Lower wattage amps with good cleans . It's been asked a 1,000 times

Telejester

Bill would you say the amp when using the vol attenuator with amp volume high sounds much different from using the bdri on low volume that keeps the missus quiet, is it just more of the same or are you hearing something more satisfying ? Really useful information you are giving me mate.

Corvus

A bit more dynamic i think mate but very much the same, i was using the low input haven't tried the other one yet. Main bonus for me is being able to use the drive channel without blowing out the windows.. but it can certainly make the clean side quiet while still sounding fine.
If you're near cambridge you're welcome to pop round and try it out.

Telejester

Very kind of you bill but I'm across the Irish sea 8-)

samzadgan

been down this road way too many times...and i've realised there is no small amp that i like the clean sound of. there's 3 things i look for when looking for a small amp/combo, big tubes (EL34 or 6L6), 12 inch speaker, simplicity.

there are many variants but if an amp ticks these 3, then i will give it a try...otherwise its not worth it, for me anyway. I dont really mind playing an amp at a low volume setting...that's what the volume knob is there for...unless you want to get the amp to break up into overdrive. I use pedals for that.

What i've found is that when you get an amp with bigger tubes, you also get bigger transformers and everything else required for running bigger tubes, all these together in most cases, mean you get a much fuller and richer tone. It also usually means it handles pedals a lot better too. Add to that a 12 inch speaker which will have, again in most cases, a bigger sound and you have a great clean platform. Finally simplicity...if your looking for a clean amp, either for clean or pedal platform, the simpler the amp, the more likely the clean tone is better. Most multi-channel amps will have 1 channel that's really good (or claim to be really good) and the others will be sufficient, but not great...and its usually the clean channel that suffers.

i also noticed you mentioned that the 2 amps your liked in the past where the fender and peavey...note, pretty sure those are 1x12 combos with 6L6's and EL34's...maybe like me, you need to look at bigger amps, and just use a low volume setting??

Creed_Clicks

@samzadgan ;;If the pro junior had a 12 inch speaker I'd go for it. Two knobs ... but like you, simplicity appeals to me.

samzadgan

i tried the pro junior as well as the blues jnr...it was at the time i was looking for a nice home amp with good clean pedal platform...i walked out of the shop with a Hot Rod Blues Deluxe. Neither the Pro or the Blues had the full clean tone of the HRDx...even then the Jensen and slightly different circuitry of the Blues Deluxe was so much better than the regular HRDx.

looking back, i would have been happy with the regular HRD as well...but the other 2 just sounded small and tiny, there was nothing about the tone that i liked. I played that HRDx at home with volume on about 2 and it just sounded great...and there wasn't a dirt pedal that it didn't like.

Creed_Clicks

Used to have a Blues Deluxe as well and while it was a decent amp, I eventually sold it, tried an AC15 which I sold on, then had a Blues Junior which I liked but lacked that extra bit of power needed! Decisions decisions !!

ICBM

Is that the 'standard' Harley Benton cab, or the Vintage? The 'Standard is made from MDF and has a less-good speaker, and does sound a bit flat and meh. The Vintage is ply and has a V30, and *should* be pretty lively sounding.

That said the V30 is not the most open and sparkly speaker, if it's that sort of clean you're after - and the Terrors are not especially clear-sounding amps either.

So… if it's the standard HB cab I would look for a better cab first. If it's the Vintage I would think about changing the speaker - probably to a G12H-30 or a G12H-75 Creamback, these sound excellent with Orange amps in my experience.

If that doesn't give you what you want, then a better amp. If you like the Orange sound then a Rocker 30 would be my first choice - it's beefier and clearer-soundng than the other (EL84) 30-watt Oranges. The guitarist in my band uses one through a 2x12" with Creambacks (G12H-75 and G12M-65) - it sounds fantastic, and is more than loud enough to keep up with a fairly loud drummer and my 500W bass amp.

