The Steel Guitar Forum

Hey all,
I've been looking around for a good pedal steel amp. I have been using a Peavey Nashville 400 for quite a while now. Back in the day, I used a Fender Twin. Loved that sound, but the twin became too heavy and now I am thinking I would like something even lighter than the Peavey. I've tried my Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, which sounds great for my guitar but not so much for the steel. Milkman has a 85 watt tube and also a Half & Half? Quilter Lab Travis Troy?
What are you guys using out there?
Thanks for any info.
Robert

I use to play a Nashville 400 but have switched to theTravis Toy Quilter 12 amp. Light weight and sounds great. Own two of them. Never had any problems with them.

I have been using two amps with an ABY box.

Amp number one is a Nashville 112. Heavy
Amp Number Two is a Tube hybrid JOYO using a Bugera 12" speaker and cab. 2 pound amp around 15 pound cabinet.

I use both amps in unison and I also switch between the two amps. The JOYO sounds absolutely Great with a 6 band MXR eq. I will probably end up using the JOYO full time and leave the NV at home.

For what I play (Emmons guitars circa 1973), I've never heard anything that compares to the sound these things put out (with the possible exception of their big brothers, the Sessions):

https://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=370167

Not lightweights by any stretch, but a NEO mag on the Black Widow helps (albeit marginally).

I like Evans and Quilter. An older SE150 Evans is hard to beat.

Thanks to all for the input. Gotta say, the forum is a great place to be a part of! Thank you b0b!!
I am checking out all of the suggestions. I like the Quilter 12, but the Evans is interesting too. The Joyo would be killer, I have extra speaker cabinets, but I guess you would have to add reverb??
In search of my next steel amp,
Robert

Maybe take a look at the Fender Tonemaster Twin

Looking into the Fender Tonemaster Twin. That has some great reviews! And half the weight! Thanks John.

I have a half and half. More expensive but really light and sounds great.

I also have the Milkman Half & Half. Pricey, but it's THE ONE.

+1 for the Tonemaster Twin.

Enjoy all the Twin's goodness and lift the whole amp with one finger.

"Great Taste! Less filling!"

I think you've heard my Milkman Half & Half, Rob. It's the best sounding steel amp I've ever played through. The tone control on the reverb circuit is real icing on the cake.

Yes Bob, I thought you had a Milkman, but wasn't sure. I do love your sound! Seems a lot of you guys have one.
More investigating, thanks everyone.

tonemaster replaces my former solid state and tube amps

I've had quite a few amps over the 41 years I've played pedal steel, including Evans and Peavey. Two amps stand out, Fender Twin Reverb and the Quilter Travis Toy 12. The end.

My all-time favorite is the Quilter Steelaire, hands down.

GaryL wrote:My all-time favorite is the Quilter Steelaire, hands down.

I also use a Steelaire. I especially like the leg mounted switch box and the powered effects loop. I have a pedal that simulates a dobro hard wired into mine. One flip pf a switch and voila: instant ped-a-bro.

Mike wrote:I have a pedal that simulates a dobro hard wired into mine. One flip pf a switch and voila: instant ped-a-bro.

Yeah, I've been thinking about that exact thing.. seems like a great idea. I've actually got the schematic and parts to build that leg switch, parts are really cheap and the cable is just a plain old cat-5 ethernet. One of these days I'll put it together I guess...

The pedal I use for the Dobro sound is a Dunlop Q-zone pedal. I thought they had been discontinued, but I was wrong. They are still available.

I love my Telonics. Fantastic tone and all the power you could ever want in a super lightweight package. The built on dobro simulator is the best I’ve used, too.

Telonics

Telonics TCA500 !!

So many good options today.
I would like to add another that is not mentioned.
I bought the new Evans SE200-19 with 10" speaker from Scott Buffington.
He spent lots of time with me dialing in the sound that my ears like. Tons of clean power, no need for added toys plugged in, just a volume pedal, light weight at about 27 pounds. We set it for my pedal steels for both E9th and C6th. I only need to adjust the volume now and it sounds wonderful. Also without touching a thing other than volume my lap steels sound terrific through this amp as well.

Thankfully Scott is terrific at knowing how to set the amp up as I would still probably be fumbling around trying to get "that" sound.

It's been a while since I first made the inquiry of your favorite amps. I want to thank everyone for their input. It was a hard choice, but I finally made it. I am a guitar player as well as a steel player, so my pre-CBS Twin has always been my favorite amp, (2 separate channels). Sometimes I only play steel though, so no need for 2 channels. Long story longer, I purchased a blonde Fender Twin Tone Master, and for my gigs with just pedal steel, I have on order a vanilla Milkman Half & Half. I might have gone over the top, but why not!!!
Thanks again all,
Robert

Dave Hopping wrote:I also have the Milkman Half & Half. Pricey, but it's THE ONE.

This.