Low wattage tube amps

[Infinite Dreams]

i'm looking to get some type of tube amp that i could crank in my bedroom and try to keep to a minimal volume (say 3-5 watts). where should i look for these things and what type would you recommend? do they come in as combo's or would i have to plug it into a cab? all i can ever see to find are 30 watt stuff. thanks everyone.
Drew

 

[StrykeBack]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

yeah I thought I was getting low wattage when I bought my ashdown peacemaker that was "only" 20 watts...damn, I need to go in another room just to have it cracked half way up

 

[ericmeyer4]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

i bought a fender vibrochamp.. 6 watts... plenty of volume for bed rooms/jamping... my advice is to look for some type of champ... lots of crunch and nice cleans.

 

[Ez74]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

bad cat makes either a 5 watt or an 8 watt amp... but it will run you over $500

i'd say get a modeling amp and some headphones

 

[Neeradj]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

Fender Blues Jr (15W I believe) or Cornford Harlequin (6 Watts I think). The Cornford is expensive but really for the sounds you can get out of that box, man people just couldn't complain

 

[Brow]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

A Z Vex Nano Head at 1/2w would be awesome. I've heard some clips of this amp through an Orange 4x12 and it sounds great

 

[StrykeBack]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

I've got a friend with one of those fender champs, the little skinny ones and its got plenty of tone.

 

[Imp]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

Z-VEX nano? 0.5 watts of valve lol

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

A small wattage amp that's also inexpensive is the Electro Harmonix Freedom amp.

 

[Hellion]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

If you get a tube amp that has a cascading volume system (like a Mesa Boogie or a Fender 75, which was Fender's answer to a Mesa), you can get as much gain as you like but still have the volume around speaking level. You just keep the master low and adjust the gain with the other volumes.

 

[Infinite Dreams]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

Check this out:
http://www.adirondackguitar.com/amps/koch/pedaltone.htm

ouch, a little over budget at 850, but it seems like a nice little deal. The blues jr looks like a good deal for the price, how do they sound? i think i would be looking for a combo amp, i don't have a cab to plug it into, other than plugging into my flextone II 1x12.

 

[Ice Man]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

Check out all the Fender Champs available on Ebay.

 

[B2D]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

Fender Champs are the way to go here. Little old Princetons are cool too.

Blues Jrs are nice but 15w cranked is still enough to annoy people and wake them up.

 

[jeremy]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

yeah, what b2d said.
i got a jr and use it on small gigs. not a good bedroom amp if you really want to open it up.
if you really want good cranked amp bedroom tone, you want 6w maximum and even that could be a little loud if it has an efficient speaker

 

[Neeradj]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

ouch, a little over budget at 850, but it seems like a nice little deal. The blues jr looks like a good deal for the price, how do they sound? i think i would be looking for a combo amp, i don't have a cab to plug it into, other than plugging into my flextone II 1x12.

850? Are you kidding me? These things don't retail for that price here in Holland (ok, maybe because they're made here), but anyhow I think they're something in range of 400 euros (that's a little more than 400 US). I'll check on that when i get the chance

 

[Infinite Dreams]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

850? Are you kidding me? These things don't retail for that price here in Holland (ok, maybe because they're made here), but anyhow I think they're something in range of 400 euros (that's a little more than 400 US). I'll check on that when i get the chance

now that i look at it i think that 850 might be the MSRP. anyone have any clips from a fender champ amp?

 

[B2D]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

I'll second what people have said about Cornfords... Joe Satriani is a fan of them and he uses them all the time on hsi records and they sound amazing. Check out Wells amps too.

 

[Stratcat]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

Check out all the Fender Champs available on Ebay.

:wink:

 

[Mkf411]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

This one is supposed to sweet little tube amp: http://emerysound.com/Microbaby.html

On amptone.com they say a 5 watt amp is about as loud a trumpet at full volume. This is pretty loud for apartment use. You might get away with it in a house, if your neighbors aren't too close.

I think low volume tube tone is the "holy grail". I haven't found it yet and am ready to give up. After I check out the Fender Champs and Princetons on e-bay that is.

 

[Infinite Dreams]

Re: Low wattage tube amps

man i wish i had some more dough for all this stuff you guys are pointing out. in my search for a small wattage tube amp, i think the price is more of a factor than the volume. i'm looking for around the 250 to 300 range.