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Tube amp for home use

Bluemoon

By Bluemoon
in Gibson USA

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MikeRom

MikeRom

Posted
Posted
How much is too much? I would say more than $200. I just picked up a Standard so I have very little money left. Will probably search around for used amp. Thanks for all the great suggestions.

 

In that price range I would seriously check out the Orange Tiny Terror or the Crate V8 but must admit that the Marshall MG15 DFX is a pretty cool little amp too.

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Thundergod

Thundergod

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Posted
What about a Peavey ValveKing? How are they?

 

well for starters they are over $200... nice amp if you plan on playing metal but it is a cheap 100W amp stack... so you could expect to get what you pay for (forget about "the marshall tone" or the "fender clean" if buying this one).

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FennRx

FennRx

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the valve king will do distortion....

 

*this is based on my experience with the 50w combo***

 

1) i found the gain boost to be worthless

2) the stock speaker is crap

3) the stock tubes are crap

4) i didnt think it had much of a "tube feel"

5) i've read lots of reviews concerning its structural integrity, though i didnt have this problem.

6) foot switch isnt included

 

i think that for 200 bucks, your choices are limited. if you have to have a tube amp, the Valve Junior is a good starter amp. it will teach you how to use tube breakup and the controls on your guitar and it handles pedals well. but it is definitely a one trick pony. i think it might be a better idea to save up some more cash. however, tube amps are much louder than SS and buying a 30 or 40 watter could easily be too loud depending on where you live. like i said before, i live in a townhouse, so i never get to drive my power tubes.

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Manimal

Manimal

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Hey guys. Bluemoon, I think it totally matters about what style music you play most. If you play a whole bunch of different styles, you may need to be totally open to any and all amps in the $200 price range. There are confusingly many choices in this range! An extra $50-$100 is BIG time worth it. Oh yeah, and to clarify here to anyone that wasn't sure on the Valveking series that was mentioned, the Royal 8 is the amp that was intended to be mentioned. It is 5watts Class A tube, 12AX7, EL84, 8" speaker, volume, tone, gain controls, and a headphone input for $150-$200 new. As FennRx mentioned last, I totally agree about the stock speaker, and the gain range knob did nothing for my liking. This amp seems to maintain quite a bit of clean headroom though. It sounded very "Pong-y" or "Quackie". Didn't particularly like it at all, as I seriously considered it because of the headphone jack.

 

Ok here we go. First things first, if you are going for an in home use "All Tube" amp, 5watts is WAY more than enough! 1-3watts tube is enough believe it or not, but these type of available amps are usually made by "boutique" builders and can easily double or triple your budget, so, 5 watts it is. Buy an overdrive pedal down the road if you don't have one now for more distorted tones at real quiet levels, you'lll need it.

I have the Gibson GA5 Class A 5watt combo and its amazing. VERY bluesy/classic rock on its own,(only a volume knob and Hi and Lo inputs) more you crank, more distortion, VERY loud. Don't bother with EPI VJ Combo if you can get you're hands on the GA5(they were just available at $299, now sold out). The Epi VJ half stack is AWESOME! Not as pure and warm and sweet as my GA5(or nearly as good quality components), but the seperate 1x12 speaker cab is really versatile(the VJ head will power many different cabs), and the 12' speaker helps this amp. Cranked, this thing rips!! The Fender Champ 600 is cool and all, but 6" speaker in this is very limiting and sound is an aquired taste. The Fender Vibro Champ is 5watts Class A as well, with a bunch of onboard effects and such, $249. Ebay and GC is a great source for the Crate stuff. People really seem to swear by the sound that they get from these V series amps. Find a V58 if you go this route. American made, better quality, tone, gain, heapphone jack, and 10" speaker, and under $200.

 

If you need better tones at GENUINELY low volumes (less than television/talking volume, the Roland Cube series, to me, is unreal. Whether Micro-cube to the Cube 60(which I am buying soon), they are just incredibly versatile, and warm sounding. I'm going with the Cube 60 as my second amp because A.) Its 60watts SS (20-30watts Tube),:D tons of decent amp and effects sounds, C.) 2 channel footswitchable, D.) is insanely loud thru the 12" speaker, or insanely quiet thru its onboard "Power Squeezer" attenuater, E.) is basically about 15"s squared in size. The list can go on and on with this and you can find these used all day in the $250 range. You can gig with these in a pinch. I didn't care for the Vox Valvetronix as much, even with the 12AX7 in the poweramp. I swear that tube just lights up in there and doesnt do much. The only really successfull "Hybrid amp that I've seen and heard is the Little Lanilie series from Songworks. Songworks.com for a lesson on how those work. Anyway, hope my book I just wrote helps and if I missed anything, sorry I'm having a bad day............

