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Small tube amp... which one?

cinredzfan47cinredzfan47 Posts: 81
edited July 2005 in Musicians and Gearheads
I'm heading off to college with my acoustic guitar, but I'm going to go crazy without my electric. My problem is that I only have 2 amps. One is a Marshall stack, so I'm fairly sure that won't fly in my dorm room, and the other is a Fender Frontman 15R, which sucks so much it should change it's name to Monica Lewinsky.

Basically, I'm looking to buy a new smaller amp to eventually bring to my dorm room. I definitely want tube, and anywhere up to and including 30 watts (obviously that's WAY more than I could ever use in a dorm room, but I could also use it a bit with the band when we practice). Tone-wise, I want an amp that will be good for the PJ sound, especially on the dirty channel. A headphone jack would be cool, but not completely necessary as of yet. One major feature I want is an FX loop. Price-wise, I'm hoping to get something for around $500, but if I have to go more, I may.

I'm in hopes that you can give me some ideas on amps that fit this criteria. I said I'm willing to spend $500, but if you have an amp in mind that costs more, let me know anyhow, because I'll probably spend more in the end anyway. Any help is greatly appreciated.
Post edited by Unknown User on

Comments

  • mccreadyisgodmccreadyisgod Posts: 6,395
    The FX loop is a big curveball to this equation... most smaller, low-wattage tube amps lack that feature, especially in your price range. Some smaller Mesa Boogies have an FX loop, so you'll probably expect a price premium for that feature.

    Peavey Classic 20's and 30's are always a good option. Pignose has a smaller tube amp at 40 watts that's VERY affordable. Fender Pro Junior and Blues Junior amps are other good options (especially with an upgraded speaker).

    Your better option, especially on a budget, is an older, silverface Fender Champ, Vibro-Champ, or something like that. Maybe a used Deluxe Reverb reissue or a silverface Princeton.

    I personally own a Fender Musicmaster Bass amp from the mid-70's that I play guitar on, it sounds amazing and can be had (comparatively) cheap. Replace the speaker with a good ceramic and you're in business. I play it at a regular jam session, unmic'ed, and it keeps up with the band just fine (although it starts to overdrive even clean).
    ...and if you don't like it, you can suck on an egg.
  • cinredzfan47cinredzfan47 Posts: 81
    Thanks for the input. For the heck of it, what would you recommend if I took the FX loop out of the equation? While I really would like to have an FX loop, I could go without one, although my delay would suffer a bit as a result. I realized going into this that the FX loop might seriously reduce the number of options, and you backed me up on that. Given the situation, what tube amps would be better options WITHOUT the FX loop?

    Another question. How would those Fender amps work for a PJ dirty sound? It has been a LONG time since I have played any of them, and I'm always a little skeptical about Fender drive channels. Thanks for all the help.
  • dont_go_on_medont_go_on_me Posts: 877
    don't forget to check out a Peavey Delta Blues. 30 watts w/FX loop. The amp's overdrive channel is actually pretty good...send the right pedals through it and you're golden.
    "I'll do whatever the song dictates - if it doesn't need a real lead, then I won't do one. But if it does, then I'll fuckin' go off." - Mike

    "Japan is awesome; the fans there knew all the words to all the songs...at least phonetically." - Stone

    "I know this song so well, I can smoke a cigarette, have a drink, brush my teeth, take a shit, and mow the lawn while singing it. But I'll only be doing a couple of those things during this version." - EV
  • mccreadyisgodmccreadyisgod Posts: 6,395
    cinredzfan47 wrote:
    Thanks for the input. For the heck of it, what would you recommend if I took the FX loop out of the equation? While I really would like to have an FX loop, I could go without one, although my delay would suffer a bit as a result. I realized going into this that the FX loop might seriously reduce the number of options, and you backed me up on that. Given the situation, what tube amps would be better options WITHOUT the FX loop?

    Another question. How would those Fender amps work for a PJ dirty sound? It has been a LONG time since I have played any of them, and I'm always a little skeptical about Fender drive channels. Thanks for all the help.


    Most of the amps I recommended don't have FX loops. Not sure on a few of them, though... the Classic 30 might. I forgot about the Delta Blues, that one could be good (especially with a speaker upgrade).

    Fender has never really made a good drive channel in one of their amps. But if you push it with any decent overdrive or distortion pedal... great things happen. On a budget, the DigiTech Bad Monkey overdrive is great. I drive my Fender with a pair of Tubescreamers right now, and it's everything I want. I also have a Shannon Overdrive and a Big Muff for when I want something completely different, and the amp overdrives nicely on it's own as well. Nothing better than getting the amp to crunch just a bit on it's own, and then sending it into sonic heaven with a great pedal.

