Sirion
Well-known member
For years I've irregularly been using an amp rig with two ADA pre-amps going through a Marshall 9100 (modded to run EL34 tubes) into a Metro stereo 4x12 cabinet set in stereo. I have found this to be a very convenient way to get a "good enough" stereo set-up. I have an old Boss Chorus C pedal (DC-2) that is just fantastic; I love it to death and should really get a spare one or two.
The ADA mostly work well. My main gripes with the set-up is that is (1) it is a bit less organic and too compressed at times, (2) the waiting time for switching between patches leaves something to be desired, and (3) there . I really dislike the sound of the chorus effect as well, but as I run a chorus ahead of the preamp that is irrelevant. To my ears, the ADA is eminently 1989-90 in terms of tone, and I was wondering if there are any modern preamps that manage to do a sound that comes closer to the kind of hyper-driven Marshalls that were in use slightly earlier in the decade: slightly more organic and less compressed. It also has to be able to have a clean tone, and ideally not be more exensive than there being a real possibility of getting two of them. Where I can definitely compromise is on further flexibility. I have never had much use in practice for the enormous number of preset options the ADAs allow for; for most purposes 3-4 sounds is sufficient, and I can get these with 2 presets and a little ingenuity.
I know rack setups aren't the cool thing any more, but is there anything out there that would get me in the ballpark? I think I can say right away that I will definitely stay with a rack setup, as that is what my entire rig is built around; suggestions for amp heads are not necessary.
The ADA mostly work well. My main gripes with the set-up is that is (1) it is a bit less organic and too compressed at times, (2) the waiting time for switching between patches leaves something to be desired, and (3) there . I really dislike the sound of the chorus effect as well, but as I run a chorus ahead of the preamp that is irrelevant. To my ears, the ADA is eminently 1989-90 in terms of tone, and I was wondering if there are any modern preamps that manage to do a sound that comes closer to the kind of hyper-driven Marshalls that were in use slightly earlier in the decade: slightly more organic and less compressed. It also has to be able to have a clean tone, and ideally not be more exensive than there being a real possibility of getting two of them. Where I can definitely compromise is on further flexibility. I have never had much use in practice for the enormous number of preset options the ADAs allow for; for most purposes 3-4 sounds is sufficient, and I can get these with 2 presets and a little ingenuity.
I know rack setups aren't the cool thing any more, but is there anything out there that would get me in the ballpark? I think I can say right away that I will definitely stay with a rack setup, as that is what my entire rig is built around; suggestions for amp heads are not necessary.
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