Could someone explain to me what makes Orange amps stand out? I've never really been able to pinpoint it but they've always caught my eye & ear and I might be lookin to get a new amp soon.
[QUOTE=J Paul;40457287]There are tons of different options out there that fit within this category, it all depends on your budget and your tonal preference, and at the moment, you're the only one who can answer those two questions. However, here's some guidelines/general info:
It's going to be small, 5 watts or less (preferably less), and even 5 watt tube amps can get loud enough to piss off the neighbors depending on the speaker they're driving. That being the case, you'll definitely need to find one with a separate master volume (gain + volume configuration, but sometimes both are just labeled "volume") or at least a built-in attenuation function, that way you can drive the amp and actually keep it at what could be considered 'bedroom levels'.
Most of these small tube amps that are 5 watts or less are Class A, thus they're kinda inefficient (by design) and usually don't have standby switches, and will burn through tubes a little faster than larger amps with standby switches. It's not a problem though because most 5 watters just have one 12ax7 and an EL84, very inexpensive and not hard to come by, great selection of those anywhere you can buy instruments.
Based on those two things alone, I would probably recommend the Blackstar HT-1R, it's a fantastic sounding little tube amp that's only one watt, very small box so it'll be perfect for your bedroom, includes a usable reverb which is a nice thing to have if you don't have a decent reverb pedal already, and they're very affordable. It also has some tonal shaping options, their "isf" feature is kinda like a knob that shifts the mid response from british to american. Also includes great stuff like a line out and headphones out so it's very useful for your situation, plus you can run an mp3 player or laptop into it to play with backing tracks. The main drawback I can think of is that it's different from what I mentioned above, the tubes inside are kinda... well they're not exactly normal, if that makes any sense. It uses two tubes that are normally used as preamps instead of a preamp and a common power tube, so the tube overdrive it produces has a sound characteristic that is somewhat unique, you might like it and you might not, but they're still common inexpensive tubes. Definitely go try one in a store before you drop $200+ on one. There's also the HT-5 if you want the option of getting louder when you need volume.[/QUOTE]
Thanks for the advice.
So I played one of the new Squier Affinity basses posted a couple pages back and I am actually impressed. They really did upgrade the series, I played the one of the old affinity basses and there really is a difference. The pickups sound better on the new model and the fit and finish is way better on the new model. I am pretty sure the setup wasn't from the factory but I can say the setup was great. I also like the new PJ pickup combo they offer, it is much more of a universal bass.
[QUOTE=J Paul;40457287]There are tons of different options out there that fit within this category, it all depends on your budget and your tonal preference, and at the moment, you're the only one who can answer those two questions. However, here's some guidelines/general info:
It's going to be small, 5 watts or less (preferably less), and even 5 watt tube amps can get loud enough to piss off the neighbors depending on the speaker they're driving. That being the case, you'll definitely need to find one with a separate master volume (gain + volume configuration, but sometimes both are just labeled "volume") or at least a built-in attenuation function, that way you can drive the amp and actually keep it at what could be considered 'bedroom levels'.
Most of these small tube amps that are 5 watts or less are Class A, thus they're kinda inefficient (by design) and usually don't have standby switches, and will burn through tubes a little faster than larger amps with standby switches. It's not a problem though because most 5 watters just have one 12ax7 and an EL84, very inexpensive and not hard to come by, great selection of those anywhere you can buy instruments.
Based on those two things alone, I would probably recommend the Blackstar HT-1R, it's a fantastic sounding little tube amp that's only one watt, very small box so it'll be perfect for your bedroom, includes a usable reverb which is a nice thing to have if you don't have a decent reverb pedal already, and they're very affordable. It also has some tonal shaping options, their "isf" feature is kinda like a knob that shifts the mid response from british to american. Also includes great stuff like a line out and headphones out so it's very useful for your situation, plus you can run an mp3 player or laptop into it to play with backing tracks. The main drawback I can think of is that it's different from what I mentioned above, the tubes inside are kinda... well they're not exactly normal, if that makes any sense. It uses two tubes that are normally used as preamps instead of a preamp and a common power tube, so the tube overdrive it produces has a sound characteristic that is somewhat unique, you might like it and you might not, but they're still common inexpensive tubes. Definitely go try one in a store before you drop $200+ on one. There's also the HT-5 if you want the option of getting louder when you need volume.[/QUOTE]
I have the HT-5 and I can confirm it's a great purchase. So is the HT-1!
I went to spain for 8 days without a guitar, or the ability to touch one. I'm finally back, and I CAN'T STOP PLAYING.
So I need some tips on how to go from here on guitar. I have quite a bit of technique, but I really don't know scales, and theory and whatnot. I know some theory, like the musical alphabet. But thats about it. Where do I go from here?
