What do we want but can't get?

[gjkung]

Hey guys, I was wondering what you softies want but can't get. Of course, I'm talking about gear here, so do discuss about what you would like but can't get, whether issit because of availability or cost.

I know there are many purists around here who rely on their fingers alone to do the magic, but I'm not trying to start a GAS spam about fancy equipment.

I just really want to find out what's some of us really want and is willing to pay for, but is hampered by lack of distribution and hence shipping charges etc...


To start things off, i think we are really lacking in a good HDB-home amp, I know some of us do play expensive stacks at home, but most of us wouldn't want to spend on 90% of unused volume.

I personally would like a good versatile small combo amp that can match the quality of a Peavey/Marshall tube-stack. The myth goes that the ideal tone can only be achieved on a stack on full, but I have a feeling that can always be overcome with good design as most of the world is focusing on huge amp designs now.


Of course, many of us don't actually know what's available, so this would be a great opportunity to point us in the right direction to look.

 

[YSR]

i want paul gilbert's fingers

 

[rikki]

yeah i share your sentiments.
i have a 25 watt amp at home and the max volume i use is only 3 oclock and i get not so good tone out of it.

 

[gjkung]

hey man rikki, which amp is that you're playing?


what's your budget like? For me, a home player, I honestly won't mind buying a small combo that's almost as expensive as a bigger amp as i can get cranked-er tones from it.

 

[YSR]

25 watts at 3 oclock is pretty damn loud man

 

[gargamelesp]

i personally feel that the wattage of an amp should not be a major deciding factor in what to get

you are never going to enjoy cranked tones at home with any amp larger than 30w with a 1x12 speaker

you need 10x the wattage difference for 2x the volume

instead, id look for amps (regardless of wattage) which are able to produce good tones at lower volumes

sorry for the small rant, but im quite puzzled as to why people keep thinking that the amp must be of low wattage for bedroom play. if you prefer the sounds of a high wattage amp at low volumes compared to a smaller wattage one, id say go for the one which tone you like the best.

contrary to popular belief, you dont have th turn the volume up loud in order to enjoy a good tone

personally for me wattage is the last factor on my mind (although its gonna be crazily expensive to retube my 150w amp)

ps.. to keep the topic on track, im eyeing for a diezel herbert /vh4 or a vht ultrahead to complete my high gain arsenal rig!

 

[Marksman]

I chose the 7-string, because of cost. As a student, it is going to take a hell lot of work+angpow money to get an EBMM JP7.

 

[trianglebiscuit]

greater range of higher end amps /stacks.

 

[crozzfire]

gjkung, i share the same sentiments too. volume to me is really a compromise, my neighbours can't stand the volume which im playing at, and i often get knocks on the door complaining about the volume.

 

[Midnight]

i voted amps cos i didnt want to vote under others. I am eyeing a new guitar. After which i will probably got a stack tube amp blah blah blah.

 

[DarknessIsComfort]

7 strings man. gotta have lotsa varieties esp. schecters. man saw an LTD 7 string viper the other day at davis and i was jumping for joy. literally.

 

[nickyseow]

you know what i want but cant get?

a trailer trash board. they cost too damn much.

and an eventide eclipse cos it costs too damn much.

anything by pete cornish, cos it costs too damn much, and its major corksniffery in my opinion..

a CJOD cos its almost extinct..

an eric clapton signature acoustic guitar cos it costs too damn much.


you know what? I'll have a laugh if i actually do manage to get one of the above, and i have a strange feeling that it may actually be a signature acoustic guitar of sorts.

 

[rikki]

i think its because people think that the tone you got from a smaller wattage amp at say 3oclock is better then a bigger wattage amp at 9oclock.
dont know whether this is true

 

[gjkung]

hey guys thanks for the input.

yes I do agree with the wattage issue. I understand taht stacks have a reasonable volume control but so far I feel most of the cost goes to it's full output performance

I notice there are two different results of cranking, you get both tube saturation and acoustic saturation, the latter meaning everything that's loud sounds nicer, which is probably why we play loud at home even on small amps.

The issue I had with big amps is that I can't hear enough of treble-detail when playing 2-5 metres away from it, whereas I can get that more comfortably with a pair of headphones listening to Chris Broderick's ENGL. Is that an illusion or do small-room-small-amps setup sound different.

btw, gargamelesp, the number of speakers matter more to volume am i right? wattage seems to do more with headroom is that it? I've never actually cranked a stack before so do enlighten.

crozzfire: I think that's not really a amp-cranking issue, but a volume issue I believe. My blazer 158 is already way too loud at 5 too. maybe you can try lowering the distortion gain and bringing down the bass and treble, since I rmb you don't play metal right?


