Tube amps on a budget...

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MatchBookNotes

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Alright, i'm dong my weekly spam bit. Last week was the pedals and good points were brought up, and i went nad played with tube amps @ long and mcdonalds today. They don't have everything, so what tube amps should i pester them to bring in for me to try?
I'm down with hybrids as well, just as long as they're $500 or less. They have 0% financing this month as well, so that may be a bonus including my tax return.... I played with a vox head today, i don't know what one exactly but it had a few bells and whistles, and one of the blue traynors(you can get some decent distortion out of them)
but yes, what budget tube/hybrid amps are there for under 500 bucks and are particularly versatile? If not versatile something with a bit of crunch.
 
I also ruled out the epiphone valve, or any other epiphone amp as they suck. I'm sorry i don't like them. And the blackheart too.
 
Hmmm ... in order to get a really good sounding tube amp in that price range, I think you'd have to look at used.

I'd recommend an original 60s Ampeg Reverberocket, Gibson Skylark, or something along those lines---lower wattage amps that just sound good. These aren't channel-switching amps obviously, so they're definitely not versatile the way you mean, but you can certainly get more than one sound out of them. And the sounds you get out of them are really good---not just decent.

Obviously, this doesn't help with your 0% financing deal.

You didn't specify what this will be used for, so I'm sorry if this is way off the mark.
 
The new Fender hybrids are very nice but not quite loud enough to jam with a drummer. The Crate tube amps in that price range are good as are the Peaveys. Axl has a line of 20 and 30 watt tube amps but I haven't played them yet.
 
MatchBookNotes said:
I also ruled out the epiphone valve, or any other epiphone amp as they suck. I'm sorry i don't like them.
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Maybe they're too pure for you.

I have a house full of expensive tube and hybrid amps, modern and vintage. What gets 95% of the play time?

An Epiphone Valve Junior. Only mod a vintage Mullard preamp tube.

Extremely low-noise, extremely basic circuit -- no tone stack, no DSP, no effect, no nonsense.

Fits into the nightstand next to my bed.

Best amp money I ever spent.
 
I lo-o-o-ve me my Fender Super Champ XD (SCXD) - it's one of the new "hybrid" amps, although it's "reverse" hybrid with a digital modeling preamp and a full-tube Class A/B power amp. 15 tube watts.

I don't know about not being loud enough to play with drums. It seems loud enough for me - mine has bass that rattles windows on 4. Also, upgrading the speaker gets you more volume. It can always be miked (and should).

I can't stop talking about this amp. I love the sound, but also the price and features.

I actually bought it online on recommendations and I am not disappointed. But typically I'd recommend trying it first. But you must treat each "voicing" as an amp - play with tone controls and drive, because they have different structures on each setting.
 
i have a modded valve junior head that i like-- upgraded tubes and some of the well-published circuit changes. i also have a carvin vintage 16 which is all-tube (3x 12ax7 and 2 el84's-- all groove tubes stock), switchable 5/16 watts, and since it's an older model it came with a celestion vintage 30 (uk-- not chinese made) stock. i got it for less than $300 shipped. i like it a lot, but am also considering getting the hasselr mods done to it.
seriously though, if you're on a budget, try one of those epi valve juniors, but see if you can try it out with any sort of decent overdrive or distortion pedal. i used to have one of the combos (stock) and got some really good classic/crunchy sounds by running a behringer (shudder) to800 tube screamer knock off into it. i got some better overdrive pedals and they sounded even better.
 
MatchBookNotes said:
I also ruled out the epiphone valve, or any other epiphone amp as they suck. I'm sorry i don't like them. And the blackheart too.
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They certainly don't suck. Far from it. You just have to know how to work them.
 
Excellent thought, Obi-Wan, but I think he'd be looking at over $500 for the head alone. With an Avatar cab it would be around $750; with a matching Orange cab it's up to $850.
 
I still really like the Peavey Valveking 1x12 model for a budget toob amp. I have much higher tastes myself, but dig those little dudes.
 
I bought a Pignose G40V a few years ago and it works pretty good. You MUST change out the super-cheap speaker, and it helps to trade the middle 12AX7 for a 12AU7, but even with doing that (I used an Eminence Ragin' Cajun 10" speaker) it came in at under $400US.

Pros: looks good, it's small and light, all tube head.

Cons: careful with the tone controls! No reverb or FX, but they make pedals, don't they?

I bought it for a harp amp, but lately I've been using it with my Les Paul Deluxe and a Floor Pod Plus (for the wah pedal) and it sounds very good. It's almost the same circuit as my '63 Sears Silvertone Twin Twelve: classic Western Electric layout.

