Best Value in a Low Power Tube Amp Head
Pros:
At $129, it's pretty hard not to like this tube amp.
Cons:
No reverb or tremolo. Add the Behringer XVamp pedal for $69, if you must.
The Bottom Line:
On a budget? Want a great sounding tube amp head? Before buying a $1,500 boutique amp, audition this little gem through your favorite guitar cabinet.
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Overall Rating:
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Author's Review
This version of the Valve Junior is a head-only unit vs. a combo. It has some design upgrades to successfully eliminate the noise that made the combo less desirable for recording or low volume home practice. This version which needs an external speaker cabinet, is a back-to-basics, no frills tube amp. And it is quiet. I practice and rehearse through this amp for hours, never tiring of the sound. It is quiet and provides a very satisfying tone. It is loud enough for jazz and 'vintage' blues, rock, and rock-a-billy sound pressure levels. If you need to reach the pain threshold and play at stadium levels, rely on a PA system like the other professional touring bands.
The amp sounds good and can be used for jazz, blues, country, rock-a-billy, and rock. The amp is probably more pedal and effects friendly than most solid state amps, given the natural input clipping the tube pre-amp stage offers. There is no effects loop, so your effects will go into the single guitar input ... the old-school method.
The features are basic:
- 5 watts class A with ONE knob - volume.
- Two tubes, a preamp and an EL84. Outputs for 4, 8 and 16 ohm speaker loads.
- Solid Construction
The use and tone is vintage, as you simply tweak three variables, the Valve Junior's volume and the guitar's volume and tone:
- Set up the Valve Junior's volume for the amount of gain and compression.
- Set the tone and volume on your guitar accordingly.
This amp could be used in a small club or coffee house setting without any additional sound reinforcement. And for home recording and practice, the tone is quite good and the volume required is below the 'ear bleeding' levels needed from other more expensive pro tube amps. 5 tube watts is loud if you use an efficient speaker cabinet. Try the Jensen Neo, or Eminence Legend (my preference).
