Combo recommendations

Andybolly

Hey all, 

Looking for some ideas for a combo that isn't going to break the bank (2nd hand) 

I'm a pedal player so looking for something that takes pedals well. I already own a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe which is an amazing gig workhorse and has a great clean channel. 

I'm looking for a 2nd combo amp as a backup. (I prefer a combo as it's easy to load into the car with all my other gear for gigs) 

I'm playing gigs that range from working mens clubs to outdoor festivals 

Any suggestions?

LionAquaLooper

Katana. I don't own one but have only heard good things, and takes pedals well apparently. 

bertie

Andybolly said:

Any suggestions?

budget ?

Fiddlesticks_

If you like your Hot Rod Deluxe and want a backup combo that's a little bit different, what about a Blues Deluxe? I don't know your budget, but I think they can be found relatively well priced 2nd hand.

Musical_Mystery_Tour

You always gonna be miking it up to a PA, or expecting it to be loud enough to just use on its own for smaller gigs? It might be just easier to get a second one the same as the one you already have, that way your board EQ and other pedals will be the same and you won't have to mess around.

stickyfiddle

Personally if you're really worried I'd be looking at another Hot Rod DX, or a pedal that takes up hardly any room and means you can just DI straight away if anything goes wrong. 

jellybelly

Yeah I would say a 'pedal amp' like a Laney LoudPedal that could be connected to a speaker if your amp went down etc. Would give you options like going direct to FOH which some engineers are keen on when you give them the option. Victory do some, think Milkman do some higher end stuff, certainly others. 

ICBM

Peavey Transtube Bandit. You can sometimes find them as low as £100 second hand. Bombproof, loud, light(ish) and sound good. Swap the speaker for something better and they sound great. Almost maintenance-free so perfect as a backup you aren't going to need much.

[/stuck record, but they really are that good.]

snowblind

What sort of budget/weight limit are you putting on this? Plenty of decent 2x12 combos around for not too much money. It just becomes a question of whether they are too much for the job at hand.

The old Laney VC series is worth a shout in my view. I have a VC30-212 which is growing on me the more I use it. Does weigh 28kg now but still manageable. I generally use it on the clean channel and let the pedals do the work. Drive section is 4xEL84s so while it definitely isn't a VOX it is sort of in that ballpark. Look around and you can find them for well under £200.

SteveRobinson

ICBM said:

Peavey Transtube Bandit. You can sometimes find them as low as £100 second hand. Bombproof, loud, light(ish) and sound good. Swap the speaker for something better and they sound great. Almost maintenance-free so perfect as a backup you aren't going to need much.

[/stuck record, but they really are that good.]

This ^^^

I've had a Bandit as my workshop amp for 10 years. Almost every day I switch it on in the morning, turn it off in the evening and it just works. Lots of customers comment on how good it sounds.

The only maintenance it needs is the ocasional squirt of contact cleaner due to the dusty environment of my workshop.

Andybolly

SteveRobinson said:

ICBM said:

Peavey Transtube Bandit. You can sometimes find them as low as £100 second hand. Bombproof, loud, light(ish) and sound good. Swap the speaker for something better and they sound great. Almost maintenance-free so perfect as a backup you aren't going to need much.

[/stuck record, but they really are that good.]

This ^^^

I've had a Bandit as my workshop amp for 10 years. Almost every day I switch it on in the morning, turn it off in the evening and it just works. Lots of customers comment on how good it sounds.

The only maintenance it needs is the ocasional squirt of contact cleaner due to the dusty environment of my workshop.

I actually borrowed a bandit for rehearsals and it was plenty loud enough. Good shout.

I do like the fender tone and they take pedals really well. I have been looking at a fender twin reverb and having the deluxe as a back up....because you know...GAS

stickyfiddle

Yeah even the little VC15 is not a bad option if you’re micing up. 

MrTee

There was a bargain Peavey classic on here recently (no affiliation)

ElectricXII

If it's purely as a backup, I'd second the suggestions about pedal amps. It's what I do (EHX Caliber 22). Throw one in your pedalboard case and avoid having to lug another heavy combo "just in case". 

HAL9000

ICBM said:

Peavey Transtube Bandit. You can sometimes find them as low as £100 second hand. Bombproof, loud, light(ish) and sound good. Swap the speaker for something better and they sound great. Almost maintenance-free so perfect as a backup you aren't going to need much.

[/stuck record, but they really are that good.]

I played through one of these for the first time at a local jam just last week. Sounded great. I was suitably impressed.

