Laney LC15R

One major new development here: it appears the Laney LC15s now come with Celestion speakers as standard. I just received a new LC15R from my local guitar shop, only to open the box, expecting an HH, only to find a Celestion V-10 in there. I looked them up, and they are a fairly new low end Celestion, and I believe they are used in Ashdown Peacemakers. Perhaps laney have been reading reviews on this website, as a whole load of people have changes the HH speaker for Celestions and been very pleased with the result.

I have spent many an hour playing an LC15 in the past. That model as probably from around 97 or so. What i can say is that the sound of this one is much smoother - it doesnt have the harsh top end of the HH speakered one. It also seems to have a bit more bass and warmth.

Basically, I love the sound - this is what you call tone. The cleans and breaking up sounds are some of the best I have ever heard. With low/medium output pickups, it never really gets heavier than about Van Halen level distortion. As everyone else has said this is not a thrash amp. But it rocks beautifully - loads of fat, warm, edgy (in a good way) sustain. You cant really get a bad sound out of this amp. I am trying to find something critical to say about the tone of this thing, but there really isnt anything.

Compared to an older model my cousin has, I think the build quality has gone down a little. I guess that to provide this much tone for #200 then something had to give, especially considering the celestion speaker and the fact that it is UK made. It all has a very hollow and light feel to it. Still, it aint going out of the house.
I've only had it for a day, so wont rate it for reliability yet.

No idea

This amp is ideal for the home. It is valve and only 15 watts so you can turn it upo and get the best of the tone, compared to say a 50 or 100 watt Marshall. It sounds gorgeous, and would be perfect if you had a home studio and wanted a top guitar sound. I dont think there is anything out there that can do what this does.

2002 Made, The amp is reasonably versatile It goes from some of the nicest clean tones i've heard to JUST short of a metallica crunch with the right humbuckers of course into the high-input.. but theirs always pedals for that kind of use.

Single Channel.. pussies use 2, Effects loop, Direct Lineout

Power.. it has enough power for practicing and rehersals but it needs PA'ing up at gigs but thats pretty normal most people PA up half stacks at gigs because it makes sound checks easier etc.

Features:
3x ECC83 Pre Amp tubes
2x EL84 Power amp tubes
Spring Reverb
Fx Loop.

Fender Strat, with 2 DiMarzio PAF Pro humbuckers.

Suits my musical style very well which is a blend of Satch, Vai, Petrucci, Gilbert.

It gets slightly noisy on Gain 10 but I use a Behringer Vamp2 infront of the amp to produce gain, this amps clean channel thought is unbeatable for it's price range believe me!

Rock to Clean, doesnt do metal too well..

The clean channel starts to break up on my humbuckers at about volume 5, with the pre-amp set to 3.. I can get it to volume 10 with pre-amp to 3 with a the middle single coil. depends what kind of sounds you like.

Brutal? it doesnt do brutal too well.. it's more of a Rock/Clean/Blues amp but believe me stick a MetalZone or a POD or Vamp2 infront of it and it does Brutal very clear not a bit muddy.

Yea I'd gig without a backup but i'd take replacement tubes.

No it still works!

PLaying 11 years, no other gear owned at the moment.

I'd replace it if it were stolen with the same amp or maybe a JCM800 half stack not sure if I need that kind of power though.

I compared it to a WIDE selection of low wattage valve amps and it sounded the best.

Single channel 15 watt 1x10 class A combo with reverb & effects loop. HH invader speaker (Laney). Mine is silver anniversary model in silver tolex with telecaster knobs.

Clean sparkly strat tones to fat Les Paul crunch and lead. Great for blues and classic rock. Reverb works well. Its not the best sounding speaker in the world but its tone improves dramaticaly as the volume goes up. I am toying with putting a Jenson speaker in but do not know if it would really be any better in the small cab. This amp is VERY VERY LOUD. It works well with overdrive, fuzz and all of my analogue effects placed in a seperate loop into the front end of the amp using a Boss LS2 to switch between effected and non-effected sounds.

I bought this amp second-hand and the tubes are non original (which can only be a good thing). I play it several times a week at high volume for several hours (I am lucky enough to have a place to practise in a non residential area). I often slam a Big Muff or Marshall Bluesbreaker into the front end. It gets thrown in the boot of my car and gets humped and banged around. I have owned it for approx six months and the only problem I have had is to have had to tighten the amp chassis screws where vibration has loosened them. As I say I play this thing at max volume for hours on end.

