small, quiet amp for college

[CJ]

hey guys, looking for some suggestions for an amp to take to college (uni) this year. I'm definitely going to have to keep it to something under like $100, nice and small, and quiet. looking for used gear here. also need (want) something with plenty of gain for metal without having to use any pedals. i used to own the marshall mg15cd or something like that, which was ok, but not great. fenders in this price seem to be decent. and i know peavey and crate also make some in this range. what else is there? suggestions?
thanks.

[dave_mc]

microcube? it might be slightly over $100 though.

[CJ]

hey, the microcube seems to be a great idea. i checked ebay and theres a couple on there new for $90 shipped. have you ever used one? it seems too cheap for what it has. hows it sound?

[MrBump]

Buy a Marshal TSL 2x12 combo.

Uni is all about pissing off your fellow students and looking cool.

 :D

[HTH AMPS]

Buy a Marshal TSL 2x12 combo.

Uni is all about pissing off your fellow students and looking cool.

 :D

^ +1

except I'd go with a 4x12 and 50w head. it kills the $100 budget though.

[indysmith]

Those little cubes are pretty cool. They're good for the money.

If you want to flush the budget down the toilet though, and get a proper amp that you might actually use after uni - there's a new Orange AD5 5watt 1x10 combo out which looks painfully cool, and there's always the Zvex nano 0.5watt head which sounds like a plexi!
EDIT: Just re-read your original request, and you want something to do metal. I'd stick with the cube.

[dave_mc]

Those little cubes are pretty cool. They're good for the money.

yeah, plus the fact they're battery-powered and portable means that even if you upgrade to a better, bigger amp, you may still find a use for it (if it's a nice day and you want to play in your garden, maybe. i dunno, we don't get nice weather here :( ). plus it's not majorly expensive, so even if you don't, it hasn't broken the bank.

i've never actually owned one, but i've tried one in shops, and was extremely pleasantly surprised.

vox da5 might be worth a look too, but i haven't been able to try it. :)

[noodleplugerine]

Save up and get a 5150 and a Vader 4x12. That's quiet by Uni standards right?

[jpmaxxy]

nasty I have a few youtube covers done with the microcube it is great for cleans and high gain IMO but vintage rock tones are abit muddy the volume can get suprisingly loud aswell!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mOqhAVQpTQw&fmt=18

 :D

[CJ]

thanks for all the help guys. i think i am going to go with the cube. i've gotta make a decision quick- i leave in under two weeks.

i'm not really concerned about getting anything more expensive or some type of investment, i've got a 3203 +1965 marshall stack, along with a e530 engl pre. nothing great, but its more than enough for me for now.

this amp i'm looking to mainly just last me through college, and then i'll probably put it up in my room for when i don't feel like setting up my stack. also, i do like the battery option, maybe i will occasionally take it outside and play a little.

again, thanks for the help guys.

jpmaxxy... its hard to hear a true tone through a youtube vid, but that sounds good enough for me. seems to have a good amount of gain. by the way, what the hell were you playing? < guitar

[noodleplugerine]

jpmaxxy... its hard to hear a true tone through a youtube vid, but that sounds good enough for me. seems to have a good amount of gain. by the way, what the hell were you playing? < guitar

http://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=13803.0

[CJ]

ahh, thanks for that. very cool guitar.

now as for the amp, dave had to go and ruin everything by suggesting that vox. after listening to this video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fE32cmJ401I) i'm kind of leaning towards that now. it seems to have a few more features on it as well.

so now i'm not quite sure which to get, i might just see what i can get a better deal on. any extra comments on these two? reasons to choose one over the other?

thanks

[kellar]

If you want a few more features than the MicroCube, go up to the 20X or 30X. They are bit louder, but you don't have to turn them up that loud. They sound good at bedroom levels. Plus, they have that cool power squeezer function that drops the wattage down.
A lot of people say that the Vox edges the Cube in tone quality. I personally love the versatility and sound of the Cube, plus the Cube wins big over the Vox in terms of quality and build.

[CJ]

If you want a few more features than the MicroCube, go up to the 20X or 30X. They are bit louder, but you don't have to turn them up that loud. They sound good at bedroom levels. Plus, they have that cool power squeezer function that drops the wattage down.
A lot of people say that the Vox edges the Cube in tone quality. I personally love the versatility and sound of the Cube, plus the Cube wins big over the Vox in terms of quality and build.

thanks, i think i probably will stick witht the cube. number one reason being i don't see any cheap vox's on ebay at the moment.
its also good that you said the cube wins with quality- i saw some reviews that said the cube started to break down a bit after half a year or so.

[dave_mc]

i didn't recommend the vox, i just said it's probably worth a try. i haven't been able to try the vox (but if i was thinking of a microcube, i'd try the vox da5 too, as it seems to be aimed at the same market). :)