I am in the UK. I said a couple of weeks ago that I had bought one of these and would post back. I am an amp-tech type who has been building, repairing and modifying stuff for decades. Here's the full review:- The amp made it's 8,000 mile journey in 14 days and arrived intact at a total cost of $351.58 which is circa £266 - that is all-in, shipping, import duty, VAT and everything. I knew as soon as I unboxed it that one of the smaller, input valves was dead on arrival - it had a very visible white stain in the crown of the glass. This was a valve faulty at manufacture which has had a leaking envelope. [ edit : on closer inspection later, there is a hairline crack in the glass on the pins, so it probably is damage from a shock in transit] There is no voltage-selector switch and the unit is set up for USA mains circa 115V. A small indicator is painted on the back which has two lines, each with a tick-box "100 to 120Va.c." or "220 to 240Va.c." The former was ticked. You will therefore DEFINITELY need a step-down transformer (known as an auto-transformer) to use this amp in the UK. It steps our 240V down to the 110V that this amp runs on as supplied. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD YOU CONNECT THE AMP (as supplied) DIRECT TO THE UK MAINS WITHOUT THE APPROPRIATE AUTO-TRANSFORMER. You will definitely kill the amp and possibly yourself. (Any auto-transformer that puts out 110 to 120 volts and is rated at anything above 50 watts will do) Alternatively and much better, the amp can easily be made to run on UK mains by any EXPERIENCED TECH - see the paragraphs at the end of this post. Having got the 110V power-supply problem sorted out I powered-up and immediately confirmed that the gassy valve was indeed dead. I replaced it with a handy spare and we were in business. I can't tell you anything about sound that you didn't learn from the above video which persuaded me to buy it in the first place. It does have "that sound" Sparkly highs when clean, warm and creamy when pushed a little and quite a decent roar when wound up. For a domestic situation and a bit of home-practice, when turned up this amp is fooking LOUD even on the 1W setting. I haven't had time to try it on full 15W setting properly, just a couple of quick riffs and kerrangs as a test, but I think he's right in saying it would handle your normal drum-kit. IMO use at full volume could definitely get you evicted pretty quickly :-) So the sound out-of-the-box was good enough. It was definitely absolutely valves and as such adequate and lives up to expectations. Even as it is delivered, it's a great sounding amp at a very low price indeed. But I needed one replacement valve anyway and the defective one had shaken my faith a little about the others so since for me this whole buy-a-valve-amp thing was a "let's get this sorted once and for all" I thought I may as well have done with it and get a complete set. Nothing too fancy and expensive, just decent valves. So I ordered some JJ's from Hot Rox - a matched pair of EL84 output valves, a pair of tested input ECC83's and a selected/balanced ECC83 for the phase-splitter ....... there's less point in having matched output valves unless they are also driven equally. I chose the medium-hot selected EL84 output valves for "normal" amounts of tone. You can choose "cooler" which run cleaner or "hotter" which start to distort at a lower volume. Putting them in has changed the sound. Basically the cleans are much the same, it's as dirty as it was before when driven but the sound is a little warmer and more creamy. Most notably, when on heavy dirt, with the new valves I could kerrang a chord and also pick on other notes whilst it was ringing and the other notes came through clear and bright, whereas before with the old valves it was all a bit more mushy. Nice, but a little mushy and indistinct, so room for improvement. With postage and the small charge for testing and matching the new tubes cost £63. I think that I am not a fan of the speaker. It is one of the later Celestions, from the times when clean tones often drenched in chorus had become popular. The speaker doesn't sound awful and many will be perfectly happy with it - it's just not much to my ideal taste. Personally, I got my first Greenbacks when I was seventeen and for the next 50 years did not use anything else. Each disappointing experiment with other speakers just left me more convinced that Greenbacks are the answer - but I'm a rock-orientated Strat-playing hippy from the late 60's so my notion of a good speaker might be different to someone else's. I do have a spare pair of G12H Greenbacks in my loft so one of them will be going into this amp ASAP and I'm near certain that it will then be staying. One of these Seventy80 speakers new is circa £54. There is a REASON why a G12H Greenback new is £129! ;-) The reverb tank is not an Accutronics, but it is decent and has a metal shell. It is very rigidly mounted to the base of the combo and I will be re-mounting that onto some flexible fittings. The current mounting must inevitably feed more vibration back from the speaker to the springs so I expect rubber mounts to slightly decrease the reverb-time at higher volumes and improve any handling noise from moving the amp whilst it is on. The internal wiring etc is neatly done. I'm never overjoyed to see tiny surface-mount components but the amp seems well designed and assembled and there is no reason to think there is anything inadequate or likely to cause a future problem. The transformers are on the small side but I have no reason to think them not up to the job. There is no smoothing choke though the power supply seems adequately smoothed and there is no hum problem. The small transformers and absence of a smoothing choke mean that the chassis itself can be lighter whilst still fine for the job. Between that and the case construction material, overall weight is 25.4 lbs (11.5 kilos) The case is indeed made of a compressed paper board type material. As I said in another post, this does not concern me personally as I will only use the amp in my home studio or infrequent jam-session. If I was a gigging musician, I would probably invest in a flight-case. If I construct a better amp-case, it's a lot of work and it will still get battered by touring. With a flight-case instead, the amp will still look spotless in years to come. The actual wire inside the mains lead is perfectly adequate for it's job but is a lot thinner than you might think as that outer skin contains three wires and three thick pieces of string as you'll learn if you adapt it to 240v and snip off the American plug. String inside a mains cable is no bad thing and actually a sign of attention to detail as it strengthens the overall cable. The best solution though would be to fit a Euro socket like most amps have. The poster was a little unsure about the covering material. I see no particular problem with it myself. It's a white rexine and whilst probably not up to Fender and Marshall standard, it appears reasonably resilient. OVERALL CONCLUSION I think that at current prices this is an absolute bargain. It sounds good straight out of the box and there are simple things that anyone can do to improve it further in the valve and speaker swap. Setting up for operation on UK mains voltage 240V ========================================= As implied by the above panel inscription, the power transformer is actually capable of being wired for 240V as used in the UK. There are two separate input windings on the transformer, each of 110V. As supplied, they are wired in parallel across the supply voltage. All that is need for 240V operation is that they be wired in series by snipping off/unsoldering two 2 inch loops of wire from the transformer terminals completely, then soldering a little bridging loop to connect the two centre terminals. THIS IS MAINS VOLTAGE - DO NOT ATTEMPT THIS UNLESS YOU 100% KNOW EXACTLY WHAT YOU ARE DOING! I am a qualified tech. WRONG CONNECTION MAY KILL YOU OR DESTROY THE AMPLIFIER. - doing any mod will also negate the guarantee, but shipping 8,000 miles for a repair was never going to be sensible anyway. I mention it only to say how simple it is for an experienced amp-tech. The snipping and soldering is a 5 minute job so if a person were to remove the amp from the chassis themselves, remove the valves (not needed) and take it to a competent person, the charge for actually doing the job should be minimal. - it takes FAR longer to just get the amp chassis in and out of the cabinet than to do the job itself. There is also a small glass fuse mounted on the circuit board near the on/off switch. For 110V operation (as supplied) this is a 500mA slow-blow fuse (has a T engraved on it) For 240V operation this should be replaced with a 250mA slow-blow ........ or better yet, solder a link across the internal fuse holder and fit a panel-mount on the rear panel. - whilst you are there and fiddling with the mains input, fit a euro connector.
@@justthen Thanks - but really I just added a couple of details. I wrote mostly for the benefit of UK peeps who might be interested as I was. I've been looking for a small valve amp that I could afford for ages, a couple of years. I was quite prepared to build it myself by modifying an old radio or similar but people know what they're worth these days. But the cost of the parts plus the aggravation and work of building it myself..... it just wasn't worth it. Buying an amp was out of the question too - even second hand amps that were utterly crap when they were new - and are now 40 years old - is prohibitive. {sighs) ...... over the years....decades....... I've had a vintage AC30 with Alnico Blues in it, a Fender Tremolux, a Vox 125 Watt lead stack, a 60W Carlsboro valve head, a Sound City 50W valve head, a Marshall 50, an ancient Gibson valve head and a couple of others I forget. Plus half a dozen small valve combo's of 3 to 15W, plus half a dozen Frankensteins I made from old valve radios and the like. - but I sold them all so here I was, sat valveless in my dotage :-( ........which is how I came to be involved in the slightly crazy business of importing an amp from California.
Now "that" is a review, and opinion ! This is what is missing from comment sections, the will to express ones self, and spend a little time explaining your point of view. Well done, and by all means " keep writing".
I’ve had one of these about a month now and it keeps getting better as the speaker breaks in. The 70/80s get a bad rap, they’re a little harsh at first and need about 40 hours to really break in but they’re good sounding speakers once they are. They’re shipping now with JJ tubes and a better reverb tank which makes it a even better deal.
Dang so much good info/experience in the comments thank you! As someone who’s really only going to play for themselves alone, would this amp be the way to go then? Just wanna jam out!
I love the way you understand your camera and use a monitor to see what the viewer is seeing in real time. Very professional. And the answer to any of your questions to the viewer in this video regarding the making of more videos of this amp is...: YES please sir! Also one of the hottest DBG 1 minute solos evar!!!
@@DarrellBraunGuitar You're welcome sir! While I've got your attention would you consider doing a DBG $500ish guitar starter kit with like, this amp, the baby blue Notacaster and some of your own modifications to make it really kick ass? With or without the manufacturer's endorsements, though they'd be crazy not to try jump on board...
Thanks a million for turning folks on to this kind of stuff. I'm just getting started at age 56. Bought this amp and I'm delighted with the sound compared to other starter amps. I'm a 'what makes this tick' guy and got a spring reverb for it as the stock one is a bit weak in my sample. Right now I'm working with a no-name guitar I bought YEARS ago for my daughter. Just took delivery of a kit so I can build my own Strat and upgrade as needed. Gonna be fun learning all the how-it-works stuff as well as making noise.
Better late than never. I'm also interested in learning how to play. To experience the greats and create my own melodies. I really like the Firefly 338. It has awesome tones. But I'm not technical by any stretch of the imagination so I'll go for something really simple but flexible like the Boss Katana 50. BTW I am a sprightly 44. My partner picked up an ukulele for my last birthday so now I want to stretch myself a bit. Have fun. Cheers!
Keep in mind that they do go on sale. I think I got mine for $170 shipped. And yes, I'd love to see you swap out the tubes to see what difference it makes, if any. As for the lack of features, that's precisely why I bought this over the Boss Katana. As a beginner, I know I would get bogged down and suffer from options paralysis with a modeling amp instead of just playing. I made the right choice, 100%.
@@clutch1141 I agree. I bought a effects pedal thing, there is too much there, it's distracting. And I realised that my guitar heros usually have pretty simple setups, a few petals and an amp.
The Katana is pretty ridiculous, for the money Doesn't really have its own sound, but you can dial in a crazy number of well-known amp sounds pretty quickly
Thanks Darrell. Nice and fair, spot on review. I have one of these I bought about a year ago (technically previous model), the redesigned reverb is an improvement over the earlier one, which wasn;t that interesting but serviceable. I really doubt you'll find a better budget tube amp in this price range. The 12" celestion speaker is the star of the show in my opinion. After breaking in it gets deeper and more colorful. Takes pedals well. I swapped in a set of new-issue TungSols, didn't notice a huge difference honestly. I put the originals back in, they were perfectly OK to my ear. Mine never leaves the house, but for kicking around the house it's a fantastic little practice amp. As a starter amp or a first tube amp, I would recommend this all day. Pros far outway the cons here.
Well said, sir. I very much agree. My adult son and I test drove probably 10 other amps - and we both liked this Monoprice amp the best (and my son and I have wildly different ears). I swapped out the Celestion speaker with a bunch of other ones - and ended up going back to the Celestion. This is a great amp.
