Blackstar MKII Models

[MonsterTone]

So I’ve got a Blackstar HT 20 head that I recently picked up. I love the tone it has, but it needed more articulation, so I decided to go try out a Boss SD-1 at GC. I did not bring my amp to the store, but decided to hook it up to a HT 40 MKII combo to try it out. But first I tried the amp by itself and HOLY CRAP! How are these amps not more popular or highly recommend? The tone is phenomenal and it does the modded Marshall sound about as good as any amp out there. Why would you spend bookoo bucks on something else when these amps sound the way they do for the price? I’m sold!

 

[napalmdeath]

I've heard a few demos on YouTube that sounded pretty darn good, actually.

 

[skullfxr]

Kind of like, "why do some people eat fillet mignon instead of hamburger? both come from a cow"

I am not saying that blackstar is bad, nor hamburger, but that is a way of looking at it.

I think that you get my analogy. Blackstar is a solid budget amp, no qualms there, but I would not put one next to my Splawn Supersport.

All that matters in the end is that you are happy.

?

 

[MonsterTone]

Kind of like, "why do some people eat fillet mignon instead of hamburger? both come from a cow"

I am not saying that blackstar is bad, nor hamburger, but that is a way of looking at it.

I think that you get my analogy. Blackstar is a solid budget amp, no qualms there, but I would not put one next to my Splawn Supersport.

All that matters in the end is that you are happy.

?

Have you played through the MKII HT 40 or 60? Nothing “budget” or “hamburger” sounding about them. They’re very much “filet mignon”. It always puzzles me how people talk about how great the DSL40c is, but the HT 40 MKII blows it out of the water.

 

[napalmdeath]

Kind of like, "why do some people eat fillet mignon instead of hamburger? both come from a cow"

I am not saying that blackstar is bad, nor hamburger, but that is a way of looking at it.

I think that you get my analogy. Blackstar is a solid budget amp, no qualms there, but I would not put one next to my Splawn Supersport.

All that matters in the end is that you are happy.

?

Have you played through the MKII HT 40 or 60? Nothing “budget” or “hamburger” sounding about them. They’re very much “filet mignon”. It always puzzles me how people talk about how great the DSL40c is, but the HT 40 MKII blows it out of the water.

I doubt he's played one.
But, one thing's for sure, the components and build are certainly budget. However, I just sold a Randall RD45H that's built in China, that sounded absolutely fantastic. And, I got it on a clearance sale for $319. Easily worth the $659 they normally go for, and it kicked an EVH 50 watt to the curb, twice.

 

[Pentatonic Wanker]

Kind of like, "why do some people eat fillet mignon instead of hamburger? both come from a cow"

I am not saying that blackstar is bad, nor hamburger, but that is a way of looking at it.

I think that you get my analogy. Blackstar is a solid budget amp, no qualms there, but I would not put one next to my Splawn Supersport.

All that matters in the end is that you are happy.

?

Have you played through the MKII HT 40 or 60? Nothing “budget” or “hamburger” sounding about them. They’re very much “filet mignon”. It always puzzles me how people talk about how great the DSL40c is, but the HT 40 MKII blows it out of the water.

IMO they sound significantly better than a DSL 40 but my (brand new) Stage 60 only lasted a short time before it was in the shop for a $400 "main board" replacement. That was my first and last Blackstar.

 

[MonsterTone]

IMO they sound significantly better than a DSL 40 but my (brand new) Stage 60 only lasted a short time before it was in the shop for a $400 "main board" replacement. That was my first and last Blackstar.

I remember you saying that. That’s unfortunate. Was it the MKII model? Because I’m thinking about getting the stage 60 MKII. I haven’t played through one, but if it sounds like the 40 I played through the other day I’m sold.

 

[Thunkful]

Blackstars are solid for their price, but i've always felt like that they lack mids for the 80's thing.

I've they would've existed back in late 2000's when i was a kid i would've bought one probably.

