NAD: 1960 Rocket R-12

[Torren61]

I had the itch for an Ampeg.  I like octal preamp tubes.  I initially thought this one was a '59 model but, according to the serial number, it appears to be a very early 1960 model.  It was a painful wait but worth it.

I got it out of the box and styrofoam peanuts went everywhere.  Please don't use peanuts for packing material.  I gave it a quick once over and plugged it in.  Not bad but a bit noisy.  Not as much gain from the preamp but I can live with it.

I took it apart and started cleaning.  I tested the 6V6 tubes but they were the only ones I could test with my Orange tube tester and they tested good.  Not perfectly matched but pretty close.  I cleaned the tube pins and sockets and put everything back together.

I plugged it back in and it was MUCH quieter.  I attribute this to cleaning the pins and sockets.  The tremolo is faster than I would like.  I'm going to have to research it and figure out which resistor to change to get a slower tremolo speed.  Does anyone know the values of the red Astrons?  I can only see the marking for one which is .02

Behold, my first Ampeg!