I love to hear that brotha, just bought one 2 days ago. Used at a great price. Never played one but EXTREMELY SATISFIED with the pure raw power the little F er puts out .. 👍 never played a orange ever . I love it. It is loud as S through a 1x 12 celestion home made cab.
Hughes & Kettner make insanely great stuff. Their Tubemeister and Grandmeister heads are some of the best value tube amps out there with crap tons of features. So it’s no surprise even their tiny home practice amps kick ass too.
I own an Orange Micro Dark and for rehearsal it definately is loud enough to keep up with a drummer, bass player and a singer on a PA. I had it on about 2-3 and was plenty loud enough (I was running into a Laney 2x12 with Celestion 30th anniversary speakers @8ohms) It sounded alright! By that I ment I had an EHX soul food (volume and gain at 12 o'clock and the treble up full) to brighten it up and not loose too much bottom end. With out it, the sound was quite dark which I also found when I was running it through a 1x12 at home (Celestion V Type speaker). It sounded dark and kind of muddy with a loose low end.... but there wasnt that much low end (if that makes sence) Running the front end of the Micro Dark into the power section of my Marshall DSL40CR made it sound a shed load better for sure..... I still think it's great for the money and it's much easier taking it to practice than lugging around my Marshall combo but bare in mind it needs an overdrive or an EQ to brighten it up.... also there isn't as much gain as you think there is which is a good thing even for metal because it does have really good versatility from that perspective. So yeah, solid 7/10 from me. As for the others, I couldn't say.... but..... I have noticed that the price of the bigger Orange "Dark Terror" has come down in price to about £380 brand new from some shops... so while £250 is still cheaper than £380, I think I'd at least check out the Dark Terror as well as the Friedman Mini and the Deizel Mini because the little bit extra spend might be worth it.... (Not that the Friedman or the Deizel sounded bad.... not at all.. they sounded awesome! And you still couldn't go wrong buying either IMO)
Always worth remembering that this is created by a retailer. They make great vids so that you will learn about the product, but also likely want to buy the product. In addition to that, showing products that are affordable is a better move. Selling 2 amp heads at $2000 or, selling 20 at the $500-1000 dollar mark? Math speaks for itself.
@@jameshall2219 I think the channel comes across even more favorably when you remember that sales is their goal. Because let's face it they're not very salesy. They're presenting the gear but they're pretty honest about it. Much, much moreso than any of the paid "influencers" doing gear demos on RUclips. Even Lee is not afraid to share a lukewarm or negative opinion about something.
Agree , there's a unique sound with Orange amps. They are simple with no frills but sound raw , i have an RT35 that i run my pedals through and it sounds amazing....
The new Friedman mini came out and I was thinking: “man, should I get rid of my micro dark for one of those?” Now that concern is gone, the micro dark sounded leagues better!
Yeah i don't know what it is , but orange has it's own tone and it's just simple no frills kick ass! I have an orange crush rt 35 that i run my pedals through and it just sounds killer...
I bought a micro dark over a micro terror because the cleans were more interesting to me from the demos.. not quite F type cleans but with the eq section set around 2 pm, the slightly scooped mids through an open 2x10 really impressed me. The gain structure is aggressive but I tune down and like to get droney/doomy sometimes.. I have a TS type pedal for lower gain tones.
I have it and you just have to be extra careful with the gain because it starts to compress the signal hard. The cleans are fantastic though and on the edge of breakup with some pedals is where it shines IMO.
@@harshtruth9148 They're only running the plate voltage at about 20v. It's only used to filter and smooth the distortion not as an actual part of the circuit.
@@scottdunn2178 it plays like a tube amp and sounds like a tube amp, who gives a f*** what exactly the tube does. Whatever they did, they did it bloody well.
@@alexwoolridge94aw Excellent , someone is selling one on craigs list in my area in "like new" condition for $115 , i think i'm going to pull the trigger on it then...
That Tele is a real show stealer! Started out with wishing you guys default this demo on a high output humbucker like the what 7 had, but the Tele delivered. Its not the hero we asked for, but the one we need.
I have two of the Orange amps (one Terror Stamp and one Micro Dark) in a teenie tiny stereo rig with 2 Orange PPC108s. They're awesome AND you can change the valve to get slightly different tones. such amazing value and plenty loud enough for this little box room that I play in.
Hi I need help Do you have to have a aby switch to switch the micro dark and terror stamp, also do you connect both amps with 2 speaker cables to speakers, how do you bridge or stereo them together?
@@redstrat5976 It depends what else you have in your signal chain. In my current setup I'm not using an ABY. Instead I have a stereo Delay pedal and Stereo Reverb pedal in the FX Loop. Basically I have the Terror Stamp set up as my main amp with the guitar plugged into that. Then the FX Loop Send goes to my Stereo Delay Pedal. That converts the sound to Stereo, two outputs from that into my Stereo Reverb. Then one of the outputs from the Reverb goes to the FX Return of the Terror Stamp and the other goes to the FX return of the Micro Dark. Basically all the Micro Dark is being used for in my rig is a power amp to drive the 2nd Cab. Yes, two speaker cables are used. One from the Terror Stamp to the 1st cab and another from the Micro Dark to the 2nd Cab. HOWEVER, my reason for doing this is that I have a Kraken V4 pre-amp connected to my Terror Stamp in the 4 Cable method and I haven't quite got around to setting up the other way with the ABY. You see, the other way it can be set up is with the Guitar signal split by an ABY and then run into the Guitar-In of each amp. Then the FX Send of Amp 1 goes to the Stereo R input of the Delay and the FX Send of Amp 2 goes to the Stereo L input of the delay....same for the FX returns. Then you can blend 2 different amp sounds but running different Shape and Gain settings on the 2 amps. I have a cheapy cheap ABY which I haven't got connected at the moment, but it's only one or two connections away from adding that amp blending to my rig. Just haven't got around to it yet. IF you don't have stereo FX pedals, I'm not sure the best method unless you already have loads of FX pedals on hand and are happy running 2 reverbs and 2 delays (one per amp). Good Luck
@@MegaAndyGG it's ok. with enough eq you could make it work. It's probably better to just run the efx send into your recording rig and use ir's and cab sims from there. Cheers!
Great demo! Always a good laugh to be had. One thing to offer: so many amp demos are primarily focused on the bridge pickup. I do understand that current musical trends are geared towards gigantic, high-gain bridge pickup sounds, and I totally get that. But old war horses like me need to hear what an amp can do when put through its paces using neck, middle, and bridge positions at the very least. If it can’t cover those bases, then you end up with another one trick pony to add to the pile. Ironically, the man who produced the greatest bridge pickup tone of all time, Edward Van Halen, eventually went on to build guitars and amps that sound incredible regardless of the pickup choice or the amount of gain. For me, that opens the door to a wide range of colors to choose from. In future demos, please give us the whole picture. You both certainly have the chops and a great ear for tone. With the addition of displaying a greater variety of tones, your gear demos will reign supreme. Thanks for hearing me out!
I've just bought a Micro Dark after seeing this vid. I immediately changed the valve to a GE 5751 and the difference is astonishing, it was great fun before but now? My word! Its fair to say that the new valve is one of immense quality, probably one of the very best available...and its worth as much as the amp! I had planned to do the change before I ordered the amplifier, and I'm delighted. ( I actually got something right at last!)
@@MegaAndyGG Look here fuckstick,..If it were my ears,..nothing would sound good and plenty does sound good, just not this. Now run along sport and don't forget to brush your teeth.
I got a Positive Grid Spark amp a few months ago. Its pretty good as I dont have any space for a pedal board in my bedroom. Would recommend the amp to anyone looking for a good practice amp. Only issue is it has quite a lot of bass as its made to be able to play drum tracks through
I have the orange. I have used it at punk gigs. But i had two amps running at the same time: usually a 5150 on one cab and then the orange micro in another cab. The orange micro dark in my opinion is not loud enough to gig on its own if the amp is not mic'd. Hope this helps for anyone considering!
What about styles other than punk? Do you think it could stand its own in a 2 guitar/bass/drums/vocals situation unmiced for soul, jazz, RnB stuff? We mostly play bars and small clubs. Thx in advance
@@xebio6 Yes it would work great for that style, but i would recommend getting the 15 watt tube versions instead for your situation. You can find them used and are fairly affordable.
@@xebio6 yes that and the dark terror. that combined with a 2x12 cab should be loud enough un-mic'd for your style. If not than you could go with the orange dual terror which is 30 watts. All three of those heads are very versatile for many different styles.
I’ve got the next stage up from the micro terror and got the Dark Terror, amazing little amp paired with an Orange 2x12 cab. Tbh too loud for my bedroom that it’s set up in.
I like that Chappers is critical of the products, but also very honest and fair. Even though these amps are quite the bargain, Chappers’ criticism is still valid.
Bought an orange micro dark after seeing Laura cox demo,whch led me to your page.Bought my second amp peavey 6505mh after seeing you both demo it,years back.Content for now!
For me, and my intended use, the choice would be between the Friedman and the H&K. Diezel felt a bit to much shredder amp, even if it wasn't best sounding, I thought. Orange, well I never really liked them, party due to the looks and some quality issues I have heard about, but here they sounded ok and most bang for the buck.
I'm looking at a little micro dark right now- for 100 bucks, think I'll go ahead and nab it. My tube amp tore up a year ago and I started using the Headrush MX5- I've been wanting to get something analogue, preferably valve powered again- but everything is so expensive. This is a great deal though- 100 bucks for that, that's a steal. And I can use my old tube amp as a cab now- should be able tom set this head right on top of it and plug the speaker into it- viola. Either that or, I could just come out of the send on the fx loop and go into a reverb/delay pedal, and then into my powered cab- it's a class D amp just like the Micro Dark, it's just a lot more than 20w. I'll just have to experiment with it and see what sounds better. My old tube amp has a Celestion cream back heavy mag in it- which is a lot better speaker than what's in my Headrush cab. I wonder if I could run it into a sound board that way- directly out of the send, into my reverb and delay- then to the front of house or to the soundboard we use at practice. It should work but, Idk what it will sound like.
These all sound great with a gain tone dialed in, but there's no clean tone at a gigging volume with any of those. I think the best setup for that would be the BE and the Diezel in stereo with a 3rd clean amp in the center
Bought the Squier Tele from Andertons a few weeks ago and it’s great. Sanded the neck to satin and added custom shop pickups, but now think I prefer it to my Fender Strat and Gibson LP…
I know it's unlikely, but I would LOVE to see a video with just Pete and Rob discussing a product. I feel like their dynamic hasn't been explored enough on this channel.
I agree, they are 2 ends of the spectrum and the combination of opinions they would offer would cover a lot of bases. Also the two of them jamming would definitely be interesting, different and more than likely awesome.
Still bummed I got a Squier thinline master series HH and not an SS version. One day I'll install some push pull knobs to coil tap the Duncan designed pups. Just bought an Orange 8" cab. Gonna try it thru my crate v33 2x12 tube amp as soon as I get a speaker cable
@@dustinpowell6297 did it make it more manageable volume-wise? Because I find it still much too loud for apartment playing as it needs to be pushed to sound good!
@@flaneursong78 Nah, more of a headroom thing. Smoothed out the gain of the the ultragain channel and made it much easier to get JPM and JCM era sounds. It also opened up the lower midrange which I though was a little too compressed and muffled before the swap. Volume remained the same though. Don't forget about the .1watt switch on the back. After that the only way to get quieter is a less efficient speaker.
Think the orange was by far the most versatile! Decent cleans and orange growl with more gain, thought the others were toys samey over gain generic metal sounds , basically eye candy, same tones from most modelling amps , I think I just buy a terror stomp as it’s smaller and has the sounds of the micro dark!
@@jconner3891 That's what they copied, but they're 209 pounds where the Blackstar HT5H is 429 pounds, and this is a video about small amps under 300 pounds. The Bugera is every bit as good as the Blackstar as well.
Seems like all solid state amps sound worse the louder they're played, at least the lower wattage ones do. I know Dimebag played 100 watt solid state Randalls on Pantera's early albums and it sounded good. But these may work live with a mic in front of it into a decent p.a. system
I like how Rob say, what he thinks and how passionate he is, when he plays something he likes. It jumps out of the video on you. Was kinda missing that direct opinion lately. Also he is much more familiar with playing gainy amps, then both Pete and Lee. Great video. The Friedman sounded as what it is, great solid state amp. But the Orange smashed both Friedman and Diezel ... Well done Orange. But winner of this video is that black Tele
If you want a "micro head" that does everything BUT metal....get a Crate Powerblock. Stereo FX loop and stereo amps. Good cleans and a decent rock/blues overdrive. Takes pedals well...so put your best boost/drive for metal tones. I actually used it for an emergency PA amp one time.
For all around best sound I have to say the Hughes & Kettner was the top dog. The Friedman did have a better gain sound but not at performance level volumes. I think that if you wanted a little amp that could be universally applicable as a practice, session, and small venue unit the H&K spirit of rock had the best potential. It also seemed to have the most amount of headroom without losing its character. By the way using a thinline single coil tele for those styles of music is not commonplace by any means, but IMO, sounded amazing! Kudos! Glad to see Rob back in the Anderton's studio and hope to see more Chappers & the Captain videos.
Strangely enough, I've watched other reviews of the Diezel mini and it slayed. It didn't seem to want to play with those single coils at all in this one.
Some amps love gain... it's kind of like with cars if you're going to stick a turbo kit on a motor they work okay with high output but turbo a low compression motor and you'll be drifting the neighborhood in no time LOL (sorry about using an apples to pork chops analogy lol... but in the same right where they are both very different they are also both incredibly the same)
btw, just like in the computer parts world, when demoing new gear you also have to use high end other gear around it so there is no bottleneck in showing the quality of the demo piece of gear
For me the winning amp has to be the winner as the only amp in this video with a real clean sound. The H&K definitely has its place but to me the lack of a clean sound is just too limiting even though it had the best overdrive sound and was the loudest. Personally, I am mostly impressed by that Squire Telecaster. That is one model that I think Squire should make one of its regular series. The black semi-hollow body with the brushed aluminium scratch plate just looks awesome and it sounds great too. BTW if you believe that is a potato masher and not Pete making up an excuse to feature sex toys in the videos...
mind you all this gain coming out of single coils not even some buckers haha. I love my micro dark through a Warehouse (WGS) 10 inch vintage Veteran speaker. Absolute crunch master
It's a different thing, although there's certainly a crossover. There are more traditional small-form-factor amp heads that you can use for rehearsals/gigging and plug a pedal-board into. You can, for instance, plug them into a small 1x8 cabinet at home for practice use, or plug them into a 1x12 or 4x12 in a studio. The Spark is a combo practice amp. It's stuck with a fairly crappy pair of 4in speakers and, without modding it in a serious way, you can't plug it into an external cab. On the other hand, it works pretty well as a Bluetooth speaker, which traditional lunchbox amps don't. Realistically, you couldn't use the Spark for gigging or even for most rehearsals. They call it "40 watts", but it's nowhere near as loud as the Orange Micro/Dark Terror which is rated at 20W (using Watts as a measurement of how loud amps are is pretty nonsensical anyway). As I say, they are different things which will appeal to people for different reasons. If you are going to make comparisons to other "portable" amps, I would include the THR10II which, IMO, is a much better amp than the Spark (although it's more expensive). And, for the same money as the Spark, you can get a Katana 50 which isn't as small and portable, but sounds much better, and is more versatile. The Spark is a decent practice amp/bluetooth speaker for the price, but it ain't that special. (I should point out I own a Spark 40, a Katana, an Orange Micro Terror, and a Yamaha THR10II)
@@KeithMilner I just listed another great "mini amp under 300$" that should have been included but was not only because Andertons don't sell it. The Spark is a very good "mini guitar amp for under 300£!" as the title suggests! 👍
The Spark has nice features for the price, but I sold mine. The built in speakers are just way too small and sounds too hollow to me. So it only sounded good if I used headphones or the usb out, which defeated the purpose for me. I’d prefer they sell a small Spark head without the speakers built in, and just have a dedicated speaker out jack so I can use it with a higher quality cabinet speaker instead. If they’re going to make it only as a combo unit with speakers built in, then it needs much higher quality speakers included.
@@baldbearded9601 It's also not the only great "mini amp under $300" not included in this shootout. I can thing of at least 4 others which they probably do sell and some of which are probably better than the Spark. But the title also said "Lunchbox amps" which is is a specific thing: a scaled down version of a typical guitar amp head. The Spark is NOT a "lunchbox amp".
I'm looking for a small amp right now. I think for me possibly the dark terror is winning out mainly for the very responsive clean channel and effect loop
1st time I've seen Rob since the scandal. His haircut makes him look like he's serving penance. ;) I'm surprised how much I enjoyed seeing the duo reunited! And it DOES add something positive to have someone who occasionally says something negative to give the video more genuine feel and not seem like a commercial. Two guys having fun at a music store was one of the secrets of success of the classic Anderton videos. Sprinkled with off color, silly schoolboy humor to make each other laugh, almost despite the camera was rolling... good YT TV
I had the BE-MINI for a week, but it just wasn't loud enough for rehearsing. Now I have a MICRO DARK and it definitely gets the job done!
I currently have a orange,but thinking off buying another… but it’s not worth it?
I love to hear that brotha, just bought one 2 days ago. Used at a great price. Never played one but EXTREMELY SATISFIED with the pure raw power the little F er puts out .. 👍 never played a orange ever . I love it. It is loud as S through a 1x 12 celestion home made cab.
I play my micro dark through a 2x12 and it gets loud enough you would think it could peel paint off the walls
The Orange is only 20w as well, so very impressive. It would certainly be my choice out of those 4.
Terror Stamp my friend!
Hughes & Kettner make insanely great stuff. Their Tubemeister and Grandmeister heads are some of the best value tube amps out there with crap tons of features. So it’s no surprise even their tiny home practice amps kick ass too.
Yes, but the people says that this little monster have a lot blank noise. Lee and Rob dont talk about in this comparison.
I own an Orange Micro Dark and for rehearsal it definately is loud enough to keep up with a drummer, bass player and a singer on a PA.
I had it on about 2-3 and was plenty loud enough (I was running into a Laney 2x12 with Celestion 30th anniversary speakers @8ohms)
It sounded alright! By that I ment I had an EHX soul food (volume and gain at 12 o'clock and the treble up full) to brighten it up and not loose too much bottom end. With out it, the sound was quite dark which I also found when I was running it through a 1x12 at home (Celestion V Type speaker). It sounded dark and kind of muddy with a loose low end.... but there wasnt that much low end (if that makes sence)
Running the front end of the Micro Dark into the power section of my Marshall DSL40CR made it sound a shed load better for sure.....
I still think it's great for the money and it's much easier taking it to practice than lugging around my Marshall combo but bare in mind it needs an overdrive or an EQ to brighten it up.... also there isn't as much gain as you think there is which is a good thing even for metal because it does have really good versatility from that perspective.
So yeah, solid 7/10 from me.
As for the others, I couldn't say.... but..... I have noticed that the price of the bigger Orange "Dark Terror" has come down in price to about £380 brand new from some shops... so while £250 is still cheaper than £380, I think I'd at least check out the Dark Terror as well as the Friedman Mini and the Deizel Mini because the little bit extra spend might be worth it....
(Not that the Friedman or the Deizel sounded bad.... not at all.. they sounded awesome! And you still couldn't go wrong buying either IMO)
I've just pulled my micro dark down from sale thanks to this. Part of me knew it was the wrong decision anyway. Nice one Andertons!
Sold mine for nothing once to guitar center. I have regret it sounded good.
Gotta love that the guys clearly read the comments and take note changing it up for more affordable guitars and amps was a good call
Always worth remembering that this is created by a retailer. They make great vids so that you will learn about the product, but also likely want to buy the product. In addition to that, showing products that are affordable is a better move. Selling 2 amp heads at $2000 or, selling 20 at the $500-1000 dollar mark? Math speaks for itself.
@@jameshall2219 this is why we can’t have nice things James
@@jameshall2219 I think the channel comes across even more favorably when you remember that sales is their goal. Because let's face it they're not very salesy. They're presenting the gear but they're pretty honest about it. Much, much moreso than any of the paid "influencers" doing gear demos on RUclips. Even Lee is not afraid to share a lukewarm or negative opinion about something.
Very entertaining, made me smile.
I have to say though, Orange still has something special even against more modern designs.
Agree , there's a unique sound with Orange amps. They are simple with no frills but sound raw , i have an RT35 that i run my pedals through and it sounds amazing....
Think it might be the tube, the Diezel and BE are solid state. So the micro dark still has the analogue tube warmth to it.
The new Friedman mini came out and I was thinking: “man, should I get rid of my micro dark for one of those?” Now that concern is gone, the micro dark sounded leagues better!
It’s pretty much as simple as Class AB vs Class D
Yeah i don't know what it is , but orange has it's own tone and it's just simple no frills kick ass! I have an orange crush rt 35 that i run my pedals through and it just sounds killer...
Great video, entertaining as always. Would have liked to hear the amps with humbuckers too though.
I really wish we could get a Solid State Mini 6505 and some kind of Randall in this form factor! They're adorable little amps.
I bought a micro dark over a micro terror because the cleans were more interesting to me from the demos.. not quite F type cleans but with the eq section set around 2 pm, the slightly scooped mids through an open 2x10 really impressed me. The gain structure is aggressive but I tune down and like to get droney/doomy sometimes.. I have a TS type pedal for lower gain tones.
The Orange in the cleanest and has a really nice gritty gain. Would be great for blues rock. The Diezel has the best metal sound.
I have it and you just have to be extra careful with the gain because it starts to compress the signal hard. The cleans are fantastic though and on the edge of breakup with some pedals is where it shines IMO.
Wow I wasn't expecting the Orange to be that amazing! It's basically killing the BE and the Diezel.
Because it has a tube preamp and solid power amp …the Friedman and Diezal are totally solid state
@@harshtruth9148 They're only running the plate voltage at about 20v. It's only used to filter and smooth the distortion not as an actual part of the circuit.
@@scottdunn2178 👍🏼
@@scottdunn2178 it plays like a tube amp and sounds like a tube amp, who gives a f*** what exactly the tube does. Whatever they did, they did it bloody well.
@@adrianguggisberg3656 okay but why do you care it has a tube in it then?
Loved the jam brilliant good to see you both together
it's all about the tightness of the browneye. clearly.
Personally, I LOVE the Micro Dark. I highly recommend it.
Sophie Lloyd
That would be a powerful look for Chappers to take on!
I swear, telecasters and Orange amps are a match made in heaven. 👌
I have a Orange micro terror ,it's a fantastic pedal platform. I would like the microdark aswell. Headphone socket is invaluable
Is it good? headphone jack? Some say it's not good? And is the Micro Dark also good for recording?
I've had the orange micro dark for a few years now and have gigged it several times. Killer amp for what it is. I bring it to every show just in case
what cab do you use with it?
Orange closed back 2x12, marshall 1960 A 4x12 or a marshall 1x12. It sounds good through my Magnatone Super 15 1x12 cab also
@@alexwoolridge94aw It pushes your 4x12 with no problem? It doesn't sound hollow?
@@mikeg.9238 it pushes my 4x12 with zero issues and has always sounded great.
@@alexwoolridge94aw Excellent , someone is selling one on craigs list in my area in "like new" condition for $115 , i think i'm going to pull the trigger on it then...
Damn that Orange Micro Dark sounded nice over my tv speakers
Aren't the diezel and the Friedman just their drive pedals connected to a class d power section? I had heard that somewhere.
Yes unfortunately. My Vox pedals valvernergy sound even better!
Well, the price reflects that.
@@stanislavmigra this is absolutely true
That Tele is a real show stealer! Started out with wishing you guys default this demo on a high output humbucker like the what 7 had, but the Tele delivered. Its not the hero we asked for, but the one we need.
An Ltd into an orange amp most be a serious throwback for Rob Chapman. Always a big fan of Rob and Lee doing demos together
Watching Lee's guitar playing improve year over year has been pretty inspiring to watch. Makes me want to want to pick up my guitar and get better.
oh my god if i read one more of these comments im gonna off myself
@@RumpelStiltskindarkone uhhhh. Ok?
DO IT,, i have a physical issue that prevents me from spending the hrs needed..
I have two of the Orange amps (one Terror Stamp and one Micro Dark) in a teenie tiny stereo rig with 2 Orange PPC108s. They're awesome AND you can change the valve to get slightly different tones. such amazing value and plenty loud enough for this little box room that I play in.
Hi I need help Do you have to have a aby switch to switch the micro dark and terror stamp, also do you connect both amps with 2 speaker cables to speakers, how do you bridge or stereo them together?
@@redstrat5976 It depends what else you have in your signal chain. In my current setup I'm not using an ABY. Instead I have a stereo Delay pedal and Stereo Reverb pedal in the FX Loop. Basically I have the Terror Stamp set up as my main amp with the guitar plugged into that. Then the FX Loop Send goes to my Stereo Delay Pedal. That converts the sound to Stereo, two outputs from that into my Stereo Reverb. Then one of the outputs from the Reverb goes to the FX Return of the Terror Stamp and the other goes to the FX return of the Micro Dark.
Basically all the Micro Dark is being used for in my rig is a power amp to drive the 2nd Cab.
Yes, two speaker cables are used. One from the Terror Stamp to the 1st cab and another from the Micro Dark to the 2nd Cab.
HOWEVER, my reason for doing this is that I have a Kraken V4 pre-amp connected to my Terror Stamp in the 4 Cable method and I haven't quite got around to setting up the other way with the ABY. You see, the other way it can be set up is with the Guitar signal split by an ABY and then run into the Guitar-In of each amp. Then the FX Send of Amp 1 goes to the Stereo R input of the Delay and the FX Send of Amp 2 goes to the Stereo L input of the delay....same for the FX returns. Then you can blend 2 different amp sounds but running different Shape and Gain settings on the 2 amps.
I have a cheapy cheap ABY which I haven't got connected at the moment, but it's only one or two connections away from adding that amp blending to my rig. Just haven't got around to it yet.
IF you don't have stereo FX pedals, I'm not sure the best method unless you already have loads of FX pedals on hand and are happy running 2 reverbs and 2 delays (one per amp).
Good Luck
Is the headphone jack good in micro dark? Some say it's not good? And is the Micro Dark also good for recording?
@@MegaAndyGG it's ok. with enough eq you could make it work. It's probably better to just run the efx send into your recording rig and use ir's and cab sims from there.
Cheers!
