Is it worth buying a powerful tube amp for home purposes?

ewalling · #1 04-29-2014, 10:22 AM

I've just bought a really nice used Godin LGXT and I'm looking into getting a reasonably priced tube amp for it. My question is: would a tube amp of 40 watts be too powerful for home use? Part of the appeal of the tube amp is the sound breakup at higher volumes, but do they also sound better than solid state even at low, clean levels? Or would I be better to go for a 5-watter so that I could crank the volume up a bit?

ljguitar · #2 04-29-2014, 10:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ewalling

I've just bought a really nice used Godin LGXT and I'm looking into getting a reasonably priced tube amp for it. My question is: would a tube amp of 40 watts be too powerful for home use? Part of the appeal of the tube amp is the sound breakup at higher volumes, but do they also sound better than solid state even at low, clean levels? Or would I be better to go for a 5-watter so that I could crank the volume up a bit?

Hi ew....

There are plenty of dual wattage amps around which go from 15Watts to 5 watts and they serve a dual purpose. I've even seen one with three settings.

If you buy a 50 watter, you may have to put the amp inside the house, cover it with blankets and go outside to play to get a decent tone when overdriving it.

My lowly Fender Blues JR at 15 watts is still tough to control in small situations (like living rooms). But I also have an 11 watt tube amp which suits that part of our home better. It gives me great tone when in a big enough venue and I just mic it if it's a large situation.

There are other considerations like speaker size, and what kind of overdrive you are going for (I prefer natural overdrive to pedal overdrive).

What are your eventual plans for the amp? Home, stage, gigging, all the above?

royd · #3 04-29-2014, 10:28 AM

even a 5 watt amp can be pretty loud depending on the efficiency of the speaker.

I prefer tube amps period, but I also prefer low wattage ones and I like single ended amps so I'd go with a 5-12 watt amp if it was me.

moon · #4 04-29-2014, 10:40 AM

5 watts is plenty cranked at home. It will sound like a very loud hi-fi - possibly loud enough to annoy neighbours depending on your living arrangements.

I use a reactive load and convolution cab sim when I need to play quietly.

martingitdave · #5 04-29-2014, 10:49 AM

Maybe a modeling amp at low volume?

ewalling · #6 04-29-2014, 10:50 AM

Thanks for the replies. The use will be for home recording and generally playing in the house. I was originally looking at low wattage amps until I saw the very reasonably priced Marshall Haze 40-watt combo that includes reverb, vibrato, echo, and chorus. I'm not interested in buying a series of pedals, and I thought it would be nice to get a good amp with a few decent effects. The echo is especially appealing as I attempt a few Chet Atkins pieces.

tbp0701 · #7 04-29-2014, 11:01 AM

I have a 5 watt amp based on a Tweed Champ and doubt I've ever turned it past "4" at home, as it's still pretty loud. (For breakup I use an overdrive pedal--Fulltone OCD--which also acts as a nice master volume).

I also have a a 15 watt Pro Junior which is even more overkill for bedroom use and, while watt scale is odd, I think a 40 watt amp would be even more so, at least without a master volume.

Speaking of which, if you have a master volume amp, you can use that to get preamp tube breakup and keep the overall volume low.

I think my setup with the Champ-based amp and an OCD pedal works well, but I'm occasionally tempted to try out one of the 1/4 watt or 1/2 watt amps, too. I'm certainly not tempted by anything over 22 watts or so.

LouieAtienza · #8 04-29-2014, 11:20 AM

I had a Peavey 5150 2x12 combo I just sold. It was so freakin' loud... on 1-1/2! I never put it past 3, and it's only 60 watts. I have an Ampeg VT-40 that doesn't have a lot of gain, but the best reverb I've heard for surf stuff...

ljguitar · #9 04-29-2014, 11:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ewalling

Thanks for the replies. The use will be for home recording and generally playing in the house. I was originally looking at low wattage amps until I saw the very reasonably priced Marshall Haze 40-watt combo that includes reverb, vibrato, echo, and chorus. I'm not interested in buying a series of pedals, and I thought it would be nice to get a good amp with a few decent effects. The echo is especially appealing as I attempt a few Chet Atkins pieces.

Hi ew...

I don't find amps being generically the same at all. I find the tone of Marshall different from Fender from Boogie from Orange etc.

To assume you can just go buy any old tube amp and get the desired sound is, I think, misleading.

It might suit you better to get a decent modeler which models many types of amps (they overdrive just fine). I've had one around for years and though not as refined as the 'real deal' they model different main types of amps just great.

In fact the Boss Cube series of Electric Amps have a great set of amp simulators. Their Street model even runs on batteries, and I was actually surprised how good the quality is (in person). I have a friend who plays an ES Gibson through his (and an L series Gibson) and it's bigger than it's size.

terrapin · #10 04-29-2014, 11:54 AM

40 watts is WAY too much for efficient home use. You would need to attenuate the signal massively or risk really angering others nearby! I think 15 watts with a 1/2 power switch or good attnuator is about perfect. 15 watts is enough to play small venues with a band, but small enough to get decent sound at home at reasonable volume. 5 watt amps can be very fun at home, but can't really hang with a band and tend to have very little clean headroom. IMO..............get a tube ampand A couple pedals asd needed, NOT a modeler! All the modelers I have experience with are harsh, thin and brittle in sound, and the effects are mediocre to say the least!

arie · #11 04-29-2014, 12:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ewalling

I've just bought a really nice used Godin LGXT and I'm looking into getting a reasonably priced tube amp for it. My question is: would a tube amp of 40 watts be too powerful for home use? Part of the appeal of the tube amp is the sound breakup at higher volumes, but do they also sound better than solid state even at low, clean levels? Or would I be better to go for a 5-watter so that I could crank the volume up a bit?

go for the headroom. also look for a amp with separate gain and master volume. don't over think it.

terrapin · #12 04-29-2014, 12:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by arie

go for the headroom. also look for a amp with separate gain and master volume. don't over think it.

Clean Headroom is KING! You can never have too much clean headroom in an amp! It is easy to "dirty up" the sound, but if the amp does not have clean headroom there is no way you are going to remedy that!

redir · #13 04-29-2014, 01:15 PM

Yeah but if he wants to get natural amp gain and distortion then it will have to be a low watt amp IMO with the right controls gain and volume. Headroom is great if you want to filter it though for sure. I prefer it that way myself and have a Fender Twin for that reason but it will never crunch on it's own.

clintj · #14 04-29-2014, 01:19 PM

Headroom is a very good thing if you want to stay clean at high volume, or are relying on a pedal chain to shape your distorted/dirty sound. My HR Deluxe was perfect for that. However, trying to push around fifty watts to the point of power tube saturation/compression was completely out of the question at home. Power sinks for that level of power are pricey, too.

I now run a smaller amp, around 12 watts, and am happier overall. It's more than loud enough pushed hard, and I can mic it if I need more. Two frequently recorded amps are both under 20 watts, too - the Tweed Deluxe and the Blackface Princeton.

terrapin · #15 04-29-2014, 01:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by redir

Yeah but if he wants to get natural amp gain and distortion then it will have to be a low watt amp IMO with the right controls gain and volume. Headroom is great if you want to filter it though for sure. I prefer it that way myself and have a Fender Twin for that reason but it will never crunch on it's own.

Exactly.............12-15 watts will do the trick!