Buying my first quality amp

T

Tonal Sex

New member
I've got my band together, I've been rehearsing and have been making due with my line 6. I'm looking to step up to better tone and am looking to get something nice. I'm lookong for something that will do 80s metal well and has plenty of gain. I've looked at many amps on the market and I'm seriously considering the EVH 5150 iii 50 watt amp. It's relatively inexpensive too. What do the people here think?

Other recommendations are appreciated. I'm not looking to spend tons of money, just want something of good quality that can stand up to gigging frequently and sounds good. Thanks.
 
For the price, the 5150 III 50 watt is hard to beat. I love mine, and it fits my needs pretty well. There is one drawback that may or may not affect you so much depending on how you plan to use it and if you need a truly clean channel. Since channels 1 and 2 share EQ, Volume, & Gain, it is impossible to set up a super clean channel 1 and a super dirty channel 2. Furthermore, when you do have channel 1 set to a completely clean level of gain, there is a huge volume jump when switching to channel 2. If you set up channel 1 to be clean on the edge of breakup (basically Gain anything 12'o clock or higher) the volume jump is diminished a bit, but is still there. If you have lower output pickups, you can get away with setting the Gain higher without breaking up, and this also helps diminish the volume jump a bit.

That's pretty much my only gripe with the amp. I typically live on channels 1 & 3 with my band so I am able to balance the levels appropriately and still keep a completely clean tone on channel 1.
 
jc986 pretty much summed up what I was going to say. It's going to be really hard to beat the 5150 III 50w bang for buck IMO, and I don't really see myself ever selling mine since it sounds good and is small, and so far has been reliable. I could also add that I don't like how the power/standby switches are on the back, as is the resonance knob, but that's small beans.

Would you be open to used stuff? if so the $1000ish price range that the 5150III would go for would get you some nice used amps (The Sig:X would be a top pick from me, I own one of those too. It doesn't get used as much now that I've got the Ultralead but that's quite a bit more money than the Sig:X)
 
I'm more interested in the killer distortion channel. I usually just roll the volume back for clean.

If I weren't so interested in the 5150 iii I'd be looking for used amps. I'm not ready for 100 watts yet as my oportunity to open for van halen has not arrisen yet! Lol ..... However, we are an original band and are currently getting prepeared to perform at a "battle of the bands" type contest that is taking place in a larger theater type venue and this is why I know it's time to invest in something of higher quality that has killer sound and will project well in larger venues.

But just being realistic, we won't be packing large theaters regularly any time soon, but I'm the type that would rather have the gun and not have to use it then not have it and die. Plus it just helps to plan ahead.
 
Could you give us more details on what you need in terms of features and budget? That would help narrow it down. Number of channels/sounds you need on stage, the outboard gear you use (if any), do you need an effects loop or not, what kind of cab/speakers do you use, what equipment does the other guitar player in the band use (if there is one, what kind of guitar and pickups do you use, etc....

There is a lot of love for the 5150 III here, for good reason. Some users here say they like the 100 watt model better than the 50 watt.

If you could give us specific bands who's tone you like, that would help out a lot as well. 80s metal isn't very specific in terms of tone. Lots of bands with different sounds. A lot of old Marshalls, some Mesa stuff, list goes on from there. Hook us up with some more info, and I'm sure someone here can point you in the right direction.
 
I sound like a broken record but I'd go with a used JCM/JMP 2203/4 and a pedal, SD1 for example. GC.com used, return it if you don't like it. They hold their value and most of the tones you are describing were recorded with marshalls..modded and stock with pedals. 5153s are decent amps, but a JCM and a pedal sounds better to me compared to the EVH. EVH has 3 channels and a loop, so more features. But dial up your 1 best tone with the EVH and the 1 best tone from the Marshall and I'd take the Marshall. GC.com is a good source for either amp, as they have plenty of JCM 800s and EVH 5153s. Just saw 2 vertical input 800s for 1100 in their inventory..if I hadn't just grabbed a 78 JMP 2203 I'd have nabbed one of the JCMs. Good luck
 
Check out the recent thread about the Mesa Stiletto Deuce...used for the same money as the EVH 50w. One of my favorite amps is the VHT Deliverance...both 60/120w are killer amps with SLO-like articulation. Both of those amps have a Marshall vibe and I'd take either over the EVH. I've had 2 EVH 50w heads and they are nice, not bad at all. But I've flipped soooo many amps that subtle differences matter to me. The 2 I had were reliable, both brand new. But some have had problems with theirs, mostly tube related.
 
The sound I'm looking for is (I'm very bad at describing) like a more saturated jcm800. Does the EVH 50w get any tones that sound marhsally? When I say 80s metal I'm talking more late 80s Nuno Bettencourt, Skid Row, etc. something with more satruation for metal rather than "honky" sounding. Don't know if that makes sense.

