Well, if you actually work and know how to save money to any extent $800 is not much, especially for a guitar amp. Anything under $500 is usually hot trash. Maybe get a new hobby.
Dudes, it‘s actually an reissue of a russian amp that was designed by an american, inspired by a british amp that copied an american amp, assembled in the US from chinese parts.
There is a russian guy who claimed that he had designed the actual MIG amps, he is still making MIGs and other amps and they are xeven cheaper than the ehx ones.
@@nedim_guitar he made me a clone of 5e3 a couple years ago and was is as good as the original one, then I moved from Russia (obviously why) and didn’t had a chance to ask him to make a Bassman clone or a MIG. His name is Leonid Musaev, he lives in Saint Petersburg and told a story that he was contacted by Mike Matthews in the early 90s to make a Marshall clone, Leonid made it but he didn’t have enough of production capacity to make the quantity Mike had asked for. So he prepared all the documentation, found the local contractors having 11$ from each MIG produced, but he said that later Mike (or his then girlfriend) contacted the contractor directly and removed the extra link in the form of Leonid. He still makes MIGs, legendary amp clones for 400ish USD per head and everything custom you could want from an amp.
@rhettshull 🙏🙏🙏 Awesome!!! Glad you were able to grab some tones that you dig. Run some drive pedals into it and hear it really roar! For clarity on the switches, not cheaping out. They are nice Carling switches and are not cheap in any way. This style was prescribed to us by our testing house. The metal bats certainly have a better "feel" but there's no reason to believe they would have a higher probability of failure/breakage than the metal bat version. Thanks!
Every review of the EHX version from people that have opened them up say the new ones are built much better than the old ones. Never touched one so YMMV.
You can’t really find an amp this good for cheaper though. You can get these on reverb for $550. Or just get a used fender deville for 350 and it’s the only amp you’ll ever need.
50watts is overkill, you can get a 15-20 watt combo with a speaker for £600.... like a vox ac15.... Who actually needs a 50watt now adays unless your gigging a massive venue and even then it has a PA?
Dude, get real. An amp that costs about 1000 dollars is expensive - especially when you can get a Bugera tube amp with similar specs for half as much. Not to mention amp modelers.
There are Aussie-made tube amps still! EB Amps, for one. I found two Marshall JTM30s, got one for 400 and another many years later for 800 AUD. Sometimes they need servicing, great amps!
Life long Peavey fan here. I bought a 160w all tube Peavey Road Master way back in 2011 because someone told me it is a more affordable alternative to a Sunn Model T. Only paid 150 bux for it since it had a blown fuse. Replaced the fuse and that thing was pumping 160w of ear splitting goodness. I also have a Marshall MG10 that I put a speaker output on so I could actually plug it into a decent set of speakers and that god damn stupid little amp sounds amazing. I am now thoroughly convinced that there really isn't such a thing as a bad amp. Bad speakers and bad guitars, absolutely but if you take a cheap shitty little practice amp like an MG10 or a Line 6 and play it through a decent set of speakers with a decent guitar, it will probably sound pretty great.
hmmm, maybe the mic type used in this demo. but it sounded flubby to me. loose bottom end and to much bass. i play a rectifier, accused of same issue, but, no way near as flubby as this. top end fizzy, not smooth and pleasing to the ear. mid focus on low mids. opening ramble on riff of old amp was the same. sorry, just being honest to what my ear heard.
It’s cool that they’re making a cheap tube amp that sounds good BUT You can get a 1968 fender bassman for less than $1000 any day of the week. I bought 2 for less than $500 in the same week. I promise you’ll be much happier.
everyone s**t talking how any amp under 500 is hot trash but i call that bs because when you mic up any amps and pair it with a good speaker they all sound the same.
$800 amp isn't expensive? what? for your "not expensive" amp I bought my used amp for $250, my used speaker for $100 and a bunch of pedals to get all the sounds I want and still would have enough money to 800$ left to take a plane to the US and yell "$800 amp IS expensive!"
snobbing in music gear makes no sense. get a good cab / speaker, and any well designed or thought out amp will be awesome. price tags dont mean shit in this time anymore ;)
The drive of this amp sounds so fuzzy in all demos. Like some really odd, kinda cheap fuzz. Is there any way to make it go past that and achieve the juice of a Marshall or Fender?
I always liked the Sovtek amps. I remember a few floating around the used gear shops. Now wish I’d have grabbed one. I’ll think about this head at Sweetwater. I need a shopping spree soon.
2:51 - I don't know? It sounds like you've become quite the salesman for Sweetwater, Hey, I guess I would too if they were sending me all sorts of free gear!
@@HandWiredAmpsYou might be right. It's tough because I know their prices are going up, but everyone's expendable income is going down as a result of broader price hikes, so a $300 price hike often feels more like a $500-$600 price hike. I feel like we are going back in time to when I was a kid when it comes to gear prices where even trash was expensive.
I like seeing your videos talking about gear, Rhett, although it's stuff I would probably never buy Something like a $800 amp would cost about 2400 dollars in my country because of the taxes and other stuff And my money is worth 5 times less so the minimum wage here is about $2/hr But anyway is nice to see this kind of stuff and dream about it
@@BravoSeven unfortunately no, I believe there would still be some taxes My main option is to buy a luthier's guitar, they are not as expensive as big brand guitars like fenders or gibsons, and they could be very decent
@@pietroborgesparri The problem is shipping prices, to the U.S., snd many other countries. RetroheadFX is an Argentinian company, but they only employed two or three people, when I first found them. They make the coolest Phaser I’ve ever seen, as far as it’s control set, and amount of different effects, one could get out of it. That is their Cosmic Phaser, and they used to have a analog Flanger, as well, with all the great parameters, snd ways to do different things. The Thorpy Camoflange, snd the Doppler phaser, use the same type of pedal enclosure, and pretty close to the same layout of controls. Very similar as RetroheadFX’s circuits. They sold them for for about $140-150 US, but the shipping was also $150. I still may get one their Phasers, one day, if they still build them. I’ve had a similar issue with a few small builders, doing cool stuff, but don’t have distribution, or a big enough clientele, time, etc. to commit to trying to be a bigger business, yet. Great pedals, at prices, half what it costs someone to build, in many European countries, Australia or even Japan, all have insane taxes on shipping. I remember finding Deep Trip, right before, they released their V2 BOG, and the line of Fuzz pedals, with it. Excellent Brazilian company! I wish I’d bought the phaser, when I found it.
I only play my mesa boogie, or my Marshall plexi , or my Fender hand-wired Twin Reverb. Or at least until I hear my wife say ”It’s time to get up for work, Bob!”
Is $800 really that cheap? Either way those MIGs are great little workhorses. I know what you mean though, I've been using a Lonestar in the studio for a few years but on the road for the last fifteen years I've been using a Hayden Peacemaker 60. Inexpensive and Chinese built but designed by Dave Green from Matamp/Ashdown and sounds killer with a really unique character.
The amp sounds good. I can get 99% the same tone from my Katana though for $200. I don’t know if I would present any tube amp as a reasonable budget solution.
Definitely a nice amp. If going with an amp without an effects loop I still prefer a Dual Terror though. I've seen a bunch of used ones for about 500. Marshall Origin 50 head is another option at around 600 bucks new.
for most people £800 is still unaffordable... i saved up as much money as i could to buy the valeton gp200lt for £250 and that was after a whole year of careful budgeting.
I had a Mig100H back when they were $300 brand new. Very clean, a great pedal platform but the “high gain” channel was very fizzy. I had it modified by Trace at Voodoo Amps which greatly improved it but I sold it to find another purchase. Not a big loss but like nearly all of my old gear I wish I still had it even though I wouldn’t likely use it much.
It would be nice if these videos were recorded just with a SM57 and no post processing. It is what most of us will have or have experienced, and would be one less factor to consider in the signal chain
Shhhhh! The Traynor YGL line has the nickname "Twin Killer" for a reason. You aren't supposed to talk about them, lest someone like Rhett does a video and drives the used price up! Pete Traynor designed them to be "less fragile" versions of the popular Fender amps: he was an amp tech in Toronto for a large music store and was tired of fixing everyone's busted twin reverbs. The things weigh a ton partly because of the enormous Hammond transformers he sourced and are too loud, but they are built like a tank as a result and have more headroom than anyone needs. The bad things about the amp are: 1) Too loud. 2) Too heavy. 3) Original speakers are not great.
Rhett please invite a good amp tech and gut'em out (amps, not techs). 10 minutes of your incredible playing followed by 5 minutes of technical review and soon you'll have best amp reviews on YT 😊. Real amps will die anyway, but maybe a strong demand for better engineering will slow down this process. If not, well built amps will be either extremely expensive or DIY ones.
If I remember correctly, I paid 350 for mine used from GC. Into my fender 2x12 bassbreaker closed back it sounds amazing. What Rhett doesn't show is how CLEAN and LOUD this thing is. I was nervous buying it as a pedal platform without an FX loop but it really isnt needed for any normal gig volumes. There's a short on my channel of it cranked with a jazzmaster if anyone is interested!
50 watts is freaking loud in 2023. I grew up gigging in the era of the original mig 50 amps. During that time I was generally always using two 40-50ish watt amps in my rig (super reverb and Marshall/bassman) . One was always on and the second was turned on and off for for crunchy stuff. Looking back, I cannot comprehend how loud we must have been but clubs were a lot bigger. I now live in Los Angeles and a super or 50 watt anything would get me fired. I'm getting ready to travel to Nashville for some shows in Sept and I'm trying to find something sub 20 watts to get through the gigs. A reissue of this classic is nice but in the hands of a kid, it's like a top-fueled funny car as a daily driver.
You and Rick always know how to inspire me to spend money, I swear! LOL I've been looking at 90's Sovteks for awhile now, but after watching this video, I pulled the trigger on a used EH Mig 50 from Reverb for under $600! Thanks Rhett!
"If it sounds good, it IS good" - solid advice, but I always have to consider how well built something is. If it doesn't travel well, it's useless except for home studio use. Not to come off as a "boutique snob", but so many of the modern mass-produced amps are made with cheap consumer grade components on a PCB. Some are pretty solid, many are not.
paid $306 new with free shipping for my Mig50 in like 96? This is at the time when dual rectifiers and jcm900/2000's ruled. The "metal" bands I shared a stage with would sneer at the "cheap" commie amp, right up until I blew them away with a p90 les paul... I still have it, and the Sovtek 4x10 cab, it still occasionally makes it out to shows with me, and its been abused like all my gear but it keeps on kicking out the jams. (still have that purple p90 LP too)
Yo guy! I don't need any amp at all these days. As good as the modelers have become I've shifted to them almost exclusively. I still crank up my Mesas or my JTM every once in a while but, when gigs come along it's almost always my Helix going into the van. Love your work Rhett. Keep it going...
800 isn’t bad for a tube amp. I think what works against this amp is that most think of EHX as a pedal company first and you generally won’t see this amp in stores because most won’t take the chance of putting one out there thinking it won’t sell. Plus you have everyone demo’ing this thing online saying buy it from x online retailer. 800 is a good price, but it’s a lot for most to risk on an amp they can’t play in person
Sorry to disagree. Nothing I have ever played sounds as good as the Mesa Express 5-50 Head+410 LonestarSpecial with Laney speakers I had, that cost me a full year of wage savings whilst still living with my parents in college. If anyone could tell me of one amp that sounds as good, please be my guest. I've tried too many to mention.
I still have my Mig 50 I purchased brand new from a store I worked at back in 1998. With the matching 2/12 cab I paid $380 for both. Back then that was cheap for a 50 watt head. Glad to see them getting popular again.
I bought the same amp head about a year and a half ago and kind of regret it. The EQ is just not very responsive on either channel in my opinion. You can’t seem to get the Bright channel to warm up enough And vice versa with the other channel. 🤷♂️
The real "secret" to using the MIg-50 is using a split-box or cable and going into both channels at the same time, and then balancing the overall EQ with the channel volumes, and then using it more as a clean "bassman" type pedal platform, in that regard it truly excells!
The MIG-50 is somewhere between lead and bass spec as far as Bassman derivatives go. The tone stack has the bass values and there is no bright cap on the bright channel volume (which is II on this amp), but the first tube and the PI coupling caps are lead spec. Me, I modified my MIG-50 to be fully bass spec, even adding a switch to disable the peaking cap so that it acts like a Bassman (as opposed to Marshall's derivatives). My amp is actually an earlier run and has metal toggle switches. I actually use this with a bass cabinet as a practice/recording amp. 50 watts is on the small side for bass, I'll see if it'll keep up for a gig tomorrow or if I'll end up with Lemmy distortion once I'm at gigging volume.
Hi ! I am bass player too but I am not native speaker so I have some trouble understanding the vocabulary here (and Google translate is not helping so much with this specific words...). Could you please explain what is the peaking cap, and the PI coupling caps ? Also do you manage to have clean tone with bass at low volume, or is there always a bit of dirt with this amp ? Because from demos I watched with guitars it looks like even as low as 1 there is some kind of dirt in the sound, I wonder if it is the same on bass... Thank you so much in advance !! 😊
True to the plastic power switch!! Man, that always seemed sketchy to me on the originals. But this reissue has the same vibe! ;^)> p.s. - I'm lookin' forward to your OR30 review!!
