Looking for that perfect indie rock amp.

[jakrentschler]

So me and my buddies just started a new band with a sound quite different from my usual metal. We're going in the direction of ambient/indie, i'd almost call it dream rock. I'm finding that my digital setup just isn't getting it done so I'd like to buy a combo amp to get some sweet tones from. I've been looking into Vox AC30's, Fender Blues amps, Blackstars, etc and was wondering if anyone had any experience with gear in this type of genre. I'm looking for tones kinda like Explosions in the Sky, Transit, Young Statues, Copeland. Any help you could give me would be great!

 

[sage]

Dude, I had a Genz-Benz Black Pearl 30 and it was awesome for that sort of music. It comes with an Eminence Red Fang speaker. Pair it with a sealed cab with a V30 in it for some more low end and tightness. So many tones exist within that amp. It's an absolute dream to play. Components and build quality are excellent and one can usually be had used for 600-750.

 

[jordanky]

Timmy>Strymon El Capistan>Strymon Blue Sky>AC30.

 

[Albionic]

fender twin reverb and an ehx memory man

 

[jakrentschler]

I'm looking for something relatively cheap too, i forgot to add that. Like the Vox AC30vr you can find on craigslist for $350. the cheaper the better!

 

[sage]

Nope, the cheaper the better doesn't actually function in this realm. You'd be better off saving up for something that works well for both your metal and your indie project. I've been getting away with using a Mesa Single Rectifier head with a Dr. Z cab for metal and post-rock. It's worked really quite well. The cleans on the Recto are more than passable and I use a tubescreamer variant as an in-between crunchy channel. It's not perfect, but it is far better than any $350 is going to be. And it slays for metal.

 

[jakrentschler]

I have no use for another stack. i already have one that i use to run my pod through for my metal project. for this new band we'll be playing lots of bars so im looking for mobility and small size aka a combo amp.

 

[Albionic]

what about the fender hotrod combo? they go pretty cheap. I quite fancy one for my rock/indie band but i'd have to sell my halfstack to make space for it and i'm not ready to do that yet

 

[jakrentschler]

i havent tried one yet! the singer of my band's dad has a hot rod and a deville so I intend to try them both out! plus i hear fenders take to pedals better than ac30's do anyways. would i need to add an overdrive pedal to the board with a fender tho?

 

[WaffleTheEpic]

I've been told that Laney amps are perfect for indie.
I've seen shows where they use Fender Twin Reverbs, Fender Hotrods, and all sorts of Fender stuff though.

Let me fetch you the list Dead Undead sent me for good indie sounding vintage-y amps.

 

[WaffleTheEpic]

Laney:
TT50H
VH100R
GH50L
AOR/Pro Tube

Peavey:
Classic 50
Butcher (the old one from the 80s)
VTM60 or VTM120

Orange:
Dark Terror
OR15H

Jet City:
JCA22H

Traynor:
YCS100H
YCS50H

All for about the 500-600$ dollar range, some new, some used.

 

[Albionic]

i havent tried one yet! the singer of my band's dad has a hot rod and a deville so I intend to try them both out! plus i hear fenders take to pedals better than ac30's do anyways. would i need to add an overdrive pedal to the board with a fender tho?

I'd tend to have an overdrive as a clean boost for any amp adds a bit of sparkle to all the channels even if you don't play metal. I like the look of the deville I think thats a 2x12 Which is bigger than I Want. Let me know how it goes when you try them.

 

[jakrentschler]

thanks for the list! and ill be sure to let you know.

 

[codycarter]

Vox tonelab and Behringer V-amp. I've gotten very Arctic Monkey ish tone out of both, and a early Wombats tone out of the Vox.

 

[jakrentschler]

so after doing some serious research, the AC30 really just blows everything else out of the water.