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First post—learning a ton on this site. Thank you all for the openness in sharing information and experiences.
I’m new to playing and appreciating jazz, but I’ve been playing other guitar styles over the past 40-odd years. I’ve been fortunate to work in and around the industry, and I’ve garnered first-hand experience with many of the holy grails of the vintage rock and country scene. Still, I’m afraid that hasn’t prepared me for the jazz guitar amplification rabbit hole, and I’d like to enlist the forum’s help.
I currently play a recent ES-330 and a vintage L-5C with a DeArmond Rhythm Chief 1000 into either a ’71 Champ (not Vibro-Champ) with a Warehouse ceramic or a DV Mark Little Jazz. The amps are very different, but I’d legitimately be happy with either as my only “small” amp.
What I’m looking for is an amp that has enough headroom and power to keep up with a drummer and/or an organist, is flexible enough to sound good with both of my guitars, and is lighter than a Deluxe or Vibrolux. I don’t mind a little “hair,” and my tinnitus prefers warm, clean sounds, but I’d like an amp that retains clarity on chords maybe a little better than the Little Jazz.
I’ve selected the above amps on demos heard online—I don’t have convenient access to demo any of them in the flesh. From what I’ve heard, I think I prefer the Quilter, then the Henriksen, then the Luna combo. To be fair, the only dedicated, jazz-focused demo was Rich Severson’s review of the Quilter. I’m not super-excited about the Blu because I feel I already have the tiny, coffee-house amp covered with my Little Jazz, but I’m trying to keep my options open.
I’d like to keep the price around $1000, but I’m happy to spend more if needed, but as the price creeps towards $2000, I’d likely pick up a 5E3 clone instead. I’m open to suggestions if there’s something I may be missing.
Thanks in advance!
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05-13-2025 11:06 AM
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Welcome to the Forum! Yes, much experience here and detailed exchanges.
You bring 3 great jazz amps into the discussion, however I would recommend also looking at Evans amps built in North Carolina, USA. The RE300 is a superb amp for everything you are asking for. Also first rate customer service. Disclaimer I have a older Evans JE (jazz enclosure) 200 that I've done hundreds of performances with. Always super tone and plenty of power.
My working guitar is a 1990 Bob-built Benedetto Cremona with a floating Bartolini pickup. A few months ago I bought a Quilter Cub as a grab n go amp and am very pleased with it. It's a good but not great amp to my ears at higher volumes, however my duo has no drums or bass to cut through so at lower volumes it works great. I line out to FOH and it's mostly a stage monitor for me.
Good luck on your quest!
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I'll step up to the plate first and give you my thoughts. I have no experience with the Luna 200 or any Raezar's Edge products, so I will leave that off my list. I do own a Henriksen Bud 6 and a Quilter Superblock US (which is essentially the head version of the Aviator Cub). In short, it really depends on what sound you're looking for. I think they're both good products, just different.
The Henriksen is a cleaner sound. People describe it as more "PA system like". But don't let the small size fool you, it can get seriously loud. The Quilter is a reasonable facsimile of a Fender amp sound (with Black, Blonde, and Tweed settings). It can not only do clean, but also overdriven (or anywhere in between). The Superblock is rated at 25W. The Aviator Cub is rated at 50W. I find the Superblock about as loud as a Deluxe Reverb, meaning it can keep up with a drummer for most jazz gigs, but there have been a few especially loud gigs/big rooms where I've wanted a little more clean volume.
I used to own a Quilter Aviator Mach 3 combo, but I sold it because I didn't like the sound of it as much as I did the Superblock. I attribute it to the Celestion speaker in the Mach 3. Celestions just aren't my thing. The nice thing about the head is that you can pair it with any speaker cab you want, which means you can bring different sized cabs for different gigs. The Superblock also doubles as an excellent backup for when I bring a tube amp to a gig.
Edit: looks like someone else beat me to the punch as posted as I was writing this.
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I like everything I’ve heard about Evan’s, but aren’t they a heavier build? Lighter weight is a big draw for me.