Sounds a tiny bit fizzy on my end. I own quite a few vintage Fender/Marshall and other brand amps but when I gig or rehearse I'll usually use one of my many converted 1950's- 60's PA's/Hi-Fi's which really sound beautiful.. Bring me an old PA or Hi Fi in decent condition with EL-84's, 6V6's, 6AQ5's, etc and I can convert into a Princeton, Tweed Deluxe, etc.... there are many choices (for small bottle amps) or a Plexi/JCM 800, Bassman,etc for big bottle amps (6L6, EL34, KT88 etc) for about $400 to $500 depending on the condition of the donor amp and which mods you prefer if any. Great sounding tube amps dont need to cost a small fortune......Cheers
I had a sovtek mig 50 and put hundreds of gigs on it…I was always worried it was gonna start on fire…the voltage is so high…had to replace the switches and jacks…but it was a cool amp…I’ve wanted to try one of these but they’re never in stock anywhere…yeah, through a 412 w greenbacks it’s an awesome ride!!!
![Dan Chooses A New Amp For His Wet-Dry Rig [JTM45 Vs Tweed Bassman Vs Sovtek MIG-50]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/S_1xnJsTQ5s/mqdefault.jpg)
I hope one day to be in a position where I would consider an $800 amp "not expensive".
lol yeah when I saw the title I was like "oh Rhett got a Katana" ...nope.
generally cheaper amps just are just throw aways if u play them all the time, so figure what 2 cheap amps will cost u and go from there
@@robertschultz4100cheaper amps are $400? That gets you into HRD territory. Guitar is just an expensive hobby and nothing better than decent is cheap.
Well, if you actually work and know how to save money to any extent $800 is not much, especially for a guitar amp. Anything under $500 is usually hot trash. Maybe get a new hobby.
$1699 in AUD fml
Dudes, it‘s actually an reissue of a russian amp that was designed by an american, inspired by a british amp that copied an american amp, assembled in the US from chinese parts.
Don't forget it was recorded partly using a german microphone!
LMAO 🤣😅😂
There is a russian guy who claimed that he had designed the actual MIG amps, he is still making MIGs and other amps and they are xeven cheaper than the ehx ones.
@@b10buzz Tell me more!
@@nedim_guitar he made me a clone of 5e3 a couple years ago and was is as good as the original one, then I moved from Russia (obviously why) and didn’t had a chance to ask him to make a Bassman clone or a MIG. His name is Leonid Musaev, he lives in Saint Petersburg and told a story that he was contacted by Mike Matthews in the early 90s to
make a Marshall clone, Leonid made it but he didn’t have enough of production capacity to make the quantity Mike had asked for. So he prepared all the documentation, found the local contractors having 11$ from each MIG produced, but he said that later Mike (or his then girlfriend) contacted the contractor directly and removed the extra link in the form of Leonid. He still makes MIGs, legendary amp clones for 400ish USD per head and everything custom you could want from an amp.
I’ve always wanted a Sovtek but since Josh from JHS seems to own them all I’m glad EHX decided to start making these they sound amazing
Because Josh Scott asked them to?
@rhettshull 🙏🙏🙏 Awesome!!! Glad you were able to grab some tones that you dig. Run some drive pedals into it and hear it really roar!
For clarity on the switches, not cheaping out. They are nice Carling switches and are not cheap in any way. This style was prescribed to us by our testing house. The metal bats certainly have a better "feel" but there's no reason to believe they would have a higher probability of failure/breakage than the metal bat version.
Thanks!
Can confirm. The switches on my Mig 50 feel pretty solid.
I had a MiG 60 once upon a time. It felt like if you blew on it too hard it'd fall apart, but damn did it sound good.
I just came here to say that, lol. Rhett is placing people's wallets in extreme jeopardy by suggesting this amp.
Every review of the EHX version from people that have opened them up say the new ones are built much better than the old ones. Never touched one so YMMV.
I used a Sovtex Bassov Blues Boy for like 5 years on loan from a friend and that thing felt like it could survive being shot by anti aircraft guns…
I still have a Mig 60 and it's tough as nails. I did re-cap and re-pot it though.
I used to have an original mig 50. Traded it for a Strat 15ish years ago before they blew up. One of the "ones that got away"
800 bucks is very expensive... most people are not rich, just saying...
You can’t really find an amp this good for cheaper though. You can get these on reverb for $550. Or just get a used fender deville for 350 and it’s the only amp you’ll ever need.
50watts is overkill, you can get a 15-20 watt combo with a speaker for £600.... like a vox ac15....
Who actually needs a 50watt now adays unless your gigging a massive venue and even then it has a PA?
,,You Don't Need An Expensive Amp" You just need expensive cabinet
Damn, I knew the inflation is out of control, but considering 800$ not expensive is crazy
It's CHEAP
Dude, get real.
An amp that costs about 1000 dollars is expensive - especially when you can get a Bugera tube amp with similar specs for half as much.
Not to mention amp modelers.
I’ll bet it’s twice the price if available in Australia. I’m definitely jealous of the stuff you guys can get and the prices.
