which power amp ?

N

Nu.Clear.Dawn

Member
... Gah I've been checking out power amps for a month now, and still undecided which one to go with..

The problem is that I'm in Canada and instrument stores do not have everything in stock, so I can't really go out and try them, I kept reading for weeks on this and other forums about a lot of rack power amps, lots of choices actually what confused me.

The 3 amps I'm currently aiming at are the QSC GX5 , ART SLA-2 and the Rocktron Velocity 300.
Eventually I'm going to buy a 4x12 Mesa Recto cab to go with, for a very good price from one of my friends.
Also, my budget limit for the power amp is under $500, that's why I didn't look at the VHT or the Mesa 2:90.

Yelp !!!!!
 
SS-FOH-PA don't color your tone that much and they don’t interact with your speaker box like guitar tube amps will do. The Rocktron is a SS-PA which tries to emulate the behavior of a tube PA.
A Tube-Guitar-PA has a low speaker damping and adds some low end and upper mids depending on input gain, sound intensity and interaction with the speaker. (You won’t expect PA-Distortion from a rack tube-PA.) If you like it or not it is a question of taste. You have to try it out on your own.
Your first decision should be linear and high damping -> SS-FOH-PA or a more guitar amp like behavior -> Rocktron/Tube-PA. The Axe is supposed to provide all the dynamics of a real guitar amp so many people think there should be no additional “uncontrolled” dynamics by the amplification system.
I like the combination Axe+Engl 840/50 very much. Perhaps you have the opportunity to get one used. I like Tube-PA with 6L6 or KT88 power tubes more than those with EL84.
 
Nu.Clear.Dawn said:
... Gah I've been checking out power amps for a month now, and still undecided which one to go with..

The problem is that I'm in Canada and instrument stores do not have everything in stock, so I can't really go out and try them, I kept reading for weeks on this and other forums about a lot of rack power amps, lots of choices actually what confused me.

The 3 amps I'm currently aiming at are the QSC GX5 , ART SLA-2 and the Rocktron Velocity 300.
Eventually I'm going to buy a 4x12 Mesa Recto cab to go with, for a very good price from one of my friends.
Also, my budget limit for the power amp is under $500, that's why I didn't look at the VHT or the Mesa 2:90.

Yelp !!!!!
Click to expand...

Things to consider when looking for a power amp... Space, weight, clarity and cost. If space is an issue then your choices are limited very quick. If weight is an issue then tube and upper end SS amps are quickly narrowed, same with cost. As to clarity you want an amp that is not going to add color to the final tone unless that what's your going after. The whole point of the axe is to have all the color offerings of different amps without have all the different amps. So I'm of the camp as clean of an amp as possible for what you can spend or to suit you needs. You have chosen to run with a cab so it won't matter to much which direction you go as you have somewhat put limitations on your tone with the cab. If your really "cork sniffy" about your tone then I might go tube.

Out of the four you have listed the Mesa tube amp even though you can get what looks like a good deal on it and sound really good it will wind up costing you again down the road providing the tubes aren't bad when you get it not to mention they weigh a ton.

The QSC is not bridgeable and some have complained about the top end being brittle personally I think that more of an EQ issue but that's me. It is a QSC and comes with a warrantee that is hard to beat for the price and is light for the power it puts out when compared to other amps that produce the same amount of power (RMX series).

The Art is a great little amp even though some call them cheep I have not had any issues with mine the three years I have owned it. It is a little heavy for it's size (20 Lbs) but it does pack a lot of punch especially when you run it in bridged mode. For a single space amp it's still hard to beat though there are other manufactures out there that are coming up with single space amps that weigh less and can sound just as good, but still seem to be a little hard to get a hold of.

I haven't had a chance to demo the Rocktron so I can personally comment on it's performance but there are some here on the board that are using it and like it a lot.

That's all I have maybe others will chime in and offer up some advice. You can really go with any of the amps you have chosen and be happy but you need to decide what you need and go for it.
 
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