@@trillrifaxegrindor4411 I have a Traynor YCV-40 that came stock with a 70/80, and never had a problem with the speaker sound. I bought it used, and I've read several times that once they get broken in that speaker can sound very good, some people even rave about them. Mine may have already been worn in when I got it, as I never had to wait for it to develop a good sound. But the opinions on 70/80's do vary wildly, and it seems to be a bit more shrill now, then a couple years ago.
@@stevejackson2986 Huh. I purchased a used Traynor (not vintage era) 2x12" cabinet with Celestion Seventy 80 speakers. I was really put off by the speakers - I found them quite harsh and lacking in any mid-range definition. So I sold them, replacing them with a vintage Altec Lansing and an Eminence. Now it's probably not fair to compare to the Altec (it's a really sweet speaker with lots of lower/middle/upper mid-range definition), but I'm wondering if the Celestions just weren't broken in. Maybe I dismissed them too soon.
I’ve had the amp since december so for about 5 months and here’s my review. I would highly recommend going to your local music store and replace the tubes because they are pretty cheap and do not last. Other than that the amp is amazing for only 200$ it’s studio quality with great dirt channels and excellent cleans. Great pedal platform too. Overall if you don’t want to spend that much money on an amp this amp is great to add to your rig
Been enjoying mine for 10 months. Does everything I wanted in a cheap practice amp. Effects loop, power can be reduced for bedroom use, real tubes, great speaker. No regrets.
After watching this review, I purchased this amp. Was surprised to see they had started using JJ tubes. Love that little amp. I built a 212 cab with a pair of Eminence speakers and it sounds amazing. Loud enough to jam with the guys and the 1watt feature is great for at home. Thanks for the awesome job you do with the honest reviews!!!
It's actually a direct copy, at least internally, of the Laney Cub 12 amp. Most amp geeks think it's actually made in the same factory. They used to look extremely similar to the Cub, but probably changed the look to avoid that being obvious. Best part - it's less than half the price of the Cub 12 and it's the exact same amp! Awesome demo, BTW.
@@jumpboy29 Interesting. It is possible that production moved elsewhere since I'm sure Laney wasn't keen on having one of it's amps being de-branded and sold at half price. That could explain some tonal difference, but at least at some point, they were identical, and at at the very least very similar still.
It’s manufactured by Sino Amp. These have a different speaker than the Laney and that the main difference. The Laney also has a digital reverb instead of a spring
Yeah I got a Cub12R and noticed that right away, too. It's almost the same except for a few minor changes (switchable power scaling, spring reverb, speaker). They Laney has 2 inputs instead, digital reverb and a Celestion Rocket/Laney HH.
That's what like 95% of guitar playing actually is, and single note runs are always going to sound intelligible. It's when you start adding more notes (chords) that the tone really becomes apparent.
I bought one several months ago. After a few months of really great sound became intermittent and it suddenly died. I took it apart and found a cable had fell off between the reverb and preamp. Then I discovered the speaker panel was busted in two places. I made a new speaker panel with a new board and fixed the cable. Sounds like new. If you look at the tubes there are no markings on them at all. I'm going to replace them with high quality tubes. It IS a great amp. I recommend it but it is cheaply made. the speaker panel is made of some weird paper material. Probably why is feels light weight. It feels heavier with a good panel. The amp covering material is shrinking and probably will continue to shrink until it just sluffs off on its own.
I swapped out the original OD tube in valve 1 with a replacement Mullard OD tube. I really liked the original Chinese tube much better. So I put it back. I'm very serious.
Darrell knocks it out of the park again, with another great review of gear we can actually afford that sounds great. This is the kinda stuff we want and need, Darrell. Sure, we love to drool over the high-end stuff, keep it coming. But discoveries like the Indio guitar and the Stage Right amp, are the things we are gonna be able to afford, and now we can go ahead and buy without taking massive risks on buying a lemon and then having to shell out again to get something that sounds decent. 2 requests though; could you do a review of the Blackstar 5HT tube combo? And how about a giveaway comp for a cheap guitar like the Indio that you have taken out of the box and sorted by setting up well and maybe replaced the very worst of the parts (like maybe the tuners, nut, or bridge)? That would be awesome in extremis. I don't know if you have a 'daytime job' as well as your youtube and Patreon stuff, but I love the idea that you may be making a living out of doing the stuff you love. That is Awesome with a capital 'A', and something I think all your followers would love to be able to do as well. FYI; Before discovering your channel, changing strings and setting pickup heights was my limit. Thanks to your guidance, I now have 3 guitars in various stages of disassembly, upgrading and re-assembly and experimentation. Getting amazing results, super-satisfying, and I just want to keep doing it. You took my fear away that I might break or screw something up. And showed me that I did not need to buy lots of expensive specialist kit. Just a notched straight-edge, some radius gauges, several radius sanding blocks, and a fret rocker. More super budget kit reviews, 'how to' hot rod demos, and that Blackstar 5HT review, please, Darrell. Oh, and we would love to see/hear if upgrading the tubes in the Stage Right is worth doing.
The quest to find affordable gear that sounds great/works well continues! Today I think I've found a keeper! Part 1 - Amp Walkthrough Part 2 - Tone Demo 7:46 Part 3 - Good vs Bad 13:24 Enjoy!
I’ve had this same amp for about five years now. Have never had a problem with it. It sounds excellent, although it doesn’t have the clean sparkle (or headroom) of a 6L6 or even a 6V6, but it has a GREAT EL84 sound. It sounds wonderful on recordings because you can get great tones at low volumes. It’ll actually drive a 4x12 cabinet very well too though. Great little amp for the money, especially if you just need a practice/recording amp with bedroom volumes.
Alright Darrel, you're the first person to ever convince me to order a piece of gear online. I watched this video two weeks ago and I couldn't stop thinking about it. Kudos to you!
I have this amp. Re-tubed it with Tung-sol power tubes and some good preamp tubes, and it's become indispensable to me. I did put a 12AT7 in V1 for some extra headroom, but it keeps up nicely with my 100 watt Fender solid state 2x12 combo. In fact, nowadays I plug into this, and then use the effects loop to plug straight into the power section of the Fender. What makes this more versatile (in my opinion) than the Blues Jr. (an amp I owned in the past) is the effects loop and the presence knob, features the Fender lacks. There's a lot more tonal variation there, and I can use all my time-based and modulation effects much more effectively. For the record, this is actually a clone of the Laney Cub 12R. In fact, the internals are literally the same. It even says "Laney" on the main PC board.
I've had mine for 2 years and it still rocks. I thought about changing the tubes, but I haven't had the need. It just screams... and whispers sweet when I want it to.
It may sound good but when you put the new tubes in there adjust the bios and a new speaker cabinet you won't even recognize the brilliant clean nice tones that come out of it and then I use distortion panels I don't use distortion of that app if I want distortion I use a Laney
thanks for the review. what a great time for guitarists: Decent cheap equipment and free lessons all over You Tube. i would've killed for these opportunities in the 1970s. ultimately, it's all worthless if one neglects to practice. Kids, stay in practice or you're wasting money on these goodies.
I have had one of these for over a year now and I love it, I have mullard el84's, 1959 sylvania long grey plate 12ax7 in v1, sovtek 5751 in v2 and a 1959 sylvania in v3, I keep swapping the speaker around but I keep going back to the 70/80 or a Jensen c12n. I also have the 5 watt amp too, I have a 1958 sylvania smoke glass black plate 6v6gt and I roll different tubes in it but mostly keep a rca long black plate 12ax7 in it. I have modified the negative feedback loop with a 50k pot and 10k resistor inline to get more gain or more headroom. I have a Jensen c8r in it as well. They are fantastic amplifiers for the money.
I have two of these. The newest one is completely stock and has a definite AC15 vibe to it. The older one has new tubes (1 12AT7, 2 12AX7's, Tung-Sol EL84's) and a speaker swap (Eminence Legend with the same sensitivity rating as the Seventy80). It has a much more Fender vibe to it. I run them in stereo, and they sound absolutely ridiculous together!
So for 200 for this and 100 for the guitar (200 if you upgrade it a bit) you could have a perfectly decent set to learn on and have fun with. That's actually pretty incredible.
Been gigging with this amp for about a month now. The stock (Chinese) tubes have a bit of a metallic or harshness to them. Swapped them out with some tubes I had in my no longer functional Fender Hot Rod; it sounds great. Side by side to a Blues Jr & you really can't tell the difference. You're on point with the negatives, but they're pretty minimal. (Not a the fan of the 15/1W button; just one more thing that could break/go wrong. I like it simple.) IMO it more than holds it own against other 15w on the market. Get a cover; it's gonna get dirty unless it stays in the studio. 😎
got mine for 175.00 dollars back in 2012 and bought a couple of tubes that went out since then, Love it. I use the effects loop in the back and add a bunch of my favorite pedals usually 4 or 5 and have a blast. I dig Soundgarden and AC DC and forever a Hendrix fan. Rest in peace Jimi.
I love how open and honest Darrell tells what things are and do, compared to being brand bias. Thanks D. We all understand that there are better products out there, but there are also affordable options available. Proof is in the video.
Darrell, I'm glad that you have a guitar tech's knowledge and you are willing to try different types of equipment. Extremely interesting review. I noticed that your guitar rack is missing something eye catching and Daphne Blue...just saying :)
@@plasticbleach4004 Darrell has a beautiful Daphne Blue Squire Stratocaster that he has to restring. IMHO I think it makes his guitar collection that much prettier when it is on the rack.
@@DBSG1976 aww I knew it was that! I'm really sad about that because I've badly wanted one, and before I could get my hands on one, they went out of production. A Daphne blue Squier deluxe strat has now become one of my dream guitars. A SQUIER!
@@plasticbleach4004 You could always go with a Daphne Blue MIM Classic Series '50s Strat. Extremely well made and I changed out the pickups only due to personal preference. More expensive than the Squier, but worth the price IMHO.
i really like your videos. really well made and always interesting to watch. And yesss, try replacing the tubes with good quality tubes. i wanna hear how it sounds great video
That doesn't mean they're all the same design or built to the same QC standards. Gretsch Electromatic guitars are built in the same Korean factory as Peerless, D'Angelico and certain Carlo Robelli models. That doesn't mean they're all the same guitar.
It's more 8% player (tone and feel are different things), 10% pickups, 15% amp, 67% speaker. My math is also probably off but you get the idea. Speaker is somehow the most overlooked part of a setup even though it makes the most difference by far
The spring reverb on the current one is really quite good, the one on the original models the reverb is absolutely terrible. I have one of each that I use in Stereo. They are amazing.
whats a good source? any tips on finding one cheap? I have the 5w stage right and I love it except it has no built in reverb and I cant have that. I'm scraping by using a Biyang Tri verb, which is OK but I would rather have a tank , for sure.
I disagree. For a combo amp, IMO, there are three things that define the foundation for a modding platform: Circuit, chassis, and cabinet. The circuit is a copy of an only average circuit, I can’t speak for the chassis-if it is surface mounted tube sockets, etc., and the cabinet is tiny and made of crap materials. I’d say this is the opposite of a great modding platform, because you can throw a ton of money into it for modest tonal improvements on a boxy, cheap foundation. Compare this, for example, to a Mexi Strat which is a solid modding platform, as the basics are very solid, yet not exceptional, but anything else can be swapped to taste: in the end it’s always built on that well selected, well crafted wood...not outstanding... but very high grade for modding.
Darrell, we mostly praise your ability to feature well different guitars, updating and amp evaluations; however, I would like to point out that you are a great guitar player! Great job all the way around.
@pcanarsky did you try swapping out the cabinet? The cab looks like a piece of crap to be honest. Imagine that putting into high quality solid wood cab would make a big difference. Possibly sized up a slight big as well as I'm sure they made it smaller than necessary to save on production costs. How much $ did you spend on upgrades so far? Just curious.
@@raybrubaker I don't like tracking my mod purchases -- too painful :):):) I think the reverb tank was $20ish, the speaker was a WGS speaker which run $90ish (but then I still have the Celestion, so I don't count that cost :) -- And I swapped the tubes. Building another cab is a good idea! Personally, I would rather turn it into a head...hum, maybe when I get a down day :)
They are almost certainly the same as JJ tubes or Sovtek or whomever. There are only so many tubemakers in the world My guess is that these tubes fail the QC standards for their branded tubes but are at least functional.