There are Aussie-made tube amps still! EB Amps, for one. I found two Marshall JTM30s, got one for 400 and another many years later for 800 AUD. Sometimes they need servicing, great amps!
@@johnvcougar I agree that there’s great Aussie stuff around. It would just be nice to have the access to everything at reasonable prices.
Move to the United States. We have ALL the gear...and at least 500 less creatures that can kill us.
Life long Peavey fan here. I bought a 160w all tube Peavey Road Master way back in 2011 because someone told me it is a more affordable alternative to a Sunn Model T. Only paid 150 bux for it since it had a blown fuse. Replaced the fuse and that thing was pumping 160w of ear splitting goodness. I also have a Marshall MG10 that I put a speaker output on so I could actually plug it into a decent set of speakers and that god damn stupid little amp sounds amazing. I am now thoroughly convinced that there really isn't such a thing as a bad amp. Bad speakers and bad guitars, absolutely but if you take a cheap shitty little practice amp like an MG10 or a Line 6 and play it through a decent set of speakers with a decent guitar, it will probably sound pretty great.
Had a Peavey Duece - loved it!! Have a Peavey “Reknown”, have played it for 25 years. I love it! I still get positive remarks from audiences.
nah im sorry but 800 dollars is still a lotta money. i dont get how the guitar community is able to afford so expensive stuff.
hmmm, maybe the mic type used in this demo. but it sounded flubby to me. loose bottom end and to much bass. i play a rectifier, accused of same issue, but, no way near as flubby as this. top end fizzy, not smooth and pleasing to the ear. mid focus on low mids. opening ramble on riff of old amp was the same. sorry, just being honest to what my ear heard.
You don’t need an expensive amp! Just a 4x12 Marshall cab probably loaded with good speakers, mic’d up with good recording production equipment
When the cab costs more expensive than amp 😂
BOOOOOOOOOOO BUYING RUSSIAN TUBES! EHX DOING BUSINESS IN RUSSIA! SHAME ON YOU!
This and Traynor YBA-1 under 800.
All.day.long.
It’s cool that they’re making a cheap tube amp that sounds good BUT You can get a 1968 fender bassman for less than $1000 any day of the week.
I bought 2 for less than $500 in the same week. I promise you’ll be much happier.
Rhett kinda reminds me of my gramma in the best possible way !!
Remember the Russian amp "RedBear" ? I knew a dude who used to play one . Rhett , are you sure you are not pushing stuff for Sweetwater ? LOL
everyone s**t talking how any amp under 500 is hot trash but i call that bs because when you mic up any amps and pair it with a good speaker they all sound the same.
$800 amp isn't expensive? what?
for your "not expensive" amp I bought my used amp for $250, my used speaker for $100 and a bunch of pedals to get all the sounds I want and still would have enough money to 800$ left to take a plane to the US and yell "$800 amp IS expensive!"
snobbing in music gear makes no sense. get a good cab / speaker, and any well designed or thought out amp will be awesome. price tags dont mean shit in this time anymore ;)
I love the combination of creative camera work and insightful gear review on this video man. Keep it coming!
SICK!!! Instead of saving up my money I'll just grab an $800 amp and $1500 cab and $4000 guitar💯💯💯
You and Philip work really well together with the question/answer back and forth.
The drive of this amp sounds so fuzzy in all demos. Like some really odd, kinda cheap fuzz. Is there any way to make it go past that and achieve the juice of a Marshall or Fender?
“Vintage, from the ‘90’s” fuck I’m old
I always liked the Sovtek amps. I remember a few floating around the used gear shops. Now wish I’d have grabbed one. I’ll think about this head at Sweetwater. I need a shopping spree soon.
2:51 - I don't know? It sounds like you've become quite the salesman for Sweetwater, Hey, I guess I would too if they were sending me all sorts of free gear!
Is it really unfiltered when we are talking about amps, lol?! 😉 😂😂😂
This was a better deal just 2 years ago when it was only 599. I feel at 799 there is a lot of competition that beats it out.
And it was $638 a few months back. Wasn't it originally $379-$399 like 3-4 years ago? Not blaming EHX on the current price, it's everywhere.
$800 for an amp with no FX loop.. hard pass.
@@HandWiredAmpsYou might be right. It's tough because I know their prices are going up, but everyone's expendable income is going down as a result of broader price hikes, so a $300 price hike often feels more like a $500-$600 price hike. I feel like we are going back in time to when I was a kid when it comes to gear prices where even trash was expensive.
