If You Were Starting Out?

ESBlonde

I'd say get a used HRD or similar and two drive pedals plus a chorus or flanger and an echo. A good pedal tuner (or clip on if thats your thing).

KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid). Don't buy fancy paint job pedals with huge price tags. Used BOSS or whatever is fine, set them and forget them once you've found a decent setting. Then just play and switch them in as required.

Truth is thats all most of us need, want is a different thing of course.

Mark1960

My advice would be go out and try a few amps, and then get one (new or used) which covers most of your bases. If you mainly need clean sound then a Fender would be a good place to start. Then once you have your amp find out what it can't do and add a pedel to cover this sound. I have a Blues Delux, which has a very good clean channel, and also a usable drive channel for a bit of crunch, then I add an OD pedal for some extra drive. Don't forget that a valve amp will add a certain amout of crunch just by upping the volume. So on a 2 channel amp at the push of a button you have clean (channel 1) some drive (channel 2) extra drive (channel 1 plus pedal), and if you want even more drive channel 2 plus pedal. Unless you are playing metal that should cover most covers requirements.

Roland

57Deluxe said:

... you will NEVER appreciate Tone from using an FX unit ...

Some people would disagree with that. If your FX allows you to experiment with parameters then you will learn what they do. It might be that a certain pedal gives exactly the Chorus which you like. However you will have to buy other Chorus pedals for different sounds, without necessarily finding out what makes them different.

Whereas an FX unit will allow you to play with things like rate, depth, tempo, oscillator type, phase, high and low cut, delay, pre-delay, multiple voices, and stereo pan. I can understand why some people would not want to dive into these parameters, but those who do can learn a lot about what contributes to "Tone".

However

ESBlonde said:

KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid).

In the OP's position that's very good advice.

english_bob

Roland said:

an FX unit will allow you to play with things like rate, depth, tempo, oscillator type, phase, high and low cut, delay, pre-delay, multiple voices, and stereo pan. 

#notallFXunits.

Exorcist

I would definitely go Valve amp and pedals. I didn't - spent a fortune on amps that could do cleans and distortion (which they never really can unless you pay silly money IMHO) and ended up running pedals into a clean channel and was finally 100% happy with my live sound. Starting out, I would get a decent clean amp with headroom (HRD?) and some clones like joyo etc to get started and then spend the next however many years with constant GAS buying expensive pedals to replace them.

hywelg

I'd probably have a word with myself and tell me to learn to play better. If you can play well, really well, equipment makes a lot less of a difference.

Legionreturns

I'm biased as I've just done it, but a simple, best of both worlds solution is HX effects into a tube amp. 

All the convenience of digital, with the tone of valve. 

english_bob

hywelg said:

I'd probably have a word with myself and tell me to learn to play better. If you can play well, really well, equipment makes a lot less of a difference.

Even if you're shit, equipment makes less difference than some people think.

But yes, players who are really good seem to be able to sound good even on horrible equipment.

It's almost as if learning to play is more important than buying gear. Hmm....

RaymondLin

hywelg said:

I'd probably have a word with myself and tell me to learn to play better. If you can play well, really well, equipment makes a lot less of a difference.

This is so true.  So so true.

I have enough gear to make 90% musicians jealous and honestly, I am absolutely shite compare to them and they can make my gear sound the way that I cannot.  I have therefore stopped buying gear and instead trying to practice more.

ICBM

I'd get an absolutely bombproof analogue solid-state amp of around 100W and a good but fairly simple multi-FX.

Covers all options from unmic'ed backline to going direct, reasonably portable, not expensive, and will sound great if you learn what you're doing with it.

english_bob

ICBM said:

if you learn what you're doing with it.

Ain't nobody got time for that.

ESBlonde

Years ago a story circulated of a band on the bill with the original Fleetwood mac. The other band had an amp that failed so they borrowed whatever Peter Green had (nothing special iirc). The guitarist complained that they twiddled this n' that but the amp sounded dull and uninspiring throughout thier set. Then young Peter Green stepped up for his set and without touching the amp controls just plugged in and proceeded to bring heaven to everyones ears. The unnamed guitarist saw it as a lesson in musicianship. Indeed PG has long been one for shunning 'propper fashionable gear' and using whatever was to hand.

