New Practice Amp Needed. What say you?

[kevinpaul]

I have a Vox AC4TV on the way. Well under 200.USD. In England you may get beat on the price?

[ledet]

Check out the Vox AC4.

[mechanic1908]

[QUOTE=BillStickers;19142]...Nope... The list of interest is thus so far:
Bugera BC15
Bugera V5
Fender Champion 600
Vox Pathfinder 10
Vox Pathfinder 15R

They all have great reviews... only the reviews contradict each other with every one of them opposing each other to no end. I may have to decide this one by trying one out...

Trying before buying's always a good idea.
You could check out "The tone king's" reviews of the Bugera's on youtube to get a idea on how they sound.
HTH
Eric

[ratdog472]

The Toneking drive me bonkers..

"Lets give ya one of these right there."

[Meteorologist]

Peavey Rage! More power than you're supposed to be able to get for $100 American. 25 watts! Quality, responsive lead channel, clear clean channel, 3 unique eq's--stack, modern, and vintage, headphone out, direct out, BOTTLED AWESOMENESS!

[kevinpaul]

Vox came out with a $99.00 small amp. Check it out not bad.

[musicalmartin]

I think i would look at a Mustang 1 ,you need aheadphone socket for home practice .Even a Champ 600 is way too loud for most homes .I had a large bedroom and I rarely got the Champ beyond half volume .It had some great tones though especially after a few mods.I now use a Blackstar HT5 head that ticks all the boxes .I run through a 10 inch Emmy at home and a 4x12 at jam sessions.It can go pretty quiet as it has overdrive master volume.

[bobio]

I have to say, I have a Fender Champion 600, a Vox AC4TV8 and a Fender Mustang I and spend the most time playing with the Mustang. They are all great bedroom amps. I just find the Mustang a really fun amp to noodle with. I mainly bought it to play late at night with headphones but find I am playing it during the day as well. Maybe the novelty will wear off after a while but so far I am loving it...

[gunguyphx]

Fender Blues Jr tweed...yum!

[tjnugent]

I would do a Vox AC4TV for $249. It has a 10" speaker and is all tube.. This amp is one fine sounding amp and you can dial it down to 1/4 watt, as to not disturb the neighbors or wife....

TJ

[dmitri]

Practice amp?

Fender SCXD if you can afford it, if not a Mustang I or II.

[jrich99]

I just bought the Bugera V22 on ebay for $225. Should be interesting.

[kevinpaul]

Bill, get a Vox. With the Vox I know what my guitars sound like. I need not guess any longer.

[AllroyPA]

Originally Posted by jrich99

I just bought the Bugera V22 on ebay for $225. Should be interesting.

Heard good praise on those, should be happy with that ~!

[tjnugent]

Good deal on the Bugera. But, I am still a dyed in the wool Vox fan. They make the best amps on the planet... If you want to spend a few bucks... I have had and my brother now has the AC4TV 4 watt with an attenuator built in that will take it down to 1/4 watt. There isn't much clean headroom with these amps unless you replace the 12AX7 preamp tube with a 12AY7, and even then you don't get much completely clean pristine tone, but you do get great jingle, jangle from this amp.

If you have not played one... Go play one... lol I am serious. I bought the AC15C1 and put them side by side and for what the AC4TV can do, it is identical to my bigger rig. The AC15C1 is a very loud amp at 15 watts and it can do very clean to blow you out of the house Brian May...

I used a 68' Marshall Plexi 50 watt head and a 4 x 12 cabinet when I got good enough to start playing clubs at age 14... That and a vintage 57 Les Paul Jr were great, but I wish I had access to Vox back then, because I would have gotten a better sound at a lower volume. The plexi and the les paul back then were inexpensive. The amp head was $250 used and the guitar was $375. Hard to imagine and I wish I still had both. But I love the Squier guitars once they are modded with pickups and tuners.

TJ

[hunter rose IV]

heya...

just wanted to mention,if you haven't already made the plunge yet...

a peavey backstage plus.
all transistor,35 watts into a single 10...reverb,distortion(both footswitchable in/out of)

aaannndd...the built in od does not suck(it reminds me of very early cream actually)
or perhaps ac/dc...they're well made amps,and usually are quite indestructable.

great for electric/acoustic work as well...as well as smaller pub gigs too...

good luck!

thom

[scaryfoot]

Originally Posted by Hugh

If one wants a very versatile amp, the Roland Cube 20X is fantastic. Just click the video button below the images. He demoes the 20X
http://www.rolandus.com/products/pro...?ProductId=822

Has anyone compared these to the Cube's that have COSM amp models?
The Cube 20X has COSM lead types, modeling of different BOSS pedals. The overdrive is modeled after BOSS Super Overdrive etc.
Does it make a big difference not having the option to choose Brit Combo, Black Panel and so on?

