Recommend a guitar amp... preferably one that goes to 11

[hop]

Ok, so it looks like Bird Robot is going to hit it bigtime soon so it's time for me to invest in a decent guitar amp.

What I want: Ear-splitting crunch and wail.
How much I have to spend: about $500 plus or minus $200
What I'm playing: BC Rich Mockingbird

Guitar heroes include but are not limited to:
The Three Amigos from Iron Maiden, Kerry King of Slayer, Zakk Wylde (specifically early Ozzy) when he's not freaking out on the whammy, K.K. and Glenn from Judas Priest, The Darkness, The Hellacopters, Angus, Paul and Ace... you know, the standard-issue stuff. This is for NOISE.

I want a big fat Marshall stack but it's just not practical right now, so it's going to have to be something in the 12" range. Sad.

I'll probably also end up with a new bass amp, but I'm already thinking SWR Workingmans 12 unless there's something new and phenomenal that I should look at plugging my Godin A4 into. I've tried that and it's seeeexxxy.

[P_McPoser]

My old man slings one of these. It's loud as fuck and can get duuuuuuuuuurty.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product?sku=487828

[Monique]

You're not moving next door to me with that amp until you learn to rhyme.

[hop]

You're not moving next door to me with that amp until you learn to rhyme.

I'm actually getting better at the rhyming but I'm the guitarist with mistique, not the lead singer. It's the dynamic we've agreed on.

[Telefunken]

For that kind of money, you're going to have a hard time getting a good, loud combo amp. Hell, a good head will cost you starting around a grand. However ... the sleeper head that you can get for maybe less than $500 is an Ampeg V4. You want the one with a master volume, or with one added. These fuckers are loud and sound awesome. They were the heart of the Stones' backline through the early to mid '70s and Dan from Sould Asylum used to play one through a Marshall 4x12. Maybe you can build yourself a decent 4x12 cab with some of the kits that are available. Then just get yourself some Celestion greenback 25 watts or some Jensens.

They aren't as great a Marshall or Ampeg, but the Mesa Boogie Dual Rectum Frier doesn't suck too bad, and you can probably find one on eBay for pretty cheap. They're versatile, and you can get a decent 'metal' sound out of them.

Whatever you do, stay away from Line 6 amps or any cab with Eminence speakers. Absolute dogshit. And anything with a chrome diaphragm in the speaker is definitely something to stay away from, too.

[Toby]

I once had a Peavey 5150 head and quad box. Man, that had an awesome sound. Dunno what they're worth in the States, but I guess out of your price range? It definitely went to 11, though. Scary loud.

[hop]

Funny, lots of folks over on Harmony Central seem to get wet over the Line 6 Vettas, but they're sort of 2x my absolute upper end price-wise.

My main limitation is space, and between the 3 guitars, bass, and other assorted music stuff (not to mention 4-8 pairs of skis, 3 surfboards, a bike...) I'm finding the limits of my Subaru. That's the main reason for the combo.

[Monique]

I'm actually getting better at the rhyming but I'm the guitarist with mistique, not the lead singer. It's the dynamic we've agreed on.

Everytime I tried to be the guitarist with a mystique, I always ended up as the guitarist with the mistake instead.

[slim]

Line 6's are as lame as they get. You can't get rock and roll out of modeling software.

VOX AC-15 custom classic. 12" combo driven by 2xEL84. If you have a few extra hundred go for the Celestian Alnico Blue speaker upgrade.

My advice: save your money and buy an 18-watt plexi.

EDIT: Also, if you're going to get a combo and want to rawk I'd go with one that has 2x10" rather than a single 12". The 10's will break-up faster than the 12 and give you more growl and bark. It'll be tougher to play clean but it doesn't sound like that's your gig. However, 2x10's seem to be hard to find in major brand amps these days. They're all over the place with the smaller boutique brands.

[Jim S]

Best bet is to take your guitar to a store and try several amps in your price range and find what sounds good to YOUR ears.

And get an amp with a 'good' clean sound; any distortion pedal can turn a clean amp into a metal machine. But you can never get a dirty amp (Peavey 5150) to sound super clean. Despite what you said above, a lot of great metal bands contrast their molten metal leads with super clean rhythms: Pantera's THIS IS LOVE and Metallica's ONE come to mind.

