If you could design your dream amp...

[glasshand]

I was messing with my amps the other day and thinking about what I like or don't like about each of them, and I got to thinking about what would constitute my perfect amp, and I thought that might be a good topic of discussion. Hey, maybe we'll even get lucky and someone will describe their perfect amp only for somebody else to say "Oh, that describes a _______ perfectly."

For me, I think my perfect amp would have:

- 30-ish watts. For me, that's generally enough to be loud enough to play with a loud-ish band and have headroom for solos.

- a master volume and a decent amount of preamp gain so you don't have to rely on just sheer volume for distortion. There's something great about an amp that gets its distortion purely from being cranked to "10", but it's not always practical or flexible.

- generally "British" character (somewhere in the general Marshall/Orange/Vox world)

- onboard reverb. I use reverb almost all the time anyway, so having to use a pedal for it is kind of a nuisance.

- three-band EQ. Sorry, a single "tone" or "shape" knob doesn't quite cut it for me.

All of those have been really easy; now comes the tough one...

- built-in (and adjustable!) boost OR channel switching that's actually useful for me. Getting a good volume boost for solos has been my bête noire. Putting a boost in front of a dirty amp usually just makes it dirtier, not louder. Two-channel amps seem like an answer, but usually the two channels are too wildly different to make them useful for this purpose. The best solution I've found has been putting a boost pedal in the effects loop, but I would love it if I didn't have to do this and wrangle extra cables, batteries, etc. My VHT Special 6 has a boost exactly like this! - unfortunately, it's about 8 watts, no reverb, no EQ, no master volume, and the boost is stupidly large, so it tends to be too much, but the idea is there...

[BatUtilityBelt]

My Vox AC15C1 is most of what you describe above, and as luck would have it, the AC15 is also my default choice for recording. The top boost channel is just delicious to me. Maybe I'm just that much more used to dialing in what I want with it, or maybe it's that well designed, or maybe my ears are just funky. In the rare cases the AC15 is too bright, I move to my Peavey Classic 30. Similar tones, but definitely much darker overall. All my other amps are less general purpose than those 2.

[andrewsrea]

@golem and a few others here can attest to the amps I own and have built, being best in class. But i love your theme here and it made me think of the 'brass ring' for me:

A scalable dry-wet 2x12 tube & digital amp.. Basically the sound of the major iconic tube amp running as hard or light at any volume with a built in PA system for studio effects at any volume - all digitally controlled and programmable.

- 4 channel 9-pin tube preamp + long-tail inverter circuits, with digitally switchable components so as to achieve Fender Blackface, Fender Tweed, an early Marshall JMT45 and a Soldano / PRS Archon type. Tubes in this section would run at full, non-scalable voltage.

- Effects loop send digitally selectable for before the inverter or after output section #1, via a 100w speaker motor (reactive load) & int a speaker + cabinet emulator. Digital selection will determine if the 'effects return' goes to the inverter for output section #1, to output section #2 or both.

- Output section #1: (2) 6V6, (2) 6L6 & (2) EL34, with the ability to digitally select one of those pairs with a voltage scaling. Premium output trans with pure copper wire and lots of pre steel with a high Fe content. This drives the 'dry' speaker and has a post-inverter digitally controlled master volume.

-Output section #2: class D 100w to drive the 'wet' speaker. input = output, just louder with a digitally controlled master volume.

- Midi controllable with control pedal and pre-set capability.

- Studio quality, multiple tap digital switching power supply, with premium filter cap network.

- Convertible 2x12 cabinet with (1) Celestion G12-30 and (1) Weber Chicago or Eminence Red, White & Blues. Cabinet can be closed-back, half-open or fully open for each speaker. Speakers are separated internally by a baffle.

[tlarson58]

@glasshand "Getting a good volume boost for solos has been my bête noire."

/ˌbet ˈnwär,ˌbāt ˈnwär/
Worrding hard. I had to look it up. Ha.

@andrewsrea - "4 channel 9-pin tube preamp + long-tail inverter circuits, with digitally switchable components."

Lost me at 9-pin. Ha.

Dream amp. Hm...

[glasshand]

My Vox AC15C1 is most of what you describe above, and as luck would have it, the AC15 is also my default choice for recording. The top boost channel is just delicious to me. Maybe I'm just that much more used to dialing in what I want with it, or maybe it's that well designed, or maybe my ears are just funky. In the rare cases the AC15 is too bright, I move to my Peavey Classic 30. Similar tones, but definitely much darker overall. All my other amps are less general purpose than those 2.

