Is Synergy really that good?

[Shask]

don't bother....I sold my Ultra after playing this module through the 2/90/2. I liked the Ultra a lot, but the module gets you there and it's more organic sounding than the Ultra, which has a sort of inorganic quality to it.

DMD came out with a new video today comparing these. They both sound great, IMO.

 

[buller]

For those of you with the IICP, are you able to get a good edge of breakup / light crunch on the green channel without sacrificing the saturated thrash tone on the red channel?

I like to have a channel where my neck pickup (Pearly Gates) is somewhat clean while bridge (Mighty Mite 1400) has a good crunch tone, and then have the high gain channel. My Deliverance can do this but I've been considering replacing it with the IICP since I feel I'd like the character of the high gain better. But if only one channel is usable then I don't think it's worth it. I'm using SYN1 into PS-2A btw. Other option I'm considering is the SLOII, or just keep using the Deliverance

 

[MistaGuitah]

Look, I've owned several Synergy modules, a couple of Syn 1s and a Syn 2. What drew me to Synergy to begin with was lust for the Metropolis module. Then I discovered the Dirty Shirley module and got hooked, so I bought several more. I used to run them through a Two Notes Torpedo Cab and Suhr Reactive Load IR. It provided a real fun variety of amps.

But the truth is, they won't be the same as the actual amps so don't bother with comparison videos and all that. As far as I'm concerned, you'll get better tone with a good tube power amp than just with the Syn slot devices.

The Metropolis Metroplex was my favorite module. I love the VH4, Dirty Shirley, and BE modules also. but the one that really surprised me was the Morgan AC. That's one of Synergy's best modules for cleaner, light crunch stuff.

Honestly, their prices have jumped so they're not as appealing as when they were more accessible. I was able to buy two new Syn 1 devices new for $300 at Sweetwater, and subsequently scored several modules between $175 to $280. This was probably around 2015 to 2018 back then. Now just a Syn1 with 1 module costs about $1,000. They're not really that affordable now so I just stick with Fractal. I would love to acquire a Syn1 and some modules but not willing to pay that much.

 

[RedB4Black]

But the truth is, they won't be the same as the actual amps so don't bother with comparison videos and all that. As far as I'm concerned, you'll get better tone with a good tube power amp than just with the Syn slot devices.

I sold my Recto, Uber and Deliverance heads after a/bing side by side with the modules through a Fryette 2/90/2. I could get them to sound almost identical and I generally preferred the Syn setup over the heads. The only head I’ve preferred more than the module is the 6505 1992 original vs the 6505 module. It was only slightly better.

I still have 6 amp heads… but those don’t have comparable modules. Though I could probably get by with the Killer Cali module over a few of them if I ever wanted to slim down the amp collection

 

[gibsonash]

I sold my Recto, Uber and Deliverance heads after a/bing side by side with the modules through a Fryette 2/90/2. I could get them to sound almost identical and I generally preferred the Syn setup over the heads. The only head I’ve preferred more than the module is the 6505 1992 original vs the 6505 module. It was only slightly better.

I still have 5 amp heads… but those don’t have comparable modules. Though I could probably get by with the Killer Cali module over a few of them if I ever wanted to slim down the amp collection

I m definitively interessed if you try the Killer Cali vs some kind of Marshall head

 

[RedB4Black]

I m definitively interessed if you try the Killer Cali vs some kind of Marshall head

I have more boutique modded Marshall style amps…Monomyth Skeleton Key, Ground Zero Helliion and also a Wizard MC2. The Killer Cali isn’t exactly the same as those but it’s in the same ballpark and definitely hangs in terms of quality of tone.

 

[TheGreatGreen]

I sold my Recto, Uber and Deliverance heads after a/bing side by side with the modules through a Fryette 2/90/2. I could get them to sound almost identical and I generally preferred the Syn setup over the heads. The only head I’ve preferred more than the module is the 6505 1992 original vs the 6505 module. It was only slightly better.

I still have 6 amp heads… but those don’t have comparable modules. Though I could probably get by with the Killer Cali module over a few of them if I ever wanted to slim down the amp collection

Agree. All the Synergy vs Real Head comparison videos I’ve watched show the Synergy to sound almost identical to the head, but the Synergy usually sounds just a hair more modern.

I think it’s about time I finally pull the trigger on a Syn2.

 

[Deleted member 77333]

Gimmick -

 

[Rackman]

The thing with Synergy modules is you have to pick your power amp. The Syn 50/50 is not horrible, but the LXII is better due to upgraded flat pack transformers. If you want to move to a bigger power amp the 2/90/2 is hard to argue with. I think that's where you start getting near-parity to high end amps. If you go up a notch to a Hammer 320 or Fryette Classic or something the Synergy arguably has the advantage.

 

[TheGreatGreen]

Anybody good enough friends with Rick St Pierre of Wizard to ask him to build the most kickass monoblock poweramp ever made?

 

[Shask]

I sold my Recto, Uber and Deliverance heads after a/bing side by side with the modules through a Fryette 2/90/2. I could get them to sound almost identical and I generally preferred the Syn setup over the heads. The only head I’ve preferred more than the module is the 6505 1992 original vs the 6505 module. It was only slightly better.

I still have 6 amp heads… but those don’t have comparable modules. Though I could probably get by with the Killer Cali module over a few of them if I ever wanted to slim down the amp collection

I find Synergy to have a tighter clearer sound than the full heads, which has pretty much always been true of rack systems vs full heads.

Yeah, the amps that rely heavily on having a fat power amp, like the 5150, are the ones where I find the biggest difference also. That is where I find using the power amp section of one of those types of heads helps over using a rack power amp, which are usually tighter.

I think people that buy into it just trying to find a way to get the same thing cheaper is not looking at it correctly. That is really not what Synergy is for.