So I guess wattage is not an issue to tone, but most good amps come with high wattage hence high price. Also, there isn't actually a fully versatile amp that does clean and distortion extremely well at low volumes.

Has anyone tried the orange Tiny Terror, that seems to have great potential if it had some tone controls and a 2/3 channel structure.

Gargamelesp: how do you intend to get a diezel?

7 stringers: What are we missing out on besides the piezo with whammy thing?

 

[JE]

i would vote for some good quality attenuators, (such as weber/london power)

of cos, a tube amp can sound nice at lower volume (drive), but that is for cleans. but if power tube distortion is what you are after, then there is no choice but to crank up the tube amp you have. in that aspect, although a smaller wattage amp is not going to make the sound much softer when dimed, it is easier to get a attenuator that is sufficient to tame its power output (as compared to.. say a 200W amp).

 

[subversion]

not on list: an amp that i want because i know it's good but not popular...

 

[Whitestrat]

I want a customised guitar to my exact specs made by EBMM...

Sorry. Make that 2 guitars (in case one dies or something...) :lol:

The worst bit is, I'm prepared to pay for it... But EBMM won't make it... whahahaha...

 

[gsonique]

not popular

???

You kiddin right !!??

 

[gjkung]

gsonique actually I think it isn't as popular as the real "mainstream boutique".

But sub, how do we know if an amp is good, unless you actually played that one somewhere? although judging from your home rig...isn't that within your budget?(lol just guessing :lol: )

 

[guitarsan]

gargamelesp: im quite puzzled as to why people keep thinking that the amp must be of low wattage for bedroom play.

Ditto. It's a myth perpectuated in this forum that many people seem to follow. Personally, my 40W class-A tubey has no problem being "too loud". I tweaked both my amp's volume (pre-amp) and master volume (power stage) to a certain sweetspot range (recommended by Randolf), and I can get very nice tube tone at acceptable apartment volume. For breaking up or overdriven sound, I can use an attenuator. But I use a good OD pedal for simplicity sake. 8)

Here's a link http://www.guitarnuts.com/amps/myths.php someone posted in another thread. Interesting read, especially the myth below:

3) I need a small combo because I live in an apartment. This is sort of the opposite of myth two, above, and is closely related to myth one, above. While a small combo will certainly take up less room, it may or may not be easier to get good cranked tone out of it at apartment levels. First, read myth one again. If it's true that we have to increase power ten times to double perceived volume, then it is also true that we have to reduce power ten times to cut the perceived volume in half. Thus, even a tiny 5-watt single ended tube amp is going to sound about half as loud as a fifty-watt stack (actually, it will be a bit quieter than that because it is probably driving an eight or ten inch speaker instead of a 4X12 cab). Even that five-watt amp will be way to loud to run cranked in an apartment unless your neighbors are very tolerant. Here are some facts you should consider:

Even a 5-watt tube amp with an eight inch speaker is very loud by the time you crank it into distortion.
You can use an attenuator with either a large amp or a small combo. Keep in mind, however, that attenuating below about 1 watt per speaker starts to adversely affect tone – it seems that a certain amount of speaker drive is required to round out distortion (see recent articles on 3-stage amplification architecture tests at amptone.com). Even one watt into an 8" or 10" guitar speaker is likely to get you evicted.
Many small combos do not offer a master volume, thus making it impossible to even get preamp saturation at acceptable volume levels.
To get true "cranked tube tone" in an apartment at lease-safe levels you are almost certainly going to have to use a combination of attenuation and a sound-proof speaker isolation box with a microphone running to a mixer or stereo. This is true whether you are running a 5-watt, single-ended, class A combo with an eight-inch speaker or a 100-watt stack with a 4X12 cab.
It's not a good idea to run an amp inside of a sound-proof box, so even with a small combo you will need an extension speaker.
It's not much fun to try to enclose a 4X12 cab, so you'll also need an extension speaker with that kind of rig.
The lesson here, once again, is to select amplifiers based on features, not on power level. A tiny five-watt class-A amp with an eight-inch speaker and no features may not be very satisfying after a while, will be wholly inadequate for gigging, and still isn't quiet enough to run cranked in your apartment! Add a few features such as footswitchable channels, master volume, and an effects loop and that 5-watt amp starts to become pretty attractive!