Looking to buy a new amp, and would appreciate some feedback on the choices. To put it in perspective, my current amp crop includes a Mesa Boogie DC-5 50 watt combo (loud, covered in more loudness, with a pristine clean channel, dirty I've never been sold on, although a trip to the amp doctor might fit that), a Traynor YYG-20 20 watt combo (great with pedals), a Peavey Vypyr 30 (why I bought it, I don't know, but it's still there), and an old Vox Valvetronix 20 watt unit (my go to practice amp).
I'm looking at buying a multichannel micro head, with a fair degree of versatility (i.e. Fender cleans, Marshall Crunch, Hi-gain not so important), so I'm thinking of the following
Carvin V3M - seems to be the most versatile head out there, three channels, built in reverb, fx loop, variable output, all good. Downside is I can't sit down and test it out before committing to it, although I could always return it.
Mesa Boogie Transatlantic - similar to above, bigger price tag
EVH 5150 50 watt head - because Eddie is god, and my playing will become infintessimally better if I own a 5150. No, wait, I'll still suck, I'll just suck louder.
Egnater Tweaker - worst amp name ever, but moderately versatile
Not really looking for a one trick pony, so the Tiny Terror's out, not really crazy about the Nighttrains.
As far as cabs go, I'll probably end up with a 212 or a 412.
Anyone have any of these, and if so, what's been your experience.
I found the Tweaker to be a bit lacking when I tried it, I wanted to like it but it really didn't do much for me. I have yet to try the Carvin so I can't really comment on it. The Transatlantic is pretty cool, quite versatile, it would be my second pick from your list. And finally the 5153 would be my first choice, I just sold my 6505 to pay for a cab for my new Mesa but down the road would love to get a 5150 III for higain stuff, I know Darkest Hour are using them (the 100 watt) and in my opinion the EVH 5150 III sounds better than the old Peaveys. As for cab what are you thinking? I'm looking for a used recto 2x12 but will likely get a custom cab from Whitebox, I've heard great things about them.
I play through a Tweaker 40 head and Eminence Wizard 1x12 cab. I think the Tweaker is a very good amp and you should be able to find at least a few inspiring, good tones out of it.
Pros: Egnater seams to be a good company, I have had many e-mails with Bruce himself and he backs his products and is responsive. The amp is super versitile as said already. Not sure about the 15w but the 40w takes pedals very well and has 2 separate channels. EVERYONE compliments the tone when they here it.
Cons: Overall I personally find it a bit dark. I would like all the voicings (USA, AC,BRIT) to all have a bit more high-end sparkle. The amp is made in Korea if that matters to you. There are A LOT of gizmos/knobs to mess with. This could be good or bad depending on what you are after.
I think you should definetely try one out if you can. Good luck.
I'd say either the Tweaker or Egnator Rebel 20
I have the egnater 15 head and 112 cab and I think it sounds great. I bought it because it sounds good at bedroom volume and it loves pedals. I tried some other speakers with it but the heritage in the egnater cab sounded the best.
I really like the Marshall and Fender tone stacks on this thing. The vox is just ok. It's not bad, I just like the other 2 better. You could probably get more convincing tones out of it if you used an alnico speaker.
The other very cool thing is that it's cathode bias so you can swap tube tubes without re-biasing. 6v6, 6l6, 5881, el34, etc.
Anyway, it is a very good sounding amp for the $. If you were a guy who just wanted to plug straight into the amp and play I'd look at something else. But like I said, for pedals it's great. I never use the hot channel on mine. I just stomp on stuff and good things happen.
That Carvin looks very interesting. I was kind of looking at it too, but I never got to play one.
Sorry for rambling.
"I really like the Marshall and Fender tone stacks on this thing. The vox is just ok. It's not bad, I just like the other 2 better"
I agree with Haber, My main clean is the Fender (USA) voicing and use stomps for my gritty-goodness. However, the amp can also produce some great dirt as well.
I ordered the Tweaker 15 the week it was first released and I've been playing it every day since. For the money, I just don't see how you can beat it and I have to agree with the other guys on the tone.
It retails for $399 and I think it's the best option unless you want to break the $1,000 mark. The great thing about its versatility, IMHO, isn't getting a bunch of different sounds, but making it so anyone who buys it can get a sound they like.
For instance, unlike the other guys, my tone stack switch stays on the VOX setting.
So, for the small price, there's a very good chance you'll be able to dial in something close to what you're looking for.
Another Egnater Rebel 20 user here and the post above have that covered.
I also have a Blackstar HT 20 - 2 channels, good cleans and decent dirt. Takes pedals well and can hold its own from bedroom volumes up to "turn that sh*t down" levels.
Check one out if you can..
I dig the Egnater stuff for sure but the Mesa blew me away when I tried it. Definetly my favourite of the mentioned, except for the Carvin. I have yet to try that bad boy.
I think you should build one. You could for the price you would pay at a store. Check out Weber if you haven't yet.
Building one is definitely in the cards, either a Marshall 18W clone or a Fender 5E3. The desire to purchase is driven partially by the fact that I've accumulated enough air miles over the past year to get about $800 in Long and McQuade gift cards, and as such, makes a Transatlantic (or a Mini Rectifier, which I didn't think of before) really a $200 purchase. Or an Egnater and a Marshall Class 5.
I've actually pretty much ruled out the V3M, not for features, but because of the shipping costs from Carvin. By the time you add the $120 for shipping plus GST and brokerage for crossing into Canada, it's the same price as a TA15, Mini Rect, or 5150 III, and it's untested at the door.
I'll take a look into the Rebel 20 as well. Not sold on Egnater, but truthfully, haven't tried them out.
Quote from: GermanCdn on February 16, 2012, 06:08:15 AM
Building one is definitely in the cards, either a Marshall 18W clone or a Fender 5E3. The desire to purchase is driven partially by the fact that I've accumulated enough air miles over the past year to get about $800 in Long and McQuade gift cards, and as such, makes a Transatlantic (or a Mini Rectifier, which I didn't think of before) really a $200 purchase. Or an Egnater and a Marshall Class 5.
I've actually pretty much ruled out the V3M, not for features, but because of the shipping costs from Carvin. By the time you add the $120 for shipping plus GST and brokerage for crossing into Canada, it's the same price as a TA15, Mini Rect, or 5150 III, and it's untested at the door.
I'll take a look into the Rebel 20 as well. Not sold on Egnater, but truthfully, haven't tried them out.
If you're thinking about building an amp check out Trinity amps, they have a nice looking 5E3 build and a AC-15ish build too, if/when I have some spare cash that's the route I'll likely take. Or the 5150 III. Or both haha.
The trinity Triwatt is a heck of an amp too. Just a great design.
A friend of mine has the Mesa TA-15 and it is a great little amp. He uses it mainly to cop AC30 tones, but it is quite flexible.
Building an amp is cool, too. I am also planning on doing an 18w Marshall and a 5E3 Fender as soon as I decide that pedal building doesn't have a high enough probability of electrocution. ;D
Building an amp is cool, too. I am also planning on doing an 18w Marshall and a 5E3 Fender as soon as I decide that pedal building doesn't have a high enough probability of electrocution. ;D
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Hahahahaha, that's actually the same thing that's holding me back.
As far as the 5150 goes are you looking for something new specifically? Have you ever heard of any of the amps from the series right before 5150? Like Peavey Butcher, Mace or VTM-120? You can grab any of those 3 of Craigslist pretty regularly for 200-300 bucks.
I recently aquired a VTM-120 which is a hot rodded clone of a JCM800! I got it for 200 dollars and its freaking heavy duty!! A whole interactive EQ in the front section..check them out on youtube. That's if you want a high gain head and want to save!! ;)
The 5150 is only because I am a huge EVH fan (if only he'd find a singer). The rare time I need a lot of gain, I'll throw a Boneyard or my Keeley DS-1 in the front end.
Have you checked out the Traynor DarkHorse 15H? I've not personally tried one, but I figure you're in Canada, they're in Canada, L&M probably carries them.....
Quote from: bigmufffuzzwizz on February 16, 2012, 03:52:15 PM
As far as the 5150 goes are you looking for something new specifically? Have you ever heard of any of the amps from the series right before 5150? Like Peavey Butcher, Mace or VTM-120? You can grab any of those 3 of Craigslist pretty regularly for 200-300 bucks.
I recently aquired a VTM-120 which is a hot rodded clone of a JCM800! I got it for 200 dollars and its freaking heavy duty!! A whole interactive EQ in the front section..check them out on youtube. That's if you want a high gain head and want to save!! ;)
The 5150 III is a EVH (Fender) product, the old 5150 (current 6505) is Peavey and they don't have a small format head, just a 60 watt combo (heavy as heck for a 1x12).
well, i don't have a suggestion, i can only describe my amps:
currently i have 3 amps, all built by myself
1) a fender princeton aa964 with a 5y3 rectifier and better filtering, with phase inverter and tremolo taken from 5g9 vibrolux. 3 ways switchable feedback.
i have even a reverb unit in the cabinet, with one 6bm8 and one 12ax7.
actually built in a 5f2 cabinet.
sweetest amp i ever heard. very nice clean, very nice break up. the tremolo is hypnotic. the reverb from the unit is very beautiful and flexible, but i had to use the short springs because of the cabinet ( 5f2 was the original project 2 years ago). if i could co it again i would choose a bigger cabinet and a 12" speaker. that's the only regret. more space, easier to build and to drill. probably i would use a princeton BF cab and chassis.
2) a dual channel, el84s based 18w with channel switching. basically a soldano atomic 16 built on a slo100 board, with an ef86 based clean channel. 3 ways sw feedback, but no feedback on el84s is ear-piercing.
the crunch channel is AWESOME! sounds like a mini jcm800.
the clean channel is powerful and thick. no eq, just a sweepable hipass.
i use this amp basically for home recording, so that's why this particular configuration.
the clean paired with a Mudbunny with mids and germanium diodes is TOTAL DOOM.
but it's really good even with a Slambox. sort of an AC10.
