$500 for tube

breakdanceattiffanys

breakdanceattiffanys

New member
I've only owned SS amps. Had some crappy ones, had some I think were pretty good. $500 is pretty much the most I would ever spend on an amp, I don't have much $$ and don't gig, but what are some good tube amps for around or under $500?

Been looking at used 80s Carvins and new Blackhearts, but want something I can play in a small apt as well as jam with friends. Play mostly classic rock, 80s glam, and blues. Looking for a stereo line-out for recording on a PC and a footswitch for reverb/dist, and enough versatility to cover it all. Am not a huge pedal / digital sound person anymore, but can't afford the high-end. Coolest feature have found so far is the Steve Vai Legacy with the true Master Volume that turns the output of the volume ONLY down, and doesn't rectify any of the rest of it. At least that's how I understand it works...

Would like something in the 30-40W range that I can still play at low levels in a 1Br apt or with headphones, but rock out in a basement or backyard.
 
Re: $500 for tube

lotsa cool lunchbox heads out there right now - orange tiny terror, vox night train. have you hit the cowtown GC yet? if nothing else you can torture the staff with some poison riffs, which should be good for a few laughs.
 
Re: $500 for tube

The Vox AD100VT head has a power attenuator on the back. It has one 12AX7 tube that should be switched with a balanced Tung Sol 12AX7 and run some kind of pedal to lower the massive bass. Otherwise it sounds very good and tubey. If you can't spend a lot of cash maybe tube amps are not such a good idea with the re-tube every year or so.
 
Re: $500 for tube

Just buy a fender hot rod and be happy. Use your spare change to buy some kind of headphone amp thing.
 
Re: $500 for tube

gibson175 said:
Just buy a fender hot rod and be happy. Use your spare change to buy some kind of headphone amp thing.
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yeah, absolutely. A used one will serve you really well for a long time. It's as "basic" of a tube amp as you can get without skimping on important features.
 
Re: $500 for tube

Empty Pockets said:
Marshall Class 5...the perfect My First Tube Amp.
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Different strokes I guess. I had one for a few weeks and just sold it in mint condition. It was anything but versatile, and you needed to dime it to get "the sound". And it was LOUD!

I would recommend a 5-15 watt master volume amp like some that have already been mentioned. Blackstar HT-5, Vox Nightrain, Egnater Tweaker, Ibanez Tube Screamer head, and the Jet City JCA20H.
 
Re: $500 for tube

Travis H said:
Thats what i thought might be fun to mess with
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I thought about buying a pair of them and running my Vox Tonelab LE into them, then into my stereo 4X12 for practice. But I'm having pretty good luck with the Tonelab into my Rocktron Velocity 300 power amp, into the stereo cab so it's pointless I guess.
 
Re: $500 for tube

Red_Label said:
I thought about buying a pair of them and running my Vox Tonelab LE into them, then into my stereo 4X12 for practice. But I'm having pretty good luck with the Tonelab into my Rocktron Velocity 300 power amp, into the stereo cab so it's pointless I guess.
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sounds like you got a really nice rig setup.
 
Re: $500 for tube

Just demo'd today at GC the Vox Night Train and Egnater Tweaker. VNT for metal . . . not my thing. I also demo'd the new(ish) Mesa Trans-Atlantic . . . killer freakin' tones but also killer on the wallet at $900 for just the head. The Egnater Tweaker for $400 had sick, sick tone. Creamy OD, plenty of head room and loud enough for small clubs and bars. Played that through an Egnater 1/12 cab. Believe I'm going that route. Still want to demo the Orange TT.
 
Re: $500 for tube

I got this one
it was 450 when I got it, now like 650
belair.jpg

the single speaker version is 550
either are just way too loud for home use ( 50 watt )

now this one is bout right for the garage or family den
and is only 370
the Vintage 16
vintage16.jpg


the Carvin tweeds do the cleans real well and take pedals nicely
 
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Re: $500 for tube

the night train is definitely not for metal. What is is for is british blues-rock. the flabbiness in the low end really works with a woman tone.
 
Re: $500 for tube

I think there might be some SS diode clipping going on in the preamp, but for around that price I really liked the Blackstar HT-5 mini stack. It's the only small, low-wattage amp I've ever played through that really did have a similar feel and response to a big, hi-wattage tube rig.
 
Re: $500 for tube

sosomething said:
I think there might be some SS diode clipping going on in the preamp, but for around that price I really liked the Blackstar HT-5 mini stack. It's the only small, low-wattage amp I've ever played through that really did have a similar feel and response to a big, hi-wattage tube rig.
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I agree. According to a schematic I found online, there is diode clipping happening, but it still feels pretty real. It doesn't clean up as well as some heads, but for the price and features, I think it's a great value. It can get loud (believe it or not) and has unimpressive cleans, but pedals will probably do the trick.
 
Re: $500 for tube

I agree with erock517 - the Tweaker is a really good choice. I've seen the Tweaker Head & Cab setup here locally used for $500, so that hits your budget straight up. If you already have a cabinet of some sort, I've seen just the Tweaker head by itself for $300 used.

While there isn't reverb on the Tweaker, you can always pickup a Boss RV pedal, Line6, or whatever else you can find used and run it through the fx loop or if it's an OD, straight into the front of the amp. I think a good overdrive pedal through the Tweaker would be absolutely deadly. Maybe a Tubescreamer or a Fulldrive 2? There are so many overdrives and distortions now, it's kinda equal parts ridiculous and cool at the same time as there are so many choices.
 
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