New Amp Day: Yamaha THR10C

Ok, so I got it yesterday. Guitar Center was having one of their revolving $50 off $299 or more sales so this thing was $250. Not too bad. And I have to say I was really impressed with Guitar Center. I placed the order on their website with the discount code provided by one of their online chat people–this was Friday. It shipped the same day (free shipping) and arrived at my house on Wednesday. Cool.

Ok, so how’s the amp? Well, it’s great. I can’t really add too much to this great review on Gizmag. A few random notes.

Sound. So far I’m mostly playing on the Deluxe setting, which is modeled after the Fender 65 Deluxe Reverb. It sounds awesome. So clean and precise. It also sounds awesome at low volume, which is what I wanted because I have tinnitus and neighbors and kids and I like to play at night. But I like all the models and have only just begun to play with them a bit. And I haven’t even cracked the owner’s manual yet. I also tried it with my Ibanez Tube Screamer, which seemed to go well.

Size. The size is great. I like to put it on the coffee table when I play and then put it back on the bookshelf when I’m done. The cord is kind of annoying so I may get some rechargable batteries, though it takes 8 AAs which seems like a lot.

Color. I decided I wanted the THR10C for the clean tones but I was kind of bummed about not getting the cool cream color of the orginal THR5 and THR10. But while the THR10C color looked weird and industrial online, it looks great in person.

Yamaha THR10C

Ok I was pretty set on getting a Fender Super Champ X2 this summer but then I heard about these things. There is a whole series of them–Yamaha started with the small THR5 and bigger THR10 last year, then added the THR10X for people who want more gain and distortion and the THR10C for people who want clean tones. I like it pretty clean so I think this one is for me. I actually like the size and color (and price) of the THR5 better, but the 10s have a separate volume control for the AUX in for when you want to use it to play music, so that it probably worth the extra $100.

Anyway, I play in my living room a lot and think this would be better than having a another bigger Fender amp for everyone to trip over. Plus I can use it to play music in the kitchen while cooking, bring it camping, etc.