-
I have a Clarus R2 with RE Twin 8's my mail amp. Cabinet was made by the Rich himself. I love the sound but looking for an all-in-one combo amp. The criteria is that it has to be light weight and not big, but I am not looking for a practice room amp. Here is what I have come up with,
The Henriksen Bud the smallest I believe is 6 inch speaker
Possibly an old Evans Amp don't know if they even make them anymore, heavier but nice sound based on past history
A DV Little Jazz
What other options for amps am I missing? The DV seems like clearly the cheapest, but I have not played through one. Will I be disappointed given what I like in my current set up. Also I have a Polytone Tarus with 8 inch speaker 4ohm but I put a new 8 ohm speaker in it. I don't mind the amp but compared to my Clarus there is not competition it just does not compare. That has me thinking anything less than a Bud would be disappointment. I must admit I don't have to have this and could sell my Polytone if I bought one of these and liked it a lot more. The polytone also allows me to run the RE cabinet with it and that does sound good but I want this set up to be one piece easy carry.
-
10-19-2022 12:54 PM
-
Some very good players, including some gearheads, really like the Bud. Last time I was at Rudy's they were demo-ing the D'Angelicos (the real ones) with a Bud.
Originally Posted by deacon Mark
There have been a few posts comparing the Bud with the LJ. I think the consensus may have been for the Bud, but there were people who liked the LJ as well. Since the Bud is 3x the price, they really are in different classes, but the LJ holds its own. I think a few people like the Blu a little better, something about being voiced differently.
I have, and like, the LJ but have never had an opportunity to A/B it with a Bud. I've never used the other gear you mentioned.
GC sells the LJ with a return privilege. Don't know about the others.
-
Quilter Micropro 8 is amazing. 19 lbs, two 100W channels in an 8 inch compact combo. One channel is a simple PA-ish amp, the other has very configurable, warm, analog modelling of a variety of tube amps.
Last edited by Tal_175; 10-19-2022 at 04:30 PM.
-
Do you need 2 channels ? Otherwise the Blu 6.
I have a Blu 6 and it is absolutely unbelievable. Huge tone.
Remember buy cheap get cheap.
-
The Quilter looks interesting but more money for sure probably go the Bud route at the price. Also. I have thought about trying another replacement speaker in my small 8 inch polytone. This one would match at 4 ohms with power proper. Any takers on what this might do for the sound? FAITAL PRO 8FE200 - 8" MID-BASS SPEAKER
-
Between the DV Little Jazz and the Bud, I prefer the simplicity of the DV (and wouldn't use the extra features of the Bud). I find the sounds to be pretty similar overall, but the Bud is more tweakable gain- and eq-wise, so potentially more possibilities.
Quilters are worth looking at: Aviator Cub (12" speaker, though, so maybe too big for you), or 101R head + 10" Block Dock cab, or Micro Pro 8".
My own solution to the small but gigable amp problem is none of the above. I use a Fender Champion 20. It's small, light, cheap, and shockingly good sounding (and loud enough for my uses).
-
+1 on this, and it's lighter than the Bud! Originally Posted by vinnyv1k
-
My Evans RE200 has lots of power into a 10" and only weighs 27 lbs. There may be some used ones floating around in the $600 +/- range.
-
I have been using one of these for the majority of my work for the past several years. Large theater, modern loud bop big band, pop/rock, etc. If I need super high power I bring out the bigger 12Hd version at roughly the same weight. The big band guys can't believe how it blows away the heavy Fender Deluxe other guys bring. Not to mention, sometimes I bring the Bud 6 and the rest of the rhythm section are amazed. Originally Posted by Tal_175
-
ps - At my age, 10 extra lbs is a big difference for a similar sound.
-
Acoustic Image Corus, no longer made but sometimes available used. It's been my main gigging & rehearsal amp for most of the last 15 years. Series 3+ weighs 20 pounds, Series 4 weighs 22 pounds.
Photo from 2008
Danny W.
-
Yeah, the Corus can't be beat. It buries my recently purchased used Henriksen JazzAmp, and my Roland Cube, JazzKat, Originally Posted by Danny W.
Acoustic Image Corus, no longer made but sometimes available used. It's been my main gigging & rehearsal amp for most of the last 15 years. Series 3+ weighs 20 pounds, Series 4 weighs 22 pounds.
Photo from 2008
Danny W.
-
No doubt my AI great just looking for the all in one. Possibly easier to move between practice room and shop.
-
The Corus is all-in-one. Originally Posted by deacon Mark
-
Mark,
I recently did some solid state amp shopping. I shared my thoughts previously about the two major camps for clean jazz guitar tones. Usually people fall into the fender camp or the polytone camp. Because I consider myself in the fender camp, I wasn't really impressed with the henriksens I had played, they felt too quick, a bit sterile, and lacking in character/clarity.
Just recently I bought a quilter aviator with a 1x12", which I reviewed in another thread. Great amp. I ALSO purchased one of the 6" henriksen Blus that was for sale on the forum lately (I think 3 came and went in just a week or so!).
