Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

I'm glad I saw this thread, because it alerted me to the Laney Ironheart IRT-Studio.

I really want to try one. From the clips, I still find myself liking the gain tone of the H&K Tube Meister......it's a bit more classic and less modern metal than the Laney.

 

[CTN]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

Find a Zinky Blue Velvet 25 watter.
I own a combo and it's the amp i will never part with.
GREAT crunch tones at shockingly low levels but also well able to get LOUD when needed. Gain is nuts and more than I could ever use but when you back it down will get a nice edgie breakup.
I right now own a JCA 22H and a Peavy Ultra + head the Zinky has MUCH more gain on tap than both but also responds to touch and technique better than both.
Then there are the cleans--. Bruce ran the fender CS for a number of years sand was the mastermind behind the Prosonic, Tonemaster , Vibro King and several other of the best amps that IMO Fender ever did.
Then there is the little factor of a LIFETIME TRANSFERABLE Warranty!!
New these will run you around $1500 but used they are well in the range you are talking and there is NOTHING else out there that will touch these amps!
Here is a camera mic recording of my 1/12 combo unmiced in a HUGE room that was once the lower lobby of a hospital. Only effects are a delay and the wah.

iiiiinteresting. And I see there is a dealer in Toronto. I'll have to go check it out if they have any in stock.

Gotta say though, that I've NEVER seen one of these in the used market here.

 

[Soulcrusher_X]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

yep I knew all that couldn't be arsed to get into all that modding though.

Yeah, it can be a little overwhelming sometimes, rather than just plug n play n rule all. Just thought I would share. At any rate, those Laneys do look and sound sweet. I'd like to try one. I'm a closet Laney fan.

 

[Soulcrusher_X]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

Didnt know you were running an ultra plus Bro! Great, underrated amps.. My local GC just sold a used one for like $299. I really like mine. Matter of fact, Im gonna drag it back out pretty soon cuz Im getting fed up with my splawn going in the shop..

Uh oh. What's wrong with the Splawn?

 

[Kam]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

The **** is that dude with the Hayden telling us about his strap and guitar stand? What a ******licker.

ahhhh ok. So theoretically you could get a tight heavy distortion by using the boost on the tubemeister and lowering the OD channel gain?

Theoretically and realistically.

You'd have to play it for yourself to see if it works for you, though. I play a lot of heavy **** too, but I don't usually use a lot of gain to do it. The Tubemeister has way more than I need on tap, and a surprising amount of low end. I find it pretty tight and I find the chugs satisfyingly chuggy. However, what's heavy and tight for me probably falls short of what a lot of heavy metal dudes require.

To be honest, I consider the clean channel worth the price alone.

I think it will probably work really well for you, but I wouldn't recommend buying one without playing it first.

I will say, however, that the clip you posted on the first page is pretty accurate and sounds very close to how it does in real life. It's a bit warmer and smoother through my rig (I'm running it through a 1x12" with a WGS ET-65.)

Dual Terror yes, seemed interesting, but not enough gain on tap, and no fx loop. If they made a Dual Dark Terror, I'd be very interested. the Dark terror is fantastic.

Tell me about it. If the Dual Terror had a loop, I'd have bought one years ago. :banghead:

I like the Tube Meister 18, but would be more inclined to buy the 36 because it's got more headroom, and still has the power scaling. A Tube Meister 36 on a 212 cab sounds like a very versatile rig.....especially since you can hook up a MIDI foot controller and store a lot of settings. You can't do that on the 18.

The seperate EQ for each channel is a nice feature too. It's not a huge deal, as I the 18 isn't the hardest amp to dial in, but it's still something I'd like to have.

 

[Kam]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

I dig this clip of the Engl...

 

[Ascension]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

iiiiinteresting. And I see there is a dealer in Toronto. I'll have to go check it out if they have any in stock.

Gotta say though, that I've NEVER seen one of these in the used market here.

There is a twin to mine on ebay right now, it is only a day out and the bid is at $500 might want to watch it as it might go cheap!
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Zinky-Blue-...927?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item20d3938527

 

[Frogman]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

HOVERCRAFT DWARVENAUT 20!!!

