Ceriatone, Getting close.....

[pwrmac7600]

I ordered in January, so Im getting very close.
Cant wait!
Congrats on the YouTube celebrity status of your Friedman copy!
I watched YOUR video earlier today.
Its a movie star!
There is a moment in YOUR video where Shahhidzir (I believe that is his name) plays a VanHalen riff.
He also plays the same exact riff in the Ceriatone Chupa video, from a few months ago.
So, naturally, I invested some time listening to just those 2 clips.comparing the Chupa to the AH100.
I kept going back and forth, listening to only those 2 riffs, from both videos.
I was surprised at how much similarity the 2 clips had in common.
One was slightly brighter sounding than the other, yet both sounded great!
Both amps had that certain Ceriatone vibe that I love!
Here are the 2 clips that I am refering to:

Before deciding on the AHD100 I was going back and forth between it and the yeti and chupa. I was really torn, it took a while before i actually pulled the trigger and made a decision. From the sounds of it, I think I chose correctly.
I previously have owned a KK100 and I loved it.

 

[Point 2 Point]

Ceriatone sells amplifiers, and then they also sell amplifier kits.....


The only transformer issue I ever recall, was someone building a Ceriatone KIT at home, and had things wirered up incorrectly.
Big difference in a Ceriatone KIT that an someone built on their kitchen table, and a Ceriatone amplifier built on location at Ceriatone !
Its easy to get the 2 confused.
I would not be surprised to see Nic discontinue the kits at some point, going forward, and focus on selling only completed products.
As Ampeq has already mentioned....Nics transformers are built exactly to his specific specification, and for good reason.
More Ceriatone porn, with custom made name badge, and original Ceriatone transformers!



View attachment 116273
View attachment 116276

Are those bias adjustments to the right of the EL34’s?
Wish I had those on my amps.

 

[ampeq]

Before deciding on the AHD100 I was going back and forth between it and the yeti and chupa. I was really torn, it took a while before i actually pulled the trigger and made a decision. From the sounds of it, I think I chose correctly.
I previously have owned a KK100 and I loved it.

How did you like the KK100? I have been learning mine and it seems pretty awesome so far. However I also have a Chupacabra 100 which I consider the best sounding amp ever, just something about it. I had my KK wired to be a Chupa on the drive side and it’s good, very good, but still not dead nuts to the Chupa. The KK sure can do a lot of stuff though and it will take some time to learn. I have one of their Klon / BB pedals and it works very well in the front of the amp should you need it. My plan was to sell one of these 2 100w amps, was that is. They both work so good I probably won’t. The AH Deluxe was the other one that looks awesome and I can’t wait to hear your thoughts on how that one stacks up to the KK.

 

[TXOldRedRocker]

Are those bias adjustments to the right of the EL34’s?
Wish I had those on my amps.

Question not targeted to me, but the answer is, yes. Nik updated his basic designs on his amps. This is the current 2204 setup, which I have just ordered. It has the external bias adjusting ports on the back as a standard feature. I've added a 3-way bright cap switch to mine, which is not standard, so not pictured.

If you look at the website, you'll see this is standard now on many, if not most, or all. I checked several models, including the KK, Chupacabra, etc., and they all have it now.

 

[Springfield Scooter]

Are those bias adjustments to the right of the EL34’s?
Wish I had those on my amps.

Yes. Bias adjutment points, on the rear panel.

 

[Ruster1]

I was just looking over this thread and have to relay the fact that I was jonesin for more natural ACDC crunch and happened upon a Plexi51 All Access and picked her up. Of course after i got it both my wife (who is immunosupressive) and myself got the latest COVID flavor and after I took her for Monoclonal Antibodies treatment .. I got the darn thing.. but I have to say it is one FANTASTIC amp with tweaks galore.. it does sparking cleans and flubby JTM45 stuff to perfection.. then using the SS rectifier it tightens up for Plexi heaven up to a 72 JMP. Add mild or full boost to push it into glory. I can get enough Malcolm (Bass 50) and Angus JTM50 or 72 SL sounds for days.. quiet as heck.. have not tried the loop yet.. the smile on my face even with COVID has not left me since I plugged in.. AMAZING AMPS..

For you experts on Nik,s stuff. .what is the difference between Chupa and Yeti in short terms. My ears prefer the Chupa, but the thrash guys seem to love the Yeti. Toss up.. I'd also love a JCM 800 with serious balls and reliability to put a drive pedal in front of.. just thingking out loud now.. LOVE this Plexi 51 so far..

