Guitar Combos; advice appreciated

[edwardofhuncote]

I'm kinda' looking for a little bit better guitar amp than my little practice amp I've had for years. Nothing wrong with it at all, I'm just ready for something a bit more substantial... and I am woefully ignorant of what is out there now.

*My current amp is an Epiphone EP-1000 R... says Gibson Elm Hill Pike, Nashville, but I'm sure it's an import. Like I said, decent little living room amp... I'm just ready for better. Mine is the tweed one, but here- https://www.musiciansfriend.com/amplifiers-effects/epiphone-ep-1000r-combo

I won't likely be getting any gigs playing electric guitar, but I'm looking for some pretty good quality sound. It isn't as much about volume as it is tone, and adjustability. I have a Les Paul, a Telecaster, and (somewhere or another) an 80's MIJ Strat. (I loaned it to somebody...) The Tele is fun, but nine times out of ten, I reach for that LP. Love that guitar. Could there be an Alembic one day... Sure.



What's your favorite? Or what have you played through that you really liked?

[jazzyvee]

I will keep my eye on this as I could do with a small low powered but clean home practice guitar combo.

[elwoodblue]

I've been wanting the little 7w Boss Katana for when the power goes out.
I see the reviews for the larger ones are just as good.
 They have a 50W in the $200 range.


Has anyone tried one?

[rv_bass]

I had a Peavey Deuce for a very long time (late 70s, early 80s), great amp, it was their version of the Fender Twin Reverb.  I sold it about two years ago, it became too heavy.

I replaced it with two single Tone Tubby 12” Cubes, one with a Purple Haze speaker and one with a Red Alnico speaker, that way I can just use one speaker when needed for a small setup.  I use a light weight class D one rack space Carvin amp with an F-2B.  It’s very module, light weight, and sounds very good. I’m very happy with it.

I use a Series I guitar and EBS Dynaverb pedal for reverb.

So if you already have the power amp/preamp setup, then you might think about just adding a cube cab to plug into.

[rv_bass]

Here is a photo to get an idea of the size of the set up with one speaker.

[lbpesq]

Rob:
You stole my rack!  lol!

Gregory:
May I suggest you consider Quilter?  The 101 Mini Reverb head can pair with any cab, but their BlockDock series are the bees knees!  This is the 10" speaker version.  Weighs less than 20 pounds.  50 watts and can keep up with a full rock band!
Bill, tgo

[cozmik_cowboy]

What's your budget, Greg?  If you're willing to get up off the coin for a living room amp, Reverb generally has several examples of what I consider the best low-power guitar ever made - the Paul Rivera-designed early-'80s Fender Super Champ - for about $1K.  Barring that, if it has tubes, spring reverb, and a "Fender" badge, you can't go wrong (though Bill's Quilter is purdy dern sweet).

Peter

[gtrguy]

I used to have a vintage Super Champ and other than the not so great overdrive channel, I really liked it. Today I like the hard to find Zinky Blue Velvet (so does my cat) and Mesa Nomad 45 single 12" (for a more rock 3 ch sound). The Nomad is not in style these days so it is around $450 used. You can replace the 12" speaker with a Neo 12" and shave a few pounds off the already light weight. Both those amps will keep up with a loud rock band or sound good playing quiet. For jazz I picked up a Polytone Mini Brute II for like a hundred bucks and when I add a Topanga reverb pedal it sounds super close to the vintage 68 fender Princeton located at the jazz jam place I used to go to all the time before this pandemic hit. I had a chance to buy a Fender 'Fudge Brownie' RI amp a while back and it sounder toedully killer for that vintage Fender clean sound but I passed on it.

[jalevinemd]

I echo Bill's sentiments regarding the Quilter gear. I've got the 101 and the 201 with a 12" BlockDock. Despite being solid state, they sound every bit as good as any tube amp I've owned...Fender, PRS, Hiwatt. Plus, you can't beat the weight and portability.

[edwardofhuncote]

Thanks for all the replies fellas, I knew I could count on ya'. 

Well, Rob hit on something I should've already thought of... I already have a second F-1X and power-amp racked up. What I don't have is a suitable cabinet for guitar frequencies. That is totally do-able. I can see adding an overdrive and reverb pedal to my board. That could be a solution.

I really like the Quilter product line, and would love to try one of those combos. I would've bought their Class D 800w Bass Block heads, except that I traded into what I think is an equally nice 800w Mesa Subway Class D. Our guitar player in New River Bound bought one of the Quilter guitar heads, and had an open-backed twin 12 cab built, (to copy something specific) and got a super result. It sounds HUGE. (I'm pretty sure that's where my MIJ Strat is too, come to think of it...)

I don't really have a hard-line budget Coz, but I have to remember what the thing is here too. Greg is a bass player first, and really ain't got much bizniss with an electric guitar. I want to get something a little better than my little toy tweed amp. I'm also trying to beware of the Great Rabbit Hole. There's gotta' be some middle ground.

My guitar-playing co-worker has a couple of those Fender-badged classics. I've been invited to try them. I probably need to experience that anyway. (seriously)

[Glynn]

My son has a Fender Blues Junior IV which is the 15w version of the 40w Hot Rod Deluxe.  It is a fantastic amp.
Glynn

[cozmik_cowboy]

My son likewise has a Blues Jr.; his is older, and yes very nice.  But keep in mind that they do break up a little sooner than most Fenders.

Peter

[edwardofhuncote]

I am trying both; a Fender Blues Jr, and Paul Reed Smith SE-20 this weekend. Both used, good condition.

[paulman]

I wrote a whole thing here and realized I was quoting and responding to the wrong post. 


We'll see if I get the courage to suggest an Alternative to a dedicated guitar amp.

[edwardofhuncote]

I read it. 

That Blues Jr. IV is a sweet amp. The PRS was too. Far and above the most impressive I've heard yet is a '68 Princeton re-issue. My Goodness. Wow. That thing makes me wish I could play an electric guitar. The price tag of course, is commensurate with that degree of quality. I will probably wait for a nice old F-2B to grace the Classifieds here, but in the meantime, I have the use of (with the option to buy) a Fender Champion 40 (last years model). It's a nice little amp, with a much bigger box and far better speaker than my Epiphone.