Diezel vs Splawn

T

the toad

New member
first off im a fairly new guitar player (about 5 years) ive only owned 3 amps... a fender frontman, a pignose, and a vox valvetronix... ive played plexis, jcms, mesas, and peaveys... i like marshall and peaveys best for distortion.. and mostly use either the plexi, jcm800, or diezel models (for dirt) on my vox... im definitely outgrowing my current herd and have a few grand to spend on a good a good amp or two... was thinking a 100w head and then a small combo too...

for the head, i think i want a Splawn Quick Rod... i really really love the hotrodded marshall tones and they seem to be very dry and powerful and also have an awesome bluesy clean channel.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_ilB_UT0OY&feature=youtube_gdata_player

but the theres this other amp that i really like... the Diezel VH4... i dont care about 4 channels or all the extra loops or midi or anything i just really love this kind of tone... its really out of my budget and im not really considering buying one but i wanna know how close i can get to this tone with what im looking at or if im on the right track...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwDw_9PgBUM&feature=youtube_gdata_player

my first question is... how close can i get to that sort of tone with a quick rod?

my second question is... what smaller (easily portable) combo amp can get tones like those? i kinda also have my eye on a blackstar ht 40...
 
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Re: Diezel vs Splawn

I owned both the Quick Rod and the VH4. They are apples snd oranges.

I thought Scott Splawn made a combo...
 
Re: Diezel vs Splawn

i was mostly referring to the specific whitesnake cover clip... its played on a vh4... but it doesnt seem like a maxed out setting like death metal or something... so i was wondering if the splawn or the blackstar can get that sort of tone or not... and if not then is there anything in a similar price bracket that will? thanks :)
 
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Re: Diezel vs Splawn

To me it sounds like the Splawn Nitro would be more up your alley, the Quick Rod will probably do what you want, but I think the nitro is more capable of giving you the VH4 tones and the QR tones.
 
Re: Diezel vs Splawn

You could also get the Splawn in a combo, the street rod (40w 1x12 quick rod) or the Nitro SS ( 22w or 50w 1x12).
 
Re: Diezel vs Splawn

I've never played through or even heard a Diesel anything in person, but I do have a Splawn Pro Mod (a Quickrod with a KT88 power section), and have also played through a Super Sport and a Quickrod with the B+ voltage mod.

Hands down, if you like modded Marshall tones without paying too terribly much, Splawn is the way to go.

If I were in your shoes, I'd get a Splawn Competition with an EL34 power section and the B+ mod. That way I could get into poweramp distortion a little sooner than I could with a 100 watt head. Then I would get a Boogie Mark V for my modern scoopy tones & cleans.

And for the combo, a used Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, and some good stompboxes like the Bogner Extasy Red, Bogner Extasy Blue, Amptweaker Tight Metal Pro, Wampler Dual Fusion, ect....

ETA: I wouldn't overlook the EVH 5150 III either. There's some good cleans, classic Marshally, and Modern tones all to be had in those amps.
 
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Re: Diezel vs Splawn

Instead of the Competition, they now offer a 50w Quick Rod, which I would recommend over the 100w due to the quicker onset of power tube breakup. And you'd still have the dedicated clean channel.
 
Re: Diezel vs Splawn

Personally, I think that if you were looking for something to straddle between Splawn and Diezel territory, you should be looking at ENGL.
 
Re: Diezel vs Splawn

The Blackstar can get you what you want. If you have a bit more cash you might look at the Messa Boogie Express 5:50plus model 1x12 combo.

As for a head Maybe look at the Fryette Sig:X model. It has features similar to the Splawn and Diezel.
 
Re: Diezel vs Splawn

i love both tones but realize theyre a fair bit different... i should have titled the thread "can i get this kind of diezel tone out of a quickrod? stompbox? anything costing less than $4200?"

thanks for all the replies... perhaps the most helpful advice was regarding the blackstar being good and another about loving the QR tone lol...

i can afford a new quickrod and still have enuf left over to pick up a used blackstar ht40 off craigslist for about the same as a new mesa mk v or engl powerball ii... the engl i like more than the mesa... im not really into the scooped sound... i like a powerful bottom end but with no mid cut...

heres another vh4 vid from the same dude... all these vids are exactly the kind of music i love to play and whay i want a killer amp.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PC1dZv6-MBM&feature=youtube_gdata_player

looking to cover tones from like hendrix to evh to iron maiden....

my feelings so far are pretty much that the splawn is like a handbuilt racecar... id love it and run it wide open about every weekend!

the diezel is like the batmobile... does awesome tricks but essentially unattainable (unless someone wants to get rid of one in excellent condition for about the cost of a quickrod lol :D)

the blackstar is like a subaru wrx... id use it for damn near everything and does everything pretty well and is more fun than average and you can find them on craigslist cheap and plentiful lol

and the mk v and engls are like a mercedes... theyre nice and work well but cost a ton and dont do anything i desire "super well".
 
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Re: Diezel vs Splawn

I owned a couple of ENGL amps as well and think that if you found the right model for you, you would be very happy.
 
Re: Diezel vs Splawn

engls do seem pretty cool but they cost as much as a diezel even the stripped down versions are about on par with the mesa mk v....

and tbh ive yet to hear a clip on youtube from an engl that doesnt sound scooped out... powerball, savage, invader, special edition, all sound way scoopy in the clips ive seen...

this is the sound i think of for mesa and engl.... and its not my style at all... i hate it lol...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHi5nRoYg4M&feature=youtube_gdata_player
 
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Re: Diezel vs Splawn

the toad said:
all sound way scoopy...

this is the sound i think of for mesa and engl.... and its not my style at all...
Click to expand...

For the record, Mesas are a lot more than just scooped mids.

Splawns are friggin awesome for the hard rock, hot rodded Marshall tone (love my Quick Rod) but the clips online are what you are going to get. For the record, the clean channel, while not at all Fendery is still a cool clean tone.
 
Re: Diezel vs Splawn

i was just thinking about it and part of the problem is i dont know what im talking about... lol... like im not sure how to describe the part i like...

i pretty much just describe it in EQ terms cuz i dont really know what to call stuff...

what is
-saturation?
-gain?
-overdrive?
and
-which best describe the clips i like?

also what is the drop b+ option do on splawn?

also someone suggested the 50w power section for a splawn... the 100w versions have a half power switch... does it remain on the 50w and cut it to 25w?
 
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Re: Diezel vs Splawn

The 50w Splawn still have the half power pentode/triode switch. I personally have never heard an amp that switches to triode for half power that sounds nearly as good as full power pentode mode. (Circuits designed around using a triode power section, such as the Mesa MkII C+, is a different story). I have 2 Marshalls withe the pentode/triode switch, and to me it makes the amp sound muffled and muddy, like there's a blanket over the cab. 100w vs 50w is a matter of taste, some people like the extra headroom from the 100w, I prefer the earlier onset of breakup that the 50w offers, volume wise it's not a huge difference in Dbs, but because of the increased headroom there is a greater perceived amount of volume in a 100w amp.
 
Re: Diezel vs Splawn

allbutromeo said:
The 50w Splawn still have the half power pentode/triode switch. I personally have never heard an amp that switches to triode for half power that sounds nearly as good as full power pentode mode. (Circuits designed around using a triode power section, such as the Mesa MkII C+, is a different story). I have 2 Marshalls withe the pentode/triode switch, and to me it makes the amp sound muffled and muddy, like there's a blanket over the cab. 100w vs 50w is a matter of taste, some people like the extra headroom from the 100w, I prefer the earlier onset of breakup that the 50w offers, volume wise it's not a huge difference in Dbs, but because of the increased headroom there is a greater perceived amount of volume in a 100w amp.
Click to expand...
Big +1 here. There is only a 3dB difference every time you double wattage. And we perceive 10dB as a doubling in volume. There are tricks you can do with speaker quantity and efficiency to get a 50W amp just as loud as a 100W. But the differenece in headroom, as you say, makes the 100W a whole lot more dynamic and seem louder as a result.

I have had the same experience with triode/pentode switching as well.
 
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