low wattage tube amps

  • Thread starter Thread starter daav
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daav

daav

Flailing up a storm.
Ok I have been thinking about making plans for a new amp for recording, but ia m starting to be skeptical that i am goign to find too much in a reasonable price range that will give me much better tone.

Currently using an early 90's Fender blues deluxe, that has not been retubed for at least 5 years.

I was thinking about something with a lower wattage, maybe somehting hand wired rather than PCB if it will make a significant difference.

Something like this caught my eye:
http://boston.craigslist.org/nos/msg/302801607.html

I've soncsidered a DIY 18 watt, and there is a local store that does their own fender champ clones.

So think i will get something for recording that i couldn't get from retubing the blues deluxe?

Ideal tone would range from what Jack White gets to Johnny Thunders. I want a saturated, not muddy distortion, and decent clean sound would be a plus. Using pedals in combo to get there is fine.


Thanks,
Daav
 
Oh and to head off some obvious replies, i am planning on playing as many amps as i can, just sort of looking for some general opinions and suggestions to help focus.

Daav
 
As I'm sure you know, many people think the 5 watt Epiphone Valve Jr. is a very decent amp $100). I bought one (head only) after many people raved about them. I don't know if it's great but for $100 it is well worth the price. I would think swapping out different tubes and different speakers would eventually create the right (or at least various better) sounds. It outputs at 4, 8 and 16 ohms - so it is fairly flexible.

Fender is suppose to be coming out (in April 07') with a 5 watt combo based on the old 600 amp (about $300). I've watching to see what people think about it.

I've read about (but never tried0 various low watt amps by boutique companies (Reverand, etc.) but some of those are too pricey for my budget.
 
Why are you looking specifically for something hand-wired (other than easier to modify/repair)? From what I've heard and experienced, the inconsistencies in the wiring can lead to a very bad sounding amp. That said, I really liked the Valve Jr. when I had one (and will be getting another one soon). I've played on a Tiny Terror before and it sounded damn good, though I don't know if it sounded $500-good.
 
Hand wired will not give you better tone....... just less chance of a major repair w/ a cracked PCB.

Before the Valve Jr. Disciples come ripping through..... that teched out Blues Jr. is going to sound about $500 better IMHO!!!
 
daav said:
Ok I have been thinking about making plans for a new amp for recording, but ia m starting to be skeptical that i am goign to find too much in a reasonable price range that will give me much better tone.

Currently using an early 90's Fender blues deluxe, that has not been retubed for at least 5 years.

I was thinking about something with a lower wattage, maybe somehting hand wired rather than PCB if it will make a significant difference.

Something like this caught my eye:
http://boston.craigslist.org/nos/msg/302801607.html

I've soncsidered a DIY 18 watt, and there is a local store that does their own fender champ clones.

So think i will get something for recording that i couldn't get from retubing the blues deluxe?

Ideal tone would range from what Jack White gets to Johnny Thunders. I want a saturated, not muddy distortion, and decent clean sound would be a plus. Using pedals in combo to get there is fine.


Thanks,
Daav
Click to expand...

Try Here http://ceriatone.com/
 
I love my Univalve. THD makes it. Rock solid with a built in hot plate. A tube swappers dream come true. Check em' out.
 
punkin said:
I love my Univalve. THD makes it. Rock solid with a built in hot plate. A tube swappers dream come true. Check em' out.
Click to expand...


That sounds like it'd be a good route to go daav, I'd love to have one in the studio.
 
I have a few low watt tube amps (Silvertone, Rivera Pubster, Hughes & Kettner, etc) for tracking. I'm also in the middle of a couple of 18 watt projects.
 
just got a used carvin vintage16-- switchable 5/16 watts, with 3 12ax7's and 2 el84's (all groove tubes stock) and a celestion vintage 30 speaker stock. i love the sound-- it sounds appreciably better than the epiphone valve junior combo i had (that only had an 8" speaker though). i've been using it with an mjm blues devil od, and getting great sounds out of it. new they're only about $430 shipped. i've got some jj's i want to try in it as well.
 
Peavey Bravo. 25 tube watts. Clean, Marshall, and Nasty.

comes with reverb too.

Ebay it.
 
Flamin Lip said:
Before the Valve Jr. Disciples come ripping through..... that teched out Blues Jr. is going to sound about $500 better IMHO!!!
Click to expand...

Agreed! If I had $600 bucks to burn, I'd buy that thing today! You'll have a hard time beating that deal, if you have that much money to spend on an amp.....

Only other off-the-shelf thing in that low price range that is worth looking at imo would be a Traynor. YCV20WR (put a Vintage 30 in it!) or YCS100 (if you have a good cab already).
 
Just wanted to say thanks for the responses, I have a good idea where to start now.
Lack of $$ stopped me from getting the modded JR, but i will be back in the boston area this weekend, so who knows.

Daav.
 
capnkid said:
Peavey Bravo. 25 tube watts. Clean, Marshall, and Nasty.

comes with reverb too.

Ebay it.
Click to expand...


I have to agree w/ Capnkid. The Peavey Bravo 112 is a definitley a sleeper. I got mine back in '96 off a kid for $100 bucks. Just recentley I upgraded the speaker to a Celestion Vintage 30 and dropped in new JJ Tubes and the amp is one crazy tone monster. I love it and have been using it more than my Marshall.

If interested, check out some reviews here: http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar+Amp/product/Peavey/Bravo+112/10/1
 
I have a lot of small wattage tube amps. A Valve Jr. head, a Valve Jr. combo (heavily modded), a Fender Vibro Champ, an 18 watt Marshall head, a Crate V16 Palomino, a Crate V8 Palomino, a Rickenbacker 15 watt, etc..

For recording I like the Crate V16. It has awesome tone. Speaker change and tube swap were very necessary. Brimar preamp tubes, Sylvania NOS power tubes and an Eminence Red Fang. ;)

BTW, the Orange Tiny Terror is awesome sounding. I want one!
 
Nice, right now, the univalve looks great, I am a sucker for the abilty to swtich things up and get some variety out of one thing.

Maybe i can start saving up, or selling other stuff and pick one up on ebay for something reasonable.


Daav
 
there's somebody selling a THD Univalve near me for $650, seems like a pretty good deal, too bad i don't have $650 :(
 
You owe it to yourself to try out the new Kustom Coupe line. The best thing I've heard from a tube since my H & K. I jusat bought another '36 Coupe to use in stereo, they really are that good. They go for 450 - 600 for the 36 watter and around 800 for the 72, also a head version
 
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