Originally Posted by SierraTango
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26lbs on the RE300. Think the Cub is around 22. Originally Posted by jamesego
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I have an Aviator Cub, have played through the Blu 6 a few times, have not tried the Luna (so can't comment on that). I have also have played through the DV Mark quite a bit. The Henriksen can get tones ranging from roughly the same as the the LJ to brighter and more PA-like. I've never needed to turn either up loud enough to figure out exactly how much clean headroom each has, but on paper, the Blu 6 has more than the LJ; either is loud enough for any music I play. If I had a LJ, I wouldn't bother to get a Blu, and vice versa. Originally Posted by jamesego
The Aviator Cub is basically 3 variants of a Fender Deluxe (tweed, blond, blackface), but with Reverb, MV, bass, mid, and treble controls. I would say it's maybe not quite as good sounding as the real tube amps it's based on, but makes up for that with flexibility and much lighter weight. The gain/master layout works very well and yields the full spectrum from clean to fairly heavily distorted. It's plenty loud for anything I'd do (including reasonably loud blues band gigs). At a guess, I'd say louder than a Deluxe, similar to a Vibrolux Reverb, but hard to say for sure because the VR has more speakers and a bigger cabinet.Last edited by John A.; 05-13-2025 at 02:44 PM.
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Nice! I’ll put Evan’s on the list Originally Posted by SierraTango
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Hi and welcome! I've played many gigs with a SBUS through a variety of speaker cabs, and I've used my Blu 6 on many more. I've heard the Luna 200 1x8 but never played through one. Most importantly, I've played many jazz and blues gigs with B3 and Leslie or a good facsimile thereof, and I've played Hammond myself on a few hundred dates since the 1960s. Your strictest requirement is "to keep up with...an organist". Unless the organist plays like Bill Evans or Claude Debussy, neither a SBUS nor an Aviator Cub nor a Blu 6 will make enough sound to let you concentrate on your playing. Just being loud enough to be heard is not good enough. You want good tone at higher volumes, and that takes power. Even a Vibrolux is marginal with a fairly loud organ and a drummer.
Although the Luna 200 is the one amp on your list that I haven't played through with a band, it's the same rated power as my Quilter OD202 and probably the same class D power module. The OD through the 12" Block Dock is as loud as the original '78 Boogie I used for decades and it sounds great at any volume. So I'd expect the Luna to be up to the job, especially loaded with a 10 or a 12 - but I'd still want to try it before committing.
I'd take a Quilter Mach 3 over the Luna for the added versatility.
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I agree with John that the Bud/Blu can sound PA like. I was not able to get a Blu to sound like a Little Jazz. I preferred the sound of the LJ.
I tried both with the same big band. The Blu managed, but I had the volume at the max. Same with the LJ. The Blu was, I think, somewhat louder, but not that different, to my ear, recognizing that this was not A/B, but different weeks.
Since the OP already has an LJ, I'd suggest considering the following. Try a lightweight powered speaker. Run the signal through the LJ into the powered speaker. Nevershould has recommended one of the Alto's. I think the Bose S1 is worth considering as well. The Alto isn't expensive.
The disadvantage is that you're carrying two boxes, but neither needs to weigh more than 15 lbs or so. Having two sound sources can be helpful, depending on the setting. And you have backup in case of a failure. Add a mixer (if the speaker doesn't come with one) and you've got a PA, generally useful for vocals and announcements. You can put the speaker on a pole and still control the sound from the LJ on the floor next to you. Also, depending on the speaker, you'll never have to worry about not having enough volume.
I haven't tried this but I wonder if an EQ box running into a powered speaker might not sound quite a bit like a Blu.
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Perhaps I shouldn't chime in because I have no direct experience with any of the three combos. However, I currently have a RE Luna 200R head, plus Quilter SBUS and SBUK. I've had an earlier Quilter 200W head, too. Two points: 1) The SuperBlocks get seriously loud when paired with a 100 dB +/- 12" speaker. 2) The Luna head is not very loud for the wattage. A Darkglass Microtubes 200 bass amp sharing the same IcePower power amp module is distinctly louder, and so is my old DV Mark Micro 50 head, probably at the expense of more harmonic distortion in both cases. A little bit of such hair makes the sound thicker and less sterile. (By contrast, preamp-generated overdrive does not necessarily increase the SPL, it just feels that way.)
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Some great choices available. Try to buy used and save some money. My personal choice for all things considered weight,power,consistency,and great Clean Headroom is Quilter older Aviator 1x12” Combo or even the 1x8” version.
