Blackstar-Cheap HIFI version of Marshall?

[MarshallHeart]

I've been a Marshall guy for all my life and everytime I hear a Blackstar amp from their HT series, my first thought is:
reminds me of a cheap HIFI Marshall...steril,harsh...

Does Blackstar have its own sound or are they just failed Marshall rip offs?
The problem is: I fell in love with the design of the Club 50 head, but everytime I watch a YT review, I'm turned off by that sound...because I know how the real deal sounds

 

[naveed211]

Blackstar is okay. I’m a Marshall fanboy, and I wouldn’t say they totally sound like Marshall. They’ve also got a more modern thing going on.

You can get tube Marshalls for as cheap as Blackstars. I’ve even had solid state Marshalls that give “that tone” better than a Blackstar would.

 

[VintageSG]

I may well be wrong here. If I am, damn the torpedoes and full steam ahead anyway.

The initial design staff were Marshall.

I have their Fly 3, and having played through an ID:Core, I wouldn't toss one out of bed for farting.
Their single ended 'Artisan' series intruiged me ( I think that's what they called them ), but their lower end valve range doesn't cut my cookies because, to me, they sound 'cookie cutter' in their approach. I guess that to many, that mildly flaccid tone is a boon as their pedals can do the work and the base amp does the lifting.
Their 'Infinite Shape Feature' annoys me on two levels. Firstly, it's a potentiometer, therefore not infinite in its shaping characteristics. Secondly, infinity is quite a large concept. It's big. really big. Does the term apply to an amps tone shaping circuitry?

I'm off to yell at clouds now.

 

[Dacious]

I briefly had a HT 60 Venue series I acquired in a trade. Seemed very solid. Celestion 7080 speakers. Two modes per channel, the ISF control which actually did affect voicing.

It seemed like a TSL60 clone. Heavy. Solid. There were usable tones in it. Fenderish to JCM800 on the vintage to 900/Peaveyish on the clean depending on mode, classic distortion to Mesa territory, not quite metal on the dirt/modern mode.

If you had to cover a lot of sounds could be usable. At least equal build to modern Marshall, Vox, Peavey. Sounded OK with the 7080s even. Not the most magnificent but better than any modeller I've heard. Quite versatile. Good footswitch access to modes.

The only bad thing was I was thinking 'easy flip'. It was, but only when I dropped the price to Bugera levels. Much better amp than the similar Bugera 120 watt PV JSX clone I got in a swap deal. Fortunately neither amp owed me much.

Just be warned they can be hard to shift.

 

[jvin248]

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Get a Peavey Bandit -- and use the controls as described here.



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