ilovefuzz.com

So ive been playing an ac4 half stack for around a year now and love it for jamming at home, however i never really used it in a band setting until i got back into a band a few months ago. The amp has plenty of volume for getting up over the drums, and can even stay fairly clean (i keep the volume right around 12 o clock) however the problem im running into is that with the volume up that far it, when i step on a pedal, the tube saturation makes all my fuzz sound basically the same. I like the sound, but i cant get really distinctive tones from different pedals, and some pedals jist get muddy.

So my questions are: do i need to go with a higher wattage amp? (And Could a night train head work with my existing ac4 12" cab? )

Or are there some tubes out there that could get me enough added clean headroom to make my amp play welll with fuzz when its cranked half way up?

Im also open to other smallish tube amp suggestions in the sub $500 range...blues jr, ac15, etc...I do have my eye on the night train...

I don't know much about changing tubes to affect head room, but if there isn't a cheaper option, I'd take a look at the Peavey Classic series. My bandmates have picked up Peavey Classic 30s and 50s for sub $500. I own a Classic 50 mself, but my guitarist's Classic 30 is just as loud and stays nice and clean, each of her fuzzes keeps their own character.

You can squeeze a bit more (or less) headroom out depending on the tube...but probably not enough to handle what you want.

AC15+a tone bender+treble booster is fuzz bliss.

I believe those ac4 cabs are 16ohm, the night train does have a 16ohm output.

My Killer Ant does the same thing at higher volumes (1 watt amp), and my Epi Valve Junior (5 watt) did as well. A 15-50 watt tube head is what you need, and if you stay in that power range your Vox cab will work fine.

Tons of good amps in that price range... Blackheart Handsome Devil, Traynor Dark Horse, Orange Tiny Terror, the Vox you're looking at, Egnators, etc. Should be able to find one of those used and save up to half the cost of a new one. There's always some amps in that power + price range on yer local or nearby craigslist listings, and more on HC or TGP forums. If you got a Handsome Devil or Tiny Terror combo, you could run your 1x12 with the amp too, they both have 16 ohm speakers and can drive an 8 ohm load.

There really are tons of good amps in that range. Something I do for fun (sigh) is search eBay for "Tube Amp" under $500. You'd be surprised what falls under that category.

Fender Blues Jr. (with BillmAudio mods).

Solid.

Takes pedals very well. Loves my fuzz boxes too (both muffs and benders).

Cheapest possible solution:
To combat the muddiness/tooob compression, you can roll the volume knob back on your guitar and be more mindful of yr. picking dynamics.

A higher watt head will also give you more clean headroom.

That's about as helpful as I can be without some info on your rig (esp. your pedals and settings). I'm also loathe to suggest a rig without knowing what kind of shows you're playing--what kind of PA situation you'll be in, etc.

D.o.S. wrote:Cheapest possible solution:
To combat the muddiness/tooob compression, you can roll the volume knob back on your guitar and be more mindful of yr. picking dynamics.

A higher watt head will also give you more clean headroom.

That's about as helpful as I can be without some info on your rig (esp. your pedals and settings). I'm also loathe to suggest a rig without knowing what kind of shows you're playing--what kind of PA situation you'll be in, etc.

yeah d00d, if you like the sound of the ac4, why not invest in a PA system then just mic up the vox you have?

D.o.S. wrote:Cheapest possible solution:
To combat the muddiness/tooob compression, you can roll the volume knob back on your guitar and be more mindful of yr. picking dynamics.

A higher watt head will also give you more clean headroom.

That's about as helpful as I can be without some info on your rig (esp. your pedals and settings). I'm also loathe to suggest a rig without knowing what kind of shows you're playing--what kind of PA situation you'll be in, etc.

A huge +1 on the volume and playing dynamic. Playing with a tube head has almost been a completely new experience for me in the fact that if I have my volume too high I will start to distort or if I do I a hard swipe as well.