@@chuckschillingvideos Judging by the shots in the video, they're most likely Ruby tubes or another no-brand Chinese tube. Chinese 12AX7s (modern/new production) are the only ones that use that three-layer mica construction like the ones in the video. JJ (produced in the Czech Republic) and New Sensor-owned brands like Sovtek, EHX, etc. are Russian-made.
@@chuckschillingvideos Hey, both are great and have their uses. I work with tubes for a living and see a lot of both and just wanted to toss some info out. I did misspeak saying Czech, it's technically Slovakia now where JJ Electronic is HQ'd. Not sure why but a lot of Chines tubes from Ruby (or cheap Shuguangs) used that three-mica setup. Like how a lot of Russian tubes used the UFO-style getter.
@@chuckschillingvideos Your 100% right, the only difference between these and JJ's or groove tubes etc is that those companies say they check and match their tubes.
Daniel Lee I put a set of JJs in the power section I have a nos rca 12 ax7 in v-1 a Raytheon 5751 in v2 and an EHx 12ax7 in the phase inverter/ v3. Quite frankly it sounds a lot better.
lilnetty2 I’ve tried all 12 ax7s . I like the 5751 in v2 . It makes the gain on this amp more creamy sounding and better for my needs. I miss spoke about NOS . The vintage tubes I have were tubes I was lucky enough to get in used tube amps I’ve had in the past. The rca and the Raytheon tube combo does create a more rounded sound. There’s no mistaking that. I have a lot of tubes and I’ve tried a multitude of combinations. That being said I wouldn’t go out and buy expensive tubes for this amp
Damn decent TUBE amp for just $200! Definitely seems worth it as a practice amp/bring anywhere amp. At least you won't have a heart attack if it get a nic/dent or someone puts a drink down on it. Would definitely love to hear the comparison after some branded tubes!
These amps are now available in Europe and sold by Thomann, re-badged as Harley Benton. Just bought one based on this review. Fantastic amp for the money and great classic tones. Just watch out for the EU plug, you'll need a 2 pin earthed adapter for the UK.
Lol all these requests for testing it with expensive tubes. Please do a blind A/B test with the stock vs expensive tubes and we'll see the reality of the money tone chasers.
@Mike Ladd My spare amp is a Vox modelling amp that uses a single 12AX7 to give a tube pre-amp sound. Factory fit was a 'Ruby' tube (Russian?), I replaced it with a Fender 'Groove Tube' (China?) - that was worse so I promptly put the Ruby tube back in. The exercise did prove that the tube (located between the DSP modelling and the solid state lower amp) did genuinely contribute to the tone!
Tubes will affect the sound, frequency response and feel, but a lot of the effect depends on the circuit. The more preamp tubes the less effect each tube makes usually, but it varies. A speaker is the single most effective way to change your tone.
That is a very nice AMP! I brew my own here in Brazil and there is no way I can make one for 200 Trumps. My advice? Don't bother changing the tubes. If they are not microphonic and oscillating they are fine. Chinese tubes are not bad. Change the áudio transformer instead. And The speaker. There you will notice a real difference. Cheers. Rafael, technician.
Yup. There are only a couple of factories in the world still making tubes. They're probably just the same as any branded tube anyway. ... I guess maybe they failed QC for the branding though. That might make the difference.
Hi Rafael.. I have upgraded tubes on a few amps in my day, and certainly have upgraded speakers ..but I will say this .. on smaller boutique style amps and lunch box heads that are a considerable value, ..Bugera , etc.. when you can replace the tubes.. I've experimented with Sovtek, Groove Tubes and Electro Harmonix and JJ's..There is undoubtedly a big difference .. especially when you're looking for that warmer creamier tone. I live in NYC now and have been over to and made friends with some of the folks at the Electro Harmonix HQ . IMO and many many others will agree with this ... Chinese tubes aren't really that great end of day . For the average musician and player, maybe not a big deal. But upgrading tubes when and where applicable .. and like you said a top quality speaker.. totally different ball game .
In terms of a first tube amp, or even if you're just GASing over the Blues Jr. style sound...this would REALLY be hard to beat. Highly impressed with Monoprice.
I've been looking for such a test for like ages. I would really like to see if this is a urban legend whether proper tubes make difference in sound quality. PLEASE DO THE TEST!
I tried a bunch in mine. I didn't find that it made enough difference, so I left the stock ones in. These amps are however biased quite cold & getting it up to spec made a huge difference. That & a better speaker. Even a super cheap Eminence with a more British voice was a big improvement.
I know a pro musician who gigs with one of these at bar venues. It sounds perfectly fine. The only pedal he generally uses with it is a Fulltone OCD for leads.
I got this amp sometime this or last year, after they raised the price to $250. I changed the speaker this past week to a Celestion Greenback and changed the tubes. Before, there was a rattle snake in my amp on any OD note, but since changing the tubes, it's gone. The speaker was just icing. Now it sounds great and still under $500.
WOW! I think I might have to pick one up! I'm a caregiver for my father and also live in a small apartment building. So having a lightweight amp to carry with me to my dad's and back home with access to the beautiful sounds from that 1 watt setting will make many people happy! I struggle to keep an acceptable volume at each place, but still be able to get "my sound". Thanks for such a great review!
Here's some stuff I know about this amp. I bought one a few years ago for $181 delivered. I already had a Laney Cub 12. This amp was basically a clone of that in every way except for a few cosmetic differences (knobs, everything were in the exact same place). I believe thse were made in the same factory as the Laney and just covered and labeled differently). I gave that to my pal who plays in a blues band doing gigs all the time, and he loves it (and he's a fuss budget). He uses it for all his indoor gigs and it's easily loud enough, sounds great. He liked it so much he bought another. Now that one was this newer style with the controls on the front instead of on top like the Laney clone. The amp still has the exact same specs and features (spring reverb was improved according to monoprice). He likes the newer model even a bit better but that could be variation from amp to amp. Both have held up to gigging with no issues for him, and the older model has been at it for a couple of years (he uses the older one for most gigs as they get beat up cosmetically, and the newer one he uses for "nice" gigs like say a wedding). That Laney Cub 12 I have used to be a great bargain itself when I bought it compared to a Fender Blues Jr. ($400 compared to $600) but I see the Laney now for $550. So, this is a great amp for the money. I also have a 40W Marshall tube amp I got new for $400 from Sweetwater, and that was a GREAT deal.
I bought one of these as a practice amp and it came with JJ tubes! Amp seems to be fine with plenty of volume. worth the $250 I spent on it. Thanks Darrell!
I got the smaller 5 watt version of this amp. Swapped out the cheap microphonic no name Chinese tubes for some NOS from viva tubes. Spent $25. Literally a Night and Day difference. These sound good with the crap tubes. They are magnificent with some quality tubes. The wattage switch is really a dB pad. Gives you some more clean headroom. Obviously It’s an insane value for either amp. You can’t really go wrong with either one.
@@florascent9ts that doesn't even make sense home depot's store brand drill drivers are actually called... RIDGID TOOL.. to me that screams anything but soft men lol
Es un magnífico ampli. Compré uno hace menos de un año y le hice las siguientes mejoras:- Activar el transformador de fuente para 230 volt (viene de serie cableado para 110 v; el mío se pudo reutilizar. ATENCIÓN a esta cuestión: aseguraos de que el voltaje del que compréis podeis graduarlo a 230 v, pues viene de USA a 110v) - Interruptor de Standby (que no lleva de serie)- Salida de auriculares- Cambio el altavoz Celestion 12" que trae de serie (asiático normalito) por el Jensen P12N AlNiCo Vintage (buenísimo, de alta eficiencia y cobertura de frecuencias)Con esos cambios, ahora no es que sea bueno, se ha convertido en un pequeño monstruo que no lo cambio por (por ejemplo) el Fender Blues Junior, Laney LC15R o Cube 15 R, etc (se ha doblado el precio, pero os aseguro que vale la pena).Siempre recordar: A los amplis con válvulas de potencia tipo EL84 les encanta estar calientes, así que esperar encendido unos minutos antes de tocar... ; tiene de todo, salida de altavoz externo, Loop de efectos send / return, pesa y ocupa poco, etc. Muy bueno para ensayar y más.Muy recomendable. Animaos y que lo disfrutéisJaime. Madrid.
Speakers and cabinets are often overlooked when creating great tone. It’s amazing just how much changing speakers and/or cabs can change your sound. It’s very important to try out different combinations of each.
If Darrell produced another video where he claimed to have put in $400 worth of NOS "vintage" tubes but actually left in the originals every comment would be like, "OMG!!!! Now THAT is how an amp is supposed to sound!!!....HEAVEN!!!....Am I dreaming???....OH MAN...tone nirvana!!"
I got the 5/1 watt model of the Stage Right amp and the tone is incredible for such a small practice amp. The controls are much more basic/understated which is good for a more meat and potatoes approach. It has volume, tone and the practical 1/5 watt switch. When you crank it up all the way it overdrives beautifully but has really good high volume clean tone too. It is very pedal friendly as well so hooking up a Tone Bender with a T-style guitar is Led Zeppelin 1 and 2 guitar tone with no effort. Thanks Darrell for introducing me to another amazing find bud and keep putting out the awesome and positive content!
There are only about three or factories factories in the world still making vacuum tubes. Many "branded" tubes are the same tubes just measured to a higher tolerance and graded by a third party, and then sold with a markup. Great for when your tubes wear out, but kind of silly to buy in the quest for tone, I think. Maybe a better project idea for this amp would be to scrap the MDF and build a larger birch ply enclosure for it, with a new speaker!
Zachary Weyandt Actually, MDF is quite heavy. MDF and pressboard aren’t the same things. Pressboard is made from recycled paper, and MDF is made from highly processed wood fibers and binders. Pressboard is light, but it’s not that durable without the right paint and sealers. MDF is heavier than plywood, much heavier than pressboard, and it can be extremely durable, if the edges and corners are protected appropriately (but generally not the best choice for a combo amp cabinet, though I’ve seen it used for large subs...). A birch cabinet and Speaker upgrade is an interesting idea, particularly if you had one or more vintage speakers laying around. Everyone focuses on tubes, but changing speakers can make a huge difference in your sound.
Though there is a notable difference between those factories. For example JJ/Teslas from Slovakia tend to have thicker pins and better components than say Shuguang which are used by Groovetubes (Fender) and a few other brands. If I had to guess these are probably Shuguang as well, the pins did not look like the JJs I have next to me, and the fact that the amp is Made in China, means that Chinese tubes are probably much cheaper to ship with it than Russian/Eastern Europe tubes.
True! More pedestrian guitar consumers need to know this. If it was me I would invest in some sweet paired NOS tubes. That’s how I roll. RE cab wood: I have been told by three different talented boutique amp builders that the whole idea that birch or pine is better for cabs is another out of control fallacy. Funny fact is that plywood is best because the crossgrains prohibit competing or clashing tonal frequencies.
This seems great! For cheap tube amps, I’d also recommend to anyone the older Peavey Classic 50’s or 30’s. They sound absolutely great and I got my Classic 50 4x10 for $300. Check out some videos, they are real hidden gems.
The Monoprice is a straight up jcm800 circuit. Why laney chose to put a bypass cap on the cold clipper stage is beyond me. Yeah, it gives it more gain, but it also gets quite fizzy as you turn it up. Best thing you can do on these after a speaker & tube swap is to cut one wire inside the chassis to get rid of that bypass cap. Plug HD3 next to V2 on the board. Has three wires. (One pair & one lone wire). Cut the lone wire & zip tie it securely where it won't touch anything. Makes no difference at very low gain, but it really improves the crunch once the Gain knob is above noon.
Whoever you are, you're a bad influence :) After reading your comment, I cracked mine open and clipped this wire. The high gain is now much crunchier. It's like on high gain it was trying to be something it wasn't. Thank you!
