!Yamaha THR AA modeler!

[msteeln]

Surely the best battery and/or modeling amp so far;
http://www.musicradar.com/gear/all/amplification/instrument-amps/guitar-combo-amps/thr10-516844/review
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWjUVQbHLnM&feature=related

[Lev]

I'll be ordering one of these soon. Looks ideal for home practice and recording. Check this thread also: http://www.thefret.net/showthread.php/19927-Yamaha-THR-AMps-anybody

[msteeln]

Dang it! I knew I saw these talked about somewhere like TF... so I did the preemptive 'don't be a fool' search and came up with zip. Thanx for being kind, Lev, I hope to hear your opinion on these. I want one too!

[Lev]

No problem. I'm just holding off on my order until the end of the month. The first batch of these amps had a problem with the power supply causing excessive noise. Yamaha have now issued new power supplies and Europes biggest online retailer Thomann is expecting a new shipment of these amps on March 23rd so I'll put in an order then. I can get them elsewhere but I want to be sure I get one with the new PSU.

[Monkus]

seems a lot of bang for the buck...

[Hampus]

I'll be getting me one today. Unless it sounds like cr#p or is out of stock :D

Sent from my cobra phone

[msteeln]

The first batch of these amps had a problem with the power supply causing excessive noise.Good to know. I'm also leary of jumping on it immediately 'cause you know they'll come out with an even more desireable pax the day after dropping the $, just like the 10 after the 5. Also curious what the battery life is on these?

[Hampus]

I just bought one :notme

[msteeln]

I just bought one :notmeThen, it... wasn't out of stock? ;)
What was the price tag right off the shelf?
Looking forward to your review!

[Hampus]

Almost out of stock. Only one out of three stores had it. I got the last one. It was standing unboxed on the counter. All gone at Yamaha distributor as well. I got it repacked in the box though :)

I've just had it for a few hours and played maybe 15 minutes between comforting the sad baby and feeding the hungry baby so you'll have to hang on for an in depth review :socool

The price off the shelf, for the THR 5 that I got was 1995 SEK ($285). The THR 10 was 2995 ($428), a bit steep I thought.

I first tried the THR 10 in the store with en Epi 335 (closest they had to my Hagstrom Viking with a price tag I dared touch) and the clean sound took me by surprise. Really fat, clear and warm for such a small amp. Controls are easy to navigate around and effects sound good, as do the dirty channels. The buzz from the power supply is there, but can't be heard unless you crank the amp to more than 60-70%. Sound is more than loud enough for home or garage use.

Aside from effects etc, the 5 has a gain and master and a volume knob while the 10 instead of the one volume knob has two. One seemed to be for the built in speakers and one for the USB port. Handy.

I read a review on a forum where one guy complained about the speakers cracking up when cranking the amp on the clean channel. He returned the amp to the store. It is supposed to do that though and it's not the speakers cracking. Just as a real tube amp would do when cranked, the THR cracks up. You can max gain and master and turn the volume knob all the way down so you can barely hear the sound and it's still nicely cracked.

Box came with amp, aux cable for connecting the amp to your mobile or MP3-player, USB-cable, manual, warranty stuff, CD with controller software and Cubase AI and a standard 230VAC - 15VDC laptop type power adaptor.

Unfortunately, that's about as much as I can say right now...

Oh right! One more thing! The girlfriend likes it. She's actually the one who spotted it in the store a few days ago when she got me a new shoulder strap for my b-day (lucky me :happy ). She thought I should buy one as it would look good in the shelf :thumbsup

I had been looking at the VOX VT 30, VT20+ and VT40+, Roland Cube and Fender Mustang but the size of the THR is perfect for my needs (I only play at home and do a little recording on the computer) and the sound turned out to be surprisingly good so... :dude

/Hampus

[msteeln]

Actually, I meant 'out of stock', as opposed to sounding like "cr#p". I didn't think it would stand a chance of sounding bad in person, and am not surprised the few available were disappearing quick. Lucky you!
So, the 10 might be had at times for $350, or less..., heck, that's nearly what I paid for my decent but comparatively less worthy MicroCube RX. I'll be looking for one. Thanx for telling what the cost was for each. Just from looking, do you think the 10 is worth the extra if $ is no object? It seems to have a decent level of incentives to justify the outlay.

[msteeln]

.................................................. .............................................:help

[Hampus]

Actually, I meant 'out of stock', as opposed to sounding like "cr#p". I didn't think it would stand a chance of sounding bad in person, and am not surprised the few available were disappearing quick. Lucky you!
So, the 10 might be had at times for $350, or less..., heck, that's nearly what I paid for my decent but comparatively less worthy MicroCube RX. I'll be looking for one. Thanx for telling what the cost was for each. Just from looking, do you think the 10 is worth the extra if $ is no object? It seems to have a decent level of incentives to justify the outlay.

Well... The 10 can also be used with a base, an acoustic with microphone our for... Ummm... Singing. Out also has 3 eq controls while the 5 has one common tone control. I havn't tried it yet, but I think that you can adjust all there eq controls individually on the 5 if you use the digital interface on the computer. The 10 also supports spring of sounds. Not a big deal to me a the amp is quite simple anyway.

The best feature on the 10, to me, is the separate volume controls for speakers and usb. It would be nice to be able to crank the usb channel whilestill letting the family be able to sleep.

The 5 has the smaller size going for it.

/Hampus

Sent from my cobra phone

[msteeln]

The 10 can also be used with a base. - The 10 also supports spring of sounds.I'm not understanding these 2 points. Base, as in bass guitar, or...?
The further options you mentioned on the 10 really do make it worth the extra $ for me. Thank you for mentioning those. I do wish it all fit in the 5 pax, but it's still a lunchbox. I'm looking forward to what else this co. comes out with as I fund other current guitar priorities.

[Hampus]

Yes, sorry. Bass guitar. Spring of sounds was supposed to be storing of sounds. Auto completion of words on the mobile phone :eek:

Sent from my cobra phone

[msteeln]

Wow, it just gets better!

[Audiofan]

Hi guys! We just published our review of THR10 for those still unconvinced!

http://en.audiofanzine.com/modeling-combo-amplifier/yamaha/thr-series-thr10/editorial/reviews/small-but-powerful.html

[msteeln]

How can this unit be used beyond home/small venue use, as in a large live setting?

[Lev]

I got to try a THR5 out today in a local music store (they had no 10's in stock). It's very difficult to describe the experience of playing through one of these. The sound is of a very high quality but the playing experience is a little odd. Normally with an amp it sounds better once you crank it but with this you have to resist the temptation to crank because it's designed to be played at lower volumes. I found the more I cranked it the less defined the sound was but this varied from model to model and may be better on the THR10 with the extra EQ options. It was really easy to dial in a pleasing tone on all the amp models and I'd imagine recording would be a dream, very little tweaking required here so more time to be creative! The effects were also of a very high quality, there's just one modulation dial and one verb/delay dial but even with the minimal controls it was easy to nail classic chorus/phaser/flanger sounds and the delays and reverb were excellent. So you could use the amp right out of the box without the software editor and be very satisfied with the tones.

It's not got a 12" speaker and it's never going to move the air that a standard 1 x 12" combo would. But that's not the point of this amp, it's a desktop tool and once you get your head around that idea and just enjoy it for what it is I'd imagine it'll deliver endless creative pleasure. So, bottom line I'll still be ordering the THR10, nothing I heard today put me off the THR concept. The sound is smaller than a standard combo but still delivers high quality tones at low/mid volume levels and I've adjusted my expectations accordingly. Definitely a couple of steps ahead of the Fender Mustang 1 that I have at home and more user friendly too.


How can this unit be used beyond home/small venue use, as in a large live setting?
msteeln, you have two options here, the headphone out to a PA or a mic in front of the amp speaker(s). I'm not sure you'd get enough volume at stage levels to monitor yourself if micing it though. Similarly the headphone out would cut off the internal speakers so you'd need to monitor yourself through the PA. All would depend on the size of the venue/stage you're working on I guess.

[Hampus]

I got to try a THR5 out today in a local music store (they had no 10's in stock). It's very difficult to describe the experience of playing through one of these. The sound is of a very high quality but the playing experience is a little odd. Normally with an amp it sounds better once you crank it but with this you have to resist the temptation to crank because it's designed to be played at lower volumes. I found the more I cranked it the less defined the sound was but this varied from model to model and may be better on the THR10 with the extra EQ options. It was really easy to dial in a pleasing tone on all the amp models and I'd imagine recording would be a dream, very little tweaking required here so more time to be creative! The effects were also of a very high quality, there's just one modulation dial and one verb/delay dial but even with the minimal controls it was easy to nail classic chorus/phaser/flanger sounds and the delays and reverb were excellent. So you could use the amp right out of the box without the software editor and be very satisfied with the tones.

It's not got a 12" speaker and it's never going to move the air that a standard 1 x 12" combo would. But that's not the point of this amp, it's a desktop tool and once you get your head around that idea and just enjoy it for what it is I'd imagine it'll deliver endless creative pleasure. So, bottom line I'll still be ordering the THR10, nothing I heard today put me off the THR concept. The sound is smaller than a standard combo but still delivers high quality tones at low/mid volume levels and I've adjusted my expectations accordingly. Definitely a couple of steps ahead of the Fender Mustang 1 that I have at home and more user friendly too.


msteeln, you have two options here, the headphone out to a PA or a mic in front of the amp speaker(s). I'm not sure you'd get enough volume at stage levels to monitor yourself if micing it though. Similarly the headphone out would cut off the internal speakers so you'd need to monitor yourself through the PA. All would depend on the size of the venue/stage you're working on I guess.

Hey!

I've had the THR5 for a few days now (only had the time to use it for around 40 minutes though), and I've tried the 10 in the store. About the sound getting less defined when cranked, it's supposed to do that. Not only is the sound of the original amp model emulated, but also the way the original amp would work. So, if you crank the THR on the clean channel, it will start to crack up just as the original tube amp would. Good or bad, I don't know but I like it. I agree on the speakers not moving the air like a 12" would, but they are a bit smaller :cool:


Also, I read Audiofans review and noticed on the minus side that the EQ doesn't really do much on some amp models. As I understand it, this is also a part of the whole "behave like the original amp" thing.

A problem for me, and this isn't really an amp problem, is that the software that comes with it requires either Windows 7 or Mac OS X 10.6 and I run XP and OS X 10.4 :mad:

[msteeln]

It's good to hear some possible negs addressed as actual positives, and that as I had hoped there's an out option to a PA for larger use and systems at home. So far, so good, no real problems yet. Except, I too need an upgrade of my computer to W7, no biggie. By the time I get this, or a newer/better version, I'll have W7/higher or a new laptop anyway.

[Plymman]

Hi folks, I found this forum while looking for some pickup advice and saw this thread and thought I'd share my experience with the THR. I've done a full review of the THR10 on my blog here:
http://tidywords.wordpress.com/2012/03/08/yamaha-thr10-amplifier-review/
In short, I think this is an amazing piece of kit and one of the most exciting things I've probably ever bought. It really has to be heard to be believed but the sound is immense for it's size. If you're in the Market for a small, portable amp or want a decent recording solution I don't think there's anything that beats it.

[Hampus]

And one not so great thing. I tried the aux input yesterday with an mp3 player. The sound wasn't as great as I expected after having played the guitar through it. It wasn't bad. It was what you'd expect it to be from two speakers of that size. No better an no worse. Funny thing is that the guitar sounds so good. With the guitar it's a warm room-filling sound. Then again, that's what it's made for. I'll have to write a small review with some sound examples.

Sent from my cobra phone

[Plymman]

And one not so great thing. I tried the aux input yesterday with an mp3 player. The sound wasn't as great as I expected after having played the guitar through it. It wasn't bad. It was what you'd expect it to be from two speakers of that size. No better an no worse. Funny thing is that the guitar sounds so good. With the guitar it's a warm room-filling sound. Then again, that's what it's made for. I'll have to write a small review with some sound examples.

Sent from my cobra phone

That surprises me, I have two decent speaker docks and a pure dab radio with aux in and the Yamaha trounces them all for playback from my iPhone. Have you tried the expanded stereo setting? It seems to make quite a difference (hold the tuner button for 5 secs until # appears on the display). If you haven't already, give that a go and see if it makes a difference.

[piebaldpython]

So, 8 weeks since the last post on these......are you THR users still feeling the love for this little amp? Anything that grows on you; in a good or a bad way? I've heard some youtube clips and it sounds great.

[msteeln]

Funny you should ask...
After lot's of research, anxious months of lusting, then buying on ebay and waiting like a dog for it to arrive, I got mine yesterday. The seller screwed me royal, it's not new as stated, and it's defective - noisy as hell, gotta be beyond what the first issues experienced and got fixed. So I ask you guys, is there a cheap fix from YAMAHA available? I went to www.usa.yamaha.com to no avail, how can I contact them? I'll feed this one to the pitbull upstairs and probably get another soon if I can't resolve this, but beyond disappointed I'm a bit pissed.

[Hampus]

If you run it on batteries and it's still noisy, it's bad. Otherwise all you need to change is the power supply.

Skickat från min GT-I9103 via Tapatalk 2

[msteeln]

If you run it on batteries and it's still noisy, it's bad. Otherwise all you need to change is the power supply.
Skickat från min GT-I9103 via Tapatalk 2It's 95% for home use, not much for batteries. It's worthless at this point due to the high amount of noise, not sure the power supply is the fix at this point.
What would you suggest are better and best alternatives for the power supply upgrade? Is that the power cord/tranny box part?
I googled - Skickat från min GT-I9103 via Tapatalk 2, and got odd links, is that something useful for my purposes?

[Hampus]

No that just means it's sent from my gt-i9103 phone.

What I meant was that you should try to run it on batteries to verify that the power supply either is or is not the issue. If it is the issue you need to get one with a ground terminal in the ac cord. An easy check to see of you have the updated powersupply is to check for that ground. Take the cord that goes into your wall out of the power supply and check if it has two or three holes. If it has three, it is the updated and grounded one.

But as I said. Run it on batteries to verify.

Skickat från min GT-I9103 via Tapatalk 2

[msteeln]

Ah, great idea, thanx for being my brain-aide. I'll try that now. I see my power supply is the 3 hole, so I'm more worried that there's an even worse problem. I just got off the phone with ebay re my complaint, the seller (asat-b-bender) is totally burning me, and they may come thru with a refund of my $, that'd be a shocker.

[piebaldpython]

How's the THR10 with OD, distortions and fuzz pedals? Just wondering because so far......this sounds like the greatest thing since sliced bread.....as the adage goes. :dance