UberMetalDood
New member
My second go at the Machette today, but this time I spent a couple of hours playing it. I used a Fender Strat, Charvel Pro Mod, and EVH Wolfgang. I think that I posted a review some time back after my initial impression so this is kind of a follow up. First thing I noticed is that the same amp was still there, except the tag price was reduced from $1999 to $1899. I guess it's odd looks, exceptional sounds, and versatility still don't cut the mustard for the price they're asking.
First thing I realized about this amp is that it sounded way better after it warmed up for about 30 minutes. I noticed that last time too but forgot to mention it. My Engl Raider is a similar amp in configuration and size so I'll use that to compare. My Raider only takes about 10-15 minutes to warm up to where it starts sounding real good. The Machette sounds a bit cold, but after 30 minutes or so it starts getting real warm and squishy.
Although Fender probably shouldn't try getting into the high-gain market, the do a fair job with the Machette. However, it still sounds like a Fender being overdriven by a pedal. It doesn't have that innate high-gain quality like my Engl Raider.
The clean channel is really, really good. It's the classic Fender clean channel that you would expect. I like it even better than any of the Super-Sonic models, Hotrods, and most other Fenders. It doesn't get real gainy but you can get all the clean grit you need with humbuckers. Compared to my Raider, which also has a really nice clean channel, it's not as dark. You can do the SRV thing a lot easier with the Machette, but the thing is the gain channel retains a lot of the clean channel characteristics so when you're trying to push it to high gain, it sounds like a cleanish amp being pushed with a pedal. Somehow, there is still some clean signal bleeding over into the gain channel.
There are some nudge knobs that you can use to customize the tone, but it still doesn't have a convincing high-gain voicing no matter how you tweak it. However, I didn't try EMG's or high output ceramic pickups to see what it could do. I would imagine that the bright edge and cleanish mix in the gain might make those kinds of pickups sound a bit harsh. Maybe the EQ could cure that, but I don't know.
My Engl Raider is more versatile in my opinion. You can go into high gain mode on the clean channel and get a much larger array of tones between the two channels. The distortion sounds a lot more natural. The only way I can think to describe the high-gain tone of the Machette is when I played a Hiwatt with a couple of distortion pedals. It was a cleanish sounding amp to begin with so no matter how much gain I threw at it, the clean signal still seemed to bleed through. I could never get a 100% metal tone out of it. The Machette reminds me of that.
Aside from metal, it can do a lot of stuff really well. If you consider Satch type solos within the high-gain realm, then the Machette can deliver that in spades. It has a real squishy kind of thing going on so whenever you tilt your pick or dig in more, it sounds like you're squeezing juice out of every note... I love that.
I think my initial impression of the Machette is unchanged. It's a really good amp and congratulations to Fender for coming up with a winner. Unfortunately, it's priced far more expensive than people seem to want to pay for a Fender amp.
If you're going to test drive the Machette, make sure you give it a little while to warm up. I don't know why but it seems like it takes the Machette longer than other amps to get it's juices flowing.
First thing I realized about this amp is that it sounded way better after it warmed up for about 30 minutes. I noticed that last time too but forgot to mention it. My Engl Raider is a similar amp in configuration and size so I'll use that to compare. My Raider only takes about 10-15 minutes to warm up to where it starts sounding real good. The Machette sounds a bit cold, but after 30 minutes or so it starts getting real warm and squishy.
Although Fender probably shouldn't try getting into the high-gain market, the do a fair job with the Machette. However, it still sounds like a Fender being overdriven by a pedal. It doesn't have that innate high-gain quality like my Engl Raider.
The clean channel is really, really good. It's the classic Fender clean channel that you would expect. I like it even better than any of the Super-Sonic models, Hotrods, and most other Fenders. It doesn't get real gainy but you can get all the clean grit you need with humbuckers. Compared to my Raider, which also has a really nice clean channel, it's not as dark. You can do the SRV thing a lot easier with the Machette, but the thing is the gain channel retains a lot of the clean channel characteristics so when you're trying to push it to high gain, it sounds like a cleanish amp being pushed with a pedal. Somehow, there is still some clean signal bleeding over into the gain channel.
There are some nudge knobs that you can use to customize the tone, but it still doesn't have a convincing high-gain voicing no matter how you tweak it. However, I didn't try EMG's or high output ceramic pickups to see what it could do. I would imagine that the bright edge and cleanish mix in the gain might make those kinds of pickups sound a bit harsh. Maybe the EQ could cure that, but I don't know.
My Engl Raider is more versatile in my opinion. You can go into high gain mode on the clean channel and get a much larger array of tones between the two channels. The distortion sounds a lot more natural. The only way I can think to describe the high-gain tone of the Machette is when I played a Hiwatt with a couple of distortion pedals. It was a cleanish sounding amp to begin with so no matter how much gain I threw at it, the clean signal still seemed to bleed through. I could never get a 100% metal tone out of it. The Machette reminds me of that.
Aside from metal, it can do a lot of stuff really well. If you consider Satch type solos within the high-gain realm, then the Machette can deliver that in spades. It has a real squishy kind of thing going on so whenever you tilt your pick or dig in more, it sounds like you're squeezing juice out of every note... I love that.
I think my initial impression of the Machette is unchanged. It's a really good amp and congratulations to Fender for coming up with a winner. Unfortunately, it's priced far more expensive than people seem to want to pay for a Fender amp.
If you're going to test drive the Machette, make sure you give it a little while to warm up. I don't know why but it seems like it takes the Machette longer than other amps to get it's juices flowing.