[QUOTE=Garry #2;40465838]So I need some tips on how to go from here on guitar. I have quite a bit of technique, but I really don't know scales, and theory and whatnot. I know some theory, like the musical alphabet. But thats about it. Where do I go from here?[/QUOTE]
If you're in college, take a music fundamentals course, then a theory course, Also If you are on your own, teach yourself scales, major, minors, to start, the circle of fifths as well as inversions and modulation/harbringer coords.
So I bought myself an Epiphone SG 1961 reissue or something like that
It'll be here tonight. I've played a few before and really enjoyed them. I also just can't wrap my head around buying a Gibson SG at 2000-3000 dollars for mostly the name. I'll slowly upgrade this guitar, get a proper bone nut, will see how the pickups perform and so forth.
[QUOTE=Nonikai;40478551]So I bought myself an Epiphone SG 1961 reissue or something like that
It'll be here tonight. I've played a few before and really enjoyed them. I also just can't wrap my head around buying a Gibson SG at 2000-3000 dollars for mostly the name. I'll slowly upgrade this guitar, get a proper bone nut, will see how the pickups perform and so forth.[/QUOTE]
played one of those and it was tiiiight
Yeah I own one too, it's great. It was a major upgrade from my Epiphone LP Special II and it showed me how much more comfortable and suitable the SG body style is for me, it's like I'm not even wearing it. In the ergonomic sense, the SG is to a Les Paul what the Strat is to a Tele. Les Pauls and Teles feel good, but man the contours of an SG or a Strat just feel so much better, sitting down or standing up, they just melt into you.
But just so you know, there are plenty of Gibson USA SG options that are in the $400-600 range (and even less on the used market), the only thing separating the Specials from the Standards are a lack of binding and a different type of nitrocellulose finish referred to as 'satin', personally I actually much prefer the satin over gloss finish any day, feels way better to me, but yeah just throwing that out there. And there's also the new 2013 Tribute series that can be had at around $800 which all include 24 frets, any kind of pickup option you'd want from dirty fingers to mini humbuckers to P90's on the 50's tribute, and different tuners and neck profiles on each to suit your interests. They're more expensive than "special" models though because they're only offered in gloss nitro finishes - 'Special' back in the day used to mean the guitar sports P90's as opposed to the new (at the time) humbuckers, but now it just means less expensive, the cost reduced mostly by using a satin finish. Also Gibson have reduced the cost of all of their standards for 2013, you could get a new standard for far less than $2000 (USD). Have a look at Gibson's catalog on their website and ignore the MSRP, it's irrelevant to what the actual market value is on those guitars.
Unless you're talking AUD, in which case, you're fucked mate.
Completely agree about the Strat vs tele comment. I've played tele's and love the twang from bridge and neck, but the strat has great body curves that feel amazing in my lap or standing up. I also love the tone of the strat, but that's just me.
I want to sell my V but I don't at the same time. It seems to be really unique.
[QUOTE=Unreliable;40479925]Completely agree about the Strat vs tele comment. I've played tele's and love the twang from bridge and neck, but the strat has great body curves that feel amazing in my lap or standing up. I also love the tone of the strat, but that's just me.[/QUOTE]
Yeah and there are certain pickup options that can get a twangier sound out of a strat anyway, but I agree, I like the strat bell tone myself. Gibson knew what Fender had achieved in the Strat and that's why they in the 60's knew they needed to make their own contour body guitar, thus the SG was born. Of course, an SG and a Strat have nothing else in common beyond that, but that crucial element really made the difference for me. Don't get me wrong I can play a Les Paul or a Telecaster any day of the week, but I have to be realistic, they're just not nearly as comfortable as the other two.
I must be the only one that prefers a guitar without all the extra carving
which is bothersome because I love the SG
SG Has been in my hands for 4 hours now. Had factory strings on it obviously. I decided to play War Pigs on it whilst it was still set up for E and it sounded great. Changed them to .11-.52 D'addarios and god damn did it sound great (set it up for D Standard).
The only problem I have with this guitar is that it neck dives, but then again I do need a proper wide strap.
[QUOTE=Nonikai;40483784]SG Has been in my hands for 4 hours now. Had factory strings on it obviously. I decided to play War Pigs on it whilst it was still set up for E and it sounded great. Changed them to .11-.52 D'addarios and god damn did it sound great (set it up for D Standard).
The only problem I have with this guitar is that it neck dives, but then again I do need a proper wide strap.[/QUOTE]
Yeah my explorer had a neck diving problem when I got it. They had the front strap button in it's original 1958 position, because it is a 1958 model. I moved it to the back near the neck joint like the modern explorers and it fixed my problem for good.
I still need a proper leather strap for it though.
[QUOTE=Nonikai;40483784]SG Has been in my hands for 4 hours now. Had factory strings on it obviously. I decided to play War Pigs on it whilst it was still set up for E and it sounded great. Changed them to .11-.52 D'addarios and god damn did it sound great (set it up for D Standard).
