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#1
11-30-2012, 11:20 PM
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A good "home" tube combo amp???
I don't play much electric but am wanting to do more. I have a huge Line-6 Flextone II XL amp with full floorboard that is just too much amp and too much hassle for me. I'm thinking of selling it (and a couple other things) and buying a smaller all-tube combo with great blues and classic rock tone which will also work for some "Green Day" type tone that is smaller and super easy to use. Any suggestions? I don't really even know where or how to start looking, so any advice/guidance is welcome!
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#2
11-30-2012, 11:39 PM
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Marshall Class 5, Fender Champ, Vox AC5, Orange Tiny Terror are all great little tube amps. Single power tube, usually an EL34 and true class A power. The Marshall has a great British flavor when cranked. Clapton played through a tweed Fender Champ when he recorded Layla. Drop the right fuzztone/overdrive in front of one of these and you can get great distortion for punk and newer rock. Best answer of course is to go try some out. And don't be afraid to turn them up to see how they sound, tube amps can sound muddy with the volume really low. My Hot Rod Deluxe doesn't wake up until I hit 2, and will remove paint from the walls at 3.
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"You don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great." -Zig Ziglar Acoustics 2013 Guild F30 Standard 2012 Yamaha LL16 2007 Seagull S12 1991 Yairi DY 50 Electrics Epiphone Les Paul Standard Fender Am. Standard Telecaster Gibson ES-335 Gibson Firebird
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#3
11-30-2012, 11:44 PM
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My baby girl is named Layla. So I suppose that fits! Do you happen to know ballpark street prices on those models? And best places to order? Unfortunately, up here in God's Country there really isn't any place to try thm first.
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#4
12-01-2012, 12:16 AM
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Looks like about $300 or so for either a Super Champ or a Blues Jr III. The Blues Jr is another wonderful tube amp, simple controls and 15W. They're biased warm and tuned for a very sweet, warm, bluesy tone. Tiny Terror, about $900. I was off a number on the Vox, it's an AC4TV. About $250. Having trouble pinning down a price on the Marshall, they may not make them anymore. Nothing wrong with a used tube amp if it works. They are very fixable. If you buy used, budget about 30-50 for new tubes depending on the amp. You'll need them eventually. Check out youtube, you can find good reviews and demos of most any amp you care to look at. You could order from GC/MF, or Sweetwater. The last person I know that ordered an amp from MF first got a dead one, and exchanged it for a noisy one. I bought it from him and retubed it which fixed the problem.
__________________
"You don't have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great." -Zig Ziglar Acoustics 2013 Guild F30 Standard 2012 Yamaha LL16 2007 Seagull S12 1991 Yairi DY 50 Electrics Epiphone Les Paul Standard Fender Am. Standard Telecaster Gibson ES-335 Gibson Firebird
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#5
12-01-2012, 12:48 AM
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mesa
Check out the Mesa Express 5:25. Super versatile from clean to high gain, great reverb, made in Petaluma, CA. It can be switched from 5 watts class A to 25 watts class A/B, enough for a small room. And, bozz is right, crank it up at least half way - you won't want to stop playing. The Orange Tiny Terror would be my next favorite, very simple controls but lots of great tone (last I looked it didn't have reverb...)
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#6
12-01-2012, 05:31 AM
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 Just in case you are interested in the Mesa Boogie Express 5:25, I've written a review of it which is HERE. I picked up this amp because it has so many cool sounds in one little package. It will take some twiddling to find your place in it, but once you do it is very cool. Do pay attention to the fact that the EQ is pre-gain and the contour (Express) or parametric (Express+) is post-gain. That means you'll want to use both. Bob
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"It is said, 'Go not to the elves for counsel for they will say both no and yes.' " Frodo Baggins to Gildor Inglorion, The Fellowship of the Ring THE MUSICIAN'S ROOM (my website)
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#7
12-01-2012, 07:17 AM
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Fender Pro Jr. 15 watts, 20#, 2 knobs. Doesn't get any simpler and sounds great out of the box. Even better with a better speaker. Wish I'd never sold mine. Fender currently running a $50 instant rebate program.
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#8
12-01-2012, 10:50 AM
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the VHT Special 6 is a cool looking amp. And I play a silverface Fender Champ in a larger cab and a 12 inch Weber Blue Dog speaker with our church band.
just remember that a 5 or 6 watt tube amp can be pretty loud. IMHO, a 15 watt tube amp is not an amp for "at home" unless your neighbors live far away and other folk in your house really, really, really enjoy your playing. It is another thread to talk about volume vs. watts vs speaker efficiency and how it all works together but a 5 watt amp is 1/2 as loud as a 50 watt amp (all else being equal). also, there are few if any tube amps that will have bells and whistles like your line 6. You'll need pedals to add effects and perhaps even to shape distortion the way you like.
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#9
12-01-2012, 11:00 AM
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Thanks Royd. Great info. And bells & whistles are what I don't want. I got the Line 8 or 9 years ago and thougt I'd love the versatility. But in actuality it was just completely overwhelming; just way too much "stuff".
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#11
12-01-2012, 11:20 AM
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I have several amps from 5 watts up to 100. For home practice I use a Fender Blues Jr which is 15 watts and has reverb built in. The nice thing about this amp is it is a great grab and go and has enough power for a small gig if needed. The clean headroom is good and you can dial in distortion or just hit it with a pedal. Cost is not bad and there are plenty of used ones for cheap. If you are only playing at home and volume is an issue a 5 watt amp may be a much better choice. Try before you buy if at all possible.
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#12
12-01-2012, 03:24 PM
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Check out Carr Amps. The Sportsman in particular can give you full power tube overdrive at volumes ranging from bedroom to venue.
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#13
12-01-2012, 03:33 PM
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Quote:
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#14
12-01-2012, 03:41 PM
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Quote:
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#15
12-01-2012, 03:42 PM
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The Super Champ XD is a great sounding amp. Digital Front End - Tube Power Amp. I do some session work and I was recording some lead guitar parts for a local country singer and there just happened to be a SC-XD sitting in the room, so I mic'ed it up, and recorded every track with it. The client loved the tone. I was using the Marshall & Fender models and they sounded nice. I wound up buying one for my house and swapped the stock speaker for a Celestion G10 which sounds great, but the stock speaker sounded fine too.
There is a new version of this with a Tap Tempo for the Delay which I wish mine had!!! http://www.musiciansfriend.com/ampli...p?src=3WWRWXGP
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