Blackstar HT5 amp combo - opinions?

[Martyn]

My local luthier suggested the above amp as a great home practice/recording valve amp that could double up as a club gigging amp if miked. Being a valve amp, I'd assumed I couldn't bypass its speaker for silent late night recording but apparently its has the facility to do this especially designed in that enables full valve sounds to be emulated that can be inputed into a computer/headphones. It's marketed specifically as a practice/home recording amp. A google search will no doubt offer a more detailed explanation and I confess I don't fully understand the technical whys and wherefores but I'm sure some of you will be familiar with the amp and its features.
I've heard nothing but praise for the entire amp range but would appreciate anyone's opinions on these amps.
Regards,
Martyn

[tony parnham]

Hi Martyn,
I had occasion to try the Blackstar against the Vox AC4 at home. The Blackstar has three band EQ and 2 channels...one clean and the other dirty and it also has send and returns. A really quality little amp BUT.....the clean sound compared to the AC4 was not right for Shads sound it came out too mellow boardering on nasal.
The Vox is also a great little amp and does have the sound for Shads stuff and I would have bought one but sadly it is let down by the lack of EQ control only having just a tone facility which I personally find very limiting. However as we all know everyone's sound perception differs considerably.
Tony

[Martyn]

Hi Tony,
Do you think this wrong sound was down to the size or type of speaker, the valves or something else? You'd imagine that with the extra EQ facilities on board it would be possible to modify the sound more effectively but if you tried the various combinations and nothing resolved this, maybe this isn't the amp for me.
I also noticed they do a Studio HT-20 with a 12" speaker, which is obviously more powerful and still enables domestic recording by bypassing the speaker but this is a much heavier amp at 45lbs, which could be an issue with my athritic wrists. And if it still can't create the sound I want it would just be a louder version of the other choice. Hmmm . . .
Thanks for the reply, which will assist me in my deliberations.
Regards,
Martyn

[tony parnham]

Hi Martyn,
The difference in the sound might be down to the valve types therein and I don't have a clue in this area but all I can say is that if the Blackstar could be modified with different valves to sound more like it would blow the Vox away because of its EQ etc.
According to the spec the Blackstar has 1xECC83 and 1x12BH7 valves and the vox has EL84 power tube and a 12AX7.
This could be the reason for the tone difference.
Coincidentally I am at the moment trying out an amp which has been modified by RAT Electronics Valve Amps called a GA 15 http://www.ratvalveamps.com/ and which has 'power scaling' and it retains quality at low volume, this also has the 12AX7 and the EL84, a Pentode and Linear mode and it sounds much closer to the Vox sound and to be honest its sounds very authentic at low volume. I am not an anorack re Shads sound but if I play the old stuff it's got to sound somewhere near but the Blackstar seemed quite a way out. I shall be in receipt of a TVS3 very shortly which will compliment whatever amp I have, its not that I'm after the holy grail but I just wanted a classy echo unit for anything I want to do.(BTW if you're wondering, the reason I have been able to try these amps is I do a few days now and again for a music shop in Chesterfield and they let me try stuff that comes in sometimes so I give 'em a try of course)
Tony

[terryjan]

Hi Martyn, I've been trying various small amps to replace my Vox AC30 CC1 which is now too big, too loud and too heavy for my needs. I used a Blackstar HT5 for a few weeks but could not get a usable sound for Shads music, no matter what I did with the eq. It is however a high quality small amp and sounds well for rock music. I eventually bit the bullet and bought a Belcat Tube 20 R on 2 weeks approval from Gear 4 Music. It is a small 20 watt combo with EL84s, bass, mid, treble, master, gain and boost eq, with a 12 inch Celestion speaker and spring reverb, basically a Fender clone, But, It sounds brilliant, all for £220.00 delivered, however, there is no line out for recording or headphones, so it may be no good for you, but, its a great little amp at silly money.
Regards
Terry