Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

[Low_fidelity2100]

I've had my Fender Concert for almost 8 years now, and its been my favorite amp of all time up until recently.
Recently I've been using it at Band practices alot (but gigging with a SF Bassman 70+ 412cab, which works alot better for me in this band), and its just falling short in pretty much every aspect, as far as what I need.
Not to say its a bad amp, its still a great amp. Just not great for what I'm doing right now. So more and more lately I've been considering selling/trading it for a Twin Reverb.
I've just been feeling like what I need for my sound is a super loud clean amp with TONS of headroom (which the concert doesn't really have), because I use pedals for all of my dirt. The concert just isn't capable of that in a band context, at all. It starts getting gritty around 4 on the volume, and I gotta turn up to at least 6 to hear my self clearly over the drummer...
So while I'd love to just keep it, and buy a different amp for practices...I don't really have the money for that...really I don't have the money for new cables or shoes, let alone another amp, haha. So to get a different amp for practices and small gigs...I'd need to sell/trade the Concert.

So what do ya do when you come to a point where that One amp you said you'd never sell, is no longer filling your needs? I mean, its weird to be sorta attached to an amp...but ya know, I guess I am...sorta makes me sad to realize its probably gonna have to go. haha, I'm such a girl.

 

[aleclee]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

I got to that point last year with my Two Rock. An AxeFX was what really met my needs and I couldn't afford to keep both. The Two Rock is no longer with me.

 

[Ayrton]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

Yes, I just sold my mint Marshall JCM2555 (Slash) half stack. Actually I have sold off several amps now that I truly love my '73 Marshall superlead that Dave Friedman modded.

 

[eschoendorff]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

Nope, never sold an amp I thought I'd never sell. If I want something else that bad, I'll just save for it or wait until the right deal comes along.

 

[super rad stuff]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

i sold my peavey windsor half stack, which was my first real amp:crying:

to make up for it though, i'm gettin' a valveking 112 within the next couple weeks

 

[FuseG4]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

You may find another use for it down the road, so I'd say keep it unless you really, really, really need liquid cash outta it.
I know what it's like to get mad at a good piece of gear, just because in no longer fits exactly what you want at the time. I sold my night train because I needed the $. otherwise, as much as I had a few gripes with it, it really kicked ass for a low-gain crunch tone.
I'm currently waiting for the day when I can afford another night train. I shouldn't have sold it. I really shouldn't have. And that's a current production amp.
Who knows what you'd do if you sold your amp and wanted one again someday.

 

[Laughing Kookaburra]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

I've sold every amp that I thought I'd never sell.

 

[FuseG4]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

I've sold every amp that I thought I'd never sell.

seriously? so the amps you think you might sell, you keep em? You're thinking of pawning your gear right now, aren't you

 

[Low_fidelity2100]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

I got to that point last year with my Two Rock. An AxeFX was what really met my needs and I couldn't afford to keep both. The Two Rock is no longer with me.

Thats pretty much where I'm at...just isn't meeting my needs right now, and I don't have the money to keep it and get something that fits the bill.

Nope, never sold an amp I thought I'd never sell. If I want something else that bad, I'll just save for it or wait until the right deal comes along.

Yeah, if I was in a position to buy gear without ever selling any, I would...But my only source of income is Music right now, and being unsigned, thats not very much income. So saving for something else, is sorta not really a viable possibility right now.

You may find another use for it down the road, so I'd say keep it unless you really, really, really need liquid cash outta it.
I know what it's like to get mad at a good piece of gear, just because in no longer fits exactly what you want at the time. I sold my night train because I needed the $. otherwise, as much as I had a few gripes with it, it really kicked ass for a low-gain crunch tone.
I'm currently waiting for the day when I can afford another night train. I shouldn't have sold it. I really shouldn't have. And that's a current production amp.
Who knows what you'd do if you sold your amp and wanted one again someday.

Yeah, thats sorta my biggest concern I guess...its not a really easily attainable amp if I do want another down the road...not that its rare or anything, just ya know...no longer made.
But I guess I'm sorta looking at it as...I do love the amp for what it is, but what it is doesn't fit into the context I need it to anymore...and with my current band, things are going Really really well, and for once I actually feel like it could be something that will lead to bigger and better things...so Its sorta like...I feel that with as much as I like the concert, I need the right tools for the job at hand, so that I can get to that "bigger and better" point down the road and (hopefully) be able to replace it if I choose too in the future. Ya know?
That said, its still hard to let go of something I've grown with over such a long period of time, haha....as stupid as it feels to be attached to an amp, haha.




