British sounding alternative to Fender Blues Jr

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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71959
    vale said:
    will any of these 15w amps be enough (without PA support) to drown out a boisterous drummer if necessary? rehearsal room & typical pub backroom venue?
    No. 15W can be just enough, but you'll need an efficient cabinet, probably at least a 2x12" - at least if you want anything other than a fully overdriven sound.

    vale said:

    i've always held onto a general rule of thumb that (for guitars) valve 20w is bare minimum to keep up & 30w advisable in order to win every argument. & maybe bass up to 50w in same context.
    Speaker efficiency is at least as important as amp power. A 15W amp through a 2x12" with 100dB speakers will be about the same volume as a 50W amp with a single 97dB speaker... really. (Doubling the amp power is equivalent to a 3dB increase, doubling the number of speakers will give you a 1-2dB increase.)

    For bass, anything under 100W is essentially a practice amp, although some 50-70W valve bass heads can be enough, also with an efficient cab.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • VinylfanVinylfan Frets: 33
    So what would a Laney VC15 go for used? Am i right in thinking that the earlier ones had a spring reverb and the later ones a digital one?
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71959
    Vinylfan said:

    Am i right in thinking that the earlier ones had a spring reverb and the later ones a digital one?
    Yes, and the digital is better, contrary to what you would expect from popular wisdom...

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • steamabacussteamabacus Frets: 1258
    Vinylfan said:
    So what would a Laney VC15 go for used? Am i right in thinking that the earlier ones had a spring reverb and the later ones a digital one?
    Be aware though that the change to spring reverb came AFTER the livery re-vamp. My VC15 is of the later livery (better looking than the original in my opinion) but it still has the spring reverb. As far as I'm aware, it's identical to the earlier version other than the looks.

    Also, the very first ones had an HH speaker that was universally slated. That then changed to a better Jenson (this was all before the livery change).
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  • FretwiredFretwired Frets: 24601
    The Blackstar Artist 15 is a similar price to a new Blues Junior.



    Remember, it's easier to criticise than create!
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  • teradaterada Frets: 5113
    ICBM said:
    Laney Cub or VC15

    Both excellent and somehow bafflingly cheap
    I think it's more that the Blues Junior is bafflingly expensive. That becomes obvious when you compare what you get for your money with a Blues Jr and a Hotrod Deluxe at only just over a third more.

    Absolutely, I AB'd these a couple of weeks ago and was shocked at just how shoddy the blues junior felt in comparison.

    It comes down to little indicators of quality too, like the feet of the BJ being hard plastic that clack around on the floor vs the soft rubber on the HRD which nicely dampened the amp as you set it down.

    They are way overpriced for what they are.
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  • valevale Frets: 1052
    edited June 2018
    Vinylfan said:
    So what would a Laney VC15 go for used? Am i right in thinking that the earlier ones had a spring reverb and the later ones a digital one?
    Be aware though that the change to spring reverb came AFTER the livery re-vamp. My VC15 is of the later livery (better looking than the original in my opinion) but it still has the spring reverb. As far as I'm aware, it's identical to the earlier version other than the looks.

    Also, the very first ones had an HH speaker that was universally slated. That then changed to a better Jenson (this was all before the livery change).
    if you are committed to the 15w VC15 then the second gen with the Jenson definitely better than the HH Invader. As for reverb options, that's down to your taste & intentions.

    if you are open to the 30w VC30II I'm pretty sure they upgraded from average HH to very decent Celestions.
    My LC30II is a 12" Celestion Seventy 80 (very sweet) so if the VC30II upgraded to the same, that's a most excellent 'free upgrade' to factor in to your thinking.

