Freidman ...and Soldano gear.....my .02

[IntenseJim]

For a day I had a Friedman amp with Voicing hi cut, BE, HBE and rear Fat, C45, Sat and 1/2 power options and Simple Clean. I didn't try the 1/2 power switch.


Amazingly flexible EQ section on the lead channel let's me get nearly any overdriven tone I could ask for.
Gain and sustain are wicked.
Speaker specificity is minimal: it sounded phenominal with all my Scumback loaded cabs (all are different typs of Scummies).
Clean is nice but for classic BF clean tones look elsewhere.
Max'd OD channel is a tad noisy compared to some other massive high gain amps I've tried.
Compared to my SLOs and Soldano-modded Lucky 13 (more gain and tweaked EQ


SLO
The Friedman has more gain and a more flexible EQ; more sustain, saturation and compression with the appropriate rear switches kicked is attainable if you like.

Friedman is noisier than the SLO.

The SLO can get the idiosyncratic upper mid thing going that I couldn't quite get exactly nail with the Friedman: Dark Chocolate vs Dutch Chocolate and surely not better or worse.

Soldano clean with scoop mod I think is a hair nicer than the Friedman simple clean. The Soldano crunch channel is a thing of beauty; while the Friedman can get there on the gain channel, this particular Friedman amp head doesn't allow you to switch from crunch to scream; only clean to crunch or clean to scream.


Lucky 13 modded head
L13 modded head nearly but not quite as much gain as the Friedman and a bit more gain than the SLO.

EQ section on the L13 is more similar to the Friedman than the SLO. But the Friedman still has it's own sound or tone which is exeptional and just divine ear candy. Distortion high gain I'd take the Friedman over the L13.

L13 clean channel smokes the clean on both the SLO and Friedman head.



Having all three amps would not be terribly redundant for 98% of those who read this. If you like gain from low crunch to supernova blistering, you'd be hard pressed to do any better than the Friedman head IMHO

 

[Digital Jams]

Honestly the past 18 or so months the marshall mods have all blurred into the same thing save for a few niche items some of the modders and the quality of how the mods are installed. Can't go wrong with 2 or 3 of the main players.

I will say there is no excuse for high noise in this day.

If I was still in the buying mode I would be catching an SLO, must have amp IMO.

 

[Nico]

Can the Friedman do more classic tones, plexi tones? Or is the sound more modern by nature? Does it still sound like a plexi....

I know its a modded Marshall sound at its best, and I love that sound for 80's stuff and beyond, but can it do the older tones faithfully and convincingly? I've only heard gainy clips of the amp, can it sound full with little gain?

 

[charveldan]

Someday i would like an SLO, but if i never have a better amp than my Friedman JMP i'm OK with that.

And yes Nico with a HBE, BE, gain cut, sat, fat, & C45 the tonal combo's are endless.

 

[IntenseJim]

Digital Jams,

The Friedman call do all that and more, IMHO.

 

[rupe]

Great review! I'll add a bit to it from my experience as a current Marsha/past SLO player.

1. The Friedman has a much better effects loop than the SLO.
2. The full clean on the Friedman gets into BF tones but they are a bit less sparkly/a bit more muscular...perhaps the EL34 power section is the difference.
3. The Friedman does a better job at low volume/high gain tones.
4. The Friedman (mine has dual gain/MV controls) is a bit more versatile as far as nailing clean, rhythm, and lead tones without the use of pedals. The SLO is a second set of gain/MV controls away from being the same...is that an option? (I ran a volume pedal in the loop as a solo boost...it increases volume but the gain is the same).
5. The SLO cuts through a mix better than anything else I've ever tried...its one of the most in-you-face amps I've ever played. The Marsha is close but its a bit smoother and not quite as aggressive on the upper mids as the SLO.

The SLO and Browneye (formerly Marsha) are two of the best amps out there IMO...basically two different takes on hot-rodded Marshall type tone that are each stellar in their own way.

 

[IntenseJim]

Yes, I forgot to mention the Friedman sounds wicked at all volumes....even at levels you can talk over.

I did not use the Friedman fx loop; I never use one when I play out and rarely when I even noodle around at home.