You know, it's funny that you mention that - a few years ago, my band used to rehearse in a studio that had an AC30, and I loved the sound of that thing when it was cranked. I don't think I ever tried channel-switching on it, but now you make me want to go back and try it. I see that the new AC15 and AC30 models also have power scaling, which would make it a nice home practice amp too.

[BatUtilityBelt]

You know, it's funny that you mention that - a few years ago, my band used to rehearse in a studio that had an AC30, and I loved the sound of that thing when it was cranked. I don't think I ever tried channel-switching on it, but now you make me want to go back and try it. I see that the new AC15 and AC30 models also have power scaling, which would make it a nice home practice amp too.

I did not know that, I'll have to check it out. ! My AC15 does not have an attenuator built in. I have a Bugera that switches between 5, 1, and 0.1 watt. I leave it in the 5 watt mode because the tone is vastly different across those. I think I chose an AC15 over an AC30 so I can manage to be in the same room as the amp cranked (but it is loud). I'd have gone AC30 if I believed an attenuator would be good enough to keep the tone and interactivity alive, but I haven't found that yet. Maybe someone else here has.

[peskypesky]

my Peavey Classic 30 is just about perfect for me.
I would just add an attenuator for low-volume playing.

[Rollin Hand]

Hmmm....my amp would be...hmmm...

-20 or 30 watts, with power scaling;
-lush natural-sounding reverb;
- Full stereo;
- All the usual accoutrements (loop, footswitches, etc);
- Enough gain, but not over-the-top gain -- think about 60-70 percent of the lead channel on a 6505;
- capable of pristine cleans;
- Able to sound like my Classic 20 and the end of the freakin' world;
- Big and warm, but with snarl; and
- able to do a convincing Marshall impersonation at all gain levels.

But I'm not asking for much. Not at all.

[deeaa]

I was messing with my amps the other day and thinking about what I like or don't like about each of them, and I got to thinking about what would constitute my perfect amp, and I thought that might be a good topic of discussion. Hey, maybe we'll even get lucky and someone will describe their perfect amp only for somebody else to say "Oh, that describes a _______ perfectly."

For me, I think my perfect amp would have:

- 30-ish watts. For me, that's generally enough to be loud enough to play with a loud-ish band and have headroom for solos.

- a master volume and a decent amount of preamp gain so you don't have to rely on just sheer volume for distortion. There's something great about an amp that gets its distortion purely from being cranked to "10", but it's not always practical or flexible.

- generally "British" character (somewhere in the general Marshall/Orange/Vox world)

- onboard reverb. I use reverb almost all the time anyway, so having to use a pedal for it is kind of a nuisance.

- three-band EQ. Sorry, a single "tone" or "shape" knob doesn't quite cut it for me.

All of those have been really easy; now comes the tough one...

- built-in (and adjustable!) boost OR channel switching that's actually useful for me. Getting a good volume boost for solos has been my bête noire. Putting a boost in front of a dirty amp usually just makes it dirtier, not louder. Two-channel amps seem like an answer, but usually the two channels are too wildly different to make them useful for this purpose. The best solution I've found has been putting a boost pedal in the effects loop, but I would love it if I didn't have to do this and wrangle extra cables, batteries, etc. My VHT Special 6 has a boost exactly like this! - unfortunately, it's about 8 watts, no reverb, no EQ, no master volume, and the boost is stupidly large, so it tends to be too much, but the idea is there...

My latest acquisition, the Victory V30 does exactly what you described. Two channels, a separate crunch mode that basically makes it 3 channels, 40w, compact, and sounds effin incredible and definitely in British vein.

The only thing missing from the list is reverb. But it has a loop so adding one is easy.

Another amp that fits the bill is the 50w Marshall JVM. It needs a few mods to sound its best but it's a killer one, six different modes/gain levels and a reverb and a loop. I've had two and it's a great amp.

But the Vic is real close to anything I might want. The only thing is the cleans are too clean. Seriously thinking of running two heads with an Origin 20 for warm organic cleans and low gain breakup and the V30 for everything else.

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[Tonray's Ghost]

My Vox AC15C1 is most of what you describe above, and as luck would have it, the AC15 is also my default choice for recording. The top boost channel is just delicious to me. Maybe I'm just that much more used to dialing in what I want with it, or maybe it's that well designed, or maybe my ears are just funky. In the rare cases the AC15 is too bright, I move to my Peavey Classic 30. Similar tones, but definitely much darker overall. All my other amps are less general purpose than those 2.