I play a variety of guitars from solid body,Archtop.flat top. Synth,etc. All sound great through it going on 10 years or more!
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Of those three the Henriksen. But the milkman 100w beats all of them in tone.
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I have mostly tube amps, but I also have a Little Jazz.
I would probably mostly use a Fender variant to gig (BFDR, Fat Jimmy Gigmaster 20), but a LJ would certainly work. In fact I would probably bring the LF and the Gigmaster if I needed more volume (they sound great together and/or in stereo). If you like the LJ, consider getting a second one maybe?
As someone said, you need some serious oomph for a B3- I've never known anyone to play one softly! And that will bring up the drummer's volume as well. A Twin used to be considered the right amp with a B3 player. For the way I move things now, two smaller amps would be preferred.
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Out of the choices listed? Twin Reverb.
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Adding a second identical amp will only increase maximum SPL by 3 dB at the most. Sound dispersion is better, but a pair of LJs is no match for a Hammond through a Leslie. I used a Jazz 12 and a Little Jazz separately and together at my years-long weekly club dates, where we had a Hammond and a Leslie 3300. Even the Vibrolux in the backline was marginal with the organ and worse with horns added. Originally Posted by bluejaybill
I agree with DawgBone that a Twin is still the amp of choice for an organ driven band. But a 200W class D amp will do the job too. My Quilter 200 series and a Mach 3 are fine for this. I suspect the Luna 200 12” is also enough, although probably not the 8 and maybe not the 10. The open back of the Twin puts out a bigger sound stage than a closed back 1x12, so the Mach 3 doesn’t sound quite as full as a Twin. But an open back 1x12 extension cab will fix this. My Quilter OD202 in the open back BlockDock 12HD is right there with my Twin, and it weighs about 21 pounds (as does the Mach 3). The Mach 3 and the 200 series heads are both much more versatile than the Luna.
A SBUS simply won’t keep up with a Hammond. I had one for about 2 years and loved it, but it’s not nearly powerful enough against an organ through any speaker(s). Doubling the output power ups the max SPL by no more than 3 dB, so neither a Blu 6 with extension cab nor an Aviator Cub is much closer to your goal. The Blu easily makes 5 times the power of a SBUS, and it’s pretty loud. But with its closed back and small speaker, it won’t hold its own against a Hammond even with a second cab. I love my Blu 6, but it’s no Twin. Still and all, I use my big Quilter for big gigs and the Twin lives happily under my piano.
DawgBone will repeat his mantra that real men schlep Twins around. As I see it, admitting that you don’t feel like doing that when there are excellent alternatives is at least as manly as doing it to prove that you’re a “real man” - and maybe even more so. So I strongly recommend a 200 Watt class D amp, preferably with an open back 12 or 15. Real men (and women) favor sound and sanity over sexual stereotypes
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I couldn't tell you thing one about any of the other amps mentioned but know my way around Fenders.
If you feel a Vibrolux is too big you won't be able to use a Fender on an organ gig.
I've told this story more than once on the forum but many moons ago when I first started gigging in organ based bands I got a call to work w an organist whose playing I liked.
I didn't know it but this was going to be a gig w no PA, and I brought a BF Deluxe Reverb. The B-3 crushed the Deluxe, it couldn't hang, just too distorted all night. Fortunately the organist liked my playing but asked if I had a bigger amp for future jobs. I bought a BF Twin w brown/gold foil labeled Jensens that week which has been my main amp all these yrs now, especially playing in organ bands.
I can get away w my Vibrolux in smaller rooms if it's miced through a PA, but that's as small as you can go w a Fender playing w a Hammond ime.
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I appreciate all of your responses. I think I'm going to rescind the "organist" requirement. It's aspirational at this point, and I've owned three Twins in the past—I have no interest in schlubing around another. Weight and size are genuine concerns—I simply don't have room for anything much larger than a 1X12 combo.
Again, this style of music is a completely different beast than anything I've experienced before. I gigged a lot with a white-guard Tele into a silver-panel Vibrolux Reverb. We had both a B3 and a pedal steel in the group, and I never had any issues keeping up in the small- to medium-sized clubs where we performed. I also went for more of a Danny Gatton/Roy Buchanan tone; I aspired to be the dirty Don Rich. Headroom? What's that?
