I posted this up on the SD site but I am curious what you guys have to say as well.....
I have an old '83 Marshall head and cab but its a quite big and not quite as versatile as I like. I grew up playing the 80's hard rock thing but in the past 15 years I enjoy playing all types of styles - blues, country, southern, rock etc.. .
I have three guitars - '85 Kramer Pacer that I am redoing with Prails and triple shots, American Tele and G & L Legacy.
I was thinking of getting some type of 2 x 12 combo amp in the 30 to 45 W range. Any suggestions on types that cover a wide range to tones/styles (not that I do any of them well :0) but its fun). I was thinking of max price of around 1500 to 1800 bucks.
One that did catch my ear was the Blackstar Series One 45.....
Series One 45 - Good All Rounder?
I can't give you an opinion on whether a S1-45 is better than some other amps - all i can say is that i have one and i'm very happy with it. The other guitarist in my band has a mid 70's fender reverb (that his dad gave him - lucky sod!) - and the S1 certainly doesn't sound like any less of an amp in comparison. The only possible drawback on flexibility is the lack of in-built reverb - but thats a small price to pay for everything else that you get.
The reviews i've read of the S1 are about right - the bright channel is quite bright, so the warm channel is the one you'll probably spend most time on (which is fine) - the crunch channel has more than enough gain on its own, thus i don't use the super crunch channel very often. We tend to play rock and alt rock stuff.
If you get a chance to try one, they're certainly worth 1/2 hour of your time to see if its what you want.
Mine gets used with a Fender USA HSS Std Strat and a 2007 Gibson LP Std.
Hope this helps.
The reviews i've read of the S1 are about right - the bright channel is quite bright, so the warm channel is the one you'll probably spend most time on (which is fine) - the crunch channel has more than enough gain on its own, thus i don't use the super crunch channel very often. We tend to play rock and alt rock stuff.
If you get a chance to try one, they're certainly worth 1/2 hour of your time to see if its what you want.
Mine gets used with a Fender USA HSS Std Strat and a 2007 Gibson LP Std.
Hope this helps.
I've been using a '68 Twin Reverb for years but it is too big for some venues.
I set about looking for something with less power. Thus, the 1st thing that attracted me to the S1-45 was it's ability to reduce power down to 4.5 watts. I plugged in and went Whoa! Not thinking it possible, I took my Twin into the shop for a side by side comparison and bought the Blackstar. This amp is so awesome I'm still freaked out 6 months later!
The other guitarist in my band is selling his Mesa Mk111 and going Blackstar.
The S1-45 received a gold award and best new product for 2009 from Australian Guitar magazine. For good reason!
If you find a better amp, I'd like to know what it is.
I set about looking for something with less power. Thus, the 1st thing that attracted me to the S1-45 was it's ability to reduce power down to 4.5 watts. I plugged in and went Whoa! Not thinking it possible, I took my Twin into the shop for a side by side comparison and bought the Blackstar. This amp is so awesome I'm still freaked out 6 months later!
The other guitarist in my band is selling his Mesa Mk111 and going Blackstar.
The S1-45 received a gold award and best new product for 2009 from Australian Guitar magazine. For good reason!
If you find a better amp, I'd like to know what it is.
Hi OzStrat - looks like you and i are part of the growing army of S1-45 devotees - its good to hear that other people are getting as much out joy of theirs as i am. Its weird, but i get a sense with the Blackstar marketing that the S1 range is mainly being targeted at heavy rock and metal guitarists - without them really making enough noise about the S1's range and versatility.
Hopefully this forum can help to redress that image
Hopefully this forum can help to redress that image
Blackstar appear to be focusing most of their marketing on the new HT range. Understandable because budget amps will have a bigger market.
I have read some comments that the S1 series is very expensive for a Korean amp, but there is a reason for that. The PCB's used are not your normal run of the mill PCB's. At every solder point, the metal contact continues through to the back of the board, as opposed to just sitting on the top. This makes them much more expensive and reliable, and a match for hand wiring, if not preferable.
Thus, for the price, the S1's are a screaming bargain.
I hold regular jam sessions in my large photographic studio which is attracting a lot of pro muso's. They love the "live" sound and a chance to let their heads go. The music produced is simply awesome and I feel very lucky to be able to host such creativity.
