Friedman JJ-100 where’s the hype?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Chuggs_The_Barbarian
  • Start date Start date
I felt that too. Friedman amps are pretty dark and polished. I know some people love them. But, I won't buy their stuff.
 
Redneckstomp said:
I felt that too. Friedman amps are pretty dark and polished. I know some people love them. But, I won't buy their stuff.
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Exactly. Well I’ve tried to like it. It’s very disappointing for sure.
 
I had the BE100 Deluxe and didn't like it much, for the same general reasons mentioned. I think it sounded very smooth and polished and wasn't what I wanted.

Now I have a JJ Jr and Butterslax. Still polished, I guess that's the sound, but the Slax has an incredible clean that dirties up so damn well. Channel 2 with the thump cranked up is pretty nice too, but not necessarily 'aggressive' to me. The JJ Jr is nice for a small amp with an XLR out for recording. I don't just love the thing they do otherwise.

I think I prefer the JCM800 and even EVH amps. I really want to try a Splawn QR or Nitro.
 
UpInSmoke said:
I had the BE100 Deluxe and didn't like it much, for the same general reasons mentioned. I think it sounded very smooth and polished and wasn't what I wanted.

Now I have a JJ Jr and Butterslax. Still polished, I guess that's the sound, but the Slax has an incredible clean that dirties up so damn well. Channel 2 with the thump cranked up is pretty nice too, but not necessarily 'aggressive' to me. The JJ Jr is nice for a small amp with an XLR out for recording. I don't just love the thing they do otherwise.

I think I prefer the JCM800 and even EVH amps. I really want to try a Splawn QR or Nitro.
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Never had the chance to play those either. I have a heavily modded jcm 800 that sounds superior to the Friedman stuff.
 
UpInSmoke said:
I had the BE100 Deluxe and didn't like it much, for the same general reasons mentioned. I think it sounded very smooth and polished and wasn't what I wanted...
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My BE 100 Deluxe is smooth yes, but not necessarily dark. It can sound bright with the voicing and frequency switches in the middle.
 
Spent a small fortune trying to love Friedman amps, must be my ear!! ??‍♂️ The Custom 50 was the closest one that worked for me but my Monomyth Skeleton Key just killed it.

Absolutely love the two Friedman JEL 412’s with 25 watt G12M’s I have!!
 
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Had a BE100 Deluxe. Didn’t need three channels and wasn’t aggressive enough. Traded for a earlier BE100. Love it.
Not muddy at all. Excellent amp.
And it does the plexi thing as well. Mine has plenty of gain without a boost.

It’s not a Marshall it’s a Friedman.
 
I had a first version hand wired 2011-12 BE 100 that had a cool mod; switchable to a more open/raw tone. That would be a must for me...in that mode it was a modded Marshall all day. Clips of the Deluxe sound similar?
The earlier BE; definitely not my thing.
 
If you’re expecting a raw sounding modded Marshall, It’s not you, it’s the amp. It’s just boring sounding in comparison. Something definitely got lost in translation with the current gen line of his amps compared to his early Marsha amps. Those things killed.

I like the butterslax but wasn’t enough for me to keep it. The new new SS V2 sounds hella promising though. I want to try one.
 
I’ve seen a few for sale.I don’t hate the amp. It’s just boring.
 
That's why I never invested in the BE100 or JJ, too homogenized for my ear.

If I had a choice of Friedman it would be the Dirty Shirley or Smallbox 50.
 
i dont think friedmans sound bad, they seem to do a lot of things very well, i just never hear anything that has me reaching for the debit card to drop $4k. if i needed one good all around amp for a cover band or whatever purposes id probably be looking at a be100
 
I've had a JJ100 for about 7 years and still love it. It is definitely a smooth and refined amp. Bear in mind I wasn't looking for any "Marshall type" sound and not trying to nail anyone's tone. I just wanted a good high gain amp. If you want something less refined, raw, more Marshall sounding, etc., probably not the amp for you. The JJ definitely doesn't do that.

I wouldn't really call it dark either, it just depends on how you EQ it but more importantly I think your speakers. I've tried the Friedman cab with many different speakers and some configurations were actually very bright. I liked the original combo of Greenbacks/V30s but now am really loving the X pattern of Mesa C90s and V30s. I also liked Celestion T75/V30 in an X pattern too.
 
I have the JJ Jr and I’ll usually start with all of the tone controls and presence at 3/4 of the way up (3 o’clock) and then make some cuts from there (if any) depending on the guitar. I also boost the JBE channel to tighten it up and get some more attack. If I want a more classic rock sound, I’ll use the BE channel with both the gain and presence around 9 o’clock. Using a boost with this setting kicks it up into a hard rock sound and essentially makes it like a 3 channel amp.

Not sure how well this will translate with the JJ100 and power tube difference, but hopefully it will help.
 
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