If you are looking for the perfect 1 x 12 combo amplifier you may want to read this article to the end. The Blackstar HT Club 40 is easily one of the best mid priced combo amplifiers out on the market today, Due to its sound and versatility it's very hard to find another combo that compares. It was proving difficult to find an amplifier that was affordable, reliable, stage worthy and most importantly sound worthy. The club 40 was a gamble that paid off as I was rewarded with a fantastic amp which looks and sounds awesome. If you're like me and play a number of styles that include rock, metal, country and blues you will certainly be well catered for.
First Looks
Straight out the box the club 40 looks amazing with its boutique looks and rugged design. I noticed looking through Blackstar's HT venue range that all of their amps looked very nice as well. It has 2 channels both with voicing options to add more control on the tone you are sculpting. The club 40's EQ interface looks simple and easy to use topped off with the familiar power and standby switch.
For all you techies out there here are the specifications:
40 Watt Valve2xECC83, 2xEL34 tubes12" Celestion speakerISF Controls (Infinite shape feature)Clean Voice switchOverdrive Voice switch1 x12 SetupDigital reverb with dark and bright switchEffects loopFoot switchable channelsSound
The club 40 has some of the best sounds I have heard from a mid range 1x 12 combo amp, from sparkling clean to nice saturated overdrive. Starting with the clean channel the club 40 has a nice bright tone which can be voiced to sound more boutique when engaging the voicing switch. The clean channel is very simple to use with a separate tone and volume knob to shape and sculpt your perfect clean tone. A single coil guitar would complement the range of tones the HT Club 40 can produce from twang to rich clean, perfect for every guitarist in mind. A great feature from Blackstar is the dark and light reverb options giving you further versatility with your clean tones.
The Blackstar HT club 40 has a fantastic sounding overdrive channel which is simple but very effective. There's no doubt that Blackstar had every guitarist in mind when designing this combo which shows in the overdrive channel. Starting off with the gain at a low level, you can achieve a really nice crunchy tone with the voicing switch in the off position. Adding lots more gain will give you a more classic rock tone which was very fun to play around with. Engaging the voicing switch adds more gain with mid boost complemented with more gain you are then in the metal territory. This can give you a very nice saturated overdriven sound which would please any metal player. The Blackstar HT Club 40 has a unique selling point that sets it apart from any other 1 x 12 combo which I think is a fantastic Feature. I am talking about the ISF feature that can shape your overdrive tone for either a US or a UK sound. This gives you the option to either dial in a more marshall style tone or either a mesa tone depending on your style.
I have only really scratched the surface with this amp as there are many different talking points which I think makes it the perfect 1 x 12 combo amplifier. The club 40 is a perfect choice for the versatile guitarist looking to play gigs with a reliable great sounding amp.
If you would like to know more, visit: Blackstar HT Club 40 review
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