thoughts on the original Blackstar Artisan 30 ??

Supportact

relic245 said:

There's one on eBay right now with a starting price of £400 I doubt it will go higher.

When I was selling mine I saw a couple gi on the bay for as low as £320

Crazy you can get something like that so cheaply. I quite clearly have enough amps but based on how the 100w head sounds I'd be tempted by the 15 or 30 for those prices. 

ecc83

Supportact said:

relic245 said:

There's one on eBay right now with a starting price of £400 I doubt it will go higher.

When I was selling mine I saw a couple gi on the bay for as low as £320

Crazy you can get something like that so cheaply. I quite clearly have enough amps but based on how the 100w head sounds I'd be tempted by the 15 or 30 for those prices. 

Indeed, my son tried a 15 for a weekend many years ago and was well smitten but there was no way I could afford one then even with staff dissy! (he does have an ID 40 which still gives him sterling service many years later)

I have not looked for an A15 but I suspect they might hold their price better? You don't have to be Arnie to lug one!

He lives in France so shipping it would be out of the question but he has a good mate who drives over to him a couple of times a year and will take gear.

Dave.

ecc83

I wuz right! Nothing on The Bay under about £600 AND! A lot of "Artists" slotted in and for similar money. I refer me learned friends to the statement I gave earlier!

Dave.

ecc83

Excuse me Paul while I dig out some schematics....!

Dave.

ecc83

Right, brain refreshed! The A 15 lacks the more versatile bass filters of the 30 but is still a very good amp. Loud enough cleans for most genres/venues and easily loud enough for almost anywhere if driven into dirt.

They hold their price I guess because they will 'do' most of what the 30 does but are smaller and MUCH lighter.

Were I 20 years younger I would be modding these amps for a verb tank (did an Artisan 100) and possibly an FX loop but that is tricky due to the signal paths to the PI.

Dave.

GavRichList

I know that when I went and tested both, the A15 was just “nice”, and the 30 had to come home with me. There was a noticeable step up in my opinion. 

impmann

To show how great value a secondhand A30 actually is, there are brand new (made last year) A30s for sale through the Blackstar Reverb Store. To make them to the same standard and quality the price is a fair bit more than you'd think... and no, its not "all profit", as it costs a shedload to make an amp to this spec.

https://reverb.com/uk/item/80136641-blackstar-artisan-30-handwired-30w-2x12-tube-guitar-combo-burgundy

ecc83

impmann said:

To show how great value a secondhand A30 actually is, there are brand new (made last year) A30s for sale through the Blackstar Reverb Store. To make them to the same standard and quality the price is a fair bit more than you'd think... and no, its not "all profit", as it costs a shedload to make an amp to this spec.

https://reverb.com/uk/item/80136641-blackstar-artisan-30-handwired-30w-2x12-tube-guitar-combo-burgundy

Some might say "you would say that wouldn't you!" but in truth you would be getting a huge chunk of goodness for your money and it will last for as long as we can still get valves.

Compare the price of top quality drums, fiddles and many microphones!

Dave.