Guitar Amplifiers

[Krugg]

Hey guys, cheers for browsing

I'm in the market for a new amplifier, and the two best ones I can seem to find within my price range are these two

The Peavey Bandit TransTube 112, and
The Roland Cube 80

For the record, I play mostly hard rock, thrash metal and power metal, but I also use clean a hell of a lot. I get pretty much all my sounds, distortion and effects from my boss setup, so features like distortion are mostly redundant - I'm just looking for tone.

If anyone has tried both or either of these, can I get some help on this?

Thanks heaps

KRugG

[SDF]

Honestly, you are much better saving an extra $100 and getting a Fender Blues Jr. I would stay away from solid state if you are looking for tone.

[smellie_hippie]

What kind of price range are you looking at for your new amp?

I love my Cybertwin, but it is pretty pricey...

[Krugg]

Honestly, you are much better saving an extra $100 and getting a Fender Blues Jr. I would stay away from solid state if you are looking for tone.

Issue is, in Australia, that $100 becomes about $250, even though our dollar is as strong as yours currently. Stuff is way overpriced here. And my price range is about $500 Australian maximum. Peavey Bandit is $480, Roland Cube 80 is $510 (the extra $10 is fine lol)

[SDF]

What amp are you using currently if you have one? If you don't have an amp at all that is one thing, but if you do I wouldn't waste my money on the ones you are looking at.

[Krugg]

What amp are you using currently if you have one? If you don't have an amp at all that is one thing, but if you do I wouldn't waste my money on the ones you are looking at.

Yeah, I have nothing that's usable currently

I'm just looking for a decent, stage worthy amp that's within the (Australian) price range of a 19 year old student, which these amps seem the best for that price range

[The Big Dice]

Check out what Line6 have to offer. I was dubious at first, but when my Hiwatt finally croaked I needed something to replace it. And the Line 6 Spyder line are stunningly good amps for the price.

Don't believe people who tell you tone only comes from valves. I played a valve ampo for 15 years, and when it finally went to the Amp Graveyard, I replaced it with a Spyder. And never looked back.

Besides, if solid state was good enough for Dimebag Darrel, I'm not going to argue with that.

[xPANCAKEx]

are we talking new or used?

[Krugg]

Check out what Line6 have to offer. I was dubious at first, but when my Hiwatt finally croaked I needed something to replace it. And the Line 6 Spyder line are stunningly good amps for the price.

Don't believe people who tell you tone only comes from valves. I played a valve ampo for 15 years, and when it finally went to the Amp Graveyard, I replaced it with a Spyder. And never looked back.

Besides, if solid state was good enough for Dimebag Darrel, I'm not going to argue with that.

Both these amps are solid state.

And I'm looking for new, not used.

[Deth Muncher]

Both these amps are solid state.

And I'm looking for new, not used.

Why, exactly? While shiny new things are great, used amps are a great way to get something slightly out of your normal pricerange.

I myself only have a Marshall 10watt, but if I ever get good enough to warrant getting a real amp, you bet your Auss* I'm going to go check out used deals around - sure, there's the possibility they won't work, but if you go to a guitar store that deals in used stuff, you'll likely be able to get them to verify it works, and if it doesn't, make them fix it.


*See what I did there?

[SDF]

Don't believe people who tell you tone only comes from valves. I played a valve ampo for 15 years, and when it finally went to the Amp Graveyard, I replaced it with a Spyder. And never looked back.

Really? I have a Spyder III 15W and it sounds absolutely terrible next to my Hot Rod DeVille 410. Of course I didn't buy it for tone, I bought it for a practice amp. It is pretty much the same thing with the Cube, good practice amps, but I wouldn't really want to associate myself with their tone. He asked about tone, and if that is what he wants I recommend getting a reputable, but not too fancy, tube amp. That way if you stick with guitar and want to take it seriously you wont have to save up hundreds of dollars again to replace one of the amps you are looking at.

My best friend, who is trying to make it as a touring musician, played a solid state Hughes and Kettner for years. It was okay for what he was doing in high school, (crappy street corner punk :smallcool:) but now he plays in a post rock band where his tone is essential to the music. He tried to self medicate with pedals for the longest time before finally breaking down and getting, well he copied me, and got a DeVille. He's pretty much the happiest person now.

Also, didn't Dimebag use really expensive Randall tube amps? Either way he had rack gear, and hell, if you can afford rack gear you can sound like whatever you want.

[grimbold]

i have found the Roland to be good in my experience with it, It has a lot f nice features and can get pretty loud, does blues as well as heavy metal and thrash
you may be interested in my blog (check my sig)
also i believe this goes in the media discussion section.

[Zen Monkey]

I use a Line 6, Spider IV 15. It's a great value for the price and a good amount of power in a small box.

[Moff Chumley]

If you dig pedals, avoid anything with an A/D or D/A. Especially at the lower end of the budget. I really like Fender Frontmans; for SS amps, they're pretty nice sounding, they're loud as hell, and a good distortion pedal in front of one sounds great. Especially for metal, but then, that depends on the pedals you're using.

[The Big Dice]

Really? I have a Spyder III 15W and it sounds absolutely terrible next to my Hot Rod DeVille 410. Of course I didn't buy it for tone, I bought it for a practice amp.
I've got a Spyder III 15 too, and the crunch sounds are fairly generic, but the clean sounds are fantastic. Best I've heard out of a little amp, and for home recording purposes, they are fantastic. Season with my Danelectro Pastrami overdrive and Jim Dunlop crybaby, and it's not a bad little amp to use for practise.

I had (it got stolen :smallfurious:) a Spyder III 212, and it sounded awesome. Like most moderately powerful amps, it was mushy and fairly puny at low levels. But once you got it to the sort of volume you need to be heard over the drums, it sounded fantastic. Now I'm looking at the Spyder IV line. I gave one a try at the local Guitar Center, and it was incredible.