Saturday, May 26, 2007

Totally, like, amped.

Thanks to Gigglewick and everyone else who provided advice and support but the great amp hunt is over and GW's advice comes too late and will have to fall by the wayside. After extensive roadtesting over three arduous days, accompanied by my loyal and long-suffering wife who is now complaining of a perforated eardrum and is even more aware of just what a bad guitar player I am, I have plumped for a 150watt Marshall.

AVT150x I believe the catchy name is. This baby is a tube pre-amp with a solid state power amp. Some afficionados believe these tube/state combos to be mere gimmicks but I found the sound to be pleasing to my cloth ears. I got it for $800 and I believe it to be plenty loud for rocking the sea bed with my fellow bushmen of the calamari.

I did try various Roland cubes as well as Vox, the aformentioned Triggerman and the valve version also (forget what it is called). I played Fenders and Hartkes and Ashtons and Randalls and god knows what else. I bought the best I could for the cash I had (and careful students of this blog will note that I spent double what I was originally hoping to lay out). Now it must repay itself with hot rock.

13 Comments:

Blogger Unrelenting Tedium said...

She looks to be an absolute spanker.
This is the most exciting news since the guitar purchase...and "bushmen of the calamari"...i feel another badge coming on.

28/5/07 13:07  
Blogger silky-D said...

I do so like it when somebody laughs at one of my lame puns.

28/5/07 13:12  
Blogger Paddy said...

It is exciting news. I had the tremendous pleasure of admiring it in person on the weekend: it is shiny and has lots of knobs — what more could anybody ask for? I anticipate cowering before its mighty roar at our next rehearsal.

I too chortled at the ‘bushmen’ line and was a little put out at your own belittlement of it: why insist on describing every pun as lame? I wish to reclaim the good name of the mighty pun. No more should punsters hide in the dark and fear the more fashionable forms of humour. Puns are noble and honourable. Groucho Marx only either sang Lydia the Tattood Lady or made puns and he was lauded as a great wit. Stand with Groucho Marx and pun with conviction. Become a Pun Marxist.

Marx tried it
You do the same
The pun that dare
Not speak its name
Homonym is not
A dirty word
The pun is mightier
Than the sword

28/5/07 14:03  
Blogger silky-D said...

epic stuff.

28/5/07 14:23  
Blogger gigglewick said...

Can I express my empathy to your long-suffering from another long-suffering?

Also, would like to note that Mr Fix has been making me check this blog regularly to see what you bought.

And also, he made a face that said: "that's pretty much what I thought would happen" when I told him what you HAD bought.

PS am not sure how it happened that I became a proxy of gear-advice.

I suspect it's the lethal combination of Mr Fix and I being utterly unable to keep our damn business to ourselves.

This is probably what it would be like if Dr Phil and Oprah got married and talked nothing but guitars/amps/music....i.e. completely sad.

28/5/07 16:06  
Blogger silky-D said...

I'm very happy with it, it's also worth noting that:

a) I had a limited budget
and
b) Truth told I'm no guitar hero. This will be plenty good enough for me.

28/5/07 16:35  
Blogger gigglewick said...

Am no guitar hero either. My four year old asked me to play guitar for him tonight and I had to laugh heartily and then look the other way until he was distracted by something shiny.

Mr Fix's facial expression, by the way, should be interpreted as a positive one - he is not surprised you had to spend more money than you thought and agrees that Marshalls are a good investment amp-wise. Also he knows better than most the world of guitar retail....

28/5/07 18:43  
Blogger silky-D said...

yay Mr Fix! Now, I'm thinking about getting Foxtel installed. What package does Mr Fix recommend?
If he gets this answer right, next I'm gunna ask him about the funny rash on my...

28/5/07 19:46  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Silky, I have an hollistic solution to all your woes. Trust me... I work near a hospital. If you eat mouldy cheese/bread you may be able to medicate against your rash. This dietary manoevre would simultaneously free up the $52 odd per month for a basic+sport Foxtel package (with free installation). Solved. Hello Liverpool.

30/5/07 14:14  
Blogger silky-D said...

Genius. but would Mrs Squid be able to watch Next Top Model and other lifestyle nuggets on such a package? I also want one of those IQ recorder gizmos. I think it is awesome that you can programme them to tape something via email from work.

30/5/07 14:18  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hmm. You really are making me wish I had the iQ. I know you said the Silky seniors had one at their Adelaide resort and it rocked, but I thought I could handle living without one. At $15 per month I thought it a bit steep. It's too late now. We are locked in for 2 years. Make sure there isn't an extra install charge for the iQ. You have to be careful with these extortionist Fox bastards. Monopoly has made them impossible to deal with -and expensive.

As for what I prefer to think of as Australia's Most Delusional/Maladjusted Teenagers: now that is top tv. I think it's on Fox8 and should be accessible with only the basic package.

30/5/07 14:28  
Blogger Unrelenting Tedium said...

Three words...straight from the rabbit's mouth...Lose The TV.

31/5/07 09:14  
Blogger silky-D said...

I'm gonna blow up my video
Shut down my radio
Told boss man where to go
Turned off my brain control
That's the way I want my rock and roll
That's the way I want my rock and roll

31/5/07 10:18  

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