Looking for low watt UK/EU amps with tremolo (aka who makes a good Vibrochamp clone?)

ToneFerDayz!!1!

Hey all,

I'm currently doing a spring clean and purging a bunch of gear I no longer use. I've waded through the pedals, got rid of some synths and drum machines, and now I'm taking a cold hard look at what amps I'm running:

Mid-1960s Dynacord Twen (early version, 17watts, 12" speaker, super trebly and clean)

Selmer Treble n' Bass Mk. ii  into a Burman 2x12

I love the Selmer. It's a great live amp for bigger venues and the louder and noisier projects I do. But these days I've been getting a lot of bookings for solo shows and I'm running into a problem: the Dynacord. The Twen is not only super ice-pick-y (I'm pretty sure it's a silverface Princeton Clone), but I can't ever seem to get it above 2 at shows. So I'm thinking of downsizing that and grabbing a smaller amp that has tremolo. Ideally, if I was back home in the States, I'd pick up one of the bazillion Vibro Champs or other off-brand vintage tube amps (or recreations) that fit that bill. But here in Central Europe, those amps are unobtainium and super insanely expensive when they pop up.

So, what are my options? Any forgotten brands I should look for? Anyone got a line on something? Should I keep my eyes peeled for UK Vibrochamps, or should I search out any other variations on that theme like Watkins or Selmer?

ToneFerDayz!!1!

Oh, and probably because it's relevant, this is the setup I've been running into the Dynacord:

Fender Jaguar/Jazzmaster > TU2 > SmallsoundBigsound F*ck Overdrive > Midfi Demo Tape Fuzz > Stargazer Reverb > Moog Analog Delay

Ideally, I'd like to find something around 10-12 watts or smaller so I can crank it up live and rely more on boosts and the volume knob than overdrives or fuzzes. 

ICBM

A smaller Watkins - Westminster, Scout or something like that - should do what you want nicely. They have Tremolo and a similar warm tone to the Selmer. As far as I remember they're essentially the Dominator circuit but in a smaller cabinet. It has to be said that you can't easily pick them up for £50 any more though...

ToneFerDayz!!1!

ICBM said:

A smaller Watkins - Westminster, Scout or something like that - should do what you want nicely. They have Tremolo and a similar warm tone to the Selmer. As far as I remember they're essentially the Dominator circuit but in a smaller cabinet. It has to be said that you can't easily pick them up for £50 any more though...

Ain't that the way of the world, though?   I remember buying my first pre-CBS blackface Bassman head in Chicago for $250.  

Good idea, I'll keep my eyes peeled. Any other UK brands worth looking at? I know the major ones like WEM/Watkins and Selmer and Vox, but are there any other smaller amp brands to look for, like the US' Valco/Harmony/Kay/Alamo contingent? 

ICBM

Not many that I can think of that have tremolo and are any good. I'm probably just forgetting stuff though…

Avoid the 'Leo' (or variations) amps, they're shit. I had one which I paid a fiver for - it hummed, overheated, was electrically unsafe from new, sounded crap, and it literally fell apart. I've since worked on a couple more for people and it's a major job to make them even safe and reliable enough to pass a PAT test.

The Marshall Mercury is likewise junk - they look (sort-of) cool, but are a very poor hybrid circuit and are weak-sounding and noisy. I also had one of those which after the PCB burned a hole in itself, I completely rebuilt into a sort of Tweed Princeton circuit… it was OK.

bazxkr

Check out the Fender Excelsior demos on YT & see what you think. Nice big tone through the 15" speaker. 13 watt. Simple to operate & the tremolo sounds nice to my ears anyway. Agreed not too many around but not silly money and also got a nice 'different' look to you everyday boxes.

Takes pedals decently too. At one point I had two of them. Also, some cheap mods you can do to make it more flexible

Doesn't break up as quick as a ramparte which is in a similar vein

Wazmeister

A couple of Carr Ramblers in the forums...

ToneFerDayz!!1!

bazxkr said:

Check out the Fender Excelsior demos on YT & see what you think. Nice big tone through the 15" speaker. 13 watt. Simple to operate & the tremolo sounds nice to my ears anyway. Agreed not too many around but not silly money and also got a nice 'different' look to you everyday boxes.

Takes pedals decently too. At one point I had two of them. Also, some cheap mods you can do to make it more flexible

Doesn't break up as quick as a ramparte which is in a similar vein

I tried the Excelsior when they first came out, but honestly, I'm looking for something small and even lower wattage (12 watts max). The Selmer TnB covers anything I do in a loud band situation, but I'm looking for something useful for solo gigs where I can slam the amp with a boost to get that raging fuzz/amp dying sound and back off with my volume knob. Most sound guys here won't even let the Twen get about 3.  

RiftAmps

I do a 6w blackface-style 1x12" combo with Reverb and Tremolo in a Princeton sized box - http://www.riftamps.com/pr6.php

Despite only being 6w, it has ample headroom for boosts/fuzz etc

Cabicular

Ampeg Jet20?
one of the best valve tremelos I've heard

Flanging_Fred

Vox pathfinder 15r.  Ok it's solid state but it sounds great, takes pedals really well, it's small, light. It can go up loud enough to play with a band, has speaker out socket and is still pretty cheap (but prices do seem to be rising now it's out of production).

A super little amp that I've seen used by pros that could afford much more expensive kit if they wished.