What amp do I need for nice cleans *and* good dirt?

[LGOberean]

Here's what I have: Peavey Bandit 65, Peavey Bandit 75, Peavey Studio Pro 112 TransTube, Vox Pathfinder 15R. All of my amps are stock. Well, actually I have more than this, but these are the main ones. Three Teles that I play through them: one with Wilkinson P-90 neck pup and vintage style bridge pup; one with a Wilkinson vintage style set of pups; one with DiMarzio Twang Kings, with 4-way switching.

Here's what I'm looking for from an amp: Well, like I said, nice cleans and good dirt. I love the cleans on each of the above amps, but I've yet to be wowed by the Gain channels on my Peaveys, or the Gain/Boost on my Pathfinder. I'm not a pedal guy. I have a Boss ME70 that I bought to experiment with different effects, but I haven't found it that interesting to even play around with; most days I just plug straight in.

Here's what I play: Primarily Classic Rock (late 50s, 60s and some 70s stuff), a bit of the blues.

Here's where I play: At home for recording; at church (100 or so people); small venues, coffee shops, restaurants.

Here's what I can spend: $400 - $700.

Here's what I don't need to hear: "It's a personal choice. Go out and play through all the amps you can, then make your choice." Duh! I'm not going to make such a decision based solely on the recommendations of personal favorites in an online discussion thread.

Here's what I do need to hear: What brands and models fit the above stated parameters, so that I can go out and try them.

Here's what I've tried so far: Epiphone Valve Junior half stack (one trick pony...not a bad trick, though); Vox AC4TV; Blues Junior; Peavey Classic 30; Peavey Classic 50. If I were pressed to choose between these that I have tried thus far, I'd say the C30 is the front runner right now.

So, I'm assuming that my horizons need broadening, but what direction do I go? Given the above parameters, what recommendations do you have for brand, model, orientation (tube or SS), wattage, etc.?

 

[twangjeff]

Fender Hot Rod Deluxe. 40 watts 1x12, three decent soudning channels with fender reverb.

 

[gypsyseven]

I love my ´94/´95 Fender Blues Deville.With a good pedal in front i get anything i want - just perfect.

 

[Justinvs]

You didn't say if it has to be new or if used is all right. Also, you didn't say if it had to be tube or if SS is acceptable, but here goes my short list:

Peavey Deuce - ancient, but they deliver.
Marshall G or MG - Solid state, but at the volumes you play they are great amps for the price.
Buhgera V55 - Yeah, I know it's a Bugera, but if you aren't gigging with them a lot they sound good. Not as dependable as a lot of more expensive amps, but the preice is right.

Basically what you need is a Marshall, but they are spendy. Lots of amps that go for that tone, though, great cleans and amazing dirt.

Justin

 

[AdamCaudle]

Vox AC15/AC30 is what I would recommend. I love both the Vox cleans, and the Vox dirt.

 

[Brandon mac]

I love my ´94/´95 Fender Blues Deville.With a good pedal in front i get anything i want - just perfect.

me too. mine is the 4x10 version and given the right dirt pedal i can cover anything with this amp.

 

[fauxsuper]

Here's what I'd consider:

Tweed 5E3 clones: You can find them out there for $500 to $700. You can play a Fender 57 deluxe to get an idea of what to expect. You can get them to show some grind without a pedal at a volume that is reasonable.

Fender DRRI: Nice used ones are available in your range, you'll probably need a dirt pedal for overdrive. But I think you'll find that pedals work differently with this amp, (as they do with most tube amps) take your ME70 to the store and try running into one.

Used Silverface Amps Bunches of them out there. Buy one that's just been serviced or get one cheap enough to allow some repair and you'll be set to go. Most likely will need pedals. I'm assuming you've been around to know the various options here.


Fender Mustang 3 Probably a controversial choice, but it would be worth listening to, and you might be able to save enough to buy another guitar.

I would have also suggested the Peavey Classic 30, but you've already tried that. The fact that you like it tells me I'm on the right track. Another possibility is the Hot Rod deluxe.

 

[jh45gun]

You already have great amps I would use them clean and get a good dirt pedal you will get what your looking for. I heard a guy using a rat pedal one night and his amp sounded great and horror of horrors it was a Behringer Keyboard amp since he also plays keyboard. I am no Behringer fan but that rat pedal through it sounded good. I thought then if that rat pedal can sound that good through a Behringer keyboard amp how good would it sound through a good amp. Most amps have lousy dirt channels but good clean channels and a good pedal takes care of that nicely. I have always said do a blind test and I doubt most people would not be able to tell the difference of a good amp set up with a good pedal and a overdriven amp the pedals simulate.

