SWR 55oX opinions?

[rmcfee]

I found an SWR 550x head at a pawn shop for $330 and wondered if it is a good deal?
Also a TC Electronics BH500 for the same price. Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks.

 

[rmcfee]

My current amp is a Genz Benz Streamliner 600 for reference purposes. I love that amp.

 

[S-Bigbottom]

Keep using the Streamliner.
Unless you want something else to play around with.

 

[rmcfee]

Ha! I get your message. Actually this is just as a spare - I'm paranoid about having my amp go down and not have a back up. But I figure one those must be a better back up than the other!

 

[rmcfee]

Ok, I was able to A/B the 2 amps through the same cab. The TC was fatter and tubier sounding oddly enough because the SWR has preamp tubes and TC is solid state.
Much louder too, despite the SWR being more powerful on paper.
The SWR was a more sterile sound to me - I'm assuming both amps were working correctly.
The SWR could match the TCs tones but it required more extreme EQ settings.

 

[DWBass]

Honestly, I'm not paying that much for the SWR.

 

[rmcfee]

No, I'm not buying the SWR