And what is the buffered vs non buffered loop solve?.. is it a volume issue? and would a loop volume help in that case?

Thanks a bunch.. here she is sitting on top of my 1970 Major.. looks like a toy on top of the big boy.. but sounds better..

 

[ampeq]

Question not targeted to me, but the answer is, yes. Nik updated his basic designs on his amps. This is the current 2204 setup, which I have just ordered. It has the external bias adjusting ports on the back as a standard feature. I've added a 3-way bright cap switch to mine, which is not standard, so not pictured.

If you look at the website, you'll see this is standard now on many, if not most, or all. I checked several models, including the KK, Chupacabra, etc., and they all have it now.

View attachment 116843 View attachment 116844

The 3 way bright switch and 3 way Era switch are very good tools to have. You can change the whole dynamics of the amp making it very versatile.

 

[ampeq]

I was just looking over this thread and have to relay the fact that I was jonesin for more natural ACDC crunch and happened upon a Plexi51 All Access and licked her up. Of course after i got it both my wife (who is immunosupressive) and myself got the latest COVID flavor and after I took her for Monoclonal Antibodies treatment .. I got the darn thing.. but I have to say it is one FANTASTIC amp with tweaks galore.. it does sparking cleans and flubby JTM45 stuff to perfection.. then using the SS rectifier it tightens up for Plexi heaven up to a 72 JMP. Add mild or full boost to push it into glory. I can get enough Malcolm (Bass 50) and Angus JTM50 or 72 SL sounds for days.. quiet as heck.. have not tried the loop yet.. the smile on my face even with COVID has not left me since I plugged in.. AMAZING AMPS..

For you experts on Nik,s stuff. .what is the difference between Chupa and Yeti in short terms. My ears prefer the Chupa, but the thrash guys seem to love the Yeti. Toss up.. I'd also love a JCM 800 with serious balls and reliability to put a drive pedal in front of.. just thingking out loud now.. LOVE this Plexi 51 so far..

And what is the buffered vs non buffered loop solve?.. is it a volume issue? and would a loop volume help in that case?

Thanks a bunch.. here she is sitting on top of my 1970 Major.. looks like a toy on top of the big boy.. but sounds better..

The Chupa is a little brighter and has a little more drive than the Yeti. I had a 50w Chupacabra and just replaced it with a 100w one. I also added a buffered loop but I have not tried it yet. The Chupa is the best sounding amp I have ever played. The Plexi51 & 101 AA are fantastic amps as well. Nik makes some great stuff, and he is very good to work with.

 

[pwrmac7600]

How did you like the KK100? I have been learning mine and it seems pretty awesome so far. However I also have a Chupacabra 100 which I consider the best sounding amp ever, just something about it. I had my KK wired to be a Chupa on the drive side and it’s good, very good, but still not dead nuts to the Chupa. The KK sure can do a lot of stuff though and it will take some time to learn. I have one of their Klon / BB pedals and it works very well in the front of the amp should you need it. My plan was to sell one of these 2 100w amps, was that is. They both work so good I probably won’t. The AH Deluxe was the other one that looks awesome and I can’t wait to hear your thoughts on how that one stacks up to the KK.

I really liked the KK. It hit all the tones I was looking for. At the time I sold it, it was because I was really looking to pick up a early 80's JCM 800 and mod the snot out of it. So I needed money to fund that little project.
Now the modded 800 is long gone and so, unfortunately, is my KK100.
But I really think this AHD 100 is going to fill the void nicely.

 

[ampeq]

I really liked the KK. It hit all the tones I was looking for. At the time I sold it, it was because I was really looking to pick up a early 80's JCM 800 and mod the snot out of it. So I needed money to fund that little project.
Now the modded 800 is long gone and so, unfortunately, is my KK100.
But I really think this AHD 100 is going to fill the void nicely.

When will you get the AHD? I can’t wait to see how you like it. It will be nice to have a guy that has owned both that and the KK to nit pick them. No matter how you slice it they are both awesome.

 

[pwrmac7600]

When will you get the AHD? I can’t wait to see how you like it. It will be nice to have a guy that has owned both that and the KK to nit pick them. No matter how you slice it they are both awesome.

After being held up in China for a few days it should be here tomorrow. Probably won't get any real time to sit with it until the weekend, but I am sure I can manage to plug it in and blast out the neighborhood tomorrow for a little bit.

 

[Springfield Scooter]

AMAZING AMPS..

.what is the difference between Chupa and Yeti in short terms.

