Are B-52 tube heads any good?

ravendouglas

ravendouglas

New member
I recently put together a new rig ,with 2 B-52 cabs. I like the cabs so much I went online and checked out their tube heads. They are in a price range I could afford. I have never owned a tube amp because of the money it takes to get one worth owning. What are the forum members opinions of b-52 amplifiers?
 
Re: Are B-52 tube heads any good?

IIRC they were amps produced in China for Guitar Center using the cheapest available components and labor, which seem to have been phased out already.

I know a guy who had one of their 100-watt heads which he ran through a 1960a... Didn't sound completely horrible. I'd be more worried about reliability than anything else.
 
Re: Are B-52 tube heads any good?

I think they're good for the price and an entry level into tubes. I bought the AT112 combo from GC on clearance for $300. It was nice, but made me realize the tone tubes offered and I wanted more (upgraded to Bogner Alchemist not long after). I have heard that a tube change really improves the amp. Anyway, I would probably go Egnater Tweaker/Rebel before B52 if I had to do it again. Not as much power, but better tone and in the same price range.
 
Re: Are B-52 tube heads any good?

Bruce Egnater designed those amps. I had one and and it is the only amp ive played where the clean channel is better than the hi gain channel...super high headroom fender feeling clean channel. The gain channel felt like a mesa rec.

However. The way it is made and designed is an issue. Mine pulled apart the particle ply cab because the heavy transformers are on one side of the head consistently stressing the cab and chassis.

That was fine and good. But then the tubes get so hot that it cooked components on the board and the relay for the clean channel went and it became a one channel amp. it not sits at my brothers house and he uses it play metal until it dies.

It would be a mesa rec. killer if they lasted longer and had better reverb. The footswitchable tube buffered FX loop was awesome!

I would have liked to have seen the AT100 be made better or not in china.
 
Re: Are B-52 tube heads any good?

sounds like it's one of those amps that you buy so that you learn the important life lesson of investing your hard-earned cash in quality gear.
 
Re: Are B-52 tube heads any good?

Empty Pockets said:
sounds like it's one of those amps that you buy so that you learn the important life lesson of investing your hard-earned cash in quality gear.
Click to expand...

Yep - and it's a lesson everyone has to learn for themselves, apparently.

You can write all the reasons in the world for someone to save up a little more and get something of respectable quality - that buying cheap stuff is ultimately a waste of money almost every time - but without fail, the response is always:

"BUT IM POOR I DONT HAVE MONY FOR EXPENSIVE AMPS BESIDES CHINESE I JUST AS GOOD IM NOT A SNOB AND THIS SOUNDS LIKE ITS GONNA B GOOD I DIONT NEED A SUPER EXPENSIVE AMP BLAHBLAHBLAHBLAH"

People who buy cheap stuff always say it's all they need; that they know what they're getting into; but most of the time they've still built it up in their heads as

>this is gonna be awesome!!<

...and it ends in disappointment... a month later you see threads like "How do I improve the tone of my ThrasherKidzz-O-Blaster combo??"

The answer is always

"burn it, dumbass."
 
Re: Are B-52 tube heads any good?

well for 150 bucks more saving,i could get a carvin legacy .the first series are on the carvin web site for 799.00..thats about the limit of my range for an amp head. glad i asked about them,you dont know if you dont ask.they dont seem to have much of a following and i dont want to put money into something if its a piece of junk..i still think the cabs are nice that i bought though. the carvin x100b is only 50 bucks more at 699.00.now i am not looking yet ,i just got a new amp system set up,with 2 new cabs and an ibanez toneblaster head.i am almost embarresed to say that here as the general attitude here is solidstate amps are just expensive paperweights.lol,but i have always wanted a tube amp and when i saw the price of the b-52s,it got me thinking about my first tube head again.i could make my ibanez head my back up.
 
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Re: Are B-52 tube heads any good?

no i havnt checked out jet city.
i would like a hundred watt head. g.c. has the jca100 h listed for 719.00
 
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Re: Are B-52 tube heads any good?

I owned one for a couple years, and it didn't crap out on me. Any crapping was my own fault; too much messing with the tubes, using old tubes, not knowing how to bias the damn thing....

But that said, since it IS a cheapster, it might not actually be bad as a guinea pig to learn some tech/repair work. Just don't get yourself killed.
 
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Re: Are B-52 tube heads any good?

cakire82 said:
Isn't it 599?

http://www.guitarcenter.com/B-52-ATX-100-100W-Tube-Guitar-Amp-Head-583685-i1476778.gc


If you are looking for new, I would go for Bugera over b52 anytime. IMO, they have better price and quality. 1990, 6262, 333XL...

If 719 is in your price list you can always go for a much decent used tube amp.
Click to expand...

I agree. My 1990 has been a great half stack for the practice space. People say they don't hold up but I haven't had any problems and I don't gig it so I am not worried.
 
Re: Are B-52 tube heads any good?

I played one of the ATS100s I think it was and was kinda impressed with it for the price..
 
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