Best 5w tube amp under $200

What, in your opinion (and why), is the best 5w tube amp under $200?
Does the style of music affect your choice?

I just picked up a VHT Special 6-hand-wired (!) on an eyelet board, baltic birch cab, really nice 10" speaker. REALLY loud for a 5W amp. Half-power switch, gain boost. Sounds like a tweed Princeton with some British influences. The only knock is I'm picking up a lot of radio frequencies. Should be a pretty easy mod to fix that though.

I just picked up a VHT Special 6. Sounds like a tweed Princeton with some British influences.

Do you think it's the speaker giving you the British vibe? Jensen P10R should tweed it up all the way, huh? I'd like one for the "Champ" factor. Dave

I was going to suggest the VHT Special 6. I haven't played it but people, whose opinion I respect, are raving about it. Nobody said anything about the radio interference though.
D F

Vox AC4 in the Head version is just under $200. That's minus the cab

There's no such thing as a single best, simply differeing taste. That being said.

I've got the Special 6 on loan currently for a forthcoming FrugalGuitarist.com review. Very nice amp but, like pretty much all 5 watters, is too loud for bedroom use if you want the amp to generate your od. With a pedal of course, the sky's the limit. Construction is nice and solid as well with extra niceties such as tube retainers and 4/8/16 OHM outputs.

The Vox AC4TV is nice sounding as well with great cosmetics. But The AC4TV really is a one trick pony (just past the verge of break up) with a very narrow sweet spot. Once you push past the sweet spot the amp starts to get pretty rude sounding. The Special 6 by comparison has a surprising amount of tonal versatility given it's striped down design. Special 6 is totally gigable IMHO as well.

If you're simply looking for bedroom volume playing, I'd definitely check out the Fender Champion 600. Very good sounding amp with a moderate amount of breakup and a great grab and go option to jam with a buddy.

And of course, if you snap out of your tube hypnosis be sure to check out the Vox Pathfinder 15r! :wink:

I agree that the Special 6 would be gigable for some. On the Jensen speaker thing, I tried a Weber Sig 10AS (a real favorite speaker of mine) and didn't like it nearly as much as the stock speaker. This from someone who's tried many of the ceramic Emis and always gone right back to the Jensen types.
I seem to get a lot of rf in my practice space so that's not necessarily an issue with the amp. I plan to check it out and add grid stoppers if it doesn't have them.

Bugera V5. Reverb, attenuator, 8 inch speaker. Hard to beat at that price.

I havn't tryed it but, the laney cub 8 is the best amp when it comes to weight. It's only 5kg's....about ten pounds (1 6v6...8 inch speaker).

This amp and a bowling trolley should be the only recomendation to anyone that doesn't own a car whatever it sounds like. Music is about jamming with others - period.

If i could live my life again.....this is what I wish I had. But when i was a teenager it was all about wattage, brands and status....

You probably have a car....so dicide if you want clean or gain....

I second the Bugera V5. I bought mine a couple of weeks ago and love it.

Might want to look into the up and coming Kustom Defender 5 head.

It's a golden age for small amps!

I have a Blackheart ($129 when i bought it), and Valve Jr that I bitmoed ($75 used), and a Fender SCXD ($175 used). Each is different, all where cheap.

I have the heads for the BH and VJ, but the combos are just as nice; add a cab and a good speaker of your choice and you have something that is plenty loud for practice.

Try them enjoy them!

Bugera V5. Reverb, attenuator, 8 inch speaker. Hard to beat at that price.

I second the Bugera V5. I bought mine a couple of weeks ago and love it.

Perhaps I need to give this a second shot as I loved the Bugera V22. But my impressions plugging into it were not very positive. The breakup was even ruder than the Vox AC4TV and was a bit difficult to find that magic sweet spot between clean and dirty. It seemed voiced a bit darkly but I wasn't completely familiar with the guitar I was playing into it. Have you guys posted any clips of the amp in action?

I have tried a few and can tell you which I didn't like.

Peavey ValveKing Royal 8 and Ibanez Valbee both look good on paper, i.a. with gain/master. Clean sound not good, preamp distorsion fizzy and transistor like.

Fender Champion 600, clean sound so so, sounded a bit thin.

Epi Valve Jr combo version two (owned one for a couple of years), sounded better than the three above, warmer, but clean a little gritty around the edges.
Too muddy with humbuckers and way too loud for breakup at home.
In fact, when I used it for rehearsal in a small setting (no drums), I had to use a sofa as "attenuator" to get breakup.

AC4TV 10", better than any of the above, nice chimey clean and nice breakup at reasonable volume. Still a bit loud for home use.
At rehearsal without drums, the 1 W setting was perfect for balancing between semi clean and breakup.
Maybe AC4TV 8" or 6.5" mini with 1/10 W as lowest setting can do breakup at home without scaring the neighbours.

Klas

I like my Super Champ XD alot also..$175 seems to be the going rate 2nd hand..
I got mine for that (basical brand new..) & I found it far superior to all the little guys that I have tried...

Perhaps I need to give this a second shot as I loved the Bugera V22. But my impressions plugging into it were not very positive. The breakup was even ruder than the Vox AC4TV and was a bit difficult to find that magic sweet spot between clean and dirty. It seemed voiced a bit darkly but I wasn't completely familiar with the guitar I was playing into it. Have you guys posted any clips of the amp in action?

Mine was the same at first so I replaced the 12AX7 with a JAN 5751. Made a huge difference. Much smoother breakup and can also get a good clean tone. With the volume on 10 it starts to breakup with the gain on 4.

Also tried it out with a 12AU7. With the gain, tone and volume on 10 I got a LOUD clean tone with no breakup.

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