The only problem I have with this guitar is that it neck dives, but then again I do need a proper wide strap.[/QUOTE]
I string all my SGs with .11-50 d'addario flatwounds but I still tune to E, I like the tension and the vintage feel, I imagine that's similar to what they would have had back in the day. Also yeah standard SGs with the normal control cavity are kinda unbalanced. With all that routing in the body, they all will neckdive to a certain extent, that's just how it is. You can get lighter-weight tuners like those Steinberger tuners and that will balance it out a little, or add some metal on the other end in the form of a bigsby to the body (looks great even if you don't use it), or move the strap buttons, so you got options. Easiest thing though is just buy a nice old school wide leather strap, I would just do that.
The only SG I have that doesn't have this problem is my melody maker SG, it has only one tiny little route for the volume knob and pickup all in one small cavity so it's like 95% solid wood in the body, that plus maybe the smaller MM headstock contributes to the balance, I dunno. I was surprised when I first got it, I can sit down and put it on my leg without a strap and it just stays put even if I wiggle around a lot.
I really like the look of the Melody maker Explorer. The pointy headstock on it makes a nice change from the hockey stick one. Same with the Flying V, the simplicity of them is awesome.
[QUOTE=dcalde78;40498707]I really like the look of the Melody maker Explorer. The pointy headstock on it makes a nice change from the hockey stick one. Same with the Flying V, the simplicity of them is awesome.[/QUOTE]
I love the single pickup junior models, I will be trying out one of the new EVH striped series guitars when my local GC gets on in. I am interested in getting a single pickup guitar.
[QUOTE=dcalde78;40498707]I really like the look of the Melody maker Explorer. The pointy headstock on it makes a nice change from the hockey stick one. Same with the Flying V, the simplicity of them is awesome.[/QUOTE]
Yeah I love it too, the whole 2011 line of limited run melody makers are great. I'm sure there are some lemons out there but I haven't played a bad one myself. That MM Explorer with the flying V headstock is probably the most unique explorer I've ever seen, I don't think there are many, if any, other explorers with a headstock like that. At least I've never seen one. In that same vein of uniqueness, I think that V and Explorer are the only two melody makers that Gibson made without the melody maker headstock, so the explorer is like 2x unique and the V looks pretty much like a normal one with a different pickguard.
The 2011 MM SG is standard size and the LP is just like a Junior or other melody maker, but I think the V and Explorer are slightly reduced body sizes, which isn't a bad thing for the explorer because I think it's essentially the same as an explorer pro - like 5 or 10% smaller than a normal one, can't remember which.
[QUOTE=Nazereth666;40498767]I love the single pickup junior models, I will be trying out one of the new EVH striped series guitars when my local GC gets on in. I am interested in getting a single pickup guitar.[/QUOTE]
the singer/guitarist has a sunburst LPJ. it's an absolute beast.
[img]http://www.dv247.com/assets/products/62935_l.jpg[/img]
it's awesome when you learn a certain part to a song when just an hour before you were thinking "holy shit this is gonna be fucking impossible"
[QUOTE=skynrdfan3;40506767]it's awesome when you learn a certain part to a song when just an hour before you were thinking "holy shit this is gonna be fucking impossible"[/QUOTE]
That's how I felt for the solo on Aeromancy by Dorje. Most of it is pretty easy but that chromatic run in the middle is just a pain in the ass.
[editline]2nd May 2013[/editline]
[QUOTE=dcalde78;40503256]the singer/guitarist has a sunburst LPJ. it's an absolute beast.
[img]http://www.dv247.com/assets/products/62935_l.jpg[/img][/QUOTE]
Yeah I love them to death, they are very comfortable to play and they just sound great.
I might try and find a P94 or a PX-100 to put in my V. I like the single coil clarity.
marshall amp fucked again, new fault thank fuck for the 1 year warranty you get on marshall repairs.
Some of my favorite peeps graduated this year and like a fool I didn't get an annual to record them and felt bad about it. So, since I'm known as the guy around campus with a guitar always strapped to his back, I thought I'd give them a little treat. Excuse the image quality/blur, my phone isn't the best around.
[t]http://oi41.tinypic.com/1ypd2r.jpg[/t]
sneyp
might be getting an axe fx II in the next few weeks
[editline]5th May 2013[/editline]
for once I've got the money before I've decided what I'm spending it on
might get mine in July, got a lot of work this summer thankfully. either that or an Pod HD.
[QUOTE=absinthe;40536396]might be getting an axe fx II in the next few weeks
[editline]5th May 2013[/editline]
for once I've got the money before I've decided what I'm spending it on[/QUOTE]
I want an in depth review
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Guitar Discussion V10 - February 2013 edition
