Just awoke from a nap and found that both Laney and Blackstar have responded to my questions concerning their amplifiers’ points of origin.
I asked them, “Are your amps made in the UK or Asia? All or some?”
Here are their responses, cut-and-pasted unedited from the emails I received in the past hour.
From Roger Hickman of Laney:
Hi there,
Thank you for your email.
The Laney Nexus & Lionheart range is designed and built in the UK, and so is the VH100R.
All other Laney amps are designed in the UK, and built in China. Our product development team make regular visits to the Far East to ensure that the amps are built to the high specification and quality that Laney demands.
Thanks
Roger Hickman
Laney Technical Support
Email: roger@laney.co.uk
OK. COOL! Some Laney amps are still built in the UK and now we know which ones.
Now, let’s hear from Blackstar.
From Tom Simpson of Blackstar:
Hi Martin,
Thanks for the enquiry.
All our products are designed in the UK and manufactured in Korea.
Kind regards,
Tom
Blackstar Customer Services
Tel: +44 (0)104 652844
Email: tom@blackstaramps.com
Remember, I have nothing against amps made in Asia. Nothing. I loved my Line6 that I gave to Sorange and I would own an Asian Marshall, Orange, Blackstar, Fender or other.
What I AM concerned with is how difficult it is for us to know where the amps and guitars we use are actually produced and how that information is not apparent in stores, online, websites, etc.
I had to ask them directly to know. We shouldn’t have to do that.
Well, there you have it.
Kudos to both Laney and Blackstar for responding.
OK. I’m awake now. Time to make breakfast!
Hope you all have a great day!
Music Notes 
now on to the mystery of the Hendrix rosewood …
Yeah I discovered this the hard way. I just bought a Laney Ironheart IRT60H a couple days ago. Traded in my Marshall JCM2000 DSL 100 for it (the older UK made model). When the sales guy was hooking it all up for me to play through it, I asked him “These are made in the UK, right?” He said “Yep, sure are.” I got it home and played it all through the night. Awesome amp, sounds great. Well, just a little while ago I was looking at the back to set up the effects loop and I see “Designed in the UK” printed on the back panel. My “Iron” heart sank to my stomach. I looked a little closer and on the far right in even smaller print it says “Made in China”. I felt like I was going to throw up. I’ve loved and wanted one of these amps for a long time, but now that I know they are made in China it just isn’t the same to me anymore. I have half a mind to take it back to the store, tell the salesman he’s a dick, and get my old Marshall back (as temperamental as the JCM2000s are, it’s still a badass amp when its not overheating and fluctuating in bias). I know I shouldn’t be this upset because the Ironheart is still an awesome amp, but it’s the principle that bothers me.
I hear ya. The guitars and amps that are made in Asia don’t bother me nearly as much as brick-and-mortar music stores and the online music stores do their damnedest to not let you know the point of origin.