EVH 5150 III LBX thread

[andybobandyy]

I recently bought a new rig after not having one for years. I did some research and tried the evh 5150 III lbx at my local Guitar Center and melted when i heard it. I haven't seen many forums about it and the ones i see people tend to talk trash. I want to see some LBX owners and people comparing them to other Lunchbox amps!

 

[rexbinary]

I absolutely love mine. I had an unlimited budget for a new bedroom rig and went with the LBX and a Mesa cab. I was looking to only play metal, and this fit the bill perfectly. Had I needed a wide range of tone I might have went for the Mark V, but I just couldn't be happier with my purchase.

Even at 3.75w it will get so loud it will blow your head off. I can't even turn it to 1 without the neighbors hearing it. If you crank the resonance control on the back it will thump.

 

[TheShreddinHand]

Those look great guys! @Rexbinary, I especially like how the cab matches man!

I went with the bigger brother (50w) since I need a clean channel, but this amp would have work great as well!

 

[Big Dave]

I got mine two weeks ago and love it. Like others I didnt need much more than a rock/metal sound and this does both well. It has a real quality vibe to it and it is plenty loud, even on 4w mode... so much so I have a Weber Mini Mass on the way since I like how it sounds with the volume around 3 which is LOUD, great for jam rooms but when at home is a bit much.

I have a oversized Seismic "Luke" cab with two v30's and this little amp sounds awesome through it. I think Im going to get one of those Mesa slant 1x12's too, that looks great.

 

[TheWarAgainstTime]

Cool thread! I own the 50w version, but got to try out the LBX through an Orange 4x12 at a Guitar Center a few months ago and was very impressed with it.

My main gripe with lunchbox heads is that they are mostly EL-84 based and can't push much low end or volume without farting out or falling apart, but the resonance control on the LBX really helps with dialing in a good amount of thump that stays controlled. For comparison, I've also tried out an Orange Dark Terror and Tiny Terror, and an Egnater Tweaker 15 and Rebel 20 through either the same Orange 4x12 or similar V30 loaded cabs.

 

[Big Dave]

Got a Mini Mass for mine, and it does what it is supposed to do..cool.

 

[Great Satan]

For those of you having low volume issues, you might want to try a EHX Signal Pad in the loop,
cheaper than an attenuator and possibly a lot less impact on the sound (beyond making it a fair bit quieter).

I know of people using them or similar to great effect on the 50 watt version.
Give it a shot, see how you go.

 

[Big Dave]

For those of you having low volume issues, you might want to try a EHX Signal Pad in the loop,
cheaper than an attenuator and possibly a lot less impact on the sound (beyond making it a fair bit quieter).

I know of people using them or similar to great effect on the 50 watt version.
Give it a shot, see how you go.

I prefer having the power amp work harder and contribute more to the sound so that leaves the pad out for me.

As for impact on sound, I dont need it talking level quiet and thats about how low you have to go to loose much tone with my setup. Any treble that came out that low was easy to dial back in if I wanted to as well.

I have seen many comments over the years about "killing tone" etc in regards to many attenuators and in this case you'd have to be so anal about it that the fingerprints on your guitar would be of equal concern as much as the missing "tone". Maybe its the fact its a 15w amp and a 50w attenuator, I dunno but its a great combo.

 

[Elric]

I prefer having the power amp work harder and contribute more to the sound so that leaves the pad out for me.

LOL. The 5150 is all about preamp gain. The power tubes are delivering depth/thump. Hardly a need for an attenuator like you would want for an old school NVM amp like a plexi, IMHO. Anyway it's a solid suggestion for other users before they drop the coin for an attenuator.

 

[Stuck_in_a_dream]

I'm still awaiting on mine!!! It has been out-of-stock at GC & MF for like a month now. In any case, anyone tried it with the cheapo JetCity 1x12 w/ Eminence speaker?

 

[Great Satan]

LOL. The 5150 is all about preamp gain. The power tubes are delivering depth/thump. Hardly a need for an attenuator like you would want for an old school NVM amp like a plexi, IMHO. Anyway it's a solid suggestion for other users before they drop the coin for an attenuator.

Ironically, lowering the fx loop input level using that method i suggested means you could turn up the master volume louder, getting it to work that little bit harder than it would at the same volumes without anything attentuating the loop.

Sure you're not pushing the power tubes as much with a lowered signal, but like the man says; a 5150 aint about power tube distortion!

 

[Big Dave]

I have done it that way with my 11r and find it is clearer not using the loop and trickling signal to the power amp. To each their own, at $134 bucks I didnt think it was prohibitive at all. I have been getting a "brown" sound for over 30 years and am well aware of what a 5150 is all about.

 

[andybobandyy]

Got a Mini Mass for mine, and it does what it is supposed to do..cool.

What does the Mini Mass do?? Thats a badass set up!

 

[andybobandyy]

Cool thread! I own the 50w version, but got to try out the LBX through an Orange 4x12 at a Guitar Center a few months ago and was very impressed with it.

My main gripe with lunchbox heads is that they are mostly EL-84 based and can't push much low end or volume without farting out or falling apart, but the resonance control on the LBX really helps with dialing in a good amount of thump that stays controlled. For comparison, I've also tried out an Orange Dark Terror and Tiny Terror, and an Egnater Tweaker 15 and Rebel 20 through either the same Orange 4x12 or similar V30 loaded cabs.

I agree with you on the EL-84 part...To be honest i've tried alot of lunchbox heads including the Orange Dark Terror ( which sounded great ) but had the same issue as soon as you throw some volume through it. To my suprise I haven't really experienced that with this thing yet. I haven't really pushed it past 3. My friend has the 50W and we tried recording with them using Senheiser E 609 and I actually liked the tone better than the 50W IMO.

 

[chopeth85]

I have it and i love it except one thing...i find it extremely loud, even at home. I need to put my empress paraeq to tame de volume ( -20db). I have had 50w version previously and i find that way better to handle low volumes.

 

[Big Dave]

What does the Mini Mass do?? Thats a badass set up!

You put it between the amps output and the speaker, the Mass is a speaker motor of some kind that basically absorbs the extra power while reacting to the amp like a speaker would. It lets you put the volume knob on the amp up high enough to get things a bit more compressed, while at a lower volume. You can change (via the big dial) how much it absorbs and at high levels of absorbtion it can take some high end out. I have a bright guitar and the LBX has plenty of high end, so I didnt even need to use the treble boost the Mass has. I also dont use it to play bedroom level either..I just turn a raging storm into a storm so the cops dont come.

You can use the pedal linked above to limit preamp to output power section too, I used the 11R in the same way on a few amps..but I am old and picky and do find a difference in the sound that is minimal, but me being a curmudgeon that I am, got a attenuator so my loop pre/post levels are not so different. To me it seems to sound more natural to attenuate post amp than to trickle low input levels into a raging power amp..either way does work though.

These are 15w loud watts. Last weekend I took it to my friends who has a 6505+ and yes the 6505+ is loud as hell..but this was no slouch and at any volume we where going to do that day I did not get lost at all and we where plenty loud for drums. I would think any louder and I would be in a scenario where a mike was going to go to PA...and that is also where the Mini Mass helps as it has a line out. I dont know if its speaker simulated but even if not a two notes pedal away from direct to PA. Great amp, and mean sounding yet clear too and PLENTY of low end. On a 7 string in Bb it was tight as a frogs ass. Each time I play it I like it more and more. vvv 7 String RG7

 

[Wolfhorsky]

I had bad luck with mine and i returned it, because of many flaws. It was a lemon. Now i have dark terror and i am very happy with it.

 

[rexbinary]

I'm still awaiting on mine!!! It has been out-of-stock at GC & MF for like a month now. In any case, anyone tried it with the cheapo JetCity 1x12 w/ Eminence speaker?

Looks like Sweetwater has them in stock. That's where I bought mine. I actually bought a demo unit to save a few bucks.

EVH 5150 III LBX - 15W Tube Head | Sweetwater.com

 

[Stuck_in_a_dream]

Looks like Sweetwater has them in stock. That's where I bought mine. I actually bought a demo unit to save a few bucks.

EVH 5150 III LBX - 15W Tube Head | Sweetwater.com

GC had a 15% discount a while back, and I used it to get a new LBX. They sent me a floor unit, so I returned it and ordered a replacement from the warehouse, lo & behold, they went out-of-stock next day! They have them back in-stock now & I'll be getting it on Tue. fingers crossed

 

[Spinedriver]

I was at the local guitar shop over the weekend and one of those little bad boys runs for $915.. About 8 years ago, I spent $800 (taxes in) and that was for a Randall T2.