Friedman BE100, Naked vs Splawn Quickrod...

[GtarLover]

OK, so I have an older QR that I love the sound of, total RAWK!

Just wondering whether anyone has had both of these and what the comparison is, tone wise and function wise.

PS...I have GAS for the Friedman BE 100

 

[Gadzz]

Same gas here just pre ordered a Steve Stevens Friedman I have a Street Rod which I love but had to have a Friedman also!!

 

[glassjaw7]

From a previous Friedman/Splawn RT thread:


Decided I wanted to A/B my new (to me) Marsha against a QR since I've always liked the Splawn...I figured if the difference was minimal, I'd sell the Friedman, buy the QR, and have a nice sum of $$$ left to play with. I've played this particular QR at my buddy's music store a few times and knew that I liked it so that's where we did the comparison. Both amps were played through the Splawn 4x12.

It took very little time to understand why the Marsha is worth the money you pay for it. Although the QR is a great sounding amp, I was shocked by how much bigger, deeper, and more 3D the Marsha was when played back to back. The Marsha's notes just seemed to have this depth and swirl to them that's hard to describe, but easy to hear. The QR can have a harshness to the high end that you really have to dial out whereas that trait simply doesn't exist with the Marsha (although if you dime the treble and presence it can sound pretty ratty...just don't do that). No signs of flub in the Marsha's low end at all, even with bass and mids dimed. The clean channel was also more complex than the QR cleans, but I didn't spend too much time on that comparison.
Overall, the Marsha was clearly superior to the QR tonally...a QR owner who was present was in full agreement. I still think the QR is a cool amp, but now I understand what all the Marsha hype has been about. It simply has that "extra 10%" that most other amps don't have.

If you've been on the fence about this amp, get off it and place your order.


Of course, that's one opinion but that seems to be the general consensus. Do search on this topic and you'll find Rig Talk likes the Friedman>Splawn by about 2 to 1.

 

[suhrimmetal]

Can't speak on behalf of the Naked... which probably even sits with a little darker mids and gain structure than the BE100......

...but, the Splawn QR and BE100 are completely different beasts. Generically... the QR is based off a hot rodded JCM800 while the BE100 if not mistaken is based off a modded, super pushed Plexi platform. The QR is more a more open and sterile amp to my ears.. sometimes 'cold' sounding but then I've heard some very good tones come from them too.. Mid to mid upper mid voiced amp and I always found that notes seem to die on the strings.. if that makes sense.. just overall lacked the harmonics that I find I like in my amps... but Im being very picky and judgemental... the QR is a good amp and I"ve heard the newer versions are better and a bit less open which is good.

Now the BE100... Darker voiced mids but not in a over compressed or saturated way. Warm thump of attack with string separation, articulation, and great harmonics. Amp responds to your right and left hand perfectly... plenty of gain on tap and more tonal shaping options with be/hbe and sat and c45. In my opinion one of the best amps out there and the tone it produces is ideal Friedman and unique all its own.. One of the very, very few amps I would buy and play gladly in a heartbeat. Just my 2 cents without going into great detail. Cheerz

 

[metalmaniac93]

Can't speak on behalf of the Naked... which probably even sits with a little darker mids and gain structure than the BE100......

...but, the Splawn QR and BE100 are completely different beasts. Generically... the QR is based off a hot rodded JCM800 while the BE100 if not mistaken is based off a modded, super pushed Plexi platform. The QR is more a more open and sterile amp to my ears.. sometimes 'cold' sounding but then I've heard some very good tones come from them too.. Mid to mid upper mid voiced amp and I always found that notes seem to die on the strings.. if that makes sense.. just overall lacked the harmonics that I find I like in my amps... but Im being very picky and judgemental... the QR is a good amp and I"ve heard the newer versions are better and a bit less open which is good.

Now the BE100... Darker voiced mids but not in a over compressed or saturated way. Warm thump of attack with string separation, articulation, and great harmonics. Amp responds to your right and left hand perfectly... plenty of gain on tap and more tonal shaping options with be/hbe and sat and c45. In my opinion one of the best amps out there and the tone it produces is ideal Friedman and unique all its own.. One of the very, very few amps I would buy and play gladly in a heartbeat. Just my 2 cents without going into great detail. Cheerz

Nice review!!!

 

[suhrimmetal]

Can't speak on behalf of the Naked... which probably even sits with a little darker mids and gain structure than the BE100......

