LSC or Express 5:50.?

[CGM]

I'm not sure which to go for. I'm after cleans to ballance my LSS. really ...headroom & clear tone. Is the 5:50 as capable of that as the LSC. I thought I might have more options w/the 5:50 instead of a louder LSS. does this make sense. Are the cleans comparable on those two amps. It's a smaller package. and 50 watts would be plenty as we mike everything outside in large venues. Does the 5:50 handle effects well, I just use trem & chorus right now but you never know whats coming down the pike. All opinions and points of view are welcome...thanks guys...CGM

 

[Don]

The 5:50 is great with effects, both in front of the amp and in the loop.

 

[rvschulz]

if you are looking for clean - the LSC on the 100 watt mode rivals ANYTHING ever built. not the 5:50. the 5:50 (to me) is a simple amp. period.

 

[richt]

Hi CGM,

Having owned a 5:50 1x12 since they were first released, my feeling is that it would balance out your LSS nicely. I A/B'd the 5:50 and the LSC before I bought the 5:50, and I also played with another guitarist who used a LSC in our group, and the two amps were neck-and-neck when it came to a band situation. The clean headroom on the 5:50 is considerable, and if you are playing in environments where the amp will be miked, you won't max it out, for sure.

Of course, it all comes down to tone and the 5:50 has it. The Clean channel is lovely. I play mostly clean, so that was my primary concern when shopping. I will offer that, in my opinion, the LSC cleans are a touch nicer (but to me, the 5:50 cleans have a bit more character, which is a positive). The Crunch mode there offers some nice flexibility. The Blues/Burn Channel is great (I use Blues mode), and with the contour controls and the 5 watt option, you have plenty of choices to tailor the sound. The amp is also small and (relatively) light and for me those were important considerations. I wanted a grab-and-go combo that could compete in a band setting, and the 5:50 delivers superbly. Finally, it takes pedals very well; and the FX loop is transparent and effective. I definitely recommend you try one out, and bring your LSS to road test them together. Let us know which amp you choose?

All the best,

Richt

 

[JAZZGEAR]

I purchased one of the first 5:50's released too. It's a fine amp...and if you want versatility, then it get's the nodd. It has crunch and lead mode superior to anything on the LSC. However, the 10 watt mode on the LSC sounds head and shoulders better than the 5 watt on the 5:50. Also, the cleans are >>> then those on the 5:50.

The superior cleans won out, today I own the LSC and not the 5:50 :wink:

 

[Newysurfer]

Hi CGM,

Having owned a 5:50 1x12 since they were first released, my feeling is that it would balance out your LSS nicely. I A/B'd the 5:50 and the LSC before I bought the 5:50, and I also played with another guitarist who used a LSC in our group, and the two amps were neck-and-neck when it came to a band situation. The clean headroom on the 5:50 is considerable, and if you are playing in environments where the amp will be miked, you won't max it out, for sure.

Of course, it all comes down to tone and the 5:50 has it. The Clean channel is lovely. I play mostly clean, so that was my primary concern when shopping. I will offer that, in my opinion, the LSC cleans are a touch nicer (but to me, the 5:50 cleans have a bit more character, which is a positive). The Crunch mode there offers some nice flexibility. The Blues/Burn Channel is great (I use Blues mode), and with the contour controls and the 5 watt option, you have plenty of choices to tailor the sound. The amp is also small and (relatively) light and for me those were important considerations. I wanted a grab-and-go combo that could compete in a band setting, and the 5:50 delivers superbly. Finally, it takes pedals very well; and the FX loop is transparent and effective. I definitely recommend you try one out, and bring your LSS to road test them together. Let us know which amp you choose?

All the best,

Richt

Totally agree with all he said.
I'd only add that the 5:50 has considerably more gain than the lonestars so you'll get a more versatile amp for $500 less. The best features of the 5:50 IMHO are its clean/blues tones and it's overall versatility & light weight.

 

[CGM]

Gyys, I really appreciate all the input. I know the LSC will satisfy the cleans, but w/ my LSS, does the LSC offer enough varition to warrent the purchase? Thats what has become my delima. I'm going to try out the 5:50 in a coupl of weeks. If the cleans are ringing & chimey, then that will be the one. It seems you all have helped me w/my homework. I play a Ronnie Earlish style and you know how important tone is. Can't have no brittleness comin off my stage. Gotta be a smooth mellow tone, Plus....all the xtra drives and gains?...just another avenue of exploration. And that $500 I would save....well, I also have my eye on a G&L Bluesboy....but thats another discussion board...Thanks....Chuck GUITAR M......