@@pcanarsky I'm going to have to really consider it. I'm planning on buying a second one in the near future, so that may be the one I mod. Personally, after swapping V1 for a 12AT7, I'm perfectly happy with the overdriven tone. If I still had a 12AX7 there, then this mod would be a no-brainer.
I almost bought one of those but since I have to play silent all the time I opted for the joyo. But who knows I may spring for one. Heck if the cabinet falls apart I bet it's not that hard to find an old cabinet for a SS amp that stopped working and throw the guts into that. At the price perfect for practicing your building skills if you are interested. Still it will be a nice back up amp or great amp for a young one starting out. Hell remember the gorilla amp. Anyone? Crickets chirping.....
I just received my monoprice amp. The label on the back states it was made in Nov 2020. This amp came equipped with all JJ tubes. Three ECC 83S power tubes and two EL 84 pre amp tubes. Glad to see there are no unbranded tubes inside now. The amp sounds good and I'm very happy with it. I bought this amp because of all the good reviews and I am a woodworker so I plan to make a custom cabinet for the head and a separate speaker cabinet.
Tip for tubes: take them out and put them in using a slow circular motion, don’t just yank them out and or in a left and right motion, DO NOT PINCH THE PINS
I just discovered your channel and have to tell you how impressed I am! I'm trying to decide how to tell a friend about it. You know, he's the guy that believes you can hear the difference in tonewood, finish, etc! I'm sure he'll tell me this Amp is garbage without even hearing it!
recommend wearing cotton gloves anytime you handle glass tubes - finger oils will cause the tube to burn out prematurely. Same for projector bulbs and other high intensity light bulbs. That said - you have convinced me and I am buying one of these now!
This is true for halogen light bulbs, but they are MUCH hotter than thermionic tube envelopes. I would wear gloves to handle tubes because I don't want to burn my hands.
When I was a noob (a long time ago), I made the mistake of buying a solid-state amp. From the first strike of the strings, I knew I had gone down the left-hand path. Of course, I'm sure solid-state technology has improved since then (this was the 90's) but, as I'm scarred by that experience, it ain't gonna be me playin' one! This looks like a good practice/home amp, especially with that neat 1 watt feature. Definitely looking to pick one up!
That's absolutely true. An experienced player will adjust their playing style to fit the tone they have pretty much automatically. If I could offer one piece of advice that doesn't cost a thing... Tuning and intonation are everything. Take the time to learn how to get your guitar perfectly in tune. (as close as it will get anyway) You'd be surprised how much better a guitar sounds when everything is correct. It'll literally jump up and sound better when all of the harmonic frequencies are working together.
You nailed it !! Jeff Beck could take a stock $100 Fender Bullet and a nasty cheapo amp off the shelf and it would still sound like Jeff. You can spend $4k on a custom Beck Strat and another $2-5k on a vintage marshal amp and pedals, you will NEVER sound like Beck. Same with other greats like EVH and Hendrix
I own this amp. I have played a ton of Amps in my time. Mostly backline a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe. I bought it just to see what all the buzz was about. Then I played it…. I was blown away! This thing has become my go to for practicing in the house and smaller gigs that don’t require as much firepower on stage. I replaced the speaker with a 25w Greenback and put Mullard power tubes in it. This thing is a killer amp with the right speaker in it! Highly recommend this for anyone that does smaller gigs or just likes to play at home!
Concerning the power cable....install a 5 cent "one hole strap" to one of the existing screws on the "tube guard" ...it will hold the cable down parallel with the back of the amp... and in case it does get "pulled"...the pull will be against the strap, not the interior electrical connections...
Hey Darrell, thanks for the video. I was researching a lot about this magnificent amplifier, unfortunately the shipment to Germany is worth almost the same as the amplifier. finally I bought a Vox AC4-C112, but I'm sure that at some point I'll end up acquiring this monoprice 15 Watts. Greetings from Berlin
Laney Cub 12r clone. Literally the same exact amp inside except for the reverb and cabinet obviously. Circuit board, components, speaker, transformers...everything is the same. The Laneys sell for about $450+ used so almost twice the price of a new Stage Right even though it's 90% the same. I guess their price increase could come from the quality of materials the cab is built from and the digital reverb. 🤷♂️ I dunno.
I checked into it and ended up buying their 5 watt tube amp for $114.95. It's basically a Fender Champ clone with an added tone knob, sound attenuator and an external speaker jack. I love it! I always wanted a Champ but didn't like the price tag.
Maybe you're missing the point? How much would all three of your mods cost? Anyway, the amp sounded pretty good to me, and the fact it's made of chipboard (pressboard?) is a minor factor, since it would never get exposed to rough treatment.
@@Ndlanding I'm more curious then anything else. I would however definitely change the speaker, to a scumback if possible because it would 100% be worth it.
Ndlanding yes but, if you were to have this amp for $200 and planned to keep it and those mods cost a bit, and it was a good outcome then you've still got something special that is great with less money invested. However I can see it from both sides, like, if something goes wrong, who knows if it's wired like anything else or how easy it would or wouldn't be to repair. Two ways to see it.
I got one of these in August of 2018, and prior to the pandemic, giggled/jammed with it once or twice a week. I don't use it for guitar though... I blow harp through it. The Covfefe ended the gigs and jam sessions, but this Amp was (and still is) 100% reliable. The sound is great, and plenty loud enough to keep up in small to medium venues, playing classic rock, blues, and country. It doesn't seem to be available on Amazon right now, which is a real shame, but if it was, I would not hesitate to buy one again.
Supposedly they're both made in the same factory and the internals are almost identical from what I was reading earlier. Haven't had a chance to look into it any more yet though.
It's shocking (in a good way) to me that this thing has chassis mounted tube sockets. Most inexpensive tube amps mount the tubes directly to the PCB board, which results in a lot of heat, vibrations, and handling stress being unnecessarily transmitted to the PCB board.
waiting for this to ship from GC now, thanks for the great recordings, i watched countless demos of this and this was the one that sold me on the tone, really lets you hear the full spectrum of sound.
The speaker has a massive impact on a guitar sound (when recording, the mic is equally as important, like here, the 609/906 has a very specific sound). Using the same amp and changing the speaker will completely change the tone. You can try that with amp sims and cab impulse responses. The speaker/cab(+mic) is arguably the most important part of the chain, followed by the amp, pedals and then the guitar/playing.
dirk da Like I said earlier, I dropped an Emminence CRex in mine. Wasn't a big 70/80 fan. It really gave more definition to the lower mids/bass, and smoothed out the highs. Now it makes for a great little blues/blues rock amp, which is just what I was looking for.
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I am in the UK.
I said a couple of weeks ago that I had bought one of these and would post back.
I am an amp-tech type who has been building, repairing and modifying stuff for decades.
Here's the full review:-
The amp made it's 8,000 mile journey in 14 days and arrived intact at a total cost of $351.58 which is circa £266 - that is all-in, shipping, import duty, VAT and everything.
I knew as soon as I unboxed it that one of the smaller, input valves was dead on arrival - it had a very visible white stain in the crown of the glass. This was a valve faulty at manufacture which has had a leaking envelope.
[ edit : on closer inspection later, there is a hairline crack in the glass on the pins, so it probably is damage from a shock in transit]
There is no voltage-selector switch and the unit is set up for USA mains circa 115V. A small indicator is painted on the back which has two lines, each with a tick-box "100 to 120Va.c." or "220 to 240Va.c." The former was ticked.
You will therefore DEFINITELY need a step-down transformer (known as an auto-transformer) to use this amp in the UK. It steps our 240V down to the 110V that this amp runs on as supplied.
UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD YOU CONNECT THE AMP (as supplied) DIRECT TO THE UK MAINS WITHOUT THE APPROPRIATE AUTO-TRANSFORMER. You will definitely kill the amp and possibly yourself.
(Any auto-transformer that puts out 110 to 120 volts and is rated at anything above 50 watts will do)
Alternatively and much better, the amp can easily be made to run on UK mains by any EXPERIENCED TECH - see the paragraphs at the end of this post.
Having got the 110V power-supply problem sorted out I powered-up and immediately confirmed that the gassy valve was indeed dead. I replaced it with a handy spare and we were in business.
I can't tell you anything about sound that you didn't learn from the above video which persuaded me to buy it in the first place.
It does have "that sound"
Sparkly highs when clean, warm and creamy when pushed a little and quite a decent roar when wound up.
For a domestic situation and a bit of home-practice, when turned up this amp is fooking LOUD even on the 1W setting.
I haven't had time to try it on full 15W setting properly, just a couple of quick riffs and kerrangs as a test, but I think he's right in saying it would handle your normal drum-kit. IMO use at full volume could definitely get you evicted pretty quickly :-)
So the sound out-of-the-box was good enough. It was definitely absolutely valves and as such adequate and lives up to expectations.
Even as it is delivered, it's a great sounding amp at a very low price indeed.
But I needed one replacement valve anyway and the defective one had shaken my faith a little about the others so since for me this whole buy-a-valve-amp thing was a "let's get this sorted once and for all" I thought I may as well have done with it and get a complete set. Nothing too fancy and expensive, just decent valves.
So I ordered some JJ's from Hot Rox - a matched pair of EL84 output valves, a pair of tested input ECC83's and a selected/balanced ECC83 for the phase-splitter ....... there's less point in having matched output valves unless they are also driven equally.
I chose the medium-hot selected EL84 output valves for "normal" amounts of tone. You can choose "cooler" which run cleaner or "hotter" which start to distort at a lower volume.
Putting them in has changed the sound. Basically the cleans are much the same, it's as dirty as it was before when driven but the sound is a little warmer and more creamy. Most notably, when on heavy dirt, with the new valves I could kerrang a chord and also pick on other notes whilst it was ringing and the other notes came through clear and bright, whereas before with the old valves it was all a bit more mushy. Nice, but a little mushy and indistinct, so room for improvement.
With postage and the small charge for testing and matching the new tubes cost £63.
I think that I am not a fan of the speaker. It is one of the later Celestions, from the times when clean tones often drenched in chorus had become popular. The speaker doesn't sound awful and many will be perfectly happy with it - it's just not much to my ideal taste. Personally, I got my first Greenbacks when I was seventeen and for the next 50 years did not use anything else. Each disappointing experiment with other speakers just left me more convinced that Greenbacks are the answer - but I'm a rock-orientated Strat-playing hippy from the late 60's so my notion of a good speaker might be different to someone else's.
I do have a spare pair of G12H Greenbacks in my loft so one of them will be going into this amp ASAP and I'm near certain that it will then be staying.
One of these Seventy80 speakers new is circa £54.
There is a REASON why a G12H Greenback new is £129! ;-)
The reverb tank is not an Accutronics, but it is decent and has a metal shell.
It is very rigidly mounted to the base of the combo and I will be re-mounting that onto some flexible fittings.
The current mounting must inevitably feed more vibration back from the speaker to the springs so I expect rubber mounts to slightly decrease the reverb-time at higher volumes and improve any handling noise from moving the amp whilst it is on.
The internal wiring etc is neatly done. I'm never overjoyed to see tiny surface-mount components but the amp seems well designed and assembled and there is no reason to think there is anything inadequate or likely to cause a future problem.
The transformers are on the small side but I have no reason to think them not up to the job.
There is no smoothing choke though the power supply seems adequately smoothed and there is no hum problem.
The small transformers and absence of a smoothing choke mean that the chassis itself can be lighter whilst still fine for the job.
Between that and the case construction material, overall weight is 25.4 lbs (11.5 kilos)
The case is indeed made of a compressed paper board type material. As I said in another post, this does not concern me personally as I will only use the amp in my home studio or infrequent jam-session.
If I was a gigging musician, I would probably invest in a flight-case. If I construct a better amp-case, it's a lot of work and it will still get battered by touring. With a flight-case instead, the amp will still look spotless in years to come.
The actual wire inside the mains lead is perfectly adequate for it's job but is a lot thinner than you might think as that outer skin contains three wires and three thick pieces of string as you'll learn if you adapt it to 240v and snip off the American plug. String inside a mains cable is no bad thing and actually a sign of attention to detail as it strengthens the overall cable.
The best solution though would be to fit a Euro socket like most amps have.
The poster was a little unsure about the covering material. I see no particular problem with it myself. It's a white rexine and whilst probably not up to Fender and Marshall standard, it appears reasonably resilient.
OVERALL CONCLUSION
I think that at current prices this is an absolute bargain. It sounds good straight out of the box and there are simple things that anyone can do to improve it further in the valve and speaker swap.
Setting up for operation on UK mains voltage 240V
=========================================
As implied by the above panel inscription, the power transformer is actually capable of being wired for 240V as used in the UK.
There are two separate input windings on the transformer, each of 110V. As supplied, they are wired in parallel across the supply voltage. All that is need for 240V operation is that they be wired in series by snipping off/unsoldering two 2 inch loops of wire from the transformer terminals completely, then soldering a little bridging loop to connect the two centre terminals.
THIS IS MAINS VOLTAGE - DO NOT ATTEMPT THIS UNLESS YOU 100% KNOW EXACTLY WHAT YOU ARE DOING!
I am a qualified tech.
WRONG CONNECTION MAY KILL YOU OR DESTROY THE AMPLIFIER.
- doing any mod will also negate the guarantee, but shipping 8,000 miles for a repair was never going to be sensible anyway.
I mention it only to say how simple it is for an experienced amp-tech. The snipping and soldering is a 5 minute job so if a person were to remove the amp from the chassis themselves, remove the valves (not needed) and take it to a competent person, the charge for actually doing the job should be minimal. - it takes FAR longer to just get the amp chassis in and out of the cabinet than to do the job itself.
There is also a small glass fuse mounted on the circuit board near the on/off switch.
For 110V operation (as supplied) this is a 500mA slow-blow fuse (has a T engraved on it)
For 240V operation this should be replaced with a 250mA slow-blow ........ or better yet, solder a link across the internal fuse holder and fit a panel-mount on the rear panel.
- whilst you are there and fiddling with the mains input, fit a euro connector.
Awesome post.
@@justthen Thanks - but really I just added a couple of details. I wrote mostly for the benefit of UK peeps who might be interested as I was. I've been looking for a small valve amp that I could afford for ages, a couple of years. I was quite prepared to build it myself by modifying an old radio or similar but people know what they're worth these days. But the cost of the parts plus the aggravation and work of building it myself..... it just wasn't worth it. Buying an amp was out of the question too - even second hand amps that were utterly crap when they were new - and are now 40 years old - is prohibitive.
{sighs) ...... over the years....decades....... I've had a vintage AC30 with Alnico Blues in it, a Fender Tremolux, a Vox 125 Watt lead stack, a 60W Carlsboro valve head, a Sound City 50W valve head, a Marshall 50, an ancient Gibson valve head and a couple of others I forget. Plus half a dozen small valve combo's of 3 to 15W, plus half a dozen Frankensteins I made from old valve radios and the like.
- but I sold them all so here I was, sat valveless in my dotage :-(
........which is how I came to be involved in the slightly crazy business of importing an amp from California.
I tried a Mullard OD tube in valve 1, it wasn't an improvement, so I put the original tube back.
👍
Now "that" is a review, and opinion ! This is what is missing from comment sections, the will to express ones self, and spend a little time explaining your point of view. Well done, and by all means " keep writing".
Pros: it’s an affordable tube amp
Cons: it’s an affordable tube amp
Final Verdict: it’s an affordable tube amp
Jack Cone
it's an affordable tube amp
I think it’s an affordable tube amp
@@blackusniggus6249 no ..a tube amp , thats affordable i'd say
Michael Seymour Agreed couldn’t be more right. It’s an affordable tube amp. :)
An amp with tubes, indubitably...
I’ve had one of these about a month now and it keeps getting better as the speaker breaks in. The 70/80s get a bad rap, they’re a little harsh at first and need about 40 hours to really break in but they’re good sounding speakers once they are. They’re shipping now with JJ tubes and a better reverb tank which makes it a even better deal.
Dang so much good info/experience in the comments thank you! As someone who’s really only going to play for themselves alone, would this amp be the way to go then? Just wanna jam out!
What year did they start shipping them with jj tubes?
Ismt break in just your ear getting used to it. I feel like the breaknin on speakers is just snake oil
I love the way you understand your camera and use a monitor to see what the viewer is seeing in real time. Very professional. And the answer to any of your questions to the viewer in this video regarding the making of more videos of this amp is...: YES please sir!
Also one of the hottest DBG 1 minute solos evar!!!
Thanks so much ZL!
@@DarrellBraunGuitar You're welcome sir! While I've got your attention would you consider doing a DBG $500ish guitar starter kit with like, this amp, the baby blue Notacaster and some of your own modifications to make it really kick ass? With or without the manufacturer's endorsements, though they'd be crazy not to try jump on board...
I think the amp sounds fantastic. The Celestion 80 is used in many stock cabs. A creditable speaker, further verified by this demo.
Thanks a million for turning folks on to this kind of stuff. I'm just getting started at age 56. Bought this amp and I'm delighted with the sound compared to other starter amps. I'm a 'what makes this tick' guy and got a spring reverb for it as the stock one is a bit weak in my sample. Right now I'm working with a no-name guitar I bought YEARS ago for my daughter. Just took delivery of a kit so I can build my own Strat and upgrade as needed. Gonna be fun learning all the how-it-works stuff as well as making noise.
Better late than never. I'm also interested in learning how to play. To experience the greats and create my own melodies. I really like the Firefly 338. It has awesome tones. But I'm not technical by any stretch of the imagination so I'll go for something really simple but flexible like the Boss Katana 50. BTW I am a sprightly 44. My partner picked up an ukulele for my last birthday so now I want to stretch myself a bit. Have fun. Cheers!
Keep in mind that they do go on sale. I think I got mine for $170 shipped. And yes, I'd love to see you swap out the tubes to see what difference it makes, if any.
As for the lack of features, that's precisely why I bought this over the Boss Katana. As a beginner, I know I would get bogged down and suffer from options paralysis with a modeling amp instead of just playing. I made the right choice, 100%.
Modeling amps are overrated, pedals work better and are more customizable. I think I'm going to get one of these to replace my practice(modeling) amp.
I've got a Katana 50 but im seriously thinking about one of these too. Much like you the simplicity speaks to me
@@clutch1141 I agree. I bought a effects pedal thing, there is too much there, it's distracting. And I realised that my guitar heros usually have pretty simple setups, a few petals and an amp.
@@bugsy9069 your guitar heroes , and mine, had a studio chalk full of gear and an engineer to run that gear...just saying
The Katana is pretty ridiculous, for the money
Doesn't really have its own sound, but you can dial in a crazy number of well-known amp sounds pretty quickly
Thanks Darrell. Nice and fair, spot on review. I have one of these I bought about a year ago (technically previous model), the redesigned reverb is an improvement over the earlier one, which wasn;t that interesting but serviceable. I really doubt you'll find a better budget tube amp in this price range. The 12" celestion speaker is the star of the show in my opinion. After breaking in it gets deeper and more colorful. Takes pedals well. I swapped in a set of new-issue TungSols, didn't notice a huge difference honestly. I put the originals back in, they were perfectly OK to my ear. Mine never leaves the house, but for kicking around the house it's a fantastic little practice amp. As a starter amp or a first tube amp, I would recommend this all day. Pros far outway the cons here.
Well said, sir. I very much agree. My adult son and I test drove probably 10 other amps - and we both liked this Monoprice amp the best (and my son and I have wildly different ears). I swapped out the Celestion speaker with a bunch of other ones - and ended up going back to the Celestion. This is a great amp.
you would be blown away with a v30 or a good speaker suited better for this.70/80s are generally shrill,thin and nasaly
@@trillrifaxegrindor4411 I have a Traynor YCV-40 that came stock with a 70/80, and never had a problem with the speaker sound. I bought it used, and I've read several times that once they get broken in that speaker can sound very good, some people even rave about them. Mine may have already been worn in when I got it, as I never had to wait for it to develop a good sound.
But the opinions on 70/80's do vary wildly, and it seems to be a bit more shrill now, then a couple years ago.
@@stevejackson2986 Huh. I purchased a used Traynor (not vintage era) 2x12" cabinet with Celestion Seventy 80 speakers. I was really put off by the speakers - I found them quite harsh and lacking in any mid-range definition. So I sold them, replacing them with a vintage Altec Lansing and an Eminence. Now it's probably not fair to compare to the Altec (it's a really sweet speaker with lots of lower/middle/upper mid-range definition), but I'm wondering if the Celestions just weren't broken in. Maybe I dismissed them too soon.
I’ve had the amp since december so for about 5 months and here’s my review. I would highly recommend going to your local music store and replace the tubes because they are pretty cheap and do not last. Other than that the amp is amazing for only 200$ it’s studio quality with great dirt channels and excellent cleans. Great pedal platform too. Overall if you don’t want to spend that much money on an amp this amp is great to add to your rig
Been enjoying mine for 10 months. Does everything I wanted in a cheap practice amp. Effects loop, power can be reduced for bedroom use, real tubes, great speaker. No regrets.
This exact amp is also sold under Thomann's Harley Benton brand, "Harley Benton TUBE15 Celestion".
These were first, but that's what HB does.
Is it more expensive or cheaper??
Hey to the guy that liked my reply: get a Blues junior. I just got one and it sets everything to rest it’s 100% worth it man
@@AarenAndy I want one. Never had a tube amp. Hell I just started using interface. Hahah.
@@brickbreaker8148 All made in the same factory on the same line. Slap a different badge on for different markets.
After watching this review, I purchased this amp. Was surprised to see they had started using JJ tubes. Love that little amp. I built a 212 cab with a pair of Eminence speakers and it sounds amazing. Loud enough to jam with the guys and the 1watt feature is great for at home. Thanks for the awesome job you do with the honest reviews!!!
Darrel, I can't thank you enough for all the demonstration and comparison you've made. It educate me to know more about gears. Cheers!
It's actually a direct copy, at least internally, of the Laney Cub 12 amp. Most amp geeks think it's actually made in the same factory. They used to look extremely similar to the Cub, but probably changed the look to avoid that being obvious. Best part - it's less than half the price of the Cub 12 and it's the exact same amp! Awesome demo, BTW.
Clifton J. Great info thanks. I might pick up one of these
Laney Cub 12 sounds better. The Monoprice is dark and mushy sounding, doesn't have the same clarity
@@jumpboy29 Interesting. It is possible that production moved elsewhere since I'm sure Laney wasn't keen on having one of it's amps being de-branded and sold at half price. That could explain some tonal difference, but at least at some point, they were identical, and at at the very least very similar still.
It’s manufactured by Sino Amp. These have a different speaker than the Laney and that the main difference. The Laney also has a digital reverb instead of a spring
Yeah I got a Cub12R and noticed that right away, too. It's almost the same except for a few minor changes (switchable power scaling, spring reverb, speaker). They Laney has 2 inputs instead, digital reverb and a Celestion Rocket/Laney HH.
Your gear demos are off the chart
Love it...yes someone actually plays chords and riffs...
That's what like 95% of guitar playing actually is, and single note runs are always going to sound intelligible. It's when you start adding more notes (chords) that the tone really becomes apparent.
I bought one several months ago. After a few months of really great sound became intermittent and it suddenly died. I took it apart and found a cable had fell off between the reverb and preamp. Then I discovered the speaker panel was busted in two places. I made a new speaker panel with a new board and fixed the cable. Sounds like new. If you look at the tubes there are no markings on them at all. I'm going to replace them with high quality tubes. It IS a great amp. I recommend it but it is cheaply made. the speaker panel is made of some weird paper material. Probably why is feels light weight. It feels heavier with a good panel. The amp covering material is shrinking and probably will continue to shrink until it just sluffs off on its own.
Thanks for the heads up.
Good lookin' out.
Ya, thanks. Good to know.
i would almost build a new cab for the guts and have a killer all around amp!
I swapped out the original OD tube in valve 1 with a replacement Mullard OD tube. I really liked the original Chinese tube much better. So I put it back. I'm very serious.
"Let's pull er oat"
*Canadian noises*
Right eh?
This guy seems like he wore Ren and Stimpy's Happy Helmet for a bit too long, eh?
Whot you talkin bout
Darrell knocks it out of the park again, with another great review of gear we can actually afford that sounds great. This is the kinda stuff we want and need, Darrell.
Sure, we love to drool over the high-end stuff, keep it coming.
But discoveries like the Indio guitar and the Stage Right amp, are the things we are gonna be able to afford, and now we can go ahead and buy without taking massive risks on buying a lemon and then having to shell out again to get something that sounds decent.
2 requests though; could you do a review of the Blackstar 5HT tube combo?
And how about a giveaway comp for a cheap guitar like the Indio that you have taken out of the box and sorted by setting up well and maybe replaced the very worst of the parts (like maybe the tuners, nut, or bridge)?
That would be awesome in extremis.
I don't know if you have a 'daytime job' as well as your youtube and Patreon stuff, but I love the idea that you may be making a living out of doing the stuff you love. That is Awesome with a capital 'A', and something I think all your followers would love to be able to do as well.
FYI; Before discovering your channel, changing strings and setting pickup heights was my limit.
Thanks to your guidance, I now have 3 guitars in various stages of disassembly, upgrading and re-assembly and experimentation. Getting amazing results, super-satisfying, and I just want to keep doing it. You took my fear away that I might break or screw something up. And showed me that I did not need to buy lots of expensive specialist kit. Just a notched straight-edge, some radius gauges, several radius sanding blocks, and a fret rocker.
More super budget kit reviews, 'how to' hot rod demos, and that Blackstar 5HT review, please, Darrell. Oh, and we would love to see/hear if upgrading the tubes in the Stage Right is worth doing.
The quest to find affordable gear that sounds great/works well continues! Today I think I've found a keeper!
Part 1 - Amp Walkthrough
Part 2 - Tone Demo 7:46
Part 3 - Good vs Bad 13:24
Enjoy!
Hi, I do enjoy your channel. I would like to see you change the tubes and see how much of a difference they make. Thank you..
Thank you so much !!!
Ive git a daphon chinese valve amp. 30watts single 12" very loud and the circuitry is very old school. Great for rock. Cost me $200. Mine about 25kgs.
Hi Darrell, would love to see a tube comparison video too.
You should make a comparison between the jcm800 and the silver jubilee
I’ve had this same amp for about five years now. Have never had a problem with it. It sounds excellent, although it doesn’t have the clean sparkle (or headroom) of a 6L6 or even a 6V6, but it has a GREAT EL84 sound. It sounds wonderful on recordings because you can get great tones at low volumes. It’ll actually drive a 4x12 cabinet very well too though. Great little amp for the money, especially if you just need a practice/recording amp with bedroom volumes.
Alright Darrel, you're the first person to ever convince me to order a piece of gear online. I watched this video two weeks ago and I couldn't stop thinking about it. Kudos to you!
Hows it been?
They went up!!
I have this amp. Re-tubed it with Tung-sol power tubes and some good preamp tubes, and it's become indispensable to me. I did put a 12AT7 in V1 for some extra headroom, but it keeps up nicely with my 100 watt Fender solid state 2x12 combo. In fact, nowadays I plug into this, and then use the effects loop to plug straight into the power section of the Fender.
What makes this more versatile (in my opinion) than the Blues Jr. (an amp I owned in the past) is the effects loop and the presence knob, features the Fender lacks. There's a lot more tonal variation there, and I can use all my time-based and modulation effects much more effectively.
For the record, this is actually a clone of the Laney Cub 12R. In fact, the internals are literally the same. It even says "Laney" on the main PC board.
Huh ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, I am gettin one
@@matthewotremba9230 You'll dig it.
I've had mine for 2 years and it still rocks. I thought about changing the tubes, but I haven't had the need. It just screams... and whispers sweet when I want it to.
It may sound good but when you put the new tubes in there adjust the bios and a new speaker cabinet you won't even recognize the brilliant clean nice tones that come out of it and then I use distortion panels I don't use distortion of that app if I want distortion I use a Laney
thanks for the review.
what a great time for guitarists: Decent cheap equipment and free lessons all over You Tube.
i would've killed for these opportunities in the 1970s.
ultimately, it's all worthless if one neglects to practice.
Kids, stay in practice or you're wasting money on these goodies.
I have the gear and practice but no band? I cant find one
I have had one of these for over a year now and I love it, I have mullard el84's, 1959 sylvania long grey plate 12ax7 in v1, sovtek 5751 in v2 and a 1959 sylvania in v3, I keep swapping the speaker around but I keep going back to the 70/80 or a Jensen c12n. I also have the 5 watt amp too, I have a 1958 sylvania smoke glass black plate 6v6gt and I roll different tubes in it but mostly keep a rca long black plate 12ax7 in it. I have modified the negative feedback loop with a 50k pot and 10k resistor inline to get more gain or more headroom. I have a Jensen c8r in it as well. They are fantastic amplifiers for the money.
I have two of these. The newest one is completely stock and has a definite AC15 vibe to it. The older one has new tubes (1 12AT7, 2 12AX7's, Tung-Sol EL84's) and a speaker swap (Eminence Legend with the same sensitivity rating as the Seventy80). It has a much more Fender vibe to it.
I run them in stereo, and they sound absolutely ridiculous together!
So for 200 for this and 100 for the guitar (200 if you upgrade it a bit) you could have a perfectly decent set to learn on and have fun with. That's actually pretty incredible.
CrimFerret honestly, as long as you’re not playing a stadium, you could gig with 300...
You could gig w this amp. (Post Script) It will also help if you mic this amp through the PA.
Been gigging with this amp for about a month now. The stock (Chinese) tubes have a bit of a metallic or harshness to them. Swapped them out with some tubes I had in my no longer functional Fender Hot Rod; it sounds great. Side by side to a Blues Jr & you really can't tell the difference. You're on point with the negatives, but they're pretty minimal. (Not a the fan of the 15/1W button; just one more thing that could break/go wrong. I like it simple.) IMO it more than holds it own against other 15w on the market. Get a cover; it's gonna get dirty unless it stays in the studio. 😎
@J Thorsson If you mic the amp through the PA as well, yeah it will work nicely. It did for me. A little bleed into the PA definitely does the trick.
@@TrashcanGarage Stopped reading after the word blonde...
got mine for 175.00 dollars back in 2012 and bought a couple of tubes that went out since then, Love it. I use the effects loop in the back and add a bunch of my favorite pedals usually 4 or 5 and have a blast. I dig Soundgarden and AC DC and forever a Hendrix fan. Rest in peace Jimi.
I love how open and honest Darrell tells what things are and do, compared to being brand bias. Thanks D.
We all understand that there are better products out there, but there are also affordable options available. Proof is in the video.
Darrell, I'm glad that you have a guitar tech's knowledge and you are willing to try different types of equipment. Extremely interesting review. I noticed that your guitar rack is missing something eye catching and Daphne Blue...just saying :)
What is it?
@@plasticbleach4004 Darrell has a beautiful Daphne Blue Squire Stratocaster that he has to restring. IMHO I think it makes his guitar collection that much prettier when it is on the rack.
@@DBSG1976 aww I knew it was that! I'm really sad about that because I've badly wanted one, and before I could get my hands on one, they went out of production. A Daphne blue Squier deluxe strat has now become one of my dream guitars. A SQUIER!
@@plasticbleach4004 You could always go with a Daphne Blue MIM Classic Series '50s Strat. Extremely well made and I changed out the pickups only due to personal preference. More expensive than the Squier, but worth the price IMHO.
i really like your videos. really well made and always interesting to watch. And yesss, try replacing the tubes with good quality tubes. i wanna hear how it sounds
great video
Thanks for the kind words!
The Chinese no name valves are made in the same factories as your branded valves
batteries are the same way
They're all made by the same guy - I met him his name is ming
The good tubes are russian.
That doesn't mean they're all the same design or built to the same QC standards. Gretsch Electromatic guitars are built in the same Korean factory as Peerless, D'Angelico and certain Carlo Robelli models. That doesn't mean they're all the same guitar.
most new tubes are chinese using old american and russian machinery.
"guitar tone is all about the player and about the amp"
FACTS
id say 15% guitar 10% player and 75% is amp
Mr. Blonde I think might be mostly about the pickups
That’s what I heard somewhere idk
It's more 8% player (tone and feel are different things), 10% pickups, 15% amp, 67% speaker. My math is also probably off but you get the idea. Speaker is somehow the most overlooked part of a setup even though it makes the most difference by far
Big fax
It's easy to source replacement spring tanks that fit this thing too, this thing is a great modding platform imo.
The spring reverb on the current one is really quite good, the one on the original models the reverb is absolutely terrible. I have one of each that I use in Stereo. They are amazing.
whats a good source? any tips on finding one cheap? I have the 5w stage right and I love it except it has no built in reverb and I cant have that. I'm scraping by using a Biyang Tri verb, which is OK but I would rather have a tank , for sure.
I disagree. For a combo amp, IMO, there are three things that define the foundation for a modding platform: Circuit, chassis, and cabinet. The circuit is a copy of an only average circuit, I can’t speak for the chassis-if it is surface mounted tube sockets, etc., and the cabinet is tiny and made of crap materials. I’d say this is the opposite of a great modding platform, because you can throw a ton of money into it for modest tonal improvements on a boxy, cheap foundation. Compare this, for example, to a Mexi Strat which is a solid modding platform, as the basics are very solid, yet not exceptional, but anything else can be swapped to taste: in the end it’s always built on that well selected, well crafted wood...not outstanding... but very high grade for modding.
TheConvert surface mount is fine, but it takes more experience to mod than other methods
Azimov Watts Monoprice and Amazon (usually through Monoprice) are pretty much it
Darrell, we mostly praise your ability to feature well different guitars, updating and amp evaluations; however, I would like to point out that you are a great guitar player! Great job all the way around.
I have this amp and it rocks! My favorite part is the spring reverb.
I have had this amp for a minute, and changed tubes, reverb tank, and speaker (put in a WGS), it is really, really good
@pcanarsky did you try swapping out the cabinet? The cab looks like a piece of crap to be honest. Imagine that putting into high quality solid wood cab would make a big difference. Possibly sized up a slight big as well as I'm sure they made it smaller than necessary to save on production costs. How much $ did you spend on upgrades so far? Just curious.
@@raybrubaker I don't like tracking my mod purchases -- too painful :):):) I think the reverb tank was $20ish, the speaker was a WGS speaker which run $90ish (but then I still have the Celestion, so I don't count that cost :) -- And I swapped the tubes.
Building another cab is a good idea! Personally, I would rather turn it into a head...hum, maybe when I get a down day :)
I would definitely be interested to compare those stock no-name tubes against a known quality set.
They are almost certainly the same as JJ tubes or Sovtek or whomever. There are only so many tubemakers in the world My guess is that these tubes fail the QC standards for their branded tubes but are at least functional.
@@chuckschillingvideos Judging by the shots in the video, they're most likely Ruby tubes or another no-brand Chinese tube. Chinese 12AX7s (modern/new production) are the only ones that use that three-layer mica construction like the ones in the video. JJ (produced in the Czech Republic) and New Sensor-owned brands like Sovtek, EHX, etc. are Russian-made.
@@alfredothoughts I will defer to your opinion. I am not as well versed in the details of the current tubes as you are (I use NOS tubes).
@@chuckschillingvideos Hey, both are great and have their uses. I work with tubes for a living and see a lot of both and just wanted to toss some info out. I did misspeak saying Czech, it's technically Slovakia now where JJ Electronic is HQ'd. Not sure why but a lot of Chines tubes from Ruby (or cheap Shuguangs) used that three-mica setup. Like how a lot of Russian tubes used the UFO-style getter.
@@chuckschillingvideos Your 100% right, the only difference between these and JJ's or groove tubes etc is that those companies say they check and match their tubes.
