Looking to buy my "dream" head!

  • Thread starter Thread starter jco5055
  • Start date Start date
sjk":304uswbd said:
This thread is sort of funny? Going from a Marshall Valvestate (op's current amp) straight to a $4000 amp lol. People got tons of suggestions for ya I guess. Hell you can get Killer 100 watt tube amps for MUCH less dough that are world class amps.

What can I say I bought the Valvestate in HS, and now that I actually have disposable income I'd prefer to go top quality...considering I've gotten ~ a decade through beginner/intermediate gear I'm the kind of guy who could possibly go a lifetime with the top stuff so I'm not really wasting $$

I'm not going to claim I'm some elite player who deserves the best gear, but I've definitely played with gear beneath my level.
 
Steinmetzify":1gjcsyhb said:
Hit up SuckerFreeGear on eBay and ask if he has any modded Cameron’s for sale. Massive punch and gain for days. You won’t be disappointed and it’ll be below your cost.



EDIT: fuck is up with YT vids on RT? This is gay...

Damn that demo is killer dude! Great tone! I guess if I think that is good tone then theoretically a Wizard/ modded Marshall could be an option?
 
jco5055":1bafi1ni said:
Steinmetzify":1bafi1ni said:
Hit up SuckerFreeGear on eBay and ask if he has any modded Cameron’s for sale. Massive punch and gain for days. You won’t be disappointed and it’ll be below your cost.



EDIT: fuck is up with YT vids on RT? This is gay...

Damn that demo is killer dude! Great tone! I guess if I think that is good tone then theoretically a Wizard/ modded Marshall could be an option?

Yup, but you’re not really gonna get that tone anywhere other than a Cameron...hit up some Wizard vids and see if you can get close, otherwise you know where to go...
 
Steinmetzify":1tgfh5lf said:
jco5055":1tgfh5lf said:
Steinmetzify":1tgfh5lf said:
Hit up SuckerFreeGear on eBay and ask if he has any modded Cameron’s for sale. Massive punch and gain for days. You won’t be disappointed and it’ll be below your cost.



EDIT: fuck is up with YT vids on RT? This is gay...

Damn that demo is killer dude! Great tone! I guess if I think that is good tone then theoretically a Wizard/ modded Marshall could be an option?

Yup, but you’re not really gonna get that tone anywhere other than a Cameron...hit up some Wizard vids and see if you can get close, otherwise you know where to go...

Not to spam but I'm going to SPAM. Mark and I will have an SLP modded head ready very soon...
 
If you like a "produced" sounding tone I highly doubt Wizard would be your thing, and most of the examples you mentioned are a lot more saturated than what an unboosted Wizard can do.

KSR or Revv would be a much better bet for you.
 
The only amp that is remotely close to a Wizard is a stock 2203, vintage from 81-82 with a boost that doesn't compress too much and leaves the boosted tone very raw and open. The Friedman stuff is more smooth and polite, although the BE 50 may be more raw. I haven't played one of those, but they get great reviews.
A Wizard is it's own thing, the power section is unique. No other amp has that stomp.
 
evh 5150 easy to find and polished versatile cheaper than most used
 
Racerxrated":22wdl2lz said:
The only amp that is remotely close to a Wizard is a stock 2203, vintage from 81-82 with a boost that doesn't compress too much and leaves the boosted tone very raw and open. The Friedman stuff is more smooth and polite, although the BE 50 may be more raw. I haven't played one of those, but they get great reviews.
A Wizard is it's own thing, the power section is unique. No other amp has that stomp.


:thumbsup:
 
jco5055":2ap3nrd0 said:
sjk":2ap3nrd0 said:
This thread is sort of funny? Going from a Marshall Valvestate (op's current amp) straight to a $4000 amp lol. People got tons of suggestions for ya I guess. Hell you can get Killer 100 watt tube amps for MUCH less dough that are world class amps.

What can I say I bought the Valvestate in HS, and now that I actually have disposable income I'd prefer to go top quality...considering I've gotten ~ a decade through beginner/intermediate gear I'm the kind of guy who could possibly go a lifetime with the top stuff so I'm not really wasting $$

I'm not going to claim I'm some elite player who deserves the best gear, but I've definitely played with gear beneath my level.

I think what you can take away from this thread is that just because an amp costs $4k it doesn’t mean the amp is what you’re looking for and doesn’t mean it will automatically mesh well with your playing style. You seem to have choosen amps that are top tier in costs just because you have disposable income. The problem is you’ve left out many amps that may better suit your needs (based on your description) just because they aren’t at the top of the price heap. I’ve learned that once you get above $1500-$2000 you really are splitting hairs and you should start sifting through amps by its features. Be realistic about how your going to use the amp.
 
nevusofota":ert1xs1a said:
jco5055":ert1xs1a said:
sjk":ert1xs1a said:
This thread is sort of funny? Going from a Marshall Valvestate (op's current amp) straight to a $4000 amp lol. People got tons of suggestions for ya I guess. Hell you can get Killer 100 watt tube amps for MUCH less dough that are world class amps.

What can I say I bought the Valvestate in HS, and now that I actually have disposable income I'd prefer to go top quality...considering I've gotten ~ a decade through beginner/intermediate gear I'm the kind of guy who could possibly go a lifetime with the top stuff so I'm not really wasting $$

I'm not going to claim I'm some elite player who deserves the best gear, but I've definitely played with gear beneath my level.

