I've recently been looking for a new guitar amp because I'm just not satisfied with the one I have now (Fender Stage 160 - a.k.a. - solid state piece of crap)

I'm wanting a nice tube amp that won't be too loud but is loud enough to play smaller venue gigs with. I want one that I'd be able to get the full saturated tube sound out of but without blowing everyone around me away. I've been looking at Orange amps but I'm just not sure. I've played the Orange AD140 head before and I absolutly loved the sound but it was way too much power for me. I'm looking for a good amp that I'd be able to play gigs with and record with. I don't know if I should go with a lower powerd head say around 50 - 80 watts or just a combo amp.

I'm not saying I definantly wanting an Orange, it's just my favorite out of all that I have tried thus far. What are some good amps anyone else out there has tried? I've been reading up on some vintage Vox and even Fender amps but I don't know which models to begin to look at.

I don't really know too terribly much when it comes to tube amps so any info/help would be greatly apreciated.

I'm thrilled with my blackface Fender Twin reissue. The tremelo tank is kinda dodgy and I've had it repaired so many times, I've given up, but the reverb is glorious.

Best bet: (you've prolly already done this) is to take your guitar into the store and play it through as many amps as you're interested in. See if you can play through your pedals as well.

You'll know the right amp when you hear it.


gluck.


Faiz

Ur decision on an amp shouldnt be determined on how loud or soft you want ur amp, it should be based on ur style of play and whether u want tube distortion or whether u use pedals to get distortion. Im on my 4th amp in 12 years and i dont see myself buyin a new one until im out of school and have money. Ive had a crappy Marshall valvestate, a Peavey Bandit solid state, a Mesa Boogie Rocket 4x10 and now im onto the best amp ive ever played(outside the Vox AC30) which is a 1970 Fender Dual Showman Reverb through a 1968 Bandmaster Reverb Head. If you are into Fender amps and a great clean sound, first off, dont buy the reissues in stores. They are way overpriced and dont sound as good as vintage stuff. I may seem biased towards Fender but theres a good reason why.

So if you want a great fender amp, regardless of power, go for either the twin reverb(a vintage from the mid 70s gos for no more than 600 while the reissue is sold in stores for about 1200), the deluxe is a smaller 1x12 amp that still sounds good and if u want a somewhat distorted tone from a fender u could check out the fender bassman 2x12 reissue. But whatever u do, unless u have a lot of money, dont buy an amp in a store, especially a chain store.

If you're into a distorted amp, Mesas are nice but theyre clean channels dont even compare to Fenders unless you spend over a 1000 bucks because of the tubes used in the amps. The best sounding tubes are the 6L6s as power tubes and most mesas under about 1200 bucks use EL34s which sound good distorted but shitty clean.

Orange amps are nice but expensive. They are very similar sounding to vintage Marshalls from my experience. Again, with a Marshall tube amp, usually theres only one channel and that means ur usually distorted the whole time so u adjust ur amount of gain by using ur volume knob(s) on the guitar.

Vox amps are beautiful but really expensive. Its the amp that Paul McCartney uses(not that i care). Its got a great vibrato/tremolo that sounds almost like a leslie speaker. Its clean sound is very similar if not better than most Fender amps.

All in all I recommend Fender amps because i like the sound the most. The idea that you are worried about power is not important unless you play through an amp like a Mesa, Marshall or Orange. Fenders are much more responsive to volume and its corresponding tone but they require u to use pedals to get real gain.
I hope this helps........
-Ian

Really you should take some time to play through as many amps as you can before you make a decision. A showman and a twin might have to much clean headroom depending on the volume and venue. if you really want a toobe amp you can still find 50 watt traynors under 300 bucks . An amp with a master volume will let you adjust the preamp distortion without having to turn up to ear shattering levels. The Fender Bassman sounds really good for guitar when you turn them up. If you rally want an orange i would say to look for an older 70's one preferably 80 watt model (2 power tubes instead of 4). Best thing you can do though is to play out of as many amps as possible to find the one that works for you. Or you could buy a Dual rectifier and sound like all the other spew.

There's this HUGE amp in the music store below the studio I work at... it's a Kasino, Made by Kustom I'm told... I think it's 8-10's... It's like an Ampeg style 8-10, It may be a bass amp... sounds awesome... and it's as tall as me... I know I could get it cheap, but I have no room for it!

Oh yeah, I used to have a Fender Stage 112SE I think they came after the one you have.. The thing sounded awesome, but I'd put my Blues Deville up against anything.

size and power do not matter as much as quality, period.
if its huge or small as long as you get the sound out of it you want that is the right amp for you. music equiptment can be found at any price and any size, just look around for the best deal. just remember quality, durability, and sound quality.
just remember you can mike and pa a telephone reciever.
thats my advice, but then again i suck, dont listen to me
buy a huge 300w solid state head made from spare parts and run it into 4 full stacks with half blown speakers

If volume really is a consideration then the THD Univalve and Bivalve Class A amps are incredibly versatile (they take most types of preamp and power tubes, 6V6's, EL34's etc) and can get clean to quite distorted tones at very moderate volume.

Also, Matamp, who are making point to point hand wired all custom stuff do a few lower-powered amps where you can choose between 1, 2, 3 or 4 power tubes for volume and tone shaping, as well as 140w stuff that totally nails Sabbath-type Orange stuff if that's what you're into..

bdp

kerble wrote:I'm thrilled with my blackface Fender Twin reissue. The tremelo tank is kinda dodgy and I've had it repaired so many times, I've given up, but the reverb is glorious.


Faiz

I second the twin reverb. My favorite amp I've played on. I also really like the Hiwatt at Electrical. can't remember what kind it is.