UPDATE: Supro Amulet...small, versatile, low noise, low watt/master volume, effects loop focused amp

stylesforfree · June 2023

Im Sorry to do this again, it's another thread looking for a recommendation about which amp to buy

Ive decided im getting rid of the Supersonic 22. Either that or it's just going to become an expensive 1X12 cab. It's too noisy really and im not too keen on keeping it unless someone can recommend a solid amp tech I can ship it to for modding and sorting the hum, buzz and hiss.

So now im looking at amps that are quiet, with minimal noise floor. I don't mind some transformer hum that comes with the territory of valve amps, but I want something that is relatively quiet to operate between 5 and 20 watt.

A few requirements:

Head preferred but im open to another combo.

Versatility on the vintagey tone front: late 60's/early 70's psych/blues edge of crunch and smooth sweet overdrive.

Looking to spend upto around £850 used/2nd hand or new.

My main requirement besides the quiet operation is a buffered fx loop and power switching to drop the output to a lower wattage.

Something reliable and solidly built too. (Kinda obvious I guess.)

Anything else is a welcome bonus but versatility would be preferred, i.e. if it has a gain channel and can do vintage tones.

I have a short list of the following amps
Fender hot rod
Fender blues deluxe
Orange TH30
Orange OR15
panama shaman retro 20
Hughes & Kettner Tubemeister Deluxe 20

I don't have any experience with Any of these amps. I welcome suggestions for solid state or valve amps.

noisepolluter · June 2023

Would you consider Marshall? The DSL40CR has a low noise floor, very good effects loop (don’t know if it’s buffered but it doesn’t add noise or drop volume from what I can make out) and the crunch sounds are excellent. Clean surprisingly good too. I use it with a Boss GX100 via 4CM and they work perfectly together.

Master volume works really well (each channel has gain and volume, and there are two switchable master volumes), you can get great low volume sounds even on full power, and the half power setting lets you take things down to a whisper - this amp isn’t really about cranking the power section, but if you are able to turn it up a bit it sounds epic.

I got mine for £600 new, I’ve since swapped in a Creamback H75 speaker I had spare (though admittedly I pretty much put that speaker in everything), and bought the 6 way footswitch for full control over all the gain modes etc. I suppose that bumps up the total spend to a little under £800 considering I originally got the Creamback second hand.

Build quality seems fine to me - doesn’t quite have the ‘premium’ feel of something like the uk made JVM or Studio series but definitely feels nice and solid.

I’ve spent years using pedals to try to get good Marshally crunch sounds through a clean Fender, surprised it didn’t occur to me that there’s a simpler solution…

stylesforfree · June 2023

Interesting, never given a marshall much thought to be honest. The DSL20HR seems to be more up my street but im now reading about some problems/issues regarding the fx loop. I do prefer the 6V6 sound to be honest.

Laney Lionheart's are now on the radar too...hmm.

Yorkie · June 2023

Red stripe Peavey Bandit with a punchy speaker.

BigPaulie · June 2023

Revv D20?

Deijavoo · June 2023

I totally rated the TH30, it just wasn't quite what I was after tonally at the time.

stylesforfree · June 2023

BigPaulie said:

Revv D20?

Holy sheet! Just checked a demo of this, sounds incredible.

Deijavoo said:

I totally rated the TH30, it just wasn't quite what I was after tonally at the time.

What territory of tone were you after? And what's the tone from the TH30?
What did you end up going with?

ICBM · June 2023

stylesforfree said:

Interesting, never given a marshall much thought to be honest. The DSL20HR seems to be more up my street but im now reading about some problems/issues regarding the fx loop.

The 40 is much better, especially for low volume use (counterintuitively!).

Yorkie said:

Red stripe Peavey Bandit with a punchy speaker.

This, or the slightly smaller and even cheaper Studio Pro 112. Fit a great speaker and you’re still about £650 under budget…

willo · June 2023

Orange Rocker, but the 32, will switch down to 15W but has a really nice stereo FX loop if you want to make the most of your effects. They come up for sale new sometimes under £650.

