Myaccount876
Amira-Maker
Re: Little watt vs. BIG watt. Mesa Boogie and everyone else.
I just like amps that sound good. Small or big.
I just like amps that sound good. Small or big.
Little watt vs. BIG watt. Mesa Boogie and everyone else.
- Thread starter SirJackdeFuzz
- Start date
Wattage
High Voltologist
Re: Little watt vs. BIG watt. Mesa Boogie and everyone else.
My 4x12 lives at rehearsal nowadays. My big rig is a 4x10 cab with an Orange Dual Terror (or my AD30) usually at 15wts but I'll go 30 if I need more bottom end.
I also love the TH30, I just really don't need more than that these days YMMV.
My 4x12 lives at rehearsal nowadays. My big rig is a 4x10 cab with an Orange Dual Terror (or my AD30) usually at 15wts but I'll go 30 if I need more bottom end.
I also love the TH30, I just really don't need more than that these days YMMV.
Re: Little watt vs. BIG watt. Mesa Boogie and everyone else.
I have an Orange AD-140. That's a 140 Watt tube guitar amp, not a bass amp. The > 100 Watt tube guitar models are mostly gone from all manufacturers current production now.
Orange and Matamp were always big on >100 Watt amps. Not so much now.
They still make the AD-30, but the AD-140 is gone.
The only >100 Watt amp they have is the Crush Pro 120, which doesn't count as it's solid state.
The old Orange 120 was produced sporadically until a few years ago.
They do make the AD-200 bass head, which I suppose could be pushed into service in a pinch.
A few pictures of when monsters prowled the Earth
The AD-140 - single channel refined blowtorch of sound
The AD-140tc - Two channels of ear-shattering goodness.
The Orange120 "Graphic" - the original Marshall-killer.
Matamp Green 120
There was also the very rare "Lemon 120" (actually a more modern boutique recreation of an old Orange)
If you squeeze that Lemon 120 until the juice runs down your leg you get ....
This morning at 9 a.m. Pacific time, a sole eBay bidder coughed up a whopping $30,000 for a 1971 200-watt Orange MATAMP purportedly owned and played by Jimmy Page during the band’s glory years. The amp, which appears to be authentic and is apparently in the hands of a private collector, was advertised as “used on the 1971 world tour and subsequent recordings, and can be seen in various stage photos as late as October 1973.” The user-ID of the winning bidder was not disclosed.
Back in the days some amps were consigned to a life of Slavery. Hard to believe, I know:
These were some powerful amps!
I have an Orange AD-140. That's a 140 Watt tube guitar amp, not a bass amp. The > 100 Watt tube guitar models are mostly gone from all manufacturers current production now.
Orange and Matamp were always big on >100 Watt amps. Not so much now.
They still make the AD-30, but the AD-140 is gone.
The only >100 Watt amp they have is the Crush Pro 120, which doesn't count as it's solid state.
The old Orange 120 was produced sporadically until a few years ago.
They do make the AD-200 bass head, which I suppose could be pushed into service in a pinch.
A few pictures of when monsters prowled the Earth
The AD-140 - single channel refined blowtorch of sound
The AD-140tc - Two channels of ear-shattering goodness.
The Orange120 "Graphic" - the original Marshall-killer.
Matamp Green 120
There was also the very rare "Lemon 120" (actually a more modern boutique recreation of an old Orange)
If you squeeze that Lemon 120 until the juice runs down your leg you get ....
This morning at 9 a.m. Pacific time, a sole eBay bidder coughed up a whopping $30,000 for a 1971 200-watt Orange MATAMP purportedly owned and played by Jimmy Page during the band’s glory years. The amp, which appears to be authentic and is apparently in the hands of a private collector, was advertised as “used on the 1971 world tour and subsequent recordings, and can be seen in various stage photos as late as October 1973.” The user-ID of the winning bidder was not disclosed.
Back in the days some amps were consigned to a life of Slavery. Hard to believe, I know:
These were some powerful amps!
