Your thoughts on an amp??

[TS808]

I've decided to downsize my gear....here's my thoughts...for one, the amps I have are just too powerful for my needs...I am keeping the Delta Blues though. I can play it clean and run pedals through it..

I had hopes of doing some playing out with a buddy of mine, but his health has taken a turn for the worse lately, so it doesn't appear that it's going to materialize into anything.

So....I'm think of getting a small amp such as an Epi Valve Jr, Blackheart, or Eganater Rebel....less power, variable wattage, and all tube.

I've heard alot of great things about all of these amps...my only reservation is no tone controls on the Epi valve Jr...

Or, if you know of another amp, feel free to suggest it....it will be used for home playing, and I'd like to stick with a 12" speaker...

 

[Katastrophe]

Out of the three, I'd recommend the Rebel.

 

[Blaze]

Traynor YGM-3

http://www.traynoramps.com/products.asp?type=3&cat=63&id=409

 

[tunghaichuan]

So....I'm think of getting a small amp such as an Epi Valve Jr, Blackheart, or Eganater Rebel....less power, variable wattage, and all tube.

I've heard alot of great things about all of these amps...my only reservation is no tone controls on the Epi valve Jr...

Or, if you know of another amp, feel free to suggest it....it will be used for home playing, and I'd like to stick with a 12" speaker...

Out of the three, I'd recommend the Rebel 20 as well. Neither the VJ or BH have built in attenuation. While the BH does have EQ controls, they eat up a lot of gain, and the amp to me is inherently clean. Also, the EQ controls do not have a lot of range. I leave mine set at 12 o'clock. Of the two, the BH sounds better to me.

The Rebel has a built in high-gain preamp, so you don't need pedals to get a nice OD sound. It also has an FX loop so you can put time-based FX after the preamp. The Rebel has two sets of power tubes so you can get two different sounds out of the power amp.

The downside of the Rebel is that it is about 3 times as expensive as the VJ and BH, but it does have a lot more features and more tonal flexibility.

You also might check out the Orange Tiny Terror amp. It doesn't have an attenuator, but it does have a 7w/15W switch. It is EL84 based, so it will have more of a Marshall/Vox vibe.

Finally, for home practicing, don't discount the Roland Cube series. Their 60 watt Cube has a 12" speaker, built in FX and sound very good. You don't need an attenuator as it is solid state so cranking up the amp doesn't get you and tube warmth.

tung

 

[TS808]

Out of the three, I'd recommend the Rebel 20 as well. Neither the VJ or BH have built in attenuation. While the BH does have EQ controls, they eat up a lot of gain, and the amp to me is inherently clean. Also, the EQ controls do not have a lot of range. I leave mine set at 12 o'clock. Of the two, the BH sounds better to me.

I'm leaning towards the rebel or the blackheart....both have great features; it's just a matter of deciding. Lately I've seen some posts on other forums about reliability issues with the Egnater though...

 

[tunghaichuan]

You also might consider the Blackheart Handsome Devil. Again, no attenuator, and it is 15W so it is pretty loud.

I'm leaning towards the rebel or the blackheart....both have great features; it's just a matter of deciding. Lately I've seen some posts on other forums about reliability issues with the Egnater though...

 

[markb]

Personally I'd chop in the AD50VT212 for an AD30VT. But I can see that's not where you're going. So I'll back up Tung's Tiny Terror suggestion, its British voice would complement the Peavey's Americanisms. They're available as a combo now too.

 

[Robert]

I'd stay save some money and stick to your Vox AD50VT!

The new and upcoming Mini-Mack might also be just the ticket.

 

[Blaze]

I just saw this :

http://www.thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=487269

 

[marnold]

I'd stay save some money and stick to your Vox AD50VT!.

I think I'm with Robert on this one. If you like the tones you can get from your AD50VT, just keep using that! The power level/attenuator on the back keeps volumes manageable.

