Amp Recomendations, Half stack vs. 2 x 12 combo |
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Amp Recomendations, Half stack vs. 2 x 12 combo |
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Aug 31 2007, 01:31 AM |
Ok, 100W - did you want to turn your entire brain inside out or just get thrown out of the neighbourhood by an irate posse of disgruntled and deaf neighbours
Certainly in tube terms, 5W is great for a bedroom - 100W is good for an arena. 5W doesn;t sound like a lot but the idea with tubes is that they sound theor best when cranked. If you get a 100W head and leave it on 2 all the time you won;t get the best out of it. 20 - 30W is more than loud enought ocompete with an unmiked drummer, 10 - 15 will be very loud in a playing with your friends situation, 5W would be about ideal for practice and recording (and probably withg your friends too). -------------------- Check out my Instructor profile
Live long and prosper ... My Stuff: Electric Guitars : Ibanez Jem7v, Line6 Variax 700, Fender Plus Strat with 57/62 Pickups, Line6 Variax 705 Bass Acoustic Guitars : Taylor 816ce, Martin D-15, Line6 Variax Acoustic 300 Nylon Effects : Line6 Helix, Keeley Modded Boss DS1, Keeley Modded Boss BD2, Keeley 4 knob compressor, Keeley OxBlood Amps : Epiphone Valve Jnr & Head, Cockburn A.C.1, Cockburn A.C.2, Blackstar Club 50 Head & 4x12 Cab |
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Aug 31 2007, 02:50 AM |
IS that cube 30 you're mentioning a tube amp? I really like the tube sound so if it's solid state it's out of the question for me.
-------------------- "King V" enthusiast
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Aug 31 2007, 02:57 AM |
I think Andrew summed it up very well!
On the combo vs head if you feel a combo suits you better it can always drive a cabinet if it only has an extension plug. That way you can also easily get different sounds from the speakers in the cabinet vs the speaker(s) in the combo. If they are different that is. If you still want a 100W amp there's Peavey JSX, Marshall JVM410, the 6505 Peavey aswell you can always get a hotplate (I say hotplate so I don't have to spell attenuator) This post has been edited by MickeM: Aug 31 2007, 03:07 AM -------------------- My bands homepage
All time favourites: B. Streisand - Woman in Love, M. Hopkin - Those were the days, L. Richie - Hello |
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Aug 31 2007, 03:44 AM |
Combo tube amps DO have their drawbacks mind you. Shorter tube life (due to extra vibration). Coil Reverb units vibrate a lot. And they get very heavy to carry around, especially if you have a 2x12 or 4x10 combo.
I think one of your best bets would be to get a Real good tube Amp Head you like then get a 2x12 cab. This will save you money up front and let you expand your sound by simply upgrading the cabinet later on. And trust me, you will never use the full potential of a 100 watt tube head because it will be too friggin loud... at least not till your playing venues pushing over 1000 people give or take. Half stack volume is also okay for several hundred people venues where it isn't mic'ed up but I'd highly recommend against playing for several hundred people without having your amp through the PA. I mean, let's be real, my 15 watt Blues Junior can be used for ANY size venue because it's gonna be mic'ed anyway... and it's louder than needed for any band practice. Anyway, that's just my advice. Get a good 15 to 50 watt 2x12 combo or Amp Head with 2x12 cabinet. People who get 100 watt tube amps will rarely saturate their power tubes... so until your opening for big acts I'd hold off on amps that size. EDIT: I just read your title again... Combo OR Half-stack. If I had to choose one or the other based on what little I know about yah I'd have to say get a Head with 2x12 cabinet. But I am assuming a lot of things about your tastes, skill level, music type, local venues, etc. If you gave us more information about your situation we can help yah more. Hardtail This post has been edited by Hardtail: Aug 31 2007, 03:49 AM -------------------- Beginner's Amp & Guitar Gear Guide My Keeley Blues Driver BD-2 Review My Line6 Flextone II Review Guitars: Martin D-16RGT with B-Band UST & '99 Fender "Big Apple" Hardtail HH Strat Amps: Fender Blues Junior Special Edition & Fender Studio 85 (Simultaneous... yummy) |
