Recommend me a lower power amp ...

[rvschulz]

It's a great day when my son comes home from college, grabs my 335 and plugs into my Mark III to show me how good he is and ... ****, he's pretty good. The crappy Fender Frontman 25 is now a hindrance - so I want some suggestions on the lower power Boogies.

I think I want to keep him under 50 watts for now - he's living in a house and not playing out (yet), and a LSS is a little out of my budget. I am thinking about a .22+ , Subway Rocket, something along those lines. I could be interested in the DC-3, but the EL-84 sound isn't really his thing, yet.

1x12 combo is where I want to be. Of course, if someone has a Mark III laying around that they want to sell 'reasonable" - i'm in ... any stripe. I had a green and currently have a purple and ... he can't have that one.

thanks.

 

[Restless Rocks]

The Mark III 60 watt version is a fine amp for your needs and is also plenty loud to move into jamming and small room gigs. They are not as popular as the simuls and generally go for less.

 

[zebpedersen]

The Subway Rocket was my first Boogie and it certainly taught me a lot about getting sweet tone from a proper amp.

Thing is, if you get chucked straight into a Mark series or similar - I know some of the older amps are similar, what with graphic EQs and the like - then it may be a little too much...they take a lot of time to get used to setting up, and these pages are constantly flooded with people wondering why they can't get the sound they want out of their Mark. (particularly IIIs and IVs).

If I were you I'd go for the Rocket 44 - it's a Subway Rocket pre coupled with the power stage of a DC-3 and the 12" speaker that you wanted. It's still EL84 rather than 6L6, but the Subway series are such hot little amps. Ever since I sold mine I've been looking for one at the right price to accompany my Marks!

 

[Vigo1999]

cal50+ all the way . . . you cant go wrong: wonderfull cleans, 6L6 50 watts, reverb, GEQ (footswitchable), love pedals and awesome lead channel. it's pretty much a stripped down mk III.

they go in the 400-500usd range, but look for the first + plus series, the ones that says "volume" in the first knob, imho theyre way better than the ones that says "gain". less fuzzy and a much more smoother character.

 

[HalfDeaf]

I've also been looking for a low power Boogie, and I'm strongly considering the Express 5:25. Now the 5:25 has EL84s, which I really like, but if your son prefers the 6L6 sound, there is the Express 5:50. The ability to drop down to 5W class A power is really nice, especially for a college kid that sometimes needs to practice quietly. And 50W can get plenty loud for almost any practical gigging scenario, since most venues mic amps these days.

You may want to consider a 5:50 head + 1x12 thiele cab instead of a combo. I say this because I like the thiele bass response much better than the 1x12 combo. More importantly, if your son starts playing out a lot, he'll want a 4x12, and driving a 4x12 with a 1x12 combo looks kinda retarded on stage. With the head version, he'll be able to scale up his cab and still use the amp.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[boola]

The Mark IV sounds good at low volumes, you can use class a mode, tweed and triode to drop the power to about 25w.

It does go through tubes quicker in class a and I much prefer the sound of full power vs tweed though. I run it on full power, simul, triode with a hotplate at -4db (the least level of attenuation) and keeping the volumes low it is perfectly usable in a flat at nightime without annoying the neighbors.

Having said that it, you will want to crank it and it is an expensive option if you just want a bedroom amp. It IS an option though

 

[rvschulz]

Thanks for y'alls opinions - that's what I want to hear.

I had a .50+ and it was a very nice amp, but a serious one-trick pony. Still, it think it might be an option - probably better than a studio or .22

Mark IV ? if i had the cash, i might get one for ME. At least to see what all the fuss is about. I can;t imagine needing more than what I have, but I know I don't know everything.

I just don;t want to end up with the "amp trading" syndrome I see a lot of other young guys around here doing. Get a Fender Deluxe, it won't drive well, get a XXX - cleans suck, get that, get this ... a couple of pretty decent guys here spend ALL their money on amps every 3-6 months - then wonder why they can't sound like my Mesas ...

We know why. That's why we have these. I sold my .50+ to a guy who got rid of two amps - Twin Reverb and a Peavey - because it sounded better than both.

 

[dmt]

You can always get a Mark III and a THD Hotplate to tame the volume. Works great for me.

 

[Chrissmoth]

I can't recommend the Subway Blues enough

20 watts
EL84s
Fantastic Reverb
Punchy 1x10 speaker
Great Clean sound
Good sound at low volumes
Loud enough to keep up with all but the loudest drummers
Just one channel & only 5 knobs to worry about - Spend you're time playing, not tweeking
You don't have to put your back out every time you want to move it

I overdrive mine with a USA Big Muff for great leads

And if you feel the need for something larger in the future just keep the SB as a practice amp / Slave for stereo

Oh & they're cheap as chips on ebay

WIN!

 

[marantz1300]

I use a studio pre and 50/50 power amps. The 50/50 is switchable from 50w to 20w.