Best head

thomasross20

Why Yamaha THR over Blackstar TVP? Preference, or is there some winning factor? 

Have to say the Victory amps are looking the best bet for me though not sure the cleans are "crystal" enough for me.
 
Mesa Mark V:25 looks good but if only crunch was on channel 2 - having clean and crunch on both channels - damn!

Going to look at some more boutique offerings. That Brunetti Singleman head had great cleans, as do the Two Rocks I've heard (on YouTube!). 

thomasross20

Jeezo - I think I remember @ICBM mentioning this before but have you seen the markup on Mesa amps sold in the UK as opposed to in the US? Mark V:25 here £1600... equivalent over there £1000....!!

ICBM

Yes. I wouldn't ever buy a new Mesa in the UK - it just encourages them to keep overpricing them. (Or actually Westside, their distributors.)

To me the Yamaha THR100 sounded more natural than the Blackstar - the voicing was less middy and the controls actually do useful amounts, something I didn't find with most of the EQ on the Blackstar. The ability to blend two different sounds was really great too. It's simpler and doesn't have the onboard effects, but to me those were only average on the Blackstar anyway. I didn't try the loop on the Yamaha though, I didn't have time. @rossyamaha mentioned there was some limitation with it regarding the dual-amp mode, but I forgot what…

The Yamaha is also almost stupidly small and light - one thing that annoyed me about the Blackstar ID60 head is that at least half of it is purely wasted space, for show - there's nothing in the whole top half of it at all, and even the bottom half is not as tightly packed as it could be. On the other hand even then, it's still not at all heavy.

You should maybe try running your ID through the new cab and see what it sounds like, it may sound better than the combo speakers do, in which case the head should probably be on the list too.

thomasross20

Yep, I wouldn't buy the Blackstar heads (famous last words!) just because about half the volume and weight is waste!! Though that's a good idea about running the ID through the new cab...!! Nice one - I'll try that.

Shame about Mesa pricing - that really sucks!

Yamaha THR has to be on the "try" list. 

Victory V30 and Sheriff series look pretty damn good - I think they're reliable (?) - and they tick many boxes - and are under the £1k mark. 

That Brunetti Singleman head still sings to me


Best deal on a new Mesa I can see is Andertons do the Express 5:25 for £1375 (about £1k equivelent in USA). 

thomasross20

This looks cool!
https://marshallamps.com/products/amplifiers/mini-jubilee-series/2525h-mini-jubilee/
(Think I'm "over" Marshall, though... had one years ago and it started to crackle in next to no time).

rsvmark

Mark V 35. Nice headroom plus a foot switchable solo boost on each channel. Ticks all the other boxes but uber expensive

ThePrettyDamned

http://www.mjwamps.com/twin/

ThePrettyDamned

If you want pristine cleans with real depth and a cool roaring drive, that's probably a good place to start. Slightly more expensive than some victory amps, but immaculately hand wired by Martin, smaller than a full size head, lighter than a full size head. Even full size heads are not a bugger to move around compared to a 2x12 combo - so these mid size ones are very easy indeed. Couple it to a 1x12 with a neo creamback and you're done.

ICBM

thomasross20 said:

This looks cool!
https://marshallamps.com/products/amplifiers/mini-jubilee-series/2525h-mini-jubilee/
(Think I'm "over" Marshall, though... had one years ago and it started to crackle in next to no time).

Modern Marshall build quality is a little... variable, yes. From what I've seen so far the Jubilee is OK though - including the reissues, although I haven't seen inside the Mini yet. Obviously it's still a valve amp and valves can fail, but I wouldn't write it off if you like the sound.

thomasross20

I like the white

No weight specified for MJW? 

ICBM

thomasross20 said:

No weight specified for MJW? 

@camf has got a great little MJW which doesn't weigh a lot - I don't know exactly how much but I don't think even you would find it heavy . It has power scaling as well as a very good switchable master volume arrangement, so ideal for home use.

thomasross20

Somebody just made a good point about Victory V30 - it has the same EQ for both channels and that may not be the best idea. 

digitalscream

thomasross20 said:

Somebody just made a good point about Victory V30 - it has the same EQ for both channels and that may not be the best idea. 

