best 5-15 watt tubies

[rainsong86]

I've looked at Fender Blues/Pro Junior, Epiphone Valve Standard/Special, and the Crate V series for a dorm-room tube amp.. I've only played the Fender blues junior out of those.. so what do you guys think is a great 5-15 watt all tube amp on the market today.. keep it under 400 dollars retail

 

[Liquid]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

Out of all those the Blues Jr is prolly the best.

 

[rainsong86]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

what do you think of the "fat switch"?.. and to anybody who's played the V series what do you think of the boost switch?

 

[CapoFirstFret]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

the fat switch works very well for what it does and is particularly useful as a slight boost for solos

 

[Rushfan2112]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

That's the problem. Slight. I'm trying to keep it off, as I'm going to get a clean boost mod from Billm (http://home.comcast.net./~machrone/bjr/cleanboost.htm) and wire it to the FAT switch. Add a footswitch and you're good to go for solos.

I'd say go for it, as it has a master volume. You can crank the volume and keep the master low, and it still sounds great.

 

[jdm61]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

how about a transitional silverface Champ?:fingersx: or a blackface if you are lucky enough to find one. at a reasonable price.

 

[Skarekrough]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

The Billm mods make those BLues Jr's worth thier weight in gold....

 

[mrid]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

I don't really like the boost switch on the V (I have a V-16 Palomino), but I used it with humbuckers. The Epi Valve Junior is pretty nice.

Have you considered a POD or equivalent (...I know...:laugh2: )?

 

[JRawk]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

As a student, I feel your pain for the small valve amps. I've used or owned all the amps discussed - and for me, I settled on a Crate V1512T . . . the one that has the Tone Tubby speaker in it. The only restriction is that it may be a bit more pricey than some of the little amps discussed already. The blues junior is nice in its place, but I find them to (stock) be a hair noisy. Still, if that's the tone you want, it is sweet - as are the Epi's.

Without trying to be blasphemous here though, if you haven't already - try Tech 21 amps. They sound quite good, and are very flexible. The response isn't quite the same as tube, but if you're on a real tight budget it's not bad at all.

 

[Scott_F]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

Look for an Ampeg Jet Reissue J12T and find one used. They use 2xEl84 tubes, they have reverb and they have a gain boost. 12" speaker in them isn't bad either. And, you can find them used for less than you'd think. It's got a really nice Voxy/Marshall 18watt grind going.

 

[greendy123]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

How about the epiphone valve head? They only cost $100 here http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product?sku=482069. I don't know how they sound. Any one here try one of these yet? The bad part is it only has a volume and thats it.

 

[GuitarStv]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

How about the epiphone valve head? They only cost $100 here http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product?sku=482069. I don't know how they sound. Any one here try one of these yet? The bad part is it only has a volume and thats it.

+1 I've heard a lot of good things about these heads . . . and they are pretty cheap.

 

[KevinC]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

If you are looking to for a Dorm room amp - the Blues Jr is great. You need to have a master volume control if you want to get that good tube sound at lower volume levels. Reverb and the FAT switch and you are good to go. I have 2 of them and play the heck out of them - They take to pedals really well to. For $400 bucks you are good ta go!

 

[ModestCargo]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

The Valve Jr. head would be cool, as you could pair it with say a 1x12" cab.

But I haven't played a Valve Jr, only heard one being played.

 

[InstituteOfNoise]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

I just got mine a few days ago, the Head version. Swapped out the Sovtek for a JJ EL84 and a JJ ECC83S. Smooth gain now. I've run it into a pile of cabs and they all sound great! It loves pedals too! Today I hooked up PODXT Live in front and it sounded great as well, which let me take advantage of it's post EQ feature to shape the tone a bit more. Just turned off the Amp sims and just effects hit it. Don't underestimate those 5 watts. Run it into a 4x12 or a big sounding 2x12 and it's enough for a small club I bet.

There are a bunch of clips now on H-C and The Gear Page. There are some great ones that Alan Cyr at The Amp Shop did in tandem with Mercury Magnetics on a Mod they now have for it.

Clips at: http://www.amp-exchange.com then select forum and on the right side it says SoundClips and select the only option. There's abotu 8 clips there you can hear, but they are of the combo version. Still sounds really great for that small amp.

I'll be doing some clips with me in the near future just for reference sake.

 

[Mkf411]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

The last sound clip is the best on amp-exchange. Thanks.

 

[Animal]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

Clips at: http://www.amp-exchange.com then select forum and on the right side it says SoundClips and select the only option. There's abotu 8 clips there you can hear, but they are of the combo version. Still sounds really great for that small amp.

Whoa! Those sounded great. Thanks for the linky.

 

[Christobevii3]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

The boost switch on the v series just kinda boosts the treble a lot and is kinda harsh with soem pickups. Might be good for getting a chicken picking sound for like southern sounding rock maybe. I have a v3112 and like it a lot, but it is loud at minimum volume on the amp, but a volume pedal can bring it down.

So i guess the v15 might be a good choice then.

 

[JarickL]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

My favorite is the Crate 15 watter...EL84's, nice clean tone. The 30 watter is way too loud.

Personally, I recommend a Microcube for low volume playing, or any one of the Roland/Boss Cube series. I'm very intrigued by the Cube 10 and Cube 30.

BTW, any of those tube amps will be pretty damned loud. You'd need to run it with a hotplate and only one speaker to be able to avoid noise complaints. At low volumes, I prefer some master volume heads, even if they are 100 watts. Hence the Microcube.

 

[Fresh_Start]

Re: best 5-15 watt tubies

Without trying to be blasphemous here though, if you haven't already - try Tech 21 amps. They sound quite good, and are very flexible. The response isn't quite the same as tube, but if you're on a real tight budget it's not bad at all.

I've got both a Blues Jr. and a TradeMark 10 from Tech 21. With a replacement speaker and an attenuator (Weber Mini-Mass), the Blues Jr. is sweet - you need the attenuator to get power tube distortion without a call from neighbors/police, and it's "better" than the pre-amp distortion IMHO.

The TradeMark 10 has a headphone jack, much better reverb, an effects loop, direct XLR out, and tons of versatility (no footswitches though). Crap - it's no longer made. Replaced by the TM-30. I tried one of the special 1st run of those with the wood cab and it just didn't have the mojo of the original TM-10 to my ears. Still worth a try...

Chip