TomCat
Hi. We are looking at acquiring a tube amp for stage use at church (mic'ed through the system with a SM-57). I have had a good look around and have narrowed down to either a Vox AC15 or Blues JR, both good tube amplifiers. I then had a look at the Laney LC15-110, which is similar to the Blues JR, but at about half the price.
Has anyone out there got the Laney and what are the impressions?????
I did see that on Harmony Central the amp got a bit bashed in terms of reliability / overheating. has any one experience this here.
Thanks
[deleted]
Hey
I was looking at all of those myself and ended up taking the Laney VC15 based on the price.
Most of the reviews on Harmony are with regards to the older model which did have heating problems with extended use. (turn the thing on the side if it really worries you, there problem solved) I think it is a common flaw with all tube combo amps. Not the newer design however. I think it's a great little amp, easy to move around and tough as nails.
Its purely on what your needs are. All I can say is till I get my DR Z amp i'm keeping this little thing, and will probably keep it forever to tag along everywhere. ?
edit// Wanted to get the Handwired Heritage AC15, but that thing is WAY to big to travel up and down with me. But for what it's worth, that is the best amp of the lot!!! IMO ?
TomCat
Hey Bret
Thanks for the input. The Laney's pricing certainly looks attractive and does make the price of the blues Jr hard to justify.
The amp will stay at church and not travel much so reliability should be great.
Thanks
TomCat
Sorry Brent, got the name wrong. Very late night last night and brain/fingers/eyes not coordinating.
AlanRatcliffe
I've known first hand of lots of reliability problems with Laney, but have heard that they are getting better lately. More importantly, when they do go wrong they often take a long time to get the distributor to fix them properly. From my own experiences some nice sounding amps, but I hear a lot of them with rattling and buzzing cabinets which has always put me off them.
[deleted]
Alan Ratcliffe wrote:
I've known first hand of lots of reliability problems with Laney, but have heard that they are getting better lately. More importantly, when they do go wrong they often take a long time to get the distributor to fix them properly. From my own experiences some nice sounding amps, but I hear a lot of them with rattling and buzzing cabinets which has always put me off them.
Yeah that had me worried alot to, a friend of mine had that exact problem, dry joints in a new amp and constant problems, they eventually replaced it with a new one!
It's not my amp of choice the Laney, I do have a good one however, like i said. of the 3 if money was no object i'd take the Vox AC15 or the Fender, but then again I'd take a Dr Z mini Z head over that too. It's a matter of trying them out, getting the best deal, and living with what you got. ? Good Luck
TomCat
I have a Laney RB 7 Bass amp which has proved to be bullet proof so far. I had a chat with the guys at Music Connection who do a Stovec tube upgrade on the Laney. Apparently this really opens the amplifier up and is a vast improvement over the stock tubes.
Any thoughts....... :-[
AlanRatcliffe
??? What brand and model valves are in there now? Most manufacturers use Sovtek as stock as they are cheap and consistent, but you can usually do better if you look around and do some research on which manufacturers make the best versions of a particular model. Even amongst the new production valves, you can often do better than Sovtek - JJ, TAD, even the Electroharmonix (which are made by Sovtek).
matta
Slightly off topic... Brent, Dr. Z now has an agency in SA!!!
A friend just bought a Route 66 Head and I was keen on the Maz 18 Jnr combo the agent has in stock (a good friend of mine), but now looking at refurbishing my Bandmaster and 2x12 cab and then getting a head, either the Maz or maybe a Carmen.
Back ON TOPIC, Laney is as others have shared cheaper, but quality control is an issue. The Fender and VOX, esp. the 'handwired' are better assembled/built with high QC, but it is reflected in the price.
Keep your eyes peeled for 2nd hand amps as well in places like Gumtree, Music Ads and the Classifieds here.
Cheers
Matt
AlanRatcliffe
matta wrote:
Slightly off topic... Brent, Dr. Z now has an agency in SA!!!
Who is that Matt? I am seriously interested in trying out a Carmen Ghia some time - it seems to be Mike Zaite's crowning achievement with a voice of it's own.
matta
Alan,
It is Eastern Acoustics (www.easternacoustics.co.za). They mainly dealt in HIGH END STUDIO gear but now do the Eventide Stompboxes (I own a Time and ModFactor), Dr. Z Amps, Radial Engineering/Tonebone (I own a Trimode) and Matchless Amps in the MI arena. Chat to Aki Kahn, the owner of the company and a good friend, tell him I sent you, he will sort you out ?
Cheers
Matt
AlanRatcliffe
Thanks Matt! Noted for when I get a chance.
toastyrat
Tomcat
Howdy... I bought a lionheart 5w laney a few months ago and cannot tell you how happy i am with it. I've also heard of reliability issues from a few people, but as Allan said i think they are a bit better now. The lionheart is a lot more expensive than the LC, so they will be quite different.
Until the lionheart i had always seen laney amps as a cheap alternative. Not anymore. It has tons of tone and it's my favorite amp.
aja
toastyrat wrote:
Tomcat
Howdy... I bought a lionheart 5w laney a few months ago and cannot tell you how happy i am with it. I've also heard of reliability issues from a few people, but as Allan said i think they are a bit better now. The lionheart is a lot more expensive than the LC, so they will be quite different.
Until the lionheart i had always seen laney amps as a cheap alternative. Not anymore. It has tons of tone and it's my favorite amp.
Where did you buy it from?
TomCat
Hi toastyrat
Thanks for the info. I will certainly have a look at the Lionheart as an option. We don't need too much level as we mic everything. A small amp cranked on stage is going to sound better than a larger amp idling.
We found this out when we had Parachute band at our church a while back. We rented in a DeVille for the guitarist. Sounded fantastic during the concert (especially over about 14kW of PA for 600 people..!!!!!!). However when we ran it low on the Sunday morning (got to keep the normal people happy), it didn't happen. My wife's Vox Pathfinder 15 sounded better driven harder???). Don't get me wrong, the fender still sounded pretty good, but not the same as it did when cranked.
toastyrat
Yip, thats the vibe with tube amps. Thats why i took the laney which is only 5w, i always have it cranked and it's not too loud.
