batsbrew
jeff beck.
he used a vintage tweed champ to record most all of the guitar parts on his last album...
as far as capturing big sounds from a small amp:
the mic, and correct placement, is key.
the proximity effect that you can get off of a small speaker, is MORE than enough to get you that thump that you like in a great room with a big 4x12 cab pushing air...
the mic does not care how many speakers you have, when close micing.
it hears TONE, not volume.
in terms of gain:
it makes sense, for recording, to use a low watt amp...
half the magic, is from pushing air and getting speaker excursion captured by the mic..
but the other half, is the way the preamp and power amp hit a 'sweet spot' and work together for saturation and clarity at the same time..
could be, you found the perfect amp for that specific setup.
for guys that are playing clubs, it's tricky, because they have to dial their sound in at MANY different volume levels, depending on the demands of the house.
believe me, i know, i did it professionally for 6 years full time....
and at some point, i drew down on everything....
my big 4x12's went away, and i had (2) 1x12's in closed backs, that i would set up in any fashion i needed, whether it was on the floor in front of me like monitors, or behind me pointing out at the club....
and having my mesa boogie made it possible to dial in killer tones at dinner theater volumes or wide open rock clubs.
but at that time, i only had a good ole sm57 to use...
now, i have a Palmer PDI-09, which is so much more consistent, wished i had that unit way back when.
point being, for live work, versus studio recording, you really need two rigs.
at one point, i had a 5 watt tube amp for recording, but pair it up with a larger head and cabinet for live work, and that was the best of both worlds.
Blackstar has some interesting low watt amps out right now, even down to 1 watt, that MIGHT be perfect for recording, and they are cheap.
the best low watt amp i've heard yet, for my tastes, that really sounds perfect for recording, is the Suhr Corso.
but it is expensive ($999)
but no more expensive than the 1 watt marshall special editions....
point is, there are a LOT Of good options out there now...
maybe look at the Mesa TA-15
it can go down to 7 watts, up to 25.
it has a top boost channel that is one of my all time favorite tones.
One of the things I picked on early when I started trying to learn from Jimmy Page is the magic of mic placement. That being said, I don't entirely trust myself and from the clips I've heard, something didn't seem quite right.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhMPdrzMAyw But who knows, maybe I'll be able to get something that's a bit closer to the traditional big cab sound. I don't know because that isn't a type of sound I've worked with except with of amp sims. As for the rest, low wattage is indeed ideal for me.
From the reviews I've read about the similar Randall Diavlo amp, it seems that people agree that this isn't just a metal amp and that it actually sounds pretty sweet for clean and overdriven rock/blues stuff. That was also my impression, from my limited contact with it. As such, it could be the perfect solution for my needs, indeed, as it potentially covers all the type of sounds I'm likely to use.
I've had a little Blackstar HT-1 for a few days - and incidentally, MF has a Stupid Deal the little HT-1R combo, $199, same as the Randall. Considering their respective pedigrees, I would have expected the Blackstar to be a better contender for me. But the Blackstar didn't really do the high gain thing, and mine started making weird noises after a few days, so I brought it back.
If I consider similarly priced Randall's and Blackstar's, I'd have to pick Randall. The Blackstar's ISF knob really wasn't an adequate replacement for EQ. The Randall has a single tone knob and the 3-way switch, and it has an FX loop, so I can patch a Boss EQ in if I need more options. Furthermore, it does the rock thing as good as the Blackstar and does the high gain stuff a whole lot better.
My original intention was to put the money I had towards a Marshall DSL 15, because Marshall is the sound I know how to work with. But with the computer upgrade becoming more urgent every day, the Marshall would have fallen down the list in terms of priority. So if the Randall will fit the bill, for $200, it's a no-brainer.