Laney VH and GH

[zippy]

Ok, I know I've made ALOT of these amp topics.. but I keep discovering more prospects :smack: .... Anyway, what do you all think about Laney amps for metal? Especially the VH100R, and GH series amps. They seem to go reasonably cheap (like 300-350). The GH seem to be cheaper, but they only have one channel, so; does that mean I can't switch from clean to high gain quickly? And how do they compare to the 5150's and Blue Voodoo's? The VH100R seems especially promising..I've heard its more versatile, and it gets great reviews on Harmony Central.. but I have a HUGE amount of distrust for HC. So, I'm asking you guys for advice. :thanks:

 

[drew_half_empty]

Re: Laney?

Re: Laney?

john 5 uses laneys on vertigo

i find them to sound kinda buzzy, but maybe thats just how he has them set

 

[JeffB]

Re: Laney VH and GH

I haven't played or owned a Laney in many many years, but I was always impressed with the sounds for the most part. I had a 30 watt combo w/ 6v6s that in retrospect sounded great, but at the time I just didn't care for anything besides EL34s. I had one of their 100 watt heads too (forget the model #), with EL34's and really liked it. Kinda like a 800 series Marshall with a bit more gain and a bit more lows and presence. Only reason I got rid of it was because you had to crank it (just like any tube amp), and it was too loud for what I needed at the time. Had their been a Marshall PB or similar attentuator at the time, I'd prolly still have it.

Check out Chris Snider's amp clips page HERE and scroll down to the Laney clips. He's been posting over on HC about it as well.

I would buy another in a heartbeat assuming they still sound as nice.

 

[zippy]

Re: Laney VH and GH

I haven't played or owned a Laney in many many years, but I was always impressed with the sounds for the most part. I had a 30 watt combo w/ 6v6s that in retrospect sounded great, but at the time I just didn't care for anything besides EL34s. I had one of their 100 watt heads too (forget the model #), with EL34's and really liked it. Kinda like a 800 series Marshall with a bit more gain and a bit more lows and presence. Only reason I got rid of it was because you had to crank it (just like any tube amp), and it was too loud for what I needed at the time. Had their been a Marshall PB or similar attentuator at the time, I'd prolly still have it.

Check out Chris Snider's amp clips page HERE and scroll down to the Laney clips. He's been posting over on HC about it as well.

I would buy another in a heartbeat assuming they still sound as nice.

Yeah, the clips sound nice.. but the whole 1 channel thing with the GH's bothers me..

 

[Fatty]

Re: Laney VH and GH

The VH100R is an awesome amp. There's quite a few options on it (5 efx loops, switchable drive on each channel, bright switch, etc.), so there's definately a lot of ways to find a sound that works for you. They're pretty reasonably priced too (should be able to find one for about $900 brand new.. a few pop up on ebay from time to time around the $600-700 range).

It is a brighter amp, but can still dial in a very nice thump and crunch. I had mine set up with EL34's, and was very happy with it.

They're REALLY loud too.. when I had mine, I was able to play gigs with the volume set right around 4. :saeek:

 

[zippy]

Re: Laney VH and GH

The VH100R is an awesome amp. There's quite a few options on it (5 efx loops, switchable drive on each channel, bright switch, etc.), so there's definately a lot of ways to find a sound that works for you. They're pretty reasonably priced too (should be able to find one for about $900 brand new.. a few pop up on ebay from time to time around the $600-700 range).

It is a brighter amp, but can still dial in a very nice thump and crunch. I had mine set up with EL34's, and was very happy with it.

They're REALLY loud too.. when I had mine, I was able to play gigs with the volume set right around 4. :saeek:

600-700 you say?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=10171&item=3770743907&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW

Or is that just a fluke or something?.. or maybe something is wrong with it
Also, a few of the reviewers on HC claim to have gotten it for similiar amounts..

 

[bvc310]

Re: Laney VH and GH

600-700 you say?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=10171&item=3770743907&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW

Or is that just a fluke or something?.. or maybe something is wrong with it
Also, a few of the reviewers on HC claim to have gotten it for similiar amounts..

Thats pretty low. I just sold my Gh100l for 450 on ebay a week or 2 ago. BTW that auction is not over and will go up quite a bit more as the last day comes to an end. Dont trust the amount listed until a few hours before the auction is over for an accurate amount. Most of the time, there are several people watching it and trying to snipe it out so it may go up quite a bit in a matter of minutes.

