evon1964 Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 Hi all first post here. I am a beginner with some money to spend. I am going to get an Epiphone SG guitar and I would like some input on what amp I should get. Right now I am looking at either a 15 or a 30 watt amp. My model preference would be either Line 6, Peavey or any input is appreciated. I can spend between $100-$300 on an amp.Thanks. Also my music preference is rock-metal.
Zoki Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 Hey Evon, Unless all your ever gonna do is play and home and/ or record with do your self a favor and cross that Line 6 off your list... they're great tools for headphone recording and fun for getting fancy tones at bedroom volume, but as soon as you find yourself in a room with real instruments those transistors and one's and zero's just turn to mush - something that doesn't happen with a tube amp. It may take a little while longer to find your own personal tone with a tube amp as a beginner but it's well worth the investment of time and the few extra dollars it take to get one..... : )
K.E.B.1281734147 Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 I agree. I have the 15 watt Epi Valve Standard and love it. With pedals, the tones are limitless no matter what music you play.
sexygibson Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 +1 on tubes ! I just recently picked up a Crate V5 for $85. So far I am more than happy with it for what I have in it. I will probably upgrade the speaker and tube at a later time as it can only improve the tone but its really fine for right now. For that price you could get 2 V5s and run them together.
rafaelh Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 Well, I'm going the other way. Not to contradict the good sugestions already given, but I wouldn't waste my money on a tube amp at this stage. You have enough to do, or learn, with playing the guitar. I'd find a good SS amp that would just amplify the guitar....lots of choices that give you a good sound at a low price IMO. The comment of playing out later was mentioned and IMO a 300 dollar amp, SS or tube, isn't going to get you much amp to cut through the mix playing rock metal. Sure you could mic it and pump it to the FOH via a PA and back on stage for you to hear through monitors. But now your dealing with who owns it, buys it, and just more crap to carry....I prefer being self sustained. Still, you might get lucky in the used department, but again at this stage of the game you might not know what you are getting into....not yet anyhow. FWIW...when I'm at home I play through a small old Marshall SS amp I got many many years ago. I don't play my electrics unpluged, I'll play my acoustic if I want that, nor I use headphones. When I play out I'll use my tube amps, and that's only because it's what I'm use to. Truth be told I'll plug into a microwave oven if it sounded, felt good and cut through the mix. No tube or SS snobbery here...just been playing tubes for over 40 years and as I said what I've gotten use to. Only reason I mention the above is so you know how and for what I use what I have. I hear folks rag a piece of gear cause it falls short on stage, but yet it's more than fine for home use or mild jamming. Same for the opposite...fine at home but wont cut it on stage. I think it helps if whomever is asking for suggestions understands, or knows, how it's used by the person giving the suggestions. Anyhow just my 2 cents worth. I just feel that a good SS amp at this point would be your best bet for home use. Lots of time to study the field before spending money on gear that you later find you might not need.
m-theory Posted March 22, 2009 Posted March 22, 2009 For a first amp, in the $100-$300 range, and particularly someone who's looking for a "metal" tone, I'd definitely recommend transistor. There are scores of decent options in that price range. Rafael makes some worthy points. Tube amps require at least some basic knowledge of how they operate and what to look for when the don't, or don't operate at their peak potential. They require frequent maintanence. Transistors don't.
Dave Posted March 23, 2009 Posted March 23, 2009 Take a look at the Peavey Vypyr series. The Tube 60 street price is about $449 and has a dual 6L6 output stage coupled to a 12ax7 preamp driven by a DSP board. USB recording output, heaphone jack, and input jack for your Ipod or CD player. This is a "true" tube amp in the sense that the preamp and output are analog tube stages. The DSP circuitry consists of 11 stompbox and 11 rack effects. There are 12 amp models in clean and overdrive mode for 24 amp models. All models and effects are tweakable and you can save 12 of your own creations for access by a foot pedal. I have had one for about 2 weeks and it absolutely nails the Fender clean tone. I don't have the schematic yet, but it's available from Peavey for $2.50 on their web site. I know that everyone is going to say that you can't build a good tube amp for that price. Yes, it's Chinese manufactured, but given the prices for tube amps today, it's good buy. Don't diss it until you've tried one. I was dubious until I did that and became an owner.
bluesman345 Posted March 24, 2009 Posted March 24, 2009 Hi Evon, I have a Vox AD50VT2-12 that I use to gig and a 15 w. Epiphone Valve Standard to use at home. I would highly recommend a small Vox Valvetronix amp (eg: AD15VT-XL/AD30VT-XL, etc.) for a good rock/metal sound. The AD--VT and AD--VT-XL series have been replaced by the new (and pricier) VT series, so you should be able to find some good deals out there. The Vox Valvetronix line is basically a low-wattage true tube circuit (12AX7) that is amplified via solid state. It has at least 11 amp models/effects and is reported to blow the competition out of the water. Vox probably has the best amp emulation out there - truly the best of both worlds for a couple hundred bucks :-) Good luck in your quest!
spaaarky21 Posted March 25, 2009 Posted March 25, 2009 Hi all first post here. I am a beginner with some money to spend. I am going to get an Epiphone SG guitar and I would like some input on what amp I should get. Right now I am looking at either a 15 or a 30 watt amp. My model preference would be either Line 6' date=' Peavey or any input is appreciated. I can spend between $100-$300 on an amp.Thanks. Also my music preference is rock-metal.[/quote'] As others have pointed out, $100-300 won't go far in the world of tubes, especially if you want some heavy distortion to play metal. Solid state is the way to go - best bang for the buck, no maintenance, reliable, no need to warm up tubes, and so on. I used to have a 75 watt Line 6 Spider II. 75 watts was definitely overkill but there is a 30 watt Spider III that goes for $200. I am happier with my current amp (Epiphone BC30) but the Line 6 was a great amp for me at the time. It was like owning a super clean amp and a Pod. I can't really comment on how it sounded when it was cranked up but I didn't have any complaints at moderate levels.
mrjones200x Posted March 26, 2009 Posted March 26, 2009 + 1 On the Vox Valvetronix amp. I had a AD30VT for a year and it was great and had a nu-metal setting that was insane. Very good amp for the money. Bluesman345 rightly spotted that the new version of that amp the 30VT is alot more exspensive. It has been improved by the write up on it tho. Has twice as many amp models loads of channels to store your settings and more effects. Deff the best you can get at that price id say. I sold my Vox to buy a Laney LV200 which is similar to a Vox AD30VT as its half tube amp, (The preamp/drive section is powered by a tube) I brought the laney as i wanted slightly more power and a good rock tone. My mate had one and i loved it so i sold some stuff to get it. Id also recommend this amp too, a bit more money tho. i pais £240 ($ ????) There is a Laney LV100 as which only has 2 channels, 1 clean and 1 overdrive also which is cheaper. Its a 65 watt also. The LV200 also has a mid scoop switch and a vibe button which make the amp really good for metal tones. I generally use a pedal for metal as find it sounds better than the amp most times. I use a behringer UM300 on the clean channel on my amp and its awesome. Loads of bass that thumps and fully adjustable mids and silly amount of treble if you want it. (I have it set at 10 oclock and a 12 its really really bright!) So maybe think about a pedal into a clean amp for metal. My choice would be a bigger speakered combo as you get a better sound, ie more bass thump. Just my opinions tho
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