Tube Amp Shopping

These are the amps I have sort of been steering towards:

Fender Twin 100:
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Fender-Twin-Amp-100Watt-AllTube-Guitar-Amp?sku=480649
I love Fender's clean sounds, but I haven't really heard the characteristics of their overdrive.

Epiphone So Cal 50
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Epiphone-So-Cal-50-Watt-Amp-Head?sku=480289
Seems great and I like the price, just wondering about the reliability. Wondering about the quality of sound and how long I will go without wanting to upgrade.

Marshall DSL401
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Marshall-DSL401-Combo-Amp?sku=483125
I love Marshall and their tone, their clean could be better but not worth crying about. I have heard that a lot of people have had overheating problems with this particular combo. I'm pretty sure I heard that Marshall has fixed it on the newer models, but it is all hearsay. Anyone know for sure?

Rivera Clubster 25
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Rivera-Clubster-25-Watt-1x10-Combo-Amp?sku=486325
Not sure about the overdrive on this amp.

Peavey ValveKing 212
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Peavey-ValveKing-212-Combo-Amp?sku=481443
Unsure of the versatility of this amp. (I was pretty much sold on this amp the last couple of weeks, but I got scared when all I saw was squealing hair metal come out of it on YouTube demos)

I am looking for an amp with sparkling, warm, and fat cleans. I don't not a whole lot from the overdrive, just a layer of grit and some friendly breakup. Not really looking for a blues geared amp, more of a Post-Rock sound with some teeth. It will be used for jamming with a band and possibly small shows (50-ish people).

I'm itching for the chance to go to a guitar shop and test drive some amps, but it is going to be awhile; plus I know I won't be able to try all of these amps.

I was just hoping for some feedback and any suggestions of a solid amp that is very warm and fat but isn't afraid to get down in the grit.

One thing for sure, with the kind of power you're talking here you'll be able to gig places with a few hundreds people.
I have limited experience with the Fender Twin but it seems consistent with the comments I got and read about it.
This amp will make you deaf if you push it over 5, its power is incredible.
But it is a very sparkling clean sound.
It is probably the best clean amp on the market, with a very nice and warm reverb.
But to get any "grit" out of it you'll have to push it around 10 and then you'll get everyone around you running for safety with their ears bleeding.
You'll need a good distortion pedal to really have any useable grit.

Right now, all I have is a little Blues Junior, 15W only.
I used to gig with a classic rock band with it and played venues with more than 50 people and it was still enough.
But we had a quiet drummer, it helped a lot.
The other guitarist in the band had a Twin clone and could never get any distortion out of his amp without overpowering everyone and still it was just a touch of distortion, nothing even close to the range of a Marshall.

From what I understand, amps with 6G6 lamps will give lotsa power but not a lot of distortion, unless pushed to deafening levels. Amps with EL84 lamps will have less power but will give you more "grit" at more reasonnable levels but won't be as clean.

Again, this is from my limited experience. A more seasoned player will give you a more accurate response.

nexion,

i have a valveking, don't take what you hear on you tube to the bank ok, this amp is very versatile, you can get some really
good tones out of this amp, but keep this in mind, TAKE YOUR GUITAR WITH YOU & TURN THE AMP UP, tell me what ya think ok?
this amp is a great bang for the buck 8)

Heres a new addition to the wanted list:

Fender Hot Rod Deluxe
http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Fender-Hot-Rod-Deluxe-Amp?sku=480510
I like the lower price tag and slightly lower wattage. Plus, this one REALLY goes to 11! :lol: 8)

Any input would be appreciated.

