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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Fri Dec 27, 2013 4:59 pm
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Bluer Monkey wrote:
shimmilou wrote:
I know that they have been mentioned here, just wondering if anyone has experience with any Blackstar amps? ...
    Hi shimmilou. I was thinking of asking the same question then I came across your post.

    I've tried the HT Club 40 and the HT Studio 20 and think that both are very decent amps. Not that I'm looking to replace my HRD but sometimes it's nice to look at the grass growing on the other side. :lol:

    Cheers!
    BM



Definitely. I have a nice variety of amps, and each is somewhat different in sound, so I have something for just about any mood.

I am really enjoying the distortion sounds from this B*, there is nothing else like it, and I want to get the HT-5R also, but so far, the HRDlx is still my favorite for the styles that I like most.

FWIW, I found out that the HT 20 uses MOSFETs for the PI, which contributes to the unique sounds. I can hear some similarities in sound characteristics to the old Sunn solid state amps.

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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Wed Jan 08, 2014 7:45 pm
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I finally got some time to play with the B* HT20H again. I had an EH12AY7 in what Shimmilou calls the V1. I decided to get a JJ 5751 to try in V1. I hadn't realized how much the AY had reduced the volume to the drive channel, but it is quite noticeable. The 5751 did increase the distortion some and the volume a lot.

I liked the greater distortion reduction of the AY, but not the volume loss. The 5751 seemed to reduce the distortion from what I remember of the AX and it was very smooth and not at all fizzy. I can just barely get by with the minimum gain setting and the 5751 for my choice of music. Another observation is that if I crank the volume on the drive channel, leaving the gain setting the same, it distorts less....a very nice tone but way too loud! (I was playing through 2ea. 2X12 cabs simultaneously (Emi Wizard, Emi Swamp Thang, WGS Reaper HP and a WGS Retro 30) That arrangement sounds great, but can make your ears bleed....not good!

Shimmilou,
Have you done any tube swapping? Results? You got me started on the B* kick again. BTW, it's no longer for sale. :lol:

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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Wed Jan 08, 2014 9:44 pm
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All I've done so far was to try a "Preferred Series 7025", which I believe started as a mil-spec Russian tube, in the V2 spot for the clean channel. I got just a bit fuller sound, but no big improvement over the EH that was there. I will try a 5751 in V2 to see if I can get better clean, a bit more headroom, because the clean channel breaks up pretty early, a nice breakup sound though.

I'll have to wait though because UPS lost the switch that I ordered for my speaker cab. They said that they delivered it while I was shoveling the drive, no effing way I didn't see them, they did not come to my house. They might have delivered it somewhere but it certainly wasn't to me. :x

Remember that you have Volume, Gain, and a Master, so the lower the Volume and Gain are, the less distorted the sound, then use the Master to set the overall volume. Same with the clean channel, Volume and Master, set the volume low for less distortion, then the Master sets the overall volume. No EQ for the clean channel, just the one tone knob.

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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Tue Feb 04, 2014 3:47 pm
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Been playing my Blackstar HT20H frequently since the start of this post. With the 5751 and especially with the new guitar I purchased (Squire Tele Classic Vibe 50's), the 'drive' channel is much more appealing to me. I never owned a single coil guitar prior, but had frequently read how much less distortion resulted than from humbuckers and Filter'trons. To me, this amp is great sounding for the single coils.

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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Tue Feb 04, 2014 6:17 pm
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Sweet! Amp and guitar. 8)

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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Tue Feb 04, 2014 6:56 pm
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I have an HT-1RH that I run through a Marshall 1960A cabinet. I'm amazed at the sounds that tiny 1 watt amp will put out.


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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Tue Feb 04, 2014 7:40 pm
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That's another cool amp novafx4, that and the HT-5RH. I thought about getting the HT-5RH head at GC today ($399), or the HT-5R combo ($499), but I forced myself to wait for a while, maybe get a used one at a much lower price. I've seen a few used ones on the GC site.

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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Tue Feb 18, 2014 6:08 am
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Presidents Day sale....woot-woot! :)

HT-5R 1x12 combo.
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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Sat Feb 22, 2014 7:17 pm
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someone asked me to post my thoughts on the older HT5 (pre reverb) so here goes......

mines a gen.2 (of I believe 5 now) that didn't come with the rattle or the ever present USA grounding hum that gen.1s had....although it's said to buzz like a MFer in Europe...... :lol:

it's a simple, compact, versatile, amp that's very user and tinkerer friendly, and a simple 10 second tube swap (I don't even remember where the back cover panel is) makes a GREAT difference in the tones it can produce.

