Valve Amp - who’s still using them?

[umcoo]

1 hour ago, W1_Pro said:

Are they Ashdown boxes?

 

Yep, CTM112's. 

 

They come with huge badges which didn't look great imo, so removed them. Great cabs though, and a very easy one hand lift. 

Edited October 17 by umcoo

[ian61]

On 31/07/2025 at 09:39, BassAdder60 said:

I always felt mine really sounded it’s very best second set onwards ( IE been played loud for around an hour ) 

Yep. Reading ur post reminded me, back in the day you switched it on at sound chk then it would be left on standby until show time which cld be hrs later.. they always sounded better toasty hot. 

[Sparky Mark]

On 16/10/2025 at 23:55, Sparky Mark said:

My Bugera SVT CL clone is still going strong (at home) and keeps me convinced tube power has a certain something special. Unfortunately, unless I play a gig in my own back garden, I doubt it'll be used in anger (in my lifetime!).

[W1_Pro]

18 hours ago, umcoo said:

Yep, CTM112's. 

 

They come with huge badges which didn't look great imo, so removed them. Great cabs though, and a very easy one hand lift. 

That, is a very nice looking rig. I use a Little Bastard with the 2x12" box. We're not the loudest band in the world- both guitarists are obsessed with not using amps so they go straight into the the PA- but with a live drummer and two guitars, this holds its own quite comfortably and of course, because I am driving it quite hard you get that lovely power tube break up....

[dagrev]

4 hours ago, Sparky Mark said:

As much as I love my Ashdown ABMs--which is a lot--I can't get away from the magic of my tube heads (Ampeg). Such a wonderful tech that still kills today. 

I know a person who uses a Bugera 100 guitar head for a bass amp. Sounds great. 

Edited October 18 by dagrev

[Sean]

Mesa/Boogie 400+ Update

 

I picked up my 400+ from The Amp Hospital today. It looks fabulous, it's all working perfectly, has a full set of chassis screws and just feels great. It's such a lovely thing to look at, handle, use, feel, smell, hear (it whirs, clicks and buzzes). 

 

The conversation covered how these are one of the 3 GOAT Bass Amps, how military spec and robust the 400+ is and that along with the B15 and SVT it's modelled by all the digital effects companies. But most of all that, as long as components are available, these things will last forever. The 400+ is one of my favourite products ever, to me it's up there with the Audi Ur-Quattro or Porsche 959. A lot of products that push the tech to extreme iterations fail, become white elephants but like the 959 and the Ur-Q, the 400+ is an absolute classic and a gem in all respects. 

 

Putting my money where my mouth is, the 400+ will be sitting atop a pair of Monaco cabs at two gigs this weekend. The GKs will be on the bench.

 

Warm it up and let it rip is what the manual should say 😉. 

 

Edited 10 hours ago by Sean

[agedhorse]

6 hours ago, Sean said:

Mesa/Boogie 400+ Update

 

I picked up my 400+ from The Amp Hospital today. It looks fabulous, it's all working perfectly, has a full set of chassis screws and just feels great. It's such a lovely thing to look at, handle, use, feel, smell, hear (it whirs, clicks and buzzes). 

 

The conversation covered how these are one of the 3 GOAT Bass Amps, how military spec and robust the 400+ is and that along with the B15 and SVT it's modelled by all the digital effects companies. But most of all that, as long as components are available, these things will last forever. The 400+ is one of my favourite products ever, to me it's up there with the Audi Ur-Quattro or Porsche 959. A lot of products that push the tech to extreme iterations fail, become white elephants but like the 959 and the Ur-Q, the 400+ is an absolute classic and a gem in all respects. 

 

Putting my money where my mouth is, the 400+ will be sitting atop a pair of Monaco cabs at two gigs this weekend. The GKs will be in the bench.

 

Warm it up and let it rip is what the manual should say 😉. 

 

In the words of Lt Col Bill Kilgore, "Get yer boys back, it's gonna be a big one!"

Excellent, this is why I always recommend the best service you can find… premium service, even at a premium price is always a better value.

[Kiwi]

17 hours ago, Sean said:

Putting my money where my mouth is, the 400+ will be sitting atop a pair of Monaco cabs at two gigs this weekend. The GKs will be on the bench.

It's my favourite valve amp of all time.  Unfortunately it's completely impractical for gigging unless you have a car and access to car parking.  But the sound is just heavenly.