Some good tubeamps for a small studio (with small budget)

[FFTT]

When dealing with youngins your school needs to consider durability
as well as total cost benefits over the useful life of the purchase.

Many times you end up with a false economic savings if the kids break it
before the end of its useful life.

If you want an amp for Hard Rock & Metal that will not break, hassle or not,
the Reeves Super 78 would bring many happy smiles to your students
and record like a dream.

[eastsidetone]

Ditto on the Deluxe rri

[Christof]

Whole day amp-shootout has been successful

And I can promise some unexpected suprises:

1. The Peavey 6505+ 112 Combo will be part of my order. But what's the suprise? Well, this puppy can even sound good on the clean channel - and even on the crunch! (It's just important to leave the gain low and rise the channel master.) That's been a real stunner for all three of us that have been doing the shootout.

2. The Marshall JVM has been knocked out! Many knobs, various nice LEDs, clicking relais inside - all very nice - but the sound is not!
All the time it's been "almost there", "not really", "mediocre" - I didn't like it (and the other testes never have been marshall-fans anyways). I did test the amp in another store, with another guitar and another cab - but my impressions have been the same.

3. The Marshall 2266 (Vintage Modern) does have a very "fizzy" sound when you're using high gain in the "high dynamic" modus - well, I know that's just Marshall, but I don't like it though. So that's a suprise? Not really - but when you found out how to use the two Gain-knobs, the Marshall just delivers real outstanding sound - as long as you're not using too much (High-)gain. I did really dig the Low-Dynamic Modus. It can sound sooo good - from very nice clean to plexi-like sounds - he does it really... well, he did really... well - he just died Whatever happened - the power-amps tubes were still glowing, but that's been it... So this has been an additional surprise for free.
This amp will do anything - but no really hard rock or metal - but then there are nice pedals, you could just take a Metal Zone in front and...

4. The Engl Gigmaster has been a real loser. A midboost that pushes mids in an area you'd rather cut, a gain-range that can't do more than a good crunch even if you take a guitar with EMG active pickups... and a boooring sound.

5. The Fender Super Sonic can do real clean sounds (ouch!) but the Overdrive is like a little mut that's yapping loudly, but doesn't bite. Well - maybe one day when he's grown up...

6. Vox AC15/AC30 - switching on, playing - GREAT! Three musicians with a totaly different background - but praising the sound literally in one accord. When you're really pushing it, this beast will roar - but still retain the typical Vox sound.

7. Fender Deluxe Reverb: Carrying the amp into the sound-locker, connecting the power cord, switching on the mains, pluggin in the guitar, switching on the standby and playing two chords - STOP playing at once, switch it OFF and put it away NOW!! Why...? Because anyone that has to play more than two chords on this amp does not have any idea how extraordinary this thing sounds! Since I played those two chords, I now know why clean means Fender!

8. Just one more: I did test the Fender Super Champ X2 too - right after the Super Sonic. Ouch . testing this box right after a real tube amp is just revealing. The amp DOES deliver the frequency-spectrum of the original amp quite good. But it's lifeless and boring sounding to say the least. The Deluxe Reverb is sounding really inspiring instead - yes, it does cost a lot more - but it is worth every penny!

So what's the result?
- Peavey 6505+ 112 Combo - doing everything from clean to hardcore
- Fender Deluxe Reverb (1x12 combo) - that's how cleas should sound in heaven
- Marshall 2266c (Vintage Modern 2x12 combo) - Vintage Marshall at its best! If anything harder will be needed, we will use a pedal in front
- Vox AC15/AC30 - if it will be handwired (much better) or not - the budget will be the judge... but we'll get one of those!

Well - if that's not sufficient for all kind of styles, I don't know...

That's it!

[FFTT]

The AC30 Hand Wired will have more clean headroom than the AC15, so that might make it more versatile and also be able to compete better with a young energetic drummer.

[Christof]

It's not just that the AC30 handwired will have more headroom.
It does sound better and is more flexible:

- Hi and Lo Inputs on the normal and the top boost channel
- 15W/30W switch (so best of both worlds)
- rectifier tube
- normal channel with additional bright switch
- top boost channel with additional cool/hot switch
- switch for bypassing the master volume
- diffusor in front of the speakers
- matched Ruby-tubes inside
- Footswitch included
- birch-ply cabinet - not made of MDF as the cheap one

[Blast9]

Yes it has a more 3D sound - great amp!

[Mortal Engines]

Put a really good OD or Distortion pedal in front of the DRRI and it will roar in a nice way too! Surprised the hell out of me when I tried it. I've used a Fulltone Plimsoul, and an OCD in front of them on one occasion and it has a really BIG sound. You'd be surprised!

[jonasaaron]

You definitely can't go wrong with the AC15, but how about the Orange Tiny Terror combo? I find that to be a very simple and versatile amp, and I'm a big fan on the Celestion G12H30 speaker, it seems to be the perfect balance between the Vintage 30 and the Greenback!

[drbob1]

Originally Posted by Christof

I have already testet many amps and that's my suggestion so far:
- Vox AC15C2 (2x12)
- Marshall 205C (2x12 with V30 and Heritage)
- Jet City JCA 2112 or 2212 (1x12 Combo - kind of partner for the marshall)
- Peavey 6505+ Combo (1x12) (for "evil" metal-sounds)
I'd like to add a Bugera V22 later, as I like the clean sound very much.
[B]

I'd second some of them, others not so much:

AC15-great choice, being used by everyone from country to alt rock now. Not going to work for modern metal. The clean can be very good if you can turn down. I would actually recommend the AC30 for a studio as the clean is better.

Next thing I'd want is a Fender clean/reverb sound. More records have been made with them than anything else, ever. They're not super expensive. The Deluxe Reverb Reissue or Princeton Reverb Reissue would be great, and they take pedals well.

Third, something with some midrange and gain to: a two channel Marshall would work well here. They don't do super high gain BUT if you get a 100w especially you can drop a pedal in front and get super high gain sounds (like the Bogner Red, the Wampler pedals, even a Mooer high gain pedal).

The 6505 is a standard for high gain, but see above. You don't need it to start with. And they're dang noisy... I'd skip the Bugera too, too many good amps out there for stuff that's disposable and cheaply made. I haven't bonded with the Jet City stuff, but if you want lead stuff they can work well. If you've got some money left over when you source this stuff, put it into upgrading the Marhsall, either by getting a JCM800 reissue instead of the two channel one, or by getting an Orange TH30 or Rockerverb for your hard rock/high gain stuff.

I can't see needing more than 3 amps to start.