amp on a budget

[Pman]

hi
for christmas my guitarist is intending to get an amp for gigging,
obviously i would have said get something like 6505 combo but its out of his prie range
he has a budget of aound £500
its obviously not enough for a decent amp but has anyone any suggestions of something that would work well live and for recording
it would most preferably be a combo,
thanks

 

[Loren Littlejohn]

For metal I am stumped.

 

[Lopes]

Ebay or keep saving.

 

[Ice_T's_Bobblehat]

For an inexpensive combo I've not found much to beat a Peavey Bandit 80w 1x12". 2 channels with independent eq's, and different switchable voicings for each of the 2 channels. Master presence and master spring reverb.
I've not heard the newest ones (which are about £250) but even though they're solidstate with "tube emulation" I've always thought they sound very good.

If your friend would consider a used one you can pick them up for about £150and I think the 3rd version with silver/black livery (one of which I own myself)is the best sounding of the older ones. This option also leaves plenty of cash left over for Tubescreamer/boost pedal of your friends choice and noise reduction!

Put it this way my main amp is a Boogie Dual rec, and I can honestly say whenever I've had to use the Bandit I've never thought "bugger I've got to use the Bandit" or wanted to vomit and hide in shame.

If your friend must go valve, again I think 2nd hand's the way to go. The Peavey Bravo is quite old and is a 1x12" rated 25w but it sounds hell of alot louder and absolutely fantastic usually about 250 squid secondhand if you can find one. Other than that I've always personally liked either the Peavey Ultra 2x12 or any of the Marshall JCM900 combo's with a TS9 infront.

 

[everybody's x]

look for a boogie 50 caliber combo, ebaying at about $350 US right now.
smaller cousin of the mark series, highly underated amp

 

[everybody's x]

http://cgi.ebay.com/Mesa-Boogie-50-...ryZ43374QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

he wont ship out of the states but here's what it looks like, I'll post a clip of the head if your interested (I have one)

 

[cobrahead1030]

boogie stuff i've heard is pretty hard to find used overseas, and if you get something shipped from the states you'll have power issues to deal with

i'd check out the peavey valveking combo, and a good boost pedal

 

[greyskull]

seconmd hand 5150 and 4x12
or second hand jcm 800, or jmp or dsl

 

[RootBoundApollo]

A lot of poor guys around here have been buying the Line 6 Spiders, and it actually doesn't sound atrocious but you get what you pay for

 

[Wolfeman]

I bought my XXX head used for around that price, but that was here in the states. Are they more expensive over there or something? Last time I checked the 5150 were around the same too... And it's not hard to find a cheapo cab....

 

[greyskull]

i paid £100 for my 5150 head!

 

[KeithRT99]

i bought my 5150 combo for about 500$ us, i don't know how many euro that is, but i imagine if you look around you could swing one for cheap. stay away from the line 6 spider, it's absolutely horrible for recording, it's ok just to play on though. Maybe he should look for an ampeg Vh140 head, sounds killer for metal, super cheap, wil need a cab though.

maybe a randall?

 

[Razorjack]

Peavey Valveking, set properly they sound awesome. The combo is £349 at my store. If not that then you can get a used orange combo for £500.

 

[::XeS::]

Does the valveking sound "like a tube amp" or it stay in the solid state/digital range of sound? Properly set can it sound good for hi-gain stuff?
I think a tubes change (JJ's pre and power) increase the definition and the amount of gain the VK can produce.

 

[Pman]

well my potential choices are: peavey bandit, mesa boogie caliber combo, or the peavey valve king combo
is this the bandit that you use Mr Ice T's Bobblehat lol: ) http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/bandit-112/434
and is that a good price?

Razorjack: is this the specific valve king you where talking about?
http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/valve-king-212/68977
its the same price as your store and it looks great

everybodys x: i dont know anywhere in the uk that sells the caliber new but is this any good? http://www.guitarampkeyboard.com/en/lonestar/71422
Mesa Boogie Lone Star 23 1x12 Cab
and what do you think of this caliber?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MESA-BOOGIE-S...ryZ10171QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

thanks for all the suggestions everyone

the valveking looks the best so far but i havent had much guitar amp experience before, so im just wondering if theres anything about these amps that hasnt been mentioned or any other amps?

 

[Gnash]

I'm real impressed with the new spider heads for $400. They can get real "Ear piercing", but with a little tweaking you can get some decent tones. The 150 watt sounds pretty bitchin in stereo. I like the tones on the podxtlive way better, but you looking for an amp. Oh yeah, I seen a Carvin Legacy (Steve Vai's pro model) for $500 on ebay!

 

[Glenn Fricker]

i stay away from the line 6 spider, it's absolutely horrible for recording,

Yeah, but they sound fantastic when thrown from a second-storey roof.

BA-BANG!

 

[everybody's x]

that studio caliber is badass, you'll love it, the lonestar isn't quite as gainy, I havent personally played one.

 

[KeithRT99]

Everydoy's X, can you post some clips of the mesa? i'm gassing big time for a mesa, and i wanna hear the 50 caliber.

 

[Wolfeman]

Yeah, but they sound fantastic when thrown from a second-storey roof.

BA-BANG!

My buddies sounded great when it caught on fire during practice.... Let me tell you, the spider is cool for just jamming out, but when trying to use it in a band competing against a XXX, it sounds like ASS