Practice Amp but useable for recording

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loungepenguin

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Hi

I'm after a fairly small guitar amp that can be used for studio recording.

Loudness - I won't be using it to play that loudly and if I do then I'd like to be able to play it through a PA anyway.
Recording - I need a decent and quiet (no hum) output on it so that I can record on my home digital 8 track or onto the computer.

Does anyone have anything to recommend for about the £200 mark?

Although it's a little bit out of the price range and a bit large I did like the look of the Line 6 Flextone III Plus. I was wandering what people thought of the modelling amps? In a way it would be nice to have access to all the stomp box pedals that are built in but do they sound any good and can you get enough control over them? Can you combine them? If so then I'd consider going for this as it means I wouldn't have to buy pedals - maybe there is a smaller cheaper version.

Any ideas or help would be greatly appreciated. I haven't bought an amp for about a decade and the one I have makes too much of a hum nowadays!

Cheers
 
There are lots of good sounding, reasonably-priced choices these days. A small amp that comes to mind is the Roland Cube 30 or 30X... I've owned a Cube 30 for three years now, and I've got to say that it still impresses me. It's the best sounding modeling amp I've tried, and is capable of sounding like a Fender, a Marshall, a Vox, a modern "rectifier" type amp, an ultra-clean jazz amp (JC-120), and even an acoustic guitar (with an electric guitar plugged into it). The models are all very good sounding to my ears (I also own a real Marshall JCM 900 2500 half stack and a 1964 Fender Tremolux, among others). It also has good-sounding digital effects built into it, CD player input, and many other features. On top of all that, it sounds good at low volumes, but is capable of being very loud too... loud enough to keep up with a drum kit, bass, keyboard and vocals. Even though I originally bought it as a practice amp, I've used it for rehearsals with two of my bands, and even used it at a few smaller gigs. It's fairly small in size, and I guess if I had to say anything negative about it I'd have to say it's a bit on the ugly side, but if you're looking for a great sounding, dependable amp that you can carry in one hand, I think it's the best little amp available. In the states, they're selling for around $225. IMHO, it's worth your time to find one at a local music store and try it out.
 
Depends on the sounds you're looking for, but here are three winners around the $100-300 mark:

Fender Champ (silverfaces tend to be cheaper than blackface and tweed models, the latter of which can fetch around $1000). Great fender "clean" sound--reminiscent of a twin without the power/volume. Depending on speaker and tubes used, when driven can get a nice brownish sound or can stay clean all the way up.

Vox Pathfinder 15R. Solid state, has a character reminiscent of an AC30. Nice for that "classic british" sound. Keep in mind it's NOT an AC30, but it comes kinda close, tonally speaking. The overdrive channel is largely useless, IMO. The included Reverb and Tremolo effects are worth the price of admission.

Epiphone Valve Junior. Lots of great reviews on the head-only version of this. The combo had some noise issues early on which may be no longer an issue with the current crop. The head doesn't do clean very well but has a pretty nice driven sound to it--somewhat "marshally" in character. One knob--volume.

I've not heard a Line6 amp that i've liked or found recorded very well. They work ok for a live/gig sort of application due to their flexibility, but are pretty blah with a mic in front of em.


YMMV, but the three i've listed are all nice low priced/low wattage "winners" in my book.


cheers,
wade
 
+1 on the Roland cube amps. I have the cube 60 and it's one of the best, most versatile amps I've ever played through. Lightweight, very LOUD for 60 watts, good sounding modeling and effects that are very simple to use, etc. etc. As you can tell I love this little amp.
 
+1 on the valve junior. if you're willing to buy the combo from musicians friend, i've been assured by their customer service via email that their stock turns over regularly meaning that you should get the new hum-free version. i ordered and received one about a month and a half ago and it is the newer version.
 
mrface2112 said:
Epiphone Valve Junior. The head doesn't do clean very well...

cheers,
wade
Click to expand...


Hmm...mine seems to. I know, YMMV. :D
 
Does it have to be an amp? If you're planning to play through a PA, and you're not looking for supreme killer amp tones but want to get as close as possible, have you considered an amp modeller like a line6 POD ver 2.0? They're getting very cheap these days. A bit more flexible than an ultra-budget amp.

The purists will take issue with this but for the budget you've got in mind, it might be tough.
 
thanks for all you advice - very tricky! I think I need to go through and read a little deeper about all of these.

It's quite difficult to explain the sound I am after except that I'd like it to be versatile and warm.

