Mini Rec vs Engl gigmaster 15

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Chris6870

Chris6870

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Anybody compared them? I had the mini Rec but sold it to try something else. I was thinking about getting another but saw the Engl. Engl cost new is about what the Boogie goes for used. I like the silent record option on the Engl. My only concern is the Engl is to mid scooped sounding. I like mids.:confused:
 
Never tried the figmaster or the mini rec....but I own an ironball and its not scooped at all...that should be then engl you check out ..
 
The ENGL Ironball is the best in its class, worth saving up for. The Gigmaster is not very good, IMO. If you did not like the Mini-Rec, check out the Rectoverb 25 or Mark V 25. I prefer both of those to the Mini-Rec, personally.
 
The Axe Palace":2kekd2sr said:
The ENGL Ironball is the best in its class, worth saving up for. The Gigmaster is not very good, IMO. If you did not like the Mini-Rec, check out the Rectoverb 25 or Mark V 25. I prefer both of those to the Mini-Rec, personally.
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I thought I would chime in here as when I was looking at the Gigmaster, I was dissapointed at the lack of experienced users opinions.

Gigmaster/Ironball:
I will say that I completely disagree with the statement above! Now, the Ironball is by no means a crappy amp. It stays cleaner longer as you crank the volume, has tons of great sounds, and is probably the best compact metal amp out there - but the Gigmaster 15 is an amazing, versatile little amp that has great usable clean sounds; however, I specifically love the fact that the clean channel breaks up the way it does. Its awesome for blues/country on that setting. When comparing these two amps, I felt that the Ironball is very compressed sounding (ala Powerball) in its gain channel. The Gigmaster 15 feels a lot more organic and open sounding on the gain channel. Its gain is not suitable for metal like the Ironball is, but it is perfect for classic rock, blues, country and takes pedals really well too! I use the FX loop on it at all times, and feel that it does not compromise anything with the Gigmaster.

Gigmaster/Mini-Recto:
I was comparing these amps as I was looking for something with great gain, lots of versatility and in a compact size. Before getting my hands on the Ironball and Gigmaster, I took a few small amps home from a local music store (got a good friend there who hooks me up), which included a Mini-Recto, Rect-O-Verb 25 Head, Orange Tiny Terror and more recently a Mark V:25. The issue I have with mesa when compared to Engl is that Mesa's almost feel like there is a 8ms delay, like I get when I play through my Axe-Fx into my recording rig, and have the buffer set too high. Mesa's feel spongy and lack the chest thumbing tight response you more often see with German-made high gain heads (in my opinion). I really love the clean tones on the Mark V:25, and the gain on that amp stood out above all the other mesas. Mini-Recto felt like there was too much grind and buzz in the gain.

The Gigmaster 15 had the tightest gain, (and dont let my earlier comments fool you) you can really crank the gain knobs and get a fairly dense gain for heavier rock, but the gain knob has to be really dimed, whereas the other amps mentioned hit the same level of gain at a much earlier point in the pot sweep. The Gigmaster meets my needs and complements the fact that I have an Invader 100 for the really high gain tones I need. The Gigmaster is more for a compact, versatile, and musical little amp to cover most areas outside metal. Lastly, it is not scooped sounding in the least. I find the mid knob can make a big difference in the mid characteristics of your tone. I primarily use the Gigmaster 15 through two different 1x12 cabs (one has a Celestion Gold, the other a Scumback M75).

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Who told you the Gigmaster was mid-scooped? Mesa Boogie typically has the "V Curve" as they call it. Engl amps typically have a very dominant mid range. I had an Engl Raider which was so rich in mids that it almost sounded like a wah pedal was on when I was soloing in high gain mode. On the contrary, the juiciest mids are going to come from the Gigmaster - a very underrated amp in my opinion. They're very powerful for the size and offer a real nice punch considering the wattage. There's a lot of versatility in the Gigmaster. The Mini Rect is also a great little amp, and pushed mode on the clean channel is great. However, even though it has some more features, in overall tone the Engl Gigmaster has more soul in my opinion. One poster said that it's more organic, and I can agree with that.

As far as the Ironball, well it's very versatile and in my opinion, is more desirable than either the Mini Rect or Mini Mark V. Don't get me wrong, the Mini Mark V is totally awesome and I like it more than the Mini Rect for most things, but when you crank those amps up a bit and play them in a mix or record, the Ironball just soars. For some reason Engls don't get the love they deserve on most forums. Perhaps it's because they're foreign to the US and only offer a 1 yr. warranty on even their $4000 flagship SE model. I don't know, but I'm kind of tired of going circles with the boutique stuff so I'm going back to Engl in the near future.
 
ubermetaldood":25lzd98n said:
Engl amps typically have a very dominant mid range.
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Yes, even the Powerball which a lot of people call "scooped" has tons of midrange. It's very high mid focused compared to the low mid focused amps that people are used to around here, but there's still a lot of mids.
 
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