You have 2k to 4k monies to spend on an amp...

I agree with Magnatone. Also, the old Ampegs are things of beauty. So sweet and lush.

For something different (even within the Marshall world) a Marshall 1974x would be a nice yet different choice. Those 18 watters are amazing. Great singing overdrive.

How about a Vox AC30?

I lean towards these two as well.

I don’t have an AC30… yet. I do have a VHT Standard 18 which does the 1974 thing very well.

The BB isn’t far down the evolutionary line from the Bassman. It was the Marshalls after the BB that really started to come into the Marshall voice.

That's the one. Ain't it sweet? It's the amp that all others in current quest will be judged by. 

The singer/ guitarist in my previous band used to have a Bassman and it sounded fantastic.

I’ve never spent anything close to £2k on an amp, but I’m now in a position where, if a once in a lifetime amp came up,I might consider it.

I’m currently considering a Redplate, various Suhrs, and of course the ubiquitous Two Rock.

•Mesa Subway D800+ head and two, matching Mesa Subway 2X10 cabs

(for bass)

That budget offers a lot of options. I did the same analysis some time ago and decided I wanted at least one authentic hand wired vintage amp in my collection. I went with a 1966 Fender Pro Reverb in mint condition for about $2400 and have not regretted it. It looks like it just came out of the factory last week. It had a cap switch and the wiring modded to modern ground requirements. Later I did spring for some expensive NOS tubes. It is very similar to a Twin but you can go to 3 to 4 comfortably. Here it is.

One of my preferences to getting an amp in the price range I selected for this post was it should be hand wired. I'm also going to suggest that I would not be looking for something used. Already went that route with the Silvertone I have and although it doesn't look it, it's showing it's age so, I wouldn't want to go down that road. No. This has to be a brand new amp. Now, as far as hand wired, I am disappointed in the amount available in the price range I selected. I am surprised that most amps in this price range are not hand wired. That includes the Magnatone I've been eying. Maybe I'm expecting 'hands on' quality than is being shown.

After all, If these amps are using a PCB for the electrics, it says to me that the 'wiring' is being done by a machine. That's production line stuff and I've already got plenty of amps in that category. Going beyond that and analyzing, somewhat, the build of these expensive amps as a whole, where is the expense in building them? I know they use people in the production of these amps. But, where is the extra cost? do they add one or two more people to the production? I don't see a real difference in the materials or parts they are using to justify the extra cost for these amps. I was doing more research into my quest this morning and focused on Morgan amps. Most of them are in the 2 to 3 grand range and all of them use one 12 inch speaker. Most of them are equipped with Celestion Cream backs. My TRRI came with Cream Backs. Didn't cost anything close to the Morgan's I was looking at and mine has two Cream Backs. Apparently most Morgan's are not hand wired either except for one, their cheapest one for under 1800 bucks!!! Curious.

Bottom line, There's no real difference in a 1600 dollar amp and any amp in the price range I put up. There is nothing special or any that are a stand out that would seem to justify the expense unless having their name on their amps adds a couple of grand to the price. The Magnatone still does have a uniqueness to it and does stand out, to me anyway, above all the ones I've been looking at. Their use of effects and the arrangement are unique as well as the fact that they use their own speakers. If the model I'm looking at was hand wired, that would really make it stand out among any I've looked at to this point. It's on the top of the list even though it is not hand wired and so far there is no number 2.

Here is another kind of twist to an amp being hand wired. It would seem the construction of the circuitry is all done by hand with the use of PCB. Hand wired and hand soldered construction. You have to dive a little deeper into this to get the answer. So, just because it is not advertised as hand wired doesn't mean it's not. At least, in the traditional sense. Still hand wired but, with the use of a PCB. Hand constructed. You have to go beyond the ads in the internet stores to find this info.

Thanks for the links to those two sites, rdr. I looked at all the amps that were offered on their respective sites. They had some very interesting offerings. Prices are very reasonable as well. I was looking at the Allen site and the 'Encore' amp of which they offer it with 2 10 inch speakers. I was a bit confused with the pics they had that showed one with a 10/12 inch combo but, no info for it in the above and no pic for the Encore with the 2 10's. 

I'm still leaning toward the Magnatone , especially after finding out more on how it is constructed. At any rate, I shall carry on. 

Hmmm, I really didn't look at that part but, now that you mention it, it has two speaker outs. A left and a right. I have two speaker cabinets, both with two twelves in them plus, a Fender 412s cab. This could become very interesting. Guess I should consider the diversity as well. 

Oops, Allen amps have suspended orders as Dave prepares to retire and sell the business.

I'm checking out RedPlate as I write this. They are very proud of their hand wired connection. Very nice looking amps. I don't think I've run across an amp using voicing switches to adjust to the pick ups types of the guitar your using. Interesting. That's the Blues Machine amp.

The one thing that seems to be a constant with me is the stereo effect. It's like a bug with me. I change my set up all the time and the thing that is always constant with me is I always have two amps going so that I can go stereo as an option. However, it was not a consideration when I started this thread although I pretty much started off with a stereo Magnatone. Now, it seems, that may have been a big part of the consideration all along. I really just wanted to find my hand wired, spendy amp that all should have as a must.   Having it be stereo isn't even a bonus with me. It's more of a basic or standard requirement that I didn't know was a requirement. It just seems that it has been the one constant in this whole conversation with me.

After all, I've been surrounding my playing area with this potential set up for some time even going to the extent of buying a second Blues Jr to feed my stereo need...feed your stereo need! Sounds like a good logo for an ad!   So, if I'm going to be spending that kind of money for an amp, maybe I should consider the added feature of stereo to the mix. Ok, enough of me blabbing. I'll look into that of which is a stereo amp option and see what falls out of the sky. 

Yep. There's this too:

reverb.com/p/gibson-ga-79-rvt-2x10-stereo-combo

I have listed after several Dr Z amps.