CountryDave

ICBM said:

Peavey Transtube Bandit. You can sometimes find them as low as £100 second hand. Bombproof, loud, light(ish) and sound good. Swap the speaker for something better and they sound great. Almost maintenance-free so perfect as a backup you aren't going to need much.

[/stuck record, but they really are that good.]

+1 on the Peavey, although mine is the Studio Pro.
Bought mine to leave in my mates barn where we rehearse. It’s been out to a couple of gigs too, when I have been aware of flights of stairs at the load in/out.

ICBM

CountryDave said:

+1 on the Peavey, although mine is the Studio Pro.

So is mine. Not *quite* as bombproof - I got given mine because the output IC (unlike the Bandit, which uses separate transistors) had failed and blown the fuse, the owner had put in a larger value fuse, and then it set fire to the speaker! So it was technically beyond economic repair. I replaced the IC and the speaker - first with a Line 6 G12P-80, now an Eminence L'il Texas.

Just about everyone who hears it comments on how good it sounds. I still find it remarkable how relatively 'under the radar' these amps still are - I think they're just ignored because they're not valve and not 'cool'. I honestly prefer mine to most valve amps, even ignoring the cost and weight advantage. I do still own a Mesa, but it rarely comes out of its flightcase now...

Littlejonny

I have Hot Rod Deluxe at home and a Peavey Bandit at work. The Peavey can sound good, but when you AB them, the Fender just has a 3D punch to it that the Peavey can’t touch. But then mine has the stock speaker, which others have said is best changed. Also, I find the high end of the treble to have that transistor amp immediacy. 

I’ve also had two Laney VC30s. Lovely amps but very different sounding to the Fender much brighter, much less bass. 

I’ve tried a Peavey Classic 30 a few times and really like them. Nice alternative to the Hot Rod.

I also had a Blues Deluxe - wasn’t for me, seemed to have a different midrange to the Hot Rod. A bit more cloudy, and I suppose I was after blackface clarity. 

Speaking of Blackface clarity - I had a Deluxe VM for a while. Don’t know why I sold it. Great blackface clean channel and the gain channel was decent too.

Now I remember it, I also had a Supersonic 22. Lovely sounding thing. Sold it because the hiss annoyed me (and my wife in particular). Totally useable for band use though. I’ve been temped to buy one again several times.

Anyway @Andybolly I’m currently in a similar situation to you, but hoping to get something lightweight so I can leave the HRD at home. I hate to DI so the pedal amp solution would have to include buying a speaker cab. 

last year I played a gig with a Blues Junior IV and quite liked it. Definitely workable. For me it’s between that and a Tone Master blonde. 

By the way, if you haven’t tried an EQ pedal in the FX loop of the HRD you need to…switch on the drive channel (not more drive) and set the gain to 6, bass to 3, mid 6, treble 7, presence 6, EQ pedal in FX loop with the 200hz boosted a few db, the 800hz cut a bit, the top two bands pushed a tiny bit. It’s like the best Marshall sound I’ve ever had. 

UnclePsychosis

ICBM said:

CountryDave said:

+1 on the Peavey, although mine is the Studio Pro.

So is mine. Not *quite* as bombproof - I got given mine because the output IC (unlike the Bandit, which uses separate transistors) had failed and blown the fuse, the owner had put in a larger value fuse, and then it set fire to the speaker! So it was technically beyond economic repair. I replaced the IC and the speaker - first with a Line 6 G12P-80, now an Eminence L'il Texas.

Just about everyone who hears it comments on how good it sounds. I still find it remarkable how relatively 'under the radar' these amps still are - I think they're just ignored because they're not valve and not 'cool'. I honestly prefer mine to most valve amps, even ignoring the cost and weight advantage. I do still own a Mesa, but it rarely comes out of its flightcase now...

What maintenance is actually needed on a Studio Pro? 

Asking for a friend* who has one but doesn't use it all that often.

FWIW to the OP I'd also recommend one as a backup amp. Sounds really good, not very heavy, inexpensive. 

ICBM

UnclePsychosis said:

What maintenance is actually needed on a Studio Pro?

None, unless it stops working well. If it does, the most likely culprits are the usual jack switch contacts in the Power Amp In jack, and the Extension Speaker (unlike the Bandit, the Studio Pro switches off the internal speaker when you use it).

thomasw88

Have a red stripe bandit and a silver stripe studio pro.  They’re both great amps and easily giggable.

Also worth a look is a h&k statesman,  clean channel is very clean but takes pedals brilliantly. Dirt channel is great.  Used that for more gigs than my hot rod mk4