practice amp

[misnomer]

Hi all

looking for a cheapish practice amp and I've been considering these two 5 watt'ers
the Blackheart BH5H (or the combo version - the BH5-112)
versus
the Blackstar HT-5H

anyone played both? any opinions?
anyone have experience of this guy and his mods
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...m=350142353765
reads pretty encouraging


neither has reverb, guess I'm still hankering after a blues junior some time for that

[jkingma]

I think the Fender Super Champ XD is a good practice amp and its even pretty decent to gig with depending on where you're playing.

[misnomer]

I hear ya, and it was one I'd looked into, but not sure I want to go for amp modelling and DSP ouputs esp for overdrive - prefer to keep it all valve

[Maddog53]

That is one cool amp...if it's everything the builder says....makes me wanna swim the lake and come get one....way cool! If you get one let us know about it.

[misnomer]

Originally Posted by Maddog53

That is one cool amp...if it's everything the builder says....

which one ;) the mod'ed one?

[Odie251]

I have a BH5 head. First thing I did was put some better tubes in it. A JJ EL84 and a Tung Sol 12AX7. The new tubes opened it up considerably, and made a big difference in sound. I can't get a clean tone from it though, it's an overdrive amp all the way. I also took it to my amp tech and had some mods done to it and it rocks. There was one to reroute the wire for less noise and think some cap values were changed. It is one of my favorite amps. Also it gets plenty loud for around the house. I also use a Roland Cube 30 for a practive amp. The Cube 30 is solid state. It sounds good and does lot for it's niche.

[cartier]

Try a Roland Mobile Cube. Great Range of tones and other options and only $160. I love mine.

[Steve G]

I like the look of the Blackheart amp, Ive seen his modded amps on ebay before and he seems to know what he's doing. Then again while Ive pulled apart and rebuilt a couple of dozen guitars Im no expert on amps.

The other ones are based on Harley Benton amps that he mods out. Check them out at Thomann.com, theyre about £69. A lot of folks like em just as they are. You could save yourself £150 for a speaker cab!

[Doug Ferguson]

I've got a BH5H and love it. Like Odie, the very first thing I did was replace the stock tubes. Went with the head since I didn't care for the sound of the combo -- too muddy, "squeezed". Had a Classic 30 with a blown amp that I gutted and replaced the Blue Marvel with a Screamin Eagle. Couldn't be happier. BTW, the BH5H's take effects very well. And the 3w setting is excellent. Overall, a very clean sounding amp. Not a lot of chime, but not bad at all. I even use at band rehearsals, as it's loud enough to get me over the top of the drummer.

[Guinness]

I experienced this very dilemma about two years ago.

I wanted an all tube practice amp, and since I feel the best tone comes from tubes I immediately turned away from any of the solid state units.

Heres the thing; what was I looking for/how would it be used? In my case the amp would have to match my practice regimen:
- 10 - 15 min of solid playing time- warm up stuff
- 30 min of figuring out sections of music where the amp would idle for most of the time
- 10 – 15 min more of solid playing time- fun stuff
* All while playing along with a metronome
* As much time possible working out new material requiring more idle time from the amp
* Apartment living requires low wattage most of the time
* The amp should sound good.

When I stepped back and looked at how I practice and what I wanted from the amp, I choose the Fender G-Dec 30. And I’ve been very happy. Heres why:
- Sounds very good; not at the same level as my tube amps, but surprisingly very good
- No worries about heat/no tubes to change
- Lots of easy to use amp/effects/volume choices- handy in an apartment, and for working out ideas
- Built in metronome- a digital band that I can completely manipulate (add/remove instruments)
- Built in tuner
- Light weight
- Easy to figure out- no need for a users manual
- Built in variety of musical styles- fun for getting out of mental ruts
- Solid build
- Inexpensive

At the risk of sounding like a Fender commercial, it’s a great little practice amp. Never thought I’d spend money on a solid state, but again- it’s a practice tool, not a tone machine. And that’s what I like about it.

BTW, I chose the 30 over the 15 because it has greater recording capability… which I don’t use. The 15 would have been a better choice considering; price difference was about $50. New these things go for about $250… used probably much less.

It’s worth checking out

~Randy