...but, the Splawn QR and BE100 are completely different beasts. Generically... the QR is based off a hot rodded JCM800 while the BE100 if not mistaken is based off a modded, super pushed Plexi platform. The QR is more a more open and sterile amp to my ears.. sometimes 'cold' sounding but then I've heard some very good tones come from them too.. Mid to mid upper mid voiced amp and I always found that notes seem to die on the strings.. if that makes sense.. just overall lacked the harmonics that I find I like in my amps... but Im being very picky and judgemental... the QR is a good amp and I"ve heard the newer versions are better and a bit less open which is good.

Now the BE100... Darker voiced mids but not in a over compressed or saturated way. Warm thump of attack with string separation, articulation, and great harmonics. Amp responds to your right and left hand perfectly... plenty of gain on tap and more tonal shaping options with be/hbe and sat and c45. In my opinion one of the best amps out there and the tone it produces is ideal Friedman and unique all its own.. One of the very, very few amps I would buy and play gladly in a heartbeat. Just my 2 cents without going into great detail. Cheerz

Nice review!!!

Thanks bro

 

[Jofipe]

Yeah good info! How does the BE100 differ from the Naked, tonewise? Is the naked as "hairy?

 

[metalmaniac93]

The BE-100 is truly one of the greatest hot-rodded Marshall style amps out there IMO.

 

[colimofsmoke]

interesting read, borderline gas for a Friedman now. but after hearing some Friedman amp demo videos, it seems that these kind of discussions should come with the disclaimer: "The superlative terms used in this thread apply only within the scope of all things modded Marshall." Even the Naked (designed to be used for down-tuned modern metal, is approximately the tagline, i believe) still just sounds like a modded JCM800 to me. it is YT vids, I know, and shitty mac laptop speakers, but I still primarily hear the DNA of 80's rock in there. I might feel totally different I ever got to play through one. Just interesting, the snippet above about the BE100 would mean something totally different if the exact same words were applied to an Engl or what have you (I know it doesn't totally compare, obviously anyone who called most Engl's "not compressed" would need their head examined).

:end ramble


ahh, the internet

 

[Jofipe]

Whats ENGL?

 

[colimofsmoke]

lol. i should have ended with "flame suit on" i suppose.

 

[metalmaniac93]

interesting read, borderline gas for a Friedman now. but after hearing some Friedman amp demo videos, it seems that these kind of discussions should come with the disclaimer: "The superlative terms used in this thread apply only within the scope of all things modded Marshall." Even the Naked (designed to be used for down-tuned modern metal, is approximately the tagline, i believe) still just sounds like a modded JCM800 to me. it is YT vids, I know, and shitty mac laptop speakers, but I still primarily hear the DNA of 80's rock in there. I might feel totally different I ever got to play through one. Just interesting, the snippet above about the BE100 would mean something totally different if the exact same words were applied to an Engl or what have you (I know it doesn't totally compare, obviously anyone who called most Engl's "not compressed" would need their head examined).

:end ramble


ahh, the internet

Oh the Engl's are definitely compressed, but in a good way IMO especially the Savage 120!!!

 

[glassjaw7]

Naked is not hairy, it's smooth and dark (not muffled but emphasis is lower in mids) with less bite than the Marsha. Haven't played one but I had all these questions for Dave when he modded my recto and we talked a bit about the Naked.

I think it sounds monstrous and beautiful in this clip. Plenty of bark and roar, but not as "crispy" and frail as many Marshall tones I hear. This one's mean!

Naked is at 3:58

 

[colimofsmoke]

interesting read, borderline gas for a Friedman now. but after hearing some Friedman amp demo videos, it seems that these kind of discussions should come with the disclaimer: "The superlative terms used in this thread apply only within the scope of all things modded Marshall." Even the Naked (designed to be used for down-tuned modern metal, is approximately the tagline, i believe) still just sounds like a modded JCM800 to me. it is YT vids, I know, and shitty mac laptop speakers, but I still primarily hear the DNA of 80's rock in there. I might feel totally different I ever got to play through one. Just interesting, the snippet above about the BE100 would mean something totally different if the exact same words were applied to an Engl or what have you (I know it doesn't totally compare, obviously anyone who called most Engl's "not compressed" would need their head examined).

:end ramble


ahh, the internet

Oh the Engl's are definitely compressed, but in a good way IMO especially the Savage 120!!!

yeah, i know, I love them. particularly the Powerball II. kind of not my point tho.

