Pedal Amps

[skydog52]

Has anyone tried any of these pedal board amps out there? Thoughts?

Thanks

[bobmeyrick]

I bought a Quilter Interblock 45 on a whim. I think it cost around £180, cheaper than some overdrives, and for that you get a 45W into 4ohm/33W into 8ohm amplifier with a headphone/line out and an fx loop. It sounds good clean and with a reasonable crunch if the gain is turned up. Ideal as an emergency back up, or as the basis for a compact rig - just add reverb, delay, chorus and o/d pedals and you're done. Plenty of videos out there showing it being put through its paces.

[PunkKitty]

I have a Vox MV50 Rock. Good little amp.

[DetroitBlues]

Started with the Quilter Microblock 45, very limited pedal.  Sounded good, but limited.

Now I have a Quilter Interblock 45.  Played it through headphones, 2x12 cab, and even as a line out to a PA.  Sounds great.

[rwinking]

PK, Can you say a little more about the Vox? It sounds intriguing....

Are you guys actually gigging with these things? What is your set up?

[rwinking]

Speaking of.....I found this today. $89!

https://www.thomannmusic.com/harley_benton_custom_line_thunder_99.htm

 

 

[DetroitBlues]

10 hours ago, rwinking said:

Speaking of.....I found this today. $89!

https://www.thomannmusic.com/harley_benton_custom_line_thunder_99.htm

 

 

Harley Benton has surely taken the music gear industry by storm in recent years.  All the inexpensive yet high quality gear is making it tough for any other brand to compete with.  That small amp resembles the Quilter Microblock 45 in size, but the Quilter has gain/tone/master volume controls....

 

[skydog52]

Thanks all for your input.  I’m going to give this one a go.  

 

[Steiner]

2 hours ago, skydog52 said:

Thanks all for your input.  I’m going to give this one a go.  

 

This is an interest here too.  I'd enjoy hearing your take once you get into it.

[DetroitBlues]

10 hours ago, skydog52 said:

Thanks all for your input.  I’m going to give this one a go.  

 

That's another I had considered.  I really like my Quilter MicroPro Mach II combo, so it was easy for me to get the Interblock 45.

I hope you like it and just like Steiner, I'd be curious to hear your feedback.

[DetroitBlues]

This is another I considered as well...

Seymour Duncan PowerStage 170 - 170-watt Pedal Board Guitar Amp Head

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/PowerStage170--seymour-duncan-powerstage-170-170-watt-pedal-board-guitar-amp-head

[bobmeyrick]

12 hours ago, skydog52 said:

Thanks all for your input.  I’m going to give this one a go.  

 

I think there's a fundamental difference between the Strymon and the the Quilter/SD Powerstage and the like, in that the latter are actual amplifiers which can drive a speaker cab, while the Strymon is designed to simulate amps and needs additional amplification. If you want to drive a speaker straight from the pedal, I don't think the Strymon is able to do that - you would need the Quilter or SD Powerstage.

This from Strymon's FAQs - 

Connecting from Iridium’s Outputs

Iridium is an amp modeler and IR cab processor that can be used in a variety of ways. With both the amp and IR cab processing active, it is designed for:

• Recording direct to an audio interface
• Connecting to a PA/mixer or powered full range/flat response speakers

It is not really recommended to be placed in front of an amplifier, but if you disable the IR Cab in Cab Bypass mode, you can connect Iridium’s output(s) into the Power Amp Input/Effects Return of an amplifier to use as the preamp for your amplifier.

 

[TalismanRich]

You're right, Bob.   The Iridium is great for recording direct to an interface.    A fellow from Salt Lake City put out a recording he did when he got his Iridium last year.   He got some pretty righteous sound from it.

 

[rwinking]

I was thinking of the $89 one just to keep in my gig bag as a spare amp. Since I use the Helix rack(for FX only) if my amp ever went down I could just use the tiny amp to run everything into the speakers.

[DetroitBlues]

14 hours ago, rwinking said:

I was thinking of the $89 one just to keep in my gig bag as a spare amp. Since I use the Helix rack(for FX only) if my amp ever went down I could just use the tiny amp to run everything into the speakers.

That's all I'm using the Quilter Interblock 45 for.  I have a regular Quilter combo, but having this little gem helps me be more portable.  For me, the best part is the Quilter MicroPro Mach II has a pair of settings that are the same as the Interblock 45.  

This means I can go back and fourth between amps without messing with my pedalboard to adjust for eq/tone settings.

[JeffB]

A nice  cheap little bit of gear.

Victory Amps Duchess V4

[bobmeyrick]

1 hour ago, JeffB said:

A nice  cheap little bit of gear.