I like seeing your videos talking about gear, Rhett, although it's stuff I would probably never buy
Something like a $800 amp would cost about 2400 dollars in my country because of the taxes and other stuff
And my money is worth 5 times less so the minimum wage here is about $2/hr
But anyway is nice to see this kind of stuff and dream about it
@@vandal_dk it is a 2004 brazilian hand-made strat from Giannini
It costed me 60 dollars (the pfp is not me, I have a red one)
Brasileiro identificado kkkkkkk tamo na merda
@@BravoSeven unfortunately no, I believe there would still be some taxes
My main option is to buy a luthier's guitar, they are not as expensive as big brand guitars like fenders or gibsons, and they could be very decent
@@pietroborgesparri
The problem is shipping prices, to the U.S., snd many other countries.
RetroheadFX is an Argentinian company, but they only employed two or three people, when I first found them.
They make the coolest Phaser I’ve ever seen, as far as it’s control set, and amount of different effects, one could get out of it. That is their Cosmic Phaser, and they used to have a analog Flanger, as well, with all the great parameters, snd ways to do different things. The Thorpy Camoflange, snd the Doppler phaser, use the same type of pedal enclosure, and pretty close to the same layout of controls. Very similar as RetroheadFX’s circuits.
They sold them for for about $140-150 US, but the shipping was also $150. I still may get one their Phasers, one day, if they still build them. I’ve had a similar issue with a few small builders, doing cool stuff, but don’t have distribution, or a big enough clientele, time, etc. to commit to trying to be a bigger business, yet. Great pedals, at prices, half what it costs someone to build, in many European countries, Australia or even Japan, all have insane taxes on shipping.
I remember finding Deep Trip, right before, they released their V2 BOG, and the line of Fuzz pedals, with it. Excellent Brazilian company!
I wish I’d bought the phaser, when I found it.
@@BravoSevenImport taxes are way too high in south America
You must be Warren fucking Buffett if $800 isn’t expensive!
My main rig consists of a Crate Powerblock, a couple of pedals (or a Korg Toneworks cigarette box) and a no-name 2X12 cabinet.
Grand Total? $150.
😄
it's too fuzzy, muddy and jangly. I'll stick to good ol boosted marshalls
Why did this video feel so fake and staged? Everything felt rehearsed. Not very organic at all. Not really a fan of that vibe.
Does anyone else think that Rhett would look much more interesting if grew an afro?
I only play my mesa boogie, or my Marshall plexi , or my Fender hand-wired Twin Reverb. Or at least until I hear my wife say ”It’s time to get up for work, Bob!”
I seriously wonder how these guys get their money, to think 800$ is cheap.
799 - mine is literally 180 bucks 😂😂😂
Lol I'd consider an amp over $400 to be expensive...
Is $800 really that cheap? Either way those MIGs are great little workhorses. I know what you mean though, I've been using a Lonestar in the studio for a few years but on the road for the last fifteen years I've been using a Hayden Peacemaker 60. Inexpensive and Chinese built but designed by Dave Green from Matamp/Ashdown and sounds killer with a really unique character.
Have you ever tried one of the Synergy amps?
The amp sounds good. I can get 99% the same tone from my Katana though for $200. I don’t know if I would present any tube amp as a reasonable budget solution.
I love that they reissued the MIG, but should say Sovtek on the front. The EHX badge just doesn't have the vibe
Orange OR15. About $500 on the used market. Surprisingly loud for what it is.
Definitely a nice amp. If going with an amp without an effects loop I still prefer a Dual Terror though. I've seen a bunch of used ones for about 500. Marshall Origin 50 head is another option at around 600 bucks new.
Love this Geartalk segments you’re doing, Always cool to see a piece of gear I own manipulated by a different musician.
rhett u can use an ABY pedal and blend both inputs, u should try it!
You HAVE to!!!
for most people £800 is still unaffordable...
i saved up as much money as i could to buy the valeton gp200lt for £250 and that was after a whole year of careful budgeting.
great video! thanks for this... ha! who knew?!
aaaaaaaaaaand the price goes thru the roof
All i can say is I bought the 50w Boss Katana combo, and I haven't touched my tube amps in a while, haha.
I had a Mig100H back when they were $300 brand new. Very clean, a great pedal platform but the “high gain” channel was very fizzy. I had it modified by Trace at Voodoo Amps which greatly improved it but I sold it to find another purchase. Not a big loss but like nearly all of my old gear I wish I still had it even though I wouldn’t likely use it much.
I was hoping he would put that Tonebender mk1 thru it, LOVE that PEDAL.
It would be nice if these videos were recorded just with a SM57 and no post processing. It is what most of us will have or have experienced, and would be one less factor to consider in the signal chain
You absolutely must do a video on old Traynor amps. Hand made in Canada. Tubes, baby! Killer tones too.
Shhhhh! The Traynor YGL line has the nickname "Twin Killer" for a reason. You aren't supposed to talk about them, lest someone like Rhett does a video and drives the used price up!