I agree on the AC15C1, played around a bit on a special run blue tolex one here in Bangkok and have been fightinig the urge to buy it since then. The amp 'probably' is too much for my little practice space in the living room and in addition I'm quite happy with the Mooer White Hornet / Valeton multi effects combo. Every time I start the online ordering process, I fire up the little rig and tell myself I really don't need the Vox. Fighting it everyday. Down the line I plan on getting a small flat in Bangkok, essentially having a city residence and a "country' townhouse to switch between. Once I do that, I'll of course need 2 rigs for practice play and I can rotate guitars between them.

[glasshand]

Reviving this thread because Orange has just announced the OR30, which looks very close to what I've dreamed of.

- available as a head (only)
- 30 watts (and supposedly a very loud 30 watts), switchable to 2W
- 3-band EQ
- gain and master volume
- footswitchable volume boost

No reverb, but it does have an FX loop. I could live with that, I guess.

[Tonray's Ghost]

I was messing with my amps the other day and thinking about what I like or don't like about each of them, and I got to thinking about what would constitute my perfect amp, and I thought that might be a good topic of discussion. Hey, maybe we'll even get lucky and someone will describe their perfect amp only for somebody else to say "Oh, that describes a _______ perfectly."

For me, I think my perfect amp would have:

- 30-ish watts. For me, that's generally enough to be loud enough to play with a loud-ish band and have headroom for solos.

- a master volume and a decent amount of preamp gain so you don't have to rely on just sheer volume for distortion. There's something great about an amp that gets its distortion purely from being cranked to "10", but it's not always practical or flexible.

- generally "British" character (somewhere in the general Marshall/Orange/Vox world)

- onboard reverb. I use reverb almost all the time anyway, so having to use a pedal for it is kind of a nuisance.

- three-band EQ. Sorry, a single "tone" or "shape" knob doesn't quite cut it for me.

All of those have been really easy; now comes the tough one...

- built-in (and adjustable!) boost OR channel switching that's actually useful for me. Getting a good volume boost for solos has been my bête noire. Putting a boost in front of a dirty amp usually just makes it dirtier, not louder. Two-channel amps seem like an answer, but usually the two channels are too wildly different to make them useful for this purpose. The best solution I've found has been putting a boost pedal in the effects loop, but I would love it if I didn't have to do this and wrangle extra cables, batteries, etc. My VHT Special 6 has a boost exactly like this! - unfortunately, it's about 8 watts, no reverb, no EQ, no master volume, and the boost is stupidly large, so it tends to be too much, but the idea is there...

Very relevant today. I started looking at the Roland Blues Cube series and unfortunately only the higher output 60 watt versions are available in Thailand so far..might have a lead tomorrow . The 30 watt ver would be perfect for my purpose. Fits all your above criteria too ! (With exception of Fenderish vs British character..but. Flexible). Turns out I may be able to get one for about $630 .. decisions decisions.

[andrewsrea]

Very relevant today. I started looking at the Roland Blues Cube series and unfortunately only the higher output 60 watt versions are available in Thailand so far..might have a lead tomorrow . The 30 watt ver would be perfect for my purpose. Fits all your above criteria too ! (With exception of Fenderish vs British character..but. Flexible). Turns out I may be able to get one for about $630 .. decisions decisions.

Blues Cubes are very good sounding IMHO. Keep in mind that @glasshand was probably talking a 30w tube amp. The Cube is solidstate and would have a tough time without a PA system, competing in a band situation. Great bedroom or jamming with others a low volumes.

[Tonray's Ghost]

Very relevant today. I started looking at the Roland Blues Cube series and unfortunately only the higher output 60 watt versions are available in Thailand so far..might have a lead tomorrow . The 30 watt ver would be perfect for my purpose. Fits all your above criteria too ! (With exception of Fenderish vs British character..but. Flexible). Turns out I may be able to get one for about $630 .. decisions decisions.

Blues Cubes are very good sounding IMHO. Keep in mind that @glasshand was probably talking a 30w tube amp. The Cube is solidstate and would have a tough time without a PA system, competing in a band situation. Great bedroom or jamming with others a low volumes.

