I need a rocking amp which offers value for money.

smog · Joined: 20 Aug 2007 Posts: 5

Hey guys.. im planning on buying a Gibson 1961sg standard reissue or a Gibson Angus Young sig. but i can't find the right amp to go with either of the guitars... i want to exploit the brilliant sound that these guitars are capable of producing .. so which amp would be the right one??

p.s. - the amp better not be insanely priced! Exclamation

lee_UK · Posted: Tue Aug 21, 2007 2:09 pm Post subject:

I love those 2 guitars, if i had to choose between them i would go for the re-issue, i like the Angus but i prefer a Maestro trem unit without the Angus engraving, this is a picture i posted up of mine
http://guitarsite.com/hotlicks/viewtopic.php?t=3743
As for a rocking amp, i would go for a 100 watt head, valve of course, something like a DSL100 JCM Range is good, What kind or music are you playing? do you want it to play live or at home?

smog · Joined: 20 Aug 2007 Posts: 5

hey lee, i took a look at the maestro vibrola which u installed into ur gibson guitar. ill definitely be saving a lotta money by buying the vibrola separately instead of choosing the angus sig.
You said that u drilled holes into the guitar.. now i dont trust myself with that .. don't wanna buy something and drill into it and mess it up. does gibson do it for you ? and cant u buy the engraved vibrola from gibson ? or do they not sell it?
and also .. the amp is for playing at home..i play modern rock(greenday etc) im gonna check out the one u suggested right away. thanks for ur help.
and u live in london right ? how much would i save by choosing the reissue(with vibrola) over the sig?

1bassleft · Posted: Tue Aug 21, 2007 8:28 pm Post subject:

Before Lee chimes in again, there are plenty of good guitar builders, repairers etc who can install that for you and guarantee not to cock it up.

I agree with Lee about the valve amp, and the DSL is good, but you might find a 100W head and cab, even the combo, a big burger at home and you won´t be able to utilize the volume (and therefore the best of the valves) without neighbours sending the cops round. Even a 50W amp is too loud (contrary to what people think, a 50W is not half as loud; it´s 9/10 as loud).

If it´s strictly for home, I would go for EL84 based amps and, specifically, the WEM Dominator MkIII. This is an old amp, so we´re talking 2nd hand on eBay. None on there at the moment but, with patience, they can be had in GWO for not too much (let me know so we don´t bid against each other). Under 100 quid is a bargain, 150 not bad and 175 getting on the high side. I have several of these and they purr. The much more expensive Marshall 18W combo was actually a ripoff of the WEM circuit.

If you´re in the US, there is the problem of needing to get the one with the 110V tap but any will do if you´re in Blighty. I have a backlog of US chums who want them with the 110V including a mate of mine who played on Dave Lee Roth´s solo albums. I´ve sent him two MkIIIs and a MkII but he still wants more (and he sold his Marshall 18Watters). They´d struggle at a full rehearsal with drum kit but great for home use and jamming.

smog · Joined: 20 Aug 2007 Posts: 5

i took a look at the dominator mk111.. it sure looks really old .. looks obviously dont define quality but there must be a reason why u like this amp?? i fortunately dont live in the us .. so its ok. the amp lee suggested was awesome but i think ur right in saying that its just too much for home use. but im still curious to know why u prefer the mk111. what about the marshall MGseries 15cdr?.. i have one of these.. how will it play with the new gibson reissue?

lee_UK · Posted: Wed Aug 22, 2007 2:41 pm Post subject:

The MG series would be great for home use, i think they have some built in effects, i only suggested the DSL cos i thought you would be gigging with it.
Also look at the VOX AD15VT, that also looks like a good amp, you really need something with 'Amp simulator' technology built in and if it has extra effects then thats good too.

As for the SG, i bought my 'Standard' in 1998 it was new, and i think it really is one of a kind, it plays like a dream, the setup is perfect, i never tune it, and it looks fantastic, when i started gigging with it i wanted to add the Maestro as we do a few covers that need it, i looked into getting a Gibson one but at the time it wasn't available, allparts.co.uk were expensive so i got mine half price from allparts.com, postage and tax bumped it up a little but it still worked out cheaper than buying one in the UK, the 61 reissue has a different pickgaurd and looks even cooler than the Standard (IMHO).
The drilling is OK but you need to get it right first time, and don't forget the holes are still going to be there if you want to take it off later.