 

[TS808]

I think I'm with Robert on this one. If you like the tones you can get from your AD50VT, just keep using that! The power level/attenuator on the back keeps volumes manageable.

The Vox is a good amp but lately it's been sounding a little sick...sounding real shrill and high on the treble...almost too digital sounding. I don't know if the tube went bad or if something else is wrong with it.

 

[Blaze]

update on the Egnater Rebel

http://www.thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=487269

 

[Andy]

you guys know by now how I tend to throw a curve ball into the mix..;

I don't like the sound of an amp with attenuator at bedroom volume.

Generally speaking,they work great for making a loud amp become (small club)manageable, but not so great for squashing a loud amp down to bedroom level.

I have a very good attenuator and have tried it with all of my amps and can honestly say In every case, an overdrive pedal sounds better at bedroom volume.
for rehearsal/club level volumes they work great !

I think the latest attenuator amp hype is fooling people into thinking they will get this awesome overdriven tube tone in a bedroom setting. I have not experienced that ...to be fair I have not heard some of the amps mentioned in that situation...mabey they have figured out how to get an attenuator to work magic.but I have doubts it will be any better than a good od pedal.

I'll go further on a limb , My opinion is tube amps are not ideal for bedroom volume.( except for mabey under 1 watt amps)
you can use a pedal and get some nice tones but the tubes are not being driven ,the speaker is not being pushed and the pedal is most likely not tube either..so mabey SS is better suited for bedroom playing?

It's rare to find an amp that does it all really well ,bedroom , rehearsal,clubs ect..
In fact I never found a solution for that myself untill I decided that it takes more than one amp.
I'm now using my pandora (ss) for low volume practice and my tube amps for everything requiring some good old volume.I'm very happy with that solution.

thats my take on it atleast

 

[duhvoodooman]

update on the Egnater Rebel

http://www.thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=487269

Thanks for posting that, Blazes. Very interesting....

 

[markb]

The Vox is a good amp but lately it's been sounding a little sick...sounding real shrill and high on the treble...almost too digital sounding. I don't know if the tube went bad or if something else is wrong with it.

I'd just pop in a new tube. Remove the rear cabinet panel and you'll see it poking out of the chassis. About a ten minute job mostly taken up with getting all those screws out and back in.

 

[TS808]

I'll go further on a limb , My opinion is tube amps are not ideal for bedroom volume.( except for mabey under 1 watt amps)
you can use a pedal and get some nice tones but the tubes are not being driven ,the speaker is not being pushed and the pedal is most likely not tube either..so mabey SS is better suited for bedroom playing?

It's rare to find an amp that does it all really well ,bedroom , rehearsal,clubs ect..
In fact I never found a solution for that myself untill I decided that it takes more than one amp.
I'm now using my pandora (ss) for low volume practice and my tube amps for everything requiring some good old volume.I'm very happy with that solution.

I'm in agreement with this. A solid state amp is a good solution, but I haven't found any with a truly decent tone. Many of the smaller amps, and this is just my opinion and preference, just don't cut it with a 10" or 8" speaker...they often sound very thin to my ears.

There are alot of good options out there though, from the Tech 21 Trademark 60 which is good at low and moderate volumes, and the Roland Cubes. Unfortunately, I can't find a single dealer in my area that carries either where I can try one out.

 

[Robert]

Why don't you just get your Vox fixed?

 

[TS808]

Why don't you just get your Vox fixed?

More than likely I will do that...I invested in the better speakers for it, so I'll probably wind up keeping that along with the Delta Blues....I still have that GAS thing for one of those small tube amps though lol

 

[just strum]

More than likely I will do that...I invested in the better speakers for it, so I'll probably wind up keeping that along with the Delta Blues....I still have that GAS thing for one of those small tube amps though lol

I was going to suggest a speaker, but I see you already did that. What speaker?