WTF, a gratuitous opportunity to post a pic of my my guitar amp setup. Note that the Soldano SLO does got to 11. No joke.

[Telefunken]

Yeah, and definitely don't play through a fucking Pod, either. That's another total piece of shit.

Amp 'modeling' is as much of a failure as mic, mic pre or EQ modeling. You can't recreate what capacitors, tubes and transformers do with an algorithm.

And btw, the people who post in harmony central have never known what the fuck they are talking about. The majority of these people have never played through a real plexi or a late '50s Les Paul. I'm sure that Epiphone must sound great compared to the Schecter they had before hand, but their opinions are usually not worth the bandwidth they take up.

[hop]

Best bet is to take your guitar to a store and try several amps in your price range and find what sounds good to YOUR ears.

Of course that's the plan, but it'd be nice to have someplace to start. They all look like black boxes to me.

Thanks for all the input. Keep it coming!

[Jim S]

True, Harmony Central has a lot of twits. But don't let us tell you what sounds good or bad; you decide.

It's like skis or snowboards: I love this, he loves that, she swears by something else.
FACT: transistor amps can tolerate less abuse than tube amps. Tube amps cost a bit more and are a lot heavier. But you can push them harder; they have more give when you max the out. But Dimebag Darrel got a lot of his signature tones with Randall solid state amps.

[slim]

Good god man... a rack set-up. HORRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIDDDDDDD.

Steve Cropper eat your heart out.

[Jim S]

Oh no, not a flame war of rack vs combo vs head/stack.

[Telefunken]

Randall may have made the only SS amp that had a cool tone that could stand up to tube amps. It's the weirdest thing. A friend used to play through one and he too was surprised that it sounded as good as it did.

However, tubes rule. No distortion is as cool as the output section of a tube amp distorting. Much better than pre-amp distortion. That doesn't give you that farting growl that makes chicks wet.

And sorry to break it to you fans, but Randy Rhodes had the worst fucking guitar sound ever, just a notch worse than Tom Schulz. (I know nobody mentioned them, but I just had to throw that out there.) That's what you don't want your guitar to sound like. Great player, but a tone that sucked ass. Rock and roll does not sound like a mosquito.

And while we are at it, can we stop pretending that Slash is a good player? Christ, that guy's taste is in his ass.

[Arty50]

However ... the sleeper head that you can get for maybe less than $500 is an Ampeg V4. You want the one with a master volume, or with one added. These fuckers are loud and sound awesome. They were the heaer of the Stones' backline through the early to mid '70s

Translation: When the Stones were at their absolute peak, they used these. I'd say that's a pretty solid endorsement. Long live Mick Taylor.

[Telefunken]

Oh no, not a flame war of rack vs combo vs head/stack.

Well, it would depend on how and why? What sound are you going for? What's the application: Live or the studio?

BTW, friends don't let friends play Galien Kruger.

[slim]

What I'm playing: BC Rich Mockingbird

Having finally looked up what this thing is... I don't think the VOX is for you.

Honestly, a Line 6 might not be that bad of a match for you. Just ignore us when we make fun of you and continue riding the lightning.

[Telefunken]

The new Voxes are horrible, BTW. Made in China or something crappy like that. They are Vox in name only.

[slim]

The new Voxes are horrible, BTW. Made in China or something crappy like that. They are Vox in name only.

Isn't everything pretty much made in China unless you spend top coin on boutique or find a decent vintage piece?

[Beaver]

But.... but , this one goes to eleven.

[Ripzalot]

you really want a tube amp but can only afford a solid state...get a marshall valvestate 8240 (40watt 2x12) or 8280 (80watt 2x12) if you need it louder. a hybrid amp using a tube preamp driving SS amp. loud, great sound, compact, and easily in your price range.

[refried]

Mesa Boogie
http://www.mesaboogie.com/index.html

[cdlv]

a Marshall or Mesa Boogie. marshall if you want more of a metal crunch. but what ever it is make sure it has tubes in it. solid state amps blowass.

and JimS nice set up, soldanos rule.