 

[skullfxr]

Kind of like, "why do some people eat fillet mignon instead of hamburger? both come from a cow"

I am not saying that blackstar is bad, nor hamburger, but that is a way of looking at it.

I think that you get my analogy. Blackstar is a solid budget amp, no qualms there, but I would not put one next to my Splawn Supersport.

All that matters in the end is that you are happy.

?

Have you played through the MKII HT 40 or 60? Nothing “budget” or “hamburger” sounding about them. They’re very much “filet mignon”. It always puzzles me how people talk about how great the DSL40c is, but the HT 40 MKII blows it out of the water.

I doubt he's played one.
But, one thing's for sure, the components and build are certainly budget. However, I just sold a Randall RD45H that's built in China, that sounded absolutely fantastic. And, I got it on a clearance sale for $319. Easily worth the $659 they normally go for, and it kicked an EVH 50 watt to the curb, twice.

I haven't tried a mki 20 watt, so i can't say anything about that, but I hooked into a mk2 40 combo at Sam Ash in CLW. Nothing overwhelmingly amazing. I would take one over a DSL40C for sure. I doubt the stock speakers help in the blackstar (i don't even know what they have tbh). I think there are a few amps that I would buy first. Quite a few.

I have not tried the Randall one, I haven't ran into one in the wild. I will have to take a look.

The Series One is a great amp though for sure in its regard. Different target price though. Totally different feel from the HT100 (have not tried a HT100 mk2)

 

[MonsterTone]

Yeah, there’s no question they blow the DSL 40 away. Honestly, I’m not a tone freak, and definitely not into all these high dollar boutique amps. I’ve got one tone in mind that I like to get out of an amp, and I absolutely loved the MKII blackstars. I don’t see how any of the other more budget tube amps could compare to them (DSL, Jet City, etc...) It’s not like Blackstar is a cheap, crappy, knockoff brand either. They’re a quality brand. Yes, there’s been issues with some of their models as a fellow member pointed out, but I don’t think that is grounds to kick Blackstar to the curb. I’m a fan!

Plus, I’m not a professional. I mostly play for my own enjoyment/entertainment, and maybe some small local gigs with family and friends. I might decide to get a little more serious down the road, but for now this is right up my alley. You’ve got quality all-tube tone, and tons of versatility with them.

The only point I was looking to make was that I see posts from time to time from intermediate-ish players looking to buy their first quality tube amp and are on a budget, and I’ll see tons of guys recommending the DSL40 or the Jet City stuff, but never the Blackstar. I wonder why that is. They’re great amps. I’ve played the DSL40c and the Jet City stuff and my assessment is that they’ve got nothing on the Blackstar. Just my opinion.

 

[romanianreaper]

The only point I was looking to make was that I see posts from time to time from intermediate-ish players looking to buy their first quality tube amp and are on a budget, and I’ll see tons of guys recommending the DSL40 or the Jet City stuff, but never the Blackstar. I wonder why that is. They’re great amps. I’ve played the DSL40c and the Jet City stuff and my assessment is that they’ve got nothing on the Blackstar. Just my opinion.

I have been in bands since 86' and have owned modded Marshalls, Mesa Rectifiers, and other tube amps and have had solid state, hybrids, modellers, etc. I played one of those Blackstars in a guitar store a few months ago and was blown away at how great it sounded and especially how quiet they were even with the gain turned up.

Most people know that the Blackstar guys started with Marshall and then went on to start their own thing. I think they do a good job of adding nice, tight, low end and a focus more in the low mids than higher mids. To me, they sound like a blend of a Marshall and a Mesa and great for palm muted riffs!

You are right that this is a great budget amp and I agree that it is better than the DSL40c (my opinion). I had a Blackstar 5 watt amp awhile back and it was a great little amp! Years ago, alot of people were getting the Jet City amps modded and getting some killer tones.