 

[Shask]

The thing with Synergy modules is you have to pick your power amp. The Syn 50/50 is not horrible, but the LXII is better due to upgraded flat pack transformers. If you want to move to a bigger power amp the 2/90/2 is hard to argue with. I think that's where you start getting near-parity to high end amps. If you go up a notch to a Hammer 320 or Fryette Classic or something the Synergy arguably has the advantage.

I really like the Mesa 2:90 with it, but my favorite lately has been the power amp section of my SLO modded JCA100HDM head. As I mentioned in the last post, just having a big fat poweramp that has some saggy chug to it can really help the more modern modules. Many of the rack power amps are much tighter than actual head power sections.

 

[Rackman]

I think people that buy into it just trying to find a way to get the same thing cheaper is not looking at it correctly. That is really not what Synergy is for.

Agreed. There's two things that IMO Synergy excels at:

• Studio applications where you want to have a lot of amps but space/budget/amp availability doesn't allow it.
• Compactness - in 3U you have have 8 channels, switchable, with 100w or 50w/50w tube power. For a guitarist that covers a lot of different material that's a huge number of amps, pedals etc. you don't need to bring.

 

[TheGreatGreen]

Agreed. There's two things that IMO Synergy excels at:

• Studio applications where you want to have a lot of amps but space/budget/amp availability doesn't allow it.
• Compactness - in 3U you have have 8 channels, switchable, with 100w or 50w/50w tube power. For a guitarist that covers a lot of different material that's a huge number of amps, pedals etc. you don't need to bring.

Similar to your second point, I’ve always thought of Synergy as a way to build your dream “amp” for versatility with minimal compromise in sound, at least in the sense that you can have 4 or even up to 8 switchable channels, all with dedicated physical knobs, in a package about as big as a single amp head. For anybody who needs more than your standard clean/crunch/high gain spread of tones all available from a foot switch, that seems hard to beat.

 

[Rackman]

Similar to your second point, I’ve always thought of Synergy as a way to build your dream “amp” for versatility with minimal compromise in sound, at least in the sense that you can have 4 or even up to 8 switchable channels, all with dedicated physical knobs, in a package about as big as a single amp head. For anybody who needs more than your standard clean/crunch/high gain spread of tones all available from a foot switch, that seems hard to beat.

Yeah the place a lot of amps fall down for me is I really want 4 basic sounds - clean, "SRV", crunch, high gain. I can get that 4th "SRV" sound with a pedal, but then my rig gets a lot more complicated with either a more complicated snake, or switchers pedal drawer etc. Synergy solves that problem in 2u - one TDLX and one Killer Kali and I'm good to go.

I've been using the Bogner Ecstasy 104BV live recently which also solves the same problem, albeit in a slightly different way.

 

[buller]

Anybody good enough friends with Rick St Pierre of Wizard to ask him to build the most kickass monoblock poweramp ever made?

How bout a Wizard module while he's at it?

 

[Elric]

I like the feel of a rack/power amp setup a lot. I think I prefer them to amps, TBH, with the right power amp. Been using the KSR PA100R as my preferred power amp with a pair of Syn2s its a crazy rig. It offers a lot of control w/ multiple tube types, 100W, NFB, Depth, Presence, HiFi switch, Dual Masters, Internal load. Pretty massive rig, feels like it can just crush the kind of tones I go for and more.

I also have the LXII and the Syn5050 which both can sound excellent in bridge mode, dialed in the pres.

They’re pretty similar although I do prefer the LXII a little bit for the clarity. It also fun to patch a Syn2 into a head and use the heads power amp. It’s really a blast and everything is super high quality. I am considering offing a bunch of my heads to make some space. I’d be keeping the Syn2s and the KSR along with a couple of choice heads.

Still not sure I want to go there yet, though. Every time I fire a head up with the intent of selling I change my mind, worrying about sellers remorse. LOL.

 

[grrr_me_scary]

I really like the Mesa 2:90 with it, but my favorite lately has been the power amp section of my SLO modded JCA100HDM head. As I mentioned in the last post, just having a big fat poweramp that has some saggy chug to it can really help the more modern modules. Many of the rack power amps are much tighter than actual head power sections.

I had purchased the Soldano rack that came out awhile back, and it sounded great through every EL34 amp I had.

It sounded great through a modded SLO with the 6L6's but I didn't have any Synergy modules at the time, otherwise, I would have definitely tried it out through the power amp section of that modded SLO.

I had the Synergy 5050 and the modules sounded good through it but when I had tried the Synergy stuff through a Mesa Boogie MK V 90-Watt head, then I found it sounded a lot better through the power amp section of that amp, so I'm sure the 2:90 must give it a real kick in the ass!

One cool thing about using the MK V was that when I had switched between channels, then the tone/volume/feel would change depending upon the channel of the MK V.

It really did add another tonal option for each module.

I have tried the Synergy stuff through some other amps, and I feel the MK V was the best out of all of them plus I still had the "3" channels of the MK V to pull from as well

I am curious how they would sound through a 2:100 power amp (your statement about the 2:90 and mine about the MK V have made me curious about the 2:100 especially since I have the DRect).

 

[RedB4Black]

Anybody good enough friends with Rick St Pierre of Wizard to ask him to build the most kickass monoblock poweramp ever made?

I know there are at least 2 somewhere in the world. I remember SteveK had a pair that Rick built for him long ago. Might be able to find the pics he posted here on RT. Who knows what happened to them after he passed.

 

[TheGreatGreen]

I know there are at least 2 somewhere in the world. I remember SteveK had a pair that Rick built for him long ago. Might be able to find the pics he posted here on RT. Who knows what happened to them after he passed.

Oh interesting, I never knew that. I bet they're awesome amps.