it came new/stock with a JJ 12ax7/ecc83 preamp tube and an Electro Harmonix 12bh7 power tube, which are a great pair for "nasty" Blues, Classic Rock, and "Vintage" Metal.
for some hotter tones, it simply takes installing a Russian Groove Tube Premium gold pin ECC83......it'll get REALLY nasty w/that.
sometimes I use a Russian Ruby ECC83 (same factort as the GT i'm sure) because it seems in between the JJ & the GT for breakup & output.
my favorite set though is an NOS Mullard ECC82 paired with an NOS Tung Sol USA 12bh7 which combines for a much higher volume breakup point (but less output volume) and a VERY smoothe sound suited for Texas/Chicago type Blues and early Rock.
I've run the Tung Sol for over a year w/o re-biasing and it hasn't blown the transformer yet, but it may happen the next time I plug in.....there's much debate on the Blackstar forum about the need to re-bias for a diff. power tube when it's only 5w to begin with and the tubes are cloe in output range.
I've not been there in over a year, but I recommend the Blackstar forum for questions, it's a great place.
I fire it all thru a re-purposed Fender combo amp that on shortout I turned into a 12" spkr.cab using grillecloth from the now defunct "The Vintage Sound" in Ga. USA, it houses a Jensen Vintage Ceramic series C12Q that sounds outstanding !!

and since it didn't happen w/o pics.......

before
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and after
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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:14 pm
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What is up with this freakin' forum?

It let's me post this, but gives me the ever present "Technical difficulties" BS when I try a longer post. :x

Edit:
For some strange reason, yet again, I had to split my response into three parts, then discovered that the forum also has a problem with the last two sentences, which contain no links, profanity or any other thing that should cause issues. :evil: MF!!!!!

Edit 2:
OK, it seems that it was only the last two sentences that caused the problem. I was able to combine the two posts into one, leaving out the last two sentences in which I merely explained how to check the bias on a 12BH7 without a probe. :?

Edit 3:
Wow! I reworded the part about checking the bias without a probe, and was able to insert into my post below. WTF?!?!

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Last edited by shimmilou on Sat Feb 22, 2014 10:11 pm, edited 4 times in total.

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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Sat Feb 22, 2014 9:48 pm
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Thanks for that Bender 4 Life.

It looks like the HT-5R has an adjustable bias and a balance pot, so regardless of tube type, the bias should be checked whenever installing a new output tube. A bias that is too hot can take out the tube, no matter the wattage, it still has to be biased properly to operate within it's limits, it is the same for any tube. If anyone debates that proper bias is not important, they clearly don't know much about tubes.

With amp off and unplugged, check the resistance of each half of the OT primary, then apply power to amp, standby switch on as if ready to play, then check the voltage drop across each half in order to calculate the Plate current (Ohm's law), since a bias probe can't be used for a dual triode.

I might try some different tubes someday, but the amp sounds awesome as-is, especially with a hum-bucker.

I thought that Ruby ECC83 were Chinese. :?:

The HT-5RS mini stack sounds louder and beefier than the combo, likely due to the two 12s with larger cabs.

Image

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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 4:03 pm
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It's been a while since this thread was active, but I have a very minor problem (with my Blackstar HT20H) that I'd like to know if anyone knows the cause and solution.

When in-between songs, the amp will occasionally give a minimally audible "pop". Sounds something like a static discharge.

Here's what I've eliminated:
1) the instrument cable (checked alternate ones)
2) guitar (checked alternate ones, although strangely enough, it seems more frequent and perhaps slightly louder with TV Jones Filter'tron type pups than with the stock Fender standard Tele pups)
3) Speaker Cab and Cable (checked alternate ones)
4) Facility's wiring (happens at different locations)

Seems like it's some sort of ground problem???? Sometimes (but not always) touching the strings triggers it.

It's only slightly annoying and not major, but if someone has a good idea on how to 'fix' it, I'd like to.

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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Fri Mar 07, 2014 4:53 pm
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Does it happen on both channels? My first thought is a noisy preamp tube, especially considering the tube swapping, and as you know, one preamp tube for each channel. It could also be a poor connection in a tube socket.

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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Sat Mar 08, 2014 1:51 am
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shimmilou wrote:
Does it happen on both channels? My first thought is a noisy preamp tube, especially considering the tube swapping, and as you know, one preamp tube for each channel. It could also be a poor connection in a tube socket.

I'll have to check. My normal mode of playing is that I switch back to the clean channel immediately upon ending a song, so I'd be seeing it on that channel. My most recent tube swapping was on the "drive" channel.

I'll also check to insure the preamp tubes are properly seated.

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Post subject: Re: Blackstar anyone?
Posted: Sat Mar 08, 2014 3:12 am
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I finally tried some 5751s on the clean channel, and settled on a GE 5-Star, and it took the edge off of the sound, now perfectly clean with single-coils, and quite a bit better with hum-buckers than with a 12AX7. I am now enjoying the clean channel with the 5751 more than before.

When I first got my amp, and pulled the tube from the drive channel, I noticed noise on the clean channel, so it seems possible that the drive channel tube can have an affect on the clean channel (or vice-versa). In any event, try substitution for each tube to be sure.

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