Gurus 5015 head

Dopesick

Was just perusing through Thomann and stumbled across this. A tiny powerful valve guitar head specifically for those in mind who want a pedal platform with loads of headroom. May be exactly what I'm looking for if I ever decide to plump for a lightweight option.

http://www.gurusamps.com/en/products/5015-head

digitalscream

You know, the whole idea of pedal platform amps > £500 confuses me a bit. To my mind, the only reason to get pedals is that you can't get that sound from your amp. Ergo, the amp itself is insufficient, so why spend more on an amp that does less only to replace a lot of the functionality you'd normally expect from it by spending even more on pedals?

Seems rather redundant to me.

Bidley

digitalscream said:

You know, the whole idea of pedal platform amps > £500 confuses me a bit. To my mind, the only reason to get pedals is that you can't get that sound from your amp. Ergo, the amp itself is insufficient, so why spend more on an amp that does less only to replace a lot of the functionality you'd normally expect from it by spending even more on pedals?

Seems rather redundant to me.

I feel the same, but a lot of people (certainly on here) prefer their drive from pedals. I don't get it myself.

guitarfishbay

digitalscream said:

You know, the whole idea of pedal platform amps > £500 confuses me a bit. To my mind, the only reason to get pedals is that you can't get that sound from your amp. Ergo, the amp itself is insufficient, so why spend more on an amp that does less only to replace a lot of the functionality you'd normally expect from it by spending even more on pedals?

Seems rather redundant to me.

What if you want a tone that doesn't sound like an amp though? Like basing your tone around fuzz pedals etc.

This is also 7kg - at 50 watts and small size, so I think it is a good product on paper. 

Sassafras

I would never own an amp that had a control called "sexytone". I'm sorry, I just couldn't do it.

earwighoney

Sassafras said:

I would never own an amp that had a control called "sexytone". I'm sorry, I just couldn't do it.

Likewise. 

There's a video of the amp on PGS, doesn't sound amazing to my ears but it is very light. 

Teetonetal

They also have the Sexydrive and Echosex.... I'm still lusting after a 1959 dd though..

Sassafras

Teetonetal said:

They also have the Sexydrive and Echosex.... I'm still lusting after a 1959 dd though..

Sounds like you're oversexed.

octatonic

'Sexytone' sounds like it was designed by Borat.

dindude

digitalscream said:

You know, the whole idea of pedal platform amps > £500 confuses me a bit. To my mind, the only reason to get pedals is that you can't get that sound from your amp. Ergo, the amp itself is insufficient, so why spend more on an amp that does less only to replace a lot of the functionality you'd normally expect from it by spending even more on pedals?

Seems rather redundant to me.

It's just a different approach. I used to think like you but completely changed my mind a few years ago. A great valve amp being pushed by a solid state overdrive / fuzz is a fantastic sound, certainly not second best. It's also a sound that pre-dates any mega preamp gain amp channel type sound, so sounds more classic if that's what you're going for. It's what Hendrix did, Gilmour etc. 

I got to hate the 2 channel amp approach, crystal clean sound and then a mega compressed gain sound, almost seemingly unrelated.

With pedals, I can layer differing amounts of gain on top of a great clean/hairy sound and it sounds like it's from the same tonal pallette but with differing flavours. I also find pedals into a great valve amp a much more dynamic feel.

professorben

dindude said:

digitalscream said:

You know, the whole idea of pedal platform amps > £500 confuses me a bit. To my mind, the only reason to get pedals is that you can't get that sound from your amp. Ergo, the amp itself is insufficient, so why spend more on an amp that does less only to replace a lot of the functionality you'd normally expect from it by spending even more on pedals?

Seems rather redundant to me.

It's just a different approach. I used to think like you but completely changed my mind a few years ago. A great valve amp being pushed by a solid state overdrive / fuzz is a fantastic sound, certainly not second best. It's also a sound that pre-dates any mega preamp gain amp channel type sound, so sounds more classic if that's what you're going for. It's what Hendrix did, Gilmour etc. 

I got to hate the 2 channel amp approach, crystal clean sound and then a mega compressed gain sound, almost seemingly unrelated.

With pedals, I can layer differing amounts of gain on top of a great clean/hairy sound and it sounds like it's from the same tonal pallette but with differing flavours. I also find pedals into a great valve amp a much more dynamic feel.

Interesting, after finally deciding I needed to open my ears a little, I've bought a couple of decent, but affordable drive pedals, I'm going to experiment a bit with my set up and try a few tones based around a pushed clean hit with pedals approach, I can always go back to hiding behind my wall of preamp gain should the mood take me.

dindude

professorben said:

dindude said:

digitalscream said:

You know, the whole idea of pedal platform amps > £500 confuses me a bit. To my mind, the only reason to get pedals is that you can't get that sound from your amp. Ergo, the amp itself is insufficient, so why spend more on an amp that does less only to replace a lot of the functionality you'd normally expect from it by spending even more on pedals?

Seems rather redundant to me.

It's just a different approach. I used to think like you but completely changed my mind a few years ago. A great valve amp being pushed by a solid state overdrive / fuzz is a fantastic sound, certainly not second best. It's also a sound that pre-dates any mega preamp gain amp channel type sound, so sounds more classic if that's what you're going for. It's what Hendrix did, Gilmour etc. 

I got to hate the 2 channel amp approach, crystal clean sound and then a mega compressed gain sound, almost seemingly unrelated.

With pedals, I can layer differing amounts of gain on top of a great clean/hairy sound and it sounds like it's from the same tonal pallette but with differing flavours. I also find pedals into a great valve amp a much more dynamic feel.

Interesting, after finally deciding I needed to open my ears a little, I've bought a couple of decent, but affordable drive pedals, I'm going to experiment a bit with my set up and try a few tones based around a pushed clean hit with pedals approach, I can always go back to hiding behind my wall of preamp gain should the mood take me.

Good man. You can finally consider yourself a grown-up. Don't, however be tempted by a Telecaster as the next step, you will then move from grown-up to old-man.



(hides)















(and only joking, love me an old-man Tele)

Moe_Zambeek

I do love a ripping amp overdrive, but I don't really like multi channel amps and I don't use ripping overdrive *all the time* when gigging, so it suits me better to find an amp that gives me a base tone and - more importantly - feel that I can build on with pedals. Then I can use a boost to add a wee bit of grit, a low gain overdrive for heavier crunch, high gain overdrive, fuzz, delay, chorus, flange, reverb whatever to taste.