So if you want a good amp then go for a 15 watter with amp sim technology, for rehearsing at home i use Guitarport, which is excellent but you need to plug it into your PC, and you also need a decent 2.1 speaker system.

smog · Joined: 20 Aug 2007 Posts: 5

lee you've convinced me that the reissue is worth buying, so i think ill go with that. i've heard a bit about guitar port .. but what EXACTLY is it? u plug it into ur pc and do what? im sorry if i sound a little ignorant here. it's just that guitar port seems to be a great thing to have but i dont know what it is. I'll take a look at the vox amp u suggested. Shocked

1bassleft · Posted: Wed Aug 22, 2007 5:58 pm Post subject:

If you already have the MG15CDR, then the Vox may not be what you´re after. I haven´t tried the MGs, but I do know they´re well rated and excellent value for 90 quid. Marshall usually do a good job of valve sim; do you use the FDD button a lot? If so, you might find a genyooine valve amp a revelation (incidentally, I gather the line out on the MG is very good, too).

I had a thunk about this last night. I´ve never actually played HBs through the Dominator! Strange, but true. I just have Strat lying around but, HST, the band´s "proper" guitarist has played alsorts through one. It might not, however, be the sound you want. It´s great for classic ´70s rock, blues and my kind of indie I don´t think I exactly nail Green Day with it. Lacks features of course: no line out, reverb, channel switching. Their point is they do the one thing very well.

It´s a bit of an ask to expect you to spunk 150 quid on Fleeb just on my sayso although you won´t lose on resell. There are modern valve amps that you can try out in a shop and they don´t cost an arm. There´s the Epiphone valve series; the valve jr is a 5W, single EL84 at about 100 quid, the valve special is ditto but with DSP and the valve standard is 15W, 2xEL84 with DSP and around 270 quid. I do know that the valve jr gets criticized and a lot of people have upgraded the speaker and even the output transformer to make a nice little combo but with increased cost and bother. The 15W valve standard will be a different circuit and might be worth a play in the shop.

Another new amp that intrigues me is the Fender Champion 600. The looks are retro 50s (puts me off a bit) but I have a clone of the old Fender Champ and it´s a great amp; 6V6 power is very different to EL84, more sparkly and stays cleaner longer before breaking up. To suit modern styles, this amp has two channels and higher gain for more overdrive. No other features though. It´s all about using your vol knob.

BTW, a 5W valve amp is plenty. I have the Champ and a Dallas Scala (little 5W EL84 combo) and can annoy the Mrs at full (although it´s at its best there). If the lack of features on the Champion 600 bother you, one of the Epis with DSP might suit but remember to try it first and even better if the shop let you try a decent extension cab to see if speaker upgrades are worthwhile.

lee_UK · Posted: Wed Aug 22, 2007 11:36 pm Post subject:

1bassleft raises some good points and some good recommendations too.
5 watts is loud at full tilt, and a 5 watt valve amp would be a good addition to your Marshall, if you need more distortion then a pedal would work wonders.

The valve amp will always sound better than an amp sim when played at volume, the harder you drive a valve amp the hotter they get and the better the sound (for rock, blues etc that is), so a 5 watt valve amp would be a good choice.

The Guitar port is a peice of hardware and software from Line 6.
You have a device that sits outside the PC with a volume knob on it, you plug your guitar into this and then there is a connection that goes USB to your PC, and an audio connection to your amp/headphones.
you load up the software and the you choose your amp as in a Marshall dsl or an 80's Marshall head or a Vox AC30, there are basicaly lots of classic and modern amps to choose and also speaker cabs to use with them. Then you choose your guitar effects and play, its all very easy to use and it sound's excellent, i use it all the time at home.

lee_UK · Posted: Wed Aug 22, 2007 11:37 pm Post subject:

BTW, very good choice on the 61 reissue, if i had my choice all over again i would go for that one.

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