If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

Actually, clips I've heard of you, I thought the tone was pretty **** good. From the sound of it - you are playing those clips at a lower volume, and sometimes on a tube amp, turning it up can be that last little step to amazing tone.

I do think that those new Randalls look really good.. and hella versatile.

Bogner Extacy would definitely be something to look into though.

Hmm.. you seem to want a combo. For the music you play, I would suggest head and cab - believe me, I always thought a combo could do it for me, but it simply doesn't have the HUGE sound that I find with 'head turning tone'. That usually comes with a nice big 4 speaker cab.
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

lex666 said:
BTW - you don't seriously think that becuz you can shred is gonna earn you any respect around here, do ya?

I've never met a guitar player who didin't think he could improve on his skill. Only a fool would think he already knows it all.
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i certainly don't think i know it all, i'm just tired of going back to the whole "maybe it's technique thing." i simply emphasized the point that it's not a guitar playing 101 problem. it's a tone and amp 101 problem that is frustrating as hell.

shred is not what i'm about because my whole music fascination is about instrumental rock/metal guitar. if that includes shred, which i also love, then great.
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

barbarianbrute said:
alright you guys are right, but i'm FRUSTRATED with my tone. i'm FRUSTRATED with my recording. i can't seem to figure out how to get great tone. maybe it is the low volume, but several professional players have told me it's not hard to get great tone at low volumes. **** it i'm pissed. not at you guys but my inability to master my amp.

screw it, i'm going to take a break from playing for a couple of days. my ears are toast right now. it's like i got great equipment and i can't get it to sound great.
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Give yourself a break! It's a brand new amp! And a complicated / versatile one at that - there's going to be a learning curve.

You're right to take a break from it for a few days. Come back with fresh ears and a clear head and you'll probably get right where you want to be much sooner than you even expect.
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

Personally, I'd look for a used Splawn QuickRod with the newer clean channel.
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

Don't feel bad about your playing, I'd love to be able to play at the speed that you get.
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

Rainmaker said:
Don't feel bad about your playing, I'd love to be able to play at the speed that you get.
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thanks but i'm starting to realize that it doesn't matter how good you are at playing because there are so many things outside of that you have to learn. it's different from playing little parties and with friends than actually trying to make money or record music.

i wish i spent a lot more time learning stuff like this. being an all-around musician is going to take a long time to master. for now i'd be happy with just being able to record a decent song with good audio and tone. like i said, i'm very frustrated at this point. i'm glad there are a lot of knowledgeable people around this forum because i don't know crap.
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

I believe your tone also improves if you listen to older stuff. I am a metal head but i think for the few exceptions new bands suck in tone. Like in your post about pedals you've originally thought that OD pedals are not enough for metal i.e. not enough gain.
I've been listening to a lot of old Scorpions with Uli Roth, Blackmores Rainbow, first two YJM albums, Savatage, 70s Sabbath LIVE stuff big difference than what they recorded back than, Dokken's beast from the East, Lynch Mob Wicked sensation. Yeah those guys were the high gainers of their time but its a lot less gain and alot more real musical content than guys today do with a lot more gain. Take Rammstein, NightWish, Gamma Ray, Nightwish, and just listen to the guitars - not as much gain as Children of Boddom and stuff like that but a lot more esthetic in composition and tone, but that's just me ....
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

barbarianbrute said:
i wasn't planning on getting rid of my new marshall, i'm just looking to buy another amp.
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I have 5 amps, a Marshal JCM800, Carvin V3, Fender M80, Roland Micrutube and Fender mini twin (ok those last 2 are toys but I make them sound great). I can take any of these amps, find their sweet spot and get killer tone. I got the Carvin because the Marshall is 20 years old and noisy. It turns out the Carvin is alot better at getting great tone at lower volumes than the Marshall is

From what I've heard, the new Marshall still have to be cranked to get good tone as well. Marshalls are not bedroom/low volume amps, they need to be cranked. So if you're trying to get a good Marshall tone at low volumes, it probably won't work. I know- I have a THD hotplate, and it just won't happen.

If you need low volumes, try an Orange Tiny Terror- they're cheap, under $600, and have great British/Marshall tone. They're about 20 watts with a half power attenuator as well.

I wouldn't go out and but another expensive amp if you already have the new Marshall. Focus on finding the sweet spot on that amp. Maybe try some better tubes.
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

barbarianbrute said:
thanks but i'm starting to realize that it doesn't matter how good you are at playing because there are so many things outside of that you have to learn. it's different from playing little parties and with friends than actually trying to make money or record music.

i wish i spent a lot more time learning stuff like this. being an all-around musician is going to take a long time to master. for now i'd be happy with just being able to record a decent song with good audio and tone. like i said, i'm very frustrated at this point. i'm glad there are a lot of knowledgeable people around this forum because i don't know crap.
Click to expand...

If you're mainly concerned about RECORDING good tone, try a modeling device like a Line6 Pod or Vox Tonelab. Those make recording easier, but don't sound as good as a live tube amp
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

Look HARD at the Fender Super Sonic! At around a grand retail they are well built have GREAT cleans and a solid crunch + take pedals well.
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

FWIW - Good tone at low volumes isn't impossible, but I don't know how easy it will be with a marshall JVM. With marshalls, volume is your friend in terms of getting better tone. I haven't heard your clips because my computer here at work can't play flash stuff, but I suspect that your need for low volume is part of what frustrates you. If possible, try recording it somewhere that you can crank it and see if it improves for you. Good tone at low volumes usually requires an amp designed to do just that and few if any marshalls can do that. My Marshall studio 15 was nice at lower volumes, but for gainy stuff I had to crank it loud and proud. I have to turn up my Valvetronix hybrid amp to get it to sound it's best and it doesn't even have power tubes. Low volumes hurt good tone in most cases. Louder usually equals better unless you have a matchless lightning. If your unamplified guitar strings can be heard on a recording, your volume is way too low even if you're sitting on top of the recorder.

I wish you luck in your search.
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

i know, i used to own one. i love the overdrive and bassman channels, but i can't stand the vibrolux. it's too thin and twangy for me.
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

I bet you'll get awesome tone out of that Marshall if you crank it up. In the clips you've posted, you have it running at a very low volume.

With this thread (where you have asked for an amp that can play a football field), you are showing that you aren't getting why your recorded tone doesn't sound as good as it could. Your amp is overkill. Another big amp will still be overkill. If you're actually playing large venues and need a big amount of headroom, your amp is great. From your posts, it seems like all you're doing is playing at home.

You have to decide what your priorities are musically, and base your amp choice on that. If you only play in your house and want to record clips there, you should get a smaller amp. I bet you'd be really happy with an Orange Tiny Terror for playing at home - you can crank it and it won't get super loud like your Marshall. Someone posted a clip of a Tiny Terror in the T&C forum, and it sounds killer.

Either that, or get an attenuator so you can crank the Marshall but keep the volume reasonable. Keep in mind this is not a perfect solution - in your situation I'd rather have the Tiny Terror personally, but maybe you should try the attenuator route before getting a whole new amp.

Remember: tube amps don't really reach their full potential unless you get them turned up to a decent level. That's what you need to do IMO.
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

Given $1600 I'd buy one of the following:

-Carvin V3 combo
-Peavey JSX combo
-Mesa 5:25 Express Combo
-Marshall 1987XL 50W reissue head.
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

ratherdashing said:
I bet you'll get awesome tone out of that Marshall if you crank it up. In the clips you've posted, you have it running at a very low volume.

With this thread (where you have asked for an amp that can play a football field), you are showing that you aren't getting why your recorded tone doesn't sound as good as it could. Your amp is overkill. Another big amp will still be overkill. If you're actually playing large venues and need a big amount of headroom, your amp is great. From your posts, it seems like all you're doing is playing at home.

You have to decide what your priorities are musically, and base your amp choice on that. If you only play in your house and want to record clips there, you should get a smaller amp. I bet you'd be really happy with an Orange Tiny Terror for playing at home - you can crank it and it won't get super loud like your Marshall. Someone posted a clip of a Tiny Terror in the T&C forum, and it sounds killer.

Either that, or get an attenuator so you can crank the Marshall but keep the volume reasonable. Keep in mind this is not a perfect solution - in your situation I'd rather have the Tiny Terror personally, but maybe you should try the attenuator route before getting a whole new amp.

Remember: tube amps don't really reach their full potential unless you get them turned up to a decent level. That's what you need to do IMO.
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+1

Thats why I'm not getting the JVM yet, 100 watts is way too much for me. If they had a 50 watter I'd be all over that!

anyways, maybe a smaller amp is the way to go.

if you do try and crank that amp in a small room, treat the walls with either some blankets or some sound absorbing foam squares like they use in the studio. I think sound relfection is coloring your sound. or try using an emulated line out, if you have one.
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

i guess i'll try one of those attenuators. i heard they're like $150 though. know of a cheaper or better product for that price?
 
Re: If You Had $1,600 For A New Amp...?

A $150 attenuator for a $1600 plus amp is nothing. Don't go cheap with an attenuator or you'll have a blown amp and out whatever you paid for it plus cost of repairs which will cost more than the attenuator.
 
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