Thanks for all the great responses guys, keep em coming! I need some more swaying in one direction or another, haha.

 

[FuseG4]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

how nice is your gigging amp? Are you in love with it or is there something else you'd rather have?

 

[Low_fidelity2100]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

how nice is your gigging amp? Are you in love with it or is there something else you'd rather have?

My Gigging amp right now is an old Fender Bassman 70 (the UL model), through a Sunn 412 cab. An yeah, its actually totally perfect for what I'm doing. Sounds great, and is cleaner than clean all the way up to 7-8 (which is insanely loud at that point). Even full out theres not much dirt coming from the amp. So its perfect for what we're doing.
I need a Loud, Clean amp for everything I do. Get all my dirt from pedals, and use lots of effects in addition to that, so I need a loud super clean amp. Which is why I'm thinking of trading the concert for a twin of some sort (probably a late silver face UL model). For smaller shows and practices.

I honestly can't think of an amp that would fulfill my needs better (in a gig situation) than that Bassman....cept possibly a Bassman 135, which is the same thing only louder, haha (though I don't think I need quite that much volume). So a Late model SF Twin 135 or similar would be perfect for smaller shows/practices. An being as no one else seems to want the UL amps, it seems like it wouldn't be to hard to trade the concert for one.

 

[FuseG4]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

An being as no one else seems to want the UL amps, it seems like it wouldn't be to hard to trade the concert for one.

yeah UL just doesn't do it for most people.
I dunno though you just gotta play the crap outta the concert amp for a week or something. You'll come up with the answer. it must have some unique sounds versus say an OD pedal into the bassman. You just gotta make sure you know if you'll ever need to use that sound again. if the answer is no, then you should just sell the amp.
You may not need more amp than the bassman, so it could be that you'll just have a lil chunk of spending money from the sale. If the bassman works you probably don't need anything bigger or badder. Unless you ran a twin reverb with it in stereo.

 

[Low_fidelity2100]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

yeah UL just doesn't do it for most people.
I dunno though you just gotta play the crap outta the concert amp for a week or something. You'll come up with the answer. it must have some unique sounds versus say an OD pedal into the bassman. You just gotta make sure you know if you'll ever need to use that sound again. if the answer is no, then you should just sell the amp.
You may not need more amp than the bassman, so it could be that you'll just have a lil chunk of spending money from the sale. If the bassman works you probably don't need anything bigger or badder. Unless you ran a twin reverb with it in stereo.

No I defiantly don't need anything bigger or badder....but I do need a backup to the Bassman. Can't really gig/tour without a backup amp, haha. Maybe I'll just sell the concert and buy a second Bassman cheap, as a backup, and a cheap 212 for practices/small shows? I dunno.

And yeah, the concert does definately have a different sound than running dirt boxes into the bassman. Though not a sound I ever have a use for with my band.
I'm running a Swollen Pickle MkII into the bassman as my main dirt. I don't like tube distortion, or OD pedals (though I do use a TS clone into the SPmkII for certain things)...I just like the sound of clean tube amps, with fuzz boxes in front of them. The Concert just doesn't have enough clean headroom for that unfortunately.
I mean if I was playing in a classic rock/blues cover band or something, the concert would be the perfect amp. But, I don't see my self doing that, ever really.

 

[kjrocks]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

I thought I'd always read those Concerts had beautiful cleans and at 60watts you'd think it would be plenty loud. It sounds like you're only needing it as a backup and as long as your Bassman has a good track record what are the odds of needing it much? A backup is just that a backup. If you dont have the cash for exactly what you want why give it up? Could a speaker swap help you out at all?

 

[guitfiddle]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

I've had my Fender Concert for almost 8 years now...and its just falling short in pretty much every aspect, as far as what I need.
Not to say its a bad amp, its still a great amp. Just not great for what I'm doing right now. So more and more lately I've been considering selling/trading it for a Twin Reverb.
I've just been feeling like what I need for my sound is a super loud clean amp with TONS of headroom (which the concert doesn't really have),

You might try to find a Music Man HD-130 or HD-150. They are VERY loud, clean amps that can still do OD with their preamp, and go for probably less $$ than a Bassman 135. Plus, they come in either 2x12, or 2x10 combos. Good stuff.