Maybe the epiphone is a little too simple - I think I'd at least like some kind of eq and I'm not sure I like the idea of not having a simple line out.

I do like the idea of the cube although it sounds as though there is almost too much on there for the money. Does seem geared up for recording which is what I'd like.

Definitely want an amp rather than the POD as I'd like to get rid of my old one and have the option of having something to play through.


I'll dig deeper tomorrow. thanks for you help.
 
Carvin Vintage 16.

Gorgeous sound, all tube, and switchable to 5w for a really complex saturation.

Doesn't really do "clean", but it's a very affordable and reliable recording amp.
 
my kids friend left a Line 6 spider 2 over here. Its extremely versatile and
you can get all the sounds at low volume too. we both like it anyway.

It has a lot of "colors on the pallet."

its about 200mark.. at $139US. with a 12" celestion.

worth checking out.
 
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i was about to recommend maybe a Traynor YCV20, but it appears to be above your price range. i got the YCV80 and i love it!
 
tdukex said:
Hmm...mine seems to. I know, YMMV. :D
Click to expand...


Same here, I've gotten stunningly(relatively) beautiful clean tones out of it. The Vavle Jr. is an amp that's very hard to beat when it comes to tone vs. price.
 
yeah, the Valve jr. is $99 for the head. basic tube amp.
But you need speakers...maybe a DIY would help keep the cost down.
maybe a open back simple cab with a single 12"?


200 marks isn't much to spend.
200 GERMAN MARK (DEM) = 134.5614 US DOLLAR (USD)
 
i need to correct my above statement about the Valve Jr not doing clean too well......it's ok enough i guess. doesn't do too well with my tele, but is definitely acceptable with my ibanez artcore hollowbody. more "abrasive" and "hard" sounding clean than i get with my tele/champ combo, which is more "smooth". what it's really telling me is that i need a les paul to run through it. :D

still, i think where the Valve Jr excels is around 2:00 when the overdrive starts to really dig in. very marshally to my ears.

i've got some JJ's on the way.....gonna pull out the Sovteks that are in there now (ick) as soon as the JJ's show up. i'm hoping that'll smooth it out a little bit.


cheers,
wade
 
COOLCAT said:
yeah, the Valve jr. is $99 for the head. basic tube amp.
But you need speakers...maybe a DIY would help keep the cost down.
maybe a open back simple cab with a single 12"?


200 marks isn't much to spend.
200 GERMAN MARK (DEM) = 134.5614 US DOLLAR (USD)
Click to expand...

The German currency is Euro these days, and he was talking about pounds :)
 
On the subject of "clean",Fender clean is different from Roland clean and tube clean is different from solid state clean.
I have two tube amps and one solid state amp and to me the solid state is the cleanest.
But that's just me,once again YMMV.
 
acidrock said:
On the subject of "clean",Fender clean is different from Roland clean and tube clean is different from solid state clean.
I have two tube amps and one solid state amp and to me the solid state is the cleanest.
But that's just me,once again YMMV.
Click to expand...

I'd say that's an accurate summation.

I've got a Roland Cube 30 sitting on top of my 1963 Fender Tremolux, and you're right - a solid state guitar amp like the Roland JC-120 is an amazingly clean amp, with a gorgeous sounding stereo chorus. Having that model in the Roland Cube 30 modeling amp is really handy (and a great sounding model too, by the way), as are the Vox, Marshall, tweed Fender, recto and even acoustic guitar models.

The Tremolux on the other hand is clean too, but oozes pure tube tone, character, and color. Clean, with tons of spank, headroom, and attitude. If you want a low-down creamy distortion, you can get it if you crank the volume up to 5-7. The all tube tremolo is really smooth and fat too.

Got the Cube 30 mic'ed up with an older Sennheiser MD-421 right now, with the Vox model dialed in for a rhythm track.

When I'm recording with a Tele or Strat through the Tremolux, I usually run a Sennheiser e609Silver close-mic'ing one of the two 10's with a Studio Projects B1 at about 6 feet back in the room.

I use one of those two Sennheisers close-mic'ing one of the 12's on my Marshall JCM900 2500 half stack (depending on the track) with a Studio Projects B1 at about 6 feet back in the room.

Thick AND chunky... ;)
 
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ragata said:
The German currency is Euro these days, and he was talking about pounds :)
Click to expand...

doh! :eek: since 2002 its been Euro..wow.. my F-up... :confused:

so the converter mentions around $393 in USD, not $134...
thats a big difference in cha-ching! :D

this'd be fun, a Roland/Line 6 type amp and a Tube-EVjr?
 
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