High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

[allbutromeo]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

In the end the advice crusty and Bill gave really resonates with me, because they both emphasize the tradeoff between practicality and ideal tone. When you record you have the luxury of picking the perfect amp for the application - but live you need a versatile, reliable all-round amp that will get you close enough to get the job done (unless you are a big touring act with roadies and techs, etc.) For me that practical amp is my Express 5:50 - yet I like it enough that I will probably end up recording with it also, and supplementing with some other amps as needed.

This is why I bought my MkV. I have lits of other amps that I like to record with but the Mesa gets me close to all of those sounds live with one amp. It also sounds great and has tons of flexibility for recording.

[Snoogles]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

so what is it that makes this combination so hard to achieve?

[trevorus]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

so what is it that makes this combination so hard to achieve?

If an amp is built for gain, the internal circuitry's gain structure doesn't often clean up in a very nice way. You'd almost need two preamps in the same amp to really get a super clean and a super gain. This is why a lot of people run two amps so they can get the right clean and the right gain.

[thebowl]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

I think I have what the OP is describing right now, with a Marshall DSL 40C, but I have tube swapped to lower the V1 gain a bit and (most importantly) I have an old Altec Lansing speaker in it. If you can find one of those, or an old JBL, then the possibilities open up quite a bit with Marshalls. Not easy to find either, I realize.

[Gnometown Hero]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

Roland Cube amps are really nice, make you rethink what a solid state amp is capable of tone wise. I have a Cube 40 I scored cheap I a pawnshop, my favorite amp with my Tele

[SirJackdeFuzz]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

Not mega Hi Gain, but the Mesa Electra Dyne has a KILLER clean tone . . . to my ears.

[jeremy]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

go get a badcat cougar 50H from mf. no joke.

[SirJackdeFuzz]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

go get a badcat cougar 50H from mf. no joke.

+ 10000

[xntrick]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

My ultimate clean tone is the Peavey Triple XXX (now 3120), although I can see my XXL coming in second.

I'll second this option as well, the 3120 covers a lot of ground. Another good option is the JSX. I'm sure there are other multi channel amps that are good as well, otherwise you do what Mark Tremonti does, he has 2 different amps just for this very reason.

[the toad]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

Mesa - most models
Engl - most models
Splawn - most models
Blackstar - most models
Bogner - most models
Hughes & Kettner - most models
Diezel - most models
Marshall - DSL series
Fender - Super Sonic series
EVH - 5150 III
Peavey - XXX


Your favorite fender plus a pedal or two....

[jeremy]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

I used to use two amps. A twin for clean and a jcm800 half stack for dirty. It was great but who the heck wants to haul that around? If you have roadies then it's great but otherwise it sucks. Or maybe I'm lazy. Theres lots of good two channel amps out there. The badcat mentioned is cheap and sounds great. The bogner and boogies are great too. Go play a few and see what suits ya

[Boogie Bill]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

Another amp the OP should look into is the Rivera line. I tend to forget about them since I have the Mesas, but they are very good amps.

Bill

[saladin]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

Carvin X-100B (grey fuzzy model).

[Chazzy]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

Always thought dual rectos where the best for that, I personally tried one and they are flubby sounding... I have a marshall 6100 and it has unbelievable cleans, it can do 80s thrash well, modern not so much but with some eq and od you can pull it off, only problem tho is that they are hard to find, also a jvm410h can maybe pull it off as well, i find it has a very hard hitting dirt channel, ive heard it cleans up somewhat well...

[chaz1963]

Re: High gain amp with Vintage cleans?

I recently bought the Carvin Legacy 3 amp. Its got a nicer clean channel than the Lonestar and the creamiest elastic 2 gain channels I've heard. The reverb sounds from inside the note, not despite your playing, so deep and warm. This clean channel doesn't get dirty at any setting, you've got 2 gain channels for doing that and both clean up to a wonderful warm clean if your guitar volume knob has any level of control on roll back. I'm playing through a 2x12 with vintage 30s.

The amp has 100w, 50w and 15w settings and an amazingly flexible warm presence control per channel. LEDs change colour for each channel and beam the word VAI across the ceiling, gimmick (yes) but nicely done.

I play rock and modern country (not the twangy stuff), this amp does both with ease. Don't believe the "dark" reviews, those guys just couldn't believe the depth of tone available in this amp and set it like a Marshall (doh!!). I use a custom strat with a JBJnr and 2 Lil 59s in a Caldwell wiring set-up, and a Carvin CT4 with JB and 59 humbuckers. Both sound like never before, so rich and deep. I also use a BB Pre Amp (on the clean channel only) and a Rockwell Love Squeeze compressor upfront, with delay in the loop.

I can easily switch from Lady Antebellum, to a Steve Vai lead tone, to an Andy Timmons low gain singing tone AND I can do all at bedroom volume even on the 50w setting because the Master Volume control really does let you get the tone you want at the volume you want. The Legacy 1 sounded great in the next postcode and weighed a tonne, the Legacy 3 is fantastic !!