Looking for the "perfect " channel switcher

[Stradazone]

I own a Classic + and its far better than any Marshall amp, BUT you have to be able to bring your chops. Its not full of compression and gain it will show every flaw in your playing.

That said with new fresh tubes and some tweaking of the feedback control this amp is one of the best sounding channel switchers out there. Love mine and it is a long time keeper!

Does the gain channel on the Classic + takes boosts well. I'm not into super high gain but I need compression for solos ala Lukather /Neil Schon.
My last amp was an Elmwood Modena 60 for a reference.

If you are into Luke/Schon/Landau and/or after the classic '80s fluid-gained-out LA studio lead tone... you might be better off with the CAA OD100SE+... which the 2nd channel w/ boost is a clone of the CAA 3+SE preamp... which Lukather, Landau, EVH and a bunch of others used in the '80s.

Just a thought.

Yes this!

 

[nakoshoko]

Thanks for the suggestions guys!

 

[Shawn Lutz]

Only you can decide what is perfect for you . I personally don't thing perfection exists in channel switchers but the Bogner 101B is pretty darn close for me.

 

[Red_Label]

I don't understand why a Friedman BE100 hasn't been mentioned yet. I've owned or had possession of nearly every amp listed in this thread and the one that haunts me is the BE100. I had a friend's in the man cave for a month and it still haunts me. The XTC Classic that I had was great. The Shiva was great. And on and on. But the BE is just a monster that I'd take it over all of those in a heart beat. I could play anything with it, from country to hard rock. Just my preference. It had more girth and vibe than the Classic, and well as the 101B that I had for a month (same friend who owned the BE).

Anyways... everyone tastes are different. But the BE100 was it for me.

Also, for a budget amp, I second the notion of the Marshall JCM2000 DSL series. I had a DSL50 and it was great. I've seen so many of them on stages and the always sound great live. Gary Moore obviously agreed with that.

 

[stephen sawall]

Sig X is an interesting suggestion. I was really close to pulling the trigger on one, but all the clips I've seen sounded to heavy rock for me. Option wise amp looks great.

I would not go by the clips. It's way more versatile. Sig X is the only channel switcher I use on a regular basis for years. I play a variety of styles. Alot of funk but do everything from country, classical, rock, metal, etc. I can ballpark vintage Fender, Marshall, Hiwatt, modified English crunch, Mesa Mark, Dumble, etc.... It always sounds like a Fryette - smooth highs, midrange that cuts and tight bass. But can cover any of these families of sound types.

Taste is so subjective. Lots of these companies make great channel switchers. Fryette, Bogner, Diezel, Mesa, etc all have versatile amps. For me the feel and responsiveness is as important as the sounds.