Low watt tube amp for home use recommendations

Or just the HT1-R combo - tube driven, 1 watt with an 8 inch speaker - perfect for playing in the house. Oh and don’t think 1 watt = quiet as this thing punches way above its weight in terms of volume - sounds lovely when you crank it on the clean channel and roll the volume off on your guitar so it’s just breaking up

 

As others have said, if you aren't concerned with brand name the Monoprice 15w is the best deal out there by far.

 

For home use i would suggest an amp you can switch down to 1watt. That’s plenty loud

 

I find that my new Marshall DSL1 is about right for apartment level playing - when I put it in the Low Power mode which is supposed to be 0.1W, or so.

 

I haven't got any experience of the Tubemeister 5 (I'm not sure if its available in the UK), but have recently purchased a Tubemeister 18 that I am really pleased with.

 

I think Tubemeister 5 is discontinued. It has 5W, or 0W with Power Soak and cab sim output. The 18 has 18, 5, 1, and 0W.

 

I got my hands on an Epiphone Valve Jr. It's rated at 5 Watts. It is remarkably loud for 5W, has one knob, many easy mods available, sounds good with pedals. My only complaint is no real clean sounds; it breaks up even at 2-3 on the dial.

 

Many options here, depends what can you get in your area...
1. What about Ibanez TSA5 or bigger bro TSA15 (has a 5W reduction switch), very affordable, very Fenderish?
2. F Greta?
3. F Pro Jr or even SCX2 or Champ?
4. Marshall 1W versions?
Bugera? HT-1? AC4? etc...

I have a Marshall Studio 15 that has a 1W switch option, a really great amp!
Also have a 4W DIY tube amp from an older radio... (this trick might work very good as well...)

 

I agree, mine works great for keeping it quiet with good tone.

 

First off, welcome to TDPRI. My suggestion is to keep playing the Yamaha until you can actually get some play time on a variety of tube amps. Reason being is the voicing is quite different and generally speaking based upon the power tube. When you try an amp, note the main power tube as a comparison. As a blues player myself, there are certain amps that I just don't like, but the next player will enjoy, so it becomes very personal.

BTW, I have an E10P.

 

for playing at home I use a vox lil night train great amp and can often be picked up cheaply.

 

There may well be more to it than Watts too.

Some recent posts elsewhere suggest that larger amps may have a wider sweet spot where they sound good. Others favor using Power Soaks or attenuators between bigger amp and speaker to keep the volume down.

I like to turn the clean side of my little Marshall up, for best cleans. The gainier channel has "enough" gain. Other amps may have good cleans at lower settings, and a drive pedal gives good overdrive. My 75W solid state (analog) amp sounds quite good turned way down. I just need a delicate touch to set the volume for home levels.

 

The blackstar and champ are good options. I have a Blackstar HT1 (since given to my son) and a champ clone (unobtrusively sits in the living room). The monoprice sits in my music room and has pretty much replaced my Kustom Defender 5(H). As you can see, I like small tube amps! Both the champ and Blackstar are quite useful amps and great for home use. The only reason I would prefer the monoprice is that to me - the 12" speaker just plain feels better than the small 8" speakers on the other two. It partly depends on what you are looking at in terms of space. I think it you have sufficient space for the larger cabinet, the Monoprice is hard to beat, but if you are challenged space-wise, you will be well-served by one of the smaller options.

 

Pro jrs snd vox ac4c1s are my faves and I do think I've tried them all at this point.
Those little Laney cubs and traynor darkhourse are close in the running, also.
Somehow the nighttrain series are not as good, but ok. Kinda harsh sounding.
Those lil epi amps, are also ok.discontinued I think.

 

these have been getting a ton of praise...

The chappers/captain makes em look pretty cool. I know they're not "tube" but they do seem to sound good.

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...-100-100-50-0.5-watt-1x12-inch-cosm-combo-amp

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...na-50-50-25-0.5-watt-1x12-inch-cosm-combo-amp

That said if you were able to find a used blues jr that seems like a great option. Those amps sound wonderful and can be modded if you want to and your own flair to it.

Used gear is good gear in my book.

 

Blackstar Artisan 10 watt ANNIVERSARY EDITION. Not the regular production 15 watt versions or whatever they are. The 10 watt sounds really good at low volume, I guess the single preamp tube and single power tune helps. Plus the headphone out sounds awesome, and it as touch sensitive as playing without it.

 

Hmmm......there was a Laney Lionheart 112-5W for sale on eBay last week for $700 here in OZ. It would suit you well.
I have one and it has a clean channel, a gain channel and on board plate reverb. They are made in China now, but mine was made in Birmingham, England. You don't live in Adelaide by any chance?

 

I agree- the TSA15 is an excellent option.