Need recommendations for a good bedroom amp!

[elsewhere]

I have recently gotten a fair amount of money saved up that I can spend on my gear, and I've been thinking of getting a new amplifier. I am currently using a VOX AD30VT modeling hybrid amp, which is nice in itself I guess, but I don't like the fact that it's a modeling amp. I also have a Roland Microcube that I detest with passion. In short, I'd rather get an amp that does its own thing well instead of an amp that does a bunch of things fine but doesn't really sound like itself. Not knowing much of amplifiers, I'd like some help.

Here are the criteria:

1) Budget at maximum 1000$. I'm in Europe and the prices and the currency are a bit different here, but that's the ballpark. I'm fine with buying a used amp.
2) I don't care for built-in effects. Reverb would be nice, but not absolutely necessary. I'd rather buy individual pedals and the amp should work with those without any problems.
3) Absolutely no modeling circuits. I want it to sound like itself and it would be nice if it's a tube amp.
4) I really play a lot of different music from classic rock (Beatles etc) to alternative rock (think U2 or Eighties things like Sonic Youth, or perhaps even grunge) to weird soundscape noise things. No metal or really high-gain stuff. I'm not sure that I need two channels, since I can just use a distortion pedal, but proper cleans are really important.
5) I live in a small flat, so it would be nice if it came alive at low volumes. It is for my personal use only, the band room we play in has a guitar amp there that I use. It would be nice if it had enough punch for small gigs though, but that's not necessary. It needs to be a compo amp, since I don't have room for a proper cab.
6) The simpler the better, the less knobs the better, and I kind of appreciate traditional tones though the music I mostly play really isn't.
7) I'm playing with a Squier CV Tele and I have a Fender Strat that I rarely use. I intend to stick to somewhat traditional non-pointy guitars and single coils.

I've been looking at a VOX AC30 C2, which would be pretty much what I'm looking for, but do you have any other recommendations? Should I perhaps aim for something cheap and small like a VOX AC4TV and spend the money on something else, since the extra power and features of a proper AC30 might just go to waste?

Thanks for the advice!

[RubyRae]

A blackface or silverface Vibro Champ would be great for a bedroom amp IMO.

Or if you want a bit more and some reverb, you could look at an older silverface Princeton Reverb, or just go with a new PRRI. That would be a great choice.

You have a pretty good budget, so there are a lot of amps to choose from in that price range.

[Singin' Dave]

Champs are a great call. I've also heard very good things about the small Laney (Lionheart?) that should be easily sourced in your neck of the woods. Note that even 5W of tube amp can get loud enough to annoy the folks down the hall.

[4 Strings]

Is building your own amp an option? Once you make sure to learn the basic safety aspects of amp building electronics it really isn’t that difficult, given that you don’t start out with too complex a circuit.

If I was to pick just one amp it would most likely be my 5F2A Princeton clone. Just one word of caution though (Singin' Dave beat me to it), the 5F2A Princeton (rated at ~5w), the 5F1 Champ (rated at ~5w) and the 5E3 Deluxe (~12w and ”famous” for giving up the goods really quickly), though great amps all three, they play WAY too loud to be used in an apartment if you want natural OD from the amp itself. It is a regal PITA to have these great amps at home and not being able to use their full potential for fear of driving the neighbours crazy…!

So if you want an amp for home use only and an amp that you want to be able to push into OD territory, my 5 cents is to go for something even whimpier than either of the above amps.

On the other hand, both the 5F2A and the 5E3 have absolutely beautiful cleans, so if you rely on pedals for your OD they should be fine.

[Tele-Monster]

$1000!!! Your possibilities are virtually endless. Have you looked at the new Marshall Class 5? Also Laney makes some really cool stuff. Also why not consider the Vox Ac15, it has that AC30 vibe in a smaller package. Here in the US virtually anything is available used and new, not sure if that's the case in Europe. All the lower wattage fenders kill for smaller practice rigs. Princeton, Champ, Musicmaster Bass Amp, Deluxe, they all sound great but do need to be opened up to get any overdrive. Look for amps with a master volume as these amps will let you drive the preamp section while still keeping the overall volume relatively low.

[stantheman]

A Fender Champ is an Amp that ought to be in every Electric Guitar Player's inventory.
I'm down to one Champ and it's a little scary.

[valiant]

+1 on the 5F2a Princeton
Got a Valvetrain classic 205 with a Weber ALNICo SIG8s....great amp.
Absolutely beautiful cleans and if given some beans the natural OD is
really something else but it can get real loud for a 5 watt.

[Slickster]

ac15 or a deluxe reverb ... buy used ... then

buy a Vox pathfinder for your bedroom amp ...

[tgfmike]

VCXD or SCXD

[imsilly]

With that budget I'd try and buy a Silverface Princeton Reverb. An AC30 is way to loud for the bedroom. I think even my little tweed Deluxe pisses off the neighbours and I know my AC30 did, because they'd bang on the walls.

If you don't like the character of Silverface and Blackface Fenders you could always look into some of the random little combos Valco, Magnatone, Premier or Gibson made in the 50s and 60s. Magnatone's and Supro's small combos are especially amazing.

[telbert twang]

I´d get Laney L5T on a heartbeat , but thats just me.

... Or find a great condition SFPR

[ThermionicScott]

What does the Vox AC4TV cost there? Since it'll just be for your bedroom anyway, those low-power modes might do the trick.

- Scott

[jefrs]

A good bedroom amp? How good is your bedroom?

It must be pretty good if you consider an AC30CC2. Maybe you don't have neighbours for a mile or so.

Laney L5T-112, awesome. Very versatile, clean to fairly dirty, sort-of Fender meets Vox with a Marshall bottom end, only better. Reverb could be wetter and there is a mod to fix that but it's not the kind of amp you mod. It's the kind you play and people go ooh at.

[valiant]

If 1000$ is around £700 odd then both the Cornell Plexi 7 (Marshall) and Cornell Romany
(Fender) could be worth a look....excellent amps and both the 7 watt Plexi and 10 watt Romany can be loud enough to jam but can also be switched to just a couple of watts and even 1/2 a watt or such like for home use.

[jefrs]

The 5 watt L5T (£460) will eat the Cornells (£730) for breakfast.

I bought mine from a shop that sells Cornell, Mesa, Fender, Vox, etc. The guys that run it could have anything, but own and gig Lionhearts. Go figure.

[Greg Curtis]

Fender Super Champ XD. $300 & 18w of joy!

[musicalmartin]

A blackstar Ht5 5 watter might be what you are looking for .Has a phone socket and gives some great sound .Has various types of speaker outputs and a overdrive channel on footswitch ,also a master volume control on the drive channel which is very handy as it makes its overdrive actually usable in a room setting ..It has an amp simulator but this actually works well .It doesnt actually replicate specific amps just variable types .very loud if needed.you would need a huge bedroom to absorb its volume .I really like mine .,I bought the head but its also available as a combo and stack .It doesnt have reverb which is minus point .Failing that a Champ 600 is about a pure as you get .Its still bloody loud though and no headphone socket .Any tube amp has to be cranked up to be very effective .Even the champ is loud on "cam" so to speak .

[fenderman2009]

Since you like Vox, I'd strongly recommend the AC15. It's well under your budget, & a very nice little amp.

[klast]

For bedroom volume, the AC4TV 8" may be your best bet. The 10" may sound better, but it will be a bit loud at breakup volume, especially with single coils.
The AC15CC has reasonable preamp distorsion at low volume, but not as good as the AC4.
If you can find a used Fender Princeton Recording Amp, that would be even better.

Klas

[tjk3052]

+1 on the Blackstar HT-5