Off Topic Blackstar Amps

[GHWelles]

Marshall Studio 15. Sounds great at low volume and you can crank it for gigs. You have to watch E-bay, and they usually go for $700 plus

 

[starsky]

I got a Blackstar HT5 combo a couple of weeks ago.

I bought it for home practice and recording, having spent the last few years playing through various Pods and modellers, and I have to say the HT5 tube distortion feel and tones sound really good to me.

It's plenty loud enough too!

I'm lovin' playing my BFR Luke through it, great tones, clean and dirty!

 

[luv]

Bump....

Tony...how's that amp treating you?

 

[TonyEVH5150]

It's treating me very well. I went with the mini stack, the HT-5 head and a blackstar 1x10 cab. I'm still tweaking the tone to my liking, but it's definitely got the range I'm looking for. The ISF gain shaping is a great feature. I've got a great blended UK/US gain dialed in. Sounds awesome!

I'm actually working with the cleans on the amp. I never worried about cleans before - I never used them. But, this amp sounds so good, I actually want to. I'm buying a clean gain boost pedal and a chorus, just to give the clean channel a little character.

 

[Hendog]

How about the Budda 18? Wouldn't that be a competitor to the Orange Tiny Terror?

 

[Progdude]

I thought the Blackstar HT sound thin to me. I ended up getting the Egnater Rebel 20 Head and a matching 212 Cab. Both sit on top of my Avatar 412 cab. I do use the Blackstar HT Dual Pedal and I love that thing!!

 

[TonyEVH5150]

I also have to remember that it doesn't have alot of headroom through the 1x10 cab. It may sound thin now, but plug it in to a bigger cab, say a 2x12 or 4x12.

I still remember trying an Epiphone Valve Jr. little 5 watter with a 8" cab. sounded okay and broke up easily with very little volume, but once it was plugged in to a bigger cab (a Marshall 4x12 when I tried it), it really opened up.

 

[ShaneV]

I play my HT-5 through a 4x12 and it sounds great, very reminiscent of a JCM 800 in a lot of ways.

 

[thiscalltoarms]

you know, this amp seems wicked sweet. I played one at a guitar center a few months ago, and I really wasn't impressed. It sounded better than any of the JCM2000s that I'd played / owned (never owned one longer than 2 weeks though...), but the lack of verb made it inferior to most JCM900 dual verbs to my ear.

but, there is a fundamental logical error that I hadn't noticed until I started reading this thread- I played the Blackheart through the 1x10 full stack (2 1x10 blackheart cabs). Not sure what speakers are in the 1x10's, but they are undoubtably inferior to the 2x12 vintage30 or greenback cabs that I've used JCM800/900's with. Perhaps with even a blackheart 1x10 and 1x12 with vintage 30...

anyone want to compare the frequency matchup with 12inchers? Shane, how is it reminiscent of JCM800 to your ear?

I secretly really want this amp to work for me, so I could leave one at my practice space and just take my budda to gigs.

 

[luv]

i really want to like this amp too....but i'd definately pair it up with 1x12 cab for my current needs (home player). i can't find one locally to play, so i'd be going in blind.

 

[ShaneV]

you know, this amp seems wicked sweet. I played one at a guitar center a few months ago, and I really wasn't impressed. It sounded better than any of the JCM2000s that I'd played / owned (never owned one longer than 2 weeks though...), but the lack of verb made it inferior to most JCM900 dual verbs to my ear.

but, there is a fundamental logical error that I hadn't noticed until I started reading this thread- I played the Blackheart through the 1x10 full stack (2 1x10 blackheart cabs). Not sure what speakers are in the 1x10's, but they are undoubtably inferior to the 2x12 vintage30 or greenback cabs that I've used JCM800/900's with. Perhaps with even a blackheart 1x10 and 1x12 with vintage 30...

anyone want to compare the frequency matchup with 12inchers? Shane, how is it reminiscent of JCM800 to your ear?

I secretly really want this amp to work for me, so I could leave one at my practice space and just take my budda to gigs.

Well, I haven't got an 800 right here to A/B, but the Blackstar has more of that classic 80s Marshall vibe than you'd ever expect, easily nails a lot of the classic sounds of that era. A few things about it that are kind of idiosyncratic and may lead to some people not liking it are:

1: The controls are insanely sensitive. The slightest tweak to any of them can result n a drastic change in tone, they're also fully usable from off to full. It's very unlike an old marshall in this sense, and it can take a while of careful tweaking to maximize things. Even though it's voiced like an older amp, you have to approach and EQ it more like a newer amp, which I wasn't expecting. I actually had buyer's remorse for a second until I realized this.

2: The volume knob is key to getting a good sound. The HT-5 only has one 12AX7 in the preamp, but it can push it into ridiculous amounts of gain. Unfortunately, this gain quickly becomes almost unusable in my opinion, and raising the gain knob over 50% starts to get iffy. The good news is that the single power amp tube distorts beautifully and really smooths out and compliments the preamp. I find that running the volume at or above half really wakes everything up and starts to produce "the tone." This is actually pretty damn loud for home use though, even being just 5 watts. I'd think of it almost like an amp with dual gain knobs, like a JCM 900 or a Vintage Modern, because raising the volume knob is essential, and keeping the gain knob a little lower than your instincts might tell you is a good idea.