All of my favourite amps have shared EQ; it's usually not a problem, because the channels themselves are voiced differently. The Kraken is a good example of this.

It is, however, a major problem with the Soldano Decatone, because there's no realistic way (even with the bright switches) to properly balance all three channels.

ICBM

thomasross20 said:

Somebody just made a good point about Victory V30 - it has the same EQ for both channels and that may not be the best idea. 

It depends on the sounds you want - and the speaker, since different ones respond differently to clean and dirty sounds. Sometimes it's fine, sometimes it's not.

ThePrettyDamned

thomasross20 said:

I like the white

No weight specified for MJW? 

 Custom build. Ask him to make it as light as possible - could mean a slightly lower power (30 watts from a pair of el34s?) output section in a smaller cab made from ply, for example. 

Worth remembering that weight isn't the main issue - bulk is. You'll be amazed at how easy it is two carry 20kg with both hands on a smaller load. 

A head would probably be half that. 

Add to that the custom voicing of each channel and custom looks just for you and I reckon it's definitely the best option. You get the sparkly cleans coupled with a nice, open sounding rock drive channel, power scaling if you want it for home use (I'd just get a Blackstar ID core 20 or ID15 though) and immaculate, bulletproof build quality and a quiet, beautiful layout that's easy to work on in the event of an unlikely failure. 

digitalscream

ThePrettyDamned said:

Worth remembering that weight isn't the main issue - bulk is. You'll be amazed at how easy it is two carry 20kg with both hands on a smaller load. 

I thought the same thing, until I got my current rig. Carrying an 11kg cab with an 8kg head is much easier on the back and shoulders, especially when you have joint/muscular issues.

ThePrettyDamned

digitalscream said:

ThePrettyDamned said:

Worth remembering that weight isn't the main issue - bulk is. You'll be amazed at how easy it is two carry 20kg with both hands on a smaller load. 

I thought the same thing, until I got my current rig. Carrying an 11kg cab with an 8kg head is much easier on the back and shoulders, especially when you have joint/muscular issues.

Indeed. I have a new issue in my right arm that's quite painful, so I've just moved to a smaller 1x10 combo.  Probably not lightweight, but light enough considering how rarely I'll be moving it long distances by hand. If I need more projection, I can eventually buy a 1x12 with a neo creamback.  

Also, if you chose to only have a 1 channel head, it is easier to get a smaller, lighter amp. You could use it as a sparkly clean head and use a pedal for drive, and it would work great. Use a modelling amp at home that has all the features you need to practice built in if you don't want to use pedals  

What settings do you use for a clean amp on the Blackstar?  It could help us work out what kind of amp voicing you want (Marshall, Vox and Fender tones can all sparkle).  

thomasross20

Will get back later FYI I'm thinking an ID100 head (despite the ridiculous size) might be a good backup (main!?) option at about £400!

ICBM

thomasross20 said:

FYI I'm thinking an ID100 head (despite the ridiculous size) might be a good backup (main!?) option at about £400!

The ID60 is better. It's the same amp inside, just with the power section run more conservatively - hence even more reliable - and smaller and lighter. If anyone is doing deals on the 100 which make it cheaper than the 60 - Thomann was at one point I think - there is a reason it's been discounted.

A Jet City is still much cheaper, too.

ennspek

digitalscream said:

ennspek said:

The Yamaha THR100 really is the answer.

I have to say...I would concur that it's an answer. The one I tried certainly sounded good, although there was a weird overtone thing going on that never got diagnosed (I was testing it for a mate up the road) and I'm not 100% convinced that it'd be good for metal using the onboard gain.

Yeah sorry that sounded arrogant. I am just of the opinion that it would be the best solution based on the requirements stated by the OP, headroom, sparkling cleans, light etc. The thing weighs 4.5 kilos! Worth a look at any rate.