A tube comparison video would be awesome! Tubes are something I've never experimented with, so it would be interesting to pit some against each other
Daniel Lee I put a set of JJs in the power section I have a nos rca 12 ax7 in v-1 a Raytheon 5751 in v2 and an EHx 12ax7 in the phase inverter/ v3. Quite frankly it sounds a lot better.
lilnetty2 I’ve tried all 12 ax7s . I like the 5751 in v2 . It makes the gain on this amp more creamy sounding and better for my needs. I miss spoke about NOS . The vintage tubes I have were tubes I was lucky enough to get in used tube amps I’ve had in the past. The rca and the Raytheon tube combo does create a more rounded sound. There’s no mistaking that. I have a lot of tubes and I’ve tried a multitude of combinations. That being said I wouldn’t go out and buy expensive tubes for this amp
In my experience, tubes make quite a difference, but a speaker really changes the sound a lot.
Damn decent TUBE amp for just $200! Definitely seems worth it as a practice amp/bring anywhere amp. At least you won't have a heart attack if it get a nic/dent or someone puts a drink down on it.
Would definitely love to hear the comparison after some branded tubes!
These amps are now available in Europe and sold by Thomann, re-badged as Harley Benton. Just bought one based on this review. Fantastic amp for the money and great classic tones. Just watch out for the EU plug, you'll need a 2 pin earthed adapter for the UK.
Change the lead to a UK one
Lol all these requests for testing it with expensive tubes. Please do a blind A/B test with the stock vs expensive tubes and we'll see the reality of the money tone chasers.
It's definitely going to be a blind test :)
Tristan Laing - exactly, I have only noticed a real deference if a tube is bad. Biggest change is the speakers
A full set of 5 new branded tubes, plus postage might approach the cost of the amp itself; depends on your location.
@Mike Ladd My spare amp is a Vox modelling amp that uses a single 12AX7 to give a tube pre-amp sound. Factory fit was a 'Ruby' tube (Russian?), I replaced it with a Fender 'Groove Tube' (China?) - that was worse so I promptly put the Ruby tube back in. The exercise did prove that the tube (located between the DSP modelling and the solid state lower amp) did genuinely contribute to the tone!
Tubes will affect the sound, frequency response and feel, but a lot of the effect depends on the circuit. The more preamp tubes the less effect each tube makes usually, but it varies. A speaker is the single most effective way to change your tone.
That is a very nice AMP! I brew my own here in Brazil and there is no way I can make one for 200 Trumps.
My advice? Don't bother changing the tubes. If they are not microphonic and oscillating they are fine. Chinese tubes are not bad.
Change the áudio transformer instead. And The speaker. There you will notice a real difference.
Cheers.
Rafael, technician.
Yup. There are only a couple of factories in the world still making tubes. They're probably just the same as any branded tube anyway. ... I guess maybe they failed QC for the branding though. That might make the difference.
I'd definitely swap out the speaker first before the valves. A full set of 'good' new valves could cost more than a good Jensen speaker.
when you swap trafo, speaker and tubes, it will be a 500 eur amp
Hi Rafael.. I have upgraded tubes on a few amps in my day, and certainly have upgraded speakers ..but I will say this .. on smaller boutique style amps and lunch box heads that are a considerable value, ..Bugera , etc.. when you can replace the tubes.. I've experimented with Sovtek, Groove Tubes and Electro Harmonix and JJ's..There is undoubtedly a big difference .. especially when you're looking for that warmer creamier tone. I live in NYC now and have been over to and made friends with some of the folks at the Electro Harmonix HQ . IMO and many many others will agree with this ... Chinese tubes aren't really that great end of day . For the average musician and player, maybe not a big deal. But upgrading tubes when and where applicable .. and like you said a top quality speaker.. totally different ball game .
Thanks for the advice guys..."Rock Will Never Die!" 🎸
Dave Jones would be proud of you. We don't turn stuff on when we receive them. We take them apart!!!
In terms of a first tube amp, or even if you're just GASing over the Blues Jr. style sound...this would REALLY be hard to beat. Highly impressed with Monoprice.
It's a Marshall clone.
@@jefflazare924 It's a Laney CUB-12R with a real spring reverb. (The CUB is digital reverb)
does anyone know if it is a clone of a certain amp??? there are countless amps with that tube setup???
It's like an older marshall with more gain. There's more specific info on The tele forum.
@@TangleTwister Chris Rowe said it's a Laney Cub 12R. Someone else compared it to a Blues Jr.
PLEASE GET NEW TUBES AND TEST THIS!!!!
Tubes!Tubes!..
I've been looking for such a test for like ages. I would really like to see if this is a urban legend whether proper tubes make difference in sound quality. PLEASE DO THE TEST!
I tried a bunch in mine. I didn't find that it made enough difference, so I left the stock ones in. These amps are however biased quite cold & getting it up to spec made a huge difference. That & a better speaker. Even a super cheap Eminence with a more British voice was a big improvement.
Don't even ask such a silly question. DO IT!
BTW, sounds really good as is, just want to see if it goes to a higher level of tubey goodness :)
John Austin after one day you've got 215 likes, lol I think your comment is one we all agree with😎
I know a pro musician who gigs with one of these at bar venues. It sounds perfectly fine. The only pedal he generally uses with it is a Fulltone OCD for leads.
omg i'm just at the clean tone, but that sounds lovely AF
thanks DBG for doing all the hard work for us. Appreciate the info and reviews you do.
Glad to help :)
I got this amp sometime this or last year, after they raised the price to $250. I changed the speaker this past week to a Celestion Greenback and changed the tubes. Before, there was a rattle snake in my amp on any OD note, but since changing the tubes, it's gone. The speaker was just icing. Now it sounds great and still under $500.
WOW! I think I might have to pick one up! I'm a caregiver for my father and also live in a small apartment building. So having a lightweight amp to carry with me to my dad's and back home with access to the beautiful sounds from that 1 watt setting will make many people happy! I struggle to keep an acceptable volume at each place, but still be able to get "my sound". Thanks for such a great review!
I’m flabbergasted how good this amp sounds... 😮
Here's some stuff I know about this amp. I bought one a few years ago for $181 delivered. I already had a Laney Cub 12. This amp was basically a clone of that in every way except for a few cosmetic differences (knobs, everything were in the exact same place). I believe thse were made in the same factory as the Laney and just covered and labeled differently). I gave that to my pal who plays in a blues band doing gigs all the time, and he loves it (and he's a fuss budget). He uses it for all his indoor gigs and it's easily loud enough, sounds great. He liked it so much he bought another. Now that one was this newer style with the controls on the front instead of on top like the Laney clone. The amp still has the exact same specs and features (spring reverb was improved according to monoprice). He likes the newer model even a bit better but that could be variation from amp to amp. Both have held up to gigging with no issues for him, and the older model has been at it for a couple of years (he uses the older one for most gigs as they get beat up cosmetically, and the newer one he uses for "nice" gigs like say a wedding). That Laney Cub 12 I have used to be a great bargain itself when I bought it compared to a Fender Blues Jr. ($400 compared to $600) but I see the Laney now for $550. So, this is a great amp for the money. I also have a 40W Marshall tube amp I got new for $400 from Sweetwater, and that was a GREAT deal.
I bought this from monoprice for $125 on sale. It's great!! You can instal your own removable power cord.
Is that $125 USD?
I hope more people will try this guitar amp and I wanted to say I learn a lot with your videos and you play good.
I bought one of these as a practice amp and it came with JJ tubes! Amp seems to be fine with plenty of volume. worth the $250 I spent on it. Thanks Darrell!
Thanks for the video. DEFINITELY DO THE TUBE SWAP!! Put some JJ's, sovtek or svet's in there it'll make a world of difference.
👍Will do :)
Tung-sols are sweet too!
"Do the Tube SWAP. Dooo iiitttt!", in Homer voice.
Definitely Tung sols in the preamp.
I got the smaller 5 watt version of this amp. Swapped out the cheap microphonic no name Chinese tubes for some NOS from viva tubes. Spent $25. Literally a
Night and Day difference. These sound good with the crap tubes. They are magnificent with some quality tubes. The wattage switch is really a dB pad. Gives you some more clean headroom. Obviously It’s an insane value for either amp. You can’t really go wrong with either one.
Gonna have to start a gofundme to get Darrell a power screw driver.
power tools are why men have become soft.
@@florascent9ts ummmmm.........no
@@florascent9ts that doesn't even make sense home depot's store brand drill drivers are actually called... RIDGID TOOL.. to me that screams anything but soft men lol
@@gregoriodecker2692 the average male grip strength has decreased compared to previous generations.
@@florascent9ts Tim Taylor vehemently disagrees.
Es un magnífico ampli. Compré uno hace menos de un año y le hice las siguientes mejoras:- Activar el transformador de fuente para 230 volt (viene de serie cableado para 110 v; el mío se pudo reutilizar. ATENCIÓN a esta cuestión: aseguraos de que el voltaje del que compréis podeis graduarlo a 230 v, pues viene de USA a 110v) - Interruptor de Standby (que no lleva de serie)- Salida de auriculares- Cambio el altavoz Celestion 12" que trae de serie (asiático normalito) por el Jensen P12N AlNiCo Vintage (buenísimo, de alta eficiencia y cobertura de frecuencias)Con esos cambios, ahora no es que sea bueno, se ha convertido en un pequeño monstruo que no lo cambio por (por ejemplo) el Fender Blues Junior, Laney LC15R o Cube 15 R, etc (se ha doblado el precio, pero os aseguro que vale la pena).Siempre recordar: A los amplis con válvulas de potencia tipo EL84 les encanta estar calientes, así que esperar encendido unos minutos antes de tocar... ; tiene de todo, salida de altavoz externo, Loop de efectos send / return, pesa y ocupa poco, etc. Muy bueno para ensayar y más.Muy recomendable. Animaos y que lo disfrutéisJaime. Madrid.
Speakers and cabinets are often overlooked when creating great tone. It’s amazing just how much changing speakers and/or cabs can change your sound. It’s very important to try out different combinations of each.
If Darrell produced another video where he claimed to have put in $400 worth of NOS "vintage" tubes but actually left in the originals every comment would be like, "OMG!!!! Now THAT is how an amp is supposed to sound!!!....HEAVEN!!!....Am I dreaming???....OH MAN...tone nirvana!!"
I got the 5/1 watt model of the Stage Right amp and the tone is incredible for such a small practice amp. The controls are much more basic/understated which is good for a more meat and potatoes approach. It has volume, tone and the practical 1/5 watt switch. When you crank it up all the way it overdrives beautifully but has really good high volume clean tone too. It is very pedal friendly as well so hooking up a Tone Bender with a T-style guitar is Led Zeppelin 1 and 2 guitar tone with no effort. Thanks Darrell for introducing me to another amazing find bud and keep putting out the awesome and positive content!
There are only about three or factories factories in the world still making vacuum tubes. Many "branded" tubes are the same tubes just measured to a higher tolerance and graded by a third party, and then sold with a markup. Great for when your tubes wear out, but kind of silly to buy in the quest for tone, I think.
Maybe a better project idea for this amp would be to scrap the MDF and build a larger birch ply enclosure for it, with a new speaker!
Zachary Weyandt Actually, MDF is quite heavy. MDF and pressboard aren’t the same things. Pressboard is made from recycled paper, and MDF is made from highly processed wood fibers and binders. Pressboard is light, but it’s not that durable without the right paint and sealers. MDF is heavier than plywood, much heavier than pressboard, and it can be extremely durable, if the edges and corners are protected appropriately (but generally not the best choice for a combo amp cabinet, though I’ve seen it used for large subs...).
A birch cabinet and Speaker upgrade is an interesting idea, particularly if you had one or more vintage speakers laying around.
Everyone focuses on tubes, but changing speakers can make a huge difference in your sound.
Though there is a notable difference between those factories. For example JJ/Teslas from Slovakia tend to have thicker pins and better components than say Shuguang which are used by Groovetubes (Fender) and a few other brands.