Needless to say a long line of exquisite mainstream & boutique amps flow through the place. To me the S1-45 is the tone king of them all.
But don't let the secret out, can't have everyone getting one
.
I have read some comments that the S1 series is very expensive for a Korean amp, but there is a reason for that. The PCB's used are not your normal run of the mill PCB's. At every solder point, the metal contact continues through to the back of the board, as opposed to just sitting on the top. This makes them much more expensive and reliable, and a match for hand wiring, if not preferable.
Thus, for the price, the S1's are a screaming bargain.
I hold regular jam sessions in my large photographic studio which is attracting a lot of pro muso's. They love the "live" sound and a chance to let their heads go. The music produced is simply awesome and I feel very lucky to be able to host such creativity.
Needless to say a long line of exquisite mainstream & boutique amps flow through the place. To me the S1-45 is the tone king of them all.
But don't let the secret out, can't have everyone getting one
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Vinchester
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Hi folks may I ask a question seeing that S1-45 might be my new amp
I really appreciate the amp's versatility but I want my amp to do superb distortion sound without any support pedal. Currently I need to use an OD pedal to make my Ht-5 a tad more saturated.
I'm not exactly aiming for the super hi-gain but I still need enough saturation to pull off occasional C-standard brutal riffs Will the S1-45 do this for me?
Thanks in advance!
I really appreciate the amp's versatility but I want my amp to do superb distortion sound without any support pedal. Currently I need to use an OD pedal to make my Ht-5 a tad more saturated.
I'm not exactly aiming for the super hi-gain but I still need enough saturation to pull off occasional C-standard brutal riffs
Will the S1-45 do this for me?Thanks in advance!
For a while I kept some of my favourite distortion pedals on my pedalboard. They are all gone now. None could match the amps built in distortion, which there is plenty of. I set my gain to a little over half, which is heaps. Max gain is really full-on and will scare small children. But even with all that distortion, the tone of the guitar rings through. None of my pedals can do that. Throw in the ISF & DPR controls and you can model the distortion to find your sweet spot. Or should I say sweeter spot, nothing that comes out of this amp sounds bad.
My band recently played at the Broadway Hotel (the night it burned down). A post Lions game crowd of approx 1000 was there in the open air beer garden. I wasn't miked up and with my DPR set at about 20 watts, my volume never went past half (no db police present). So plenty of grunt for any occasion.
The last gig we played we were miked up and here lies another advantage. Instead of a mic, the emulated output was used. Much better! The emulated output is wicked for recording too. The only feature missing that I would have liked is for the effects loop to be switchable on/off.
I have discovered a boost pedal gives the clean channel a crunch to die for. And if the amp distortion isn't enough, the boost makes it bleed!
The amp is in a different league to the Blackstar HT series. For a start it costs allot more and what you are paying for is tone, which simply oozes out of this amp.
If you are in Brisbane on the 3rd of September, you can hear me playing it at the Kedron Wavell Services Club, 8:30 start. The room is accoustically designed and gives supberb sound so a good environment to hear it.
My band recently played at the Broadway Hotel (the night it burned down). A post Lions game crowd of approx 1000 was there in the open air beer garden. I wasn't miked up and with my DPR set at about 20 watts, my volume never went past half (no db police present). So plenty of grunt for any occasion.
The last gig we played we were miked up and here lies another advantage. Instead of a mic, the emulated output was used. Much better! The emulated output is wicked for recording too. The only feature missing that I would have liked is for the effects loop to be switchable on/off.
I have discovered a boost pedal gives the clean channel a crunch to die for. And if the amp distortion isn't enough, the boost makes it bleed!
The amp is in a different league to the Blackstar HT series. For a start it costs allot more and what you are paying for is tone, which simply oozes out of this amp.
If you are in Brisbane on the 3rd of September, you can hear me playing it at the Kedron Wavell Services Club, 8:30 start. The room is accoustically designed and gives supberb sound so a good environment to hear it.
KKND wrote:It caught fire just after we left. They say we are the hottest band in town... http://www.reverbnation.com/#/jonnythecoleshotsOzStrat wrote: My band recently played at the Broadway Hotel (the night it burned down).......
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