my little bro needs advice!

[metalhead51105]

ok so today i agreed to take my little bro to guitar center to buy his first amp (his other was a pos) and he's playing through a mexi-strat. he told me much to my liking that he wants to get a metal sound yet he is a very inexperienced player as he just took up the instrument a couple months ago. now i wish i could say i could give him advice on the matter but i went from a 15 watt crate practice amp to a mesa boogie dual rectifier so i never really had the chance to get a decent in between amp to learn on and play on in a band. all in all though, with the fact he wants a metal tone, and i suggest versatility, we kind of both decided a crate 2x12 might be best for his needs. he needs something for bedroom volume but could be used if he starts a band yet something he wont have to upgrade for awhile. all in all he is still learning how to play though. so long story short what do you guys think. what amp will make any fourteen year old kid just learning to play blow his load without blowing his wallet.

 

[RJ2213]

i'd say a peavey valveking combo, i've had the 2x12 100w version for about a year now and i still love it. its no mesa, but what other true tube amp can you get for less than $500 without it being a one trick pony.

its got lots of controls for eq and a real spring reverb.

 

[yettoblaster]

+1 on a ValveKing.
My 50w 112 got a great clean BF Fender tone, AND the distortion was great too.
It kept up with another guy's 100w Seymour Duncan in an outdoor park thing, and sounded good at home too.

 

[SixVeeSix]

Since he is a kid and may still have occasional lapses of judgement, I am going to recommend a Peavey solid state amp. That way he won't have to stare at his silent amp when a tube blows and he is out of $$. I have tried the TransTube Bandit (USA made version please) and it can do all sorts of sounds. He will never blow it up and it can serve as a backup amp later on when he gets into tube stuff. I snagged one a while ago on ebay for under $200 delivered, with cover and footswitch. It's an older model but I used to have a Reknown 180 watt combo with a Scorpion Plus in it and that thing was bulletproof. Could beat a roomful of Boogies into rubble with it and it would still work. Might leave enough $$$ for a wah wah pedal, he's GOT to have that! Better still, a good bridge pu for his strat so he can crunch down. Good luck!

 

[metalhead51105]

wow guys thanks for the fast informative responses i hope they keep coming just for the sake of more options to make the decision harder ha ha anyway i totally forgot the valveking existed but everyone who has them swears by them definately must be one to consider keep em coming guys

 

[Charlie]

How much does he have to spend?

 

[Charlie]

If he's willing to go used maybe a 5150 combo will do the trick? I've seen them go for pretty cheap. Same for the JCM900 combos - which people could argue are not the best amps but it would make a great first tube amp imho.

 

[ToneAddictJon]

I would vote for an older crate gfx 2x12 combo, they are built like tanks and have a great metal sound. I would stay away from the peavey valveking, good amp, but tubes is the last thing you want him messing with while learning, that can be too frustrating at times for someone learning. I would say line 6, but the crates (older ones at least) can take a beating and come back begging for more, and the line 6's just seem to die quickly in those situations.

 

[CoG]

yeah, and I seriously think modeling amps (line6) would be bad to learn to play on. They don't have the sensitivity or dynamics "right."

The other great thing with a used crate combo is that if he doesn't trash it he's basically just renting it, and can resell it when he moves up, or keep it as a spare. You shouldn't be allowed to buy new gear until you're 21.

 

[disassembled]

I vote for older peavey gear because it's dirt cheap on the used market and it will work fine for now and even if he gigs.

Things to look for:

Peavey Ultra 60 combo
Peavey Bandit 112
Peavey Bravo
Peavey Triumph PAG
Peavey Triple XXX 60

These are cheap amps that will not hold the value that they fetched new. Plus peaveys are known for their reliability.

Greg

 

[metalhead51105]

no love for the randall? lol i assume due to higher used prices? btw he's kinda got a 300-400 budget plus an extra 100 if he trades in the line 6 spider II head i gave him btw totally agree and even told him about not being a great idea to learn on a modeling amp cause even though its versatile you learn more how to dial in an amp thats not based on presets and sample tones. once again thanks for such fast responses

 

[Murphy Slaw]

A Carvin Nomad is a 50 watt all tube combo built in U.S.A. with 2 channels. $499.00. Very giggable amp with some respect.

The new Peavey Valveking and Bandits are made in China.

One thing for sure, I'd force him to go "tube". It's an investment.

What if he starts liking solid state amps?

Best of luck.

 

[TheBlackman]

I'd go with either a crate or older PV solid state amp. My crate gx212 (no fx) had a pretty decent distortion sound for rock and has a shape dial for scooping mids. Clean channel breaks up a bit but for metal you won't need much clean (but its why I describe it as crappy in my sig!). I actually prefer its distorition to my metalzone and ds1. I'm making it into a head version now to use as a backup and giving the speakera to my bands other guitarist for a cabinet. He's using my old PV stereo chorus 400 which is about 20 years old and still running! Hopefully I will never have to use it now that I've got the roadster! :wink:

 

[tommyhawk13]

One thing for sure, I'd force him to go "tube".

I'm sure glad no one "forced" anything on me when I started out.

I'd have given up if they did.

 

[Murphy Slaw]

It was meant in jest.

Didn't mean to offend.

Best of luck. Murph.

 

[devilrob1979]

A Carvin Nomad is a 50 watt all tube combo built in U.S.A. with 2 channels. $499.00. Very giggable amp with some respect.

The new Peavey Valveking and Bandits are made in China.

One thing for sure, I'd force him to go "tube". It's an investment.

What if he starts liking solid state amps?

Best of luck.

A Nomad's vintage voiced and not really the ticket when it comes to what a kid thinks of as metal. It's going to take a pedal running in front to get him where he wants to be.

 

[tommyhawk13]

It was meant in jest.

Didn't mean to offend.

Best of luck. Murph.

It's cool bro. Just don't taze me!

 

[yettoblaster]

...don't taze me!

Lol :lol:

"...Step back from the microphone!"

 

[Bruce Dickenson]

Buy something on Craigslist. I just missed a Mark II for 400 bucks. There's always a fender twin reverb for around 400-500 bucks on craigslist.

 

[jtb226]

i agree that he should probably get something solid state. if he's just learning to play, let him focus on that and not have to worry about tubes and the like. it can get a little interesting sometimes trying to diagnose problems, and you don't want to get him anything that will get him frustrated with playing. so i'd say go solid state!