If I had to guess these are probably Shuguang as well, the pins did not look like the JJs I have next to me, and the fact that the amp is Made in China, means that Chinese tubes are probably much cheaper to ship with it than Russian/Eastern Europe tubes.
@@Atlasworkinprogress Slovakia is Central Europe pls
A simple test could even be to just take the output and run it into the Blue Angel enclosure or another existing cabinet.
True! More pedestrian guitar consumers need to know this. If it was me I would invest in some sweet paired NOS tubes. That’s how I roll.
RE cab wood: I have been told by three different talented boutique amp builders that the whole idea that birch or pine is better for cabs is another out of control fallacy. Funny fact is that plywood is best because the crossgrains prohibit competing or clashing tonal frequencies.
I got mine last year, love it! Yes to a tube comparison please.
Yes, comparison please.
This seems great! For cheap tube amps, I’d also recommend to anyone the older Peavey Classic 50’s or 30’s. They sound absolutely great and I got my Classic 50 4x10 for $300. Check out some videos, they are real hidden gems.
are there any for 100$ used?
I hope this video blows up too 🙏 nice video 😉
Thanks man!
Darrell Braun Guitar I hope I win the danelectro guitar 🎸
Blowed up GOOD !!! Blowed up REAL !!! good. If you're old enough you'll know where that comes from.
The Monoprice is a straight up jcm800 circuit. Why laney chose to put a bypass cap on the cold clipper stage is beyond me. Yeah, it gives it more gain, but it also gets quite fizzy as you turn it up. Best thing you can do on these after a speaker & tube swap is to cut one wire inside the chassis to get rid of that bypass cap. Plug HD3 next to V2 on the board. Has three wires. (One pair & one lone wire). Cut the lone wire & zip tie it securely where it won't touch anything. Makes no difference at very low gain, but it really improves the crunch once the Gain knob is above noon.
any schematics on where to find that for us newbies? thanks a bunch!
Whoever you are, you're a bad influence :) After reading your comment, I cracked mine open and clipped this wire. The high gain is now much crunchier. It's like on high gain it was trying to be something it wasn't. Thank you!
If I didn't use an overdrive pedal, this would be damned tempting!!!
@@bradleyard4195 To me, this mod makes it break up with pedals more to my liking (crunchier).
@@pcanarsky I'm going to have to really consider it. I'm planning on buying a second one in the near future, so that may be the one I mod. Personally, after swapping V1 for a 12AT7, I'm perfectly happy with the overdriven tone. If I still had a 12AX7 there, then this mod would be a no-brainer.
I would realy like to hear a tube chainge. Never realy heard any tube swap. This would be a great example of the difference. Keep rocking !!!
The background track needs more cowbell...
Do you have a fever?
i agree more cowbell ~\\~
allot more cowbell
I gotta have more cowbell!
@@robcorkran83 Too funny! SNL is super funny sometimes depends on the host, and the season! Needs more cowbell!
I almost bought one of those but since I have to play silent all the time I opted for the joyo. But who knows I may spring for one. Heck if the cabinet falls apart I bet it's not that hard to find an old cabinet for a SS amp that stopped working and throw the guts into that. At the price perfect for practicing your building skills if you are interested. Still it will be a nice back up amp or great amp for a young one starting out. Hell remember the gorilla amp. Anyone? Crickets chirping.....
Greg Demott My first amp was a Gorilla. Dreadful. Just dreadful..🤣
I just received my monoprice amp. The label on the back states it was made in Nov 2020. This amp came equipped with all JJ tubes. Three ECC 83S power tubes and two EL 84 pre amp tubes. Glad to see there are no unbranded tubes inside now. The amp sounds good and I'm very happy with it. I bought this amp because of all the good reviews and I am a woodworker so I plan to make a custom cabinet for the head and a separate speaker cabinet.
Tip for tubes: take them out and put them in using a slow circular motion, don’t just yank them out and or in a left and right motion, DO NOT PINCH THE PINS
I just discovered your channel and have to tell you how impressed I am! I'm trying to decide how to tell a friend about it. You know, he's the guy that believes you can hear the difference in tonewood, finish, etc! I'm sure he'll tell me this Amp is garbage without even hearing it!
And I bet he would not stand a blind test in like 10 out of 10 cases ..
recommend wearing cotton gloves anytime you handle glass tubes - finger oils will cause the tube to burn out prematurely. Same for projector bulbs and other high intensity light bulbs. That said - you have convinced me and I am buying one of these now!
Amp techs and manufacturers don't wear gloves.
@@alecmullaney7957 still a good idea, I've been a tech for 40 years and was taught this back when I first started out - never hurts to go the extra
This is true for halogen light bulbs, but they are MUCH hotter than thermionic tube envelopes. I would wear gloves to handle tubes because I don't want to burn my hands.
I'd love to hear the amp with aftermarket tubes
I'll see what I can do :)
It’s worth it
This is amazing! Thanks for sharing man! BTW I would love to see you upgrade this amp with higher quality parts
Glad to help :)
When I was a noob (a long time ago), I made the mistake of buying a solid-state amp. From the first strike of the strings, I knew I had gone down the left-hand path. Of course, I'm sure solid-state technology has improved since then (this was the 90's) but, as I'm scarred by that experience, it ain't gonna be me playin' one!
This looks like a good practice/home amp, especially with that neat 1 watt feature. Definitely looking to pick one up!
A really good guitar player can make just about any guitar and amp sound good. I'm looking for a setup that will make my crappy playing sound great!
6L6 Makes a fender amp with 12ax7's.isn't that right AzCharlie2009
That's absolutely true. An experienced player will adjust their playing style to fit the tone they have pretty much automatically. If I could offer one piece of advice that doesn't cost a thing... Tuning and intonation are everything. Take the time to learn how to get your guitar perfectly in tune. (as close as it will get anyway) You'd be surprised how much better a guitar sounds when everything is correct. It'll literally jump up and sound better when all of the harmonic frequencies are working together.
You nailed it !! Jeff Beck could take a stock $100 Fender Bullet and a nasty cheapo amp off the shelf and it would still sound like Jeff. You can spend $4k on a custom Beck Strat and another $2-5k on a vintage marshal amp and pedals, you will NEVER sound like Beck. Same with other greats like EVH and Hendrix
You can be amazing but if your tone is crap your tone is crap :)
@Whip Lash You might not like Jeff Beck, but he's an amazing guitarist. Listen to Blow by Blow and get back to us.
I own this amp. I have played a ton of Amps in my time. Mostly backline a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe.
I bought it just to see what all the buzz was about. Then I played it…. I was blown away! This thing has become my go to for practicing in the house and smaller gigs that don’t require as much firepower on stage. I replaced the speaker with a 25w Greenback and put Mullard power tubes in it. This thing is a killer amp with the right speaker in it! Highly recommend this for anyone that does smaller gigs or just likes to play at home!
Concerning the power cable....install a 5 cent "one hole strap" to one of the existing screws on the "tube guard" ...it will hold the cable down parallel with the back of the amp... and in case it does get "pulled"...the pull will be against the strap, not the interior electrical connections...
Hey Darrell, thanks for the video. I was researching a lot about this magnificent amplifier, unfortunately the shipment to Germany is worth almost the same as the amplifier. finally I bought a Vox AC4-C112, but I'm sure that at some point I'll end up acquiring this monoprice 15 Watts. Greetings from Berlin
Blues Jr Clone? Less than half the price and it has an EFFECTS LOOP and 1 watt setting! I think the jr has to catch up.
Laney Cub 12r clone. Literally the same exact amp inside except for the reverb and cabinet obviously. Circuit board, components, speaker, transformers...everything is the same.
The Laneys sell for about $450+ used so almost twice the price of a new Stage Right even though it's 90% the same. I guess their price increase could come from the quality of materials the cab is built from and the digital reverb. 🤷♂️ I dunno.
I checked into it and ended up buying their 5 watt tube amp for $114.95. It's basically a Fender Champ clone with an added tone knob, sound attenuator and an external speaker jack. I love it! I always wanted a Champ but didn't like the price tag.
I would love to see you change the speaker and tubes, if you were up to it a transformer swap would be cool.
Maybe you're missing the point? How much would all three of your mods cost? Anyway, the amp sounded pretty good to me, and the fact it's made of chipboard (pressboard?) is a minor factor, since it would never get exposed to rough treatment.
@@Ndlanding I'm more curious then anything else. I would however definitely change the speaker, to a scumback if possible because it would 100% be worth it.
Ndlanding yes but, if you were to have this amp for $200 and planned to keep it and those mods cost a bit, and it was a good outcome then you've still got something special that is great with less money invested. However I can see it from both sides, like, if something goes wrong, who knows if it's wired like anything else or how easy it would or wouldn't be to repair. Two ways to see it.
@@r3alfish If you read down, someone says that the vynil is already creeping. I don't think it's meant to last long enough to justify investment.
Ndlanding I think it depends on the person. I get what you're saying though.
Well done D! Great tones and demonstration! Would enjoy seeing a comparison with your choice of upgrades! Thanks for sharing brother! Be Well!
Thanks Steven!
Thanks for the review! Most of all, stay well Darrell.
Darrell, my wallet is in jeopardy! You keep finding these fantastic products for a fraction of the cost! Another great video!
It was great to hear you playing a different amp, the other one makes all your guitars sound similar.
Light break up has that bell like oomph feel in the tone which is always beautiful to my ears
I love your honest reviews, ecspeically of cheap guitar pickups and amps
Blues Junior doesn't have an effects loop! This does!
It's not a BJ copy. It's based on a Laney Cub. Good amp, but needs new valves, better speaker & a solid WOOD cabinet.
@@DMSProduktions that's why it's a 250 amp...lol. If it had all that, you would be paying more
@@JT-gm4fk Yeah ok, Cpt. OBVIOUS!
I got one of these in August of 2018, and prior to the pandemic, giggled/jammed with it once or twice a week. I don't use it for guitar though... I blow harp through it. The Covfefe ended the gigs and jam sessions, but this Amp was (and still is) 100% reliable. The sound is great, and plenty loud enough to keep up in small to medium venues, playing classic rock, blues, and country. It doesn't seem to be available on Amazon right now, which is a real shame, but if it was, I would not hesitate to buy one again.
Electric guitarist : It's all about the amp...
Acoustic guitarist : *Laughs at a distant*
@Woolly Boolly Until James Hetfield comes to town.
No, I'm both. I play them equally as much. Amp tone matters immensely. This amp sounded like butt to me.
@Eat your cake and Have it too you forget about solapanels
I really love it, it sounds awesome to me honestly.
This low cost tube amp punches well above it´s weight. Great sounds.
amazing amp for 200$, but i would love to see a shoot out between this amp and a Laney Cub 12R. love the channel & videos :)
Supposedly they're both made in the same factory and the internals are almost identical from what I was reading earlier. Haven't had a chance to look into it any more yet though.
It's shocking (in a good way) to me that this thing has chassis mounted tube sockets. Most inexpensive tube amps mount the tubes directly to the PCB board, which results in a lot of heat, vibrations, and handling stress being unnecessarily transmitted to the PCB board.
waiting for this to ship from GC now, thanks for the great recordings, i watched countless demos of this and this was the one that sold me on the tone, really lets you hear the full spectrum of sound.
i'd like to see a speaker swap i'm guessing it will make more difference to the sound than the tubes
Yes a speaker swap. The Seventy 80 is not a great sounding speaker.
The speaker has a massive impact on a guitar sound (when recording, the mic is equally as important, like here, the 609/906 has a very specific sound). Using the same amp and changing the speaker will completely change the tone. You can try that with amp sims and cab impulse responses.
The speaker/cab(+mic) is arguably the most important part of the chain, followed by the amp, pedals and then the guitar/playing.
dirk da Like I said earlier, I dropped an Emminence CRex in mine. Wasn't a big 70/80 fan. It really gave more definition to the lower mids/bass, and smoothed out the highs. Now it makes for a great little blues/blues rock amp, which is just what I was looking for.
@@escalator9734 Sorry but the playing will always, always make the biggest difference.
@@jayceburns8246 I won't be feeding you, troll.