30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

[Fatty]

So I'm thinking about trading in my Laney VH100R for an Orange AD30TC (http://www.orangeamps.com/products/adtc_series_ad30htc.html) or an Orange AD140TC (http://www.orangeamps.com/products/adtc_series_ad140htc.html)

The AD30TC is 30 watts Class A with 4x EL84 power tubes, I've tried it at lower volumes, and it sounded pretty awesome.

The AD140TC is 140 watts (Class A/B, as far as I can tell) with 4x EL34 power tubes. I've heard great things about it from a buddy of mine and from reviews online, but I've never actually had the opportunity to play through one.

I'm kinda leaning towards the AD30TC, simply because with the lower power rating, it might be a bit easier to drive the tubes playing live shows and at band practice, and get that much sought after power tube distortion sound. From what I've read, 30 watts Class A should be plenty of power for small to mid sized venues (basically, shows with my cab not miced). Am I correct in this assumption?

With the AD140TC, I'd never have to worry about power, but I'm worried that I could never really acheive a kick-a** distortion sound due to the power tubes never really being driven (without blowing the roof off the venue, that is)

Anyone care to give me some guidance/stories of personal experience?

 

[Rich_T]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

I prefer orange's new Rocker series, its got more gain than the AD amps, with a bit more of a modern edge, its not mesa kinda modern, its a mix of old school and new schol tones. Real versatile, i love them.

 

[joelap]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

I'd get the 140 watt head and get a Weber MAss or THD Hotplate or something to regulate the volumes.

 

[aleclee]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

IMO, a good 30W amp is plenty loud enough to play with a band.

 

[Fatty]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

I prefer orange's new Rocker series, its got more gain than the AD amps, with a bit more of a modern edge, its not mesa kinda modern, its a mix of old school and new schol tones. Real versatile, i love them.

I've tried those, and I honestly liked the AD series better.. cleans on the Rockerverb seemed a bit lacking compared to the AD for some reason (still good, but not AS good)

 

[Simon_F]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

Get the 30 watter. If you ever need 140 watts behind you you'll probably have a record company deal to help you pay for it. 30 watts of a quality brand like Orange is plenty for small / medium gigs.

 

[Fatty]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

If you ever need 140 watts behind you you'll probably have a record company deal to help you pay for it.

:laugh2: Excellent point.

 

[Tom M]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

Heh... that 30 watt Rockverb combo looks really interesting.

 

[texasguitarslinger]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

IMO, a good 30W amp is plenty loud enough to play with a band.

+1 :smoker:

 

[xerxes]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

man, i have a 30 watt amp and when laying with a drummer i cant even crank it because its to loud.

140 watts if you crank will blast your ears.

 

[orbiter]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

30 class a watts is plenty for sure... both those amps are really nice tho' ..

if you like orange (like I do) you might take a look at whats going on at matamp too.. these lil guys are pretty sweet.

http://www.matamp.co.uk/MATAMPV28.htm

 

[Blueline]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

If tube amps always sound best when cranked, why buy a 140 and get an attenuator to turn it down - i can't image the stadium gig that would require 140 and woudln't be miked
rather, get the 30 and turn it up - its plent for any band situation - after that, amps get miked anyway

that's my 2 cents

 

[mrfjones]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

blueling and i were talking about this the other night. i think we both agree that there are tube amps we would like but they are just too loud, so then we would have to pay more for an attenuator and that ends up wasting money. So i say go with the 30 watt head. A good friend of mine, the lead singer and guitarist for a band called lovedrug used to use that amp, and he loved it. He switched to the combo though because the head and 4x12 was too loud even for their larger gigs. he actually likes the 2x12 combo much more. Good luck with the amp alex

 

[That90'sGuy]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

As I go from amp to amp, I have realized something very important, 99.9% of all guitar players will never need the power these companies are putting in their flagship amps.

You will never need more than 50w, even on a professional level. I like my Hot Cat 30, but even at 30w, the thing IS WAY TOO LOUD! I'm seriously considering an attenuator for it. 30w is more than enough to play moderate sized gigs and be heard over a drummer.

I just don't get the whole lot of watts thing. Why put out stuff that gets that loud knowing full well that most players won't be able to crank it to that level to be able to enjoy it or really utilize it. The new Suhr OD-100 is sickeningly loud, but sure enough when the 18 watter comes out in a few months, I'll be ready to jump on that. 20w is still pretty darn loud without being rediculous (I remember being in a store, using a THD Hotplate to tame the 20w setting on the Flexi, really loud amp). Anything less than 20w, and forget band playing.

 

[jeremy]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

unless you need loads of clean headroom id get the 30w. i like the way a class a, el84 amp breaks up at a reasonable volume

 

[drew_half_empty]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

yeah, if you plan on playing without tube OD I'd go with the 140, but if tube od is your thing then go for the 30, way more practical.

also you can get new power tubes for more headroom if you want it, I'm not sure if by cranked you just mean lots of current or loads of current (the kind of load that overdrives the tubes)

 

[Fatty]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

unless you need loads of clean headroom id get the 30w. i like the way a class a, el84 amp breaks up at a reasonable volume

Have you noticed any major tonal differences between an EL84 vs. an EL34 amp?

 

[jeremy]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

i think there is a little more compression in the el84 when pushed and the el34 has a little more bottom but there are some similarities as well, like the nice rich upper mids

 

[Guitarist]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

30W without doubt, it'll allow you to, like you said, get that smooth power tube distortion by pushing those bottles. 140W is OVERKILL!! The only thing I can think of that may cause somewhat of a problem is headroom...

 

[Hellion]

Re: 30 Watt head vs 140 Watt head

Another vote for the 30 watter.