HT Venue MK III | Design Philosophy | Tech Talk | Blackstar

Chief engineer Paul Stevens takes a deep dive into some of the innovations and technical applications used in the design of our brand new HT Venue MK III series of amplifiers.
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[@Stinger_1995]

Sold my old HT40 MK I a couple years ago (my first tube amp), in search of a "high end" amp. Well, guess what: I bought and returned a Marshall JVM and an EVH Stealth 100 because I didn't like them as much as my HT. So, the next logical step was... buying a brand new HT100, which is on its way to me right now. Go Blackstar!

[@markolivares6943]

They really hit it out of the park with the MK3. I own the Mk2 and the MK3 and what a difference the MK3 is. Tighter low end, better highs and mids and the clarity is crazy good. MK2 is an excellent amp on its own should not be ignored.

[@deepzepp4176]

I love the HT series. Will definitly be checking these out.

[@andrewslads]

I really respect these guys . They are innovative and bring practical solutions for the everyday player and gigging musician at affordable prices . Great stuff . So much boutique stuff out there with a ‘catalogue sound ‘ that are essentially becoming redundant in this day and age . Well done blackstar . Loved the HT 40 Mk2 - am sure I’m gonna be thrilled with this !

[@Blackstaramps]

Cheers!!

[@rnegtr]

Very informative and really shows how these amps stand out from the rest.

[@Blackstaramps]

😊

[@omegasunn]

I really feel you've outdone yourselves with this amp. Very impressed! The sound is brilliant and its own character, the look is very cool, modern and sleek. I feel going back to the original logo font is a winner - as it's your identity and you've really embraced it! Modern amp with modern features, little touches like the flick switches are a really nice touch. I'm saying all this about the design, but the 100 with the shell removed looks incredible, especially with those valves glowing !!!

[@Blackstaramps]

Thanks for the kind words!!

[@jessetate9701]

Definitely heading for the 40 watt combo!!! Gus G uses Blackstar,Jared James, Doug of white snake/dio/ dead daisies

[@mandyoberle]

an absolute KILLER Amp btw ... I love my HT VENUE STAGE 100 so much - he delivers me all the sounds, I was always searching for ... ABSOLUTELY GREAT Amp ! Thanks BLACKSTAR ! 😘😘👌👌🤟🤟

[@crolodon8024]

These look legitimately incredible what!

[@Blackstaramps]

Cheers 😎

[@michaelmarchei8539]

Got mine few days ago and it’s a great amp. Very versatile !! Can rig and usb c out sound awesome. 70/80 speaker however blows goats Cmon guys put a proper speaker in them 🙏

[@cflowers69]

I have the Blackstar HT Club 50 MK III 50-watt and I am looking to put 6L6s in. Why are the bias trim pots located inside the amp? - perhaps you guys will develop external bias trim points on MK IV? You have created an amplifier that accepts different types of power tubes, so why would you keep the bias points inside the amp? Taking the entire chassis apart doesn't seem very user-friendly in conjunction with the user-friendly power tube swap option. Run the ball the extra 10 yards for the win on MK IV.

Just ordered the 212 combo ... wish me luck : )

[@FastRedPonyCar]

Can you use the cab sim output without a physical speaker cab connected? Or do I still need a load box? Edit: lol I posted this before finishing the vid. Good to know.

[@TheNorthernChris]

I loved and still use my HT100 mk1. Still going strong after over 10 solid years of gigging. Do these new amps now have external bias points or do they still have to be biased by a technician.

[@jessetate9701]

It seems to be a thing they avoid answering lol like sleepy joe does

[@DuDu42666]

Hello! How can I adjust the bias voltage of my MK2 TH60 212? Do I have to completely turn off both indicator lights? Is it okay if the color of the lights is slightly red? I tried to turn off both lights, but after switching my power to 6W, it turned green again. Even if it turned green again after a while at 60W, what should I do? Please help me, thank you!

[@dividedbytimestudios]

I for one appreciate the new look, mki was nice look, mkii looked like a toy, this is a nice return to the original style

[@morrismaglasang1646]

Sound and features are great BUT your pcb crawling with millions of surface mount components, Yikes, most techs I ask to help me repair my HT Stage 60 turned it dowm and the fact that you do not really release schematics makes your customer after sale support suck. Once you are out of warranty your f**ked and now a replacement pcb for my MKi HT Stage 60 is not even available anymore then it goes to the bin. So this is not really meant to become a classic isn't it? no long term servicesability just a few years use and buy another. Eventually customers will realize this. Better make those changes lots of company went down because they don't listen to customers 🧐

[@Blackstaramps]

As amplifiers tend to have dangerous voltages inside we do not publish circuit diagrams in the public domain, as we don’t want to encourage end-users to open the equipment. As part of our global safety approvals, all Blackstar products are sold as having no self-serviceable parts and therefore for safety reasons we advise you get your amp repaired at an authorised Blackstar service centre. If you are based in the UK, enter your postcode or city into the box within the UK service center section of our website and hit search. This will identify a list of local service centers. If you are based outside of the UK, contact your point of purchase (i.e. dealer, online retailer) who will advise where your local service center is located. Alternatively, please contact the Blackstar distributor for your territory who can advise your local service center. www.blackstaramps.com/uk/distributors. To quickly locate USA service centers you can use the ‘Service’ section of this tool on our distributor (KORG USA) website. www.korgusa.com/BlackstarDealers To reiterate, we encourage you to contact the local dealer or distributor on service issues as this will usually give you the best / quickest resolution. As a small, owner managed company with 35 hard working staff based in the UK we are committed to customer satisfaction and we welcome all feedback at [e-mail]

[@morrismaglasang1646]

@@Blackstaramps Fair warning, but the main issue here is the pcb board is not serviceable. Of course I've tried to contact your local dealer for support (I'm not in the UK) but got declined as they do not cater to out of warranty early models, I've emailed you in the attempt to source replacement because I was desperately looking for a replacement pcb because even highly experienced qualified amp techs have declined repair. It doesn't take a genius what's happening here, just a quick search on youtube with the key words "blackstar issue repair" you can see what reputable techs had to say. Point is, if repair or replacement part is no longer available, then the next logical thing is a new amp, do you think customers will continue buying the same brand? This was your email reply; Hi Morris​ Thank you for your email Yupangco would indeed be your point of contact being your local distributor. Any spare parts that are needed can be requested from the distributor via our spares department. If we have the part in stock, this can then be provided, however as this is a Mk 1 board, it may be possible that there are none available at present. ​I hope this helps Kind Regards, Harley-Joe Arnold Customer Support Blackstar Amplification t: [phone] www.BlackstarAmps.com

[@WyattScott]

hey now!