Rocker 30 or verb or something else.

Optimus Grime · Post by **Optimus Grime** » Mon May 18, 2009 3:37 pm

I'm am in the market for a nice all valve head. I was heavily considering a Hughes and Kettner Duotone but I can not bring myself to spend 2800 dollars on a head even though that thing dominates anything I've ever heard.

Amps I am favoring (I will be seeking a used one):

RockerVerb 50: I have heard one of these and was very impressed. Price point is pretty good for what you getting too.

Mesa Lonestar: This is kind of my wild card though. I will not buy one unless the price I find one at is like to affordable not to buy.

Rocker 30: I have yet to hear this amp but it really seems to be a No B.S. type of amp. No F/X loop, No, reverb (holy grail for the win though). I rock a Fender Cyclone with three jag pick ups so a no b.s. clean channel sounds promising. The only thing stopping me from making the leap with an ebay purchase is I keep reading its a dark sounding amp on this forum. Before I posted I tried to do a search for my question and thats what I kept reading. Is the amp like Engl Powerball dark, Peavey 6505? Or is it just not Fender bright? Can this supposed darkness be dialed out of the dirt channel?

Also around what number does the clean channel beak up at.

P.S. 30 watts and the price point of the rocker appeals highly to me to. Used they are only about 250 dollars more than my Peavey Classic 50 (one of the MOST under rated amps in the history of amps) which is awesome.

nguideau · Post by **nguideau** » Mon May 18, 2009 3:54 pm

Generally speaking, a darker voicing is what makes Orange amps, regardless of model, what they are. That's kind of their signature sound. If that doesn't appeal to you, you're looking the wrong place.

Best thing you can do is listen to the Rob Chappers videos on YouTube if you don't have access to try them out first.

Oranges sure aren't like Fenders, but not necessarily because they're dark. It's more because Oranges are meant to be played with crunch more so.

It's hard to compare these things accurately with words in a post, so please, watch the videos, but the best way I can think to put it into words is this: Orange and Marshall both do great rock'n'roll crunch. Marshalls are the bright side of rock'n'roll crunch, Oranges are the dark side.

I know that's a rudimentary explanation... so do yourself a favor and watch the Rob Chappers videos.

Optimus Grime · Post by **Optimus Grime** » Mon May 18, 2009 4:32 pm

Ron Chapper .... can do boss. I'm at work so thats not going to happen here. Does he have a website or anything. or do I just Yahoo him or something?

nguideau · Post by **nguideau** » Mon May 18, 2009 5:22 pm

Optimus Grime wrote:Ron Chapper .... can do boss. I'm at work so thats not going to happen here. Does he have a website or anything. or do I just Yahoo him or something?

http://www.youtube.com/user/RobChappers

Just go there. Everything you need to hear before spending money on an Orange.

Obviously, if at all possible, you need to try them out yourself, with your guitar(s). But if that's just out of reach, at the very least give these videos a good study first.

Optimus Grime · Post by **Optimus Grime** » Mon May 18, 2009 5:44 pm

Nice. I went home for lunch so I can listen in. One hour well spent (being spent). I think I like the 30 more. It has way more flavor(???). The 50 has this compressed thing going on now that I can compare them.

This chapman fellow is a little nuts ...... not saying anything bad but .... well .... he seems nuts. Who rows the rock seas hahahahah?

Thanks by the way. I'll let you know If I join the family.

oh oh oh. Does the Rocker 30 have the tube failure protection thing. If so can you just pull two tubes and run it at 15 all the time???? Or is that failure protection thing like a spare tire? Only use it in emergencies and replace the tire as fast as possible.

nguideau · Post by **nguideau** » Mon May 18, 2009 7:00 pm

Optimus Grime wrote:Nice. I went home for lunch so I can listen in. One hour well spent (being spent). I think I like the 30 more. It has way more flavor(???). The 50 has this compressed thing going on now that I can compare them.

This chapman fellow is a little nuts ...... not saying anything bad but .... well .... he seems nuts. Who rows the rock seas hahahahah?

Thanks by the way. I'll let you know If I join the family.

oh oh oh. Does the Rocker 30 have the tube failure protection thing. If so can you just pull two tubes and run it at 15 all the time???? Or is that failure protection thing like a spare tire? Only use it in emergencies and replace the tire as fast as possible.

Not sure I get your question, but the R30 only has 2 EL34 to begin with, according to the Orange website.

The difference you may have heard between the R30 and RV50 is that the RV50 uses 6V6 power valves instead of EL34.

If you like the 30W rating, check out the AD30 as well. That is what I own. It's more of a "classic" sounding amp, whereas the R30 is more modern. The AD30 is kind of like Orange's answer to the AC30, to my ears -- similar classic crunch tones in the amp, but a darker voice, not as much shimmer (though as we have learned from a post by our friend Bandeapart, swapping tubes in the AD30 can unlock a surprising amount of sparkle).

Overall though, even as an AD30 owner, I will admit that the R30 is a more diverse amp. The AD30 suits me better because I frankly only play one or two styles of music, but if I were looking for more versatility, I definitely would go with the R30.

mr_william · Post by **mr_william** » Mon May 18, 2009 7:04 pm

Optimus Grime wrote: oh oh oh. Does the Rocker 30 have the tube failure protection thing. If so can you just pull two tubes and run it at 15 all the time???? Or is that failure protection thing like a spare tire? Only use it in emergencies and replace the tire as fast as possible.

thats only available on the rockerVERB's...

not sure if its safe to run like that for prolonged periods of time.. i dont see why it wouldnt be..

Ronnie Robinson · Post by **Ronnie Robinson** » Mon May 18, 2009 7:53 pm

But one great thing about the Rocker is that if there is a problem with a valve u only need to undo four screws and u can change the valves yourself - no power tube biasing required therefore no need for specialist tools or skills.

It also makes experimenting with different tube makes very easy

The Rocker 30 has a great ( and very powerful ) classic rock voice

Neiloler · Post by **Neiloler** » Mon May 18, 2009 8:47 pm

The R30 has two EL34 tubes, you won't be able to run it with only one of the tubes, it won't work that way (the bigger amps with 4 tubes generally have two tubes for each side of the wave, so you pull one set you've still got tubes working each side of the sound wave...)

Here's some videos I've done with the R30. I love this amp, it's got some great stuff going on in it, and yes, it's a very no-nonsense amp, just plug in, crank up, and enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQaecf6Vyw4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLrd5dhsnqo

Jared T · Post by **Jared T** » Mon May 18, 2009 9:04 pm

Awesome videos Neil, haha "Reading's out...Rock n' Roll is in!"

Neiloler · Post by **Neiloler** » Mon May 18, 2009 9:17 pm

Jared T wrote:Awesome videos Neil, haha "Reading's out...Rock n' Roll is in!"

Haha, I try to get my wife to be in those videos with me because I think she's awesome, and it annoys her a little bit.

Norrin Radd · Post by **Norrin Radd** » Mon May 18, 2009 9:30 pm

Neil Oler!!!! Do I hear an Ooh Wah in that first video?!!??!?!?! Dog..........

Neiloler · Post by **Neiloler** » Mon May 18, 2009 9:36 pm

Norrin Radd wrote:Neil Oler!!!! Do I hear an Ooh Wah in that first video?!!??!?!?! Dog..........

What in heaven's name are you talking about?

Rocker 30 or verb or something else.

Rocker 30 or verb or something else.

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