I think what you can take away from this thread is that just because an amp costs $4k it doesn’t mean the amp is what you’re looking and doesn’t mean it automatically mesh well with your playing style. You seem to have choosen amps that are top tier in costs just because you have disposable income. The problem is you’ve left out many amps that may better suits your needs (based on your description) just because they aren’t at the top of the price heap. I’ve learned that once you get above $1500-$2000 you really are splitting hairs and you should start sifting through amps by its features. Be realistic about how your going to use the amp.

Thanks, and I do appreciate your point like I do plan on trying out a 5150 and some other "cheaper" (meaning $2k or less) models.
 
For a polished, already recorded type tone I'd agree with Halebox and suggest an EVH, or a Friedman amp. Other than the Phil X or Dirty Shirley, which are more old school Marshall than the smoother polished BE tone.
 
jco5055":fo6es4l6 said:
sjk":fo6es4l6 said:
This thread is sort of funny? Going from a Marshall Valvestate (op's current amp) straight to a $4000 amp lol. People got tons of suggestions for ya I guess. Hell you can get Killer 100 watt tube amps for MUCH less dough that are world class amps.

What can I say I bought the Valvestate in HS, and now that I actually have disposable income I'd prefer to go top quality...considering I've gotten ~ a decade through beginner/intermediate gear I'm the kind of guy who could possibly go a lifetime with the top stuff so I'm not really wasting $$

I'm not going to claim I'm some elite player who deserves the best gear, but I've definitely played with gear beneath my level.

There are people who love the 8100 valvestate. I know guys who are amazing players, who have tons of amazing gear and default to playing less expensive gear. I honestly believe the grass is always greener..and if it ain't broke don't fix it, and don't change horses midstream. That is 3 old time sayings in a row.
 
The kind of versatility you're asking for is going to be hard to get in a single tube amp, super expensive or not. I think you would be way better off with a powered Kemper or an Axe FX3- those can sound as raw or polished as you want, and will cover all the bases. You stated you're afraid of the option paralysis a top end modeler can facilitate, but I would counter point that even if you did find a high end amp that did it all, you would still get option paralysis and be frustrated that it won't have everything on tap at once, leading down another rabbit hole. The more likely scenario I can see is that you'll drop the big bucks on a top notch amp and be disappointed when it can't be the best at everything you're asking. Also, if you're stepping up form a valvestate, do note that a tube amp will have much more maintenance needs than you're used to, and if the idea is to drop a fortune on the best right now, you may be annoyed when you have to plop down more cash to keep it running or experiment with different tubes.

If you really want the swiss army knife you painted, get a leading modeler. It's going to be infinitely more versatile sound wise, it is going to have a hell of a lot more utility I/O wise, and you aren't going to have to mess with tubes (or the volume needed to really push them). Take the budget you have left over and buy a reasonably priced tube amp that really nails a sound you love if you really want the tube experience.

One more bit- a swiss army modeler is going to be hell of a lot less hassle to move around as well. The other guitarist in my band has a kemper and it is ultra convenient to throw in its travel bag and go.
 
indespise":25jyyodv said:
The kind of versatility you're asking for is going to be hard to get in a single tube amp, super expensive or not. I think you would be way better off with a powered Kemper or an Axe FX3- those can sound as raw or polished as you want, and will cover all the bases. You stated you're afraid of the option paralysis a top end modeler can facilitate, but I would counter point that even if you did find a high end amp that did it all, you would still get option paralysis and be frustrated that it won't have everything on tap at once, leading down another rabbit hole. The more likely scenario I can see is that you'll drop the big bucks on a top notch amp and be disappointed when it can't be the best at everything you're asking. Also, if you're stepping up form a valvestate, do note that a tube amp will have much more maintenance needs than you're used to, and if the idea is to drop a fortune on the best right now, you may be annoyed when you have to plop down more cash to keep it running or experiment with different tubes.

If you really want the swiss army knife you painted, get a leading modeler. It's going to be infinitely more versatile sound wise, it is going to have a hell of a lot more utility I/O wise, and you aren't going to have to mess with tubes (or the volume needed to really push them). Take the budget you have left over and buy a reasonably priced tube amp that really nails a sound you love if you really want the tube experience.

One more bit- a swiss army modeler is going to be hell of a lot less hassle to move around as well. The other guitarist in my band has a kemper and it is ultra convenient to throw in its travel bag and go.

I’d say this as well, really. I use a Kemper for recording and an AX8 live; both are great platforms and can be as versatile as you want them to be. With the Kemper it’s pretty much every amp ever made, with the Axe dialing it in is pretty easy anymore, it’s not like the first version. Plug and play, really.

Don’t discount these things because ‘they’re not amps’, you can easily see your money back if you decide they’re not for you.

Be a different story if you had ONE tone in mind, but you kind of seem like you haven’t decided. For the people here that have gone thru this, finding a tone(s) you dig by buying amps on the internet and seeing if you like them can be a huge pain in the ass, especially if you light it up and know immediately it’s not for you, you gotta box it up, sell it, pay enormous shipping costs anymore, then decide on the next one.

Modeling solves that, you can try different ‘amps’ and get an idea of what works for you before you buy. Just my two cents.
 
peterc52":369accm3 said:
Diezel Herbert seems to fit your description perfectly
Yup. Herbert. Really is the king.
Just bought one again myself. So I’m a little biased :D
 
dude; literally every amp on that list is awesome, and can get where you want. ive played SO many amps over the years, and I'm just as happy with my stock evh 50 watt, as I was with my vht, or my modded mesa, modded marshall, etc..... I play death metal, proggy shit, and even played a queen cover set with it a couple weeks ago. its just what suits you.
 
For smooth ('over produced') tones, I would recommend looking at the Friedman amps.
 
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