Laney Amps?

[Fang]

What do you guys think of Laney amps? How's their tone compare with say Mesa or Fender or Marshall etc.?

I was thinking of upgrading my Marshall AVT20 to a Laney LC15 or VC15, not really sure what the difference is. They've got a Laney LC15 for $400 at my shop, which I think is a STEAL

[Racerx2k]

I own a 1987 Laney AOR half stack, and love it. JCM800 sounding, only a bit darker at times (depends on how you run it. There are so many ways) Only thing it's missing is a clean channel. Working on building a volume cut pedal to aid in that department.

[DavyH]

I bought my VC15-110 more or less on a whim - went in to buy a far bigger Hughes and Kettner, left with the Lacey. I hasten to add there was nothing at all wrong with the H&K, it was just bigger than I was looking for.

I'm not at all experienced with valve amps, but this is very forgiving. Hi and lo inputs, effects loop, clean, drive, switched brightness and master tone on top of the EQ standards, extension speaker output with two dedicated cabs available from Laney. Very basic indeed.

Clean is VERY clean, not overly treble and particularly good with a Strat (haven't tried a Tele but I think it would be pretty good), drive is not dissimilar to Mesa. I wish I could find the setting again, but for just a moment I got THAT PRS tone out of an SE.

I'm not sure of the LC, but I don't think you can go wrong with the VC.

[RolandRockstar]

I've got a GH100 and cab like Gilbert used to use and the sound is amazing

[Carlo]

I love Laney Amps but mines have been breaking down too often, so there's a reliability problem. I got frustrated with it and moved on to a different amp.

[Jaden]

ive had a lot of amps... they always break down... eventually..
I tried out a Gh100l at the weekend.. very nice... couldnt tell really how much I rated it because I was using a shop RGA121 with a sticky nut and V7/V8 and it was running into ???? 4x12.
having said that im determined to return with my guitar and give it a good bashing...
I liked it quite a bit

[toshiro]

Love my GH50L, still running perfect and it's from one of the first few years, 1995.

[Vim Fuego]

I have a VH100R (two channels, each with switchable drive) and in maybe 10 years the only problem I've had was caused by a dodgy power valve (fuse kept blowing). Very versatile, always use the valve pre-amp distortion/overdrive rather than pedals. Recommend it to anyone!
Jim

[Jeff - CRO]

Great sound for the price!They're like best buy in their range.
Very Marshallesque sound and you can't miss that british vibe,but that's not anything suprising considering that Laney are british made amps,eh!
Excellent sounds,I have LC series combo and that thing really sings,cleans are very transparent and warm sounding while overdrive settings are kinda like marshall meets vox,very organic and british sounding and great in crunch settings but however,it's not really suited for heavier stuff like hard rock or metal where you would probably need to apply some OD pedal or booster in front of it.
But as I said,the foundations and the basic sounds are awesome!
A big downside,as plenty of people before stated is - reliability.
Mine kept blowing fuses all the time and once the output transformer totaly went down,but since I arranged it to be rewired by a pro - NO problems since then!
The bottom line would be:
Expect great sounds from Laney but be preppared for possible reliability problems...

[rastachild]

well i bit the bullet and got a gh50l off **** for a pretty good price ($500). from what i've been able to research, that model is kind of like laney's version of a jcm800, but with more gain. single channel with footswitchable drive with the ability to easily rebias to switch between 6l6s and el34s. i'm anxious to try it out and hope that i don't have the reliability issues others have had.

[Jaden]

further to my post above, I would like to add that I just bought a Laney VC50. it is without a doubt the best amp ive ever owned..
ive got a couple of issues but they are only because the tubes need replacing...
much better then my old marshall lead 100

[losgatosrg350dx]

the pweramp stage in the laneys are like engl

some of the best and most pushing poweramps on the market

a 100w laney power section will drown out a 150w mesa
no joke, laney and engl....two premiere names

and a h&k is one of my fav amps there is, but a hefty pricetag

[Pablo]

Avoid the LC15 like the plague. The build quality isnt't that good. I know a few people who have bought them then they break.

The VC15 may be a better bet.

The differences are it's footswitchable, both sound good though. Be prepared to replace the output transformer at some point if you get the LC15.

Personally I'd try and find a used boogie studio22+, Subway rocket or Marshall DSL201

[mike-o]

The GH100L has one of the best drive tones I've ever heard

[Lefty Robb]

If the band Adagio is anything to go by they sound sick.
http://www.myspace.com/adagioofficial