Blackstar ID:Core 10 V3 10W Guitar Combo Amp Black

Most Liked Positive Review

Tone stands up to Katana

After unboxing and beginning to play, I was impressed enough to play it long and loud enough to give myself a headache. A Katana 100 has been my daily player for a few months but I was looking for something a little easier to move around the house. In the short time I've played it I was pulled in by the Clean Bright and the Super Crunch presets, with an ISF adjustment, nailing RHCP Can't Stop tone. Earlier in my search for a great sounding small amp, I had the Positive Grid Spark for a while, but sold it. For my preference, I could not remove enough bass from it. It is boomy. The Blackstar does not have that problem, about which I was particularly concerned given that it doesn't have a traditional eq ergo bass knob. I also have an Orange Crush 12 and a Fender Mustang LT25. They both suited me for a time, and I still play the Mustang occasionally, but they are both boxy sounding. The Blackstar is not. It's sound is spacious and multidimensional. I had watched many online demos of several blackstar amps and was dubious of the ISF feature, but it is actually quite effective, transitioning tone characteristics through a spectrum from American to British (Fender to Marshall) amp sounds. There is a lot of good-sounding versatility here. Definitely check out some demos. Guitar geek gives a very honest account including some flaws. But, for my simplistic, living room purposes, it fits the bill nicely. At a minimum I believe anyone from a complete newbie to a casual home player would be happy with this amp. 4 stars only because I've had it for such a short time and have not yet used the architect software.