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If you’re happy with crunch in your tone, you have many options. Even a dimed Aviator Cub will be loud enough, although I personally don’t think the tone is very pleasant - it makes me think of an ice pick in the ear. Originally Posted by jamesego
Gatton used Supers, Twins (Tweed and SF, IIRC), and Vibroverbs (reportedly with bigger than stock power supplies) for a loud, chimey, clean tone. He didn’t use external effects except for his “Dingus Box”, which controlled an Echoplex, EQ, and a Leslie. He also used Barden rail pickups, which are hot with a big sound.
I don’t know what pickups Buchanan used, but his main amp was a JC-120 for many years after early use of a Boogie or a Marshall. So size and power mattered to both of them. If they were still around today, they’d probably both be using something like a big Two Rock if they had roadies and a Mach 3 Quilter or a modeler into the house system if they didn’t (and maybe even if they did). I could also see either one with a Tonemaster Twin.
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Go Quilter Mach 3 Combo. Used, you might find one at your price point. It will get you to where a Twin Reverb will in volume (though the Twin will push more air with two 12's) and it will get you close to the Twin Reverb in sound (but not quite all the way there). But at 22 pounds, it will be the best choice when considering tone, weight and volume.
I have a Mach 3 combo and it would be my choice for an organ trio gig or a big band gig. I also have a couple of Henriksens (Bud 6 and Blu 10) and a 100 Watt Milkman head (which I pair with an original Rich Raezer Stealth 12ER). The Quilter wins for weight/volume/tone when all three are important to me. That said, my other three amps all have their place.
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I find it funny most people here are still stuck with the Twin Reverb as there default choice as best amp.
I get it since it was the standard for so many years,as the Gold Standard for a back line amp.
But with all of the improvements in technology, why would you want to deal with all of the headaches it brings with it?
Re Tubing it alone will set you back at least $200, if you’re lucky. The weight even with Neodymium speakers will be north of 50 pounds or more. The wall voltage at different venues vary, so it will react different in different venues. Plus dealing with all of capacitors,resistors,etc that might need an upgrade?
At least look at the newer Twin Tone Master if yo go that route. And to be honest my Quilter TB 202 is equally as loud with a 2x12” cab.
If volume and portability as well as versatility is what you seek? I agree with the above choice of Quilter Mach 3 in the 1x12” Celestion Copperback edition.
And again if you need to save money get a used Aviator gen 1 or 2 combo and use your own pedals. You won’t regret it.
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Which one wins when tone is most important? Originally Posted by Stringswinger
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The Milkman. Nothing beats real tube(s) in a pre-amp for tone. Originally Posted by Freddels
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My choose my amp depending on how much of a hassle it is to get to venue.
From least to most hassle:
Henriksen Bud 6
Mambo 10
Milkman 100w and a cab (sometimes open back, sometimes my Raezers Edge Stealth 10 ER)
Vibrolux Reverb
Each one sounds better than the the row above it, but also is more of a pain.
This is all assuming volume needs are constant. If I need dBs, i just take the vibrolux or the milkman. The milkman into a 4 ohm 2x10 cab sounds massive.
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How does the Milkman sound at lower volumes? Do the tone and feel remain the same across the board? Originally Posted by omphalopsychos
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So again tube snobbery abounds when talking about great guitar tone. I’m 68 and have owned almost every amp imaginable including a real vintage Brown Princeton,to two different Dumble Overdrive Specials, Marshall’s,Hiwatt, and everything in between.
First of all this is always subjective at best,and very dependent on what tone you’re going after. That said My Quilters afford me the most dependable consistent great Clean Tone I’ve ever had!..
They are not dependent on the wall voltage at different locations.
I never have to service them in over ten years of actual gig use,in many different situations. They have the best direct out as well!
Finally using different types of Boost pedals like the Xotic Sweet Boost,T.C. Jauernig Luxury Drive help get the preamp tube tone as well.
Also remember you are talking about different tones for different instruments. Running a piezo equipped guitar into a Fender doesn’t sound the best. But no problem with my Quilters.
Sorry for the rant,but sometimes people are to biased by old gear and myths associated with it.
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