Re: good half stack for under $700
Alright. I see the wattage police have already made their way here. Let me try and undo the damage.
For everyone saying a 15 watt amp is fine if it is mic'ed... did you see who was asking the question, or are you trained to respond that way lol? A7X_Rox is 15, how many "club gigs" or gigs where he'll have a soundman do you think he'll have?
Age doesn't matter. So what if he's only 15. If your just starting gigging and your 30 years old its not like your going to be getting bigger venues. Trust me, I've got plenty of friends who have kids your age that are still playing in little dives to 10 people on a Tuesday night. More power to them because its just about playing for fun though, its not like they are still trying to "make it"
Most bars/clubs that feature live music do have a soundman though. I go to hundreds of shows a year working as a photographer covering the local music scene and I can't think of anywhjere locally that doesn't have a soundman and house PA.
For the sake of argument lets say that its some little dive that doesn't have a soundman or PA. If your playing that small of hole in the wall all you need is a 15 watt combo if that. Your just not going to need anything bigger and the audience isn't going to want be anywhere near a halfstack in a small little dive. Its just too loud.
Also I've got ask, being 15 and guessing your bandmates would be of similar ages, how many of them have half stacks ? Theres no point to having something so powerful if your bandmates are playing combo's. Its not like being able to drown them out will help with the band dynamics.
Best advice is this, get yourself whatever the smallest/lightest/cheapest combo you can that will lets you play whatever sized gigs you have. Put your money into getting the best instrument you can afford.
You'll apprecaite a quality axe 5 or 10 years down the road when whatever amp you've got is long gone.
Trust me, the easier it is to travle with, the more gigs and sessions you'll be willing to play. I had a 1960a cab when I was 17 and it stayed at home 90% of the time because I couldn't get over to friends houses to jam. I didnt have a truck and it wouldnt fit into my honda civic. Its not very rock and roll to have to have your parents drop you off at a house party because you needed the SUV to carry your rig.
You'll just miss out on a lot. Get a great little combo and a good axe and you can go anywhere and play.
When the bigger gigs start coming up, then look into getting some bigger gear if you need it, or seeing if you can mike it.
Hell, I bet in a few years, when you might start getting some bigger gigs if all goes well, they will have pretty amazing DI units. I'm already seeing lots of touring groups using modelers live and it sound spretty good. Give it a few years and I think we'll really have soemthing.
