What low-watt amp heads?

M

mosbergvik

Member
Messages
5
So, I have got myself a beautiful 1x15 cabinet loaded with a 15" Weber California Alnico with paper dust. And no I want a amp head on top of it.

I want a quality head that, all tube and low wattage so that it can deliver tone without ripping heads of. I have seen a couple of them boutique heads, but I haven't seen any with REVERB yet. Man, I got to have reverb:) I was hoping I could get the amp and reverb in the same unit/cabinet, without having to deal with a separate reverb unit.

Can anybody help me out?
Or would you say that a separate reverb unit is best for those low wattage heads?

Thanks
Regards Pål, Norway.
 
R

rubberbelly

Member
Messages
24
What kind of sound are you looking for and what is "low-watt" for you? There are actually numerous choices for your such as Fargen, Allen, Matchless, Dr. Z, Bad Cat that might fit the bill for you.
 
Dave Orban

Dave Orban

Platinum Supporting Member
Messages
16,877
Well, for my money, the best low-watt amp head out there is the Alesssandro Beagle.

I actually run mine inito a 1x15 Jenkins cab with the paper cap Cali, just like yours. Sounds AWEsome -- even without reverb...! Makes it worth the effort to throw a Fender RI Reverb Tank in front of it, IMO...
 
M

mosbergvik

Member
Messages
5
Ah, many to choose from:)

With low-wattage I mean 10 watts and lower. I hear they still blow your leg pants if you have an efficient speaker/cabinet. But they break up earlier, which is nice. And, my style is mostly rock, blues and stuff in between.

What about the Emery Superbaby?
http://www.emerysound.com/Superbaby.html

Can be ordered for 675 USD, a lot cheaper than many of the amps mentioned. Still, no reverb, but a simple design with 1 preamp, 1 power and 1 rectifier tube. Was covered by Vintage Guitar recently.

Thanks folks.
Pål.
 
flicker180

flicker180

Member
Messages
778
i've got some old Bogen K-15s that rock the house with 6L6 action... :) can pick 'em up on the 'bay for roughly 120 or so...

dave
 
T

thesedaze

Member
Messages
1,682
10w amp pushing a 15"? Why the 15" if your only pumping out 10w? I'm not sure what the California's rate, but if they are supposed to be like the JBL's, those put out a mean load. Maybe you should consider using a low wattage Jensen p15r or something of that sort.
 
D

drbob1

Gold Supporting Member
Messages
30,046
I've got the Superbaby and it's a definite keeper. At that price, you can spend fair coin on cool tubes and have a whole aresenal of sounds for less than $1k! I've got a number of speaker cabs, and an alnico Jensen 15" is a great sounding speaker-although mines a lower wattage version (P15S) so it doesn't like to be too distorted.
 
M

mosbergvik

Member
Messages
5
Why 15?
I like the character of the 15's, the airiness, the growl, 3D and the warm fat response. It doesn't have quite the punch on the lowest bass frequencies compared to 4x10, the total speaker-area beeing less in a 1x15. But you can compensate with the cabinet design and amount of closed back. I've compared it to VibroKings and Super Reverbs with Jensen P10R, and my Weber California Alnico with paper dust cone doesn't have the same screaming highs that the 4x10 does. This is perfect for me since my '64 Fender Vibroverb Custom and strat are bright enough. But other speakers, like the JBL D15 F and my Weber but with aluminium dust cone, have more highs.

The Weber California is a high power rating speaker, but it is also a very efficient speaker. A 10w tube amp will push it more than many will think, but the 10w amp will break up at a lower volume, wich is what I'm after right now. I want sweat spot at low volumes.

Very nice amps listed in the posts above, but most of them are +1000$, many over 2000$.

Seems like it's only the Fargen Bastage and Emery Superbaby(both heads) that can compete at 600-700 USD, still being quality stuff and with cathode-design power stage so that you can swap in and out any power tubes you like. That is nice. But none of them with reverb.

Pal.
 
fr8_trane

fr8_trane

Silver Supporting Member
Messages
7,279
Might not be "boutique" but the reverend kingsnake head is all tube 60/20 watts switchable (works really well for breakup at lower volumes. Just switch it on the fly to see this in action) w/ reverb and has 3 switchable preamp voicings that all sound great (pseudo BF, brit, tweed). I found the combo to be bass shy but with the head through a 1x15 I don't think low end should be lacking. $700 and you can gig just about anywhere with out Ripping any heads off;)
 
r9player

r9player

Gold Supporting Member
Messages
6,882
Well I've been trying to sell my Auble in the Emporium (either with or without the matching Mad sound cab)
2 Watter - Sound is very good repro of the sound the guitar produces.
Has some headroom not great headroom, sounds huge with the 1x10 detuned cab, I imagine it'll sound huge through a 1x15.
 
smilefan

smilefan

Member
Messages
1,775
Originally posted by mosbergvik

Seems like it's only the Fargen Bastage and Emery Superbaby(both heads) that can compete at 600-700 USD, still being quality stuff and with cathode-design power stage so that you can swap in and out any power tubes you like. That is nice. But none of them with reverb.

Pal.
Click to expand...

Invest in an Uncle Spot outboard reverb. Sounds exactly,
precisely like onboard reverb, The only outboard unit I've
ever heard do this. Never have to sweat finding an reverb-
equipped amp again. Mine is a permanent keeper.
 
B

barron

Member
Messages
332
Or you could go this route.











kenmore57goldtop.jpg.w300h225.jpg
 
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