If the Lonestar didn't exist, what would you turn to?

If that terrible day came and all Lonestars became extinct, what amp would you turn to instead?

I'm totally taken with the demos I've heard, andy Timmons especially so really want one but it's a big outlay and I want to make sure I've done my research properly!

Mark Five no doubt.

Electrodyne for sure. If not Mesa, either a Vox Ac30 or a older Fender Super Reverb.

The Lonestar is (in my opinion) a refined and updated 2 channel Mark 1.

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GSVBagpuss said:

If that terrible day came and all Lonestars became extinct, what amp would you turn to instead?

I'm totally taken with the demos I've heard, andy Timmons especially so really want one but it's a big outlay and I want to make sure I've done my research properly!

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Like most of us here I have been chasing tone for years . I have owned many, many amps including boutiques , marshalls and other mesas . I have never come across anything that sounds like the lonestar . When I say that I mean the dirty side of the lonestar . Channel 2 is what does it for me .I know alot of guys here barely crack the gain or drive controls and spend alot of time on channel 1 . But with me I'm almost always on channel 2 and the controls for the gain and drive are always set to at least 3 o'clock if not dimed.IMHO it has the best "SMOOTH" overdrive you can find .I assume by yor comments above about the Andy timmons video that your gonna spend alot of time on channel 2 as well .
. So to answer your Question If there was no lonestar I would just stick with my modded marshall , Which I play a good bit and it sounds great but its apples and oranges with the lonestar .
BTW used amps are CHEAP right now with the economy being what it is . I saw a used MINT 2x12 lonestar classic go for $1000 on fee bay the other day .
Oh one more note, to my ears all mesa amps have a farty bottom end . I had to mod my lonestar to get it to sound like I wanted it to . You can read about the mods here in this forum .

I just went back and listened to the timmons vids again and i can honestly say that IMO my tone is better than his

Mark iv or v, electradyne, stilleto, and prayer.

If the Electra Dyne had been around when I was shopping, I probably would have gotten that. Otherwise, I think I'd have to go deep into the boutique market to find the satisfaction I get with my LSC (which I still prefer to the ED). I just haven't heard anything that does it for me like the Lone Star, for features, performance, and overall badassedness. It really is the perfect amp for me.

Also: I agree with the above enthusiasm about the Drive channel. Even before I'd modded my drive channel up, I was quite happy with it. I bought it for the cleans, but I knew the drive channel was going to be fun too. Little did I know how much I would love it.

Thanks everyone.

In summary, buy a Lonestar!! I'm just about the get a double pay check this month as i mvoe from self employed to employed status, so I think I can justify it

Still high prices over here in the UK are painful, even used. Found 2 1x12s though, having owned the 2x12 and almost pulled a back muscle, that will suit me!!

Hmm?

No Lonestars huh? The subject matter produced an instant anxiety attack...but if I'd never ever heard one....I reckon I would have made do....(certainly not as pleased as I am presently, but I'd get by).

I bought my first Lonestar (never having heard one) simply because I loved channel-1 of a DC-5 I had picked up in a pawn shop. If channel-2 of that amp (the DC-5) had been anything at all like channel-1....I would still own it. The clean channel of the DC-5 DOES NOT sound like the Lonestar...but it is a viable, toneful and useful channel in its' own right.

I've yet to hear an Electra-Dyne LIVE...(the ONLY way I will even consider evaluating an amp's sound)...but I feel that it might 'fill-in-the-gap' were the Lonestar not around.

I use a Rivera R-30 on ocasion and it gets some really good sounds. I did modify it by boosting the gain on the clean channel to get it closer to mid-way between its' stock gain and the 'Ninja-Boost' gain. I boosted the other channel too and added controls for the boost on both channels. It is a great amp which I use in places where I don't expect to be needing the headroom and reserve power of the Lonestar.

I think Rivera offers several good alternatives to the Lonestar, were the Lonestar not available. I might well be using one of them had the Lonestar never been introduced. I probably will end up getting another Rivera anyway... 'just to have it' around 'in case of an emergency'. The most likely emergency; of course being that I just simply suffer from GAS and any excuse to buy a nice piece of equipment should not be ignored!

I deliberately didn't mention any of the 'boutique' amps available out there. I'm not excluding them as any judgement against them; as I'm sure there are quite a few that would please me and fill in the gap up to a point; but I'm trying to limit my choices to amps which would be considered 'general production' and not super expensive.

Regards: Charles

Egnater Renegade looks good to me. It looks like a Lonestar except with more versatility.

I can't vouch for whether or not its clean tone sounds as good as the Lonestar's.

I go with a Dr Z...not sure which though...probably a 38

Now that I've had some time to think about it, if I'd probably turn to a Bassman.

I am very glad this is a hypothetical problem. This is a difficult one, because it would be hard to find a reverb as good as the Lonestar.

If they did a lower wattage version of the Electradyne then probably that would be first choice, although I think the lonestar cleans are superior to the ED. Or may be a Dr Z (Carmen Ghia or 20/40).