Best marshall tone amp fargen? Wizard ? Suhr sl68?

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Zakk13
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Hi all,


In my quest for a new amp, i m searching one that can cover all the classic marshall tone from jtm45 to jcm800. I play stuff from from blues to guns and roses


I first stop on the wizard mcii ( i post a thread here few days ago) but sample on yt show an amp that is maybe design for heavy gain stuff , very bright and hyper clear ...and i didnt find the plexi tone in it and the marshall fat. But maybe in real it s different. Only paraeter to find, or this will always be a little be differents than the marshall?,

Bogner xtc is another solution but it has is own voice

In other hand, for half the price, i saw video of the fargen olde 800 that blow me away.


Same for the sl68 by suhr , but price is the same that wizard and xtc. But for this i m a little bit scared as i own a badger30 which is amazing in clean but od is plastic souless for me. Do not know if in real sl 68 is different or not


I need an amp with a great master volume that could be you at home, in studio or in gigs.


Maybe some of you have test these amps , and give me feeback. I m aware to other brand :rock:
 
If you want the sound of a Marshall my first stop would be a Marshall. Given the tones you reference, have you tried a Vintage Modern?
 
Comes down to personal taste, Friedman amps are worth a look.
 
I own a SL-68 and can tell you the OD is much different than the Badger 30. I can't speak to the Wizard as I haven't played one. I can say that my search for a great plexi amp is over though.

Regarding the Fargen 800....I have played one and it is great amp for 800 tones. I didn't find any plexi tones in that amp. I have yet to find an amp that covers plexi and 800 tones. Two completely different animals. And yes, I have owned Friedman amps as well.
 
Problème for my choice, is the lack of Wizard sample.

Buy a 4k amp without to be sure if the grain is what i m searching for , is .... well...difficult.

Do not know if wizard can cover the sound of the fargen olde 800 in the "miscradartv " video on YT.

on the few sample sound seem bright et very clear which give a modern touch which lack of bass. but i do not know if there is some parametter to adjust this on a MCII.
 
I spent a little time with the Suhr SL68. Thought it was a fantastic Plexi. Pretty much spot on Marshall tone at it's finest.

For JTM 45 tone on a budget try a Marshall Vintage Modern. Comes stock with KT66s and is based off of the JTM45
 
You want a plexi-style amp and a boost. Metro, Suhr, Ceriatone, Marshall, whatever. Get you a good 4-holer and a boost pedal and you
should be happy. Listen to the YT Henning clips, too!
 
If you have no volume restrictions or don't mind attenuators, I agree: just buy a four-hole Marshall and a few OD pedals for different flavors. You'll be set. If you do have volume restrictions and don't like attenuators, just buy a 2203 or 2204 Marshall and again a few OD pedals.
 
spirit7":38fhlnfw said:
Gower JMP or JCM 800 Killer Kali ++
Click to expand...

Not a knock on Dan's mods AT ALL, but I've chatted with the OP about his "wants", and the Killer Kali++ is NOT going to fit the bill AT ALL.
 
Jean-Philippe:

I received your below message via email, and figured I would respond to it publicly to allow others to read my thoughts/perspective....

Zakk13":2bdhc3g6 said:
Hi!

Thx a lot for your answer on the topic XTC vs Wizard.

The Bogner XTC will not be the one. But I'm not really sure about the Wizard MCII.

In fact, I think that I'm searching for a swiss army knife Marshall {style} amp with authentic warm tone that could be used at home, studio and gigs. I play a lot of blues, blues rock with light crunch (like JTM45) so I need a warm, fat and woody tone. I have never really heard a Wizard sample like this. On another hand, I play vintage rock and hard rock, from ZZ Top to Guns 'n' Roses. The problem with the Wizard is the lack of videos and samples. In the few on YouTube, there is too much gain for me; the others are bad recordings or the amp gain seems bright, hyper clean, soul-less and not so close to the classic rock tone (which are often a little bit dirty). Moreover, I've never heard the MCII, which is supposed to be more polyvalent.

For example, the Fargen Olde 800 looks on YouTube to be more focused on Marshall classic tones. I dont know if with specific settings I can reach this kind of sound (ex: video on MusicRadarTV on YouTube for the Fargen Olde 800).

I'm scared that Wizard was built only for gigs and to cut through the mix for hard rock tone. Does it lose warmth and vintage color, or, on the rhythm channel with the correct settings, can it {mimic} a JTM45 sound for example? As I have never tried one, I must find some user feedback!

Thx for your help!!! Best,

Jean-Philippe
Click to expand...

To begin with, if you are truly looking for an amp to do JTM 45 tone, the Wizard is not the amp. Nor is the Fargen, for that matter (in my opinion).

The Wizard CAN do more vintage-inspired tones, but they are more in the early 70's JMP style. The EQ on the Wizard is also sufficiently flexible to allow you to dial in tones that are not overly bright. It is not simply a gainy, hard rock amp, but I agree that that is all you will see in clips of it online. It will do a fantastic job for ZZ Top and Guns 'n' Roses style tones. You mentioned a concern about it lacking bass - this couldn't be farther from the truth. It has a TON of low end and girth to it, and moves more air through a 4x12" cab than any other amp I've ever heard or played. You truly FEEL the Modern Classic when you're playing it. I know that sounds silly, but I'm not kidding you. The Wizard will have significantly more girth to its tone than a Fargen Olde 800. That being said, the Olde 800 is a great sounding amp as well.

As for volume: yes, it can be played at home, but when you're talking about 50 and 100 watt amp heads, they are not specifically designed for this purpose and they will always sound better when the power section is opened up and allowed to breath a little. What kind of gigs are you doing? If you are only playing clubs and smaller theatres, you could consider a Modern Classic 25 or 35 watter, which is powered by 6V6 tubes instead of EL34s. These lower watt versions of the Modern Classic II have all of the same functionality as their big brothers. They're also cheaper: http://wizardamplification.com/mc25.35.htm

Let me close by saying the MCII is certainly not a "soulless" amp - in fact, it might have the most "soul" of any amp I have ever owned or played. It really is a fantastic amp. But it also really is an EXPENSIVE amp, so if you have serious doubts about it, it might be best to look elsewhere.

There was an earlier suggestion to check out the Marshall Vintage Modern, which I agree with. It will get you closer to JTM 45-inspired tones, but is also flexible enough to get you into 70's JMP and 80's JCM 800 style tones. Best of all, it's cheap and widely available on the used market.

Hope this helps.

EDIT: If you are dead set on a Wizard MCII, there's a 50 watt version on eBay right now. No FX loop though. I have NO affiliation with the seller. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Wizard-WRDS-MCl ... _38wt_1203
 
I'd love it if Jean-Philippe bought a Cherry Bomb! We need some more user reviews of that amp. I know I'm not the only one that is intrigued by the possibilities......
 
Just get the Wizard and call it done. I had an XTC and the MC sent it on it's way.
 
Greazygeo":1ie51oa8 said:
Just get the Wizard and call it done. I had an XTC and the MC sent it on it's way.
Click to expand...

Pretty much the same story with me. Although, I keep going back to the well and trying more XTC's, thinking I will like them better the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, etc. time around. :doh:

What was Einstein's definition of insanity again?.....

"Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

:lol: :LOL:
 
Friedman BE100 fits this bill too...fatter less ice pick Marshall tone in spades.
 
How does the Modern Classic compare to the Modern Classic II? I heard some say the the Modern Classic is better.
 
Jean-Philippe also PMed, but I replied in french, so I won't be posting my reply here
Basically, Rob said it all. I also agree that any modded Marshall won't work either
Has Steve K bought a Cherry Bomb yet? We need this guy to take the first plunge on gear :D
For pure Plexi sounds, Wizard also has the Vintage Classic
Holy shit, did I just buy one of those?!? :lol: :LOL:
 
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