Orange Dual Terror - cleans?

bigfuzz

So I'm after a portable gigging amp with headroom and a decent crunch sound. BUT I need a nice clean sound.. fx loop for the reverb/delay toys too.

Dual terror has popped up locally, reasonable price. Is this simply a 2 channel TT or actually useable for clean and crunch?

DartmoorHedgehog

It's 30 watts, compared with the TT's 15.  The Dual Terror doesn't have a loop if that's important to you.  I've only played one at lowish volume so I can't comment on the clean headroom directly, but most Oranges I've played have a slightly "hairy" clean at volume (which I like, but it's not Fender clean).  My Rocker 30 does quite loud clean, but it's not utterly clean at gig volume - the power amp starts to break up pretty easily.  If you need really loud clear clean I'd try one first, it may not be what you're after.

Drew_TNBD

You'll get crunchy cleans, you wont get pristine cleans. They'll be ice-picky at loud volumes and low notes will fart out. I gigged one for about a year until I got irritated with the tone.

ICBM

In my opinion these don't have a nice clean sound at all, let alone decent headroom. And no loop.

bigfuzz

Drew_fx said:

You'll get crunchy cleans, you wont get pristine cleans. They'll be ice-picky at loud volumes and low notes will fart out. I gigged one for about a year until I got irritated with the tone.

that summary has turned me off haha, icepicky cleans at volume is not what I want..

the hunt continues, liked the idea of it as it seems to be louder (30w) than other portable heads.. need something easy to lug about on the tube.

Drew_TNBD

Yeah it promises to deliver, but basically fails. Try one of the Orange crushes, the newer ones - they're supposed to be really good. You don't need valves for good tones.

bigfuzz

@drew_fx how weighty are the crush heads? I haven't played SS for years, how many watts would be about right for gigging.. they only do a 120w head ?

ICBM

bigfuzz said:

that summary has turned me off haha, icepicky cleans at volume is not what I want..

the hunt continues, liked the idea of it as it seems to be louder (30w) than other portable heads.. need something easy to lug about on the tube.

There's the Mesa Mini Rectifier, which I thought might even be louder (it's rated at 25W, but sounds like more) and has both clean headroom and a loop, but (in my opinion) is also a bit harsh-sounding, and is insanely expensive as well.

I agree with Drew about looking at solid-state. As well as the Orange, there's also the AMT Stonehead which is supposed to be pretty good.

Drew_TNBD

bigfuzz said:

@drew_fx how weighty are the crush heads? I haven't played SS for years, how many watts would be about right for gigging.. they only do a 120w head ?

I'm not 100% sure to be honest. I've only heard clips of them.

ICBM

I keep wondering where the guitar equivalent of the MarkBass amps is. Tiny, light, powerful, high-quality, modern. And doesn't sound like a Gallien-Krueger 250ML .

ThePrettyDamned

The Laney LH50 is actually fairly small - about the same width of a 1x12 cab, and fairly portable.  The toroidal transformer at one side is massive but you'll have no problems carrying it shortish distances.  

And the clean channel is really, really great.  

bigfuzz

ICBM said:

I keep wondering where the guitar equivalent of the MarkBass amps is. Tiny, light, powerful, high-quality, modern. And doesn't sound like a Gallien-Krueger 250ML .

would love to know the answer to his! have actually considered getting a cheap car (and ridiculously high insurance) to lug about a nice fender

bigfuzz

ThePrettyDamned said:

The Laney LH50 is actually fairly small - about the same width of a 1x12 cab, and fairly portable.  The toroidal transformer at one side is massive but you'll have no problems carrying it shortish distances.  

And the clean channel is really, really great.  

@theprettydamned how much are the LH50s these days? I've played one of the smaller (20w??) versions before and thought it was nice... liked it alot actually

ThePrettyDamned

bigfuzz said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

The Laney LH50 is actually fairly small - about the same width of a 1x12 cab, and fairly portable.  The toroidal transformer at one side is massive but you'll have no problems carrying it shortish distances.  

And the clean channel is really, really great.  

@theprettydamned how much are the LH50s these days? I've played one of the smaller (20w??) versions before and thought it was nice... liked it alot actually

Thjat's the L20H and L50H - not LH50.

Yup, ace marketing...

The LH50 is about 500 quid or so new, but used is an absolute bargain, often around 200-250.  I used one for ages, and it was a fabulous amp, but the drive was a bit too tame for me, didn't quite get into the aggressive territory I wanted.  More classic Marshall.

The clean channel was wonderful, though.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Laney-LH50-50W-Valve-Amp-Mint-/251522769925?_trksid=p2054897.l4275 just after a cursory search.  That's possibly even a touch pricey.

Not a micro head like the Orange, but much better sounding, and with quite a lot of headroom.  Nice sounding reverb, too, just a basic digital one but very usable.

bigfuzz

Thanks for that @theprettydamned. Master stroke from Laney there!

How heavy would you say it is (KGs)? So in terms of gain it handles a light crunch tone then, does it need to be belting out at high volume to get there?

ThePrettyDamned

The crunch sound is definitely more vintagey voiced and goes up to medium ish gain. It does it at bedroom volume, but sounds better beyond 1.5 on the dial, which is definitely rehearsal volume.

Weight,not sure. It's not a featherweight, because of that transformer probably, but it is manageable. Try and see if any local shops have one you can lift up and judge yourself. It's larger and heavier than the orange, but those terror amps universally disappoint me sound wise (Jim root terror excepted).

The clean channel is fantastic.

If you want proper nice headroom, and featherweight, digital or solid state is really the best option. I like the blackstar amps, and the amt stonehead is still a must-try for me.

ThePrettyDamned

Also, it doesn't sound as nice as the l50h in my opinion.

But that runs 5 el34's to get 50 watts rather than 2 of them. It's a heavy amp!

bigfuzz

@theprettydamned yeh the Jim Root has been on a list for me for a while. Definitely has the Rockerverb tones I like, just not sure it could do it for me live.. as in a decent clean at volume.

I'm gonna scout around for these Laneys, not sure if anywhere in London will have one.. the shops seems to favour loads'a guitars over loads'a amps these days

ThePrettyDamned

bigfuzz;237826" said:

@theprettydamned yeh the Jim Root has been on a list for me for a while. Definitely has the Rockerverb tones I like, just not sure it could do it for me live.. as in a decent clean at volume.



I'm gonna scout around for these Laneys, not sure if anywhere in London will have one.. the shops seems to favour loads'a guitars over loads'a amps these days

It doesn't do clean at volume at all. I love the actual sound of the amp through a v30 cab, but it would be just loud enough for heavy gigs live with no cleans at all.