First post and a ? on Tech 21 Trademark 30

[revlimiterbounce]

This is my first post, so I'm a total newbie to this forum.

 

I've been a guitarist for many years and I'm just reawakening a big interest in playing. Influences: Metheny, Wayne Shorter (I like to study horn players) Scofield, Jobim, Knopfler, Miles, Don Grolnick (a pianist/composer, RIP), Louis Jordan, James Brown, Larry Carlton - actually, the list is too damn long.

 

I have 6 guitars, 4 basses, several amps (some for sale) and now with a wife, 5-month-old boy and 2.5-year-old yellow lab, there's room for none of it in our apartment! Actually, there's some room, but I'm now on the hunt for a very good quality small combo that could work as a practice amp with or without headphones and at rehearsals. Then, if I don't embarass myself thoroughly, at a small club gig. I'm into rock and jazz (think Earth Wind & Fire and Steely Dan) and also nylon string acoustic for real Bossa, but I have a Shertler Unico acoustic amp for that and don't really play with tons of overdrive. Guitars would be a Strat and 335.

 

The Tech 21 Trademark 30 caught my eye (for the electric stuff), so anyone have an opinion? I also saw a version in real oak cabinetry (L.E.) - that'd look good in a guitar corner amongst the antiques...

 

Also, once I'm at a good comfort level, I'll be looking for peope to play with in NYC for fun at first, then ramping up into a zone where I can think about taking on a few real gigs again here and there.

 

Thanks in advance! Sorry for the length. (I'm a writer....)

[stamplicker]

Welcome TO the Forum Revlimiterbounce,

 

Kick back and sip a few.. while the rest shuffle in and burdon you with knowledge.. second thought.. here's the bottle or brandy.. you'll need it

[Fumblyfingers]

Welcome to the Forum and congrats on the baby. I myself just had one, a girl at 3 months old...our second. You will find many a father here slinging a guitfiddle.

 

I have never even heard of the amps you mention, however i am going to look them up in order to become more informed.

 

Hope you enjoy yourself here and watch that tach. Just put some black electrical tape on the redline. When the needle disappears, you are pushing it too hard.

[Ol Boy Rivers]

welcome to the forum man, Lots a good folks around here. IF you cant find what your looking for in the forum, Ask the dog cause he might as well know. Anywho, TECH 21 is a pretty cool little bunch of gropies. Ive played...One? They sound kinda like beefed up marshalls, With a real mellow clean side. Im not real sure on which one the Trademark is, Ill look into it and get back to ya!

[Ol Boy Rivers]

Oh, FURTHER MORE. IF your searching for a Headphone amp, Tech21 isnt for you. They are all valve state im pretty sure, and you cant Headphone a tube amp without letting the Money farie have his greasy way with your wallet. My advice? Downsize. The epiphone VJ is supposed to be a Kicker little amp. OR get you some REALLY HIGH GRADE ANALOG solidstate amp. A hybrid even would be a great idea. But, Facts fact. Your in an APARTMENT that you cant crank up much on, And if the Trademark thirty is what i think it is, 30watts of tube power isnt something to use in a small house, Much less an apartment.

[Fumblyfingers]

Very nice sounding little bugger and a decent price. However I am not seeing channel switching on it....I may be wrong as the info is limited.

 

My impression is that you select sounds by dialing them in with the knobs, so how do you kick in a lead tone setting for eg when you are on a clean setting?

 

That would be my concern. It sounds good though, I wouldn't mind one in my studio!

[alittlebatty]

Welcome to the forum~ You'll like it here!

[Ol Boy Rivers]

Hey funmbly, Is it solidstate or a tuber'?

[Fumblyfingers]

How about two of these......one set for clean, and one for your solo tone and A/B pedal them. Perhaps a volume pedal on the distorted one so you can bring in a little crunch. Hey, how about three of these little guys.... a la Eric Johnson...Clean, Crunch and Solo tones. I am sure the missus will approve since you are at least being considerate and not coming home with a half stack and taking up a lot of room...

 

I forget your first post....did you play one yet? You have to do that. A lot of guys rave about the Epiphone Valve Junior as a practice amp. It is low powered though. Since you might want to play live you need at least a 30 watt amp IMO. Even then you will have to mic it if you play loud or at bigger venues.

[Ol Boy Rivers]

Yeah. Still havent played one. Dosent matter, Come here in like...Four days ill have the cash to go and place an order a MF for one. AND yeah i didnt see the Jamm Session part one. UMMERS! Allright. How much cash are you willing to spend guy? Please get back to this one because i may have a really good answer for ya.

[revlimiterbounce]

Originally posted by Ol' Boy Rivers:

Oh, FURTHER MORE. IF your searching for a Headphone amp, Tech21 isnt for you. They are all valve state im pretty sure, and you cant Headphone a tube amp without letting the Money farie have his greasy way with your wallet. My advice? Downsize. The epiphone VJ is supposed to be a Kicker little amp. OR get you some REALLY HIGH GRADE ANALOG solidstate amp. A hybrid even would be a great idea. But, Facts fact. Your in an APARTMENT that you cant crank up much on, And if the Trademark thirty is what i think it is, 30watts of tube power isnt something to use in a small house, Much less an apartment.

Thanks, all! The Trademark 30 actually does have a headphones out, so I'm assuming it is solid state; their own site does not specify that it's tube-powered.

 

Regardless, you're right that I can't play loud in the apartment, but I can bring it into the basement or even the boiler room (which has pretty good acousitcs, if I can stand the constant noise).

 

Hybrid? Toyota branching out?

[Fumblyfingers]

Originally posted by Ol' Boy Rivers:

Hey funmbly, Is it solidstate or a tuber'?

Seems like it is Solid State as no mention of tubes in the specs.

 

If you are really going to gig I would not pick this amp necessarily, Revlimiterbounce.

 

I think it would make a nice recording/practice amp perhaps, I would have to play one and really hear it. The sound clips do sound good though.

 

Why not look at a tried and tested name brand like Vox,Fender, Marshall, Mesa Boogie etc etc?

[Ol Boy Rivers]

What Fumbly said. Sometimes it really is BEST to stick with a proven name. And thanks for the info on what it is, Must of been a different model i played.

[revlimiterbounce]

Originally posted by Fumblyfingers:

Originally posted by Ol' Boy Rivers:

Hey funmbly, Is it solidstate or a tuber'?

Seems like it is Solid State as no mention of tubes in the specs.

 

If you are really going to gig I would not pick this amp necessarily, Revlimiterbounce.

 

I think it would make a nice recording/practice amp perhaps, I would have to play one and really hear it. The sound clips do sound good though.

 

Why not look at a tried and tested name brand like Vox,Fender, Marshall, Mesa Boogie etc etc?

Very good point. I still have a Fender Super in storage if I needed to bring out the big guns. Has a bias-matched set of tubes and gets louder than a Top Fuel dragster when flipped over to nitro but also sounds good doing it (although, all its volume is between 1 and 3; from 3 to 6 makes no difference in volume). So, the job description for this next little guy, whatever it ends up being, is practice at home and rehearsal and as a conduit for 'phones. Plus, the antique lover in me really digs the stained oak version. (Used to have a wood/wicker Mesa Mk III in college - looked fabulous, but I actually never liked its tone.)

 

Again, thanks! Workin' on a cool avatar....

[Mudcat]

Welcome to the Forum.

 

Tech 21 amps are all solid state. They use an all analog signal path that is designed to emulate tube circuitry. Their first product was the Sansamp pedal that emulated a variety tube amp tones. Please note: These are not digital modeling circuits. Everything is analog. They sound great and respond very much like tubes. They can be dialed in to get Fender, Vox, Boogie and Marshall like tones. They are extremely flexible. From what I hear, the company also provides outstanding customer service.

 

These are great sounding amps. One of my favoite guitarists uses them ( Jack Pearson ).

 

BTW - Tech 21 is located right in NYC. Maybe you could go by and visit them in person?

[picker]

The tech 21 amps are all solid state. I had a Trademark 30 for a brief while, and it wasn't quite my cup of tea. But for the uses you are talking about, I bet it would work really well. They are very good sounding amps and very versatile. My problem with the one I had was with the lead boost. Instead of the sort of ramp-up in volume I was used to with tubes, it was an immediate LEAP up to lead level. I didn't like it, but that's really pretty picky, and it might not bother some folks at all.

Other than that, I would probably still have it. I think they are reasonable price-wise, and that hardwood cabinet does look pretty sharp. I'd say go for it.

Oh, and welcome aboard. Stick around and enjoy the vibe.

[revlimiterbounce]

Originally posted by Mudcat:

BTW - Tech 21 is located right in NYC. Maybe you could go by and visit them in person?

Hey, thanks. I can't find their actual address; the phone # is a NJ area code (973), however.

 

Updated avatar.

[Danzilla]

I came close to getting a Trademark 30 the other year. They are nice, solid state amps. The great thing about their headphone outs and line out is that they have an emulater circuit to them so it sounds like the speaker cab, not just a dry signal. So if you were playing at a medium-large gig, you could use the amp, then line out to the PA for extra volume support.

 

Another option to consider is the Vox ADV series. I don't usually like amps with digital effects, but these are really well done. And they have a tube preamp so they don't sound as sterile as you'd expect.

[Mudcat]

Originally posted by revlimiterbounce:

Originally posted by Mudcat:

BTW - Tech 21 is located right in NYC. Maybe you could go by and visit them in person?

Hey, thanks. I can't find their actual address; the phone # is a NJ area code (973), however.

 

Updated avatar.

Perhaps they moved across the river????

 

They used to make a pretty big deal about being based in NYC.

 

Anyway - I still like their products.

[revlimiterbounce]

Originally posted by Danzilla:

I came close to getting a Trademark 30 the other year. They are nice, solid state amps. The great thing about their headphone outs and line out is that they have an emulater circuit to them so it sounds like the speaker cab, not just a dry signal. So if you were playing at a medium-large gig, you could use the amp, then line out to the PA for extra volume support.

 

Another option to consider is the Vox ADV series. I don't usually like amps with digital effects, but these are really well done. And they have a tube preamp so they don't sound as sterile as you'd expect.

Thanks for the suggestion. I think of Brian May and that unique, almost naturally compressed sound of his that's really musical (more so than many equally or more successful guitarists). However, that's just not my sound. Like Steve Cropper's not my sound, though I love his stuff.

 

If I had to describe the sound I'm after it'd be part Knopfler, part Scofield, part Holdsworth (though not as much gain, and nowhere near the speed!) with alternate personality moments of dark/clean Wes and Tal Farlow. I guess "breathy" is the closest I can think of and I like to control the amount of overdrive with the guitar's volume and my fingers (I often play pizzicato w/no pick). I think the Tech 21 might be it; I just need to find a place with one in stock to demo!

 

I also have a bunch of gear that I'm going to sell once I take pictures of everything (Valley Arts Tele; Taylor 514C; a FrankenJazz bass with a '70 body and an early Phil Kubicki P-bass rosewood neck and EMGs; an '86 Ibanez Musician fretless neck-thru multi-lam body bass that's gorgeous).

[Rock Soldier]

The Tech 21 Trademark 30 is a Sans Amp with a power amp and a speaker in a cab. It is all solid state and is an awsome tube amp emulator that is all analog.