ThePrettyDamned

Creed_Clicks said:

Used to have a Blues Deluxe as well and while it was a decent amp, I eventually sold it, tried an AC15 which I sold on, then had a Blues Junior which I liked but lacked that extra bit of power needed! Decisions decisions !!

Ac15 amps are very middly, with sparkly up top. Bit like a blues junior but much nicer. They get dirty very, very quickly though - clean at home volumes only. 

Ac30 - that's where it's at! 

Maybe try an ac30 if you liked the cleans on the ac15 - they have a deeper, more rounded voice than an ac15 but still have "that" vox tone. 

Other options for a more affordable, good sounding clean amp that's valve powered is the Laney lh50 (cheap as chips, excellent clean tones) or an orange rocker 30 (old one - not sure what they new ones sound like but probably similar enough). 

If you don't mind solid state, you won't go far wrong with a peavey bandit for good, solid clean sounds at gig volume that plays well with pedals... 

Modellista

At the risk of falling into the "I'm only saying that because I've got one" syndrome, I would consider a used Marshall JTM30. If you can find one. They come in 1x12 and 2x10 versions. Two-channel, but the drive is crap and quiet, whilst the clean is, ironically, nice and Fendery and loud, with a channel volume and a master. 

I turn all the pots up to half and it's loud enough for rehearsals with a drummer. Live, it always gets mic'd up. I've got the 2x10 version which is smaller than the 1x12 and is easily carryable with one arm; for larger gigs I bring a 16ohm 1x12 extension cab which gives a bit fuller sound.  At halfway, there's just a bit of hair on the clean sound using Filtertrons, and I use a few drive pedals very successfully, which I think push it into a bit more natural overdrive. So in addition to the pedal sound you get a bit of natural tube overdrive mixed in. I just treat it as a one-channel amp and ignore the drive channel. 

I've tried a few different amps in the last few years and I'm glad I've stuck with this. It consistently gathers praise from sound engineers, whether live or in the studio, and they're being genuine rather than just saying the same thing to everyone, so I think that counts for something.  

Kebabkid

If you can afford a Morgan or a Divided by 13 JRT 9/15, they're great and there's one of each in the classifieds at the moment

Creed_Clicks

There's a builder in Ireland, who makes superb amps. I'm thinking of cutting to the chase!

Motorhate

Hughes & Kettner Tubemeister 18 or 36. I played a gig recently and the guitarist used one with a Marshall 4x12. It was huge sounding, perfectly capable for a mid-sized venue and did everything from Fender-like cleans to Marshall crunch to Mesa ultra high gain. Its super portable and looks the nuts too. For around the £400 it has to be one of the best gear bargains in a long time. 

Dopesick

Could try a Quilter? They've finally started selling them in the UK now (although much pricier than I imagined):

https://www.wembleymusiccentre.com/guitars/amps/guitar-amps/brand/quilter.html

Creed_Clicks

Dopesick said:

Could try a Quilter? They've finally started selling them in the UK now (although much pricier than I imagined):

https://www.wembleymusiccentre.com/guitars/amps/guitar-amps/brand/quilter.html

Heard great things about these

Telejester

Creed_Clicks said:

@samzadgan ;;If the pro junior had a 12 inch speaker I'd go for it. Two knobs ... but like you, simplicity appeals to me.

I tried a pro Jr III last week and with single coils it sounded fine, but no fx loop and it ain't for me. The way it sounded when turned up and used with humbuckers was similar to the sounds from a horse's arse. 

BBBlues

What's the budget?

Creed_Clicks

Well, I am considering saving and getting one from an Irish amp builder, Cyril Ryan. His amps are €1,500+, so a lot more than a blues junior ! Could I justify that money? I don't know...
i had been looking at an AC15s too

Cabicular

Second hand Two Rock Studio pro
loudest lightest 35 watts you'll get
lovely

BBBlues

Well if you're considering spending €1500+ I'd go for a Carr Rambler. I think they're the best clean platform I've tried. Will easily hang with a band and stay pretty clean.