Yorkie · June 2023

The other option I can certainly recommend is a Marshall DSL40, either the old one (cheaper) or the newer one. However, if you needn't be on the Marshall ballpark, the Bandit is cheaper and needs zero-ish maintenance and zero warm-up time.

I *love* the DSL and that's what I'm using most frequently. Between a HRD and a Bandit, I would always take the Bandit.

GoFish · June 2023

A the lower end of your criteria, you may want to consider a Laney cub 12. It's not a Lionheart, but it is dead silent for a valve amp in my experience. Lots of gain, 2 wattage options, reverb on the new ones etc. I hd a Cannabis Rex in mine. Not the obvious choice but did a surprisingly decent "American" sound when clean though it did use up all the treble the amp was capable of. A speaker change would be necessary imo, maybe a Greenback? It's also barely larger than a Princeton.

stylesforfree · June 2023

GoFish said:

A the lower end of your criteria, you may want to consider a Laney cub 12. It's not a Lionheart, but it is dead silent for a valve amp in my experience. Lots of gain, 2 wattage options, reverb on the new ones etc. I hd a Cannabis Rex in mine. Not the obvious choice but did a surprisingly decent "American" sound when clean though it did use up all the treble the amp was capable of. A speaker change would be necessary imo, maybe a Greenback? It's also barely larger than a Princeton.

Completely overlooked the cub12, I am a bit apprehensive to buy an amp with surface mount components, but I remember these usually popping up for around £200 used when I was first entering the world of tube amps. Thank you.

ICBM said:

stylesforfree said:

Interesting, never given a marshall much thought to be honest. The DSL20HR seems to be more up my street but im now reading about some problems/issues regarding the fx loop.

The 40 is much better, especially for low volume use (counterintuitively!).

Yorkie said:

Red stripe Peavey Bandit with a punchy speaker.

This, or the slightly smaller and even cheaper Studio Pro 112. Fit a great speaker and you’re still about £650 under budget…

Cool, thanks for the tip on the 40 and the Peavey.

willo said:

Orange Rocker, but the 32, will switch down to 15W but has a really nice stereo FX loop if you want to make the most of your effects. They come up for sale new sometimes under £650.

I see, you have now sent me on a bit of a research trip and I cam across the Orange Rocker Terror 15 head too, so thank you.

Yorkie said:

The other option I can certainly recommend is a Marshall DSL40, either the old one (cheaper) or the newer one. However, if you needn't be on the Marshall ballpark, the Bandit is cheaper and needs zero-ish maintenance and zero warm-up time.

I *love* the DSL and that's what I'm using most frequently. Between a HRD and a Bandit, I would always take the Bandit.

Thank you too.

Sunburst · June 2023

A Brunetti Singleman 15 would tick all of your boxes. Very well made, low noise floor, effects loop and power scaling.

stylesforfree · June 2023

Sunburst said:

A Brunetti Singleman 15 would tick all of your boxes. Very well made, low noise floor, effects loop and power scaling.

Thanks, looks like it isn't stocked anywhere though and seems impossible to find it on the used market.

Anyone tried an Ashdown AGM-5C, almost seems to be too good to be true.

noisepolluter · June 2023

https://thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/242933/marshall-dsl40cr-celestion-neo-creamback-8ohm#latest

This is a very good price - no link to me

stylesforfree · June 2023

That is a very good price! Checking out the dimensions though, it's bigger than my fender supersonic/deluxe reverb, I think I want a head really.

Few questions I have

1) Do any of the hughes and kettner heads do a vintage late 60's/early 70's kinda psych rock tone or are they all hi-fidelity amps? They have quite a wide range and plenty to choose from on the used market, but I read that they dont do vintage tone very well.

2) Same kinda question for the Victory Amps Sheriff 22, does it only do the metal/high gain thing?

3)Is the Vox AC30 the only vox amp with an effects loop? I saw a version that is a 1x12" but had a look at back panel pics but couldn't see an fx loop Nevermind, it's too big anyway.

4) Is the tone of the DSL40 pretty dependent on the speaker or would it sound quite modern regardless?

noisepolluter · June 2023

stylesforfree said:

That is a very good price! Checking out the dimensions though, it's bigger than my fender supersonic/deluxe reverb, I think I want a head really.