 

[fauxsuper]

Some guys are just not pedal guys, so i can respect that. Since you like the cleans in the amps you have now, if you find a small amp that has a killer overdrive that will work at the volumes you need, you can use it with an A/B switch. I used to do that with my Bandmaster Reverb and a Silverface Deluxe and it worked well. Keep that in mind if you can't find what you're looking for in a single amp.

 

[jmaul]

look at the smaller Rivera fenders.

Super champ
Princeton Reverb II
Deluxe Reverb II

SC is probably out of your budget but the other two can be found in it.

 

[LGOberean]

Helpful stuff here, guys. Thanks. Keep it coming.

Fender Hot Rod Deluxe. 40 watts 1x12, three decent soudning channels with fender reverb.

In my listing amps I have tried, I forgot to mention the HRD. My son-in-law has one, and I have played through it a little, emphasis on little.

When the kids lived here in town, he kept this amp up at his church 24/7 (he was a regular on their worship team). So all the time they lived here, I never got to play through it. Ironically, once they moved away, he kept this amp at home, so I was able to play through it once on a visit a year or so ago. No immediate plans to drive up to visit them, but that's a definite resource for giving the HRD another try.

 

[LGOberean]

Justin, I did say either tube or SS, though I'm personally leaning toward tube. Of all the amps I've listed that I've tried so far, they have all been tube amps. But if someone wants to tell me about their SS amp that they believe would fit the bill for what I need, I'm open to it.

As I write that, I'm reminded of fellow TDPRI member Jakedog. He regularly sings the praises of his Roland Cube 60, calls it the Swiss Army knife of amps. You listening in, brother? Care to chime in here and tell about this amp relative to my needs?

And oh yeah, I prefer new to used, especially in the tube amp category. Tube amps are higher maintenance compared to SS, and I'm not savvy to what all I might have to do to get a good deal on a good condition tube amp used.

 

[LGOberean]

Here's what I'd consider:

Tweed 5E3 clones: You can find them out there for $500 to $700. You can play a Fender 57 deluxe to get an idea of what to expect. You can get them to show some grind without a pedal at a volume that is reasonable.

Would you elaborate on this option, please? I've read various threads here mentioning 5E3 clones, but that doesn't translate into brand names/models to look into. But thanks for the tip about the Fender 57 deluxe for an idea of what to expect. That helps.

And I hadn't thought of the Mustang 3, but maybe I should. Saving enough for another guitar is appealing!

 

[sax4blues]

Some guys are just not pedal guys, so i can respect that. Since you like the cleans in the amps you have now, if you find a small amp that has a killer overdrive that will work at the volumes you need, you can use it with an A/B switch. I used to do that with my Bandmaster Reverb and a Silverface Deluxe and it worked well. Keep that in mind if you can't find what you're looking for in a single amp.

+1

Radial makes an A/B to go between 2 heads and 1 speaker. I've been gassing for an Orange Tiny Terror. Get the Tiny Terror and Radial Headbone. Run your favorite combo with the speaker jack and the TT going to the Radial, then from the Radial to the combo speaker.

Your rig is smaller than two amps and gives you the distinct amp overdrive. Used TT is about $400 and the Radial is about $260, so it's at the top of your budget but you'll have a very cool rig.

 

[LGOberean]

You already have great amps I would use them clean and get a good dirt pedal you will get what your looking for. I heard a guy using a rat pedal one night and his amp sounded great and horror of horrors it was a Behringer Keyboard amp since he also plays keyboard. I am no Behringer fan but that rat pedal through it sounded good. I thought then if that rat pedal can sound that good through a Behringer keyboard amp how good would it sound through a good amp. Most amps have lousy dirt channels but good clean channels and a good pedal takes care of that nicely. I have always said do a blind test and I doubt most people would not be able to tell the difference of a good amp set up with a good pedal and a overdriven amp the pedals simulate.

Well, okay, this gives me something to think about. Maybe I should just knuckle down a try to get on with pedals. I guess I should start with making the time to experiment with my ME70. If I end up going this direction, I may be asking in the future about distortion pedals. But that's another subject (and another sub-section of TDPRI ).

