Am I crazy?

  • Thread starter Thread starter SFW
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It's kinda funny because my fav amp has long been a 2204 but I'm always dabbling with a 5150 or Recto or Mark etc.

And I'll have that other amp dials in for those crushing modern metal tones, but I'll play the stupid 2204 with an SD-1 and even for those modern metal riffs, I just prefer something about the 2204.

And I've even tried the 2204 with various boosts like the Standout and Dirty Tree and PEQs, but it's funny because I always end up dialing those other boosts in to sound like... an SD-1.

So I guess what I'm saying is that you could give the Splawn a chance with the new material and see how it goes. End of the day, that amp just might be the sound in your head.
 
How about trying a quality EQ in the loop to tweak it to a more “modern” tone? Sounds to me like you dig the Splawn, but you’re tired of playing it all the time. I think keeping it and saving your pennies for another amp is the way to go. But an EQ might change the sound enough to help the wait be more bearable.
 
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SFW said:
So I've had my 2005 Splawn Quickrod for about five years now. Before that I had an original run EVH 5150 III. I am seriously thinking about getting rid of the Splawn and getting an EVH 5150 III Stealth. I kinda miss having a usable clean channel and a more modern guitar tone. Lately I just find myself wishing that my quick rod just sounded more modern and less 80s marshall. I'm less worried about getting my Eddie or Lynch on and more concerned about how the new music my band is writing sounds. Anyway... just bouncing thoughts...
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Been in your exact spot brotha. I remember both your EVH and Splawn clips on youtube. I've owned a couple 2006 QRs and a 2012. and a 2009 competition. Dug them at the time for sure. I also had the EVH stealth 100w and the EVH combo. Once I started playing EVH, it just felt and sounded better to my style. I was playing QRs in bands(Alice in Chains stuff), and got compliments often on my tone. But once the band fizzled, I just loved the EVH for at home play, and honestly I'm more of a Black Metal/Thrash metal/Death Metal guy as well as my 80's hairbands and 90's heavier stuff. So I found myself playing the splawn less and less. Sold my last one back in probably end of 2013 right before my son was born. Splawns are awesome, but even boosted, maybe don't have the right amount of gain in the styles I listed.

I actually prefer the 6L6 original EVH over the Stealth. The stealth clean was meh, and the blue channel wasn't my jam. I like the original blue channel and pretty much lived on it.

Nowadays though, you do have options. You could run many of pedals through the Splawn? Like a Diezel VH pedal or a KSR Ceres or something. Many options to try if ya wanna go that route.
 
Of all the clips I've heard on the stealth I have never heard one that's going to get Eddie or Lynch tones. I have liked a lot of the clips I have heard.
 
Take what I post with a shaker of salt, as I am a devout Splawn player. Without getting down into the weeds about my settings and sounds, to boost or not to boost etc, here is what I think is the primary takeaway RE: Splawn Amps. First of all, they definitely do not all sound the same. Over the years with different main circuit boards and different transformers, the amps have unique characteristics. But the folks that say they don’t like Splawns generally identify a frequency in the upper midrange that they find to be a bit to pronounced. That and the fact that Scott’s primary gain circuit does not provide the same level of compression that ‘modern’ amps like the Stealth and Recto do. So, a tight(er) amp with less compression in the gain stage and a slightly boosted upper midrange makes for an amp that can feel like its ‘fighting’ with you doing leads at bedroom to low rehearsal volume.

But … those are the exact same qualities that make the Splawn sound SO BIG in a mix - whether live or recorded. Toss in a kick drum and snare, a few cymbals, a decent sized bass rig and some vocals, and a super greasy, compressed, mid-scooped ‘Modern’ guitar sound will get swallowed whole. The tighter, more articulate gain structure and more pronounced upper mids of the Splawn will hold up in the mix and sound incredible. I think for a modern metal two guitar band, the ideal pairing is one more ‘modern’ tone and one drier, tighter, ‘Splawnier’ tone. That way, the guitars are not fighting over the exact same sonic real estate.

That and the fact that between a simple pedal style EQ in the loop, a variety of boosts out front, and any of the newer ‘Amp-in-a-Box’ pedals directly into the loop return and the subtle but noticable changes from rolling different glass through the amp are all incredible ways to get a huge variety of tones out of the Splawn while still retaining its unique overall voicing.
 
Its not like things can't be found again. If for whatever reason its not possible to have both at one time (even very short term, like a return window of GC), its not like Quick Rods don't exist anymore.

I'd say fuck it, take the plunge.
 
Based on what your band is starting to write. I would get the EVH Stealth EL34 100watt.
 
Can try one of those MOOER preamp pedals in loop. Inexpensive solution and keep your splawn
 
Splawns have a very distinct tone to them, the QR circuit has it's own thing going that is very JCM800-ish.
most modern bands don't use JCM 800's they use newer amps or Rectos type circuit amps.
I love my Splawn, my band covers 70's, 80's, 90's and 2000's era rock and hard rock but no metal so with my Fx8 and my MXR 10 EQ in the loop
I can go from Aerosmith's "Adams Apple to Stevie Ray Vaughns "Couldn't stand the weather" to Collective Souls "Heavy" to Stone Temple Pilots
to ZZ Tops' "Heard it on the X" just by swithing guitars an dpushing some buttons, but none of that is modern high gain, so my Splawn works Great. If I was in a more modern band I'd definitely use a different amp (and I have the new/old mid cut" options, they do alter the tone and feel but it's still the core "Splawn sound" ) I can't recommend you to sell not sell that's a personal decision, you can always get another splawn if you end up selling this one and decide you miss it. the newer ones have much better cleans as well, we do "New Sensation by INXS, Misunderstanding by Genesis and stuff like that and my clean channel sounds surprisingly good.
 
I would definitely go witha Ceres vs the stealth. Keep the amp. As someone who sold a QR and Nitro I find myself shopping for a new one all the time.

I've owned a Ceres twice and an Orthos but I'm now running an Ares. If I had to sell my amps and had to downsize to a Ceres I wouldn't lose any sleep. The Ceres is just as good as the Ares or Orthos(I just prefer head format).

I was using a Friedman Buxom boost with my Splawns and they could play stuff like Amon Amarth or Carcass easily. The Buxom boost imho is the best boost for a Splawn
 
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