So get something reliable and 'standard' then learn how to play with it.

Barnezy

hywelg said:

I'd probably have a word with myself and tell me to learn to play better. If you can play well, really well, equipment makes a lot less of a difference.

I see this comment a lot when people ask for gear advice. Firstly buying an Amp and pedals isn’t suddenly going to stop me practicing, in fact having a nice tone will only inspire me to play more I’m sure.

Secondly, I’m sure Messi is a better footballer than me, playing in Croccs, it doesn’t mean I shouldn’t buy a pair of football boots if I go and play. 

BTW I’m not denying that practice is the primary/only factor that will lead to me sounding any good, it’s that gear shouldn’t be categorised in what’s for beginners or advanced players etc. Everyone has the right to play what they want/can afford. 

Playing with tone, in my opinion, is a skill in itself that should be developed. If you think about it most of the best players are known as much for their tone, as they are for their playing. Yes tone is in the fingers.... The Edge has 30 of them on his right hand, to get that epic delay effect.  

My current practice amp is a 57 Champ that I bought from someone on here. I’ve noticed that since having it, I’ve started to understand dynamics a lot more and how to lean on the amp to get the sounds needed to make what I’m playing sound more interesting. My previous amp was a Blackstar HT1R and although good, I would say since having the Champ, this part of my playing has improved a lot. It shows there are benefits to having quality gear and it’s not only the reserve for professional musicians. 

As expected there are a lot of conflicting views here. I think I’m leaning on the side of keeping it simple and going for a decent amp and a simple pedalboard.

Thanks for all the comments, massive help!!

RaymondLin

This is my practice rig.





Just don't what I do and also buy a Bogner, Lazy J and then another board.  Well, you can, YOLO and all that but it's kinda a waste TBH.

johnl

It honestly depends how much time you want to spend dicking about versus how much time playing. There is definitely a satisfaction to a warm tube amp with some good pedals in front but I'd say it's about a 90% split between tweaking things and actually playing. Also how much noise can you make where you live? If you live in a flat with particularly sensitive neighbours then you'll not likely be able to get a valve amp to the sort of volume that it'll sound best at.

A Boss Katana will do everything you want (and takes pedals really well) but it's a bit soulless.

Barnezy

A Boss Katana will do everything you want (and takes pedals really well) but it's a bit soulless.

I did think about this. Someone is selling a 50w locally for £90. Would you recommend the 100w though? 

Grumpyrocker

Barnezy said:

A Boss Katana will do everything you want (and takes pedals really well) but it's a bit soulless.

I did think about this. Someone is selling a 50w locally for £90. Would you recommend the 100w though? 

Definitely worth getting the 100 over the 50 as it future proofs you. You can then use the big Boss footswitch if you ever fancy buying one. You also get an effects loop and a better speaker.

Cols

What kind of guitar are you playing, and what kind of music will you be gigging?  

In general, the best advice I can give is to use the lion’s share of your budget on a really good valve amp, followed by the guitar; at the end of the day, this is what’s going to be producing your core sound.  The pedals are (often necessary) enhancements to this.

mfin

The correct question is above, what kind of music are you playing? What do you aspire to play?

Stuff like Helix floor stuff is just the ticket for some people. Myself, I simply wouldn't ever swap a valve amp of choice and a few pedals even if you paid me to.

If you like effects laden sounds, I think there's a good case for going digital.

It depends what you're into, I don't like much in the way of obvious effects, and don't like sport guitars, so most of the gear in any guitar shop is of no interest whatsoever. I've got friends who love Helix and modelling based amps, but they listen to music that I'd turn off in 5 seconds flat if I heard it, it's called "crap music". Each to their own though, so buy the right gear for the music you aspire to be playing (or are forced into playing).

Th4fonz

You have a cs les paul and a cs strat so money is no issue here. 

Buy the princeton/hot rod/blues deluxe whatever takes your fancy when you try them out.  Then you can start to plan how to spend even more on boutique pedals lol.