JVM versus EVH 5150 III

[strungup]

This is not going to end well

I thought you called these amps chinese blender parts

Well I hear Mr. Fortin can fix em. I feel like a high gainer, without the high price tag. And I'm almost 99% sure that I'd sound the same on a $1100 dollar amp as I would a $3900 dollar amp.

You should check out Ralphs Fortin JVM since your so close. It might help you decide. I am pretty impressed with mine.

 

[shreder75]

hmm..JVM or 5150 III?

that's simple...

you want a cameron...just saying....

but that's not important right now..

*scurries away*

But I'm not looking for forum street credit, so no Cameron. And the best amps that had anything to do with Cameron always had a Marshall logo on them.

oh...so much for my for my 'can't beat em then join them' tactics....I'm doomed to be a pariah...le sad...

but seriously
don't you have a fortin? doesn't that do the high gainzorz for you?

What about a JVM vs. splawn?

you went there didn't you
what about it? =D

 

[RockNRun]

I've owned both (and as of now, sold both - never really LOVED either one). Not sure about band/gig usage as I'm just a home recording hobbyist, but I had better results tracking parts for tunes with the 5150 III, just liked the way it cut through and complimented the QR. And as mentioned, that 2nd channel, it has a nice raw, organic open crunch to it, toss a boost pedal there and you've got your nice lead tones. Can be a little fizzy though with higher gain settings (where the JVM was not), but using (mic'ing) a well worn v30 and some post EQ easily massaged that out. The clean channel was nothing to sneeze at either. And check that bias on the 5150 III, if you test one in a store keep in mind its most likely ultra cold (mine was at 15ma), sounded much better when I got it up closer to 30, and even then, it was not as noisy as my JVM410H. Honestly though, both are nice, fun, versatile amps.

 

[the rossness]

I've had both a JVM and a 5153 at the same time. The EVH has more of a liquid feel to channel 3. It's one ferocious channel. I hated channel 2!!!!!!!

The JVM is a good all around amp and can cover classic rock to metal, but isn't as saturated as the evh is. You can get it to sound good, but really, the amps two different beasts.

For cheaper high gain, why not try a used MESA Road King or some of the MTS stuff?

 

[Lution]

5150 III gets my vote. I think it just sounds better all around. The JVM is cool and has some good tones in it, but there's something I didn't like. It almost sounded "generic" or something. I don't know. Tried a couple of them through different cabs and though it was just so-so.

The III on the other hand was great and inspiring on every channel. It does have that "wiry" scrapy VH thing going on though. That's either something you love or hate IMO.

+1 on the generic thing

My best friend had one and I pretty much hated it. I didnt want to insult him when he had it but after he sold it I told him that I thought it sounded horrible . No matter what settings or what channel/mode or whatever, it always sounded...synthetic or something

Ive only played a 5150III in the store at low volume and remember really liking channel 2 and channel 3. I was disappointed in the clean channel thinking it was gonna have that 'Fender clean'...but it didnt

The only trouble with trying out amps in the store at low volume is you never ever will hear the amp as it is truly is meant to sound. The clean channel on the 5153, when brought up to gig volume level, does in fact give up a very nice fender blackface type of clean that gets close to, but not quite as good as, my old 6L6 Shiva cleans.

So far, I'm very happy with my 5150 III. Cleans are very useable, channel 2 is killer, channel 3 is aggressive, tight, and smooth, but still forgiving for lead playing.

I cannot really compare the JVM to it since I've only played a JVM at the store, so I don't really know what it can do at gig level.

 

[killertone]

There is some serious hilarity in this thread.

 

[Lution]

There is some serious hilarity in this thread.

 

[mysticaxe]

Question about the JVM footswitch - Can you set it up so that:
- button 1 is clean w/ reverb,
- button 2 is one of the channel 2 modes with EQ and gain,
- button 3 is a different channel 2 modes with different EQ and gain
- button 4 is an effects loop toggle

If so, that would be hellacool...

 

[JonVengeance]

Question about the JVM footswitch - Can you set it up so that:
- button 1 is clean w/ reverb,
- button 2 is one of the channel 2 modes with EQ and gain,
- button 3 is a different channel 2 modes with different EQ and gain
- button 4 is an effects loop toggle

If so, that would be hellacool...

Yes, You can definitely do that. You can set up each footswitch button to include the channel, mode, master 1 or master 2, reverb level and effects loop on or off.

 

[thiswaythatway]

Question about the JVM footswitch - Can you set it up so that:
- button 1 is clean w/ reverb,
- button 2 is one of the channel 2 modes with EQ and gain,
- button 3 is a different channel 2 modes with different EQ and gain
- button 4 is an effects loop toggle

If so, that would be hellacool...

You can use a MIDI controller with it but the MIDI won't remember different settings of a gain knob but it will remember the different modes. So you could use MIDI to switch between all 6 modes of a JVM 210H, since I have a G-System that is one VERY attractive bonus.

 

[killertone]

There is some serious hilarity in this thread.

Well, for one thing, ^ that ^ is funny. Nicely done.

I was referring to some sweeping generalizations. That is to be expected in a thread like this so it's basically par for the course.

 

[Audioholic]

There is some serious hilarity in this thread.

