is blackstar done ?

darthed1981

Fiftyshadesofjay said:

As far as I'm aware they shift quite a lot of units of those smaller amps.

It's funny how people assume that if a company isn't pumping out high end heads etc, they're finished. The simple matter is that those type of amps just don't sell anymore and are actually quite a specialist item now. It's the lower, cheaper end where  most sales are to be made.

Have a wiz, quite right.

Also - it is those kind of amps that are going to supply the next generation of guitarists.  The next Kurt Cobain, Noel Gallagher, SRV etc will be very lucky to learn his trade and play his first gigs on multi-thousand pound gear, he could however buy a core 150 and blow the roof off his school hall for £350!

I think Blackstar are doing just fine.

darthed1981

impmann said:

ecc83 said:

I was in PMT Npton  a few months ago and the guy said they shift more Blackstars than probably all other brands together. Mind you that is in Home Town!

I was in the offices a few weeks ago: 'Stuff' is being developed as we speak! I cannot say more or they would have to kill me.

Dave.

Hmmm... yes, having been on the receiving end of their sales tactics surrounding Blackstar, that doesn't surprise me. I'm not 'target market' - so when trying out a guitar suggesting I "give one a go, you never know" and then acting surprised and arguing with me when I tell them what I don't like about it really didn't endear me to the brand or the store...

I've found that a bit with PMT Northampton as well, they clearly do have a commercial tie-in of some kind with blackstar, they are plastered all over the outside of the shop!

That said, any eccentricities or argumentativeness can be put down to genuine passion.  They seem a pretty well intentioned bunch, and its not like you can't try it and then not buy it.

I'm a fan of Blackstar's kit.  I've got a Fly 3 on my computer desk in front of me, and a Core 10 and a Core 20 in various rooms of the house.  The Core 20 gets at least as much use as my Katana.

I'd LOVE to have a room seperated from neighbours where I could hammer aways on an earth-shaking valve head and cab, but I have neighbours and I also kinda suck, so, its not going to happen lol!

Reverend

darthed1981 said:

Fiftyshadesofjay said:

As far as I'm aware they shift quite a lot of units of those smaller amps.

It's funny how people assume that if a company isn't pumping out high end heads etc, they're finished. The simple matter is that those type of amps just don't sell anymore and are actually quite a specialist item now. It's the lower, cheaper end where  most sales are to be made.

Have a wiz, quite right.

Also - it is those kind of amps that are going to supply the next generation of guitarists.  The next Kurt Cobain, Noel Gallagher, SRV etc will be very lucky to learn his trade and play his first gigs on multi-thousand pound gear, he could however buy a core 150 and blow the roof off his school hall for £350!

I think Blackstar are doing just fine.

Cobain started with cheap guitars and a ds1. Noel used Epiphone early on.

I've found blackstar heads sound a bit naff, but no worse than any marshall since the 900.

darthed1981

Reverend said:

darthed1981 said:

Fiftyshadesofjay said:

As far as I'm aware they shift quite a lot of units of those smaller amps.

It's funny how people assume that if a company isn't pumping out high end heads etc, they're finished. The simple matter is that those type of amps just don't sell anymore and are actually quite a specialist item now. It's the lower, cheaper end where  most sales are to be made.

Have a wiz, quite right.

Also - it is those kind of amps that are going to supply the next generation of guitarists.  The next Kurt Cobain, Noel Gallagher, SRV etc will be very lucky to learn his trade and play his first gigs on multi-thousand pound gear, he could however buy a core 150 and blow the roof off his school hall for £350!

I think Blackstar are doing just fine.

Cobain started with cheap guitars and a ds1. Noel used Epiphone early on.

Well yes, my point exactly.  In fact you see Noel playing an Epi Les Paul in the Supersonic video, he switched to Gibson presumably when the cheques started coming in for Definitely Maybe and their various tours.  A fairly solid endorsement of what should be consensus really - Epis are totally fine for everything you will ever need an LP for, but if you have a couple of grand you don't need you may as well get the Gibson, cos its a bit better, and it says "Gibson" on the headstock.

The better, bigger solid state amps that you can gig with, like the Blackstar Core 100 and 150, the Boss Katana's etc. are the same.  A boutique valve amp might have better tone overall, but leave buying those to people pissing money.

Danny1969

I can't actually remember when it was but I think it was about 5 or 6 years ago, some one offered me an HT5 for £150 and I plugged it into a 1 x 12" and though that's actually loud enough to gig with. Since then I've probably done 500 to 700 gigs with an HT5... I picked up another one a few years ago for £120 so I have 2. One lives in the van of a band that I do about 60 to 70 gigs a year with, the other one does all kinds of gigs from Rockabilly to Kate Bush

To be honest I'm bored of the sound but you do get bored of every amp after a while. But the important thing is I haven't had to spent any money on any other  amps at all, the HT5 has been a workman like tool, it's performed reliably and all the profits from the gigs have gone in my pocket. I pay the bills by gigging, it's my main job. When you live like this you don't spend any money on gear if you can help it ... I get 20 odd gigs out of one set of strings !:)

I know a Hotrod would do exactly the same and I do want one,  but I'm not gonna get one for £150 so I think Blackstar aren't gonna get beaten for bang for your buck 

DiscoStu

I bought an HT Stage 60 a few years ago for a new band project as it ticked every single box for me, a great clean, tasty OD and sick Mesa-esque distortion over 3 channels. Reverb too! 
That project didn't go full term but I've still got the amp cos it's killer. A few touring bands have borrowed it when playing up my way and that's testament to its flexibility/usability.

I rarely use my HT60 but I won't get rid any time soon. My 'main' amp is my Yamaha THR10 which sits next to my TV. Now you know how we all went daft for the THR when it launched? Blackstar took note.

Neil

For a company that has only been going for ten years it is amazing the impact they have had on the market.

impmann

FarleyUK said:

Plus, those headphones are actually VERY good for rock music.

A good pair of headphones will be good for *any* music...

Marshall have had a recent(ish) history of not listening to their potential customers - which is ironic based on how Jim started the business. Recent releases have shown a potential change to that culture but sadly the reputation has been tarnished.

RiftAmps

The Artisan 15 is my favourite amp from B - it looks great, is well made, sounds astonishing, and has that great EF86 channel.

Blackstar have done something pretty amazing in the past 10 years - they've managed to offer true handwired boutique stuff, cover the heavy rock/metal genres to take business away from Marshall/Peavey/Soldano, and smash the arse of the low-end market with their affordable models. It's a pretty cool business story when the other big two are struggling to even work out their own identities.

57Deluxe

they sell pedals still...

Sassafras

I predict a new multi-FX unit a la Helix.

professorben

I quite like the Blackstar sound, not so much the series one 100's but the 200 and HT series sound great. 

Reverend

darthed1981 said:

Reverend said:

darthed1981 said:

Fiftyshadesofjay said:

As far as I'm aware they shift quite a lot of units of those smaller amps.

It's funny how people assume that if a company isn't pumping out high end heads etc, they're finished. The simple matter is that those type of amps just don't sell anymore and are actually quite a specialist item now. It's the lower, cheaper end where  most sales are to be made.

Have a wiz, quite right.

Also - it is those kind of amps that are going to supply the next generation of guitarists.  The next Kurt Cobain, Noel Gallagher, SRV etc will be very lucky to learn his trade and play his first gigs on multi-thousand pound gear, he could however buy a core 150 and blow the roof off his school hall for £350!

I think Blackstar are doing just fine.

Cobain started with cheap guitars and a ds1. Noel used Epiphone early on.

Well yes, my point exactly.  In fact you see Noel playing an Epi Les Paul in the Supersonic video, he switched to Gibson presumably when the cheques started coming in for Definitely Maybe and their various tours.  A fairly solid endorsement of what should be consensus really - Epis are totally fine for everything you will ever need an LP for, but if you have a couple of grand you don't need you may as well get the Gibson, cos its a bit better, and it says "Gibson" on the headstock.

The better, bigger solid state amps that you can gig with, like the Blackstar Core 100 and 150, the Boss Katana's etc. are the same.  A boutique valve amp might have better tone overall, but leave buying those to people pissing money.

I actually bought an Epi LP at about the same time. Not because I was an Oasis fan but it didn;t hurt to see that they were good enough for a top seller. It was a great playing guitar. Very often the big name stars actually do their best work on cheaper gear. I'll take Hetfield on a jap flying V copy, pedal and old Marshall over anything he did with custom ESPs and Boogies.
I've noticed that many pedal pages on Facebook are very quick to slate Boss but the body of work using those pedals stands up against any brand. 

Teetonetal

I have an ht40 that I never use. It's very bland. Not sure what the fuss is about. But I'd say they are really active. On social media they have a really strong presence. Far from dead.

gearaddict

I was wondering the same thing about Blackstar the other day...there was so much buzz about them being innovators when they first started and for a few years. The HT-5 was something really new and sounded great. And the HT pedals were great too. Just feels like it has gone off the boil a bit. Maybe I'm just not paying attention.

Alnico

Teetonetal said:

I have an ht40 that I never use. It's very bland. Not sure what the fuss is about. But I'd say they are really active. On social media they have a really strong presence. Far from dead.

Have you tried it through another speaker yet?
A decent speaker brings an HT to life !

ICBM

Alnico said:

Teetonetal said:

I have an ht40 that I never use. It's very bland. Not sure what the fuss is about. But I'd say they are really active. On social media they have a really strong presence. Far from dead.

Have you tried it through another speaker yet?
A decent speaker brings an HT to life !

Agreed. Even though I'm quite familiar with how dull and average a Celestion Seventy/80 sounds, I was still surprised by how big a difference it was when I ran one through a Classic Lead 80.

BGG

olafgarten said:

The Artist series just came out last year, they are releasing more new products than Marshall. 

I like the sound of those.

dindude

I think they realised early on they are not forum darlings and aren't going for that 5% of the market, instead they go for the 95% and social media, I'm sure they're doing alright as a result.

richardhomer

dindude said:

I think they realised early on they are not forum darlings and aren't going for that 5% of the market, instead they go for the 95% and social media, I'm sure they're doing alright as a result.

Agreed.

They strike me as being a bit like a British equivalent of Peavey in their 80s heyday - making a wide range of models, at sensible money, for amateur and semi-pro players, that sound decent and are pretty reliable.

Why any one should feel the need to knock that, I don't know....