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Re: Little watt vs. BIG watt. Mesa Boogie and everyone else.
And of course to support that sonic power some seriously overbuilt cabs were needed.
It still sickens my heart to see Orange slant-cabs!
View attachment 85990
And of course to support that sonic power some seriously overbuilt cabs were needed.
It still sickens my heart to see Orange slant-cabs!
View attachment 85990
Re: Little watt vs. BIG watt. Mesa Boogie and everyone else.
Playing at basement volumes there's no justification for a high wattage amp. But if you gig and jam in a band...there's no replacement for more power tubes.
The headroom difference is night and day. The difference between 50 and 100W is huge. I'd imagine a cranked 25W mini head would sound like **** compared to the big heads.
Playing at basement volumes there's no justification for a high wattage amp. But if you gig and jam in a band...there's no replacement for more power tubes.
The headroom difference is night and day. The difference between 50 and 100W is huge. I'd imagine a cranked 25W mini head would sound like **** compared to the big heads.
Re: Little watt vs. BIG watt. Mesa Boogie and everyone else.
I agree.
They can sound darned good but they sure don't have the same feel.
50w is really the sweet spot for my own usage and tones.
I agree.
They can sound darned good but they sure don't have the same feel.
50w is really the sweet spot for my own usage and tones.
Re: Little watt vs. BIG watt. Mesa Boogie and everyone else.
ill never be without at least one four big bottle amp but i barely ever use it. in my blues/rock world my 20w deluxe reverb with a good speaker is enough 95% of the time. the only time i drag out the dual showman reverb and 2x12 is for big outside stages where im playing multiple sets. if im doing one 50-75 minute festival set, its easier to run the deluxe but if im gonna be playing two or three longer sets, its nice to have the horsepower of a big amp. with the 20w amp i can run straight in and turn the amp up, pedals are required for the showman since that thing turned up is blisteringly loud. also totally ****in glorious to play through
ill never be without at least one four big bottle amp but i barely ever use it. in my blues/rock world my 20w deluxe reverb with a good speaker is enough 95% of the time. the only time i drag out the dual showman reverb and 2x12 is for big outside stages where im playing multiple sets. if im doing one 50-75 minute festival set, its easier to run the deluxe but if im gonna be playing two or three longer sets, its nice to have the horsepower of a big amp. with the 20w amp i can run straight in and turn the amp up, pedals are required for the showman since that thing turned up is blisteringly loud. also totally ****in glorious to play through
Re: Little watt vs. BIG watt. Mesa Boogie and everyone else.
I sold my big amps 25 years ago. I use my Mesa Blue Angel for gigs that I actually take an amp, and set it on 18 watts, which gets plenty loud, and has excellent power tube breakup (no master volume). If I am not using an amp, I just go direct. There will always be people who buy 150 watt amps, but I never see them on the stages I play at, so my guess is that they remain in basements across the world.
I sold my big amps 25 years ago. I use my Mesa Blue Angel for gigs that I actually take an amp, and set it on 18 watts, which gets plenty loud, and has excellent power tube breakup (no master volume). If I am not using an amp, I just go direct. There will always be people who buy 150 watt amps, but I never see them on the stages I play at, so my guess is that they remain in basements across the world.
Re: Little watt vs. BIG watt. Mesa Boogie and everyone else.
Big amps aren't going anywhere. The little 15/20 watters just don't have the same kind of punchy boldness on the low-end under high gain. Volume isn't an issue, provided the master volume is designed properly -- the 5150 III, Ironheart, Uberschall/Twin Jet, Herbert, etc. all prove that you can get a high-watt amp to sound right at low volumes, provided it's designed correctly.
Big amps aren't going anywhere. The little 15/20 watters just don't have the same kind of punchy boldness on the low-end under high gain. Volume isn't an issue, provided the master volume is designed properly -- the 5150 III, Ironheart, Uberschall/Twin Jet, Herbert, etc. all prove that you can get a high-watt amp to sound right at low volumes, provided it's designed correctly.
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