Advice on a Half Stack

[drowssap]

I am looking into a half stack, but not sure what to get.
I would like to have: 1) at least 2 distortions with it's own master volume
2) A really nice, killer distortion that is thick but can punch through. I don't detune at all I keep it standard. 3) a clean channel that sound real nice. I have thought about having one with multiple effects, but I have heard bad things about them. I think that maybe petals is the way to go there. 4) no Marshall 5) Don't want to deal with tubes. I know that might be a dumb move, but I just don't want to deal with them. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Katalepsy]

Randall Titan, Cyclone, or hell, even the RH200G2 might get the job done. Or you could go with a Line 6 head, either the HD-147 if you wanna go all out, or just the Spider II HD if you wanna go the cheap way. Good luck

 

[drowssap]

I've seen the Line 6 in musician's friend. Any opinions on it? I can go the cheap way out because I can't crank it up. My neighbor is a cop who has called on me over a dozen times. I even had to go to an electronic drum set.
Have you played on the line 6? Like to hear something on it. I play music that changes from heavy to light and back often.

 

[drowssap]

BTW, I would be playing my PRS McCarty through this amp. It does have a warm tone to it.

 

[Katalepsy]

The Spider II HD is one of the best heads I have used at a very affordable price (About $399). It sounds friggen amazing. Now, I'm not exactly sure how a PRS would sound on it, but I have tried Ibanez, Jackson, ESP, BC Rich, and Schecter (Which is very similar to PRS), and the tone remained brilliant, rich, and clear, and I just loved it. Just go to your local guitar store and see if they carry any Line 6 products, if so, I recommend you take the opportunity to try em out.

 

[Kenneth R.]

man, reading your description i thought i had the perfect amp. but then you said no marshalls haha...

why not? marshall has great tone for distortion, clean, 4 channels with seperate vols, and i have yet to do anything with my tubes. as long as you dont trash it, its easy to take care of

 

[Indiooo]

What Marshall head has 4 channels?


Anyway... So you want two great distortions and a great clean, and you want it solid state. Right... It ain't gonna happen. There's a reason some people use multiple heads. If you don't want any compromises, one amp won't do.

 

[voicesinthefan]

I've used a Line 6 Flextone II for a couple years now. I can honestly say that it sounds better than any of my friend's amps (Marshall, Crate Blue Voodoo, etc.), at least at non-nuclear volume. The only thing I have to watch out for is that it will start to overheat if you play for several hours at high volume. My next amp is going to be an Engl Powerball, although that a little pricey.

 

[Meandor]

You could also try a peavey xxl head, it has everything you described and the distortion is decent...

 

[Nefarious_]

Engl Engl Engl! is all I have to say on the matter.

I know you said no tubes, but just go and play one man, you'll understand why I even bothered to post this. Tubes aren't that much hasstle, just warm your amp up for a few minutes before playing and it's fine. Engl amps slay, the guitarist in my band has an Engl powerball and it's simply amazing.

 

[drowssap]

well, the Line 6 has 12 different amp models, 7 ( I think) effects, 3 which can be used at once. It sound great to me. I am going to check it out. Also, it is not important for it to sound extra loud. Like I said, we have a next door neighbor who is a cop. I have got a peace with him right now, and I don't want to screw that up. I DO have to live here. I have been using a Crate GX65. I like the distortion in it, but I have 1 song that needs a lot of distortion, and the next needs a lot less. So 1 song suffers. I just want versatility.

 

[drowssap]

BTW I do appreciate all the input I'm getting. Thank you very much!

 

[Fifth_Horseman]

I have a Peavey XXL half stack and like it alot.
From what you describe (2 decent distortion channels w/ own volume, a good clean channel and no tubes) you probably won't get any better for the price.
With the help of the power amp level and power amp damping switches on the back you can get nice tones at pretty low volume, too.

That said, I still have wet dreams of an ENGL Powerball.
My rig now is a working horse, solid and low maintenance, but it's not ultimate tone heaven... can't get that without tubes I guess.
But it will get you close with lots of tonal possibilities, because each of the three channels also has a three-way-switch for different voicings.
Just try one out yourself, it might work for you...

 

[Prowler121]

The Johnson Millennium 250 is [probably the most flexible amp made in history. Get the Johnson 4x12 celestion cabinet and the J-12 pedal/switcboard with it, and that is literally all you need.

 

[-Gavin-]

What Marshall head has 4 channels?

AVT 150h


Acoustic, Clean, OD1, OD2





I use the Marshall AVT 275 (the 2x12 combo) running through a 4x12 cab.

Fantastic amp, give that a shot

 

[Fifth_Horseman]

Oh, and though I never got the chance to try one yet...

Tech21 Trademark 300 head.
Has three FULLY CONFIGURABLE channels, means you can have three clean channels or three distortion channels or whatever combinations.
They are supposed to sound great, too.
No tubes.