 

[cardinal]

I played a Friedman KS modded Reinhardt and it was not stuck in '80s rock land. I like 90s grungy metal and loved the Friedman. Maybe it could do more "modern" stuff, but I'm not the right guy to answer that.

 

[GtarLover]

Can't speak on behalf of the Naked... which probably even sits with a little darker mids and gain structure than the BE100......

...but, the Splawn QR and BE100 are completely different beasts. Generically... the QR is based off a hot rodded JCM800 while the BE100 if not mistaken is based off a modded, super pushed Plexi platform. The QR is more a more open and sterile amp to my ears.. sometimes 'cold' sounding but then I've heard some very good tones come from them too.. Mid to mid upper mid voiced amp and I always found that notes seem to die on the strings.. if that makes sense.. just overall lacked the harmonics that I find I like in my amps... but Im being very picky and judgemental... the QR is a good amp and I"ve heard the newer versions are better and a bit less open which is good.

Now the BE100... Darker voiced mids but not in a over compressed or saturated way. Warm thump of attack with string separation, articulation, and great harmonics. Amp responds to your right and left hand perfectly... plenty of gain on tap and more tonal shaping options with be/hbe and sat and c45. In my opinion one of the best amps out there and the tone it produces is ideal Friedman and unique all its own.. One of the very, very few amps I would buy and play gladly in a heartbeat. Just my 2 cents without going into great detail. Cheerz

I appreciate your review here Cody. Excellent explantion/comparison...

I heard Phil X on YT playing the BE 100. Sounded great AND I still really like my QR.

Thanks to all who have added to this discussion.

Would anyone consider the BE 100 a kind of one-trick-pony or does it have versatility to do more than the "hot-rodded Marshall" thing?



Still gassing for the BE 100 at this moment

 

[Walnuts]

Over the past year, I've had a BE-100 (w/ JBE Mod) and a Naked. I literally had the BE for 6 hours and sent it back. Although it is a VERY cool amp, it didn't fit my style at all. I'm sure that Dave gets questions about the differences all the time and until I played both amps, I was always trying to make a comarison myself. The truth is that they are both VERY different amps. Overall, the Naked is a very smooth amp perfectly suited for anyone that primarily plays in drop tunings. It records insanely well and has a great articulate bottom end. When I ordered mine, I also added a sat switch which also gives it a bit more gain that, in my opinion, really brings the amp alive. If you are really looking for a good representation of how the amp truly sounds, I'd have posted some pre-production demos in the forum that do the amp justice. Also, the only accurate sounding video on You Tube seems to be the Lynch Mob show that someone recorded. If you search "Friedman Naked" you can find it pretty easily.

 

[Greg Riley]

I own the Friedman BE-100. I've played all the Splawns..including the new Supersport Combo (which is really cool). I played around for several hours last year at the Nashville Amp Expo with Scott's Charvel. Great amp's..and Scott, Brian (Tree), Brian, and Dal are all great guys. Just like David Friedman. The other guitarist in my band bought a Competition while we was there. He loves it. He also owned a Nitro. Both great amps. But I prefer the BE-100 for myself with a 4x12 playing out with. The Splawn's products to me..are what a Marshall shoud be. The BE-100 is a beast of gain and articulation. It responds without hestiation with clarity and punch. But it comes down to what you like. I dig the little 6V6 22 watt Splawn Supersport with 2 channels and the 3 gears.. cool little combo. The Friedman Pink Tace sounds like a low wattage beast from the video's the guys put up from the LA AMP Expo. I love EL-84's cranked open. But the BE-100 is my main amp for a EL-34 based amp for 1 or 2 channel. Multi Channel (3 or more) Bogner Ecstacy EL-34. 6L6 based amp and low tunings..the Rhodes Colossus sounds great : )

 

[GtarLover]

Hey Greg, thanks for that post. I really appreciate hearing about your other guitar player as well.

Thanks to all who contributed their experience, it really helps.

It does sound like, as with any amp, it comes down to personal taste. I have truly LOVED my QR ever since I got it. I just have heard some of the BE 100 clips and the articulation in the low end plus the "chewyness" just kills!

I am probably just going to have to get one and decide. Might have some sweet gear on the market as a result

Love to hear from any others on this...

 

[hunter]

You guys talking amps here, that are price wise in different leagues. QR at about 1800$ with all kinds of fancy tolex options, and Friedman about twice that price in a standard box.

Not that this would matter for the one seeking tone, but it should be mentioned as it makes it somewhat like - what do you prefer, Peavey JSX or Diezel VH4 - kinda comparison.