New guitar amp advice

[liner33]

My son is a keen guitarist, he has a Gibson SG and a Ibanez electric guitar and enjoys playing classic rock and more modern stuff like Foo Fighters etc

He has a practice amp and a slightly bigger Park (Think its the 25r) which he uses with an effects pedal

I want to buy him a nice , beefier, better quality amp, we have a detached house so noise isnt an issue

Budget is about £500 but may push it a little

Any suggestions ?

[vinnie01]

The only thing I can suggest is he takes his main guitar to a local guitar shop and literally have a play, everyone has their own favoured sound some like Marshall (guilty) others like VOX or Orange or eve Line 6. with £500 he could get himself a good ultimately giggable guitar amplifier. I personally have a Les Paul into a Boss Tuner into a Marshall 30W practice amp he however, may have different tastes.

[liner33]

Yeah but that kinda ruins the surprise , I want to buy it as a gift ideally

[vinnie01]

As you mentioned Food Fighters heres a Dave Grohl Guide
http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/article/5755-the-dav...

[liner33]

vinnie01 said:

As you mentioned Food Fighters heres a Dave Grohl Guide
http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/article/5755-the-dav...

cool that chucks up this as an option

http://www.andertons.co.uk/combo-amps/pid22244/cid...

[rsbmw]

if he's only playing at home, i would recommend a lower wattage valve amp. At the same volume, a lower wattage amp will be driving the valves harder for a much nicer sound.

Blackstar HT5R would be my recommendation for that sort of music, available in combo 1x12 or 2x10 form, or you could go with the head + 1 or 2 1x12 cab's, i expect he will love a mini-stack! Will also drive a bigger 4x12 cab and would be enough for smaller/pub gigs.

Also has emulated out for recording/headphone use, which is brilliant

http://www.andertons.co.uk/combo-amps/pid20685/cid...
http://www.andertons.co.uk/combo-amps/pid29390/cid...
http://www.andertons.co.uk/guitar-amp-heads/pid206...
http://www.andertons.co.uk/guitar-amp-heads/pid215...

Don't be fooled, 5w will give plenty of volume.

[maxxy5]

In that case you can't go wrong with a Marshall combo, good brand, versatile sound. It will be a big step up from his other amps.

http://www.andertons.co.uk/combo-amps/pid25601/cid...


You can get very cool small valve amps, but a teenager might not like them as they're 'only' 5W or something! Probably for older geeks.

edit: as mentioned above

[maxxy5]

This looks cool: http://www.andertons.co.uk/combo-amps/pid28542/cid...

Bet it sounds good

[maxxy5]

I would also go down to a local guitar shop and see what they suggest and actually see the amps.

[liner33]

our local shop is hopeless , we tend to use Andertons in Guidford but its a way away

[maxxy5]

I think most of us on here who've been playing a while would buy a small valve amp like the ones listed above with that budget. But that might not be what a teenager (I assume he's a teenager) thinks is cool. They tend to be small and don't 'look' loud.

In which case a larger solid state combo amp from a good brand might be better. Like the Orange one I linked to.

[rsbmw]

Here's another option then, I have a smaller 20w version hooked up to my PC

http://www.andertons.co.uk/combo-amps/pid27698/cid...

It's brilliant using the software to build sounds, save them etc, as well as downloading sounds other people have made to emulate artists, other amps etc. Sounds good too.

[Monty Python]

http://www.musicradar.com/news/guitars/20-of-the-b...

[minimoog]

Agree a small valve amp would be my choice (5 watts is loud enough for home, you can do small gigs with 20w).

For more opinions this would be a good question to ask at http://www.thefretboard.co.uk/

[Tom_C76]

Marshall DSL40C. Cracking amp, and loud enough for pub gigs.

[Chicken Chaser]

Black star HT20 valve combo. £500

[SamR380]

Tom_C76 said:

Marshall DSL40C. Cracking amp, and loud enough for pub gigs.

A medium Marshall combo like this will be perfect and last a lifetime.

Truth be told you'll rarely need more than 30 Watts if you're talking valve amps. Also consider they sound better when pushed hard so you'll never get the best out of a 100 Watt amp until you're playing outdoor festivals, this is why 5 Watt valve amps are quite popular for home use.

Edited by SamR380 on Wednesday 9th March 12:56

[minimoog]

SamR380 said:

Tom_C76 said:

Marshall DSL40C. Cracking amp, and loud enough for pub gigs.

A medium Marshall combo like this will be perfect and last a lifetime.

That does look like a good call.

[liner33]

Thanks all

[Tom_C76]

Just to add, that Marshall is what our local branch of PMT use as their default demo amp if you want to try out a decent guitar. I mainly use a Marshall 1987X reissue head and 4x12 cab, but the DSL was very impressive.