Looking for a cheap (<$300..) amp...

[drummerboy_04AP]

for playing rock/hard rock/ punk/ gen alt.

I was reccomended the Blackheart BH5H and BH112 Half Stack in my other topic as well as the Epiphone Valve Junior Half Stack.

Will either of these suit my needs? I like that the Blackheart one has the bass/mid/treble controls...

What else would you reccomend?

Thanks so much, you are all so helpful!

[surfmaster]

Originally Posted by drummerboy_04AP

for playing rock/hard rock/ punk/ gen alt.

I was reccomended the Blackheart BH5H and BH112 Half Stack in my other topic as well as the Epiphone Valve Junior Half Stack.

Will either of these suit my needs? I like that the Blackheart one has the bass/mid/treble controls...

What else would you reccomend?

Thanks so much, you are all so helpful!

for either of those, your going to need a nice overdrive or distortion pedal because they dont have two channels.

[drummerboy_04AP]

ya, I figured that. What pedals do you reccomend? The guitarist in the band I play drums in has a Boss Ds-1 that seems like it would be an alright pedal, if you get it set right.

Maybe a Tubescreamer?

Any more amp recs would be great to. Wanna get as many options as possible.

[drummerboy_04AP]

The epiphone seems to have great reviews...
I cant find any customer reviews on the Blackheart though.

[JPXTom]

blackheart...cause i think it looks cooler and its got an eq...dont get caught up in the fact its crate...a good amps a good amp..if behringer made a sick tube amp, i'd buy it...regardless...get that and a tube screamer..they sound amazing. i actually plan to get this now with the new blackheart head thats coming out.

[drummerboy_04AP]

The only thing thats throwing me off is the no reviews thing, and the epiphone has some reviews...

but the blackheart looks exactly what Im looking for... Im so tempted to just buy it, but that seems foolish...

[surfmaster]

Originally Posted by drummerboy_04AP

The only thing thats throwing me off is the no reviews thing, and the epiphone has some reviews...

but the blackheart looks exactly what Im looking for... Im so tempted to just buy it, but that seems foolish...

i feel like the blackheart is the exact same amp as the epi VJ, just with a tone circuit. i would go for it myself.

it looks like blackheart is releasing some new stuff at winter NAMM, which is going on as we speak, so i would wait it out untill the new amps get released!

especially this guy!

http://www.blackhearteng.com/bh15h.html

15/7 watt head with a tone circuit AND drive knob

[Buck62]

Originally Posted by drummerboy_04AP

for playing rock/hard rock/ punk/ gen alt.

I was reccomended the Blackheart BH5H and BH112 Half Stack in my other topic as well as the Epiphone Valve Junior Half Stack.

Will either of these suit my needs? I like that the Blackheart one has the bass/mid/treble controls...

What else would you reccomend?

Thanks so much, you are all so helpful!

Both of those amps are fine choices.... BUT... if you're going to go from Hard Rock to Punk you might want something with a bit more tonal options and maybe a few effects.

For that end I'd suggest something like the Vox AD30VT or the Orange Crush 30R. Everyone is high on the VJ's and Blackhearts, but those are amps for guys who have more than one single amplifier. If you're going to put all your eggs in one basket you need something more versatile (tone-wise) than a Valve Junior or Blackheart.

If you go with the VJ or BH just remember to leave yourself some extra dough for effects or a multi-effect pedal.

Just my 2 cents.

[drummerboy_04AP]

ya, I saw that. I have a feeling its going to be slightly out of my price range... sixteen year old kid whos living off his money he made from his summer job. I still need to buy a car lol, but Im spending it on this stuff...

see what musicll do to you!?

*pointed towards surfmasters post*

[Buck62]

The Vox AD30VT costs the same as the Blackheart, with a LOT more tonal options.

Like I said, the BH is a great amp, but expect to spend more money on pedals if it's your only amp.

The Vox gives you more to work with.

I own the Vox AD50VT and it's my workhorse... a great amp.

[drummerboy_04AP]

ok, I think it will help if I post some clips of some of the tones I wanna get, if anyone will be so kind to listen to them and give me recs. cuz I think Im being a little misleading when I say "punk".

