Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

ksmith63

ksmith63

New member
Hey guys,

My band is going to rent out a studio for a week sometime early january to record the GREATEST ROCK ALBUM KNOWN TO MANKIND :naughty: and I am looking at renting 2 amps (still going to record with the Budda as well). Unfortunately I am very indecisive and I have little to no current experience with the high $$$ stuff. Please give me some recommendations!

Looking for:
- multichannel or very versatile amps. I hate when every song on an album has the same tone! :angryfire
- amps that are fairly easy to dial in. I will have a little time with the amps before recording but I expect to change quite a few settings for each song. I will also ask you guys for some starter settings later on...
- amps that are tonally different. No real use in renting 2 amps that sound like each other or my Budda

Also we are doing everything in nashville so we should be able to get just about any kind of amp ever made.

If you want to listen to any of our stuff click on the myspace link below but I'm basically looking for a great modern rock sound.

Bogner XTC seems an obvious choice but so do many others....
 
Last edited:
Re: Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

THD Sig-x I suppose. Bogner XTC. JC-120 is a one trick pony, but if it's the trick your looking for, none does it better, especially in a studio.
 
Re: Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

Bogner Ecstasy, Marshall JVM's are also quite nice. I'd also pick up a Rectifier... as much as people bash them, they're a dream to record/mix with. They just have this awesome harmonic structure that gels really well into a mix.
 
Re: Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

I agree with the Dual Rectifier sentiment, and would add that you should get one built before 2000. Any dual rectifier - Blue Angel, Maverick, Diamond Plate, etc.

And then the Bogner Ecstacy.
 
Re: Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

I dunno what you're striving for, but how about a splawn?

Engls are cool if you're playing heavy stuff.
 
Re: Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

ksmith63 said:
Hey guys,

My band is going to rent out a studio for a week sometime early january to record the GREATEST ROCK ALBUM KNOWN TO MANKIND :naughty: and I am looking at renting 2 amps (still going to record with the Budda as well). Unfortunately I am very indecisive and I have little to no current experience with the high $$$ stuff. Please give me some recommendations!

Looking for:
- multichannel or very versatile amps. I hate when every song on an album has the same tone! :angryfire
- amps that are fairly easy to dial in. I will have a little time with the amps before recording but I expect to change quite a few settings for each song. I will also ask you guys for some starter settings later on...
- amps that are tonally different. No real use in renting 2 amps that sound like each other or my Budda

Also we are doing everything in nashville so we should be able to get just about any kind of amp ever made.

If you want to listen to any of our stuff click on the myspace link below but I'm basically looking for a great modern rock sound.

Bogner XTC seems an obvious choice but so do many others....
Click to expand...

Most half decent recording studios keep at least a couple of different amps in house for just the resasons you mentioned.

You might like to contact them beforehand and ask what guitar amps they have.
 
Re: Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

since you budda has 6L6s in it and versatile in and of itself...i'd go with some EL-34 tones (Komet, Bogner) and depending on what other tones you are looking for...i'd want some EL84 jangle and crunch in there somewhere too like a 65 amps SoHo!?
 
Re: Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

Bogner XTC will cover most marshall territory pretty well all by itself and it can get kinda fenderish as well (plus you have the Budda with you also). How about taking something vox flavored (AC30TB) to cover the ground you weren't covering elsewhere? It's a highly underrated rock amp that is used in many many albums that have shaped the history of rock. It's gain structure is very different than that of the marshall or fender type sounds that the XTC and Budda can do and therefore seems like a good compliment to those sounds or at the very least it would be different enough that biamping with the vox with one or even both of those amps would really help thicken the sound in a pleasing way I'll bet.
 
Re: Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

Vox AC-30 or Marshall JTM-45 or 50 watt Plexi - although those amps are louder than you need in the studio. Still - I'd consider one of those.

I've gotten great tones in the studio from my late 50's tweed Fender Princeton and Deluxe amps, as well my mid 60's Fender Princeton Reverb and Deluxe Reverb amps too.
 
Re: Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

wanmei1 said:
Most half decent recording studios keep at least a couple of different amps in house for just the resasons you mentioned.

You might like to contact them beforehand and ask what guitar amps they have.
Click to expand...

i know they already have a dual rec not sure what else. I probably should have mentioned that....

SPLAWNS: my understanding about splawn amps is that they are based upon the brown sound i.e. the same kind of stuff i could get from an XTC or the Budda. I have heard many great things about splawns but are they better than the xtc?

ENGL: these things have loads of gain which could definitely be helpful for our heaviest parts. How versatile are they compared to the bogner? The EL-34 special edition ENGL seems really sweet....

LEW/Gr8scott: AC-30 combo is another one i'm leaning towards. Many great albums from Queen to Mars Volta have been recorded with just these. Also the EL-84 tone could be a great contrast with the other amps


EDIT: can someone (VK or supernosher) explain the differences between the dual rectifier amps? also a JCM800 seems a little pointless b/c of my Budda.
 
Last edited:
Re: Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

Lewguitar said:
Vox AC-30 or Marshall JTM-45 or 50 watt Plexi - although those amps are louder than you need in the studio. Still - I'd consider one of those.

I've gotten great tones in the studio from my late 50's tweed Fender Princeton and Deluxe amps, as well my mid 60's Fender Princeton Reverb and Deluxe Reverb amps too.
Click to expand...

This is just about what I was thinking. You won't need a channel-switcher in the studio--that's why they overdub.

If you really want one, though--then I'd suggest a Mesa Mark IV. With the EQ and power-level options, there are several albums worth of tone in that one amp.

I'd probably choose a Maverick over the VOX AC15 or AC30, but that's just me--lots more control over gain and tone with the Maverick.

A JTM 45 works well in the studio to get those classic Marshall tones. And then there are the tweed and BF Fenders. A Princeton or Vibro Champ will sound huge when recorded properly.

Bill
 
Re: Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

Boogie Bill said:
This is just about what I was thinking. You won't need a channel-switcher in the studio--that's why they overdub.
Click to expand...

Well when I think of single channel amps I tend to think of SINGLE SOUND amps. Sure, you can tweak the knobs all day and get different results but to me the overall voice of the amp stays the same. Also we can only afford a week for studio time so I'm really not sure how much time there will be for overdubs.

Also with the initial 'live' recording I can think of quite a few songs that have buildups after a clean riff/ before a nasty overdriven one. Channel switching during times like these will offer tons of panning and fading opportunities without adding the subtle differences with overdubs and the extra time.

Boogie Bill said:
If you really want one, though--then I'd suggest a Mesa Mark IV. With the EQ and power-level options, there are several albums worth of tone in that one amp.
Click to expand...

How does the Mark IV compare to the XTC? Many people on this board seem to love the Bogner so I've been using that as a standard to compare the other amps to. Also Mesa amps get a bad reputation of being tweakers. I won't have lots of time to sit and twist knobs....


Also someone mentioned the VHT Sig-x. Has anyone played one of these or one of the pitbull amps w/EQ? How do either of these compare to the Bogner or the Mark IV?
 
Re: Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

Seeing as how you have the Mesa and Marshall tones covered with what's available in house and with your Budda, I'd see about getting a Matchless or a Bad Cat in there as well as something like a tweed twin or Bassman.

A cool way to record woulld be to run the tweed amp all the time just at the point of break up in conjunction with one of the channel switchers (which you would alternated between squaky clean and ultra dirty). Blend in the tweed to taste and you'd have a huge sound.
 
Re: Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

Man, rent a Bassman. An old one.

I seem to hear lots of clean / jam stuff on your MySpace... I don't really get the desire to have these gainy monsters around :confused:

A Bassman can do your clean in spectactular fashion, but it's rock sound is the one that statred it all, and it is thick as a brick!
 
Re: Studio Help!...what amps should I rent?

I just listened to more stuff --- you should rent a 1971 Marshall plexi head


BTW, you ought to describe to us just exactly what in the heck your Budda's voice is.

Most of us (me) have no idea what it sounds like or what its copying.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

ehdwuld
Amp Profiles
Replies
5
Views
403
Mincer
Mincer
Z
What are your performance rigs?
2 3
Replies
59
Views
4K
Solarflares
S
80's_Metal
Need Help- recommend an acoustic guitar
2 3
Replies
46
Views
2K
jeremy
jeremy
Jermo3178
Saturday Night Specials/Slash 2.0/Haydes Gates
Replies
9
Views
789
Mincer
Mincer
Securb
I am going in raw
2 3
Replies
48
Views
2K
Mincer
Mincer
Back
Top