Wow that jam at the beginning was some of my favorite playing I’ve heard from Chappers
Great demo! Always a good laugh to be had. One thing to offer: so many amp demos are primarily focused on the bridge pickup. I do understand that current musical trends are geared towards gigantic, high-gain bridge pickup sounds, and I totally get that. But old war horses like me need to hear what an amp can do when put through its paces using neck, middle, and bridge positions at the very least. If it can’t cover those bases, then you end up with another one trick pony to add to the pile. Ironically, the man who produced the greatest bridge pickup tone of all time, Edward Van Halen, eventually went on to build guitars and amps that sound incredible regardless of the pickup choice or the amount of gain. For me, that opens the door to a wide range of colors to choose from. In future demos, please give us the whole picture. You both certainly have the chops and a great ear for tone. With the addition of displaying a greater variety of tones, your gear demos will reign supreme. Thanks for hearing me out!
I've just bought a Micro Dark after seeing this vid. I immediately changed the valve to a GE 5751 and the difference is astonishing, it was great fun before but now? My word! Its fair to say that the new valve is one of immense quality, probably one of the very best available...and its worth as much as the amp! I had planned to do the change before I ordered the amplifier, and I'm delighted. ( I actually got something right at last!)
Useful tip. I tried a variety of 12ax7s and settled on a JJ which I normally think sound sterile. Perhaps I change valve variety
Great... now I have to try this tube. Thanks a lot for posting this comment.
As much as I thought i wanted a friedman be mini, I think the Orange sounded the best !
I don't understand...The Orange when gained up sounded flabby and not articulate.
@@stricknine8623 Clean your ears then
@@MegaAndyGG
Look here fuckstick,..If it were my ears,..nothing would sound good and plenty does sound good, just not this.
Now run along sport and don't forget to brush your teeth.
I got a Positive Grid Spark amp a few months ago. Its pretty good as I dont have any space for a pedal board in my bedroom. Would recommend the amp to anyone looking for a good practice amp. Only issue is it has quite a lot of bass as its made to be able to play drum tracks through
I have the Orange and I was fully prepared for it to pale in comparison to all the other ones. I cannot believe it stood up.
You guys should check out the Bogner mini, if you have not already. IMO it is the best sounding of the minis so far.
I have the orange. I have used it at punk gigs. But i had two amps running at the same time: usually a 5150 on one cab and then the orange micro in another cab. The orange micro dark in my opinion is not loud enough to gig on its own if the amp is not mic'd. Hope this helps for anyone considering!
What about styles other than punk? Do you think it could stand its own in a 2 guitar/bass/drums/vocals situation unmiced for soul, jazz, RnB stuff? We mostly play bars and small clubs. Thx in advance
@@xebio6 Yes it would work great for that style, but i would recommend getting the 15 watt tube versions instead for your situation. You can find them used and are fairly affordable.
@@jacobhenderson1763 That's the Tiny Terror?
@@xebio6 yes that and the dark terror. that combined with a 2x12 cab should be loud enough un-mic'd for your style. If not than you could go with the orange dual terror which is 30 watts. All three of those heads are very versatile for many different styles.
@@jacobhenderson1763 Thx so much!
I’ve got the next stage up from the micro terror and got the Dark Terror, amazing little amp paired with an Orange 2x12 cab. Tbh too loud for my bedroom that it’s set up in.
How is the micro terror , i was thinking about getting that with a 2x12? Not for playing out , just for home use with headphones...
At the end of the day I still like listening to Rob noodle around on guitars.
I like that Chappers is critical of the products, but also very honest and fair. Even though these amps are quite the bargain, Chappers’ criticism is still valid.
Bought an orange micro dark after seeing Laura cox demo,whch led me to your page.Bought my second amp peavey 6505mh after seeing you both demo it,years back.Content for now!
That little Orange might be the best bang for the buck in the whole guitar world
For me, and my intended use, the choice would be between the Friedman and the H&K. Diezel felt a bit to much shredder amp, even if it wasn't best sounding, I thought. Orange, well I never really liked them, party due to the looks and some quality issues I have heard about, but here they sounded ok and most bang for the buck.
What quality issues have you heard?
I'm looking at a little micro dark right now- for 100 bucks, think I'll go ahead and nab it. My tube amp tore up a year ago and I started using the Headrush MX5- I've been wanting to get something analogue, preferably valve powered again- but everything is so expensive. This is a great deal though- 100 bucks for that, that's a steal. And I can use my old tube amp as a cab now- should be able tom set this head right on top of it and plug the speaker into it- viola. Either that or, I could just come out of the send on the fx loop and go into a reverb/delay pedal, and then into my powered cab- it's a class D amp just like the Micro Dark, it's just a lot more than 20w. I'll just have to experiment with it and see what sounds better. My old tube amp has a Celestion cream back heavy mag in it- which is a lot better speaker than what's in my Headrush cab. I wonder if I could run it into a sound board that way- directly out of the send, into my reverb and delay- then to the front of house or to the soundboard we use at practice. It should work but, Idk what it will sound like.
There’s something very Smashy and Nicey about these two together. Let’s rock! 😀
More like Simon and Lindsay from the Fast Show.. SHE'S ALL FIRED UP AND READY TO ROCK - LETS OFF ROAD! 😀
...and a big hello to all you truckers out there.