Not used but the website is very basic.

I have been playing in excess of 30 years and have a very broad range in musical tastes. This thing has incredible tone for the price. Its as cheap as chips (even new its only #200). It would be better with a 12inch speaker and bigger cab but hey then it would be more expensive and heavier.

This is just a brief review as I only Demo'd this amp today. I'll post a more complete review in a couple of weeks time.

The features of this amp have to be reviewed in the light of what the amp is...a 15W class A, 1x10 inch speaker, single channel amp. Laney has seen fit to add reverb, bright switch, an FX loop and a speaker out option. So overall I think it is quite well specified. The only thing I'd like to see is a "Standby" switch, but I can live without it.

This is where the amp gave me a pleasant surprise! I mean c'mon...just look at this thing, it's a toy right? Wrong! This amp is capable of putting out some serious tone, and loud. I play in a sequenced Duo so I don't have to play over a Drummer or Bassist, so I have no doubt it will cut on stage. I also think it it would be fine for use in a REAL band as long as your Drummer is not too heavy handed. I once played in a band where I could hardly here my old JCM800 stack (yep, 2 QUADS) over a Drummer!!!

Whilst the Laney has it's own definate "sound", it proved to be quite versatile; differing combinations of gain, volume and EQ allowing me to get a variety of tones ranging from clean twang, acoustic-ish strummer to heavy rock drive. It seemed to respond well to changes in dynamics, pick-ups and volume control. I used a Godin SD(beautiful guitar!) which has a fat strat Pick-up configuration. This guitar allowed me to access a wide variety of useful, practical sounds and textures. Easily at home at any gig!

I brought my YAMAHA DG STOMP pedal along and plugged it into the FX return and noticed the HUGE difference the valve output stage made to the 'STOMP. Awesome! It was all too easy to generate creamy feedback and overtones. And all at non ear shattering volumes. The use of something like the 'STOMP clearly expands the tonal capabilities of this amp. For those of you who want the more extreme sounds they too can be found here with a little help from your favourite outboard device.

I couldn't help but notice the difference the 10" speaker made. The mids seemed to be more clearly defined, maybe as a result of less bottom end. This isn't to say that this amp has no low frequencies, it handle muted palm riffing extremely well but your not going to get as low a frequency response out of a 10" as you will with a 12". Obviously if this is a problem you could use the external speaker out!

Obviously it's a bit hard to post a score here as I haven't taken delivery yet. I must admit that this amp has had mixed reviews in this area. This does concern me a bit, however, the DG STOMP, being a modelling pre-amp, has speaker emulators and can be made so sound halfway decent when put direct into a desk. So the plan here is to duplicate my patches- one lot for the Laney and another lot for going direct. Just in case...

The amp seemed well made but I could see where corners had been cut, eg. the spring retaining clip on the valves were fairly flimsy,the control knobs weren't all perfectly aligned and some seemed to have a different feel to them. This is all to be expected, considering the price. Hopefully LANEY haven't sacrificed the quality of the circuitry. Time will tell.

Yep, it's fair to say that I'm impressed with this little amp. To be honest I'll probably feel a bit "underdressed" the first couple of times I walk into a venue with the LC15R in my hands! But I'll be resting secure with the knowledge of the awesome tones it can generate. And how that translates into more enjoyable and creative guitar playing!

These amps are definately worth a look at. And if your honest with yourself about your amplification needs they can make a @#%&load of sense!

Made in 2002. Single channel amp with reverb, effects loop, line out and speaker cab extension. I bought this amp for small gigs, rehearsals and playing at home. This is a loud amp for its size.
A stand-by switch would have been a useful feature.

I use a deluxe Strat with 3 noiselss single coils and a Yamaha Pacifica 112 with stock pickups s-s-h configuration. I would say that it suits the hotter pickups and darker tone of the Pacifica better.I play mainly jangly pop - this amp does that fairly well. I sometime use a 1 x12 cabinet with a Vintage 30 speaker. It adds a lot more depth and volume to the amp. There's some sustain in the amp when cranked but not as much as I like.
In overview this amp needs to be run at moderate volume levels to get the best out of it.
It does get a bit noisy but it's bearable.

Owned the amp for 6 months and it hasn't missed a beat so far. As this is a budget amp the construction/materials are not first class. I try to limit any damage due to heat by running a small fan behind the amp. I think if it did break down then it would be fairly cheap to fix up.

12 months warranty. Have not dealt with customer services.

My main set-up is a Boogis Triaxis and 50/50 power amp. Rocktron Intellifex and few pedals. The Laney comes now where close to this but does it's own thing very well. In summary a very compact, light, tube amp that provides basic but useful features, useable range of nice tones all at a good price.

Its got all you need for a practice amp , but dont let pracitice amp fool you this thing is loud it has two inputs high and low but only one channel so no two in to one , it has a extension speaker output at the back which if you have a 2x12 will shock you as it gets better sounding with the cab ,also has reverb which isnt valve driven but who cares the rest of it is all class A with 3 ecc 83 and two el84's
for a house amp they DONT COME ANY BETTER only headphone socket would have been nice for ease of recording and not to annoy the rest of the street!

using a strat and les paul this thing will work for either . on its own your not going to sound like heavy metal stuff but crunch and overdriven blues crisp and clean it is all there , stick a fuzz box on it for death metal head banging it will do it no problem .I dont like the middle on it not my cup of tea so the highest that goes is 2 but more often its on 0. Through a 2x12 or larger this sounds AWeSOME

its a valve amp and as such they can be problematic i have had a few jobs done on it loose wire new jack inputs etc but we are talking bugger all much money spent here and after all though it could be better for reliability here are a few pointers as to why they seem to die - the valves work loose in the seats a bit to often making it sound like its dead or at half vol if it is one of the power valves , when i had mine the valves were stuck round with some type of silicone
(like bath sealant ??) it worked untill i changed the valves for older ones I quickly found the fault though they do lossen off now and again but who cares a quick hand round the back and give them a little twiddle and off we go again for a couple of wekks no prob

no dealiing with them no real need i bought it used

If your after an amp in the sub #300 mark new this has to be one of the best bar none if your after a used amp in the sub #150 bracket this is the one dont bother with the lc15 no reverb an they are only a little cheaper this little amp sounds nearly as nice, no at the volumes for the home this amp is better than my vintage fender bassman
its true ! Though wind the bassman up to window breaking levels and that is the dogs danglies the laney wouldnt be in that league in a million years but then it dosent cost vintage fender money .
I would have another anyday of the week at this price can you afford not to have one?

It is verry, verry cool little 15 watt amp, but it's very loud. + FX send, return, fantastic reverb, but only 1 channel.

jacson ps2, onyx-les paul, telecaster, stratocaster-fender.
the best sound is with the les paul and with my telecaster.Very very fat tube sound cool for rock, blues and jazz, not for metal, but if you use some overdrive/distortion pedal, it's ok.

300 dollar.it's a good price.

i use it 6mounth and not have any problem with it.good sound, good price.fantastic

Purchased 6 months ago (2002). Nice little 15 watt class A single channel tube amplifier, usual 3-band EQ, Bright switch, gain, volume and spring reverb. Has an effects loop that I never use and an external speaker socket, which I'll never use either, since the amp is really only a "practice amp". It doesn't have a headphone socket, which seems a little daft. I like the way it's simple and unclutterd, as it lets you concentrate on playing rather than twiddling knobs. For it's intended use, it has all the features needed.

My main guitar is a new style USA Deluxe strat, although I've had/have other guitars and amps. It sounds excellent with the strat, nice and 'shimmery' clean sounds. When the gain is turned up a bluesy/rock sound is available, which provides a rich gutsy and gritty sound. In a word, this amp does clean - bluesy rock/rock sounds SUPERBLY. I've had big amps, namely a Marshall JCM900 and this sounds better at bedroom volumes! The reverb is good as well, with a subtle change in severity as you tweak the control. The EQ controls work very well too. The bright switch adds extra shimmer and sparkle to clean sounds. It can get surprisingly loud, but too my ears, any amp too loud sounds a bit cack, so it stays at moderate volume. The amp doesn't sound as clever with humbucker equiped guitars, like an SG or Les Paul, but that might be my bias, as I've played them all and always come back to the strat!

The amp doesn't seem to be expertly made. But one must remember that this amp is a low cost affair and I believe sound is King. However, saying that, it is sturdy and has metal corner brackets, were marshalls have platic ones.

I hear a lot of people saying that speakers and tubes need to be changed etc. I say "if it ain't broke don't fix it". Besides, the amp would lose it's edge if expensive, frankly uneccessary parts where added.

I don't think anyone would take this amp 'on the road', or turn it up full blast for hours on end. It wasn't designed to be used like that, so why should it be built like that?

I haven't had any problems with it yet and couldn't seeing anything going wrong with it in the near future.

Hope to never have to deal with them.

An excellent little amp thats ideal for the home/studio and even small gigs. I tried out other little valve amps; including the Fender offerings and many others and found the Laney to be the best and the least expensive of the lot! Another plus is that its made in England and since I'm English, I should support local Industry! I would buy it again and I would reccomend you do the same - you can't lose!

Made in 2000? All sorts of jacks I don't use. Only 1 Channel. No Headphone jack. Not enough power to gig with. Great for at home recording and playing with another small amp. I'm giving features an 7 cause there is no reverb. I would have of given it a 9 or 10 if the reverb worked. Also, I would have preferred a separate gain channel.

I'm using Les Paul and Strat style guitars and both are great. I really like this amp for low vol. at home type rock, pop, jazz, fusion etc... nice sound. No noise. Great variety with your own added effects (sparkle drive, phaser, wah) Clean is beautiful. My only complaint is the speaker is too small. They should of used a 12" I've tried to gig with it and it was too small against a pa, drums, keyboard and bass. I would of liked to use it for gigs because it is so light but I have to haul my 40 plus lbs. Fender Deluxe to gigs instead.

Don't use it much but it turns on everytime. As I said I don't gig with it.

Haven't called them. 3 year warranty? If it breaks I'll go back to where my wife bought it and scream and fuss. But it seems like a solid product.

I've been playing guitar for many years. I own all types of guitars amps effects. Too many to mention. I like it. Not much power for giging. Needs a good 12" celestion speaker. I wouldn't replace it. It was a gift and a very nice one but I had my eye on a Fender Blues Pro Jr.(12" speaker 2 channel)and my wife bought this cause she is easily swayed by salesmen. I like the low noise and pretty clean sound. I think the reverb is A.W.O.L. and I find this disturbing. Why did they call it LC 15 "R"?

My LC15R was probably build in 1999; its the silver jubilee edition. I'm playing new stuff like P.O.D. and Nickelback as well as Gary Moore blues songs, and everything inbetween. The amp is superb for classic rock/blues sounds, but can't provide you with the nasty depth of state-of-the-art tuned down sounds like P.O.D.. My Hughes&Kettner Tube 20 does this better. It comes with one channel and hosts 4 tubes in the pre amp and two in the power amp. The effect loop is parallel (perfect, I use an A/B switch and run on B-position through an H&K Tubeman II into the Effect Return. Since it's parallel, i got that way the original Laney Preamp sound and the three channels from the Tubeman. Headphone jack is on board, I think, but I'm not sure since I never use one and right now I'm not in the apartment where the amp is operated. hey, this indicates that the cute cube is a living room recording tool for me and you know what, I'm delighted that it adds power amp dirt even at low power postitions when I play it with my Les Paul. Overall, good catch. Only a single channel, but the parallel effect loop offered the option to add the variety you want. Thinking of the price, it's a 9.

Most Guitars are use it with are Les Pauls with 490/498 HB's. I use also an ES335 copy with Seymour Alnico2 HB's and a Danelectro 12 string with SC's.

As said, a good buddy for classic rock sounds. All guitars play well with it, except the Dany. The sound is too thin.

Noise level is low for a tube amp, except when I have the Tubeman in High Gain position, but that's most likely the Tubeman or the A/B switch config..

Sounds: Classic rock crunch and drive, that's it! A little disappointing is the control with the 3 band EQ. I thought that the 3 tubes would do more, buit it seems that the 10" HH-speaker is not sensitive to extreme settings. I'll try a 12" speaker connection soon. We'll see. Bercause of the EQ, only an 8

Perfect, haveit for a year now, no trouble at all!

Don't know. Was a used buy.

Said it all. In summary, I give the baby a 9 for fans of classic rock sounds. I recommend it with traditional Humbuckers.