And what is the buffered vs non buffered loop solve?.. is it a volume issue? and would a loop volume help in that case?

Thanks a bunch.. here she is sitting on top of my 1970 Major.. looks like a toy on top of the big boy.. but sounds better..

Congrats the the Area51 !
That seems to be a popular choice.
I would echo what ampeq has already said...
The Chupa and Yeti are identical circuits, except for a few value changes....3 as I recall.
The Chupa is slightly brighter.
I really wish someone would A/B those 2 amps in particular, as I dont think a video or sound example exist of those 2 amps, side by side.
But there is a slight difference.
The buffered loop allows you to drive pedals, without a signal loss.
Some of the best sounding Yeti clips that Ive heard were pluged straight into a amp, without a buffered loop, but Nik says it has no effect on the sound.
Again, I wish a video or sound example existed of 2 Yetis (or 2 Chupas) side by side, one with, and 1 without a buffered loop.
My plan is to obtain one of each! A Yeti without the buffered loop, and a Chupa with the buffered loop.
Im 1/2 way there with myYeti, and should have a Chupa in a few more weeks!
Get well soon!

 

[Springfield Scooter]

After being held up in China for a few days it should be here tomorrow. Probably won't get any real time to sit with it until the weekend, but I am sure I can manage to plug it in and blast out the neighborhood tomorrow for a little bit.

We want a full report!
A video would be even better!

 

[TheOtherEric]

Hope you like the AHD! Seems solid. I’m down to one Ceriatone after selling my P51, which just didnt impress me. Lacking in gain (can’t do EVH at all) and lacking clarity compared to my Marshalls (1987 and 2204). Sure is neat in theory though.

 

[saxon68]

Mine was in about 3-4 days after it's confinement, I thought is was going to be longer. Did you get yours yet? That was another amp I wanted, it's got a lot of nice touches in it. The one you are getting sounded awesome in the clip.

I had an amp come in from Germany and the longest hold up was in USA customs, it was there over a week, this past July.

 

[Ruster1]

Congrats the the Area51 !
That seems to be a popular choice.
I would echo what ampeq has already said...
The Chupa and Yeti are identical circuits, except for a few value changes....3 as I recall.
The Chupa is slightly brighter.
I really wish someone would A/B those 2 amps in particular, as I dont think a video or sound example exist of those 2 amps, side by side.
But there is a slight difference.
The buffered loop allows you to drive pedals, without a signal loss.
Some of the best sounding Yeti clips that Ive heard were pluged straight into a amp, without a buffered loop, but Nik says it has no effect on the sound.
Again, I wish a video or sound example existed of 2 Yetis (or 2 Chupas) side by side, one with, and 1 without a buffered loop.
My plan is to obtain one of each! A Yeti without the buffered loop, and a Chupa with the buffered loop.
Im 1/2 way there with myYeti, and should have a Chupa in a few more weeks!
Get well soon!

Smile is still on my face.. I hear a lot of clips and I do lean toward the Chupa.. perhaps because i am such a fan of the Marshall upper mid and sizzle.. as long as you can tweak it .. My Splawn is already voiced a bit darker so i have that covered.. my OG 5150 covers that spectrum.. but i dont really have a high gain Marshall so to speak.. Chupa may be in my future.. I usually just run delay in my loop.. not much else...

 

[Springfield Scooter]

Hope you like the AHD! Seems solid. I’m down to one Ceriatone after selling my P51, which just didnt impress me. Lacking in gain (can’t do EVH at all) and lacking clarity compared to my Marshalls (1987 and 2204). Sure is neat in theory though.

What is the p51?
Is the Area 51, the same thing?
Plenty of gain, in my opinion!

 

[pwrmac7600]

 

[TheOtherEric]

What is the p51?
Is the Area 51, the same thing?
Plenty of gain, in my opinion!]

Yes, P51 is short for Plexi 51 All Access. As for gain, it seems about half the owners say it can’t do EVH and half say it can. Mine couldn’t. Even Nik doesnt recommend it to those seeking the brown sound. I can say for sure it does NOT have the gain as my ‘73 JMP 50, which does a great VH1 at volume of just 4 or 5.

 

[ampeq]

View attachment 117005

How close do you think the kk and AH Deluxe are? I have been playing my new KK a lot lately and it just seems to get better all the time. The Solo boost works very good in the dirt ch, you can match it with the ERA switch for lead boost. I also compared the KK to the 2202 through the same speakers and was able to get all the same sounds. The 2202 is a great grab and go amp but I don’t “go” much anymore.