Recommend me an amp that fits....

Zerberus

Baron Von Shred
Hey bros

Long story short, I´ll be "de-Mesafying" my rig probably at some point in this year (for non-tonal reasons), and I´m looking for suggestions of amps to try out and maybe fall in love with.

I´m sure most of you have heard my stuff, for those that haven´t there are multiple possibilities to do so if you follow the links in my sig.

I´m essentially looking for the same tone or a VERY similar one (of course on tape it sounds a bit different, but..). It can be more open and expressive and have a bit more low mid thump and high end bite, but for the most part generally the same thing, I´m quite happy with it the way it is.

Needs: 2 channels, can have shared eq but separate is preferable. Gain channel must have MOOOOOOONDO reserves and clean should be able to get really cold and icy as well as warm and buttery..... Must also be quite versatile in general, as I don´t only do my own stuff.

Midi Switching would be a plus, and a rack setup is preferable to a head in any case, but not a must. FX Loop also a plus but not necessary, assignable + MIDI switchable loops even more so. Preferably all tube.

Things that seem interesting so far:

VHT GP3 + Two/Ninety/Two or Pittbull UL
Krank Krankenstein
Randall RM4 and RT 2/50
Peavey XXX or JSX
Engl Invader
Bogner Uberschall or Ecstasy
Mad Doctor Jeff Seal could maybe cook something up as well...

Anyone tried a few of these, particularly the Randall and VHT rack setups or the Krankenstein? And thing else I should take a look at?

All comments are welcome, but please don´t come at me with "18 watts is enough yaddayadda"... When personal experience shows a 100 watt solid state combo isn´t enough and a 2x50 watt tube rig has generally worked out pretty well but could have had more headroom.... Well, I think I know what my actual power needs are, and I´m not really in the mood for a wattage debate about bedroom amps, either :beerchug:

Ultimately my ears will have to decide, but keeping an open mind for suggestions is the best way to get the tone you want without the hassle you don´t ;)
 
Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

By the sounds of the music you want something that tracks really fast and stays tight?


Also, if versitility is your goal, the RM4 will probably be your best bet. I haven't come across many amps that'll do both cold and warm cleans.
 
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Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

what about a framus cobra? I haven't had personal experience with it but it's one of the amps i would like to try along with most of the amps on your list
 
Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

screamingdaisy said:
By the sounds of the music you want something that tracks really fast and stays tight?...

Something "like a Dolphin´s aft torpedo tube", yes :D

Any recommendations for which modules?

Framus Cobra, noted.... Keep ém comin, bros....
 
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Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

Chi3f said:
what about a framus cobra? I haven't had personal experience with it but it's one of the amps i would like to try along with most of the amps on your list

Yeah... those seem to be pretty cool & would fit your headroom needs...

Other than that, I think a Peavey Classic 30 would fit the bill... 30W are way louder than you think and you won't be able to turn up more anyway :beerchug: :dance: :banana:
 
Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

I think something like the Framus Cobra or Pittbull UL would suit your needs pretty well.
 
Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

Kommerzbassist said:
Yeah... those seem to be pretty cool & would fit your headroom needs...

Other than that, I think a Peavey Classic 30 would fit the bill... 30W are way louder than you think and you won't be able to turn up more anyway :beerchug: :dance: :banana:

No offense bro, but my Attax 80 will blow a Peavey Classic 30 out of the water when it´s full up... Now, if a Peavey Classic 30 were enough, don´t you think I´d simply use the Attax? How is 1x30w going to be enough in a large club without a PA, if 2x50 Mesa watts powering 2 2x12s "has generally worked out pretty well but could have had more headroom" in the same situation.... :eek13:

Again, please don´t try to tell me how much power I need, because if you haven´t been in the situations I´ve been in you simply can not judge it, period. I am not a bedroom or garage player, and am not looking for a bedroom / garage/ Direct recording /Travel amp... I´m looking for a live rig that can match or best what I´m already using ;)

*Edit* Something tells me I´m stupid and that was meant as a joke :smack::lol:
 
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Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

Powerball? It's 4 channels, I'm thinking the cleans could have what you want? A Fireball may not be enough, but you could get one way cheaper and always use boosts in front and in the loops. Through a 412, could it be enough?

Or else, find a silverface Twin for cheap, bring it back to new, and ABY :D Ah wait no that's MY dream sorry :P
 
Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

me & ben were talking about the new george lynch head that is supposed to be out soon.

its supposed to have exchangeable preamps and as far as i understood you can hook together more than one (though i might be very wrong on that, so dont hold me to my word =/)

a laney gh100l is what i personaly would look into, but it might not have the reserves you need and more than likely would need a pedal to bust it into meltdown (though i have a feeling you are simplifying your rig to just have one head, right?), but the gain sounds pretty damn good =P


other than that i dont have much experience in these amps =/ sorry


what about a rack system? v-twin rack and a 2/90? or alike
 
Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

Davey said:
me & ben were talking about the new george lynch head that is supposed to be out soon.

its supposed to have exchangeable preamps and as far as i understood you can hook together more than one (though i might be very wrong on that, so dont hold me to my word =/)...

Manufaacturer? any more info?

what about a rack system? v-twin rack and a 2/90? or alike

If you´ll reread the post, rack is PREFERABLE..

But specifically Mesa Gear is out because of a confirmed affiliation with Ruby Tubes/ Magic parts (licensing of the Ruby Matching system).... Otherwise this thread would have been unnecessary and I´d not be looking for ideas ;)
 
Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

I think it's Randall Tim. They have a GL module for their modular head system already. I heard plans to expend this further but who knows.
Dude since you're a fan of the Marshall sound... How about an ADA MP1? It'll be way cheaper and you could always mod it for more gain, there should be some mods out there for this. Or simply a POD PRO + floorboard through a tube poweramp?
 
Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

Yeah, it's a Randall, I saw it in the Guitar Player I bought the other day. It comes with 4 E34L tubes stock, 3 modules for preamps, and looks kinda like a Plexi.
 
Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

Zerberus said:
Something "like a Dolphin´s aft torpedo tube", yes :D

ENGL, or the rack equivilant of the VHT Superlead.

The Krank Krankenstien is also supposed to be super tight (never played, just researched). Dime had them install a solid state clipping section to tighten up the preamps gain, and a ditching the stock (5881?) power tubes for something decent is supposed to make a substantial improvement to the tone. Though by many acounts it's still a harsh sounding amp.....it seems to have a larger love/hate thing among users than than the Rectifier does.

The Laney I have sounds pretty good, but it's pretty saggy/compressed for what I believe you're after.


Any recommendations for which modules?

Framus Cobra, noted.... Keep ém comin, bros....

Nope. They came out with that preamp right around the time I bought my Recto Pre, so I only have passing familiarity with that preamp. But, if I was looking for something that can do both cold and warm I'd be researching that one for sure.

The Framus Dragon has a little less gain than the Cobra, but a deeper, fuller sound to it (and it still has plenty of gain). I don't know anything about it's clean channel but if you can find one you might want to try it too.

Also, there's always a Line 6 Pod Pro direct........hey, it works for NIN.
 
Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

Zerberus said:
I am not a bedroom or garage player,
Yea, he picks his guitar in the bathroom while he is dropping a fatty!

This man needs a bathroom amp!
:laugh2: :laugh2: :laugh2:
 
Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

Zerberus said:
But specifically Mesa Gear is out because of a confirmed affiliation with Ruby Tubes/ Magic parts (licensing of the Ruby Matching system).... Otherwise this thread would have been unnecessary and I´d not be looking for ideas ;)
ah, ok. didnt quite understand your first post


its randall as others have said, i have only passive interest in this as it is an amp i have no use for at the moment, sorry
 
Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

theodie said:
Yea, he picks his guitar in the bathroom while he is dropping a fatty!

This man needs a bathroom amp!
:laugh2: :laugh2: :laugh2:

I swear, the first thing I´m gonna do when I come home is drive to Virginia and knock you upside the head :laugh2::beerchug:
 
Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

wouldent bother with the jsx, tried one for a couple of hours and hated it, seemed like there was no gain to be had. the xxx might be better but i could only compare that to a 5150 which isnt too bad at all, really tight and can do almost any metally stuff, not good on cleans though.
 
Re: Recommend me an amp that fits....

brit84 said:
wouldent bother with the jsx, tried one for a couple of hours and hated it, seemed like there was no gain to be had. the xxx might be better but i could only compare that to a 5150 which isnt too bad at all, really tight and can do almost any metally stuff, not good on cleans though.
JSX is maybe a bit hard to dial in ... my band mate plays one and the sound sucked a bit and was abit muddy ... he spent some time dialing it in and know it rips and is much tighter!
No gain wtf?
*edit* and I think a JSX is closer too Zerbs sound than a 5150... 5150 is more a one trick pony...
 
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