Well, for one thing, ^ that ^ is funny. Nicely done.

I was referring to some sweeping generalizations. That is to be expected in a thread like this so it's basically par for the course.

Then please share YOUR thoughts and add to the insanity ;-)

 

[killertone]

There is some serious hilarity in this thread.

Well, for one thing, ^ that ^ is funny. Nicely done.

I was referring to some sweeping generalizations. That is to be expected in a thread like this so it's basically par for the course.

Then please share YOUR thoughts and add to the insanity ;-)

Even though the amp sounds terrible, is made by 7 year old Cambodian boys, and is made from leftover blender parts I would have to go with the JVM. Besides, I really think the tears of those young Cambodian boys it what gives it that special mojo.

 

[mysticaxe]

Question about the JVM footswitch - Can you set it up so that:
- button 1 is clean w/ reverb,
- button 2 is one of the channel 2 modes with EQ and gain,
- button 3 is a different channel 2 modes with different EQ and gain
- button 4 is an effects loop toggle

If so, that would be hellacool...

Yes, You can definitely do that. You can set up each footswitch button to include the channel, mode, master 1 or master 2, reverb level and effects loop on or off.

You can use a MIDI controller with it but the MIDI won't remember different settings of a gain knob but it will remember the different modes. So you could use MIDI to switch between all 6 modes of a JVM 210H, since I have a G-System that is one VERY attractive bonus.

I figured the MIDI controller bit, and that sounds very interesting. That's one of the big things the JVM has going for it - it can be integrated into a more complicated rig without the assistance of an amp gizmo.

I was just trying to figure out if the stock footswitch had a method of saving the EQ/gain positions when storing a preset. I don't see how that would be done, but figure it is worth asking.

 

[nevusofota]

Question about the JVM footswitch - Can you set it up so that:
- button 1 is clean w/ reverb,
- button 2 is one of the channel 2 modes with EQ and gain,
- button 3 is a different channel 2 modes with different EQ and gain
- button 4 is an effects loop toggle

If so, that would be hellacool...

Yes, You can definitely do that. You can set up each footswitch button to include the channel, mode, master 1 or master 2, reverb level and effects loop on or off.

You can use a MIDI controller with it but the MIDI won't remember different settings of a gain knob but it will remember the different modes. So you could use MIDI to switch between all 6 modes of a JVM 210H, since I have a G-System that is one VERY attractive bonus.

I figured the MIDI controller bit, and that sounds very interesting. That's one of the big things the JVM has going for it - it can be integrated into a more complicated rig without the assistance of an amp gizmo.

I was just trying to figure out if the stock footswitch had a method of saving the EQ/gain positions when storing a preset. I don't see how that would be done, but figure it is worth asking.

The amp gizmo shouldn't be a deal breaker. I forgot I have one in my rig. Besides, the 5150III mini is MIDI compatible.

 

[zewango]

I liked the 5153 better. Didn't like the JVM at all. Had a Splawn modded Marshall next the JVM no contest.

 

[Gainfreak]

There is some serious hilarity in this thread.

Well, for one thing, ^ that ^ is funny. Nicely done.

I was referring to some sweeping generalizations. That is to be expected in a thread like this so it's basically par for the course.

Then please share YOUR thoughts and add to the insanity ;-)

Even though the amp sounds terrible, is made by 7 year old Cambodian boys, and is made from leftover blender parts I would have to go with the JVM. Besides, I really think the tears of those young Cambodian boys it what gives it that special mojo.

 

[the4thlast1]

I have owned a couple of the 5150 III's.... A good friend of mine has owned 2 JVMs that I have tried several times and I have played a couple others... Both are good but I prefer the EVH.. I play heavier styles so I wouldnt be the best to ask about crunch tones. However the one thing I felt worth mentioning is that I own two of the 5150III's at the moment, they sound the same. I have also compared one of my EVHs to a friends,...sounded the same....All 4 JVMs I tried sounded different.

 

[rupe]

I played both and came away preferring the 5153. I wanted to like the JVM but it just didn't feel right to me, whereas the EVH felt great (if a little hard/stiff sounding). One thing that I noticed about the 5153 is that it sounded better through its own cab than it did through an ENGL, Splawn, or Recto 4x12. I would love to hear one thats been well broken in to see if some of that hardness/stiffness goes away.
Bottom line is they both sounded good and I could easily gig with either one. That said, if I were looking for an affordable high gain head, I would include the ENGL Savage in my search...it was my favorite out of a long list of high-gainers that I checked out last year.

 

[Soundguy213]

I cant speak for the JVM, but my 5152's Green channel has some nice rock tone with the gain around 12-1 o'clock area. it sounds a little strange at first but after i played with it for a while your ears start to pick out what your looking for. I haven't tried the 5153, but i wouldn't imagine it being terribly different that the 5152.

All in all (and this is my opinion), i think that the player really makes the tone. If you notice, usually great players sound mostly the same through any amp or rig setups you run them though. They just sound like them. So i think if you work with a particular amp or eq setup or stompbox or whatever. The longer you play/practice with it, the more you can make it sound the way you want. Simply put, it's all in the hands. (again, this is just my humble opinion)