Basically, the HT-5 does not respond like any of my other amps, and actually took some time to learn, but once I did I was shocked at how much it sounds like a 100 watt amp. Some small amps just sound small (which can be cool, don't get me wrong, but isn't always what you're going for). The HT-5 sounds big.

 

[spkirby]

Never tried the stock Blackstar 10" cabs as I bought my HT5 head "blind" but plugged into my Celestion Greenback 1x12 it sounds really really nice. I do have a vintage 30 cab too but havent tried that combination yet. As I said earlier the cabinet will make a huge difference to the tone and while I'm sure the 10" cabs are fine I think us EBMM players might prefer to go more high end on the speaker front!

I agree with Shane...on the gain channel I set the gain control to 35-40% and it has more than enough welly for a really decent rock tone... I set the ISV about 25% off the full-on british sound...gives a nice blend to the tone.

 

[luv]

Anyone have any input as to whether this amp would sound better with an open back 1x12 or a closed back 1x12?

I'm considering a Budda 1x12 cab with the HT5 head....both open and closed back are available...pine cab with a Budda phat 12 speaker. Not sure about the speaker but I figured the pine cab would be a solid choice.

I'm playing mostly at home, so this would really be a practice amp played at low to mid volumes....occasionally loud.

Also open to other suggestions in a 112 cab......

 

[TonyEVH5150]

Closed back cabs tend to have tighter bass response and less treble. Open back tend to have better mids and treble, but less bass.

I've read that lower wattage amps tend to sound better with open back cabs. But it also depends on what kind of music you play.

 

[Hendog]

you know, this amp seems wicked sweet. I played one at a guitar center a few months ago, and I really wasn't impressed. It sounded better than any of the JCM2000s that I'd played / owned (never owned one longer than 2 weeks though...), but the lack of verb made it inferior to most JCM900 dual verbs to my ear.

but, there is a fundamental logical error that I hadn't noticed until I started reading this thread- I played the Blackheart through the 1x10 full stack (2 1x10 blackheart cabs). Not sure what speakers are in the 1x10's, but they are undoubtably inferior to the 2x12 vintage30 or greenback cabs that I've used JCM800/900's with. Perhaps with even a blackheart 1x10 and 1x12 with vintage 30...

anyone want to compare the frequency matchup with 12inchers? Shane, how is it reminiscent of JCM800 to your ear?

I secretly really want this amp to work for me, so I could leave one at my practice space and just take my budda to gigs.

Why not just play the Budda for practice too?

Anyone have any input as to whether this amp would sound better with an open back 1x12 or a closed back 1x12?

I'm considering a Budda 1x12 cab with the HT5 head....both open and closed back are available...pine cab with a Budda phat 12 speaker. Not sure about the speaker but I figured the pine cab would be a solid choice.

I'm playing mostly at home, so this would really be a practice amp played at low to mid volumes....occasionally loud.

Also open to other suggestions in a 112 cab......

I was going to go the other way and use a Budda head and a different cab. I have heard that the reason it is dark is because of the cab/speakers.

 

[SubMariner61]

Late to the thread (I find myself returning to the forum for reasons to be explained in a few days)...I owned the HT-5 stack and found it to be a reasonably well-executed mini-stack. I'll assume the 1x10 sounds equally at home in a bedroom or music room. However, contrary to what others have written, the amp doesn't really get crazy with the gain. Think Marshall JCM 800 with a tube screamer and you'd be just about spot-on. It doesn't offer up the liquid-gain without the assistance of a decent pedal. Be that as it may, it's a ridiculously good bargain for the price. Twenty years ago, for this kind of scratch (relative to the cost of living), you couldn't get squat for this particular price point. I A-B'd it against the Rebel 20 and it ate the Egnator alive for a useable moderate-gain house amp. the Rebel was too loud, even at its lowest setting, while the Blackstar could get you into Dokken-tones at levels just above a cell phone ring.

 

[TonyEVH5150]

I've been really happy with the sound I've been getting out of the gain channel. I think it does need assistance if you're going for a metal tone. but for a good overdriven rock tone, it'll get you there.

SubMariner, what you describe is exactly what I was looking for. A moderate gain amp for home use. I like the Egnators, but they were too loud, and they were out of my price range.

 

[thiscalltoarms]

Why not just play the Budda for practice too?



I was going to go the other way and use a Budda head and a different cab. I have heard that the reason it is dark is because of the cab/speakers.

I do currently, mostly I'd like a cheap amp that I can leave at my bands' practice space. I play a ton of projects and I can't leave my gear there. So a cheap amp at the space would be nice.

I had the same experience with the gain knob- I had it at about 10:00 and it was plenty for my tastes. It really was a good marshall tone. better than I've heard out of JCM 2000s, but the 8-900s still seem a bit superior despite the volume issue. I'll give it another shot at GC. Hopefully through a 4x12

 

[luv]

For those of you that have the HT-5 head....

does it take pedals well?
is the effects loop good? no obvious issues with the loop?

 

[TonyEVH5150]

I just hooked mine up after setting my pedalboard up. The trick is that the effects loop has a switchable level, depending on if your effects are at line level or guitar level. At the -10dBV setting (the one they recommend for guitar level effects), it's perfect for effects pedals.