Few questions I have

4) Is the tone of the DSL40 pretty dependent on the speaker or would it sound quite modern regardless?

Even better price now!

The red mode of the classic channel does a great rhythm sound for AC/DC, Thin Lizzy etc, so somewhere between plexi and JCM800/early master volume Marshall. The green mode on ultra channel is reminiscent of cranked/boosted JCM800. Both clean up really well with the guitar volume/different pickups etc.

I’d imagine most folks spend most of the time on those two middle modes. The clean and ultra-red modes are really good too.

Speaker does make a difference definitely - but the amp as a whole I’d say is more ‘classic’ voiced than the JVM series for instance. Not tried an M65 or Neo Creamback with it, but the H75 for me really optimises it for 70’s/80’s classic rock as well as my wobbly attempts at NWOBHM and 90’s thrash. I don’t need to lug it about much so the heavier magnet isn’t an issue.

Alex2678 · June 2023

2) Same kinda question for the Victory Amps Sheriff 22, does it only do the metal/high gain thing?

I’d go so far as to say it can’t really do metal without a pedal. Maybe goes as far as early thrash on the higher gain channel with humbuckers

Channel one is 60s Marshall, channel 2 is a kind of hot rodded 70s sound

stylesforfree · June 2023

Alex2678 said:

2) Same kinda question for the Victory Amps Sheriff 22, does it only do the metal/high gain thing?

I’d go so far as to say it can’t really do metal without a pedal. Maybe goes as far as early thrash on the higher gain channel with humbuckers

Channel one is 60s Marshall, channel 2 is a kind of hot rodded 70s sound

60's marshall blues breaker kinda sound? The Sheriff 22, on paper, seems pretty much perfect. Power soak with 0.3 watt output, 8 and 16ohm speaker outs, effects loop, master volume and 2 channels.

Is there anything similar to the 22? Im quite liking the early marshall tone at the moment.

Alex2678 · June 2023

Marshall’s studio stuff is the closest I can think of.

I’d say the 22 ticks your boxes the best but the master is post phase inverter, so the phase inverter distorts when you set the amp crunchy so the loop gets distorted as the signal comes back in before the PI

stylesforfree · June 2023

Alex2678 said:

Marshall’s studio stuff is the closest I can think of.

I’d say the 22 ticks your boxes the best but the master is post phase inverter, so the phase inverter distorts when you set the amp crunchy so the loop gets distorted as the signal comes back in before the PI

Ah ok, thank you for pointing that out. This is why I love it here, little bits of information like this that can either settle a decision or make you second guess and look for something better suited.

I don't suppose you have had any experience with the VHT 6 Ultra? Looks like another combo/head that ticks most of the boxes.

Alex2678 · June 2023

I haven’t personally no.

Might be a bit early to get one used but the sheriff 25 has a pre-PI master volume I believe.

I didn’t find it too bad with fx in the front, but the loop was a bit challenging

rze99 · June 2023

Get a good attenuator

noisepolluter · June 2023

rze99 said:

Get a good attenuator

If you’re looking into getting a Marshall SC20 (mini JCM800) to use at low/home volume then despite the fact that it’s got a master volume and low power mode, you’d still be wise to get an attenuator to knock a few more dB off. The master volume on the amp is quite jumpy.

Also, the FX loop on my SC20 isn’t great - it drops volume and adds a noticeable amount of background noise.

That’s why I use it round at my mate’s workshop for rehearsal/jamming volume levels and without any effects in the loop. It sounds absolutely awesome in that context, but it’s just not practical for home.

At home I use a DSL40 for the reasons I mentioned in a previous post.

kennedydream1980 · June 2023

Fender Bassbreaker 15. It’s effectively a single channel amp with 3 gain structures, low, medium and high.

It’s very plexi sounding on the mid gain setting, but a tad smoother. Cleans up great from the guitar volume. It doesn’t have power scaling but the master volume is excellent. It’s not your typical Fender master volume. It has a very sensible taper to it rather than being touchy like a hotrod deluxe.

stylesforfree · June 2023

noisepolluter said:

rze99 said:

Get a good attenuator

If you’re looking into getting a Marshall SC20 (mini JCM800) to use at low/home volume then despite the fact that it’s got a master volume and low power mode, you’d still be wise to get an attenuator to knock a few more dB off. The master volume on the amp is quite jumpy.

