Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20

[SirJackdeFuzz]

What amp would you rather have ?



* http://www.cornfordamps.com/r30.htm - Roadhouse 30

* http://www.blackstaramps.com/products/ht-studio20h/ - HT Studio 20



Just curious . . .


. . . vote now.

[Rockstar216]

Re: Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20

I thought Cornford stopped making amps? Didn't the factory burn down and one of the owners get real sick?

[richard parker]

Re: Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20



No, you can't get them anymore. I have one and it's terrific. Blackstar are not in the same league.

[Rockstar216]

Re: Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20

I own a Blackstar HT-40 but between the two you mentioned it would depend on what I use it for. I like the Cornford for low gain to medium gain tones but I like the Blackstar because it has a dedicated clean and dirt channel and can do hard rock to metal but can't crunch like a Cornford.

[SirJackdeFuzz]

Re: Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20

I thought Cornford stopped making amps? Didn't the factory burn down and one of the owners get real sick?

No, you can't get them anymore. I have one and it's terrific. Blackstar are not in the same league.

Oh bugger . . . i did not know that :-(

[Chris of Arabia]

Re: Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20

This is not a poll, this is a massacre....

[d1dsj]

Re: Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20

I'm not biased in any way!

[cayle_6]

Re: Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20

I have the HT20 combo, but I'll go for the Cornford.

[stevie_bees]

Re: Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20

Cornford without a doubt, although as has already been mentioned they are no longer making amps so there wouldn't be any support for it. Blackstar have great customer support, but their HT series is a bit 'bland-sounding' compared to the Cornford...IMO of course!

The Roadhouse 30 was on my shopping list of amps before I ended up with my JTM-45...

[UberMetalDood]

Re: Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20

It's a silly idea to compare an expensive, boutique amp with a value model commercial amp. Asking that question is like asking: "what do you prefer - a slow painful death or a quick painless one?"

No, you can't get them anymore. I have one and it's terrific. Blackstar are not in the same league.

The Series One models are. You can't make a blanket statement about all of Blackstar amps because their Series One and Artisan series are some of the best amps around.

[richard parker]

Re: Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20

I haven't played an Artisan but I have played a Series One and didn't care for it. The Roadhouse is a PCB amp and formed part of Cornford's budget line. Little difference in price between the HT20 and the Roadhouse. The Artisan 30w combo is more than double the price of a Roadhouse.

[UberMetalDood]

Re: Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20

I haven't played an Artisan but I have played a Series One and didn't care for it. The Roadhouse is a PCB amp and formed part of Cornford's budget line. Little difference in price between the HT20 and the Roadhouse. The Artisan 30w combo is more than double the price of a Roadhouse.

I'm curious about the setup and situation in which you tried the Series One. Which model was it and how did you have it dialed in? I mean, it's a good British/Marshall style amp with a nice clean channel. It doesn't sound generic so what's not to like about it?

[misterwhizzy]

Re: Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20

I played the Artisan 30 without realizing how expensive it was, and it is still one of the best combos I've ever had the pleasure of playing through. It's a super high-quality, beautiful-sounding, vintage-style amp, and it has very, very little in common with the HT line at all. The value line is, well, not nearly as awesome. I have yet to play a Cornford, but I'm pretty sure I'd take it first.

[richard parker]

Re: Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20

I'm curious about the setup and situation in which you tried the Series One. Which model was it and how did you have it dialed in? I mean, it's a good British/Marshall style amp with a nice clean channel. It doesn't sound generic so what's not to like about it?

I played through two of the 60w combos. I had quite a bit of time with both of them. Not a bad amp by any means but it couldn't do what the Cornford excels at which is virtually any crunch sound you can think of plus the option of kicking in as much extra gain as you like for solos. The Blackstar had a slightly synthetic sound to it almost like a high quality modeller.

[UberMetalDood]

Re: Cornford Roadhouse 30 vs Blackstar HT Studio 20

I played through two of the 60w combos. I had quite a bit of time with both of them. Not a bad amp by any means but it couldn't do what the Cornford excels at which is virtually any crunch sound you can think of plus the option of kicking in as much extra gain as you like for solos. The Blackstar had a slightly synthetic sound to it almost like a high quality modeller.

Those weren't the Series One then. Only the HT series has 60w combos, and yes, I would agree that there is some degree of synthetic tone in them... but I think it's in a good way. The Series One stuff is what I was talking about and they are all pure tube goodness.