Hi all, a couple of questions for the amp gurus amongst you, I have just bought an older Blackstar HT5R with the chrome telecaster type control knobs, and an extra cabinet. I have been on the Blackstar website, forum etc. read endless reviews but unless I am being really dumb(which is highly likely) there is no power scaling on this model. If that is the case would I be right in assuming that a “ Lazy Bear” attenuator would work? And to use headphones for silent practice I need to disconnect the speaker! Which I thought was a no no with a tube amp. Any help and assistance would be greatly received, and apologies if this has been done to death before. I could not find anything when I searched.
Comments
The HT5 really could do with a master volume.
Also the taper on the dirt channel is poor. And I found it also benefited from a volume control in the loop.
This is the MK2 btw.
here is what Blackstar say about the Blackstar HT-5R:
When the original HT-5 was launched it quickly became one of the most successful studio and practice amps ever designed. Packing all the great tone and innovative features of the award winning HT valve pedals into a two channel, foot switchable valve amp format with a unique push-pull power amp design it was an instant classic.
The current HT5R now features a whole host of new features:
Specifications
I added an extra socket to mine so I could use the emulated output without cutting out the output to the speaker. The headphone amp in an HT5 is a standard paralleled opamp design using NE5532's, you can just tap off a feed from there.
Another thing that really opens these amps up is a decent 12" speaker in a larger cab. If you compared my rig against a standard HT5 combo you wouldn't think it was the same amp. My cab has a Celestion Lead 75 speaker in it and it's a perfect match for the HT5 ...
The eagle eyed might spot the cab is actually the fabled king of unreliable amps mentioned in the "most unreliable amp ever thread" with the guts taken out and a piece of wood covering the hole where the controls used to be.
All in all these little amps are superb for the money, fantastically reliable and amazingly quiet in terms of noise floor. I still have my 2
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If you’re going to change the preamp valve I would try a Tung-Sol 12AX7 - they’re among the brightest and clearest. If you’re feeling brave, you could try a 12AT7, which has less gain and a noticeably cleaner, less middy tone - but it will run one of the anode resistors very close to its power rating and carries a risk of it failing.
Also - if a valve amp has a headphone jack, then it’s safe to use with the speaker disconnected as long as the jack has a plug in it - the power output must then be muted, because otherwise sound would still come out of the speaker!
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