Yamaha THR AMps anybody?

[Lev]

I've been really impressed with the demo's I've seen of this so far. Unfortunately most have been posted by Yamaha so I can't be confident that the clips I'm hearing the the video haven't had a little post production enhancements. But if it sounds anything like the demo it could be a real winner. I've been on the lookout for a set of desk top monitors for my recording PC setup and this might just do that job AND be a practice amp AND a USB recording interface. And it looks kinda cool (I don't need volume, I got kids! )

[Katastrophe]

That would be pretty cool if it does all those jobs. It's nice to see amph manufacturers respond to the needs of the customer.

[Yamaha Guitar Development]

I work for Yamaha, so I'm not impartial, but I recorded and edited the Soren Andersen 'getting classic sounds' video and can assure you that there is no post production on the audio at all - the sound is just recorded from the headphone out of the THR10 with no EQ or effects added after.

[Lev]

I work for Yamaha, so I'm not impartial, but I recorded and edited the Soren Andersen 'getting classic sounds' video and can assure you that there is no post production on the audio at all - the sound is just recorded from the headphone out of the THR10 with no EQ or effects added after.

Wow, thanks for that! Please forgive my scepticism. I am seriously impressed with what I've seen so I can't help thinking there's a catch. I need to check one out for myself in person, if it sounds like the demo's I'll definitely be ordering one!

[Yamaha Guitar Development]

No problem - I have a lot of experience with THR (unsurprisingly) and it is genuinely a fantastic sounding amp when it's used how it was designed to be used (mine is on my office desk!). I was particularly happy with the sound on this video, but it's genuinely just the direct sound.
I think the catch might be that you have to be able to play like Soren... ;-)

[Katastrophe]

Good on ya for posting, YGD!

For all others who represent companies, this is how you post to a guitar forum without looking like a spammer.

As a solid state/modeling fan, I think the vid sounds pretty darn good. I'd be interested to see a Yamaha get into larger amphs again. I think the company could put out a value priced modeling head w/ 2x12 cab that would be great for home and small/medium gigs. Pair it with that guitar Soren is playing, at a decent price, and one could have a truly versatile rig for not a lot of dough.

[Lev]

No problem - I have a lot of experience with THR (unsurprisingly) and it is genuinely a fantastic sounding amp when it's used how it was designed to be used (mine is on my office desk!). I was particularly happy with the sound on this video, but it's genuinely just the direct sound.
I think the catch might be that you have to be able to play like Soren... ;-)

Thanks for the response, one last question though, I noticed from the reviews that the THR records both a wet and dry signal. Does the THR or included software allow re-amping of that dry signal or would I need a VST amp package to do that separately? BTW since watching this video I've fallen in love with those new Pacifica 611's too.... You guys in Yamaha will not be popular with my wife Great job on these new products!

[msteeln]

I want mine lit up with a strobe light and include a siren so I can start my practices the way Dave and early Megadeth came on stage.

[markb]

No strobes but they do have "tube illumination", an orange glow from inside the amp

[Duffy]

It looks like a decent little portable amp. I have a Vox DA5 that uses "C" cells or the included ac power supply. It is a very cool little amp, up to five watts and also 2.5 and 1 or some other miniscule amount of wattage. At the minimum wattage setting it gets around thirty hours of run time and at that miniscule wattage setting it is still "loud" in "campground at night" terms. This little "Chromie" turned me on to the idea of getting a bigger Chromie. I checked out the VT15 Chromie and wound up buying a NOS VT30 that I really like and play daily in my den. It has an attenuator mounted on the back, leaving room on the top control area for a master volume, and the attenuator really works very well to get a satisfyingly strong overdriven sound at very low volume. The VT30 can be a loud amp when cranked up; suitable for jamming with a reasonable drummer and other players.

The VT15 is a lot smaller and, although it doesn't run on the battery option, it could make a great travel or camping trip amp for places that have available electricity. I almost always go camping at places that have electricity these days, so a VT15 would serve me well as a camping trip/travel type amp. I might even get a NOS one, at a great price, for use on camping trips in specific - and things like travel and so on. The DA5 is cool to take to the park though, and this Yamaha would also be very cool for use in places without electricity.

I would probably buy the VT15 instead of the Yamaha, just because I don't need a battery powered amp. The VT15 has more amp models and tonal controls and effects. It also has an eight inch speaker and more traditional wood-like construction. The tube in the power section is also quite nice and, I think, warms up the sound of all the other digital stuff.

The Yamaha looks cool and it is "just me" and my personal thinking that has me leaning toward the Vox VT15 Chromie as a camping/travel amp. I may need to replace my DA5, but it has stood up to some fairly intense travel and camping use.

Good luck with the Yamaha. It has some great options. It will be interesting to hear how you like it.

[Lev]

Actually the battery option doesn't interest me at all. The attractions for me are are
1: It works as a stereo speaker system for my PC (and pretty HQ from the reviews I've seen)
2: Its a recording interface for my guitar, bass & keyboard
3: I can have stereo playback of my tracks and jam along (either through USB or AUX in)
4: I get to play the guitar with stereo effects
5: The sound quality seems to be very good all around.
6: The interface seems pretty basic - don't have to scroll through and edit a tone of presents.
7: It portable
8: It looks kinda cool and different.

I currently have a Fender Mustang Amp which is great but only acts as a recording interface, it doesn't do playback so monitoring yourself as you play along to track is very difficult. If also needs a lot of tweaking to get a decent sound, especially on the higher gain models. The sound of my ipod through the Aux In is pretty poor and mono. So for me the Yamaha ticks a lot more boxes overall.

[Duffy]

I see where you are at with the Yamaha. The stereo audio aspect actually is very useful for many things, including just listening to your iphone or cd player in stereo. My DA5 is half way decent with the stereo to mono adaptor plug but stereo would be cool. The bass capability is also very cool, not to mention the recording interface. I have a couple separate recording interfaces. I like the idea of being able to play along to jam tracks. That is very cool. I am using a JamMan looper which is fun and useful, but stereo jam tracks sound super fun. The fact that the interface is simple is also interesting.

It looks like it may make a totally awesome multipurpose device. That and a laptop could make an awesome mobile mini unit for having a lot of fun.

[Lev]

That and a laptop could make an awesome mobile mini unit for having a lot of fun.

Kinda like this......

[aeolian]

Kinda like this......

Good demo, and I like his choice of guitar. But then I am biased.

[Eric***]

I don't doubt this is a neat unit, but I'm not sure I see how it's much different than any good little modeling amp with a USB out. For instance, I also have a Fender Mustang, and while I've never used the aux in, doesn't that do like 90% of what this thing does? It seems like the main difference is this can act as your computer speakers, has a bit more immediate adjustment (don't need to dive into the software necessarily), and it's stereo. Is that is, or am I missing more about it?

I'm definitely not trying to trash it, and I imagine it's a nice little unit, but I'm just failing to understand why this $300+ thing would get people all excited when there are $100 amps that do almost the same thing. I hope I haven't been too polarizing -- I'm just looking for someone to clue me in on what I'm missing.

[Eric***]

3: I can have stereo playback of my tracks and jam along (either through USB or AUX in)

I currently have a Fender Mustang Amp which is great but only acts as a recording interface, it doesn't do playback so monitoring yourself as you play along to track is very difficult.

I think this is specifically the part I'm getting hung up on. You can currently do the playback (albeit mono) of your tracks on the mustang with the aux in, right? Is your contention that the aux in audio quality is not high enough?

Also, for playback during monitoring, I'm not sure I get that. Is this assuming you have no speakers for the computer? Because the mustang does have the speaker active even if you are using the USB out IIRC. Is your issue that the mustang does not allow you to monitor the backing track while you're also recording/playing a new part over top of it? If that's the case, how does the THR do it that addresses this need?

Sorry for all of the questions. Just trying to understand...

[markb]

I think the Yamaha's USB is bi-directional allowing it to play your tracks through its own speakers while playing guitar through it. I have a Zoom G3 on the way that will do the same. Report to follow.

I agree that the Yamaha looks very pricy against say, a Mustang Mini or I which do very much the same thing. The Yamaha appears to have a very simple UI more like a Roland Cube than the Mustang's menu driven system. Don't the Mustangs have an auxiliary socket? My VT40+ does.

[Lev]

Is your issue that the mustang does not allow you to monitor the backing track while you're also recording/playing a new part over top of it? If that's the case, how does the THR do it that addresses this need?

That is exactly my issue Eric. Say for example I'm recording late at night with headphones, my bass, drums or whatever prerecorded tracks are on my laptop. Now I want to record a guitar track using the Mustang which is a USB input device but not output. So I need to run the headphone out from my laptop to the Aux in on the Mustang and plug my headphones into the Mustang. Whenever I try to do that I get a tone of unwanted noise and hiss and getting the levels right becomes really difficult. Without headphones I have the tracks running through my laptop speakers and the guitar on the Mustang which is not ideal either because the recorded sound you get on the track usually sounds very different from the sound coming from the Mustang.

The difference with the Yamaha is that it's USB In and Out so you can listen back and monitor your track while your recording through the same device (the THR) and the recorded sound will match exactly what you are hearing. This isn't anything new or earth shattering btw, my ten year old PODxt does the same thing but I found it so frustrating with the Mustang. This video kinda shows what I'm talking about from about 2:30.

You can currently do the playback (albeit mono) of your tracks on the mustang with the aux in, right? Is your contention that the aux in audio quality is not high enough?

From the demo above you can tell that the audio playback through the USB is of pretty high quality on the THR and is stereo. On the THR10 you also get a separate Aux volume control and guitar volume control that allows you to quickly get the guitar sitting exactly where you want in the stereo mix. This may not be a big deal for some folks but for me I really like this feature.

On an Amp vs. Amp basis the Mustang 1 is better value for money without doubt but I'm not thinking of the THR so much as an amp but more as a desktop studio. As it happens I'm in the market for a set of PC speakers which would probably cost me >$100, I also want to replace my PODxt as my recording interface (if I go for a POD HD300 or something that would be $300). On top of that I would love a practice tool that allows me to get a usable tone without scrolling through menus and doing lots of deep editing and from the 20mins I spent in store with the Yamaha THR I think this would work well. Add to this the bass model and the flat model (meaning I could Mic my tube amp and record it through the THR) and I think the THR features really start to stack up.

And I'm not knocking the Mustang 1 here either, it's a great tool and I've git quite a bit of use out of mine for late night practice. But I think we've both mentioned on previous threads that it's lacking a little on the heavier rock tones. Again from my in store test the THR really delivered in this regard. I may be blinded by GAS and so I'm going to resist buying right away (funds are limited at the moment anyway) but I will definitely buy one of these in the not too distant future. I'm genuinely excited about this product and what it could do for me. But I do understand also that if your sole use for this amp is as a practice amp there are other better bang for buck options out there.

[Lev]

I think the Yamaha's USB is bi-directional allowing it to play your tracks through its own speakers while playing guitar through it. I have a Zoom G3 on the way that will do the same. Report to follow.

I agree that the Yamaha looks very pricy against say, a Mustang Mini or I which do very much the same thing. The Yamaha appears to have a very simple UI more like a Roland Cube than the Mustang's menu driven system. Don't the Mustangs have an auxiliary socket? My VT40+ does.

The ZOOM G3 also looks like a cool tool. I'd be interested to hear your opinions on it.