 

[JeffB]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

I got the Tubemeister myself recently. It has totally exceeded my expectations and is the solution to my amp problems since I stopped being able.to use my 1987, thirteen years ago. The 5w setting is quite good (biggest sounding lunchbox I have handled by far at that kind of wattage), and even the 1w sounds decent. I actually prefer the tone in 5w over the 18w setting, because it is working the power section hetter and you can really hear and feel it.its more juicy like a variac.

Oor styles are very different, and I voice mine ike a hot rod plexi meets hiwatt clarity, but there is a ton of useful range in the controls, and there are tight modern metawl tonez in the amp if you fiddle,The volumes are very interactive together, and with the tone controls too. A little goes a long way I find.

and it takes pedals like a champ on clean or crunch. My badass78 is now actually usable. It had been collecting dust for 2 years.


May not meet your needs, but they are popular for a reason. Worth checking out.

 

[xntrick]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

I know you said you wanted to get away from the JCA products but there some sweet mods for these smaller amps. I was going to post a demo of the john sykes mod but that is no longer up, this one sounds just as good:

 

[foogiefoogie]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

I went for lower-power amps not only because of the loudness factor, but also because I got tired of lugging those friggin' huge amps everywhere. At my age, chances are VERY slim that I'll be selling out Madison Square Garden, so having a big amp is just superfluous.

When I wanna go small wattage, I use an old-school Fender Princeton Reverb II amp (one in a line of amps designed by Paul Rivera when he subcontracted for Fender in the 80s). It's also one of the first "hybrid" (solid-state/tube) instrument amps Fender made back in the day.

Even with the fact it's only around 25 watts, it's a VERY loud amp. It has lots of punch no matter what the volume. It's capable of some sweet overdriven tones and also takes to stomp boxes quite well, too.

I also found (and started using) its smaller sister amp called a Yale Reverb, which is around 15 watts. It doesn't have the two-channel stuff, but is still a hybrid design and has reverb.

If I HAVE to go loud, I limit it to 50 watts, and THAT duty goes to my first-gen Line-6 Spyder amp 1X12. It sounds halfway decent, it's comparatively light, was dirt cheap, and it won't rip my heart up if it ends up getting run over by a stampede of wild elephants.

 

[CTN]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

I know you said you wanted to get away from the JCA products but there some sweet mods for these smaller amps. I was going to post a demo of the john sykes mod but that is no longer up, this one sounds just as good:

yeah it does sound decent, but I guess I just want something with a different character overall, bit different interface, different options, pretty much a whole new amp. The JCA22 is nice but it's essentially the same thing as I have now but with EL84s instead of 6L6s. In terms of features, it's exactly the same. I'm just lookin for a change.

I went for lower-power amps not only because of the loudness factor, but also because I got tired of lugging those friggin' huge amps everywhere. At my age, chances are VERY slim that I'll be selling out Madison Square Garden, so having a big amp is just superfluous.

When I wanna go small wattage, I use an old-school Fender Princeton Reverb II amp (one in a line of amps designed by Paul Rivera when he subcontracted for Fender in the 80s). It's also one of the first "hybrid" (solid-state/tube) instrument amps Fender made back in the day.

Even with the fact it's only around 25 watts, it's a VERY loud amp. It has lots of punch no matter what the volume. It's capable of some sweet overdriven tones and also takes to stomp boxes quite well, too.

I also found (and started using) its smaller sister amp called a Yale Reverb, which is around 15 watts. It doesn't have the two-channel stuff, but is still a hybrid design and has reverb.

If I HAVE to go loud, I limit it to 50 watts, and THAT duty goes to my first-gen Line-6 Spyder amp 1X12. It sounds halfway decent, it's comparatively light, was dirt cheap, and it won't rip my heart up if it ends up getting run over by a stampede of wild elephants.

yeah, the only reason I don't wanna go with fender amps is cuz I need the high gain stuff, and I am steering clear of using pedals for that high gain. The squish and grind of tubey distortion is so much better than pedals for the really high gain stuff.

 

[CTN]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

HOVERCRAFT DWARVENAUT 20!!!

modified Jet City JCA20!

I checked them out. Not really my cup of tea. Too woolly/sloppy/filthy sounding without the tightness that I want. Also it's a single channel, has no power scaling,

 

[guitfiddle]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

When I wanna go small wattage, I use an old-school Fender Princeton Reverb II amp (one in a line of amps designed by Paul Rivera when he subcontracted for Fender in the 80s). It's also one of the first "hybrid" (solid-state/tube) instrument amps Fender made back in the day.