I use a Danelectro reverb stomp box with the harp.
 
well geez you can score all kinds of stuff used for 500 if you look long and hard. or just save a little more and buy something like the 70s twin that i sold last week for 600. have a look at laney, the peavey classic 30s and 50s. my early 80s fender Concert "II" cost me 500 also. just look around. you will find something. the ampeg amps tend to go for decent prices also.


personally i would look around for a silverface bassman or bandmaster head for about 400 and then get a cheap cab to go with it.
 
I have an ebay search for the word "tube": Category: Guitar > Guitar Amplifiers, Sort: Ending First, Max Price: US $100.00

I used to run it pretty often -- it picks up quite a bit of noise, mostly individual tubes for sale and some new "tube-like" amps, but does a pretty good job of finding things I want to look at -- small tube based practice amps, usually from the 1950's or 60's, including the occasional newly listed Magnatone.

I bought about seven of them a couple of years ago -- ranging from $40 to a couple of hundred (after bidding exceeded my search threshold) - they pretty much have one power tube (EL84, 6V6, or 50C5), and although they all "worked" when I got them, most needed some attention -- I'm lucky enough to live close to a great amp tech, so I got them worked on as I could afford it (usually $50 a session). I also live next to an electronics store that has a lot of NOS tubes. Ultimately, about a $110 average spend on each one (initial price + service + tubes) to get it as good-sounding as I thought it would get.

One of the amps was solid state (could have determined this if I had looked at the picture closely), and one of them just sounds like crap no matter what (it's an AC/DC one from the 40s or 50s -- meaning it would run off either AC or DC power, since either may have been available at the wall -- no input transformer :eek: - beware!), but 5 of them are great, and pretty much sound different from one another. Even the solid state one (Knox - only one knob for volume/on/off) is interesting. So, I have no regrets, except that I'm tripping over amps. Whenever I think about selling one, I can't make up my mind, because the 6 are so different and good, and I wouldn't want to inflict that AC/DC one on anybody.

If you have a lot of time, a little risk tolerance, don't need a reliable workhorse for gigs, and have access to expert techs and good parts, I think this is a great way to go (I suppose this is a big "if", but you can usually get good parts on ebay, too).

I also have an unmodified Epi Valve Jr. -- It's louder than most of those older amps, but it's too dark sounding for most of my guitars. I have one guitar that's punishingly buzz-saw bright that sounds fantastic through the EVJ. I can also use an EQ pedal to make most of my guitars work with it, but I tend to just use those older amps because they rule :D

edit: and if you're shopping for hybrids, check out the Vox ADxxVT series (I think it's been updated recently). I've got an AD15VT that's nice with a Weber speaker and a 12AT7 in it, and I hear great things about the AD30VT. We (here on the board) just sent a reconditioned AD50VT to Falujah, Iraq for ~$300, and I hear they really like it.
 
BrentDomann said:
Excellent thought, Obi-Wan, but I think he'd be looking at over $500 for the head alone. With an Avatar cab it would be around $750; with a matching Orange cab it's up to $850.
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Very True, Brent. You know, though, most guitar players have something like an old broken practice combo or something that they could run a new head thru... I had an old peavey rage in my basement for the longest time.

I do sometimes wish I had something like a TT instead of the collection of random tube amps that don't quite suit my needs... VT22 (too powerful, but it was $300), Premeir Club Bass (Too vintage), Hybrid Fake Mesa Boogie Oak-And-Wicker "Legend" (Too Broken).... but then I suppose I'm more for vintage clutter than practicality. :p

http://www.orangeamps.com/products.asp?Action=View&ID=78

The TT is worth playing before spending $500. Then saving for a decent cab would be the next step. Does avatar make anything in orange tolex? I think they do.. :D
 
Crate V-series..... Awesome amps for the money... I love em!
 
Buy used in that price range. Peavey Classic 30/50, Peavey ValveKing, Crate V series, Crate Vintage Club series, and the Epiphone Valve Junior would be your best bets.
 
maybe i missed it, but did anyone mention a blues junior? Its really a legit amp for the price. Its really responsive and great in a lot of situations. at LEAST worth sitting down and playing.
 
Gear_Junky said:
I lo-o-o-ve me my Fender Super Champ XD (SCXD) - it's one of the new "hybrid" amps, although it's "reverse" hybrid with a digital modeling preamp and a full-tube Class A/B power amp. 15 tube watts.
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As an aside, I have NO idea why more people don't build hybrids this way. The power section is really where tube amps come into their own...

Anyway, on a budget I'd see if you could grab a used Mesa F-30 or DC-3.
 
Looks for vintage stuff. I picked up a lafayette (same model as some older univox) 12watts or so I picked up for less than $150 that always makes people who hear it ask me what is up. Replaced the old speaker and it has a great early breakup for a fat raw sound. I pair that with a fender blues deluxe for louder, cleaner tones, and i am pretty happy with my range of tone (through a strat, 335 knockoff, and SG classic (P90s)).

Daav
 
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