FINALLY!!! :D :D :D

I have found EXACTLY what I was looking for!

http://www.mesaboogie.com/Product_Info/Express/Express.htm

Nexion- the express looks pretty cool. i was looking around on mesa's website and thought it looked awesome. let me know how it is if you get it :)

**edit** - here's one on ebay for right around your price range. it is only the 25 watt though...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Mesa-Boogie-Express-5-25-Amp-1x10-Combo_W0QQitemZ270092556399QQihZ017QQcategoryZ43374QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Nexion- the express looks pretty cool. i was looking around on mesa's website and thought it looked awesome. let me know how it is if you get it :)

**edit** - here's one on ebay for right around your price range. it is only the 25 watt though...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Mesa-Boogie-Express-5-25-Amp-1x10-Combo_W0QQitemZ270092556399QQihZ017QQcategoryZ43374QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
That's what the "5:25 "means, it can be either 5 watts or 25 watts. And a 25 watt tube amp is plenty enough for what I need.

But I also came across this beauty:
http://www.mesaboogie.com/Product_Info/stiletto/stilettoDeuce-Trident.htm

So now it is off to GC to do some comparing. :D

Nexion

I can tell you about the Hot Rod Deluxe and DSL401 as I own both.

The Hot Rod Deluxe is a great amp, but I would call it a Blues amp. It has a great clean channel, one of the best. And don't worry about volume, this amp is LOUD. The overdrive channels are very 70's sounding, most prefer to use a pedal for distortions. It is a very reliable amp, I have owned mine for about 5 years now and never had problems with it.

The DSL401 is a fantastic sounding amp. It will get you that classic Marshall tone. You really will not appreciate how great this amp sounds until you play it at high volume. The overdrive channels are very good, you can get that classic Marshall crunch and use overdrive 2 for solos. These amps do get hot with the EL84 power tubes, but that is also why this amp has a great clean tone for a Marshall. They have corrected the problems with this amp. Marshalls are not normally as reliable as Fenders, but Marshall players push their amps harder, so maybe that's why.

Downsides?

The HRD tends to mush out with too much bass with the stock speaker. I replaced the stock Eminence 125 with a Celestion G12T-75 and it made a big improvement in my opinion. I also wish it had seperate EQs for the clean and overdrive channels. The volume controls are very sensitive and take some getting used to. This amp goes from very low volume at 1 to extremely LOUD at 1 1/2. I often use the second instrument input, with this the volume does not come on as quick.

The DSL401 has seperate EQs for each channel which is nice. I think my biggest dislike is that the stock speaker is 16 ohms and this amp will accept another 16 ohms speaker or cab for a 8 ohms load only. If you want to use a 8 ohms cab, then you have to disconnect the internal speaker. The amp will not run at 4 ohms at all, that would damage the amp. The HRD has a 8 ohms speaker and will accept another 8 ohms speaker or cab, so it will run at 4 ohms.

The DSL401 definitely has the more Rock tone. But I would not say it is as versatile as the HRD. You can play Country, Classic Rock, Blues or Jazz with the HRD stock, and it will play Metal with a good pedal. You can get a pretty good Blues tone with the Marshall, and of course it will do Rock, but it is not as versatile as the HRD in my opinion.

The DSL401 is plenty loud for gigging, but not as loud as the HRD.

Anyway, hope this helped a little.

Wes

i have a hot rod deville, and what wes said about the hot rods is right on, the clean
channel is the best clean channel i have ever heard, the overdrive is not very good,
both the deluxe and deville are extremly loud 8)

I currently use the Marshall DSL 401 and I really like it. I max the main volume and use the pre amp to control the volume otherwise you have to crank the clean channel to get any volume out of it and it distorts. I can also go between clean and OD 1 with the same volume level. The OD 2 which is a "boost" for leads doesn't really do boost it enough. A lot of people say they can't hear my leads so I got the "Fish & Chips" pedal and I turn up the amp and turn down the level on the pedal. Then when I solo I turn off the pedal (boosting the volume) and go to OD 2 "boost" and it seems to do better.

The DSL 401 also has a line out which we plug into the board and through the P.A. Then I also use the DSL 401 to power a 2x12 cabinet with Celestian speakers which I think sounds better than the internal speaker (more bass/bottom end). Works well for me, you can't power a separate cabinet with the DSL 201.

I have a fan blowing on the tubes on mine because it was made before 2001. After 2001 they fixed the overheating issue. Before if I touched the metal face plate it would be VERY HOT after a short time so the little fan works well.