Boss SD-1 into Micro Dark with Reverb in the loop= Bliss.
love how the Captains OD pedal is worth more than all the amps put together
These all sound great with a gain tone dialed in, but there's no clean tone at a gigging volume with any of those. I think the best setup for that would be the BE and the Diezel in stereo with a 3rd clean amp in the center
Bought the Squier Tele from Andertons a few weeks ago and it’s great. Sanded the neck to satin and added custom shop pickups, but now think I prefer it to my Fender Strat and Gibson LP…
Stop it
Wow the Intro endet 'nam still shakkn withe beat. Lol. Nice one. Thank you meine Herren. Glückwünsche und alles gute weiterhin.
I know it's unlikely, but I would LOVE to see a video with just Pete and Rob discussing a product. I feel like their dynamic hasn't been explored enough on this channel.
I agree, they are 2 ends of the spectrum and the combination of opinions they would offer would cover a lot of bases. Also the two of them jamming would definitely be interesting, different and more than likely awesome.
Still bummed I got a Squier thinline master series HH and not an SS version. One day I'll install some push pull knobs to coil tap the Duncan designed pups. Just bought an Orange 8" cab. Gonna try it thru my crate v33 2x12 tube amp as soon as I get a speaker cable
Blackstar HT-1 RH or Marshall DSL1HR over any of these.
Just bought the dsl1hr. Had to lower the preamp tubes to 12at7, but once I did I fell in love, such an under rated amp.
I've got the Marshall DSL1HR, absolutely love it!
@@dustinpowell6297 did it make it more manageable volume-wise? Because I find it still much too loud for apartment playing as it needs to be pushed to sound good!
Because those are real amps
@@flaneursong78 Nah, more of a headroom thing. Smoothed out the gain of the the ultragain channel and made it much easier to get JPM and JCM era sounds. It also opened up the lower midrange which I though was a little too compressed and muffled before the swap. Volume remained the same though. Don't forget about the .1watt switch on the back. After that the only way to get quieter is a less efficient speaker.
Think the orange was by far the most versatile! Decent cleans and orange growl with more gain, thought the others were toys samey over gain generic metal sounds , basically eye candy, same tones from most modelling amps , I think I just buy a terror stomp as it’s smaller and has the sounds of the micro dark!
Unless your going to get the orange save yourself the money and get a Marshall MG30.
Don't roll off the deep on the Diezel! The deep is where the metal "woof" comes from when chugging and is a KEY part of the Diezel sound!
Bugera G5 Infinium is the best, but you can never find them in stock because they're underpriced.
They arent. They are properly priced. Everything else is just overpriced.
@@sacredgeometry True
@@sacredgeometry :)
You mean the blackstar ht 5. That’s what they copied
@@jconner3891 That's what they copied, but they're 209 pounds where the Blackstar HT5H is 429 pounds, and this is a video about small amps under 300 pounds. The Bugera is every bit as good as the Blackstar as well.
Hughes & Kettner EVERY TIME!
Seems like all solid state amps sound worse the louder they're played, at least the lower wattage ones do. I know Dimebag played 100 watt solid state Randalls on Pantera's early albums and it sounded good. But these may work live with a mic in front of it into a decent p.a. system
That's cool Rob. My wife uses an Orange Crush to run her keyboard through. They are great for that.
What about those Joyo BantAmps ? Are they any good ?
I think it should of used a humbuckers guitar for all of them imo
for me, in my opinion, i disagree IMO
Yeah maybe u right , they probably got more of the actual natural sound with single coils
OMI, I think you're all wrong, IMO, I think.
@@SilentJayBird so, what do you think? HHH?
@@caprise-music6722 I think OIM IMO MIO OMI, I think.
I like how Rob say, what he thinks and how passionate he is, when he plays something he likes. It jumps out of the video on you. Was kinda missing that direct opinion lately. Also he is much more familiar with playing gainy amps, then both Pete and Lee.
Great video. The Friedman sounded as what it is, great solid state amp. But the Orange smashed both Friedman and Diezel ... Well done Orange.
But winner of this video is that black Tele
You forgot the electro-harmonix howitzer 15 watts , that’s a great small practice amp, half the size , half the price as well.
Lee you are a lucky man to have the talent available that you have to showcase your stock
Fantastic demo. You two do it best.
Can you fit a sandwich in the back of these so they're actually lunchboxes? Asking for a friend.
Please make a similar episode with a focus on cleanissh tones!! great video btw!
Damn, the Captain's thinline still is the best tele sound I've heard ❤
Always love to see the captain and chappers together.
If you want a "micro head" that does everything BUT metal....get a Crate Powerblock. Stereo FX loop and stereo amps. Good cleans and a decent rock/blues overdrive. Takes pedals well...so put your best boost/drive for metal tones. I actually used it for an emergency PA amp one time.
32:23 such a sick riff!!!!
I own the dark mini I've been blessed rock on
Lord Jesus yes. How I’ve been waiting for more Chappers/Captain vids. Glad your fam is on the mend Rob!!!!
For all around best sound I have to say the Hughes & Kettner was the top dog. The Friedman did have a better gain sound but not at performance level volumes. I think that if you wanted a little amp that could be universally applicable as a practice, session, and small venue unit the H&K spirit of rock had the best potential. It also seemed to have the most amount of headroom without losing its character.
By the way using a thinline single coil tele for those styles of music is not commonplace by any means, but IMO, sounded amazing! Kudos! Glad to see Rob back in the Anderton's studio and hope to see more Chappers & the Captain videos.
With the exception of the Micro Dark, they all sounded like fizzed out, cardboard box, versions of whichever amp they were loosely based on
Strangely enough, I've watched other reviews of the Diezel mini and it slayed. It didn't seem to want to play with those single coils at all in this one.
Some amps love gain... it's kind of like with cars if you're going to stick a turbo kit on a motor they work okay with high output but turbo a low compression motor and you'll be drifting the neighborhood in no time LOL (sorry about using an apples to pork chops analogy lol... but in the same right where they are both very different they are also both incredibly the same)
Lol theoretically that is and by the way no I am not on anything and I am not drunk hahaha
Yes! CHAPPERS and cappers still together!! Love seeing you guys jam...hope Rob is feeling better still!🤘😜🎸
Sorry Guys, You need to present some clean tones, not to cover up mistakes. True sound of product. Thanks.
15:19 almost made me spit out my coffee🤣🤣🤣
btw, just like in the computer parts world, when demoing new gear you also have to use high end other gear around it so there is no bottleneck in showing the quality of the demo piece of gear
i loved robs playing on the orange terror.
When will Victory have an entry level all tube lunchbox head?
I love Rob so much! I know he's pretty busy these days but it's always nice having reunions with Tha Cap and The Chapp!🤘🤘🤘🤘🤘
Maybe pit the best 2 of these against a couple of the little MV50 nutoob boxes from Vox?
What about the Marshall DSL-1?!
WHENS SOUNDS LIKE COMING BACK!?!?!?
For me the winning amp has to be the winner as the only amp in this video with a real clean sound. The H&K definitely has its place but to me the lack of a clean sound is just too limiting even though it had the best overdrive sound and was the loudest. Personally, I am mostly impressed by that Squire Telecaster. That is one model that I think Squire should make one of its regular series. The black semi-hollow body with the brushed aluminium scratch plate just looks awesome and it sounds great too.
BTW if you believe that is a potato masher and not Pete making up an excuse to feature sex toys in the videos...
Haha or just Pete making up excuses for owning a sex toy period
I see Rob and Lee, I click "like" without hesitation.
These really are some feature packed little amps!
Glad I coughed up the extra £25 and bought the Laney Cub Top.
No ZT Lunchbox in the lunchbox test?
mind you all this gain coming out of single coils not even some buckers haha. I love my micro dark through a Warehouse (WGS) 10 inch vintage Veteran speaker. Absolute crunch master
Positive Grid Spark for the win 👌
It's a different thing, although there's certainly a crossover.
There are more traditional small-form-factor amp heads that you can use for rehearsals/gigging and plug a pedal-board into. You can, for instance, plug them into a small 1x8 cabinet at home for practice use, or plug them into a 1x12 or 4x12 in a studio.
The Spark is a combo practice amp. It's stuck with a fairly crappy pair of 4in speakers and, without modding it in a serious way, you can't plug it into an external cab. On the other hand, it works pretty well as a Bluetooth speaker, which traditional lunchbox amps don't.
Realistically, you couldn't use the Spark for gigging or even for most rehearsals. They call it "40 watts", but it's nowhere near as loud as the Orange Micro/Dark Terror which is rated at 20W (using Watts as a measurement of how loud amps are is pretty nonsensical anyway).
As I say, they are different things which will appeal to people for different reasons.
If you are going to make comparisons to other "portable" amps, I would include the THR10II which, IMO, is a much better amp than the Spark (although it's more expensive). And, for the same money as the Spark, you can get a Katana 50 which isn't as small and portable, but sounds much better, and is more versatile.
The Spark is a decent practice amp/bluetooth speaker for the price, but it ain't that special.
(I should point out I own a Spark 40, a Katana, an Orange Micro Terror, and a Yamaha THR10II)
@@KeithMilner I just listed another great "mini amp under 300$" that should have been included but was not only because Andertons don't sell it. The Spark is a very good "mini guitar amp for under 300£!" as the title suggests! 👍
The Spark has nice features for the price, but I sold mine. The built in speakers are just way too small and sounds too hollow to me. So it only sounded good if I used headphones or the usb out, which defeated the purpose for me.
I’d prefer they sell a small Spark head without the speakers built in, and just have a dedicated speaker out jack so I can use it with a higher quality cabinet speaker instead. If they’re going to make it only as a combo unit with speakers built in, then it needs much higher quality speakers included.
@@baldbearded9601 It's also not the only great "mini amp under $300" not included in this shootout. I can thing of at least 4 others which they probably do sell and some of which are probably better than the Spark.
But the title also said "Lunchbox amps" which is is a specific thing: a scaled down version of a typical guitar amp head.
The Spark is NOT a "lunchbox amp".
Some nifty little amps, but more importantly...what a lush Tele
I'm looking for a small amp right now. I think for me possibly the dark terror is winning out mainly for the very responsive clean channel and effect loop
I love the banter between Rob and Lee. But can these amp play the captain's lick?
Great video. Question: What watch was Lee rockin?
1st time I've seen Rob since the scandal. His haircut makes him look like he's serving penance. ;)
I'm surprised how much I enjoyed seeing the duo reunited! And it DOES add something positive to have someone who occasionally says something negative to give the video more genuine feel and not seem like a commercial. Two guys having fun at a music store was one of the secrets of success of the classic Anderton videos. Sprinkled with off color, silly schoolboy humor to make each other laugh, almost despite the camera was rolling... good YT TV
Really hope Pete doesn't get replaced. The chemistry with Pete and the Captain is better and he isn't brash or cocky.
It’s great to have Rob back. His playing is perfectly suited for these amps.
Love how you each had your own Klon to try out £300 amps
The Orange Dark Terror kicked butt!!!
Great playing from both of you today, wonderful demos as always.