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Q7TD4HTOF4Y&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=4c4QF1ZMvpI

then maybe something like...
http://youtube.com/watch?v=pxLpEX2bt8w
http://youtube.com/watch?v=6XBIfOFtmmM

couldnt find the real version (that wasnt live) but this is similar tone to the original anyway:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=NLonezn5haU

try to find something clean...
http://youtube.com/watch?v=ILeiPLPrx0o

I dunno if anyone will even listen to these, but theres some examples...

[drummerboy_04AP]

If I can get sounds similar too that with maybe one or two pedals, I think Ill go with the Blackheart. If not, Ill keep looking, check out that Vox and that Orange.

Thanks a lot.

[drummerboy_04AP]

Well, I realised Ive tried out that vox before in a music shop. I dunno, I didnt play around with it too much, but it just seemed.. like too much. I dont think I would use even a quarter of the stuff that was on there...

I dunno, I guess I should give it another try.

[Buck62]

Originally Posted by drummerboy_04AP

Well, I realised Ive tried out that vox before in a music shop. I dunno, I didnt play around with it too much, but it just seemed.. like too much. I dont think I would use even a quarter of the stuff that was on there...

I dunno, I guess I should give it another try.

It's always best to have something and not need it, than to need something and not have it.

Get my drift?

How do you know what you're going to want or need 6 months down the road from now?

Spend your money once, so you don't have to spend it twice.

[drummerboy_04AP]

Thats a good point.

See, I guess my thinking is, If I buy the Blackheart, Id have a nice practice amp/recording amp. Sure Ill need some pedals, but say I want a louder amp or something different later on. The pedals will still be usefull. And I will still have a great practice amp.

I dunno, thats probly the stupid way of thinking about it..

[surfmaster]

all i can say is this: go with your gut.

if you end up buying something else, you will most likely regret not getting what your instincts told you to.

[Ironklad Audio]

if behringer made a sick tube amp, i'd buy it

bugera....

[Myriad_Rocker]

I have a Peavey Ultra 112 tube combo that I'll sell to you for $290 plus shipping. It's just sitting in my room not being used. Damn shame because it's a great amp.

[Buck62]

Originally Posted by drummerboy_04AP

Thats a good point.

See, I guess my thinking is, If I buy the Blackheart, Id have a nice practice amp/recording amp. Sure Ill need some pedals, but say I want a louder amp or something different later on. The pedals will still be usefull. And I will still have a great practice amp.

I dunno, thats probly the stupid way of thinking about it..

No, it's not stupid. But just remember that in order to have pedals you have to have more guitar cables. Having more guitar cables in your chain means more noise and/or interference introduced to your recordings.

That's something to think about.

[Russtopher]

+1 to the Vox AD30VT.

I bought mine used for $179. I really like having the wattage selector for recording at night when the kids are alseep :-)

I also pretty much only use a few of the modeled amps, but I know that if I want another type of tone, I can dial it in OK with what's there without needing to go buy another stomp box I might use once or twice and then put on a shelf for the next 3 years.

[starbuck26]

I used to use a fender fm212 when the budget was tight. Never used the dirty channel; if you put a nice overdrive pedal in front of the clean channel it sounds pretty good though.

It's a good choice if you're looking for power. 100 watts through 2 12" speakers.

[drummerboy_04AP]

^ thats whats at my house right now, its my friends, we use it for band practice. I personally dont like it much...

[punkin]

I'm going to suggest to add an EQ to your list of wants or needs. Parametric perhaps. No doubt that for the metal-ish sounds with these amp, a pedal to lean on the front end will help a bunch with the crunch but to really shape the tone on a budget amp, an EQ will help a lot.

[drummerboy_04AP]

ya, I was thinking about that too.
I know Danelectro pedals are frowned on, my friend has two, one died, the others not great imo. But theres an eq one called "fish and chips" thats only $30, and actually has pretty good reviews.. Im thinking of getting that and a Rat2 OD/distortion.

[marshall409]

sorry to but in,


MyriadRocker, pm sent about peavey ultra.

Adam