3) a 100w, which i use as gig amp. 3 channel amp, based on the Soldano Slo100. clean is a fender preamp
with reverb, like the twin. crunch and lead are based on the slo100, with separated eqs. no loop. 3 feedback modes. this amp is truly awesome but f**king LOUD. the overdrive is unbelievable.
the crunch i very tight and full. the clean is like the twin. it becomes a good bass amp removing tonestack with a switch and feeded by a faultline.
i'm renewing my pedalboard right now, so i plan to use this stuff with:
Slambox, Collosalus, Green Bean, Mudbunny (with focus kn, mid kn, and switchable diodes system),
phase 90, small clone, DMM, and the weener wah.
that's all my stuff, i hope this post to be inspiring for someone.
oh, and i built my guitar too, a warmoth jazzmaster with an humbucker at the bridge.
(splittable, of course)
Quote from: pietro_moog on February 17, 2012, 02:31:00 AM
2) a dual channel el84s 18w with channel switching. basically a soldano atomic 16 builted on a slo100 board, with an ef86 based clean channel. 3 way sw feedback, but no feedback on el84s is ear-piercing.
the crunch channel is AWESOME! sounds like a mini jcm800.
the clean channel is powerful and thick. no eq, just a sweepable hipass.
i use this amp basically for home recording, so that's why this particular configuration.
the clean paired with a Mudbunny with mids and germanium diodes is TOTAL DOOM.
but it's really good even with a Slambox. sort of an AC10.
Wow, that sounds like something I'd love. Did you build it yourself?
yeps. i still have some leakage problems with the crunch channel (it spills into the clean) but it's just a matter of finding out what's the voltage the VTLs work best.
it's a small head, not a combo. you can't put an ef86 in a combo and expect it to live more than a week.
honestly i find that clean very limited in a dual channel solution, too much contrast with the soldano (the lack of a tonestack, and the incredibly thick tone). it would be very nice in single channel amp.
i can give you some advices, schematics if you want, some tips, but you can find everything you need in places like music electronics forum or sloconeforums.
building an amp it's not easy, it's not an overdrive. it takes a lot of work, a lot of learning, and if you don't pay attention you can risk your life because of the hi voltages. and it's not cheap.
but it's awesome.
if you have no experience and wanna start with amps i suggest an "easy build" like a 5f1 head.
if you need some additional info just PM me
Thanks a bunch. I've been itching to do an amp build and I've read a few books and been researching on the web, so I feel pretty confident I can handle it.
This EF86 kit at Brown Note has gotten my attention recently.
http://store.bnamp.com/voxlite18kits1.html
I would say, "Save your money.", and get a couple of really good amps. After a long convoluted path which included having all of my gear stolen. I have arrived at having an amp that is really good at gritty blues sounds and which allows me to switch between 6v6, 6l6 and el34 at will. Then, i have the el84 based one that does the whole bright slightly hairy, clean tone, That provides two really good canvases which can be tweaked for pennies through manipulation of cap values etc. in pedals. It becomes an act of balancing filtering of frequencies vs. modulation to illicit certain emotions.
I guess my point is this. The amp should provide all the responsiveness and a little character but remain basically a transparent canvas for further tone tweaking with pedals. Or leave the pedals at home and still sound great.
Hope this confuses matters even more.
I built an Allen Encore and love that amp. The cleans are amazing and the reverb and tremolo are the best I've owned. The amp was a kit and had perfect instructions, they had to be because I built one and it fired right up. check David's stuff out if you need fender tones www.allenamps.com
That said, it doesn't do heavy and real rocking stuff. I was looking at Carving V3m, Egnater, Jet City, Tiny Terror, etc. I wound up playing through an old Carvin X100B 100 watt head with a matching 4x12 cab (the ugly gray carpet model). I knew Zappa and Vai played the amp back in the day. I plugged in and was pretty amazed with the cleans and got some great chunky hi gain tones. I went home, grabbed my EgoDriver, Uproar, Rainy Day, and Glitteratti and returned to the shop. I spent an hour just ripping on that amp and every pedal just sounded amazing. I bought it for $535 out the door. If you can find an older X100B, try it out. It has a 100w/50w/25w setting, fx loop, 4,8,16ohm cab setting, can be modded easily to accept 6L6 or EL34s. I really like the active tone controls, TMB and an assignable 5 band graphic eq. You can get some good marshall tones and some Mark III tones. I've played my pedals through my Allen, an old Peavey tube amp, Mesa Dual Recto, Marshall Class 5, and they sound best through the X100B. Rant over.
Best of luck. I'd pass on the Class 5. I bought the first version, modded it some and still don't really like it. I was leaning between that and an Egnater. I should have bout the Egnater. I wasn't in love with either, but the Egnater was more versatile and is a better buy IMO.
I agree with kevnkar, save up and get the best amp you can. I had a Bad Cat Hot Cat 30R, which I sold to chromesphere only because I needed money to put in to my keyboard arsenal. That amp was so inspiring to play, even if I was banging out simple power chords, it just sounded so damn good. The next amp I'd like to save for is a Bogner Shiva...yikes. ::)