 

[djw]

I guess if you want to compliment your LSS with something different, the 5:50 is the way to go. It's probably a high-enough quality amp in most ways to do what you need it to do, and the weight/portability thing is definitely worth considering. They'll make a nice pair.

I'd hesitate seriously to call the 5:50 more versatile than the LSC, however. If by versatile one means, "Gets heavy tones that the LSC doesn't" then yes, the 5:50 fits that definition. However, the same applies to the LSC over the 5:50, in that the LSC gets tones that the 5:50 could only dream of getting. The LSC is absurdly versatile, and if you're after a smooth mellow tone, well, LSC baby. It just doesn't do some of what the 5:50 does... and that goes both ways, in spades.

You probably couldn't go too wrong with either. Just depends on what you want. The 5:50 is more different from the LSS than the LSC is, so if that's what you're after, it's the answer.

 

[CGM]

Point taken...& I love the use of the words, dream and absurdly, it's so apropo to my frame of mind. Ya know...if tone wasn't king, I would have been been satisfied a long time ago.....Oh well, I just sold a thinline , and I have do something w/the money ( gearwise that is )...

 

[JAZZGEAR]

I have both the LSC and LSS, the tone is different enough to have both. I took the LSC over the 5:50, despite the crunch and better lead tones from the 5:50. I have some nice boutique pedals to get me to where the LSC can 't do on it's own. But then again my lead tones live right within what the LSC can offer. I don't play with alot of saturation and gain.

 

[Don]

If I didn't already have a Vibrolux Reverb I might've considered a LSC for it's clean sounds, but the VR has me covered in that department.

I wanted a smaller, reasonably lightweight amp that would sound almost as good as the VR clean and get really raunchy, without pedals, when I wanted it to. That's what led me to the 5:50.

 

[CGM]

All this is good to hear, For years I had a Vibroverb. It was a great amp. Broke up well. Wish I still had it. Right now I'm running the LSS w/a Fender Pro Concert Reverb combo. 4x10's, 50/15 watt, tube. It really works well , and it's the one I use the F/X loop in ( just a little chorus sometimes.) And it does have good trem, which I do use for some roots stuff. but is heavy and large, and the gain channel just doesn't do it for me. The cleans are great but something a little smaller would be nice, with a better gain 2nd Ch......I'm glad to hear from guys who know what I'm after..I'm getting some good info here.....I play with lots of clean but man it has to be just right. Then again I like to run a little gain along with it, lower in volume, just to add body in the mix. Then, when I want a louder gain...I like to have the clean just a little lower in volume to support the distorted tone...Man all I want is all I want...Know what I mean?....

 

[djw]

You're getting a lot of opinions for sure, and people like both amps a lot (especially the owners of each, myself included :roll: ). But what I get from you is that "Tone is very important," which makes me think you want the LSC.

Not that the 5:50 doesn't have good tone, it's fine for many applications -- heck, if someone offered me a good deal on one I'd be pretty tempted; but the 5:50 clean is not extraordinary. The LSC clean is extraordinary. And we all know you can't fake a good clean tone with a pedal or anything else.

Someone here had a great description comparing the two: something along the lines of the cleans on the 5:50 (and something else, maybe the F-30?) sound great, like a new Fender reissue, whereas the LSC sounded more like an actual '65 Twin that had been sitting in the back of a music shop, lovingly played for 40 years, all nice and broken in.

I don't hear you saying that really heavy gain is a requirement. Get an LSC, retube and do the Reeder mod on Ch2, and you've got a totally badass amp.

 

[Newysurfer]

CGM - I think it's time you tested these amps and made your own tone conclusions.

All comments on tone are purely subjective and you may, or may not, agree with any of em. I fully tested out both the lonestars and the 5:50 before buying and since then I've gigged with both. To my ears the cleans on the Lonestar are only very slightly better - maybe $50 better- certainly nowhere near $500 better. You may think they're 50cents better or $500 worse. For all the Lonestar owners I really hope you feel the cleans are $500 better and the extra money was worth every cent.

I wouldn't be interested in having 2 of the exact same, or very similar, amp anyways - but that's just me. Go test em out and report back please. Goodluck with it

 

[creekhed]

I had a 5:50 1X12 that I returned and bought the LSC 2X12. The Express was nice, but the LSC has MUCH more headroom and an additional 50 watts which I like because I play some bigger venues. Also, the Clean on the LSC has MUCH more of a 65 Twin Reverb sound...it's awesome.
Not to say that the Express was NOT GOOD...just that I like the LSC better...much better. Worth $500 more? To me...a NO BRAINER.