Blackstar St. James At Sweetwater imp.i114863.net/c/3628890/937020/11319?prodsku=SJEL34Bun&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sweetwater.com%2Fstore%2Fdetail%2FSJEL34Bun--blackstar-st-james-50-watt-tube-head-and-cabinet&intsrc=PUI2_7338 At Zzounds Head - www.zzounds.com/a--3979426/item--BLCSTJ50EL34H Cab - www.zzounds.com/a--3979426/item--BLCSTJ212VOC
Been playing Blackstar amps since they came out with the Artist series… and just played the St James and wasn’t surprised by how good it sounded. People too quickly look over Blackstar.
Ive owned quite a few. The Artist 15 is a keeper. Foolishly I sold the 10 Watt 6L6 Anniversary Studio. That with a Greenback speaker is perfect. Looking at getting the St James EL34 Head & Cab
Sounds great! Can't wait to borrow one and make a capture for my Quad Cortex! Just kidding! That's pretty cool, actually. It soothes my tube apprehensions nicely.
I have had an ht club 40 mkll for 3 years, the push buttons are failing and I want to replace them with mini switches like the ones in this St. James, could someone guide me or does anyone know where I can get the schematic? Thanks a lot
I'm sure it weighs a little more than nothing. I mean what if you had to carry it while trudging across the tundra mile after mile 🤔 Hope you get that reference 😉 Gale
I was able to try it for half a day and it is good but it is not revolutionary either Except for the weight it doesn't bring anything more or less than other amps
I suppose it could be! I haven't tried one, but i believe its still significantly lighter. But the 2 notes software is more in depth that comes with the revv. We are spoiled with options!
Repost this in a year or two and we'll see how many of these amps are still alive with this new transformerless technology. Notice how they're selling these amps on their light weight and not their reliability. At least they're only 14lbs, so they won't too much hassle when you haul them to the dumpster when they take a shit 👍
@@SteveSterlacci If so, fantastic. But we've seen this movie before with electronics technology that hasn't been vetted over time, and lo and behold an unforeseen problem with component failure rears its ugly head after the product has been on the market for a while. Are these amplifiers even serviceable if they do fail? Questions like this become apparent when they sell these strictly on their light weight and not their reliability. Time will tell.
@@DavidEidelberg l just thought that with all of the software cabs and ir's that it might be considered modeling. So you are saying that is after the amp. If you go straight to the real cab from the head can you still use the cab sims? I'm not sure if that would make sense to me. Have you tried the line6 power cabs with the Helix? I agree if I had the Blackstar using the Helix as a pedal board makes the most sense. Take care 🙂
I love the idea and the forward thinking and even the look, but I don't love the tone, it still sounds like a black star, and I don't tlike he black star tone. Reminds me of Crate. Blug amps have a similar idea. I'm hoping other companies will pick up the ball and run with it
Steve! This is not something that I'm really thrilled with. Most of the stuff you present on RU-vid sounds very pro, but this sounds really annoying over RU-vid! Perhaps it sounds really good in the room you're in but it's translating to me. Sorry man!
Interesting! Not everything has to be what you need here, but sounding annoying may mean its not translating on whatever your playback is. What are you listening on?
Switching power supply in amps and hifi is a no no. This is a cost cutting decision. You don't carry an amp in a backpack on a hike. If you can't carry an extra couple of kilos in your amp, you're too weak to pick up a guitar. Rule number one in electronics, heavy equals quality.
@@SteveSterlacci The people who understand that a cost cutting, switching power supply introduces a large amount of interference to the signal chain. But why should science get in the way of a quick sale. LOL..
@@wetcat833 im genuinely curious about it. I dont hear any interference in the signal and i have a pretty noisy house when it comes to amps. Why make it all tube if the intent was to cut cost?
@@SteveSterlacci Tubes and tube connectors are relatively cheap. Amp manufacturers play on the advantages of tubes and hike up the price on the back of all the hype. Don't get me wrong, I love tubes and all my gear is tube driven. What I'm trying to say is that switching power supplies are a dime a dozen while a good quality power supply costs a fortune. The amp might sound good but in reference to what? If you could magically swap out the switching power supply for a quality toroidal unit and then compare, then you will hear what I'm talking about. I think my point is that you should have praised this amp on merits of its ability at its price point and not on it's weight. It's a guitar amp not a mobile phone that you carry all day every day. The extra weight of a proper power supply is not going to break anyone's back. There are people out there that turn to RU-vidrs to learn about their new hobby. I think the way you presented the switching power supply, accidentally, made it sound like it's better and not lighter, cheaper and inferior. This may give the newcomers a misdirection on how electronics work and why some kit is more expensive than others. They make great amps but they don't use switching power on their higher end amps for a reason. if it made no difference, they would use switching power supplies on all their amps and so would the other manufacturers. This is not to say it's a bad amp. It's built to a price which is not a bad thing for some with a limited budget.