 

[MonsterTone]

I played one of those Blackstars in a guitar store a few months ago and was blown away at how great it sounded and especially how quiet they were even with the gain turned up.

Yep, same here. When I hooked up to it I was not expecting that. I thought it would be decent, but when I heard it I was like WHOA! This kicks but!!!

My only question now is whether to get the 40 or 60 combo. I will be gigging with a band, but I’m not sure I’ve got $1050 for the 60w right now.

 

[skullfxr]

If you are going to drop a grand you can do a lot better though IMO. You can find used Mesa Mark and Rec combos for far under that. There is no comparison between Blackstar and Mesa as far as quality goes.

BUT the tone is in your ears. That's what matters.

As far as quality goes, I took a look around on the net of gut shots and specs and quality of parts on the board, they aren't as nice as what I have seen on the JCA20H I modded tbh. Have not gotten around to looking at gut shots for the DSL40C but I am curious and may take a peek later.

I prefer the stock tone of a HT 40 MK2 over a stock jet city any day though. Modded it's about even. But the components are a little better. But again not everybody can do the mods and most cases it is not worth it to get sent out.

At the end of the day, as long as you are happy with what you have, fuck it, nothing wrong with that.

 

[MonsterTone]

If you are going to drop a grand you can do a lot better though IMO. You can find used Mesa Mark and Rec combos for far under that.

I appreciate the tip, but I’m not a mesa kind of player.

 

[Pentatonic Wanker]

IMO they sound significantly better than a DSL 40 but my (brand new) Stage 60 only lasted a short time before it was in the shop for a $400 "main board" replacement. That was my first and last Blackstar.

I remember you saying that. That’s unfortunate. Was it the MKII model? Because I’m thinking about getting the stage 60 MKII. I haven’t played through one, but if it sounds like the 40 I played through the other day I’m sold.

It was a mk I. Still it's a Chinese made amp..... And the quality imo is low.

 

[romanianreaper]

My only question now is whether to get the 40 or 60 combo. I will be gigging with a band, but I’m not sure I’ve got $1050 for the 60w right now.

Yeah with gigging there are alot of options though. If you are going to be gigging places with a big P.A. then you can mic it up so doesn't matter the wattage.

Like others mentioned though, as it is Chinese and a cheaper amp, there is the potential for issues you wouldn't get with other amps. If you really dig it though, just have a backup of some kind and stuff like that. Anyone who has gigged knows to have a backup for "Murphy's Law". LOL! I had a Johnson Millenium Combo I gigged with back in the day and one show it started going thru presets like someone was spinning a roulette wheel!!! It was awful. I had so many issues with that amp.

Like Swamp said, at the end of the day it is what YOU want. Unfortunately, cheaper components can lead to issues but people can have problems with any amp. I always just make sure when I'm buying anything that I've done a ton of research and ruled out any other amps I might have considered.

 

[skullfxr]

If you are going to drop a grand you can do a lot better though IMO. You can find used Mesa Mark and Rec combos for far under that.

I appreciate the tip, but I’m not a mesa kind of player.

I have a feeling that there are a lot of mesas that you haven't tried

Get out there and play some more stuff. If you get the experience you will find something better than that at $1.1k.

 

[Beandust]

Tried the mkii, had a ht100 and giged it a couple times. The mkii is better but imho it's nothing significantly better. A couple pedals and an HT or 1st gen combo is going to get you as good or better. Ymmv, they are a different type circuit board no question the 1st get had 2 12ax7s and ass loads of distortion so its obviously processed. Never understood the price. The clean is good but so are most solid state cleans with built in verb. Post some clips as it sounds like your all in and cheering this build. Hope it does it for U !!! Cheers

 

[skullfxr]

Maybe he is a Blackstar employee pushing product. Lol.

 

[MonsterTone]

Maybe he is a Blackstar employee pushing product. Lol.

Lol... I wish. Those chaps don’t want (British voice) bloody Americans representing them.