Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

[TwilightOdyssey]

Picked up a Blackstar Fly 3 for hobo rehearsals in the park and general purpose grotbox use. Going to get the extension cab. Does what it's supposed to do -- the ported cab does add a bit of depth to the proceedings. For a $60 amplifier, this is not going to set the world on fire, nor is it meant to, I think. But it does have a kind of SansAmp type of sound that I find satisfying.

 

[JeffB]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

I have the core 10. they sound much better than the price would make you think.

frankly I feel Blackstar SS amps sound better than any of their HT or higher end tube amps.

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

Could be; I got this purely based on the fact that I can play backing tracks from Cubasis and it's loud enough to cut through the ambient noise when I'm jamming in the park.

 

[kramersteen]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

i have one of those.

 

[kramersteen]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

frankly I feel Blackstar SS amps sound better than any of their HT or higher end tube amps.

Frankly Frank i think you're wrong.

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

i have one of those.

What do you use yours for?

 

[JeffB]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

Frankly Frank i think you're wrong.

You are entitled to your incorrect opinion Sir

On a serious note, I do prefer the ID series over every other Blackstar in the HT series I have tried 1/5/20/60 and 50w head...and feel they compare favorably with the series one. which are 3-4 times as much $.

 

[kramersteen]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

What do you use yours for?

Paper weight haha. I use it as a pickup testing amp after i do my failed wiring jobs.

You are entitled to your incorrect opinion Sir

On a serious note, I do prefer the ID series over every other Blackstar in the HT series I have tried 1/5/20/60 and 50w head...and feel they compare favorably with the series one. which are 3-4 times as much $.

I haven't tried the ID but i bet it's awesome.

 

[Lampy H]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

You are entitled to your incorrect opinion Sir

On a serious note, I do prefer the ID series over every other Blackstar in the HT series I have tried 1/5/20/60 and 50w head...and feel they compare favorably with the series one. which are 3-4 times as much $.

I agree with this.

 

[kramersteen]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

it would be because you guys don't understand tube amp.

Sure a ss is fun but it lacks the true magic of the tube. pushing electrons around a tube mmmmm.

 

[Lampy H]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

Okay.

 

[kramersteen]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

Okay.

ok Hit me young lamp

What amps do you own?

I have:

peavey bandit
peavey jsx/5150 cab
blackstar ht1 combo
blackstar fly.

Now lets guess which ones the best?

 

[Lampy H]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

What I did not say: The ID amps beat any tube amp any day of the week.

What I did say: The ID amps sound better to me than the HT series.


I spent a lot of time going back and forth between the ID 60 head and the HT-50 head. At TV volume, as well as what I consider rehearsal volume. I vastly preferred the sound and feel of the ID.

 

[kramersteen]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

What I did not say: The ID amps beat any tube amp any day of the week.

What I did say: The ID amps sound better to me than the HT series.


I spent a lot of time going back and forth between the ID 60 head and the HT-50 head. At TV volume, as well as what I consider rehearsal volume. I vastly preferred the sound and feel of the ID.

To be honest i never really loved the way the ht1 sounded out the box. It's a heap better with a pedal out front as they can be a little flabby sounding.

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

Update: Been jamming with the Fly tonight feeding audio from Cubasis via my iPad into the audio input on the amp, and my guitar plugged into the instrument input. Monitoring both from headphones and through the Fly's speaker yields a very mid-centric audio that is to be expected from a 'grot box' playback system, but there's enough fidelity to hear what's going on without having to crank it or squint to hear the backing tracks.

The amp sim itself is quite satisfying. I need to have a couple of tones, so I am going to see how the amp takes an overdrive pedal for solo boosting, but even playing straight into the Fly yields perfectly acceptable results for rehearsing song at the Dining Room table.

 

[JeffB]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

I run my pedals into the id10. Delay is a little weird...seems to overtly accentuate the simulated tape warble but it likes my ep preamp, chorus and phaser.

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

The Fly has delay which works fine. My favourite practice rig to date because it flawlessly does what it is supposed to do without the distraction of crappy sound.

 

[JeffB]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

The ID core has delay as well as modulations and reverb..in ((((Stereo)))) no less. But I don't care for/use the effects (hard to dial in without using the software editor, and they are post power amp) and I shut down the super wide stereo enhancement through the editor too because it doesn't sound like a guitar amp like that. I use the reverb a bit.




.

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

Going to test the amp w OD tonight.

One thing I have noticed is that, though the amp sounds good, the transient response is not what I am used to at all with valve amps. There is way too much leading edge, which I also hear when using Logic's amp sims.

*shrug*

Is what it is, not knocking it, but it definitely affected my playing and gets fatiguing.

 

[JeffB]

Re: Pretty fly for a white guy -- new practice amp (Blackstar content)

Yeah, it can get a little grating/grinding on the ears. Like you said though, for a cheap practice amp, its hard to criticize it too much.

My EP preamp softens it up a bit, I tend to have it on all the time.