[Stratatattat]

i've read good things about the fender mustangs

[BillStickers]

Mhm...


I've come into some money so I'm broadening my Horizons...

So...
Fender...
Vox...
Peavey...
or
Bugera...

I'm going to explore Vox and Fender... maybe even check up on Orange...

[AllroyPA]

How many watts you want?

[BillStickers]

Originally Posted by AllroyPA

How many watts you want?

Nothing extreme. But nothing wimpy. Currently I'm working my way through the Vox modern Classic range...

They look pretty sweet...

[dannyvawn]

Originally Posted by BillStickers

Mhm...


I've come into some money so I'm broadening my Horizons...

So...
Fender...
Vox...
Peavey...
or
Bugera...

I'm going to explore Vox and Fender... maybe even check up on Orange...

Enough to share the wealth?

[5thumbs]

Ck. Fender Mustangs im sold on them.

[fenderfreak]

Fender Mustang.

I remember when our 68 Super Reverb shocked me...the tingling was kinda funny,it felt weird move. Rare instance indeed, I must have hooked something up wrong. But I can't poop anymore... (jk)

[AllroyPA]

Super Champ XD, Vox Valvetronix, or Jet City is made by Crate I believe.
fenderfreak .... sorry to hear of your fecal difficulties

[ratdog472]

Actually the Jet City is not made by Crate.. That is Blackheart. Jet city would be an excellent choice but then again if you avoiding tubes then the Mustang is going to be great for ya.

[stratcross]

I recently got a Pathfinder 15R and its great,as good as everyone says and the price is great!

[itswhatido]

Here's my thought on a general plane. I would go either all solid state, or, full tube signal path. I have a Fender Mustang II and its great for working out different sounds. You would be well advised to hook up your PC and use the FUSE software and the FUSE forum to extend its capability. Recently released Mustang III is $299 US, and would be my choice today if I had to replace Must II. The Must II is 40W. Must III more than that, but each have a master volume.

If that doesn't appeal, here's what I am looking at in the tube world. I am looking for a good compressor / sustainer between the guitar and tube amp to keep the tube amp in the "sweet spot" of the power tubes. For me, that's just on the edge where amp starts to distort a little, ala, the warm tube sound. 5, 10, 15 watts should be plenty.

Personally, I would avoid the hybrid amps that use tube preamp sections and solid state power amps. The power tubes at saturation are where the full and unique tube sound comes from IMO.

For P-90s, where a full midrange is so cool, recommend 12in speaker. From my research, Vox tubers are great. Fenders are expensive. Crates with the "right" tubes in them are cheaper this side of the pond. My 2 cents.

[totheMax]

Just my 2 cents here. I've owned a lot of amps over the years - and my current two favorites for practice are the Fender Frontman 25R and the Vox AD30VT. The Fender is hard to beat at $100 new (the clean channel is great, I added a Tube Pedal I had and it got really sweet - the high channel doesn't do much for me). The Vox is packed with modeling options for lots of sounds and has enough umph to play a small room + plus it has the speaker output control so you can keep your regular settings and turn down the volume only - I got mine "new" at GC for $179 - floor sample. I saw them listed for about $219 online and it really is a great little all around practice amp (probably can find one on CL).

http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/p...Amp?sku=481959

At the end of the day - it's a matter of what sounds good to you. Best thing to do is go to GC or another large selection store bring "your" guitar go in the sound room and play through all of them - then you can buy new or look for used - my Frontman 25 was a junker freebie and I love it (had a bad jack connection).

[czook]

I have the epi valve std and love it. I usually use a Fender Frontman 25R because of the headphone and CD inputs for practice at home. Very inexpensive amp, and great sound for solid state. I can overdrive the heck out of it.

[TWANG]

header says practice amp.
that can mean home use and/or jam use.
So you may consider that even 5W Class A is enough.
I don't believe the vox bugera or epi or etc in stock form can hold a candle to their modified versions.
I've done bugera, blackheart, vj, and kustom, 5 watt modifications.
I wish someone would let me do a VHT special6.. as it's very modable, and quite a nice amp.

An 8" speaker kills so much tone and volume in any amp that in my view home practice only

A modded vj, which is one of the best basic platforms, is giggable and still great for home use even with a 12" speake.
The blackheart also.
Those are my two favorites so far. The build quality is of a higher level than the kustom, the fender and the vox are so tiny and cramped that it's very difficult to get in all you'd like to improve them.