 

[Gr8Scott]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

Yep. I sold my Peavey Classic 50 2x12 and I loved that amp. It has amazing cleans and is a really good amp overall. It just has a distortion channel that wasn't well suited for the type of music I like. I wanted a Marshall sound and it wasn't delivering. This was before there were pedals that would turn just about any clean amp into a Marshall like the PlexiTone by Carl Martin or the Hot British. I look back and kind of kick myself for selling it every once in a while, but I do have some phenomenal amps now and it really would not be necessary to keep it. I do still wish I could have kept the Silvertone 1482 I had. I love those little amps.

I can thank a whole list of users on this board who lead me to buy the great amps I now have. Gearjoneser is chief among them. His advice has never lead me astray. Many others have pointed me in the right direction also.

I've been thinking of selling off a few different amps to get a JCM-900 Mk III sometime. I really would enjoy one of those in either 50 or 100w head config. I think that would end my amp purchases right there. I would then have all the truly great classic amp bases covered. Marshall JCM 800/900 - JTM-45 - Vox AC30 - Fender Bassman (AA864). The JTM-45 is a very different amp from the JCM 800/900 mk III in terms of tone.

 

[guitfiddle]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

Yep. I sold my Peavey Classic 50 2x12 and I loved that amp. It has amazing cleans and is a really good amp overall. It just has a distortion channel that wasn't well suited for the type of music I like. I wanted a Marshall sound and it wasn't delivering.

I think the reason you got rid of your C-50 is the very thing that makes me like mine...it's much smoother and warmer than most Marshalls I hear, and still sounds different than Fender style OD...grindier. Love it.

 

[Low_fidelity2100]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

I thought I'd always read those Concerts had beautiful cleans and at 60watts you'd think it would be plenty loud. It sounds like you're only needing it as a backup and as long as your Bassman has a good track record what are the odds of needing it much? A backup is just that a backup. If you dont have the cash for exactly what you want why give it up? Could a speaker swap help you out at all?

Yeah, the concert does have great cleans...and at 60watts I certainly thought it'd be loud enough, haha...but oddly enough its just not. I am going to try a speaker swap before I decide for sure whether I'm gonna let it go or not...Right now its got an emience V12 in it, which I think is adding to the breakup earlier than I'd like...so I've got an EVM12L on the way to try out in it an see what happens (totally not looking forward to the extra weight though, haha)....if that doesn't work, I'll probably let it go. I don't need it just as a backup, I also need it for practices and small shows, and its just not cutting it.

You might try to find a Music Man HD-130 or HD-150. They are VERY loud, clean amps that can still do OD with their preamp, and go for probably less $$ than a Bassman 135. Plus, they come in either 2x12, or 2x10 combos. Good stuff.

Yeah, I'll have to check into those. Thanks for the suggestions...I've never really played through many musicman amps, so I dunno what to expect though...Those have solid state Pre's right? Do they still cop a decent Fender style clean?

 

[guitfiddle]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

Yeah, I'll have to check into those. Thanks for the suggestions...I've never really played through many musicman amps, so I dunno what to expect though...Those have solid state Pre's right? Do they still cop a decent Fender style clean?

Very much so. The pres are nice and clean with the master high, but can be overdriven much like a TS into a Twin at lower volumes. Very versatile from dead clean to howling OD. The opamps can be changed out for more flavors, but they all reside in the Fender camp...after all, it was Leo's company.

 

[Red_Label]

Re: Ever consider selling an amp you thought you'd NEVER sell?

Years ago, my dream amp was an H&K Triamp Mk I. I finally bought one from a buddy. Came with a custom-built road case for a total of $1100. He'd had the MIDI module put in as well as a few other options. Was a good deal. Had it for about a year and then decided to sell it when I thought my band was finished. Got like $1700 for it on Ebay, so I felt good about it. Then we deicided to keep the band going and I regretted selling it. Sill do!

So my dream amp ever since has been a Bogner Shiva. So I bought one a month ago. And though I LOVE it, I won't say that selling it hasn't already crossed my mind. I'm such a b#stard! The grass is always greener. I just can't come to grips with the fact that I've acquired my dream amp. So the qwest must continue! But IF I end-up deciding to try something else now, I'd make sure to spend some time with whatever I THINK that I want first. Cause I'm very happy with the Bogner. It's just a mental thing with me that the grass MUST be greener than whatever pasture I'm in at the moment.

Right now I'm jonezing for a classic Marshall of some sort. I've got the Bogner for a good Fender/Marshall switcher. And I just bought a Fender Twin Reverb Reissue for the pure Fender clean thing. So now I think I want a pure Marshall for that tone. I'm thinking a 1987x or a 1959SLP. JTM45 is also a candidate. The wife's gonna hate me...l