Kazoo! Tube amps! They're awesome, except for when they aren't, but tbh I've had pretty good luck with the exception of a few dogs. And it really helps not throwing them in a van to rattle around for hours at a time these days.

If I were buying something new, I'd totally reach out to fm Dr Balls about a build. Used stuff can be great, but it helps to make sure you know a good local tech if you're not working on stuff yourself. I kind of intentionally went the Verellen route so not only is it a new build and I can have the guy who made it fix it on the other side of town.

defendyachtrock wrote: Tue Aug 13, 2024 11:24 am Yesterday, FKCN was in the studio where I played through a Twin Reverb and a custom Friedman head and it has induced a worse GAS attack than you’d get from wilding out at Taco Bell, and I feel incepted to turn in my Solid State Amp Loyalist card, sell the Quilters and go tube.

Am I insane for this? Is trading out weight savings and decent tone for a possibly heavier load but incredible tone a wise choice?

Chase your tone dreams, man. We're grown men and we're playing with our music toys. THe worst that can happen is that you don't like it and you sell that and try something else.

That said, I will message you about a tube head I've been wanting to sell that might push the buttons for you, and it will be a hell of a deal.

tallchris wrote: Tue Aug 13, 2024 12:42 pm fm Dr Balls

Not trying to pimp myself but since the primary concern seemed to be weight i'll offer up some reference specs. The 50W Marshall-ish amp I just built clocks in a 26 pounds, and the same thing from Marshall is 34 pounds. Granted a Quilter head is ~3lbs...

Hi Dr. Balls! Appreciate the reference specs!

My Quilter 1x12” combos are about 20-25lbs each. I’ve taken to using both at gigs recently, so if I were to go with a relatively lightweight tube head and a solidly built 1x12” (currently looking at the Mesa/Boogie Thiele 1x12” or the Mojotone slanted 1x12”), that won’t seem like too huge an increase in weight or space.

As far as heads go I’ve been looking into the Marshall Origin 20, which seems to match most of what I’m looking for in terms of cost, weight and dimensions, effects loop, tone, power-scaling, etc. Still flipping coins between if I want to hit it with my OD pedals or get the gain from the amp and turn down with a volume pedal or somesuch, and the power scaling options on the Origin (20w, 5w, 1w) means I could play around with that.

Or take the red pill and send a DM to the doctor…

defendyachtrock wrote: Wed Aug 14, 2024 2:06 pm
As far as heads go I’ve been looking into the Marshall Origin 20, which seems to match most of what I’m looking for in terms of cost, weight and dimensions, effects loop, tone, power-scaling, etc.

I don't know that the Marshall Origin 20 is going to get what you're after tone and/or build quality-wise.

Finding something like a Traynor YBA-1 (readily available in these parts or elsewhere online) is going to give you a sturdy-as-hell amp with a fairly easy modding platform (should you want to get into that realm.) I recently picked up a Traynor YRM-1SC from a bandmate for CHEAP and it's great. 4x10", robust, not too much of a pain in the ass to move, and has a master volume (handy!).

The Balls stuff is great because of course it is. It's changed my life. One day when I have stupid money lying around, I'll ask him to build at least 2 more amps for me, but all in due time. If you had some money to move around, having the good Dr. build you the "1-and-done amp of your dreams" is a pretty rad thing.

As for the "gain from pedals/gain from amp" deal, I think it's easier to set a good baseline amp sound and then smash with pedals from there. Or go full AC/DC and have no pedals, just turn your guitar up from 8 to 10.

Thanks to everyone who chimed in, I really appreciate it.

For right now, I think my brief Tone Life Crisis is over. Just got out of practice where I turned up the Quilters to nearly-dimed so I could get that edge-of-breakup sound, set pretty damn loud, spaced about 1.5 feet from each other with the Mimiq in play. Sounded pretty close to what I heard in the studio on Monday and will do just fine for live and rehearsal. It definitely sounds about 85-90% as good as the Twin and the Friedman head, but there's some definite alluring Je Ne Sais Quoi in that missing 10-15%.

That said, I definitely got plenty of research done in the last few days. My bandmates are somewhat split - drummer says he noticed how good my tone was in the studio and is definitely into me getting a tube amp; bassist thinks my tone is fine but if I want to go down the rabbit hole, will be making recommendations so I end up with a keeper the first time around (and to that end has spent the couple of hours before practice sending me local Craigslist and Reverb listings of recommendations).

defendyachtrock wrote: Wed Aug 14, 2024 2:06 pm As far as heads go I’ve been looking into the Marshall Origin 20, which seems to match most of what I’m looking for in terms of cost, weight and dimensions, effects loop, tone, power-scaling, etc.

Run away from all things Marshall Origin. Just gross, made like tech devices rather than robust amps, and never seem to sound good. I would take any Quilter over a Marshall Origin.

Yep - they’re constantly for sale used for a reason.

No firsthand experience, and certainly can't speak to the serviceability, but fwiw ever person I know who's used one of those purple/blue marshall vintage modern heads has been really, really impressed by the sound. They're really inexpensive on the used market and I think a low key sleeper/ripper?

benadrian wrote: Thu Aug 15, 2024 11:58 am

defendyachtrock wrote: Wed Aug 14, 2024 2:06 pm As far as heads go I’ve been looking into the Marshall Origin 20, which seems to match most of what I’m looking for in terms of cost, weight and dimensions, effects loop, tone, power-scaling, etc.

Run away from all things Marshall Origin. Just gross, made like tech devices rather than robust amps, and never seem to sound good. I would take any Quilter over a Marshall Origin.

I cannot believe I’m about to say this, but I recently played a Tele through a used Origin 50 head turned up in either high or medium power mode through a nice cab and thought “this has no business sounding this good for less than $300.” I found it easy to dial in a good sound that was just a hair less gain than AC/DC territory, which is where I live. But yeah, probably built like total dogshit.