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Aug 31 2007, 04:35 AM |
Edit: would a 60w head w/ the 2 x 12 make sense? As far as skill? I can play most Hammet solos, pretty much any mainstream rock, can play a decent amount of Maiden. Right now I just play exercises mostly, but just to give you an idea. Dragonforce is my fav. band Sure, 60W would do great with a 2x12 or why not a 4x12. I mean, what I did is to have one package for each place. 100W head and 4x12 cabinet in one rehearsal room. One 30W combo and 4x12 cabinet in the other rehearsal room and at home I play with my computer and guitarport. There's two reasons for this. One being that it's way too heavy to carry stuff around between bands and the other is that tubes are sensitive to movement. It's better to just have them standing in one spot. So another idea would be if you get the 60W head and cabinet for rehearsing and keep a small 5W amp at home for practice. -------------------- My bands homepage
All time favourites: B. Streisand - Woman in Love, M. Hopkin - Those were the days, L. Richie - Hello |
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Aug 31 2007, 04:39 AM |
any recommendations on a 5W amp for home? I can pick up a more robust one as necessary the 5w sounds like a great idea.
-------------------- "King V" enthusiast
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Aug 31 2007, 05:29 AM |
any recommendations on a 5W amp for home? I can pick up a more robust one as necessary the 5w sounds like a great idea. Maybe the Peavey Valve King Royal 8? Let me know if you try one out, I think it seems interesting. This post has been edited by MickeM: Aug 31 2007, 05:30 AM -------------------- My bands homepage
All time favourites: B. Streisand - Woman in Love, M. Hopkin - Those were the days, L. Richie - Hello |
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Aug 31 2007, 06:24 AM |
Maybe the Peavey Valve King Royal 8? Let me know if you try one out, I think it seems interesting. I had a long look at the Laney Lionheart as well - pretty new though, so no real independant feedback on what it sounds like (there are clips on the website though), but it looks great on paper, albeit in a pricey kind of way. -------------------- Check out my Instructor profile
Live long and prosper ... My Stuff: Electric Guitars : Ibanez Jem7v, Line6 Variax 700, Fender Plus Strat with 57/62 Pickups, Line6 Variax 705 Bass Acoustic Guitars : Taylor 816ce, Martin D-15, Line6 Variax Acoustic 300 Nylon Effects : Line6 Helix, Keeley Modded Boss DS1, Keeley Modded Boss BD2, Keeley 4 knob compressor, Keeley OxBlood Amps : Epiphone Valve Jnr & Head, Cockburn A.C.1, Cockburn A.C.2, Blackstar Club 50 Head & 4x12 Cab |
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Aug 31 2007, 01:27 PM |
Edit: would a 60w head w/ the 2 x 12 make sense? As far as skill? I can play most Hammet solos, pretty much any mainstream rock, can play a decent amount of Maiden. Right now I just play exercises mostly, but just to give you an idea. Dragonforce is my fav. band This makes total sense. 60 watt 2x12 rig is PLENTY loud for venues up to about 200 to 300 people. Sure, 60W would do great with a 2x12 or why not a 4x12. I mean, what I did is to have one package for each place. 100W head and 4x12 cabinet in one rehearsal room. One 30W combo and 4x12 cabinet in the other rehearsal room and at home I play with my computer and guitarport. There's two reasons for this. One being that it's way too heavy to carry stuff around between bands and the other is that tubes are sensitive to movement. It's better to just have them standing in one spot. So another idea would be if you get the 60W head and cabinet for rehearsing and keep a small 5W amp at home for practice. As always I respect MickeM's experience and opinion on these types of subjects, but I would like to point out that what works for one person