 

[zippy]

Re: Laney VH and GH

Thats pretty low. I just sold my Gh100l for 450 on ebay a week or 2 ago. BTW that auction is not over and will go up quite a bit more as the last day comes to an end. Dont trust the amount listed until a few hours before the auction is over for an accurate amount. Most of the time, there are several people watching it and trying to snipe it out so it may go up quite a bit in a matter of minutes.

^ I realize that, but this guy's reserve is already met at 315 :saeek:

 

[Fatty]

Re: Laney VH and GH

600-700 you say?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=10171&item=3770743907&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW

Or is that just a fluke or something?.. or maybe something is wrong with it
Also, a few of the reviewers on HC claim to have gotten it for similiar amounts..

Generally, that's what I've seen them going for. Check the completed auctions too.. I see one went for $475.. which is definately on the low end of the spectrum. I sold mine for either $550 or $600 (don't remember offhand) There's always a deal to be had!

 

[Biu]

Re: Laney VH and GH

Paul Gilbert uses the GH amp and his tone is righteous! He's a minimalist when it comes to external FX and whatnot, so you might wanna check out some recent Racer X and Paul Gilbert solo works to get a feel for what the amp sounds like.

I believe Andy Timmons uses the VH, correct? His sound is beautiful!

 

[Biu]

Re: Laney VH and GH

Oh, as for sounding like a 5150, don't Laney's sound more like beefy Marshalls? That's what I've heard at least.

 

[DirrtyCraig]

Re: Laney VH and GH

I'm a big fan of Gilberts tone on Superheroes, but the tone on Getting Heavier was awful. I thought the amp was solid state until I checked into them. Not a bad sound, very similar to a 5150 but tighter on the bottom end. If you really wanna hear that amp, check out the Racer-X DVD Snowball of Doom. Its like $40.00 (import) on amazon.com but worth it if your a fan. He plays completly dry as a bone except once in a while he stomps on an ADA flanger.

 

[Biu]

Re: Laney VH and GH

Yes, I love the loose feel of my 5150. It's so airy and big sounding for leads

Anyway, good luck with the Ebaying for Laney. Seems more people are catching on to their bargain-worthiness, so it will probably be a little harder to snipe one out.

 

[JeffB]

Re: Laney VH and GH

Yeah, the clips sound nice.. but the whole 1 channel thing with the GH's bothers me..

Well certainly you lose some versatility with a one channel amp..but IME you gain "character"...the best sounding tube amps IME tend to be the simplest. Start getting too many knobs/switches/circuitry and you lose "tone". At least among the stuff I've owned. Perhaps thats improved on more modern amps from Rivera, Mesa, etc.

That said, I'm looking for a more versatile amp myself at the moment.

 

[Imp]

Re: Laney VH and GH

+1, i've never found a 'warm blues breakup' i liked on a 2 channel amp.. y'know, clean when you play gently, and that warm growl when you dig in..

 

[zippy]

Re: Laney VH and GH

Well certainly you lose some versatility with a one channel amp..but IME you gain "character"...the best sounding tube amps IME tend to be the simplest. Start getting too many knobs/switches/circuitry and you lose "tone". At least among the stuff I've owned. Perhaps thats improved on more modern amps from Rivera, Mesa, etc.

That said, I'm looking for a more versatile amp myself at the moment.

Well, that would be fine.. but again, I play alot of stuff where I jump from clean to distortion instantly... can you do that on a one channel amp? I thought u had to lower the gain and roll back the volume..?

 

[Imp]

Re: Laney VH and GH

or use a pedal, this dept. is where the tubescreamer in particular excels

 

[zippy]

Re: Laney VH and GH

^ I'd really rather not use a pedal..

 

[Imp]

Re: Laney VH and GH

another solution might be a dual-amp setup? dave grohl and the guys from thursday use a seperate AC30 for cleans..

it might be totally impracticable, but it's a possibility

have you looked at the ashdown fallen angel series? also made in england, i love the peacemaker range they do..

 

[zippy]

Re: Laney VH and GH

Isn't the Ashdown more of a Nu-Metal amp? They way they describe it.. it sounds like it would be a muddy mess.