Blackstar HT-5 combo - anyone own or tried one ?

[SouthpawGuy]

Seems like I am developing AAS. Has anyone tried, or maybe even own, the Blackstar HT-5 combo ?

 

It's a 5 watt all tube amp with 2 channels, footswitchable, headphone/ recording emulation out, and with a variable British /American voicing control and an effects loop. Seems to good to be true. The price is also keen, about 350 euro on thomann.

 

http://www.blackstaramps.co.uk/products/ht-5/ht-5.html

[JeffB]

They are a cool little amp. Based on their stomp box range.

You can get some great sounds out of them.

The clean doesn't stay clean for long. A tele and you can get some classic Keef sounds.

The gain channel goes from ADC onwards. Quite a bit of gain in these little things.

Pair it up with a 212 cab and its pretty big. Stays cleaner for a bit longer as well.

The fx loop works well. Stick a reverb pedal and/or delay and it enhances the whole thing nicely.

The speaker sim is alright also. I used one for recording and never felt the need for a mic.

The isf control cuts or boosts some mids. If you already have the mids quite high the isf doesn't do much.

For me the HT-5 is a fun amp with some reasonable sounds.

At the same time as I was looking at it I bought the Mesa LS (10/50/100) and the Blackstar was no longer on the radar.

Most people are buying them for the gain channel. Maxed out its pretty heavy at reasonably low levels.

Some good lead tones in it. If you like saturated lead tones. At manageable levels. 

[SouthpawGuy]

Thanks ! +1 for the info.

 

I'm interested in one mainly for the overdrive channel but also for the cleans, how does it sound with a semi hollow ? Are jazz tones possible ? I would only be playing at domestic levels, with the occasional blast off session  >

[JeffB]

Through a 12in speaker maybe the cleans will hold up at lower levels.

Never tried it with anything but solid body guitars and to be honest I think Ive really only hung around on the clean ch long enough to figure out it could do a good low gain crunch. It can do "a" clean but maybe not breath taking enough to hold my attention for long enough to explore it.

You will definitely have to try it for yourself. I better get reacquainted with it myself.

[SouthpawGuy]

Through a 12in speaker maybe the cleans will hold up at lower levels.

Never tried it with anything but solid body guitars and to be honest I think Ive really only hung around on the clean ch long enough to figure out it could do a good low gain crunch. It can do "a" clean but maybe not breath taking enough to hold my attention for long enough to explore it.

You will definitely have to try it for yourself. I better get reacquainted with it myself.

 

Thanks, I'm hoping my local shop can get them, the guitar guy there did mention them to me a while back, but they are a Marshall dealer and with Blackstars background they might not be able to stock them.

[tulk1]

Thanks, I'm hoping my local shop can get them, the guitar guy there did mention them to me a while back, but they are a Marshall dealer and with Blackstars background they might not be able to stock them.

 

Eh? Please enlighten the unenlightened.

[SouthpawGuy]

Eh? Please enlighten the unenlightened.

 

Ireland in the 21st century !

 

My local shop only managed to get a Marshall dealership about four years ago, reason being the main distributor in the country is a competitors shop in Dublin. Blackstar was set up, supposedly, by ex members of the Marshall r&d department. Hence a shop might not be able or willing to stock both because it might cause friction. I would like to buy locally but might not be able to, on the Blackstar site there are no dealers listed outside of the UK, but the German site thomann.de has them in stock.

 

On the same note there is only one Mesa dealer in the whole of Ireland, north and south, and one solitary shop in the south actually has managed to stock them but they come from the dealer in the north.

 

Same for Gibson, one solitary dealer who imports them and lets other shops stock them. Thankfully no one dealer has too many of the big name brands tied up so they have to deal with each other.

[MacDoggie]

I've never had an amp with a ECC83 tube driving it. What characteristics does this bring? I'm familiar with the "big 4" in the US (6V6, 6L6, EL84 and EL34). I've been looking for a 5watt or less amp, and this would be the most expensive of the group I'm looking at. I've looked at the Peavey Valveking Royal 8, Fender Champ 600 and the Vox AC4TV, but haven't found any besides the champ to play.

 

I hate that GC stores don't stock what's on their website. They say "order it and you can return it" but they always grumble when you do unless you ship it back.

[Steiner]

I've never had an amp with a ECC83 tube driving it. What characteristics does this bring? I'm familiar with the "big 4" in the US (6V6, 6L6, EL84 and EL34). I've been looking for a 5watt or less amp, and this would be the most expensive of the group I'm looking at. I've looked at the Peavey Valveking Royal 8, Fender Champ 600 and the Vox AC4TV, but haven't found any besides the champ to play.