Some guys are just not pedal guys, so i can respect that. Since you like the cleans in the amps you have now, if you find a small amp that has a killer overdrive that will work at the volumes you need, you can use it with an A/B switch. I used to do that with my Bandmaster Reverb and a Silverface Deluxe and it worked well. Keep that in mind if you can't find what you're looking for in a single amp.

Good idea about the A/B/Y pedal. I use that now to link my Pathfinder and my Studio Pro together, for toggling between them and/or playing through them both simultaneously.

 

[Tony474]

I'll vouch for the Roland Cube 60, although I doubt that any unsold new ones remain in dealers' stocks. The model has been superseded by the Cube 80X and XL models, of which I have no personal experience but they should be worth a try.

But for your purposes, an even better choice may be the Tech 21 Trademark 60. Not a digital modelling amp but a very versatile analogue solid-state design. Very high build quality, made in the USA and the company has a first-class reputation for customer service if it's ever needed.

A third possibility, now only available on the used market, might be the Roland BC-60 Blues Cube, made in 1 x 12 and 3 x 10 versions. Again designed and built in the USA, they are nothing like the current digital Cube range. They sound superb on both clean and overdriven channels and have some neat options and refinements.

 

[LGOberean]

I have also read others going on about the Tech 21 Trademark 60. Perhaps it's time I check this out too. Thanks.

 

[gypsymoth]

Risson LTA

one channel is pretty much a Showman, the other essentially early Marshall. run it through one good speaker and you're pretty much set.
drawback - it has a large chassis, so is fairly large even if you take it out of it's headbox to turn it into a combo.

 

[fauxsuper]

Would you elaborate on this option, please? I've read various threads here mentioning 5E3 clones, but that doesn't translate into brand names/models to look into. But thanks for the tip about the Fender 57 deluxe for an idea of what to expect. That helps.

And I hadn't thought of the Mustang 3, but maybe I should. Saving enough for another guitar is appealing!

I have a couple of 5E3 amps i purchased off E-bay, I paid $599 for one and $500 for the other. Here's a typical example, and it's NEW, so it's a little more than you wanted to spend:

(link removed)

I sort of think these are the Telecasters of the guitar world. They're simple and basic and lend themselves to tinkerers. And there are enough parts out there that someone can build one from scratch at a reasonable price. Home built Teles and Teles made by small builders are a staple of the guitar world, as are 5E3 clones. Cox, Sligo, and Richter are names you might wish to check out.

There's a whole amp owners club here where you can probably find out more than you wish to know. I've compared my two clones, which were built by Coronado amps and another small company that eludes me at the moment, to the Fender 57 and they're more alike than different. But look inside any of the clones and you'll understand that it's kind of like a Telecaster: follow the formula fairly closely and you get something most people would think of as a Tele.

The main secret is they're simple amps and let the tubes do the talking. There's something to be said to a simple amp with a short path between you and the speaker, and my two 5E3 clones have that, as does the little tweed champ clone I bought from TDPRI memebr MuchXS. Playing the Champ is like having an amp as an extension of your nervous system.

They're not everybody's cup of tea, but plug into one at least once, and you'll quickly find out if you're interested. There are some who might cynically term anyone who likes these as cork sniffers, and they certainly don't have to buy one of these. But I know plenty of people, who, once they played through a tweed amp, purchased at least one.

Tweed amps in general ARE the tone of 50's rock, blues, and country, and a number of studio guys were (and still are) using them well into the 60's 70's and 80's.

Like all tube amps, they aren't trouble free, but the stuff that does go wrong is simple and usually both cheap and easy to fix, and there are plenty of original 50's amps out there that are still working, which should tell you the basic design is durable.

What the clones do is give you the option of a tweed style amp at a reasonable price.

As for the Mustang, it's certainly worth a listen. It's got a lot of great sounds in it. There are some kool-aid drinkers out there who will tell you it sounds as good as any of the amps it can model which I think is a bit of an overstatement, but even if it were twice as much money I'd still think it's worth an open minded listen.

 

[Jim Dep]

used Peavey Delta Blues, same as the Classics but with Tremolo and different speaker sizes;
2 x 10 or 1 x 15 . I've heard that by adding a 1 x 12 extension cabinet really brings out the mojo. I'm just playing at home so I haven't tried it with the extension. If I was gigging, I would. I think the Gain channel on these are excellent, especially getting crunch at lower volume.