I am extremely impressed with the 6" henriksen blu. I had a 10" Blu and I actually find that I prefer the 6". I also had an older generation Bud that I did not care for. The 6" blu really does sound like a much bigger amp, and I recommend it to anyone looking for a good clean tone.
Since I'm a fan of the Fender tone, I adjust the Henriksen's EQ to get closer to fender by (1) decreasing the high mids and (2) increasing the treble and presence. It doesn't get the tube-like compression of a quilter or a real fender, but it has a very pleasant, full, and surrounding tone.Last edited by omphalopsychos; 10-19-2022 at 08:41 PM.
-
How big is too big and how heavy is too heavy? I have an AI Clarus 2r which I pair with an RE 12 inch and I've been really liking the sound for probably 15 years. But toting the head and cabinet, etc., is kind of a nuisance. So it mostly stays in my living room.
My other main amp is a clone of a Fender tweed Deluxe, which feels like it weighs about the same as the RE cabinet by itself. Nice sound and I like the open back. Lots of tone tweaking to learn with the interactive volume knobs, tone knob, using jumpers between channels, etc. An awful lot of jazz guitar was recorded at Blue Note and other studios through one of those amps.
-
What I like about the little Quilter 8 is, it can do everything. For theater gigs, clean acoustic jazz to searing overdrive, and anything in between.
-
I vouch for the Mambo Wedge with 8" Speaker, but probably it's hard to get this to the US.
Before i found the Mambo the AI Clarus with RE Stealth 10 cabinets was my favorite. Now i switch between the two, sometimes using both.
The Mambo sounds closer to a tube amp, livelier than the Clarus and it's got more presence. It's very compact and delivers a lot of sound for its tiny size.
-
yes ! ive noticed a few players here using those .... Originally Posted by John A.
incredible bang for the buck !
-
I have an AI Clarus and a GK MB200, both through a RE Stealth 12ER, an early 80s Fender Vibrolux Reverb, and a DV Mark Little Jazz, all in the same room. What I play 99% of the time is the Little Jazz, because it sounds better to me, by a rather wide margin. I've also played it in a blues jam at a bar, so loud that I always had to wear earplugs, and it was at least as loud as the much bigger Fenders and Line6 amps the others used. I put the LJ sort of in the back, out of the way, further away from me than the other amps, and I could easily hear it, without turning it much more than halfway up. It's more than loud enough for playing jazz, and it sounds better to me than most other amps I've tried. It's small and light, and I bought it mostly for the transportability, without even hearing it. It's one of the better music purchases I've made. I'm well aware that pleasing sound is entirely subjective, and not everyone will like the same sounds that I do, but the tone stack is very effective and useful, so many sounds are possible. I have briefly lusted for different amps, but I just can't justify buying another when I have this one. Less expensive does not necessarily mean cheap.
-
I have had great results with my DV Mark Little Jazz. It gets loud enough for my venues and I don't have to turn it way up to get the volume I need. I also get compliments on my tone. One guy who really liked it is also a sound guy and an audiophile.
-
I prefer tube amps myself, despite the weight and other associated challenges such as maintenance. Having said that, for big, fat, resonant archtop guitars I often grab my simple Roland JC22. Never use the chorus, but the two 8” speakers, transparent sound and nice reverb work really well with jazz boxes. Big sound, lightweight, indestructible, affordable. Don’t like its sound with solidbodies at all, but that’s OK.
-
I never turn the LJ past about one o'clock on the volume control. Starts to sound harsh. It's loud enough to keep up with a quartet including drums on a wine bar gig. I've used it for big band too, without anybody complaining, but lately I've been bringing two amps (the other a JC55) and I think I'm getting a little better sound. I could be imagining that. I'm sure I'm getting better dispersion -- I had simultaneous complaints -- too loud and not loud enough at the same time, from different players -- I can position the amps to avoid that.
If I preamplify the signal hitting the LJ, it gets louder still, without seeming to compress or distort. Seems to tolerate a stronger signal than an ordinary humbucker provides.
I think the LJ is quite sensitive to position. On the floor, off the floor, tilted, too near a wall for the port in back, which way is it facing -- all make a significant difference. Of course, that may be equally true of the alternatives.
-
Position does matter, and I think that's a function of the rear ports. I don't know of a way to eliminate that without eliminating the ports. I like having the sound coming out of the rear ports and being reflected by a wall or other surface, and needing to move the amp a few inches one way or another to get my preferred sound doesn't bother me. I like the LJ tilted or raised, but others may prefer other positions. Whatever gets the sound you want...
-
+1 for the Mambo. I’ve got the 10” Mambo wedge and the Henriksen Bud. Originally Posted by JazzNote
While the Bud is a great amp, the Mambo is the one getting the playing time.
Did I mention it’s only 18lbs and 400w?
Jon Shaw’s web site: Mambo AmpLast edited by v281; 10-22-2022 at 06:57 AM.
Reply With Quote
“Shearing style”
Today, 05:26 PM in Comping, Chords & Chord Progressions