Pete Traynor designed them to be "less fragile" versions of the popular Fender amps: he was an amp tech in Toronto for a large music store and was tired of fixing everyone's busted twin reverbs. The things weigh a ton partly because of the enormous Hammond transformers he sourced and are too loud, but they are built like a tank as a result and have more headroom than anyone needs. The bad things about the amp are:
1) Too loud.
2) Too heavy.
3) Original speakers are not great.
I picked up a used Bugera 50w tube head from guitar center for $390 and it sounds great and it’s been my main gigging amp for a while.
Rhett please invite a good amp tech and gut'em out (amps, not techs). 10 minutes of your incredible playing followed by 5 minutes of technical review and soon you'll have best amp reviews on YT 😊. Real amps will die anyway, but maybe a strong demand for better engineering will slow down this process. If not, well built amps will be either extremely expensive or DIY ones.
If I remember correctly, I paid 350 for mine used from GC. Into my fender 2x12 bassbreaker closed back it sounds amazing. What Rhett doesn't show is how CLEAN and LOUD this thing is. I was nervous buying it as a pedal platform without an FX loop but it really isnt needed for any normal gig volumes. There's a short on my channel of it cranked with a jazzmaster if anyone is interested!
Checked it out, it’s sick!
50 watts is freaking loud in 2023. I grew up gigging in the era of the original mig 50 amps. During that time I was generally always using two 40-50ish watt amps in my rig (super reverb and Marshall/bassman) . One was always on and the second was turned on and off for for crunchy stuff. Looking back, I cannot comprehend how loud we must have been but clubs were a lot bigger. I now live in Los Angeles and a super or 50 watt anything would get me fired. I'm getting ready to travel to Nashville for some shows in Sept and I'm trying to find something sub 20 watts to get through the gigs. A reissue of this classic is nice but in the hands of a kid, it's like a top-fueled funny car as a daily driver.
30 watts is the new 50 😁 A Princeton with a 12" speaker or an AC15 (or one of each😈) should cover just about any indoor gig.
No kidding. I'm considering the Marshall JTM Studio simply for the JTM tones but at a more "reasonable" 20w.
Watch as Rhett Shull convinces me to buy a Line-6 spider next episode.
You and Rick always know how to inspire me to spend money, I swear! LOL I've been looking at 90's Sovteks for awhile now, but after watching this video, I pulled the trigger on a used EH Mig 50 from Reverb for under $600! Thanks Rhett!
You're always just one more amp or guitar away from having all the gear you'll ever need! LOL
@@ElevenProductionsIndy That’s what my wife says!
"If it sounds good, it IS good" - solid advice, but I always have to consider how well built something is. If it doesn't travel well, it's useless except for home studio use. Not to come off as a "boutique snob", but so many of the modern mass-produced amps are made with cheap consumer grade components on a PCB. Some are pretty solid, many are not.
paid $306 new with free shipping for my Mig50 in like 96? This is at the time when dual rectifiers and jcm900/2000's ruled. The "metal" bands I shared a stage with would sneer at the "cheap" commie amp, right up until I blew them away with a p90 les paul... I still have it, and the Sovtek 4x10 cab, it still occasionally makes it out to shows with me, and its been abused like all my gear but it keeps on kicking out the jams. (still have that purple p90 LP too)
I have one of those. I got it for $350 at a shop in Memphis and it was lightly used with box. I run it through a Marshall 2x12.
$800 is not exactly cheap
Electroharmonix' is Undeniably OneHundred Percent American Electro Audio Royalty! 👑 _and Bill Rupert' is the Fret Wizard of the Castle✨🎼
Yo guy! I don't need any amp at all these days. As good as the modelers have become I've shifted to them almost exclusively. I still crank up my Mesas or my JTM every once in a while but, when gigs come along it's almost always my Helix going into the van. Love your work Rhett. Keep it going...
Modelers sound good, but they just don’t do it for me, especially playing live nothing beats an amp moving Air.
I haven't used an amp on a session in about three years. My back thanks me every day.
No thanks
yeah man its ONLY 800$
But… that is an expensive amp.
You dont need an expensive amp…….meanwhile, 15k worth of amps in the background lol. Just busting your balls, Rhett! Still love your content!
Nobody really needs an expensive amp; an full tubes one over 50w it's enough. Engl E650 Blackmore Signature may be an excellent choice.
I have sooooo many amps. And I’ve learned you can get almost any amp to do what you want with the right pedals and the like.
800 isn’t bad for a tube amp. I think what works against this amp is that most think of EHX as a pedal company first and you generally won’t see this amp in stores because most won’t take the chance of putting one out there thinking it won’t sell. Plus you have everyone demo’ing this thing online saying buy it from x online retailer. 800 is a good price, but it’s a lot for most to risk on an amp they can’t play in person
Sorry to disagree.