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This one goes to 11

This one goes to 11

Posted
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Are you only going to be playing at home or doing some gigging in small venues as well, because if you're short on cash after buying the Les I think you'll find a practice amp alone is a bit too limiting. Do you already have a bigger amp for gigging? I bought myself a Marshall DSL401 and damn I'm happy with it. It's possible to play at home without the neighbourd calling the law, but cranks perfectly in the size of venues I play in - even without a line out, plus you can link it into a 4x12. You should have a good selection of 2nd hand amps in your part of the world. Test drive one with your LP & see what you think.

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GibsonWarrior

GibsonWarrior

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Ive heard good things about the Peavey Windsor studio which has a built in attenuator for quieter settings. I havent tried one though.

 

My Marshall 1974x 18watter is way too loud for home use (as valve watts are much louder than transistor watts) but i use it with a THD hotplate attenuator. that way i can get use at home and at gigs and crank it fully to obtain the full potential of the valves. Some reckon the Hotplates can suck tone but i have never noticed any audible differences.

 

It is worth buying the best amp you can afford.

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1992mustang

1992mustang

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Posted
I love Mesa Boogie' date=' these tube amps sound amazing, especially with gibson guitars. They are a bit pricey though. They do have some nice combos for home use. I had a Dual Rectifier and it blew the roof off my house. So i had to sell it.[/quote']

Ya know, you could make some money with that trick. Get in touch with some general contractors, and the next time they are doing one of those home makeovers . . . well, it'd be cheaper than a wrecking ball! :D/

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Thundergod

Thundergod

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Ya know' date=' you could make some money with that trick. Get in touch with some general contractors, and the next time they are doing one of those home makeovers . . . well, it'd be cheaper than a wrecking ball![/color'] :D/

 

...but it would be a pain if the roof landed on your amp and guitar!

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Jomo

Jomo

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I have two amps. I know this isn't a tube but I like this little Line 6 a lot because it's light weight, has many built in sounds and I can use headphones.

461628jpg.jpg

I just got this Fender Hot Rod De Ville and it is SIK, this amp honks. It could be used to gig, no problem. I had an opportunity to get a deal on an amp so I stepped up. This has all the yummy tube goodness you could want. It has two 12"s and 60 watts.

265156jpg.jpg

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Ren

Ren

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The new British-made Cornford Roadhouse is meant to be awesome (30W). I'm definitely getting one (part-exing my Vox AC30 after it went wrong again for the third time!!).

 

http://www.nme.com/video/id/qS4Tf9gwCgw/search/govan

 

Unfortunately it's not yet on their shortly-to-be-updated website, but the guitar magazine tests give it 10/10.

 

I was previously going to go for the Cornford Carera, but the new Roadhouse is the business and considerably cheaper as it's not hand-wired as are the others in the Cornford range..

 

Check them out!

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Explorer

Explorer

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I personally own several tube amps. Personally my favorite amps are the Vox AC15 and AC30. If you can deal with the single channel set up and buying an overdrive such as a tube screamer for lead, there is no better choice. My only grudge is that they weigh a ton. The sound is defiantly unforgettable. Most people are turned off by Vox when they go into Guitar Center because those tubes have been sitting in for months, getting extended hours daily, so it sounds like ****. I promised if you invest in a good set of tubes (JJ set runs under $30) and you will be golden.

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Thundergod

Thundergod

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Good point explorer... mine hasn´t given me any issued still but i´m thinking about getting a new set of tubes just in case (mine has been used only for 6 months and not everyday, i was the first person to take him out of the box...).

 

So, will the sound change once i change the tubes? i like the way my ac30 sounds, but i read a lot of reviews and posts on forums everyday where they say changind the tubes is a must in this amp... What kind of difference in sound will i notice?

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