mono mode) sounds great.

Greg B.

I don't have any experience with the G-Sharp or G-Force, but I'm impressed with TC Electronic's products - very transparent, true bypass, great reverbs and delays.  I would expect the same from the other G-* products. 

I like the G-Major installed in the combo amp because there is no extra set up and it sounds great.  I put the lower back panel of the combo cab on hinges so it can be opened to get easy access to the rack unit.  I have a G-minor connected for remote footswitch control of the G-Major.

Greg B.

I built a combo cabinet with the G major in a rack space at the bottom of the amp.  With the EVM-12L speaker in the combo cab, I am totally satisfied.  The G major works great with this amp.  No buffer or loop-ulator is necessary.  I don't have any desires to tweak the amp or the set up as a whole.

Thanks, Nik, for a great amp.

Thanks.

Marin,  I would say yes to the smooth, pronounced midrange and rolled off highs as characteristics of the EVM.  I have not seen a graph of the frequency response of this speaker, but my own ears are sending signals that trigger some pleasing neurotransmitters in my brain.  It makes me want to keep playing just to hear the tones.

I'm enjoying your YouTube clips.  Great playing and great tone.  Keep them coming.


I bought the EVM-12L after reading several comments from the ampgarage forum regarding speaker selection.  I read somewhere that this was Alexander Dumble's speaker of choice for his amps.

I also agree that the cabinet design is a significant factor in the tone.  I would add that the type of wood used in the speaker cabinet can enhance or diminish certain frequencies.  I think the same attention we give to woods in a guitar should be also given to the woods of the cab.  My preference is for tone woods (I've used maple, bubinga, purple heart, teak, and padouk).  I think these sound better and look great.  I'm somewhat surprised that almost every amp manufacturer uses tolex over some type of wood.  It's probably significantly more expensive to use more expensive woods and not be able to cover up mistakes.  I don't see anyone playing a guitar with fabric or tolex covering the wood.

I am using the EVM-12L and it sounds great both at home and in the 1000 seat auditorium I play at regularly.   At low and high volumes the tones are great from this speaker.  I built a hardwood combo amp for the Overtone and this is the speaker that is mounted in the cab.

I have not compared it with the G12-65.  I guess I'm not planning to make this comparison because I'm satisfied with the EVM.  I do have a Celestion Classic Lead 80 that does sound nice with the Overtone and I use this in an extension cab when playing in a large place.   

From what I've read and the clips I've listened to, the G12-65 also sounds very good.