Let me also just say that the quest to find the sound I'm looking for has almost made me give up completely more than once! Lol
 
Tonal Sex":3emfm6iu said:
The sound I'm looking for is (I'm very bad at describing) like a more saturated jcm800. Does the EVH 50w get any tones that sound marhsally? When I say 80s metal I'm talking more late 80s Nuno Bettencourt, Skid Row, etc. something with more satruation for metal rather than "honky" sounding. Don't know if that makes sense.

Let me also just say that the quest to find the sound I'm looking for has almost made me give up completely more than once! Lol
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EVH blue channel is Marshally. Some guys like to boost it. But there's a volume issue matching up the blue and green(clean) channels on the 50 watt because they share the same volume. 100w EVH has volumes for each channel.
 
If you're into Marshall tones, there are tons of options. The new reissue of the Jubilee is out now. You can score an old JCM 800 for around a grand. Hit it with a boost like Racerxrated said, and you'll be happy. They lack the modern features of new amps, but they get the job done quite well. The clean sounds aren't great IMO. The Marshall JVM and DSL are good too, but they are more of a modern high gain Marshall sound.

Friedman amps are fantastic high gain Marshall based amps, but they are more expensive than a 5150 III. The Jerry Cantrell signature Friedman might be what you're looking for. Actually, just check out all of the Friedman models.

The Stiletto Deuce has already been mentioned here, and is a good choice too.
 
There's only two choices on this forum.

Marshall or 5150

I've never tried a 5150. I have a 6505. I don't know what the difference is. The 6505+ just sits in the storage room.
 
I can't afford the friedman so that's off the table. After looking at nearly all amps out there, nothing fits my needs on paper like the EVH 50w. I can get the head and matching cab brand new for $1500. I just needed to know if it's 1) A high quality gig-worthy amp 2) If it sounds good and can come close to the tones I mentioned 3) If it's enough wattage for some larger venues, and 4) If there are similar or better options for the money for what I've described (I guess most of y'all have answered that question). I'm not looking for modern metal tone, but I am looking for higher gain and saturation of a modern amp. Besides, the way I play makes any amp sound marshally because I'm not a modern rock/metal player
 
The build quality on the 5150 iii is questionable there have been problems like channel switching issues transformetransformers blowing even the knobs cracking not to say you will have those issues. The other thing I noticed is a few friends of mine who play out pretty regularly had 50 watts but switched to the hundred watt no idea why I know volume was part of the reason. Personally I love that amp but I'm leary about the issues I've heard about 6505 and dual rectifiers are work horses and the 5153 and 6505 tones are not that far apart and the 6505 has better build quality.
 
Tonal Sex":3awbmsr6 said:
I can't afford the friedman so that's off the table. After looking at nearly all amps out there, nothing fits my needs on paper like the EVH 50w. I can get the head and matching cab brand new for $1500. I just needed to know if it's 1) A high quality gig-worthy amp 2) If it sounds good and can come close to the tones I mentioned 3) If it's enough wattage for some larger venues, and 4) If there are similar or better options for the money for what I've described (I guess most of y'all have answered that question). I'm not looking for modern metal tone, but I am looking for higher gain and saturation of a modern amp. Besides, the way I play makes any amp sound marshally because I'm not a modern rock/metal player
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The EVH 5153 50 sounds right to me for what you're looking for. You should be able to get a lot of what you are looking for out of the blue and red channels, as both are very usable.
 
BrentSSL":zci7fo5s said:
The build quality on the 5150 iii is questionable there have been problems like channel switching issues transformetransformers blowing even the knobs cracking not to say you will have those issues.
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Then again, there have been many others (including some here) that have been gigging them for years with no issues whatsoever. I've had mine for about three years myself and have not experienced any problems.
 
I have a evh 50 watt and love it. When I want my leads to have that squishyness, I keep the gain on 11 o'clock on the blue channel.

I can't recommend it enough. I also boost the blue with my Maxon OD9 here and there.

Great amp, purchased back in February. No issues at all. For the $ it's a no brainier IMO.
 
There's an "EVH tone lounge" thread somewhere here on RT. Read the last few pages. Talks about guys having problems. If you do buy one my advice is CHANGE all tubes. Invest in some used but test strong older tubes...both power and pre. The new production tubes today have terrible reliability. Just42dave here on RT sells tubes? Or Laura at valve queen. Trust them to set you up.
 
Tonal Sex":3838brjf said:
I can't afford the friedman so that's off the table. After looking at nearly all amps out there, nothing fits my needs on paper like the EVH 50w. I can get the head and matching cab brand new for $1500. I just needed to know if it's 1) A high quality gig-worthy amp 2) If it sounds good and can come close to the tones I mentioned 3) If it's enough wattage for some larger venues, and 4) If there are similar or better options for the money for what I've described (I guess most of y'all have answered that question). I'm not looking for modern metal tone, but I am looking for higher gain and saturation of a modern amp. Besides, the way I play makes any amp sound marshally because I'm not a modern rock/metal player
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If you can find any of the onlines doing a discount you can get for cheaper. Got my 50 watt for $800 from MF. Paid $425 for matching 2/12 a little bit afterwards.
 
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