Have a Mini Rec. Do I need a TA 15?

I posted this question at TGP and got a few responses. I have and love a Mini Rec. I was looking for something Tweed-ish or Marshall-ish and low watt (5 or so). The TA has Tweed tones, Vox tones and a 5 watt mode. Does it offer many tones I can't get now? Several people at TGP said they had or tried both and responded that the Mini could be dialed to almost any tone the TA 15 had. True or false?

I have a guy wanting to sell me a mint TA 15 for $550. He's just far enough away that it's not an easy demo.

Thoughts from guys who have tried both?

Seeing that they are completely different circuits, I personally don't find them to be that similar. They both excel in what they do - but they do it differently. Not just tone, but feel. Is it possible for you to play the TA-15 at a nearby dealer? In the end, that will be the best way to decide what works - for you!

Thanks!

The TA-15 and Mini Recto are completely different animals, and don't really overlap all that much.


Which is why I have both of them... :mrgreen:

Thanks to both of you for your thoughts. No local dealer now (that I know of. I'll look again).

SteveO - What type tones do you use the TA 15 for? My questions about the TA are mainly how "Tweed-ish" and "Vox-ish" it can sound, (I like and use both of those voices with other amps or pedals now) and is there any "Marshall-ish" in there or is the Brit voice mainly Vox style. A great sounding 5 watt tweed and 5 watt Vox voice would be enough reason to buy the amp for me.

Yeah, I wish I could just go play one. Missed the chance to play one before GC lost Mesa. I'll look around to see who else in Cincinnati or Dayton area carries Mesa.

Dreamtheaterrules said:

Thanks to both of you for your thoughts. No local dealer now (that I know of. I'll look again).

SteveO - What type tones do you use the TA 15 for? My questions about the TA are mainly how "Tweed-ish" and "Vox-ish" it can sound, (I like and use both of those voices with other amps or pedals now) and is there any "Marshall-ish" in there or is the Brit voice mainly Vox style. A great sounding 5 watt tweed and 5 watt Vox voice would be enough reason to buy the amp for me.

Yeah, I wish I could just go play one. Missed the chance to play one before GC lost Mesa. I'll look around to see who else in Cincinnati or Dayton area carries Mesa.

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Channel one is very Vox-like in both modes, and on channel two the Hi-1 mode is solidly in the Marshall area.

DTR, funny seeing you here. :lol:

I just picked up a TA15. I think I may have been dismissive of the TA15 and have always regarded the Mini as being able to cop the Fender side of the TA. I still think the Mini is the more versatile of the two, but I am surprised at the lushness of the Tweed mode in the TA15.

I'm still exploring, but so far I like the TA a lot. If I had a real professional use for it I'd be more aggressive about nailing it down. For now it's just fun. I like the feel a lot. However, this is the 3rd TA I've tried and both of the other two had a stiffness that I haven't quite found in this one yet.

I see this is sort of an old thread, did you end up getting a TA?

hey good to see you here!

I'm new here. No, I haven't gotten one, still interested though. Ironically, you are one of the people that mentioned (at the other place) a "stiffness" in the amp that obviously gave me a bit of caution. Wonder why this one feels differently.

My quest is that I've been wanting a lower watt (5 or so) head. I'd "prefer" a Marshall voice, if I got whatever I wanted it would be Plexi-ish with pretty much gain available. But, in looking at the various "serious" 5 or so watters, I find the Z Mini, Bad Cat Mini, new Suhr Coros etc... but I think "why not a used TA15?" It's got a 5 watt mode and more power when needed. It has Vox, Tweed, Marshall and Boogie voices, multiple watt choices... should be really better than any of the 5 watters!

For reference, I have the Mini Rec, and Budda SD18 and Tweaker now. I was thinking maybe the TA15 would give he the lower watt amp I wanted and maybe replace the Tweaker as well.

Yeah, that stiffness thing really turned me off. I'd tried both the 15 and the 30 at my local GC and the amps there sounded great! They made me want them enough that I searched around for deals online. The 15 I bought was used and I got it from a forum member; the 30 was a demo head from Sweetwater. Both of them just didn't seem forgiving enough for my tastes, and had a stiff, cold response. It *may* have been the tubes, maybe the power in my house -- I don't know, but it put me off of both of them. But I was always haunted by what I'd heard when I first tried them.

Anyway, I am glad I persevered because I really like what I am hearing now. If you can try a used one in person before you buy, do it... it would remove the crap-shoot factor.

The TA15 might just do what you are looking for it to do. I don't know if I'm going to sell my Tweaker or not (it's my 3rd one!). I am kind of thinking I'll keep it for the low-gain Brit voice, which is my favorite -- the Tweaker can get very Plexi-ish, I think. So far the TA15's "Marshall" take is more high-gain and doesn't really take flight until the volume is up higher than living-room levels, typically. I'm still exploring that though.

I will say, like the Mini, give this baby a little volume and it really sounds good. Very touch-sensitive -- in a way that the Mini is not quite -- and the edge-of-breakup tones are outstanding, especially in 15 watt mode and approaching rehearsal levels. I am very impressed now.

...DTR, I think I am going to amend my earlier statement -- I don't really see myself keeping the Tweaker at this point. I am not in a hurry to get rid of it, but after some extensive fiddling with the TA15, I've come to the conclusion that with the amps I have in rotation (LSC, LSS, MiniRec and TA15) I just don't see the Tweaker getting a whole lot of use anymore. Even with just the Mini and the TA, the Tweaker seems redundant and basically not quite up to snuff.

djw said:

...I don't really see myself keeping the Tweaker at this point...

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Get rid of the Twkr before it craps out! Check the Egnater forums, their Chinese made amps have transformer issues across the entire line, and many horror stories of poor customer service. My new 40 crapped out twice, the PT went both times. The first time it was after 6 months, it took a month to get Egnater to give me an RA number to send it off to get repaired, which took another month to get it back. The second time, a month after getting it back from warranty repair, Egnater just refused to repair it again, even though it was less than a year old. :x Like a sucker, I then tried a new Rebel 20, and it started having volume drop outs within 24 hours of buying, so I quickly returned it to GC and traded up to the TA-15. Thrilled with the TA! 8)

My Tweaker is 3 years old and hasn't had any issues. Even the stock tubes til a few weeks ago and now it sounds even better.

Anybody else have any thoughts on this "stiff" thing with the TA15? I read that a few times at TGP as well. "Stiff, unforgiving." that kind of remarks. Just wondering if it's tube related, or what.

The ta-15 will give you the more vintage tone that a mini rec was not designed for. If you want the voxish, fender, low watt marshall sound an alternative to the ta-15 that I would recommend would be to find a fender blues jr. used and put a eminence C-rex or wizard speaker in it according to your ear. that would give you a small portable vintage tone factory under $500.