Yeah that's why they later hit the market with the 60 and 80 watt versions the Artist and Stage variants. I have come to love solid state but despise modeling amps per se..any effects I need above reverb would be tremolo and a bit of delay..easily added with my Valeton gp100 already owned. Getting warm to the idea of a more robust setup over my little Mooer 6.5 inch Hornet

[tonebender]

I must have missed this thread before. It sure sounds like the amp that checks a lot of the boxes for your dream amp is a Peavey Classic 30 or Delta Blues.

[deeaa]

If I had to live with one amp foreveimme a Marshall JVM toned down for a bit more classic gain, and 20W in a smaller lunchbox or even small head config, and I'm good. It has everything I need.

Although my Victory V30 is absolutely marvellous too, it's 40w, very portable, takes either EL33 or 6L6 tubes, has a basically three distinct sounds/volume levels and most importantly, sounds stellar. Even better than Marshal really.

But yeah, that small factor JVM 4 CH amp would be perfect for anything.

But for my current needs, wouldn't change anything in the Victory. It's probably the only amp I ever owned I didn't want to mod or tweak at all, it's just perfect for my needs. It rides that kinda British crunch somehow just right; chunks and sounds very driven, but still has loads and loads of clarity so even full driven chords sound very detailed and clear and not at all fizzy buzzy or anything. Just perfect roar.

I'd say it also fits the OPs requirements, except no reverb. But it has a loop. I don't need a verb, the amp sounds so huge even without one.

Guthrie Gowan has some good demos of the Victory, but it really must be heard live to experience how the sound just kinda jumps out and effin' slaps you in the face. Incredible dynamics.

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[solteroblues]

so my Friedman Pink Taco V2 is almost perfect for me. It's got that "on the record" Marshall sound that most marshall's don't have or you can't get. You know, you hear a tone on a recorded song, and you know exactly what amp they used, but you can't get any Marshall to reproduce it... Well this amp sounds like the recording. That may be a good or bad thing for some people. Great gain sounds, with 3 different "modes" or levels of gain, sounds fantastic even at ultra low volumes. Has an effects loop

The only thing I would change about it would be add built-in reverb, and maybe a clean channel, although I don't really play clean very often. I could probably even send it back to Friedman and they could mod it for me, if I truly wanted to do that. I just find that I don't really use pedals even when I have them.

[uwmcscott]

so my Friedman Pink Taco V2 is almost perfect for me. It's got that "on the record" Marshall sound that most marshall's don't have or you can't get. You know, you hear a tone on a recorded song, and you know exactly what amp they used, but you can't get any Marshall to reproduce it... Well this amp sounds like the recording. That may be a good or bad thing for some people. Great gain sounds, with 3 different "modes" or levels of gain, sounds fantastic even at ultra low volumes. Has an effects loop

The only thing I would change about it would be add built-in reverb, and maybe a clean channel, although I don't really play clean very often. I could probably even send it back to Friedman and they could mod it for me, if I truly wanted to do that. I just find that I don't really use pedals even when I have them.

The friedman mini head that intrigues me is the JJ Jr - supposedly has really nice cleans plus the BE sound and even higher gain. I have never had the chance to play one in person though, did you get a chance to demo any others when you bought yours?

And a 2nd for @tonebender 's Peavey Classic 30 recommendation. Made in USA ( until the last few years ), relatively inexpensive, and pretty much a swiss army knife of amps.

[solteroblues]

so my Friedman Pink Taco V2 is almost perfect for me. It's got that "on the record" Marshall sound that most marshall's don't have or you can't get. You know, you hear a tone on a recorded song, and you know exactly what amp they used, but you can't get any Marshall to reproduce it... Well this amp sounds like the recording. That may be a good or bad thing for some people. Great gain sounds, with 3 different "modes" or levels of gain, sounds fantastic even at ultra low volumes. Has an effects loop

The only thing I would change about it would be add built-in reverb, and maybe a clean channel, although I don't really play clean very often. I could probably even send it back to Friedman and they could mod it for me, if I truly wanted to do that. I just find that I don't really use pedals even when I have them.

The friedman mini head that intrigues me is the JJ Jr - supposedly has really nice cleans plus the BE sound and even higher gain. I have never had the chance to play one in person though, did you get a chance to demo any others when you bought yours?

And a 2nd for @tonebender 's Peavey Classic 30 recommendation. Made in USA ( until the last few years ), relatively inexpensive, and pretty much a swiss army knife of amps.

