Poor kid bought a $299 Line 6 75watt spider anda couple of months after the warranty ran out so it did the amps life. It is cutting out and sounding absoultely horrible. Doubt it's worth getting fixed. So looking for recommendations. He is a basement player no bands yet, plays a 7 string Fernandez tuned in drop D or Low C. Likes all the modern heay mental bands. Looking for less than $500 My intital thought was: Crate Power Block 150w ( I think they have a 5 year warranty) Low cost 1x12 cabinet (SS Cabs on eBay like $100) unloaded with a Celestion V30 or an Eminence ???? I can give him a Hellatone V30. I could give him a Boss SD1 pistortion pedal to start. What else will give that heavy mental sound cheap!
i'd give him a mesa or some sort. mesa's are very versatile, and i think it's a good amp to help kids find their sounds, and open up their minds to other tones and music.
Randall "wee-max" VMX30 combo. $169 @123Music.com, covers LOTSA metal ground, 1-12", (better speaker would help..). Tube? No. Metal? Hells yeah! Good grab+go combo/rehearsal amp+ f-in' cheap enough that he can start banking $$ for a bit, while he figures out what he likes in higher end gear.
A Marshall Mode 4 maybe? It's solid state. As a side note, I've never understood a tube amp for Heavy Metal, metal players want "brewtal" not "harmonic complexity"
I dont think he wants to spend that much for his nephew.I think he is lookin for a cheap metal sound. Crate is always good for a cheap heavy metal sound then when his nephew can afford the mesa then he can buy a mesa. to bad i sold my metal zone i could of sold that to you cheap since you are from clevo.
Yeah, I think the crate power block with the distortion peadal is a very cool idea, and he can experiment with stereo as he expands his rig later. + 1 for the powerblock and distortion peadal, brutal and fast.
PowerBlocks can't cop the gain for metal. Try one of the other Crates, it's a low-price workhorse, an upgrade from the Line6 in some respects.
A randall RG75 is always a good option, with a new speaker like a Celestion G12t-75. Thats what i'm using right now, and I have a pretty sweet tone for what i spent. And it's loud enough to play with drums if he ever decides to jam with people.
And if you want to go the mesa route, here are some links to Mesa amps that will give him the distortion he wants with tube tone and complexity. F-30 http://cgi.ebay.com/MESA-BOOGIE-F30...377270832QQcategoryZ43374QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem F-50 http://cgi.ebay.com/New-Mesa-Boogie...377005082QQcategoryZ43374QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem DC-5 http://cgi.ebay.com/Mesa-Boogie-DC-...376792438QQcategoryZ43374QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem Do what you will, he would be happy with any of my suggestions i'm sure.
Or a Peavey XXX. Made for nu-metal! Heres a 40 watt XX combo with FX on E-bay... http://cgi.ebay.com/Peavey-Triple-XXX-EFX-40-Guitar-Amplifier_W0QQitemZ7377337126QQcategoryZ38076QQtcZphotoQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
Any solid-state Crate or Randall is going to be a lateral move for the kid, as I doubt they'll be any more toneful or reliable than the Line 6. The person who mentioned a Peavey 5150 or XXX nailed it. Either one of those is tailor-made for metal and won't be out-grown in a matter of months.
