NAD - Laney IRT Studio

Phantasmagoria

Phantasmagoria

watch where you point that sabre
Got this off a local music store's classified's @ half the price of a new one. It's in mint condition & works/sounds great! I already have a 120 Watt Ironheart head that is fantastic & I love. But this has a few features that make it an awesome recording/Re-amping tool (see specs below) so I've always kinda been vaguely on the lookout for one @ a decent price & I just got lucky :bigthumb:

It came in a couple of days later than expected just as I was starting to get worried haha. But finally arrived this morning ...so all's well that ends well.

From the little time I've spent w/ it so far (not much) it seems about the same as it's big brother both in terms of tone & feel. I guess more differences will become apparent if you crank the two of them up ( 120W vs. 15 W /6l6's vs. El84's) but @ recording/bedroom volumes they're practically indistinguishable from each other...not kidding.



Here's a short clip I did pretty much as soon as I unpacked it basically to check that it was working...just the amp plugged into my Vox 1x12 Cab w/ a Celestion Redback & mic'd with an SM57 (No effects)




KEY FEATURES
  • Premium Hand selected ECC83 & EL84 tubes
  • Dummy load – silent running
  • Plugs straight into your computer
  • The Ultimate Fly rig
  • Tube loaded
  • GB-2U carry case optional extra
  • Rack wings supplied
  • Extension speaker socket: 1 x 16 Ohm & 1 x 8 Ohm
  • FX loop series/switchable level
  • Phones
  • XLR DI out, Post output with switchable cabinet emulation
  • Studio quality digital reverb
  • FS4-IRT included
  • MP3/Aux In
  • Speaker emulated record out
  • PC/MAC/iPad/Android compatible
​
 
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cool. so yours was more in the $500 range? that seems more logical than the SW price for a 15 watt amp

the features look impressive
 
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Erlend_G said:
congrats :)
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Thanks!

DankStar said:
cool. so yours was more in the $500 range? that seems more logical than the SW price for a 15 watt amp

the features look impressive, although that seems a stretch to be billed as the ultimate fly rig - it's a huge piece of rack gear lol ("pardon me sir, can you put this on your lap while I buckle up")
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Yeah, Just about $500,which seems like fair price for it. I would'nt pay the $1000 they're going for new nowadays, especially since I already have my IRT 120 head (which cost a little over a grand itself when I bought it new about 3 years ago).

lol, yeah it's no fly rig ...it's as big as my stereo..:laugh2:

But it is still actually a pretty cool/space saving form factor. I don't have a rack so I just bought a cheap $15 "laptop table" (metal frame w/ plastic/melamine top) off Amazon to put it on (no way it would fit on my desk) ..and that's where it is right now by the side of my desk on the same level so I can hook it up by USB to my comp and also run it into my Two notes Captor X (on my desk) for recording..Got my Vox Night train 50 & 1x12 cab just under it. Turned out to be a pretty snug little set up.. :lmao:

Still have to hook everything up though. I'm just running it into my 1x12 cab now...


IMG-20231116-122348-BURST01-COVER.jpg
 
Oh and I hooked it up briefly to my Peavey 4x12 last night. I was shocked how HUGE it sounded. It really crushes for rhythm too. Nice & meaty/growly.

These Ironheart's are actually pretty sick amps. The lead tones are some of the best I've heard come out of anything & they are awesome for rhythm as well. Thick & juicy with nice grindy mids..

I'm actually shocked as how little difference there is in sound/feel between the 120W & this little 15W head. It sounds just as thick and meaty with the same (if not more) killer overtones for solo's& grinding mids...and if anything it's even gainier,. especially on the 1W setting...(which is very usable and sounds great btw)


Here's a short & sweet YT demo I found that's minus studio magic and makes it sound pretty much like it does in the room



And yeah ..shockingly good lead tones :bigthumb:


I'm already thinking about the 60W SS Ironheart's as well :lmao:
 
I guess this is some kinda touchy-feely/lovey-dovey romantic Jazz (??)

There's a first time for everything :bigthumb:



Just some onboard reverb..no other fx. Otherwise the same setup as my last vid. Guitar's my Grote Semi-hollow ('Rocket Queen' A2 neck pup from Fokin pickups)
 
Where can you get the 60-watter for $250? They're retailing for $1300+ in the States.

If I didn't get your joke, I apologize.
 
I meant these Solid State heads not the 60W tube head. They're 60W SS versions of the Ironheart amp's...

..

Smaller single channel one is $150 & $250 for the bigger 2 channel one.

I think they sound pretty sweet :bigthumb:
 
I'dtry switching your preamp tubes or something...

This thing has more gain on tap than I'll ever need for leads (or anything)..same w/ my 120W head..Never use anything but the onboard boost (and I usually have that off too though I hink it sounds great w/ it ON a well...

Another go w/ the romantic Jazz & the Grote. (cuz...why not?) Same settings on the amp ...just ran it through an Ozone preset when I was done... :bigthumb:

 
Another cool thing I really like about the amp (and this goes for the 120W head as well) is how self-contained it is. You don't need a bunch of pedals or filters/effects/studio magic to get a great tone out of it. I mean, ^^ that's a studio-level lead tone up there with just some onboard reverb from the amp & a mastering preset.
 
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Done w/ the romantic jazz. I mean, it had it's novelty and the tone was sweet (playing could'nt have been too bad either or I'd have had my buddies Clint & GuitarDoc in here in a trice to *****h about all the "wrong" notes/poor phrasing and stuff :laugh2:) but I won't lie after a jam or two it got boring really fast ...time to move on..

Don't know how Clint manages to plonk this stuff out all day long on his organ w/o slipping into a coma...but eh, to each their own :bigthumb:

Back to the fun stuff.... :D


This one was w/ my screamin' Jem Woody & just the IRT Studio/Vox 1x12:

 
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Top-L said:
I have the 60watt tube version. Its very versatile but needs a boost for my leads.
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Come to think of it, when they first came out w/ the Ironheart's (10-15yrs ago?) I was really gassing for one..cuz of the price & how wicked they looke:laugh2:

But when I went down to the store that had them and tried the demo amp ( it was a 60W head)...it sounded like arse.....thin/anemic/trebly & lacking gain/any kind of balls. It was enough to keep me away from them for more than a decade...until I noticed that they actually sounded nothing like I remembered in just about all of the YT video's. So back to the store I went. Plugged in to a 120W head and man...i was glorious! I got a new boxed piece delivered to my home two days later...The rest is history :lmao:

With hindsight I'm pretty damned sure something was badly wrong w/the first 60W head I tried years ago (bad tube, speaker cable, blown tranny or something else). I seriously would have your's looked at if I were you. These are as gainy as anything out there (Mesa's, Peavey's, Engl's etc)..with super-saturated lightning-fluid lead tones..
 
Make no mistake ..this is a sick high gain amp...as gainy as anything out there.


But you seem to be describing JCM 800 levels of gain :confused:


Something has to be wrong...
 

I try and play as many of my guitars speedily (but also melodically) w/e possible through new amps for the sake of education :bigthumb:
 
Sometimes folk mistake ^^ that for 'self indulgence' on my part or a desire to inflate my post count (eh, why?) ...but of course they're wrong about that (cuz of neonatal injury) and I always try not to hold that against them :)
 
This one's the same thing with the EQ tweaked a bit, nudged the bass up slightly and pushed the mids up from around 4 to 8. Also engaged the onboard boost (@ about 4) and dialed the treble & gain back slightly for a smoother fatter tone. Onboard reverb was at 1 (should have nudged it a bit higher up maybe) Dynamics down to 2 from about 7 before.

 
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