Any Engl owners out there??

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PentatonicPunk

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I have a chance at a pretty good deal on a Powerball, but I need some input. Do you guys know what tubes they are putting in these things? And although the build quiliey looks great, how do the amps feel? Knobs, tolex etc.. I was leaning more towards a Fireball 100 for its simplicity, but a good deal is hard to pass up. Thanks for the info.
 
I'm no expert but I had a Fireball a few years ago and I loved it. It sounded unholy! A complete beast.

I think the Powerbll has been re-done this year and people seem to like it better. Powerballs had the reputation of not being able to "cut through" in the mix. I also read that people didn't like the noisegate, and preferred to put their own in the loop.

The new 100 watt Fireballs are apparently extremely brutal, if you're into that kid of thing.

Check out Engl at NAMM 2010:

 
i really liked my fireball,really would of liked to keep it, just a crushing sound from these bad boys
 
Man that Powerball II sounds awsome!. If I can ask, why did you guys decide to sell your Engl's?
 
I recently owned A Powerball v2, and I loved it. The revised noise gate really just cut out the fuzz, but it would be wise to still run a separate one. I had no problem cutting through the way I had it eq'd , and the tone was crushing. I've heard gripes about the build quality and the schematics, but I had no problems with mine. The upcoming powerball II is supposed to sound less compressed , and it may be worthwhile to try that out. Either way, the powerball v2 is great for technical types of metal. It was super tight and defined.
 
Savage is BY FAR a much better amplifier. I'm not just saying that 'cause I have one for sale in the classifieds either ;)

I own two Savages, they are the tightest, most aggressive amps around, with an awesome crunch channel, sparkly cleans and plenty of options.

I have a friend who owns a Powerball and there is NO comparison.
 
I own a blackmore and its a cool amp, i owned 3 powerballs over the years but i dont really like them anymore, i guess my ears and what tones i like has changed, im not really impressed with the build quality but they made nice sounding amps. i had some issues with them in the past with build quality but i cant be bothered talking about it anymore.
 
I used to own a Morse, I just recently traded it for a Mark V. The ENGL was just too bright for my tastes, and the high gain sounds weren't suited to my playing style. But they are good amps. Build quality is a little sketchy at time to be totally honest. I am not a huge fan of the powerball, but the savage.... hot damn now that is an amp
 
I own only the e530 but I have tried out a bunch of engls. It depends what sound you want. The old powerballs to be honest weren't very good. In fact one of the worst amps I have played. I cannot comment on the new ones.

Savage is a great amplifier though much more mid oriented. It is in the same sound area as the Blackmore and e530 with its mid punch. Savage is the most saturated but not as saturated as the fireball/invader/se/powerball.

I would say the fireball and powerball are more in the same class, however the fireball being much, much clearer and tighter. One of the heaviest amps I have heard. The new 100 is even better too :rock:.

Invader is also an excellent choice though its a bit pricey. Very versatile and clear amp, somewhat of a more neutral high gain sound between the savage mids and fireball lows.

By the way engls are not well built and only have a 1 year warranty. I love the way they sound but you are taking a risk.
 
PentatonicPunk":20cmnws4 said:
Man that Powerball II sounds awsome!. If I can ask, why did you guys decide to sell your Engl's?
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i traded mine for a caparison horus,otherwise i would still be rockin it :thumbsup:
 
i have a savage 120, had a powerball and fireball. i recommend any of them but savage is my personal fav tone
 
I've got a 570 special edition preamp and 840 poweramp.. i like it a lot. It has a different kind of tone than my Bogner Fish and way better clean. The clean is wirey,spanky and sparkly, i also have the crunch setup where i find myself playing it alot, its nice and warm and with my analogman chorus I get a cool Van Halen Oh Pretty woman tone.

The high gain can get really noisy with gain turned up and the noise gate does little to help it works great on the crunch though.

Of the 2 higher gain offerings, i use the 1st or high gain 1 (i think thats wahat its called).Nails the "black Metal" sound and is pretty tight and aggressive sounding.

My amps are kind of like different flavors, i use all of them.

But for my multi=channel amps it has the best clean
 
PentatonicPunk":3bp1bn4s said:
Man that Powerball II sounds awsome!. If I can ask, why did you guys decide to sell your Engl's?
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Sure.

My Engl Fireball is a great amp, it's just that I'm not really into that modern metal sound anymore. I prefer my Mesa/Boogie MarkIV.

If anyone's keen, I am willing to sell the Fireball. I need the cash too.
 
I've owned both the Savage 120 and the Powerball, and the Savage is the better amp IMO.

The cleans are about on a par, with the Savage's being a little warmer. Savage ch 2 is better than PB ch2 (which was crap IMO). Savage ch 4 was better than PB ch 3, it just cut way better. PB seemed to get lost in the mix a little. I also liked the Savage better for leads.

I'd definitely recommend the Savage, and I miss mine.
 
RJF":z2tjikif said:
I really like my early powerball.
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Same here. I think it's a great amp. 99% of the time for me, it's guitar+cable+amp. I find that I can get just about any sound I need through my volume knob and the channel switching. Paired with a Genz Benz cab, it's great.
 
I sold my Fireball after five years and replaced it with a Marshall Slash. I don't regret it at all but i can see myself get another Engl sometime in the future.

The Engl was not a bad at all, I thought it did low volume better than high volume though... Probable because it sounds so modern and ubertight, at high volumes I find that can translate into harsh.

So many amps, so little time and money...
 
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