GAS!

[Twinfan]

What I want to know is, where have Blackstar got their money from?  Two guys who used to work for Marshall won't have the kind of cash they've been spending on R&D, production, advertising, trade fairs etc.

I reckon there's some behind the scenes investors with a 3-5 year plan.  If Blackstar don't make enough money, in the right timeframe, they'll disappear........

[gwEm]

What I want to know is, where have Blackstar got their money from?  Two guys who used to work for Marshall won't have the kind of cash they've been spending on R&D, production, advertising, trade fairs etc.

I reckon there's some behind the scenes investors with a 3-5 year plan.  If Blackstar don't make enough money, in the right timeframe, they'll disappear........

thats usually how it works.. good luck to them i say!

[Philly Q]

What I want to know is, where have Blackstar got their money from?  Two guys who used to work for Marshall won't have the kind of cash they've been spending on R&D, production, advertising, trade fairs etc.

I reckon there's some behind the scenes investors with a 3-5 year plan.  If Blackstar don't make enough money, in the right timeframe, they'll disappear........

Yeah, they do seem to have appeared from nowhere with a surprisingly big (and rapidly growing) product range.

I suspect they'll vanish just as quickly.  Which isn't meant to sound sarcastic or critical, but I can just imagine in 15 years the next generation of BKP-ers will be sitting here going "does anyone remember those amps, Black-something, I think they may have been British...."

[CaptainDesslock]

i don't trust these blackstars. they've been way over-hyped. I thought the artisan 15 i tried was very average. a decent amp, sure, but if you'd read the reviews you'd have thought it was going to be the next dumble.

err.......pardon my lack of knowledge but what's a dumble?

[gwEm]

i don't trust these blackstars. they've been way over-hyped. I thought the artisan 15 i tried was very average. a decent amp, sure, but if you'd read the reviews you'd have thought it was going to be the next dumble.

err.......pardon my lack of knowledge but what's a dumble?

its a boutique amp - one of the first:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dumble_Amplifiers

[dave_mc]

^ ^ really expensive custom-made amps. i haven't tried one or anything, just heard of them. they go for silly money.

I could be completely wrong here but I think the artisan was made by a very different design team. Guitarist magazine really liked this amp, so I'm prepared to give it the benefit of a doubt, maybe I'll hate it, but I'd like to try one properly, and the only way to do that is to take one home (but not for a while, my bank account is still recovering from the Diezel rig )

oh yeah, i realise they're completely different types of amps, i just meant that the artisans had been similarly hyped, and didn't live up to it, in my opinion.

but to be honest the biased press they get in magazines like Guitarist is really starting to put me off

yeah, that's what gets me- and also what twinfan is saying, they've got way too big way too quickly, which also makes me suspicious.

[hunter]

Hunter, you should get a Laney GH50L or Vintage Modern head instead :)

Hmmm, I was actually tempted to get the GH100L of the other guitarist in my Metal Band (the guy who just got the Ueber). He sells it for 350€

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm *scratchscratch

[JDC]

wouldn't it be cheaper to just dial in a laney tone on your axe-fx?

[ailean]

oh yeah, i realise they're completely different types of amps, i just meant that the artisans had been similarly hyped, and didn't live up to it, in my opinion.

Fair enough :)

[gaex86]

just for your knowledge the artisan series is different than the other blackstar-series. The artisan are hand-wired point-to-point construction.
And yes they're made in korea, licensed and engineered in UK!

[Plexi Ken]

I always take reviews in the guitar mags with a pinch of slat. When was the last time you saw them give a bad review? Most stuff gets 4/5 even the stuff they're not too keen on gets 3/5  :roll:

Blackstar must have a backer(s), who will look to sell it on after the '5 years plan' is complete. If they can't get a suitable price (low profits, no growth potential), they'll wrap it up. Dave may not like the Artisan but there are a few 'pro' players using them and I think Twinfan and MJW checked then out and thought they were good. But not up to the standards of Martin's own amps 

[Twinfan]

The Artisans I've tried were OK, but they have the "Blackstar problem".  It seems to apply to their pedals and their amps.  The pre-amp is so crammed full of circuit, and some solid state stuff, so the differences between guitars gets lost.  You just get the Blackstar sound.

I disagree with their tagline - "Blackstar - the sound in your head".

It should be "Blackstar - the sound in OUR head"  ;)

[Lew]

Yea I agree, but I think that can be said about pretty much all uber high gain amps in general.

[Twinfan]

But the Artisans aren't Uber high gain...

[Lew]

ah I see :p not familiar with Blackstars, I assumed that's what the Series One is  :lol: