Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Diglydog on January 2, 2014 at 9:41pm

It depends on what type of amp you want.  If you like your digital amp, the Fender Mustang 1 (£110) or Mustang Mini (£99 - battery or mains) sound great and have a huge number of sounds through FUSE software.

http://www.fender.com/en-GB/series/mustang/mustang-i-v2-120v/

http://www.fender.com/en-GB/series/mustang/mustang-mini-120v/

If you fancy valves, maybe one of these (£145).  It's only 5W but it should be loud enough for practice.  I have one that's been modified by Rat Valve Amps and it's great.  You'd need to try the standard one to see if it suited your taste.  Also, you can pick up nice little valve amps on eBay from time to time.

http://www.bugera-amps.com/en/products/V5.aspx

http://www.ratvalveamps.com/bugera-v5-combo

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Permalink Reply by Michael Fred Johnson on January 2, 2014 at 11:17pm

Richey

How about making a nice coffee table top for your big amp and keep it downstairs

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Permalink Reply by Chris Carlson on January 3, 2014 at 1:41am

I bought the Fender Mustang Mini and it sounds alright - but now I wished I'd bought the Roland Micro Cube instead! It was a lot more adjustable features like tremolo and reverb.

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Permalink Reply by Diglydog on January 3, 2014 at 2:54am

Here's a nice little amp on eBay.  Only 3.6W but they sound nice:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Rat-Hot-Rod-Valve-Special-All-Valve-Guita...

407bug has the Grainger version of the same thing - you could ask him if it's a sensible price.  As always, it depends on what you want.  I'd recommend valve amps because I like their simplicity and sound.  You may not like them or may want more versatility and effects - it's all down to personal taste.

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Permalink Reply by Wichita Sam on January 3, 2014 at 3:43am

Since you like your Line6, why not just go with the baby (15w?) Line6?

 

Beyond that, I'm a big fan of the Mini Cube.....

 

Or, go get a vintage 2 or 3 tube amp...(I just picked up an old Crate, made in St. Louis in the 60's for 50 bucks at a pawn shop)

 

Like others have said, it's really what you want, how you intend on using it.

 

the best,

 

Wichita Sam

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Permalink Reply by Richey Kay on January 3, 2014 at 4:02am

Thanks for all the suggestions guys. Should keep me going for a bit.
Diggly - you're right, I have always wanted a valve amp so might keep my eyes peeled for a bargain.
Michael - I like your style, but the amp is very big, the living room is very small, and I'm guessing it won't mix well with a toddler...
Sam - I do like my Line6, but its kind of a hangover from my younger days (used to play rhythm in a metal band). I'd quite like to try something new!

Thanks all.

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Permalink Reply by Ron "Oily" Sprague on January 3, 2014 at 9:42am

Richey,

I have a lot of small amps, that work off a combo of wall warts or batts. I just got a Yamaha THR5A for Christmas that sounds really nice. My main practice amp is a Roland Stereo Mobile Cube, a cousin to the highly vaunted Micro Cube $178 in the States, with clean, crunch, overdrive, delay, chorus and reverb, and can also handle an MP3 player, and a mic, as well as a git plugged in - all at the same time! I've played in a gym in front of 1000 people with mine with no additional amplification. Or you could try the ZT Lunchbox, $289 -269 in the States. Size of an actual metal lunchbox, 6" speaker, 200W (yes, that's 2 zeros!), solid state that sounds like tubes. This is my main stage amp, and can easily compete with a Marshall half stack. Really. It can be used at bedroom volumes, too. I have a number of LM386 chip 1-5W amps that are fun and work off wall warts or 9V batts, including a Cactus Amps Kegerator, a Fender Mini Twin Tweed, a Zinky Lil Smoky (I highly recommend these. Extremely loud, 1 9V batt, no volume control, belt packable, and only $35 in the States), a custom job in a cigar box, and the ever faithful Pignose 7-100. All of them sound different, but great. My "big" tube amp is a 15W Crate Palomino, and my small one is a Fender Champ 600 ReIssue...you'll notice, except for the ZT, that nothing is over 15 W. Why? Because I always mic my amps through the house mixing board into the PA. Reduces stage volume so I can hear better, and gets a better blend for the audience. This is a well known trick used by most live and studio pro sound engineers. So I never need to lug more than 15 kilos of amp around, and it's usually waaay less, because I just grab the ZT or Roland, or sometimes both, and go. Check out used Vox DA5s, as well as the new Vox Mini Cube-style thingies - they have great built in tube amp models.

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Permalink Reply by Richey Kay on January 3, 2014 at 7:49pm

Wow - thanks for the detailed reply Oily! I like the sound of the Roland, looks like it goes for about £120 in the UK...

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Permalink Reply by Ron "Oily" Sprague on January 4, 2014 at 5:07am

Right in your price range. Try A/B-ing the Roland Mobile Cube vs the Micro Cube. They're both very portable, but you may find you like one better than the other.

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Permalink Reply by Hobo 63 on January 4, 2014 at 9:20am

One and  only. Bugera V 5 tube amp. Awesome sound on 3 stringers.

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Permalink Reply by Richey Kay on January 4, 2014 at 9:22am

so tempted!

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Permalink Reply by PKB on January 31, 2014 at 6:31am

I have one and I love it! The built in attenuator sold me.

Also, another amp I can attest to is the Pignose Hog-20. It's battery powered and has two inputs. It doesn't have nearly the same amount of tones/effects as the Roland Cube but that's a good thing IMO.

It also has two inputs. When I busk with it I'll plug in my CBG, Mic and have a kick drum.

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