Small "metal" amp

shark

shark

New member
I currently own an engl powerball, which is a great amp for band practice and gigging, but it's a little too big (and loud) to practice at home... so I'm looking for a small metal amp to practice at home...

I need something which comes close to the distortion I get from my powerball, preferably around 5 to 15 watt. Got some suggestions?
 
Re: Small "metal" amp

As far as I'm concerned, a small 5w tube amp (valve junior, blackheart, etc...) with a good distortion in front (mesa v-twin, duncan twin tube mayhem, etc...) would be what I'd try to get to achieve good metal tones at home-friendlier volumes....

There are probably more expensive amps out there that could do the trick but that's what I'd go for myself...
 
Re: Small "metal" amp

Not sure you'll get something which has the ENGL distortion in 5-15w.

But maybe check out-

Mesa Mark III (the early ones i believe went down to 15w)
Mesa Mark IV (switchable down to 15w although it's a discontinued model)
Orange AD5 (with an EQ and OD pedal in front)
Orange Tiny Terror (with EQ pedal in front and change the speaker to a V30)
Bogner Metropolis (ask GearJoneser since he's the Bogner man on here)
 
Re: Small "metal" amp

That little baby Krank got my attention. I had the Vox VTXL 30 watt and that would be a good choice. Their new amps might sound better?
 
Re: Small "metal" amp

Krank Rev Jnr. is only the low wattage tube amp I can think of that would even get close to the brutality of a Powerball. Anything else and you will be sticking pedals in front of.

If you're content with an "old" high-gain sound, then an Orange Tiny Terror fits the bill very nicely. With high output-pickups and a boost, the TT can go into modern metal territory.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlzYZRsp2yk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMY_vqcx-h0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytvWBcNh4Ak
 
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Re: Small "metal" amp

thx for the tips...

Now I still have to find a way to get rid of that stupid line6 spiderIII, I bought that amp thinking quality doesn't really matter for a practice amp.... but that amp just sounds like plain cr@p :yell:
 
Re: Small "metal" amp

For sitting around the house and small gigs it's hard to beat a Roland Cube 60. I had one for a while and it was a killer little metal monster!
 
Re: Small "metal" amp

Anyone have any experience with the VOX AD15VTXL?

This amp has really caught my eye... it's in an affordable price range... now if I only could figure out if the distortion is any good, because none of the musicstores around here have vox...
 
Re: Small "metal" amp

For practice amps that cover a lot of distorted tones, it's hard to beat the Vox modelers.
I love tube amps, but the problem is that even low wattage tube amps are too much for a home practice amp, and their gain is always too grainy at that volume.

I don't know what Vox was thinking...discontinuing the blue grill models, but those are the ones with the most bells'n'whistles. The way to shape the gain is to combine the OD and amp models in a way that you can control every aspect of the sound and feel.

With unlimited funds, I think the absolute best home rig would be something like a Mesa Triaxis or ENGL preamp, into a low wattage stereo power amp, into 2 1-12 cabs. That would cover everything from home to live, but it'd cost real money.
 
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