Is it worth it to go boutique?

[JBOWLES]

Thank you Silverface! I want an amp that is my Vox, but more vintage Vox sounding without having the reliability issues that were common on those amps. I really dig the Vox and Orange sounds more than any. I'm not talking Fender type clean, but clean signal until you heavily chord with just a slight breakup and sag. British(non-Marshall) type of el84 warmth. I would like simple control layouts, single channel, one trick pony kind of amp. I want my tone and want one way to get there. I dont care about bells, whistles, Ultra fast rectifiers, or any of that. Reverb is a desired feature; 2x12 would be great just because i like the tone of that over a 1x12, or 10" speakers.

[JBOWLES]

I thank you because I never really thought to go that in depth with my detail in the beginning. I was wrong to not do that. Not at all meaning that the other people had done something wrong. It was me that didn't give you all enough information. My bad. See, I need more help than just an amp lol!

[bigben55]

Knowing that, I'd go play some Dr.Z stuff, namely the MAZ 38, Stang Ray, and Prescription ES.

[JBOWLES]

I've always thought the Stang Ray didn't like pedals as well as the RX or Maz. I've played a Ghia, and liked it, but never tried the Maz or Stang.

[Webfoot]

If you go boutique consider going to the The Gear Page, register and then browse the emporium where tons of boutique amps and pedals are being flipped daily. Buying used will save you a lot of money. Somatones, AC30s and Dr Zs are always being turned over. If you buy new... see if they have a return policy even though shipping may cost you $200 both ways. But at least you are not stuck with a $1K to $3K amp you don't like. Its also worth a car trip for a couple hours to another town if they have a better music store to try stuff. I have also bought boutique and it can be a slippery slope.

[bigben55]

Its also worth a car trip for a couple hours to another town if they have a better music store to try stuff.

I don't know exactly where in Western KY you are but, Willcutt Guitar Shoppe in Lexington has lots of boutique stuff and lots of Dr.Z's. Google them.

[JBOWLES]

I go to Nashville and Louisville often. Lex is about 3 hours away and the other two are an hour and a half. I go to Guitar Emporium in Lou and Rock Block in Nash and they both carry many amps in the same style I'm wanting, but neither has had the Maz, RX, or Stang when I have been there.

[mabley123]

you could get an attenuator for the hiwatt dr 103.

hey im from ashland, ky. other end of the state.

but there are 2 guys here in ashland that make boutique amps.

hall amplification.

dana and richie hall.

not to be confused with dave hall amplification...he is in u.k. and not saying daves amps are bad. m sure they are very nice.

richie is known as one of the best marshall guys in the country.

of you are ever interested and you contact richie? tell him jamie told you about him.

at least give them a check out. they will build anything you want.

[WrapAround]

Originally Posted by JBOWLES

Ok I was completely oblivious to JMJ amps until the previous post. It is a replica of all three of the AC30 circuits? So minus the reverb and tremolo it's pretty well got it all in one?

That is correct. I have an earlier version and the amp does not have the treble option on the Normal channel. He's also revised the Power Scaling control a bit. I haven't gotten any updates since the amp just sounds great as I received it. Only change I did was to load it with a set of old production tubes. But the amp sounded excellent with the new production tubes it came with.

I've owned other "boutique AC30 amps" but they didn't click with me. And I haven't bothered with any of them post-JMJ30. If I was to do it over again and JMJ30 didn't exist, I would just stick with AC30 from the current VOX product line.

[JBOWLES]

Thanks for the info mabley. Yeah we're at opposite ends of KY; Henderson to Ashland is a pretty good haul.

I wish there were somewhere around here I could try just half of all these great suggestions. The JMJ sounds awesome; so does the Maz 38, and a couple of other are really looking good right now.

Now I guess my biggest thing is either getting the most out of my Vox stuff and making a jump for an amp or just getting some blues for my Vox now. I don't think its really logical to mod a pc board amp when the return would be nothing if I ever did sell it. Agree?

[JBOWLES]

Originally Posted by KC

AC30CC1 is 1x12, sounds like you've got the 2x12 version. Which, yeah, should be plenty. I think your plan is right, sell the ext cab & drop the Blues in. I'd also replace the stock reverb tank with an Accutronics 9EB2C1B. I just did this & it's a huge difference for short money -- $31 shipped, I think. Swap this stuff out, give the Blues a month or two to break in, and I bet you'll be pleased.

I finally ordered that reverb tank tonight. I was also wondering if celestion gold speakers would be a good choice for the AC30 or not. Anyone know about these?

['56Teleman]

Is it worth it to go boutique?


It was for me. I reached a point where I was tired of mass produced tone and questionable quality. There are some ok sounding assembly line amps out there but I did find a difference in a hand built amp from a small company.

It's nice to call and speak directly with the guy who designed the amp, builds it, fields questions, handles customer service and actually cares about his customers as well as his product. No matter how much money you have, you can't buy that at a national brand.

