Equipment Roundup - Traynor, Line 6, Vox, Peavey

[Nohtanhoj]

Hey fellow guitarists, I've got a dilemma on my hands. I've been playing a B-E-A-utiful Taylor 214ce acoustic for about a year now, and I'm looking to get into electric guitar. I'm putting three different combos together - low, medium, and high end, respectively - and I'm going to look at the various pros and cons of each. I'd appreciate if you guys could critique the preliminary choices I've made for each package, or recommend one that would work better. The price ranges for each amp within each package are the following:
Low End - $200-250
Medium - $300-350
High End - $375-425

The thing I have to keep in mind is that I will be playing with my church's worship team, and therefore will have to get an amp that can be used for a medium size gig (on a busy day.) We mic our amps into the PA to get our sound, if that makes a difference.


Low End Package
For the guitar, I've chosen a cheap Epiphone from my LMS(Local Music Store) that runs around $200. It's a Strat copy with the standard features: 21 frets, 3 single coils, etc etc...

This is the amp that I've been having the most trouble with choosing. Originally I picked a 40 watt Traynor TRM40 solid state amp, (http://www.traynoramps.com/products.asp?type=4&cat=56&id=97). However, I've been struggling with whether a Line 6 Spider III in a 30 watt model would be more suitable here(http://line6.com/spideriii30/). The Line 6 seems to come with more effects and "presets" to play around with, while the Traynor seems to have more "manual control" when it comes to tone. I've heard from a few friends that Line 6 amps aren't very reliable, and as I will be playing Sunday morning gigs, maybe it isn't the best choice. Which one do you think would work better here?

Medium Package
The guitar is a Vintage V6 Icon from John Hornby Skewes(http://www.jhs.co.uk/vintageelectric.html), in the Laguna Blue. I know that the vintage finish isn't "true," meaning that it's artificial aging, but that's not a problem. It still is the best looking guitar I've played. =D It's also a Strat copy, but with a vintage finish. It runs around $500, but that may change.

This amp I've also had a hard time choosing. Should the Traynor 40W go here? The other amp that I've been looking at putting here is a Vox Valvetronix AD30VT(http://www.voxamps.co.uk/valvetronix/ad15-30-50-100vt.asp). However, this may be in the "High End" package based on the deal I can get on it. The Vox is a hybrid amp that uses part transistors and part tubes, and I've heard some pretty good things about it. It's got 11 effects and also 11 amp models, which seems pretty good for an amp in it's price range(around $300). It also has an output power adjust so that you can keep the master volume always maxed, so the tube has it's best sound, and adjust the wattage of the power amp so you can keep the tube's best sound at low volumes. Which one of these(or another recommendation) would work here?

High End Package
This is where I stick the brand name guitar - Standard Strat for ~$650 at my LMS. Not sure what color yet, but probably a sunburst.

I was originally thinking of putting the Vox amp here, but I talked to a few buddies that have been playing for a long time, and one in a full time band(anyone heard of Hello Kelly?) They all said that I should be going with a pure tube amp, because of the sound and expandability(if I want to buy a few pedals.) They recommended that I buy either a Peavey Classic 30(http://www.peavey.com/products/browse.cfm/action/detail/item/116551/Classic(R)%2030/112-Black%20Vinyl.cfm) or a Traynor YCV20(http://traynoramps.com/products.asp?type=3&cat=63&id=251). What do you think of those two amps, and are they(my friends) right in saying that I should be going tube for live playing?


Thanks for taking the time to read this monster post. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks again,
Mark(Noht)

[Gene Machine]

First, let me say I'm a big Traynor fan. I'll try not to be biased.

One area you didn't mention which you should definitely consider: Used

Youo can get a used MIM strat or tele for $350 on Craigslist. it will have much better components than a chinese or indonesian knock-off. Not sure about the Vntage Icon stuff, but why pay more for an offshore copy when you can get a real Strat? plus, you can always customize your strat down the road, it's always going to be a Strat not the inexpensive copy you bought when you started playing.

Amps... hmm. am not a big fan of modelling amps although the may fit your situation. I prefer to have my effects and amp separate. That way you can have better of both. If your playing at church and need a variety of sounds at a low volume, then a modelling amp may be YOUR best solution, but don't get too heavily invested, maybe 15W max is all you really need. Unless you have a loud drummer with a full band and PA, 15Watts will be fine.

So my suggestion is:
1) choose your guitar first. Don't be afraid to look at used.
2) identify your amplifier needs. How loud does it need to be (realistically) and what does it need to do. make a list of amps that meet your requirements then play them and compare sound, functionality, portability, ruggedness, warranty etc.

good luck with your quest.

[bcmatt]

Hi,
I would say that you should worry about your guitar first as well. Make sure you love the feel and sound of it unplugged. (This is common advice here).You can upgrade pickups later if need be, but it would be convenient if you like the sound of them right away too.

As a music Pastor and a tube amp addict, I can give you some educated but biased advice on your amp situation for church. We mic all of our guitar amps to go through the PA as well. We moved to this as I tried to better our sound system. If you want to try modelling, I would say just start off with some sort of modeling pedal and go straight into the PA. The sound guy will appreciate this anyways. But don't go wasting a lot of money on this unless you plan to stay with that as your setup like Milkman does. In fact, I can lend you my Zoom 505 pedal that I used to use if you are interested. (I am starting my holidays at noon today and I will be heading to Calgary to pick up my girlfriend) heheh, that sounds funny- not "pick up a girlfriend" but retrieve the one I already have.
Anyways, I'll stick to the advice that I should be qualified to give. A 5 watt tube amp is plenty enough power to use on the platform when micing through a PA, unless you guys have really high stage volumes and you want to play really clean. That is the biggest problem I run into; is getting a tone I am happy with at low enough volumes to keep the sound guy happy. Unfortunately, I am always going with pedals to get any dirt in this setting.
So, to start off, ask the guitar shops to let you try their lowest powered tube amps that they have. Off the top of my head, see if you can try a Fender Champ, or an Epiphone Valve Junior, or the Blackheart. L&M had a nice little Black Cat MIni Cat for about $600, but I'm not sure if they sold it.

[Nohtanhoj]

Thanks for the replies guys, your responses have brought up more than a few new points that I haven't considered, such as the use of a very small(5-10W) tube amp and modeling pedals.

One of the main reasons I haven't checked the "used marketplace" is that I don't know very much about electric guitars/amps. I couldn't really tell if, for example, the body was damaged in some way. I've only really been playing guitar(seriously and not off-hand once a month) for about a year now. I will, however, take a look around and see what's available for sale. If I'm looking used, are there some key things that I should look out for, other than playing the guitar?

Thanks again for your responses, guys; I guess I'll have to really take a look at a guitar before I can really pick out an amp.