NAD: EVH 5150 III LBX: The good, the bad, the ugly..

[napalmdeath]

My first impressions are to be taken with a grain of salt, but for me, I'm not really blown away, and here's why...

First off, if you're looking for a "mini" amp, for low volume, quiet playing, this isn't it. Compact yes. Small, yes. Loud? YES. There's no friendly taper to it, either. It's every bit as aggressive, and gets just as loud, as quick as my 50 watt Laney. The power scaling switch is a nice feature but really only keeps it from getting "louder", to a certain extent, and the tone suffers.

Many complain about the volume jump on the 50 watt head from clean to crunch. Well, there's a distinct volume LOSS, from blue to red. I'm not sure if this is normal, or a fluke? Can anyone confirm? If you're going from rhythm to lead, why would you want a volume drop - I'd certainly prefer a jump? I will do some further investigating, for sure....

You like gain? Plenty here. Way too much, IMO. I actually did some preamp tube swapping, settling for a Tungsol 12AX7 in V1, and a JAN/Phillips 12AT7 in V2, and Sovtek 12AX7LPS in V5. I believe all were JJ, though not labeled. EL84's are Groove Tube.

I won't bitch about the tone - it's got it. The preamp tube swap seemed to really liven it up, and make the gain a bit more useable. It's a very thick amp, and the resonance control on the back adds serious thump for a little amp. It screams, for sure. But, so does my Laney... It will cover classic rock, thrash/speed metal, Drop-D chug, and death metal. It'll do it, no problem. I ran an MXR GT-OD as a boost, and it tightened it up nicely.

It must be noted, my initial test run was through a Marshall 4x12. Before you ask, YES, it'll keep up with a drummer all day long through a 4x12. How it does with some smaller cabs will be the ultimate test, for me. I'm no longer playing at gig/practice volumes, and am ultimately selling the 4x12. The Laney is overkill as well, I'm anxious to hear it through a matching 1x12. So far, I could really take or leave the EVH.

 

[Lampshade1973]

Hey man sorry you don't love it, Ive had one since they came out and I really like the tone for what it is, as far as the volume drop its normal, its really a one or the other channel head, I gigged with it using the blue channel and a boost for solos...you gotta admit it sounds huge and thick..play it against other mini heads in its price range and it really takes the cake...

 

[napalmdeath]

Hey man sorry you don't love it, Ive had one since they came out and I really like the tone for what it is, as far as the volume drop its normal, its really a one or the other channel head, I gigged with it using the blue channel and a boost for solos...you gotta admit it sounds huge and thick..play it against other mini heads in its price range and it really takes the cake...

No argument there, it does sound huge! I'd be curious to A/B with a Mini Rectifier, but no doubt, the tone is there! But I intended to use it for rhythm/lead, not one or the other, although either would do the job well.

 

[AndyK]

I tried one at GC, and like you say, couldn't get the volume low enough to not make a scene! Just like most old JCM800's! What's with that? Bad taper on the master volume KNOB, or is it the circuit?

 

[SavageRiffer]

I spent some time with it on a couple of visits. The volume taper sucks for a low wattage amp in my opinion. In fact, I think the sound kind of sucks without being at least 1/3 of full volume. I used the EVH 2x12 cab and a Mesa 2x12 on the second time around. It was too bright and lacked the thump and low end balls of the 100w. The 50w model is much more useful for quieter situtations in my opinon. However, I'll be honest and tell you that the 100w model sounds and plays better at any volume than the 50w in my opinion. I do not think the 50w sounds exactly the same until you crank it up to band practice volume but even then still seems kind of off in some way. Just my two cents.

 

[napalmdeath]

I spent some time with it on a couple of visits. The volume taper sucks for a low wattage amp in my opinion. In fact, I think the sound kind of sucks without being at least 1/3 of full volume. I used the EVH 2x12 cab and a Mesa 2x12 on the second time around. It was too bright and lacked the thump and low end balls of the 100w. The 50w model is much more useful for quieter situtations in my opinon. However, I'll be honest and tell you that the 100w model sounds and plays better at any volume than the 50w in my opinion. I do not think the 50w sounds exactly the same until you crank it up to band practice volume but even then still seems kind of off in some way. Just my two cents.

I agree. Volume taper sucks, and really defeats the purpose of low wattage. It's the same with the power scaled to 1/4. From fizz/buzz, to turn it down in an instant. The 50-watter was way more forgiving.

I'd take a huge bath shipping back, and restock fees. It might be for sale soon.

 

[SavageRiffer]

I spent some time with it on a couple of visits. The volume taper sucks for a low wattage amp in my opinion. In fact, I think the sound kind of sucks without being at least 1/3 of full volume. I used the EVH 2x12 cab and a Mesa 2x12 on the second time around. It was too bright and lacked the thump and low end balls of the 100w. The 50w model is much more useful for quieter situtations in my opinon. However, I'll be honest and tell you that the 100w model sounds and plays better at any volume than the 50w in my opinion. I do not think the 50w sounds exactly the same until you crank it up to band practice volume but even then still seems kind of off in some way. Just my two cents.

I agree. Volume taper sucks, and really defeats the purpose of low wattage. It's the same with the power scaled to 1/4. From fizz/buzz, to turn it down in an instant. The 50-watter was way more forgiving.

I'd take a huge bath shipping back, and restock fees. It might be for sale soon.

Instead of taking a loss, why don't use use the low power mode and feed it a little volume? It sounds pretty good with a power soak.

 

[napalmdeath]

I spent some time with it on a couple of visits. The volume taper sucks for a low wattage amp in my opinion. In fact, I think the sound kind of sucks without being at least 1/3 of full volume. I used the EVH 2x12 cab and a Mesa 2x12 on the second time around. It was too bright and lacked the thump and low end balls of the 100w. The 50w model is much more useful for quieter situtations in my opinon. However, I'll be honest and tell you that the 100w model sounds and plays better at any volume than the 50w in my opinion. I do not think the 50w sounds exactly the same until you crank it up to band practice volume but even then still seems kind of off in some way. Just my two cents.

I agree. Volume taper sucks, and really defeats the purpose of low wattage. It's the same with the power scaled to 1/4. From fizz/buzz, to turn it down in an instant. The 50-watter was way more forgiving.

I'd take a huge bath shipping back, and restock fees. It might be for sale soon.

Instead of taking a loss, why don't use use the low power mode and feed it a little volume? It sounds pretty good with a power soak.

Yeah, it sounds good. But even with the soak, it's loud.

 

[glassjaw7]

I think the reasons you stated for not liking it are why I like it! I was shocked at how big the lbx sounded. It's a great way to get close to the sound and feel of the 50w in a small affordable package. But I see your points as well.

 

[napalmdeath]

I think the reasons you stated for not liking it are why I like it! I was shocked at how big the lbx sounded. It's a great way to get close to the sound and feel of the 50w in a small affordable package. But I see your points as well.

It does sound great, no doubt. But, the volume taper would have been less of an issue, and in the same ball park in price for a used 50-watt.

 

[napalmdeath]

The kicker, and really my own stupidity..

There's only one speaker output. I was going to buy matching 1×12's, but can't run 2 cabs? I'd have to go to a 2x12, or mesa 1x12s with an additional output to slave to another cab and run 4 ohms. I really should have thought things through.

 

[Elric]

Maybe you can get an attenuator for it.