Monoprice 15W Tube Amp (Laney 12r) Review

Woody_in_MN

Woody_in_MN

Coptic Orthodox Deacon
So instead of picking a Laney, I thought I would try one of the Monoprice 15W Tube Amps. I got this about a month ago. I am going to keep it. Here are thoughts so far.

THE GOOD: As far as I can see this is a clone of the Laney Cub 12r Combo. This includes the <1 Watt input. This feature sold me on the purchase. I had the Cub 12 head - not combo, but as far as I can see this is a clone of the laney. It is a very versatile amp. Besides the 3 common tone controls, it has an additional control marks "Tone". I think this changes the mid's curve. To the left gives a darker Marshall tone - to the right gets things brighter, closer to a Fender tone. Very nice cleans. Does really nice blues, classic rock, even gets to metal. Does a really nice Vox AC15 tone. I love the size of the combo. Light and small enough to grab and go. Very nice response to picking and strumming. Overall quality of very good.

THE BAD: The Celestion 80-70 is hmmm...so so. I swapped in a WGS ET65 the second day I had it. Maybe if I spent more time with the Celestion, I might have warmed up to it. As it is I can't comment much on the stock speaker. I know it is a personal thing, but I don't especially like the spring reverb. Sounds kind of tin-like to my ears. To get to a Marshhall tone, you probably need to put a pedal in the mix. The downside - I have no idea what resale will be like on these.

VERDICT: A keeper. Even with the stock speaker it does some nice cleans, and a very nice Vox tone. Got this for under $250. Monoprice often has sales going - so be patient and watch prices.

PICS:

MONOPRICE1 by Brian Kail, on Flickr

MONOPRICE2 by Brian Kail, on Flickr

MONOPRICE3 by Brian Kail, on Flickr

MONOPRICE4 by Brian Kail, on Flickr

MONOPRICE6 by Brian Kail, on Flickr
 
Thanks for the review, Woody :thu:

Yeah, this one is on my radar. I had tried a minty used Cub12r about a year ago, and thought it sounded great - much better IMO than a Blues Jr. Almost bought it, but got cold feet. May be pulling the trigger on one of these when they get them back in stock.
 
Thanks all. I would have preferred a head - but Monoprice does not do a head for this - just the combo. But its all good.
 
Ok, so happy new amp I had to change the speaker in order to get the sound I want day. :shrug: HNAIHTCTSIOTGTSIWD???????
:l:
 
How well does it take high-gain coming from pedals? If I throw a muff+fuzz stack at it can I get a nice meltdown sound or just a lot of compression?
 
I looks pretty cool, but the fit-and-finish seem a tad sloppy around the curves on the back and top. But what really matters is the sound. Could you make a clip or two?
 
GDSmithTX said:
I looks pretty cool, but the fit-and-finish seem a tad sloppy around the curves on the back and top. But what really matters is the sound. Could you make a clip or two?
Click to expand...

That's stuck out in most pics I've seen of these....the F&F looks rough
 
Probably nothing clone about it. Laney may have just sourced the same OEM chassis for the Cubs to have something in that price range without the R&D costs.
 
I'm currently looking at small tube combos. Is there anything that you can add to this now that you've had the amp for a while?
 
Based on this review I ended up ordering one of these. Monoprice has 15% off today with coupon code GOAL15. The total came to $192.94 shipped.
 
I've had this amp for a while now. I replaced the speaker with a Celestion Rocket 50 to lighten it a bit. It's a great sounding amp. The reverb leaves a bit to be desired but it works well enough. I highly recommend this amp.
 
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