Also, the FX loop on my SC20 isn’t great - it drops volume and adds a noticeable amount of background noise.

That’s why I use it round at my mate’s workshop for rehearsal/jamming volume levels and without any effects in the loop. It sounds absolutely awesome in that context, but it’s just not practical for home.

At home I use a DSL40 for the reasons I mentioned in a previous post.

Thanks for lal your input. I was also looking at a marshall origin head, both the 20 and 50 watt look like they might deliver..I am nodding towards a head rather than a combo at the moment.

In regards to the DSL40 tone, how does it fare for vintage marshall bluesbreaker kinda tones?

If I opt to use it with a vintage sounding speaker that's voiced for a bluesy British kinda sound will it make the DSL40 a bit darker? From the demos it sounds a bit too bright for my liking.

noisepolluter · June 2023

stylesforfree said:

In regards to the DSL40 tone, how does it fare for vintage marshall bluesbreaker kinda tones?

If I opt to use it with a vintage sounding speaker that's voiced for a bluesy British kinda sound will it make the DSL40 a bit darker? From the demos it sounds a bit too bright for my liking.

You can drop the gain on the red/crunch mode of the first channel, or alternatively turn up the gain on green/clean mode of that channel. Each approach sounds slightly different in terms of the character of breakup/compression/tonal balance etc.

Obviously you’ve then also got the amp’s EQ and presence/resonance controls which are pretty effective, plus your own guitar volume and tone, and 20 watt mode also sounds a bit different to 40 watt (20 is slighly softer/darker/less punchy).

Stock V-type is on the bright side of things, so chuck a Creamback M/H/Neo in there (can only speak for the H but that’s meant to be the brightest of the 3 and sounds nice and balanced to my ears at least) - tastes vary obviously and I’m more into the brighter crunchier 70’s 80’s sounds but I’d be surprised if you couldn’t get respectable old school sounds out of it too with some dialling in, well chosen speaker etc.

There’s at least one video somewhere comparing the stock v type with an m65 Creamback in this amp.

stylesforfree · June 2023

noisepolluter said:

stylesforfree said:

In regards to the DSL40 tone, how does it fare for vintage marshall bluesbreaker kinda tones?

If I opt to use it with a vintage sounding speaker that's voiced for a bluesy British kinda sound will it make the DSL40 a bit darker? From the demos it sounds a bit too bright for my liking.

You can drop the gain on the red/crunch mode of the first channel, or alternatively turn up the gain on green/clean mode of that channel. Each approach sounds slightly different in terms of the character of breakup/compression/tonal balance etc.

Obviously you’ve then also got the amp’s EQ and presence/resonance controls which are pretty effective, plus your own guitar volume and tone, and 20 watt mode also sounds a bit different to 40 watt (20 is slighly softer/darker/less punchy).

Stock V-type is on the bright side of things, so chuck a Creamback M/H/Neo in there (can only speak for the H but that’s meant to be the brightest of the 3 and sounds nice and balanced to my ears at least) - tastes vary obviously and I’m more into the brighter crunchier 70’s 80’s sounds but I’d be surprised if you couldn’t get respectable old school sounds out of it too with some dialling in, well chosen speaker etc.

There’s at least one video somewhere comparing the stock v type with an m65 Creamback in this amp.

Cheers mate, you've been great, very helpful.

Yorkie · June 2023

The DSL40 is very versatile. Even with the factory speaker. In my case I still have the 70-80 that came with my 40c. Turn the gain up and presence down a bit and there’s the ice pick gone. I tried a creamback on a mate’s DSL and it sounded much darker, so if that’s your thing you may be better served by upgrading it to that speaker?

Jeremiah · June 2023

Laney L5 Studio?

stylesforfree · June 2023

Jeremiah said:

Laney L5 Studio?

I've been looking at this quite extensively, its definitely piqued my interest.

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UPDATE: Supro Amulet...small, versatile, low noise, low watt/master volume, effects loop focused amp

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