Even with the fact it's only around 25 watts, it's a VERY loud amp. It has lots of punch no matter what the volume. It's capable of some sweet overdriven tones and also takes to stomp boxes quite well, too.

I also found (and started using) its smaller sister amp called a Yale Reverb, which is around 15 watts. It doesn't have the two-channel stuff, but is still a hybrid design and has reverb.

Where did you get the idea that the PRll is hybrid? It's an all tube signal path from start to finish. The Yale is all SS.

 

[CTN]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

Well, I did it. Sold the Jet City and the Sunn Cab.

A dude messaged me today, came by, and took the whole rig. It's nice dealing with decisive people.

And so begins the search for a 2x12 and a lunchbox.

 

[JOLLY]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

Boooooooooooooooooo!!

 

[CTN]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

I know, I know. When I start playing stadiums, then I'll think about getting a stack again

 

[CTN]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

Went down to Long & Mcquade today and tested out the Hughes & Kettner Tubemeister 18 and a Marshall DSL15H as well.

Impressions:

Tubemeister 18
- Clean Channel - Exceptionally clean. Perhaps even too clean. But it has a nice tonality and would certainly be useful with my pedalboard setup. It doesn't really dirty up too well on its own, so an OD pedal would be a necessity for low gain breaking-up sorta sounds.
- OD channel (no lead boost) - I think the gainy sounds are this amp's forte. Crisp crunchy drive that stays defined pretty well through its entire gain range. Very pleasing responsiveness.
- OD channel (lead boost) - the boost adds a healthy dollop of gain and some more thickness in the lows/low-mids. I found that I could bend it to my will and make it tight sounding and still very brutal. I like it a lot. It made me smile.
- Other crap: EQ section is very responsive. So much so that I don't even miss the presence/depth controls that are common on a lot of other amps. Also, it's hella pretty. It's small, lights up and it just makes me smile with how well put together it is. Cute, elegant and a total wolf in sheep's clothing. Great amp. I really wouldn't mind grabbing this.

DSL15H
- Classic channel - nice cleans, stereotypically Marshall. I daresay I thought they were a bit better than the H&K's. A bit more character. Gets up to a satisfying crunch
- Ultra channel - obscene amounts of gain available, but doesn't stay nice and defined. after about halfway up on the gain knob (which is just about approaching death metal levels of distortion), it starts fuzzing out and getting flubby on the low end, regardless of how you set the presence, EQ or deep switch. The mid shift (read: idiotic mid-scoop button that only amateurs who know nothing about live performance would use) was totally useless. It makes the amp sound pretty damn sh!tty.
- Other crap: It's hella ugly. Like really ugly. It's also almost twice the size as the H&K. The tolex is buttugly. Decent amp, if you want the Marshall rock thing, but for what I need, this isn't the amp for me.

Now I gotta track down a Randall RD20H and an Engl Gigmaster and try those out.

 

[youngthrasher9]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

What 2x12 are thinking about getting?

 

[CTN]

Re: Time to get rid of the 100W head and move on to smaller pastures...

possibly a Mesa or something similar. Might even get a custom cab.

I was just looking at dimensions of various cabs actually:

H&K Tubemeister 2x12 (Vintage 30s): 29.5" x 17.7" x 11.2"
Mesa Recto 2x12 (Vintage 30s): 30.1" x 17.5" x 14.25"
Mesa Compact 2x12 (Vintage 30s): 26.75" x 15.25" x 12.75"
EVH 2x12 (G12H-30s): 30.1" x 17.5" x 14"
Randall RD212 (Vintage 30s optional): 29.9" x 14.2" x 20.3"

And then the custom cabs, made by Saxon Cabs, local company, highly reputed.

Saxon regular 2x12: 28" x 17" x 12"
Saxon oversized 2x12: 28" x 22" x 12"

I'm actually leaning towards getting a custom cab. That way I can customize the look of it, but I can also get a mix of speakers, which I find extremely useful for recording. If one speaker doesn't sound quite right for a particular tone, I can always go to the other one. With all the stock cabs, I'm kinda stuck unless I make a trade or something. It'd cost less than getting a brand new Mesa cab, or about the same as a used Mesa cab.

Saxon has Eminences in stock so I'm thinking I might go with a Governor and a Wizard or a Private Jack.