Nothing I have ever played sounds as good as the Mesa Express 5-50 Head+410 LonestarSpecial with Laney speakers I had, that cost me a full year of wage savings whilst still living with my parents in college.
If anyone could tell me of one amp that sounds as good, please be my guest. I've tried too many to mention.
Long time Sovtek fan. People sleep on input 2 of the MIG 50. This is the way. Also, there’s interaction between the two volumes.
Rhett, this new video style from you is great. Just fucking great, 10/10 love the camera man talk especially
Tooo fuzzy and crackly
This amp is on my list. I really want one.
For $799, you could get a used HX Stomp and a small powered speaker. That is 96 amps for under $8.32 each.
I could never find the sweet spot on either channel as the EQ was just not responsive enough for my taste. I let my friend have it for $300.👊
I still have my Mig 50 I purchased brand new from a store I worked at back in 1998. With the matching 2/12 cab I paid $380 for both. Back then that was cheap for a 50 watt head. Glad to see them getting popular again.
I bought the same amp head about a year and a half ago and kind of regret it. The EQ is just not very responsive on either channel in my opinion. You can’t seem to get the Bright channel to warm up enough And vice versa with the other channel. 🤷♂️
Wow it really sounds awesome. $800 bucks? I just saw one sell online for $575 used. Now that is a bargain!
Kuddo's for actually recording cabinets with Microphones. That is the only way to go imho.
$799 is expensive lol
It has it's own sound and is just a great rock'nroll amp. It's not a Marshall. It's not a Fender.
The real "secret" to using the MIg-50 is using a split-box or cable and going into both channels at the same time, and then balancing the overall EQ with the channel volumes, and then using it more as a clean "bassman" type pedal platform, in that regard it truly excells!
this wouldn't mess with the impedance?
@@diegozz10can’t see how, it’s pretty much running in to a plexi, just having the channels jumpered inside instead of a 4 hole solution
@@RichardLainegard thanks✅
$800 is expensive af
Sadly, I had to be the one to make it 421 likes - but I couldn't NOT like this video. =)
Surprisingly good. Not much to hate on except that switch.
800 is still expensive
The MIG-50 is somewhere between lead and bass spec as far as Bassman derivatives go. The tone stack has the bass values and there is no bright cap on the bright channel volume (which is II on this amp), but the first tube and the PI coupling caps are lead spec. Me, I modified my MIG-50 to be fully bass spec, even adding a switch to disable the peaking cap so that it acts like a Bassman (as opposed to Marshall's derivatives). My amp is actually an earlier run and has metal toggle switches.
I actually use this with a bass cabinet as a practice/recording amp. 50 watts is on the small side for bass, I'll see if it'll keep up for a gig tomorrow or if I'll end up with Lemmy distortion once I'm at gigging volume.
Hi !
I am bass player too but I am not native speaker so I have some trouble understanding the vocabulary here (and Google translate is not helping so much with this specific words...).
Could you please explain what is the peaking cap, and the PI coupling caps ?
Also do you manage to have clean tone with bass at low volume, or is there always a bit of dirt with this amp ? Because from demos I watched with guitars it looks like even as low as 1 there is some kind of dirt in the sound, I wonder if it is the same on bass...
Thank you so much in advance !! 😊
True to the plastic power switch!! Man, that always seemed sketchy to me on the originals. But this reissue has the same vibe! ;^)>
p.s. - I'm lookin' forward to your OR30 review!!
Weird, mine came out with and still has, steel switches.
this doesn't sound very good at all. I'm not sure why you think I don't need a better amp.
Sounds a tiny bit fizzy on my end. I own quite a few vintage Fender/Marshall and other brand amps but when I gig or rehearse I'll usually use one of my many converted 1950's- 60's PA's/Hi-Fi's which really sound beautiful.. Bring me an old PA or Hi Fi in decent condition with EL-84's, 6V6's, 6AQ5's, etc and I can convert into a Princeton, Tweed Deluxe, etc.... there are many choices (for small bottle amps) or a Plexi/JCM 800, Bassman,etc for big bottle amps (6L6, EL34, KT88 etc) for about $400 to $500 depending on the condition of the donor amp and which mods you prefer if any. Great sounding tube amps dont need to cost a small fortune......Cheers
I had a sovtek mig 50 and put hundreds of gigs on it…I was always worried it was gonna start on fire…the voltage is so high…had to replace the switches and jacks…but it was a cool amp…I’ve wanted to try one of these but they’re never in stock anywhere…yeah, through a 412 w greenbacks it’s an awesome ride!!!