I've keep on kicking around the Ragin Cajun: http://www.music123.com/Eminence-Patriot-Ragin--Cajun-10--Guitar-Speaker-660038-i1153609.Music123

I think it was Marnold that was also kicking the idea around of getting a new speaker.

 

[Robert]

That little Super Champ XD might be what your GAS is lusting for?

 

[TS808]

I was going to suggest a speaker, but I see you already did that. What speaker?

I've keep on kicking around the Ragin Cajun: http://www.music123.com/Eminence-Patriot-Ragin--Cajun-10--Guitar-Speaker-660038-i1153609.Music123

I think it was Marnold that was also kicking the idea around of getting a new speaker.

I put the Celestion G12 Century Neos in mine...they cost alot but they really opened up the amp a good bit.

Be careful when changing a speaker on a modeling amp...you want to get a speaker that is pretty transparent and flat, so as not to color the tone of the amp models too much. In other words, some speakers could color the tone to the degree where your AC-30 model no longer sounds like an Ac-30.

The Jensen MODS are supposed to be good speakers for modeling amps and they are pretty inexpensive.

 

[just strum]

The Jensen MODS are supposed to be good speakers for modeling amps and they are pretty inexpensive.

That is my second choice. I believe it was Duffy that suggested the Ragin Cajun. I think he was picking up good reviews on another forum.

 

[Andy]

I'm in agreement with this. A solid state amp is a good solution, but I haven't found any with a truly decent tone. Many of the smaller amps, and this is just my opinion and preference, just don't cut it with a 10" or 8" speaker...they often sound very thin to my ears.

I totally agree , Tube amps rule, I don't get the same thrill from a SS amp as I do from a tube amp, tho their are some pretty good sounding SS amps.

In my situation, when I'm playing at home, I'm practicing ,learning songs and jamming along to tracks..ect. my main goal is to improve my playing. so I don't mind if it doesn't sound like a sweetly overdriven tube amp.
I want to "play" better more than "sound" better. I'm not performing for anyone other than myself, so a ss amp suits me just fine at home and helps me achieve my goals

some people simply like to have fun , jam ,tinker with tubes ect..tone seek.
thats cool, in that case only a tube amp will do. I all comes down to what your needs are.

 

[Duff49]

Fender SCXD or Vibro Champ XD

Both amps sound great at bedroom levels.

I have the Super Champ XD and it is awesome 15 tube watts. Tube preamp and 6L6 power amp tube. Great amp.

I immediately put in a Eminence Ragin' Cajun and it is like twenty times heavier, magnet. Way better sounding and only 64 dollars from MF.

The Vibro Champ XD is five watts and has only one channel. The SCXD has two channels, one is clean and it is clean all the way to the ceiling. Super great ten inch speaker amp. Awesome.

Go to fenderforum.com and look at the Super Champ XD thread; about two thousand posts. Very well accepted by Fender experts. Great low volume tone with the 16 or so models, 11 Fender models, some are quieter than others and you have to tweak the controls because it emulates the controls of the amp being modelled.

I highly recommend playing one of them, without doubt.

Duffy

 

[TS808]

I'd stay save some money and stick to your Vox AD50VT!

The amp has really been sounding "digital" lately. Tonight I replaced the 12ax7 and it made a HUGE difference. Doesn't have that raspy, ice-picky high end anymore and sounds like it used to.

 

[markb]

The amp has really been sounding "digital" lately. Tonight I replaced the 12ax7 and it made a HUGE difference. Doesn't have that raspy, ice-picky high end anymore and sounds like it used to.

I hate to say "I told you so...". Glad the VOX is back to its full function. Out of curiosity, how old is it?

 

[TS808]

I hate to say "I told you so...". Glad the VOX is back to its full function. Out of curiosity, how old is it?

I bought the amp probably two years ago. When they first came out with the AD50VT212 is when I got this one.

 

[Robert]

I love to say I told you so! Haha, just kidding!

:beer: