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Melodeath
Member
That actually exactly what I'm doing currently. Don't get me wrong, I really do like the DSL. I just want something that can cover more ground.
M
Melodeath
Member
Funny you mention headfirst. I was actually looking into this myself, but with the current situation around amp parts, and the fact that I have no experience with ever opening up an amp other than a re-tube, I didn't think it would be the best idea to try to tackle myself. Also, I live in Wyoming, so there aren't many music stores here to try out gear or amp techs that I would trust enough to pay them to build it for me.
RaceU4her
Well-known member
M
Melodeath
Member
Thanks for the input, I'm sort of leaning toward the KSR Juno the most because of how versatile it seems to be. I knew I would get the 5150 recommendations coming in haha. I'm sure I would enjoy owning one for myself at some point as another tonal option. The thing is, I'm not necessarily trying to sound exactly like these bands, but I just want something that can do this style as well as just a nice open and raw high gain British tone.Yea definitely NOT a Friedman for anything tone wise like old school in flames, or the halo effect etc… that is not at all in the direction you want to go. In flames style tones, especially the older tones, have tons of edge and bite: the Friedman isn’t gonna give you that vibe at all.
Out of all those choices, I’d be going KSR for sure. The KSR amps are just phenomenal, some of my favorite amps ever. The splawn quick rod is an amp I dig personally, but for the heavy saturation and gain structure of especially the newer type tones ( the halo effect etc), it’s not really going to give you the vibe you want here either. Read: this doesn’t mean it doesn’t sound good, not saying that at all. It’s just the saturation is not going to give you that sound or even in the ball park really. But then again, you dig the Marshall ball park, so you may love it who knows.
I know you said you don’t wanna go 5150 but…. There’s a reason all those albums had that amp on it in some shape or formyou don’t need to spend 3k to get those types of tones.
I’d be more concerned about your cabinet choice personally. I can 100 percent promise you, as someone who owns 8 4x12s including an Engl 4x12, and as someone who has IR’s done by Nordstrom himself, that cab is a huge part of that sound. Huge. I’m not even going into the “fredman technique” and all that garbage, I’m talking about the cab itself: for whatever reason those cabs sound the way they do, it’s a huge part of the sounds that came out of nordstroms studio. You mic one up and you instantly hear it: it’s sonic footprint is glaring, and it’s saying “ hi, I’m the real reason those records sound the way they do
As far as cabs go, I'm mostly in a bedroom, so I'm using impulse responses. Specifically Jens Bogren stuff.
Also, how did you manage to get those IR's??
M
Melodeath
Member
My buddy owns a dual recto and for some reason I could never jive with it. Not sure how different the tripple rec is. If this makes any sense, I like how other people sound with rectos, but never really got along with them myself. The closest thing to a recto (kind of) that I really liked was a twin Jet uberschall. I could never dial in a sound that was quite right with that either. Seemed to be either too dark or too much of that super high end sizzle.
M
Melodeath
Member
You definitely have me interested in the Engl Artist Edition... I've kind of always written off Engl amps until recently. Probably just thinking of a powerball
RaceU4her
Well-known member
I’ve never played a dual but I expected my two channel triple to be a big muddy mess and it’s quite the opposite. Worth a shot if you ever see one
M
Melodeath
Member
The Skeleton Key is definitely on the wishlist! This is probably going to be my only amp purchase for at least a few years, so I kind of want it to cover quite a bit of ground. If only it had a clean channel!
The Juno is what I'm leaning toward at the moment but there aren't many good videos other than JerEvil's demo. I can never really form an opinion with a cellphone video.
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Nolly
Active member
If you’re after something a bit different, have you considered a VHT/Fryette Sig:X?
Or a Synergy amp head with modules?
Or a Synergy amp head with modules?
firejack
Well-known member
firejack
Well-known member
For what it's worth, whilst the Juno sounded great it just didn't have enough Marshall bite and mid-grind for my tastes, so I sold it and moved on.
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Nolly
Active member
Another sleeper amp to consider is the Mesa Stiletto. They go for cheap and are essentially a high quality hot-rodded Marshall circuit with powerful voicing switches and a great clean. Never understood why they’re not far more popular
Orvillain
Active member
Sounds like you want a JCM800 2203 to me!
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ClintN667
Well-known member
Kyle has mentioned doing a take on a plexi at one point but yeah the Juno started out as a one off mod of another KSR amp. So it wouldn't have much Marshall DNA if any
The first run of the new Headfirst amp is being built this summer
I have no doubts it will be a killer amp. 3 channels, Midi and I'm sure it has a ton of useful bells and whistles
M
Melodeath
Member
Anybody have much experience with the newer Peters stuff or better yet can compare it to either the KSR stuff or maybe Fryette? Mostly just looking for info on the amps listed.
easstudios
Well-known member
My DSL Green channel boosted sounds pretty dead on to my 2203 boosted - I love old Marshall's but I wouldn't really consider them high end. Nicer built than most of the current ones but its all pretty standard parts and construction methods, and the real beauty of them is the simplicity of the circuit. As far as upgrading a DSL to a 2203, I see it as more of a side step - cooler amp to own, worth more, but also less versatile, more likely to need servicing, less useful to take on the road.
Funnily enough, the DSL's red channel can get surprisingly close to my favourite settings on a Friedman BE100 - if you want to stay in that "modded" plexi territory with more room to tweak, more channels, more useable gain ranges, I think something from the Friedman family could be a good shout.
I really love the look of the MGL 50HG - essentially a stock 800 with a few little tweaks, really nice components, and all things considered great value for what you get. https://mglampworks.com/mgl50-hg Another idea in the kind of "800" family is picking up a clone or reissue 800 and dong the Jake E Lee mods. If you want another channel you can add a simple clean channel quite easily.
Splawn Quickrod seems a great shout. Maybe a Bogner Helios or Uberschall too. Maybe Diezel's are worth a shout if you want something slightly Marshall based with its own distinct twist? If you really want a Wizard, a Headfirst PCB and a suitable donor would save a ton of money and have a lot of benefits. Ceriatone may always be worth a shout for their various Cameron/Jose/Friedman/Fortin style circuits - the only real downside is the waiting times.
Funnily enough, the DSL's red channel can get surprisingly close to my favourite settings on a Friedman BE100 - if you want to stay in that "modded" plexi territory with more room to tweak, more channels, more useable gain ranges, I think something from the Friedman family could be a good shout.
I really love the look of the MGL 50HG - essentially a stock 800 with a few little tweaks, really nice components, and all things considered great value for what you get. https://mglampworks.com/mgl50-hg Another idea in the kind of "800" family is picking up a clone or reissue 800 and dong the Jake E Lee mods. If you want another channel you can add a simple clean channel quite easily.
Splawn Quickrod seems a great shout. Maybe a Bogner Helios or Uberschall too. Maybe Diezel's are worth a shout if you want something slightly Marshall based with its own distinct twist? If you really want a Wizard, a Headfirst PCB and a suitable donor would save a ton of money and have a lot of benefits. Ceriatone may always be worth a shout for their various Cameron/Jose/Friedman/Fortin style circuits - the only real downside is the waiting times.
DanTravis62
Moderator
Don't worry, youre not the only one. Rectos sound great to me when other people are playing them, but there's something with the low end that just doesn't jive with me. They're totally rad amps, especially the early revisions, but not for me.
M
Melodeath
Member
Nice! Sounds great. Kind of like a SLO more than a Marshall maybe? Hard to tell with different cabs/mics ect..
By the way, I see in your older videos you had a Peters amp? How did it compare to the Juno/KSR Stuff?
napalmdeath
Well-known member
Not the Runt 50 with a Hot Mod! Very raw and aggressive.
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ClintN667
Well-known member
Ceriatone is a solid choice too. The Leviathan is like 3 amps in one. Not an exact copy of the butterslax but Ceriatone's take on it. It's a bit more raw than a Friedman and has a bunch of tone shaping options. Low noise floor. You can also get a king Kong with a Plexi or fender channel 1 2nd channel can be a molecular ch 2.
You could also look at the gargoyle but I have never been impressed by any clips of it.
You could also look at the gargoyle but I have never been impressed by any clips of it.