Robin Amps T 212-V 212 Combo

The T 212-V (The "6V6 Twin") is essentially a 5F8-A 1958 Twin, but with the reduced output (45-50 watts) of 6V6 power tubes. This is an amp that Paul Rixon built for himself in the spring of 2002 as a gigging amp to get 6V6 flavor at Bandmaster volume levels. Instead he got a different flavored loud-as-a-Twin amp that crunches a little earlier and has that sweet midrangey smoketone associated with class AB 6V6 amps. Not a bad combination, but not really the amp that he wanted. Unfortunately for him (and fortunately for me) the volume was greater than he expected. I plugged the chassis in to the speakers of a high-power twin (2x12 Jensen P12N RI?s) and was immediately sold. I selected Weber Cali AlNiCo 12?s and ordered the standard tweed cabinet.
The features of the amp are not in the effects category, but in the wide tonal range available to those familiar with the tone circuitry of the larger tweed amps, especially the 12AX7 vs.12AY7 gain/shaping, and interactive volume controls. If you?re looking for automagic gizmos, see Millennium, Line 6, or Fender Cyber****!

This amp has seen my 2 Rick 360's, 1 Rick 610, 2 Strats (MIM, MIJ)- all single coils, plus my '72 thinline Tele reissue w/'buckers. Controls are Vol (bright), Vol (normal), Treble, Middle, Bass, Presence. Yes, there is only one set of tone controls on the tweeds, but the sweep of the mid control is dramatic. I have several amps, so versatility is not a major consideration, but this one does cover the sound of the 50's and early 60's encompassing most of the AB tweed sounds. At mid volume, it is cleaner than '59 Bassman, but crunchier than a '58 Twin w/6L6's. Roll the mid back and get a bit of BF, too.
In the Bright channel with volume at 5, and other controls at about 7 or 8, the mid sweep will take you from SRV honk (12) to scooped-mid BF surf-tone when on 1 or 2.
The Normal channel has an attenuated high end with creamy mids; not exactly a tweed Deluxe, but that 12AY7 has a reeeeal smooth singing range that is quite different from the higher gain of the bright channel with very little reduction in volume with equivalent settings.

Works first time every time! The amp was completed September 2002 (waited on the cbainet supplier for a while) and has seen at least 50-60 hours of gig time and 20 hours of jam time with no hitches, zings, or crackles ? excellent performance for what was essentially a first prototype. The turret lug circuit boards are works of art. The caps and the Weber speakers do take about 10-12 playing hours to break in, but the seem to continue to improve with time. I currently have garden-variety E-H 6V6?s and minis, with a 1957 NOS 5U4 recto - and am waiting for some NOS blackplates for experimentation. The minis are all current production E-H.

I have had all my service done there for the past couple of years and have no reason to search for another amp tech. If Paul built it, and it breaks, he'll fix it. Unless you do something weird to blow up your components (as we crazy musicians seem to do) your amp is covered.

I play out several nights a week and use this amp extensively for 50's-60's R'n'R and R'n'B when I need more volume/headroom than that of my Robin Amps Retrolux 25 (as of this writing, it has been on at least 100 gigs without a hiccup other than 12AX7 that one half went south on me. Paul replaced it).
I have 6 Fender amps, 3 Robin Amps and various other tube amps, and use most of them in rotation or as spares for diffent gig requirements.
Yes, I would get another on if this one got ripped. It fills a very important slot in my amplification requirements.
The main shortcoming of ALL tweed circuit amps is the lack of built-in reverb, but the tonal change of the built-in circuit(a la the do-all boutique tweeds - Kend****, Holl***, Vic****, etc.)IMHO adversely affects the signature of the tone. Guess I'll have Paul build me an outboard reverb unit next!