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Dirty-South Blues Harp forum: wail on! > Stage 5 amp
Stage 5 amp
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ME.HarpDoc
296 posts
Mar 02, 2018
6:24 PM
Was at a jam in Colorado this week and a seasoned harp player named Dan Treanor played an RE10 mic through a Stage 5 amp by Mission amps (Bruce Collins). 5 watt, 8" Webber speaker. Awesome sound and volume to cut through the guitars. He let another player play through the amp using a Green Bullet. Also sounded great ( just not "seasoned").
Very portable. Something to consider. $230
1847
4746 posts
Mar 02, 2018
6:34 PM
did it look something like this? monoprice
Thievin' Heathen
971 posts
Mar 02, 2018
11:22 PM
I could see myself buying one of those back before I acquired "the collection", and probably would be a much happier, more organized and all-around less cluttered human. But, it's too late.
6SN7
783 posts
Mar 03, 2018
5:39 AM
@1847, it looks exactly like that but according to the stage 5 website, it has “proprietary tone stack and voicing circuitry by Bruce Collins” and Weber speaker. Looks intriguing
1847
4749 posts
Mar 03, 2018
7:53 AM
is the limited edition special design custom speaker, produced in the same factory as the stock speaker?
rogonzab
1049 posts
Mar 03, 2018
8:51 AM
You cant go wrong whit a champ style amp for harp. VHT6, memphis mini, harpgear, all of them are champ type amps.
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Sorry for any misspell, english is not my first language.
Jaybird803
44 posts
Mar 03, 2018
9:28 AM
From the stage 5 website..."The new Stage 5 Amp is a joint venture of Bruce Collins at Mission Amps, creator of the Mission Chicago 32-20 and Delta Sonic amps and Rick Davis at Memphis Blues Amps, the architect of the Memphis Mini and Memphis 20 amps.

As a performing musician with a lifetime of involvement in the field of music, Bruce Collins is also a gifted and highly skilled electronic technician, widely recognized around the world as an authority on vintage vacuum tube amplifiers, their circuitry and squeezing every drop of tone from them.

The veteran blues harp player, Rick Davis is well known for his broad knowledge of electrified blues harmonica, amplified harp tone and their use in live performances. Using his vast experience with amplified blues harps, many classic and boutique amplifiers, he has also authored the highly successful Blues Harp Amps Blog for over ten years.

Collectively, they have built and sold more than 3,000 tube amps to players worldwide. ".
https://www.memphisbluesamps.com/about-s5

Last Edited by Jaybird803 on Mar 03, 2018 9:30 AM
IaNerd
34 posts
Mar 14, 2018
9:11 AM
Mine arrives tomorrow!
1847
4769 posts
Mar 14, 2018
9:30 AM
bruce collins can build an amp from the ground up. what is sad is he can not buy the parts let alone build an amp like that for a hundred dollars. he is forced to try and add value to the amp to make a small profit. how are we to compete?
an amp like this should be six or seven hundred dollars.
IaNerd
39 posts
Mar 23, 2018
11:30 AM
I've had mine about a week now. I haven't played it a whole lot yet, but I can say that it's a gem. The parts done in China--the box, covering, controls, handle--are rock solid, with excellent fit and finish. The guts, done by Bruce Collins, are superb. Worth every penny and many more.
1847
4795 posts
Mar 23, 2018
11:45 AM
are they claiming to have completely replaced the hand wired circuit that comes with the amp. something does not smell right.

perhaps brendan could put the chassis under a microscope and check for a little snake oil.
SuperBee
5336 posts
Mar 23, 2018
4:27 PM
I don’t think they’re claiming that, but I can see how people might think that.
It’s much the same deal as the MM.
They fit a Weber speaker and mod the circuit. They are charging $130 to upgrade the basic unit, so that is like the cost of speaker and labour.
The publicity says Bruce ‘radically alters’ the circuit. And the tone circuit.
The changes to the Memphis mini for instance amounted to 3 caps and a speaker.
They’re quite upfront about the source of the basic unit and that they’re charging for upgrades/changes. Understandably vague about the circuit changes and maybe a little marketing spin but really it looks like probably value for that part of the market.
Just cuts the legs out from under people trying to sell scratch-builds in that 5 watt zone, but that is also kind of the diy realm. And there’ll always be some buyers for ‘quality, bespoke’ etc.

These make building your own look quite an expensive option.
The other thing though, is that the demos I’ve heard just sound like 5 watt 8” amps to me. I’d have to hear it in the room I guess. Even Ronnie Shellist sounds ho hum to me in those demos but he obviously likes it.
I would not be at all surprised if it sounds better in Colorado.
I’m never able to draw any conclusions about amps from recordings. I watched/listened to Gary Smith demo a bunch of small amps on bluesharmonicadotcom and the comments of Dave and Gary made no sense with what I was hearing. I trust them to know what they’re hearing so I’m guessing it’s my speakers and everything else between me and the camera
rogonzab
1054 posts
Mar 23, 2018
4:43 PM
"The other thing though, is that the demos I’ve heard just sound like 5 watt 8” amps to me"

+1


"I watched/listened to Gary Smith demo a bunch of small amps on bluesharmonicadotcom and the comments of Dave and Gary made no sense with what I was hearing."

Are you talking about DB review of the Lone Wolf 10? He says that it sound awful, but I think that sounded great!



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Sorry for any misspell, english is not my first language.
SuperBee
5338 posts
Mar 23, 2018
5:22 PM
Hi Rogonzab. No, I wasn’t meaning that one but I do know the one you mean.
From my recollection David said he thought the HT10 was too one-dimensional. He didn’t say he hated it and he said he would be interested to see what his students thought of it. He thought it possible they would like it more than him because it was relatively easy to get a big honking sound.

And yet, I know lots of players, including quite accomplished and respected players who regularly praise that unit.

It was later, when they were going back and forward with the Memphis Mini and another amp, maybe the Windy City, it was blowing my mind when I heard something and they said the exact opposite of what I was hearing. I generally think of Dave Barrett’s tone as extremely good. I haven’t heard Gary so much and he did have those amps cranked up so I figure the actual sound wasn’t making it through my tiny speaker
1847
4800 posts
Mar 24, 2018
7:28 AM
"The other thing though, is that the demos I’ve heard just sound like 5 watt 8” amps to me"

i think we can all hear that. it can be difficult when listening to a download on youtube.

however a 5 watt amp can be made to sound massive. check this out. here they are using a little 5 watt champ, and to my ear what sounds like a controlled magentic

Last Edited by 1847 on Mar 24, 2018 7:34 AM
Tuckster
1690 posts
Mar 26, 2018
9:06 AM
A harp friendly 5W amp for $229? With the circuit tweaked by Bruce Collins? We're living in the land of plenty IMHO.


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