Victory Amps Duchess V4

Ha! Just checked the UK retail price - £699. However it's an impressive piece of kit, having reverb and tremolo. It's a bit large for a "pedal amp", though - 9" (225mm) x 7" (175mm) x 4" (100mm). That's quite a bit bigger than the Quilter Interblock 45 - 5” (127mm) x 4” (102mm) x 1.75” (44.5mm). Good demo here...

 

[JeffB]

25 minutes ago, bobmeyrick said:

Ha! Just checked the UK retail price - £699. However it's an impressive piece of kit, having reverb and tremolo. It's a bit large for a "pedal amp", though - 9" (225mm) x 7" (175mm) x 4" (100mm). That's quite a bit bigger than the Quilter Interblock 45 - 5” (127mm) x 4” (102mm) x 1.75” (44.5mm). Good demo here...

 

Its just slightly bigger than the V1 Kingsley Jester. So, its about right sized.

 

I posted it kinda joking. I saw The Countess and The Sheriff preamps and The Duchess amp at a local store the other day and thought of this thread.I didnt try them but have played through some victory amps, they were okay.

 

[bobmeyrick]

9 minutes ago, JeffB said:

Its just slightly bigger than the V1 Kingsley Jester. So, its about right sized.

 

Just had a look at the Jester online, and it's only slightly larger than the Quilter, so I'd agree the Jester falls into the pedal amp category. I think the Duchess is pushing it a bit, with a footprint area of 63 sq. ins (9x7), compared to the Jester at 26.25 sq.ins (5.25x5) and the Quilter at 20 sq.ins (5x4). Also the height of the Duchess is about twice that of the others. Still a nice amp, though.

[JeffB]

38 minutes ago, bobmeyrick said:

Just had a look at the Jester online, and it's only slightly larger than the Quilter, so I'd agree the Jester falls into the pedal amp category. I think the Duchess is pushing it a bit, with a footprint area of 63 sq. ins (9x7), compared to the Jester at 26.25 sq.ins (5.25x5) and the Quilter at 20 sq.ins (5x4). Also the height of the Duchess is about twice that of the others. Still a nice amp, though.

The V1 Jester I have is 45sq. ins (7.5x6) (lol, square inches, that takes me back! to....when I was 4!)  Im using a DG Stomp for fx.

 I wouldve got the newer small box Jester but there was already a wait list and a 2nd hand v1 turned up locally for cheap.

[rwinking]

11 hours ago, DetroitBlues said:

That's all I'm using the Quilter Interblock 45 for

Wow! That is pretty impressive for $229. I mean $89 for the Thomann is great but the Quilter kicks it's little ass with features! If I can wait until MF does their 15% off sale I may have to pull the plug!

[rwinking]

I also liked the stereo capabilities of the Thomann. However, there were a lot of really bad reviews Then I found this one....Stereo and from a reputable company!

https://carvinaudio.com/products/mach100-100w-pedal-amplifier

[rwinking]

I picked up one of the Carvin stereo pedal amps on sale. I tried it out with the new POD GO and also with an older Digitech modeling/FX pre amp. WOW! I bought it as a spare amp to keep in the gig bag but I would have no problem using it for a gig. I hooked it up stereo with a pair of Weber 12s and it was beautiful. I can make the digital models virtually indistinguishable from tubes but the tubes still respond differently to my fingers. What the heck, though....a 100 watt power amp for around $150 that is the size of a Dynacomp? And stereo? What a great deal!

[Gitfiddler]

11 hours ago, rwinking said:

I picked up one of the Carvin stereo pedal amps on sale. I tried it out with the new POD GO and also with an older Digitech modeling/FX pre amp. WOW! I bought it as a spare amp to keep in the gig bag but I would have no problem using it for a gig. I hooked it up stereo with a pair of Weber 12s and it was beautiful. I can make the digital models virtually indistinguishable from tubes but the tubes still respond differently to my fingers. What the heck, though....a 100 watt power amp for around $150 that is the size of a Dynacomp? And stereo? What a great deal!

Interesting!!

 

[rockabilly69]

On 9/20/2020 at 12:12 PM, skydog52 said:

Has anyone tried any of these pedal board amps out there? Thoughts?

Thanks

Hey Paul have you ever played through the Origin FX Revival Drive?

https://origineffects.com/product/revivaldrive/

I know you love the Allman Brothers and the guy that designed the pedal does too. Although it's not an amp, you can plug it into any power amp and it's instant Plexi, Fender Deluxe, Vox AC15. It's just so easy to get a  nice wound up amp sound. I did this clip in the time it takes to turn my recorder on, but listen to the lead tone that I was getting at whisper levels...