All of this is just my experience and opinion. If you can, go try some high-end amps and decide for yourself whether the cost difference is justified.



Good luck

[Wayne Alexander]

Celestion Gold speakers are a great choice for an AC30- if you want a little more clean headroom and a little less speaker breakup. The main tone and breakup character are extremely similar to the Celestion Blue, the Gold has a little lower midrange emphasis and much higher power handling if that matters to you. If you're not going to run other amps throught the same cab, though, there's no advantage to two Golds in an AC30 over two Blues - the normal "classic" AC30 sound is two Blues, and the power handling is fine - they don't tend to blow in normal use with that amp.

[JBOWLES]

I'm going to eventually sell the Vox or buy another amp altogether. I'm really liking a Maz 38 and still. I just got another gig around here that pays ok so it might be sooner than I think on the new amp in the boutique side.

The biggest concern was the power handling for the Blues. I didn't want to drop $600 on speakers and then have them blow this time next year because I pushed them harder than I should have. I know a lot about guitars and pedals, but speakers I'm not very knowledgeable with at all. Whatever the case (blue or gold), I'll keep the Wharfdales and put them back in if/when I do sell.

[T Prior]

The question is

'Is it worth it "

two answers from my point of view

For me NO

for you..YES ,if that's your desire

I personally don't see the value/price for a $2000+ amp..not for weekly local gigs. I play and use vintage Fenders and for my taste and "pleasure" they cut it just fine and look great as well.( to me )

If you have a burning desire to grab one of those Boutique amps then you should do it, most are excellent..we all acquire things because "we can" so that's reason enough right there !

[vox Phantom]

Right now I don't own an amp so I go to the local
music stores and play thru different ones. The only
boutique amps where I live is DR Z and I played a
Jaz 20/40 and that amp sounded great with my Tele.
The same music store had a new Vox AC30 and I would
not buy that amp it sounded like (Junk) and the DR Z
was a better amp. I do like the AC30 but I like the
Hand Wired one better. Have you looked at other amps
like Tone King, Swart, Juke Tugsten and Goodsell
What type of sound are you looking for and what
type of music do you play is it all Blues or Motown
or Surf or 60's and 70's rock and roll. Do you play
any Folk Rock like the Byrds, or the Turtles. The only
thing I would say is this should you sell your AC30
then play as many different amps as you can until
you know that's the one.

[valiant]

MAGIC Amps BRIT MK II TB86.....EF86 channel and Top Boost channel.
Also check out Xits amps and the Cornell legACy for vox-a-likes.

[mitchfit]

as pointed out by silverface, merriam websitester's dictionary REALLY needs to define "boutique"!

i envision a definition that "takes" an entire page. look up the word "take" for comparison.

if you already know "the sound" you are looking for, getting a newly mfgd clone from a builder who has gone into great depth to recreate that sound can be worth the american inflationary notes they fetch. as also pointed out before, they could include the mods that many prefer in same amps. when going there, the word "reliability" comes into play as the new components are very likely to outlast 40 (+,-) year old OEM's in your favorite fender with the vox of an angel that can marshall up some matchless boogie tones that may be reminiscent of an old valco circuit.

as far as volume goes, 30 watts can be way too much for smaller venues!!!

some attenuators don't color the signal at all according to user reviews, do a search on same.

you can get somewhat of an idea of where YOUR holy grail lies from youtubing down the vast river of amps out there. the caveat on this statement would be their amp is stone stock, original speakers, no pedals, and they are playing your favorite unmodded axe, which was recorded with quality gear, and that your computer monitor speakers are vastly superior to my own disposable ones from a country without minimum wage laws.

lotsa surfing there...

considering the cost of even reasonably priced custom builders goods, it would seem financially expedient for you to pack your favorite axe, (pedals?) and go to a mega amp store, or make the pilgrimage to mecca to decide what melts your butter.

pls see:

http://www.namm.org/events/2012-namm-show

they do nashville on occasions also.

with ALL of those disclaimers outta the way, a very reasonably priced custom** amp maker lives here @tdpri:

http://www.winfieldamps.com/

http://www.tdpri.com/forum/amp-owner...ml#post3573466

GREAT customer service, GREAT amps, GREAT pricing for this kinda product.

mitchfit

** sorry, untill a succinct definition has been decided upon, i really don't know how to even spell "booteek"!

[JBOWLES]

I ordered a few parts for the AC30 I have now. I'm really looking forward to playing the next few shows and going from there. I believe I will come up with a "handwired" amp of some sort, closely related to what I have now. I can't justify it right now with the gigs I have and the instability of my day job so I guess my decision was made for me. For now anyway. Until Nashville gigs pick up again I'm rolling with the Vox.

[puremania]

Originally Posted by JBOWLES

I like my tone

This negates most arguments I've ever heard for selling one's amp to buy another...