may not be the right idea for another. An alternative to the combo might be: ENGL Thunderhead 50watt Tube Head ($891) + Marshall MC212 Extension Cabinet ($340) + Rick Franklin Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive Pedal ($70) + Original Crybaby Wah ($70) + MXR DynaComp Compressor ($80) + Cables, A/C adapter, etc. ($50) = TOTAL ($1500) The ENGL rig (which is purely for example purposes only) will get you the tones your looking for and for $100 less. Also, the heaviest component of the ENGL rig is the cabinet at 50.7 lbs. The head weighs 30.8 lbs. The Switchblade weighs 67 lbs. Overall this makes the ENGL more portable in my opinion. I don't mind making 2 or 3 trips to the car/truck/van but I HATE to have to carry heavy loads long distances. Trying to fit a 5 watt tube combo into your funds just for home practice may not be the best idea. I will leave that up to you to decide. I don't want you to do any one specific thing, I just want to give you some ideas to chew on. Good Luck! Hardtail This post has been edited by Hardtail: Aug 31 2007, 01:43 PM -------------------- Beginner's Amp & Guitar Gear Guide My Keeley Blues Driver BD-2 Review My Line6 Flextone II Review Guitars: Martin D-16RGT with B-Band UST & '99 Fender "Big Apple" Hardtail HH Strat Amps: Fender Blues Junior Special Edition & Fender Studio 85 (Simultaneous... yummy) |
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Aug 31 2007, 08:53 PM |
If you want the ENGL I would suggest an attenuator such as a Hot Plate or Weber so you can play at bedroom levels and still crank it - they are around $200 I think - maybe you can add that later.
-------------------- Check out my Instructor profile
Live long and prosper ... My Stuff: Electric Guitars : Ibanez Jem7v, Line6 Variax 700, Fender Plus Strat with 57/62 Pickups, Line6 Variax 705 Bass Acoustic Guitars : Taylor 816ce, Martin D-15, Line6 Variax Acoustic 300 Nylon Effects : Line6 Helix, Keeley Modded Boss DS1, Keeley Modded Boss BD2, Keeley 4 knob compressor, Keeley OxBlood Amps : Epiphone Valve Jnr & Head, Cockburn A.C.1, Cockburn A.C.2, Blackstar Club 50 Head & 4x12 Cab |
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Sep 1 2007, 01:38 AM |
I appreciate all the feedback! Thanks again guys. That's not a bad idea you have outlined there and is pretty easy on the wallet there Hardtail. I think I had better go with the ENGL simply because I've wanted one for a while and would hate to settle with something then come back and say "but this is what I really want". The 50w head seems like it would be easy enough to tote around. Which leads me to another question, are road cases for heads a good idea? I'm sure opinions vary on this but it has always been my feeling that road cases are best suited for bands that move ALOT of gear across the country and have hired hands (roadies) moving it for them. If your moving your own gear you'll be plenty careful with it and shouldn't need a road case IMO. Hardtail If you want the ENGL I would suggest an attenuator such as a Hot Plate or Weber so you can play at bedroom levels and still crank it - they are around $200 I think - maybe you can add that later. Yeah try it without but like Andrew said you can pick one up later if you need to. Remember, even a SUPER high watt amp can be run VERY quiet if you set the volume knob low enough, it's just the tone that might suffer at those low volumes... but if your just practicing at those low volumes then tone isn't terribly important. I'll think you'll be surprised how much the 50watt ENGL will shake your intestines. Get ready to get a heart checkup before using it . Side Note: I didn't realize ENGL had so many affordable heads till this thread... makes me start daydreaming about adding an ENGL to my own collection Hardtail -------------------- Beginner's Amp & Guitar Gear Guide My Keeley Blues Driver BD-2 Review My Line6 Flextone II Review Guitars: Martin D-16RGT with B-Band UST & '99 Fender "Big Apple" Hardtail HH Strat Amps: Fender Blues Junior Special Edition & Fender Studio 85 (Simultaneous... yummy) |
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