Let's get me on a tube amp that fits me!

[Heavymetal2000]

Ok so, currently I have a peavey vk112 50w combo.
It's my first tube amp, i bought it based on budget pricing for an all tube amp and as great as the clean channel is surprisingly the lead channel doesnt impress me much at all.
Which is why I have been using revalver/amplitube lately.

It refuses to pull high gain or modern metal tones without boosting it a ton and when I do stack overdrive in front of it the tone is loose, out of control and erratic.

I've tried combinations of full drive low amp gain, low drive high amp gain, a combination of amp and pedal gain with some drive and tone on top and no matter what it seems that once I get it to a level of gain that can deliver the modern style I'm looking for its erratic. Mids get out of whack, it feels like the bass is HUGE but when I dial it back slowly I cant find a happy medium. It's either thin and more articulate or thick and fuzzy. The JB already has enhanced mids/high so I tried pulling them back but overall the tone quality isn't good to me.

If I lightly drive the lead channel with a bit of gain I can get a nice classic crunch, cleans are actually really nice. But it is failing me miserably for what I really want.

I'm open to suggestions of course but before I start nodding and adding pedals to an amp I don't particularly enjoy I'd be interested in suggestions for lower wattage amps that do high gain much better. I'm open to small heads as well. I'll pick up a 1x10 or 12 cab for it.

I can sell my vk for ~350$ Canadian or trade it against something.

Mostly looking for suggestions on great small combo or head amps under 50w that are more geared for modern American metal tones.

Also, I'm using an old TS7 for a boost right now but I'd like some input on what a great OD/TS pedal would be being budget minded.
Boss BD-2? Super overdrive? 808? Ts9?

[Big Al]

EVH 50w head or combo. Plenty of gain and does well for performing or at home low volume practicing.

[Heavymetal2000]

Would need to be lower budget.
I've looked into the 6505 and 5150 but I haven't found any in the 350 to 400 that I can get for my amp.

How are the Jet city amps for higher gain? With an OD in front.

[DonP]

OP,

Can you describe the tone you are shooting for? i.e. Players or bands?

[Heavymetal2000]

I'm not super fussy on particular band tones, but in this case lamb of God best exemplifies what I'd like.
Fat tight rhythm tone ala Will Adler. Which isn't really super high gain I guess but its delightful af to the ears Haha.
I'm aware skill plays a lot on that at well as sloppy picking and fretting will always diminish tone value.

My biggest beef with the VK is that although I can make it go into high gain territory with tube screamer for boost it gets extremely loose and fuzzy when I do.

I don't need the exact lamb of god tone but I'd like a useable modern metal tone that doesnt bug out like the vk does and I'd rather not spend 2-300 $ on pedals to fix it.

I got a line on a hybrid micro dark terror that seems curious to me. For 160$ it seems like a steal even though it's pretty one dimensional with no clean option.

[EntrailsOfU]

I own a 6505 mini and enjoy it with my 808 in front and 2x12 v30 cab underneath. You should be able to get that LoG style gain without the looseness to the low end. I run high gain on the amp and no gain from the pedal, just as a boost. This setting, to me, gives it a nice boost to the mids without muddying it up. It retains clarity at lower tunings well too.

[Heavymetal2000]

I like the idea of one of these micro amps on a 1x12 if I can source one at a reasonable price.
I haven't seen a 6505 mini used but this micro dark at 160$ might do but I'd like to try one so I may check if the guitar shops in the next city over have one i could plug in to.

Theres also a guy looking to swap an Egnater Tweaker 15w combo that has my interest peaked.
But I'm not sure how it would do for higher gain or if it would be any better then my VK.
Ar least with Orange, there kinda known for that vain sound. Mind you it may not be what I'm looking for exactly considering if I'm not mistaken lamb are still and religiously have played through mesa triple recs early and Mark IVs as well as a Royal Atlantic iirc. This could have changed recently but I cant afford a mesa lol.

[catzodellamarina]

Off the top of my head, I would say a used 20-watt Jet City or used Carvin V3M with a 112 or 212 cab are worth a try. You will still want to throw an OD in front and search for that tight high-gain you are seeking.

[phragle]

Dont know how you are with a soldering iron, but there are a ton of VK mods posted out there too,,,,,

[Heavymetal2000]

Definitely gonna use an OD up front no matter the amp.
I find it tightens things up nicely so even if I got the Orange or a 6505 the OD would be beneficial. A BD2 in front of my buddy's marshal half stack sounds pretty savage but I'm not dropping that kind of cash.

I'll look around and see if anyone is selling or willing to swap on a carvin or something similar. A used 6505 would be nice but I haven't come across one I feel is priced in my range atm.

I've read the entire UG thread on nodding the VK combos and a lot of it seems promising and intriguing but atm I'm not all that sold on modifying mine, maybe still not liking it then trying to sell it or trade it.
Atm my VK is basically new in store condition.

[DonP]

Maybe the VK needs a different speaker? Is the combo sealed or an open back? Laney AOR combos had sealed backs which is something I like about them.

[Heavymetal2000]

Speaker upgrade would most likely cost me between 100$ and 200$ Canadian which I'm again not willing to do for the possibility of not liking it.
It is an open back unit though. I can see the speaker and all the guts and tubes in it.

Back when I first got it and money wasn't so tight I considered getting an eminence speaker and modding it but that's off the table now. I'd like something fairly simple and to the point to play through. I can count the times I've used a clean channel on 1 finger since I picked up my guitar lol. And even if I did want clean to practice I have amp sims and powered speakers on my Mac to mess with.

Strangely enough, I was exclusively using an Engl amp with a 4x12 mesa cab on my amp sim and always thought I'd never really use my real amp again so I was gonna just sell it out right.
I plugged it in last week for the first time in forever and it instantly convinced me that I should look at getting an amp that suits me vs just selling it off completely. The sound from a real amp amp speaker is hard to beat.

[Nightbat]

The trouble with tone on tape is that it's processed through studio magic
Even your amp sims are recordings of miked cabs, not real live cones pushing air into your ears

Ever thought about putting a compressor up front/EQ in the loop?

[Heavymetal2000]

I've thought about the EQ in the loop to try and tame things but I'm curious if it can tighten it up all that much without thinning it out more as well?

I like the idea of having an amp I can play through that requires very little to deliver what I'm looking for.
My tubescreamer, and my noisegate into the amp. Adjust EQ on amp, play guitar, happy.