One other thing to realize is that the guys at Tone Merchants, like Soldano, are exceptional to deal with and will take care of you. Very accessable. Again, this amp is not mine but I have some experience dealing with Rob.

 

[charveldan]

Yes, I forgot to mention the Friedman sounds wicked at all volumes....even at levels you can talk over.

I did not use the Friedman fx loop; I never use one when I play out and rarely when I even noodle around at home.


One other thing to realize is that the guys at Tone Merchants, like Soldano, are exceptional to deal with and will take care of you. Very accessable. Again, this amp is not mine but I have some experience dealing with Rob.

Dave, Rob, & Tiki were great on the phone & Dave has answered every one of my emails.

 

[mikehickey]

I have never had a Soldano, but I am more than happy with my Marsha, and agree the Friedman stuff has great tones at all volume levels. Also will 2nd that dealing with Rob and Dave was a total pleasure. Total pros. I plan to give them more money soon!

 

[supersonic]

I've posted this before, but since we're on the subject........
PS: The Marsha guitar volume was not rolled down in the verses, the Slo was.
SLO (OD) https://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_so ... ID=9739347
Marsha (BE) https://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_so ... ID=9625940

 

[JTyson]

I've not owned an SLO, but I absolutely love the Metro Plexi that Dave modded for me, its one of my top 3 Marshalls of all time
I dont gig anymore, just record stuff at home in the cave, and that amp has more than proven itself in that context, and not just for high gain, it has a ton of tones hidden inside, and lends itself to different guitars amazingly well. I have a good friend who has a strat that loves classic lower gain tones as well, and its his fav Marshall that he's heard so far. It really brings out the differences between whatever you choose to plug into it and I love that

 

[Bronco]

Yes, I forgot to mention the Friedman sounds wicked at all volumes....even at levels you can talk over.

I did not use the Friedman fx loop; I never use one when I play out and rarely when I even noodle around at home.


One other thing to realize is that the guys at Tone Merchants, like Soldano, are exceptional to deal with and will take care of you. Very accessable. Again, this amp is not mine but I have some experience dealing with Rob.

Yeah man, Friedman's MVs are just insanely usable at all volumes...just sitting there watching TV, you can still be playing and it sounds great; tons of punch and clarity.

 

[GAT]

The Friedman intensejim demo'd is mine. I love it. However, I sent it back to Dave for a couple of things.

1. I'm having him install the second gain/vol mod, I should have done this in the first place.

2. He is modding the high cut to have just a slight amount of high cut instead of the bigger cut it has now.

3. I may have the clean channel installed instead of the simple clean. I think I need more tone control.

I did ask him to check out the noise issue, it does seem to have more noise than it should.

Overall, this is a wicked amp and I love it with my strats.

 

[Shark Diver]

Dave's amps are extremely quiet. I would bet it's something he can fix straight away.

I was able to watch Dave work for a year or so when I was an owner in TM. Best ear around. Really knows his stuff and can isolate and dial stuff in like no other. If I can ever get him to make a rack Marsha, Naked and Dirty Shirley I will die happy. (You promised Dave!)

It's no secret I love my SLOs. I was able to have dinner with Dave and Mike. Pretty wicked listening to those guys talking about their experiences. Rob was there snowballing some ideas. Probably my best day during the year. If Dave and Mike ever collaborate on an amp I was promised #1. I really need to get those guys together.


Jim you need to hear the Naked and Dirty Shirley.

 

[charveldan]

Dave's amps are extremely quiet. I would bet it's something he can fix straight away.

I was able to watch Dave work for a year or so when I was an owner in TM. Best ear around. Really knows his stuff and can isolate and dial stuff in like no other. If I can ever get him to make a rack Marsha, Naked and Dirty Shirley I will die happy. (You promised Dave!)

It's no secret I love my SLOs. I was able to have dinner with Dave and Mike. Pretty wicked listening to those guys talking about their experiences. Rob was there snowballing some ideas. Probably my best day during the year. If Dave and Mike ever collaborate on an amp I was promised #1. I really need to get those guys together.


Jim you need to hear the Naked and Dirty Shirley.

Kewl story, Dave's ear is a gift from God, it must have 100 shades of midz.

Plus i wanna see Marsha's rack.