    If you would rather have a smaller, more-British-sounding amp, the Orange AD15 and Vox AC-15 are good options, but they cost $$$. And the small Peavey amps we've already recommended use EL-84 power tubes, so they lean British already. It's too bad their speakers suck hairy balls for dimes. But a good Celestion or even a good Eminence will do wonders for the tone.
    ...and if you don't like it, you can suck on an egg.
  • CaptainSpaz91CaptainSpaz91 Posts: 266
    Well, this is awesome I was about to ask the same question. I was leaning towards one of the Fenders. Another side question is, how hard is it to replace the speaker, I'd prefer to just buy one thats pretty decent all the way around without having to mess around too much with it. Thanks
    "i wanna rock and roll **all night**, and part of everyday"
  • Pacomc79Pacomc79 Posts: 9,404
    other cool choices might be the Ampeg Jet T or the more expensive Savage Macht 6. That's out of your range though.

    You can find an Ampeg Jet for under 3 bills.

    The peavy isn't a bad option at all, especially with a speaker upgrade. The Delta Blues 2x10 is sensational.

    That whole line has just been redesigned by Peavy, they now offer a 20 watt head, meaning the tube rattle complaints will be lessened greatly.
    My Girlfriend said to me..."How many guitars do you need?" and I replied...."How many pairs of shoes do you need?" She got really quiet.
  • mccreadyisgodmccreadyisgod Posts: 6,395
    CaptainSpaz91 wrote:
    Well, this is awesome I was about to ask the same question. I was leaning towards one of the Fenders. Another side question is, how hard is it to replace the speaker, I'd prefer to just buy one thats pretty decent all the way around without having to mess around too much with it. Thanks


    Either de-solder or de-clip the speaker wires and remove the screws/nuts/bolts that hold it to the baffle, then put the new speaker in, screw it on, and attach the wires to the new speaker. It's cake. Unless it involves soldering and you don't solder. But a music shop should do it for $20.
    ...and if you don't like it, you can suck on an egg.
  • who's_pearljam?who's_pearljam? Posts: 2,104
    Mesa Boogie Subway Rocket
    http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7338642682&category=43374&ssPageName=WDVW&rd=1


    Or find a Mesa Boogie Subway Blues, used. They'll last you a lifetime, and are great sounding amps.

    The Rocket is about 15 watts
    The Blues is about 20 watts.

    Way more than you'll need for your dorm, but they hold up well live!
    Be kind, man
    Don't be mankind. ~Captain Beefheart
    __________________________________
  • stefanwastefanwa Posts: 43
    Anyone tried the Fender Blues Deluxe Reissue recently released?
  • Pacomc79Pacomc79 Posts: 9,404
    stefanwa wrote:
    Anyone tried the Fender Blues Deluxe Reissue recently released?


    Great glassy Fender Clean, overdrive channel should be disconected. Speaker sucks serious balls. This is a fantastic small gig amp or home amp good pedal platform. If you change the speaker and upgrade the tubes it gets a lot better. These just sound fantastic with a good overdrive/distortion in front. One cool thing I've seen if you prefer the EL84 sound and lower wattage, THD makes yellow jacket converters that fit in this amp lowers the wattage quite a bit and gives you a more chimey brit tone, especially if you've chosen a more wooly speaker like a Celestion Greenback, the Vintage 30 is a very common upgrade to this amp. I think it would sound outstanding with an Alnico magnet speaker certainly more tweedlike. Ok actually I'm talking about it's cousin the Hot Rod Deluxe, but they are similar. I remember the blues deluxe being a little warmer, The speaker still sucks balls whether they call it special design or not. This one needs the weber design 12 they put in the Tweed Twin. Outstanding potential in this one though. The 2x10 Delta Blues Peavy should also beconsidered in that price point as well as the 65 Deluxe Reverb RI. ( of which both also benifit from a speaker swap notice a pattern here?) :D
    My Girlfriend said to me..."How many guitars do you need?" and I replied...."How many pairs of shoes do you need?" She got really quiet.
  • CaptainSpaz91CaptainSpaz91 Posts: 266
    so Pacomc, what your saying is, if you buy a new Fender, go get yourself a speaker upgrade? haha
    "i wanna rock and roll **all night**, and part of everyday"
  • darthvedder81darthvedder81 Posts: 688
    If you want an all tube amp I'd go with a Fender Blues Jr. Obviously not the best built in overdrive ever but any small Marschall amp you get is going to be solid state or ValveState. I run a TS9 into a Marshall Guv'nor pedal into the amp clean and get a nice overdriven sound. It's relatively light weight and packs enough punch for a small/medium venue. The Pro Junior is nice too but it's a little too small for my tastes.

    The one I have is the "Musicians Friend Special Edition". It's tweed and looks like a mini-Bassman. Sweet!
    So this life is sacrifice...
    6/30/98 Minneapolis, 10/8/00 East Troy (Brrrr!), 6/16/03 St. Paul, 6/27/06 St. Paul
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