    As for reverb, my LC30II has an Accutronics spring & i would imagine the VC30II to be the same. So if you want digital rather than spring then the VC15 may be the way to go.
    hofner hussie & hayman harpie. what she said...
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  • VinylfanVinylfan Frets: 33
    Ok for someone who's relatively new to this - what's the practical difference - in usage and sound for example - between spring and digital reverb?
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  • EricTheWearyEricTheWeary Frets: 16253
    Vinylfan said:
    Ok for someone who's relatively new to this - what's the practical difference - in usage and sound for example - between spring and digital reverb?
    If you have spring reverb and jump up and down a bit by the amp you can make it go boing.
    Otherwise depends on the quality/ implementation of the spring reverb and the quality of the digital reverb. 
    My old Laney has a soso spring reverb and my new Laney has a soso digital reverb. I don't use reverb much but in either case I'd use a good pedal instead. 
    However, digital ( especially at the budget end) struggles to emulate a really good spring reverb and so that's a feature valued in certain amps. 
    Because we are used to people using a range of reverb types now and not just spring the sound in your head may well be something else anyway. 

    Tipton is a small fishing village in the borough of Sandwell. 
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71959
    Vinylfan said:
    Ok for someone who's relatively new to this - what's the practical difference - in usage and sound for example - between spring and digital reverb?
    The big practical difference with these is that the spring reverbs are considerably less reliable than the digital, and more prone to picking up noise.

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • VinylfanVinylfan Frets: 33
    Vinylfan said:
    Ok for someone who's relatively new to this - what's the practical difference - in usage and sound for example - between spring and digital reverb?
    If you have spring reverb and jump up and down a bit by the amp you can make it go boing.
    Otherwise depends on the quality/ implementation of the spring reverb and the quality of the digital reverb. 
    My old Laney has a soso spring reverb and my new Laney has a soso digital reverb. I don't use reverb much but in either case I'd use a good pedal instead. 
    However, digital ( especially at the budget end) struggles to emulate a really good spring reverb and so that's a feature valued in certain amps. 
    Because we are used to people using a range of reverb types now and not just spring the sound in your head may well be something else anyway. 

    ICBM said:
    Vinylfan said:
    Ok for someone who's relatively new to this - what's the practical difference - in usage and sound for example - between spring and digital reverb?
    The big practical difference with these is that the spring reverbs are considerably less reliable than the digital, and more prone to picking up noise.
    Thanks chaps - very useful.
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  • EricTheWearyEricTheWeary Frets: 16253
    Vinylfan said:
    Vinylfan said:
    Ok for someone who's relatively new to this - what's the practical difference - in usage and sound for example - between spring and digital reverb?
    If you have spring reverb and jump up and down a bit by the amp you can make it go boing.
    Otherwise depends on the quality/ implementation of the spring reverb and the quality of the digital reverb. 
    My old Laney has a soso spring reverb and my new Laney has a soso digital reverb. I don't use reverb much but in either case I'd use a good pedal instead. 
    However, digital ( especially at the budget end) struggles to emulate a really good spring reverb and so that's a feature valued in certain amps. 
    Because we are used to people using a range of reverb types now and not just spring the sound in your head may well be something else anyway. 

    ICBM said:
    Vinylfan said:
    Ok for someone who's relatively new to this - what's the practical difference - in usage and sound for example - between spring and digital reverb?
    The big practical difference with these is that the spring reverbs are considerably less reliable than the digital, and more prone to picking up noise.
    Thanks chaps - very useful.


    The boing thing is oddly common . Danelectro made a reverb pedal that could emulate it when you kicked the pedal. I've got an Albert King live album and you can hear the boing as he's obviously ( and he was a big man) walking next to his amp. 

    Some people chase a really great spring reverb sound and buy certain amps, outboard spring reverb units, boutique pedals and other people don't give a monkey's. I find it hard to make reverb work live as it just disappears into the room unless it's really wound up at which point everything turns to mush ( although deliberate mush if you want to sound like Dick Dale). In that scenario a modern digital pedal with pre delay ( a brief moment before the reverb starts so your core signal still has clarity) and different voicing options can work better. 
    Tipton is a small fishing village in the borough of Sandwell. 
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