I recently finished two 18 watt amps, a fender tweed deluxe style 5E3 and a marshall style 18 W with treble middle bass.
Those both are really excellent but more spendy, and you'll HAVE to cut volume and
use a pedal for home practice as they are way too freaking loud otherwise.

If you're a bells and whistles guy.. go fender scxd.
If you're pure tube tone guy.. then the modified vj/blackheart, or custom superlite marshal or fender 5E3 are the bomb.

a vj will no longer look or sound anything like the stock amp.



they can also be fitted with EL34 power tube for 10 watts.



or made into, tortoise shell panel amp here, 18 Watt marshall killers



5E3 not quite finished in this pic



18W marshall style

[ratdog472]

Dang it.. The more you do that TWANG the more I want to send my V33 to you to let you have at it. If it weren't so danged far....

[AllroyPA]

Originally Posted by ratdog472

Dang it.. The more you do that TWANG the more I want to send my V33 to you to let you have at it. If it weren't so danged far....

It would be well worth the effort to have that thing tuned and rodded

~billstickers- Did you EVER get a practice amp?

[Caddy]

I have found, after trying various small practice amps, that if you are after the 'Fender sound', as many of us are (after all we play mostly Fender type guitars), in a solid state amp that the Fender amps really do sound the most 'Fender'.

Not to say that you can't get good sound, or a sound that suits you or your style of music better from another brand of amp. Just that I have listened to a lot of Fender amps over my many years of playing and that the true 'Fender sound tends to come from, not suprisingly, Fender amps, particularly among solid state modeling amps, just as you would expect the best Marshall or Vox sound to come out of amps made by them.

[TwoMartinMan]

I'm loving my Fender Mustang I. Highly recommended.

[Caddy]

Originally Posted by TwoMartinMan

I'm loving my Fender Mustang I. Highly recommended.

Absolutely!

I am, as well. Great amps.

Actually, if I had a do-over I think I would have bought the Mustang II, just for the larger speaker and extra watts. But, only when I jam with friends, fine as it is for what I normally use it for.

I sold my Micro Cube amp the other day. Hadn't used it in a long time. Got it out the other day to try it and one of the only two amp models I had ever liked on it at all, the blackface, sounded pretty bad after having the Mustang since fall. The only other model I ever used on the Cube was the JC Clean, for jazz, etc. with my 335 copy. Didn't seem worth keeping for one seldom used amp model. So away it went! Used the money from the sale toward my new Fender Rumble 15 bass amp. I had no bass amp of any type and just wanted something to use at home for practice and to jam with a couple of friends and my son once in a while, and for home recording.

[ratdog472]

Originally Posted by AllroyPA

It would be well worth the effort to have that thing tuned and rodded

~billstickers- Did you EVER get a practice amp?

Oh sure... Fuel the fire just a little bit more... Actually I am thinking of rolling it back and having the tone stack remade into something that works. Rolling the tubes back to lower gain and letting the output work a little for that nice tube push.

As far as a practice amp I still say Mustang.. You can't go wrong. If anything you can always get a 1x12, 2x12 or 2x10 cabinet and mod it into a pseudo head.

(ooooh maybe I could get a Mustang II, mod it, and have the crate V33 reworked with 12ay7's and a better reverb tank)

[itswhatido]

Hello from Houston, Bill -

I have been chasing around and researching low watt tube amps for the last several weeks and trying to decide which way to go with my P90 guitar. Finally I have chosen the Bugera. The V5 has the attenuator built in so you can manage output volume and still saturate the tubes. That is very cool. The V22 has a better feature set, but I would have to buy an aftermarket attenuator. The Blackheart 5 watt was my frontrunner, but the Bugera is a nose ahead right now.

I did notice that many of the Crate players preferred their V8 amps over the Blackheart 5 for feature sets. Blackheart sounds great driven hard, but that's not where I am at now.

Good luck in your quest!!

[Old Mojo]

Here's an alternative for your consideration.

http://www.bossus.com/gear/productde...ProductId=1027

I pulled the pin on one last week, and really like it. Very versatile practice tool. Much more than a practice amp. Full range of fully-configurable digital amp and effects models from squeaky clean to stoopid. Built-in speakers for low level output; Headphone jack for silent; line out for hooking to an external amp or PA for wailin'.
Wide range of pre-loaded, tempo and pitch-adjustable rhythm loops. USB interface for downloading your own backing tracks.
Easy, intuitive controls, solid-built and small. Mine sits on a bookshelf beside my favorite chair.
Street price $400-450 US, but I scored a new factory demo for $285 on Ebay.
If you want to jam at home with a full band in one little box, this works.