 

I hate that GC stores don't stock what's on their website. They say "order it and you can return it" but they always grumble when you do unless you ship it back.

 

 

The ECC83 is also known as (in N. America) the infamous 12AX7. If you had a tube amp, you've had an ECC83.

[MacDoggie]

The ECC83 is also known as (in N. America) the infamous 12AX7. If you had a tube amp, you've had an ECC83.

 

 

Okay, thanks. I thought that was the power tube, I'm very familiar with the 12AX7. What is the power tube it uses?

[Steiner]

Okay, thanks. I thought that was the power tube, I'm very familiar with the 12AX7. What is the power tube it uses?

 

My guess would be 1 6V6 running class A

[Steiner]

Okay, thanks. I thought that was the power tube, I'm very familiar with the 12AX7. What is the power tube it uses?

Their manual says:

"In making the HT-5 ideally suited to home and studio use, the aim was to develop a

valve amp which sounded full and toneful even at the lowest volume level. With this

in mind the Blackstar design team designed a brand new valve power amplifier

topology. The HT-5 power amplifier is a low powered push-pull design which

produces the crunch and break-up characteristics of a traditional 100W output stage

but at a much lower volume. This is achieved by the use of a 12BH7 dual triode in

push-pull configuration producing 5 watts output, which is rich in valve harmonics

and compression."

 

I've never seen a 12BH7 nor am I familiar with a non-class A, 5W amp.

 

Things that make you go Hmm...

[MacDoggie]

Their manual says:

"In making the HT-5 ideally suited to home and studio use, the aim was to develop a

valve amp which sounded full and toneful even at the lowest volume level. With this

in mind the Blackstar design team designed a brand new valve power amplifier

topology. The HT-5 power amplifier is a low powered push-pull design which

produces the crunch and break-up characteristics of a traditional 100W output stage

but at a much lower volume. This is achieved by the use of a 12BH7 dual triode in

push-pull configuration producing 5 watts output, which is rich in valve harmonics

and compression."

 

I've never seen a 12BH7 nor am I familiar with a non-class A, 5W amp.

 

Things that make you go Hmm...

 

Yeah, that's why I'm searching for a store that has a few of these to try them and compare. Manuals posted online seem more and more like sales pitches. Right now I'm leaning towards the Vox because of the variable wattage, but I'm not pulling the trigger yet...

[tulk1]

12BH7 at BioAudioWorks. Seems it was originally used in TV sets. Neat!!!

[Rude Dog]

A 12BH7 is typically used as a preamp tube - pins out like a 12AX7, but has a much lower gain factor, but more than a 12AU7. People use them in place of a 12AX7 to get more clean headroom etc; I've mostly heard of them being used as a phase inverter. I've been meaning to get a couple and try this.

 

From Guitarist Mag's Issue 309 ; whereas review of the blackstar amp:

 

"the 12BH7 is a twin triode with 2 separate amplification stages in one envelope... making it possible to use it in a push-pull configuration... whereas normally one output tube means single-ended class A"

 

not sure if any of that helps...

[H]

Seems like I am developing AAS. Has anyone tried, or maybe even own, the Blackstar HT-5 combo ?

 

It's a 5 watt all tube amp with 2 channels, footswitchable, headphone/ recording emulation out, and with a variable British /American voicing control and an effects loop. Seems to good to be true. The price is also keen, about 350 euro on thomann.

 

http://www.blackstaramps.co.uk/products/ht-5/ht-5.html

 

Hi, I've tried this amp in the combo version through a PRS with P90s and a PRS with humbuckers. Both sounded pretty good but, as you'd expect with an amp of this wattage, low headroom. You'll blow out your bedroom ceiling and your ears at max but my guess is that you'll ease off way before that to stop the sound breaking up too much and losing definition. Having said that, it's not loud enough to stay on top of a drummer in a practice session unless they're playing on pads. The ISF control is a quick way to get most of your tone sorted (think Marshall v Fender) and the switch to lower power to 10% of the wattage might stop the neighbours' lawsuits

 

Personally, I'm saving my money for the BlackStar Series One 45 - a BluesBreaker-breaker All of the above plus better sound-shaping possibilities, 40 more watts and an extra speaker. Not strictly a bedroom amp even on the 4.5W setting but who cares!