No, I didn't even get a chance to demo this one, just YouTube videos and recommendations. But it surpassed all of my expectations. What I was most worried about was it being fizzy, and it's not at all. Also, it's clear, if that makes sense for a distorted amp, but great note separation, which was very important for me. I actually emailed Dave Friedman and asked him questions before I found one used on Reverb. Dave responded back to me that night. I had a problem with a bad tube, and he sent me a full set of brand new pre-amp and power tubes for free, even though I bought it used! Great customer service!!

[Tonray's Ghost]

Best demo of this I've seen yet

[glasshand]

Ugh, I am still torn, and now I have a Christmas gift certificate to use. If I use that and some of my year-end bonus and sell some gear, I can swing a fancy new amp.

The OR30 has an awesome feature set and sound. It is also larger and much heavier (almost twice as heavy!) than almost anything comparable. In one video review I saw, the reviewer described it as a great "studio" amp.

The Marshall 2525 Mini Jubilee is pretty cool but doesn't have quite the same feature set. Maybe I could just treat it as a single-channel amp.

The Friedman Pink Taco and some of the Victory amps also sound pretty good, but mostly ditto on the feature set. I like the PT's simplicity, but Victory tends to have reverb built in and none of the others I've mentioned do... *sigh*

[deeaa]

Are you absolutely sure you really want an amp? How about a multiFX/modeler and a powered speaker or neutral amp?

The trouble with amps is they are so limited on features, unless you buy a top line unit...and even then, if they do have a verb, for instance, there's not much tweaking possible if any.

I've been super happy with my Boss GX-100. It's small, heavy duty built, has everything I can ever think of needing (just found out that I can even set the expression pedal as an auto on/off way too)...and I can use it in so many ways.

It does very good direct recording, straight to a PC or recorder, albeit needs more tweaking for great sounds than Fractal/Neural units (which are triple the price) but then again it has most of the Boss pedals built in, and a loop which can be used to give it more colour (I like a tube OD in the loop for some more organic clipping).

I can happily play it straight to PA or frfr speakers, or plug it in front of any amp, there are output options for every need, and also a headphone out.

One of the best pieces of gear I ever bought for sure.

There are many many others too. A buddy has a BluGuitar amp that's pretty amazing too. 100w with a 'micro tube' that fits a pedal board, and with the ultra-

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[deeaa]

Light neodiym speaker it's a very very portable combo. The only thing is it doesn't have any FX built in.

But anyway...having used these modern modelers now for a year or so I think one of them will from now on always be the basis of my rig. I can pair them with so many options depending on the situation that they cover all the bases with ease. Mostly I only need to carry a small pedal board everywhere.

I do also have that laptop rig now for band use, but it's a different story.

I would really consider something in this vein rather than an amp. Just my 2c.

BTW when I write replies at some point the whole text just goes invisible. All I can do is press send. That's why there's two parts to this reply too. Can't edit the previous reply either, it's just all invisible text after it gets a certain length apparently..


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[glasshand]

Are you absolutely sure you really want an amp? How about a multiFX/modeler and a powered speaker or neutral amp?

That's what everybody says now. But it is a valid question. I should step back and think about my needs/wants at a more basic level.

* I'm looking for a gigging solution. I have ample solutions for home practice, band rehearsal, and recording.
* I play local bar and small club gigs with a raucous four-piece. It's usually a pretty minimal setup. Oftentimes there is no "sound man" and we don't even mic the guitars.
* I don't have a car, so keeping things relatively small and light is important.
* Speed and simplicity of setup and teardown are important to me - I don't even like using pedals if I can get away without them.
* I don't need great flexibility of tone or a lot of effects. I basically have my sound, and a louder version of my sound.

So a modeler or multiFX unit looks like kind of a wash. I'm not anti-modeler - I've seen and heard guys using them who sounded great - I just don't see what they really bring to my table specifically. On the other hand, I don't see a specific disadvantage either. I should give it a little more thought; I admit that my visceral reaction to the sight of a tolexed head with a few knobs is "drool!" and my visceral reaction to a piece of black plastic with an LCD screen is "that does not look like a real amp", but I'm trying not to be biased!

[deeaa]

That BluGuitarAmp is pretty amazingly portable, even with a 12" cab it weighs less than some guitars. The neodiym cab is insanely light, but 100w tube, even if a nano one, ensures plenty of volume. I've a buddy who's married it with a Boss FX unit/midi switcher, as a separate controller opens up some options on the amp.

I've heard amazing sounds from it too, like these: