Laney R5

Got it for £395 online at The GAK.

Almost Everything!
The amp is small and portable, its as tall as my practice amp and about twice as long, its really quite small. Despite this, its powerful enough to fill most venues, 300W is loud enough to cover small-medium venues. Anything bigger and youll have a PA anyway. There are 2x10" speakers and a horn that sound bright and punchy. Theres a DI and an effects loop, as well as a speaker and tuner out. Also comes with a built in compressor, limiter and 4-band parametric eq. I use it with the R115 ext cab underneath. The 15" compliments the 10s wonderfully and I get a full, rich sound.

Its heavier than it looks, but I suppose it looks light! Sounds a little dry when by itself, but a touch of effects sorts that right out.

Seems well built and reliable, sturdy wood, corners and jacks. The covering bothers me slightly, its not tolex its some sort of tolex substitute. And the seems of the stuff arent joined to each other neatly. It should hold up, time will tell.

Seems like a mule. Nothing famcy, but powerful and hardworking, will keep going forever. A good, solid workhorse from which to build your rig.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

any amplification transistors, 2 hp Celestion 10-inch format or right back, metal grille with logo LANEY screwed & glued ... handle on top of the amp only, even if it is within 20 pounds, casually ... air vent on top of the head and fan (... a bit noisy) on the back of the head ...

on paper, this amp delivers 300 watts ... it should be noted is that the power rating of the head may be issued with an extension cabinet

- Front:
an active input jack, another passive (high gain / low gain)
XLR output

- Back of the head:
a connection jack extension speaker (8 ohms)
two jack connections loops effects (FX send / return FX)
a jack "Tuner Out"
power plug (removable)
Settings ...
- Gain a knob
- A button to activate the compression
- knob an "enhancer"
- Six pots of EQ: "bass", "para lo-mid" (frequency + level), "hi-para mid" (level fraquency +) and "treble"
- A button to activate the limiter (to avoid the buzz at too high volume)
- A volume knob
- A button to activate the tweeter

the settings are good, it does not crack (and the pots are super nice and more ... well ...), I just j'trouve a damper on the tweeter which, if engaged, limits seriously the power reserve that can spit out two to hp ...

Another downside, the low input jacks are plastic rather poor quality ... with a passive bass, I changed the passive input accordingly, for a model metal much stronger ...

otherwise, that's good, the construction quality is really ... and something that is really good is that with an extension speaker, in concert, you can easily put this amp back, and there only to stoop to make adjustments between pieces ...! not need to turn our backs on public ... ^ ^

UTILIZATION

The sound is fairly typical of transistors Laney ... following that grows on the low or mid frequencies will be obtained or snapping sound very deep, but always right ... here does not bleed one bit! I used it in a spirit rather "punk", with its very slamming and it sounds really deadly ... this amp is really to advise metalheads and punk grass, it's clear ...
here can be a good stepping stone as Trace Elliot amps, for example ...

on the other hand, I've never played it with an active bass, so my advice is incomplete on this specific topic ...

the settings are amazingly simple ... two to three quick tests with the vacuum and go ... amp is a rock, do not forget ...!

SOUNDS

... I've said it all before, I think ... : X

OVERALL OPINION

Used for 3 years, I have set aside for board on a stack ... in fact I had bought in an emergency after Peavey has scorched my head ... I think this amp is ideal for a beginner who wants to have a good supply of power to start a group, and is willing to invest in an expansion cabinet to start playing shows in good conditions ...

the price / quality ratio is excellent, that's why I recommend it to anyone who would like an alternative to Rumble100 combos and other crappy low-end (personal opinion, right ... ^ ^), a view very "R'N'R" (metal, punk, grunge, etc.)

Amp I bought used with an additional cabinet Ashdown MAG 115 deep cabinet, and a jazz bass marcus miller 5c
with this config and the power is there sufficient repetition, the setting are simple to understand, I push the gain the ehance 6 to 3, a low 6. we have a parametric adjustment of the lower knob to a medium more level (astucieux!) same medium to high, I leave them in possession neutral (middle 0) and a knob for treble three, and here is the killer vintage sound powerful and profound!

UTILIZATION

The manual is useless if you have an idea of ​​the sound you want in a short time I got this manip deep bass sound I was looking for, but "drool" in fact precise

SOUNDS

I use a jazz bass marcus miller 5c us active, careful dosing the compressor (6 max) if serious saturation. Ehance 3 has sufficient and all without effect, the result and a big rock, but rather a precise, I will not jazz with this config! if the serious and well restored, I love!

OVERALL OPINION

I by repeating his big brother in 3 body, and I wanted this config to work for me with the same sound that said, I played in on a Marshall VBA 400 lamps, cool before having to change lamps ( 8 already has 80 power tubes € ht not to mention the rest) and a baffle 412 vbc that has not held up for long! laney for me is a good value for money, for the little one makes the rock or metal.