Members honeyiscool Posted August 13, 2012 Members Share Posted August 13, 2012 Yeah, it's the Roland Blues Cube 30 (BC-30). As in the smaller version of my favorite amp, the BC-60. Since I've never gotten to turn that thing above 4, I thought I'd shed 10 pounds for my gigging setup and keep the BC-60 permanently in my bedroom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members billythegoat Posted August 13, 2012 Members Share Posted August 13, 2012 Very cool! HNAD! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Guitar Heel Posted August 13, 2012 Members Share Posted August 13, 2012 I'm looking to get a smaller version of my amp also (Traynor). HNAD! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members honeyiscool Posted August 13, 2012 Author Members Share Posted August 13, 2012 I'm looking to get a smaller version of my amp also (Traynor). HNAD! I also think the fact that it has the same speaker definitely helped sell the amp for me. The features that I do lose, like EQ for individual channels, spring reverb, and a few tone shaping controls, are stuff that I never use live, but I do value such features. So by having the big one in my room and the small one on the road, I have everything covered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jamdogg Posted August 13, 2012 Members Share Posted August 13, 2012 i have the BC-60 310 (3x10) and it kills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cratz2 Posted August 13, 2012 Members Share Posted August 13, 2012 There's a lot worse amps out there for sure! HNAD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Elessar [Sly] Posted August 13, 2012 Members Share Posted August 13, 2012 Coolage! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members honeyiscool Posted August 13, 2012 Author Members Share Posted August 13, 2012 There's a lot worse amps out there for sure! HNAD. I actually prefer the BC amps to any other amps. For some reason they just get it right. I can always get the volume I want without any harshness. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jamdogg Posted August 13, 2012 Members Share Posted August 13, 2012 I think its over 60 lbs. I have not had the chance to compare it to the 112. You can see a Peavy Special 130 1x12 behind it - which is another great amp IMHO - and also pretty heavy. I have found I prefer the sound of 10s over 12s all day long. I couldnt give these amps away on craigslist or TGP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members honeyiscool Posted August 13, 2012 Author Members Share Posted August 13, 2012 I have a Solo Series Peavey Bandit 65, looks just like your Special. I love it for when I want surfy leads, especially with that spring reverb. So it's sort of like I have smaller versions of both your amps. Without a doubt, Bandits and Blues Cubes are some of the greatest solid state amps ever made. I really like the tone of my Transtube Bandit, as well, but the speaker cabinet isn't as good as the Solo Series, IMO (too leaky, if that makes sense). So while the Transtube sounds great in a recording, the Solo sounds better in the room, especially at band volume with a drummer. Oddly, the Transtube Envoy doesn't suffer from that leaky cabinet problem and so I actually prefer my Transtube Envoy to my Transtube Bandit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cratz2 Posted August 13, 2012 Members Share Posted August 13, 2012 I definitely know you like the Cubes. I had a Cube 60 for a while and have a Bass Cube 30 and can dig both of them but the older Cube Series without modifying XLs etc always sounded better to me. I'm fortunate that I get to play pretty loud pretty regularly and with that luxury, the main advantage of the smaller modelers is somewhat lost on me and I'd generally take a 2x10 or 1x12 tube or SS combo over the small guys. Some folks rip on the Cubes, Mustangs, Spiders, Valvetronix etc... I've yet to meet one where I couldn't dial in two or three enjoyable tones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members honeyiscool Posted August 13, 2012 Author Members Share Posted August 13, 2012 I have thought about buying a Cube 60 myself, but the proprietary speaker thing always scared me, especially since people often call it a weak point. The BC series has a really good speaker that doesn't need replacement at all and is actually a strong point, IMO. My very first amp was a Roland Cube 15X that I always thought sounded really, really good. I think the Cubes do deserve their reputation as amazing practice amps. However, I think they can be giggable given enough wattage, but their speakers aren't the most robust in the world, but the clean channel on the 15X was as good as any. I've also had a Micro Cube, and it's all right, but that thing can't compete with the Cube 15X, even. I get to play at a decent volume a fair amount, and for me, where Roland succeeds over other SS manufacturers is how their amps respond to volume. You can get them really cooking, loud, cut through the band, have full bass and mids yet a smooth top end and not be painful in person, and I can do that without having to mess with the EQ too much. Sure, they don't jangle like a Vox, but I can't always get Voxes to sit in the mix, either, so that's always a trade off. And to be perfectly honest, I like the sound of Vox and Fender on a record, but in person, they can be quite painful in the front row. My Roland is never so. That's why I use them almost exclusively for gigs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jamdogg Posted August 13, 2012 Members Share Posted August 13, 2012 i love the "black panel" model on the micro cube. would love to make a pedal out of it just for that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members honeyiscool Posted August 14, 2012 Author Members Share Posted August 14, 2012 With the Micro Cube, the problem has always been, for me, how bad the speaker really is. Even on the 15X, the speaker is a lot more capable, and the JC Clean and the Brit Combo were very believable there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jelloman Posted August 14, 2012 Members Share Posted August 14, 2012 Boring=cool... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cratz2 Posted August 14, 2012 Members Share Posted August 14, 2012 With the Micro Cube, the problem has always been, for me, how bad the speaker really is. Even on the 15X, the speaker is a lot more capable, and the JC Clean and the Brit Combo were very believable there. Ya know I can't just leave things alone... You can cram a better speaker in the Micro Cube and make it sound much bigger and give it more clean headroom. I left my MicroCube stock, but on my little DA5, I managed to get an 8" Weber speaker in there. It is fine with the back on at very quiet volumes, but at mid to high volumes, you have to remove the back because the speaker moves so much air, it sounds like it's going to blow up. Take that little battery access back thing off and it's not too bad at all. I really like having access to a battery-powered amp that has a tone I can enjoy. Haven't played with the current Vox Mini or whatever it's called, nor the battery-powered Mustang or the THRs but I'd definitely want something in that range in my arsenal. The Cube 60, like the Trademark 60, definitely is a gig-capable amp for most any-one that doesn't need huge volume to cover up a monster-loud drummer, but the more basic 60-100 watt solid state amps still win in my opinion, esp if you use pedals for tonal variety. The older Bandits and Specials and my beloved Yamaha G100. The nice things about the Cubes and Tech 21 stuff is how lightweight they are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Squier Fat Telecaster Posted August 15, 2012 Members Share Posted August 15, 2012 I miss my old Bluescube BC30 2 x 10 combo.............should have never sold it.......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Thunnar Posted August 15, 2012 Members Share Posted August 15, 2012 I've got the Street Cube. It fits in your ear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kayd_mon Posted August 15, 2012 Members Share Posted August 15, 2012 Very cool! My buddy's BC30 has very similar rips in the tolex, they're just on the other side (and interestingly enough, he also has the 60). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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