Modded Marshall vs using an OD pedal

[AmpliFIRE]

Ok...serious question. I've tried a few pedals with my JH100 over the past week and it sounds as good if not better than most moded Marshall's and Marshally clones that I've owned....and I've owned a metric ton of them. Both feel and tone...it's all there. I had a JCM 800 about 1 1/2 years ago that also sounded killer on it's own with a good boost. Most of the tones back in the 80's where done with a low gain Marshall and a boost. Call me a convert, but trying different pedals to find your tone is easier and cheaper than sending an amp to be moded. Shipping your amp to an amp modded is both risky and expensive.

Plus, delay sounds great out front after the OD pedal(s)...no need for an FX loop (for me anyway...all I use in the loop is delay).


Go ahead...flame away

 

[Digital Jams]

No flames here, some modded amps posted here sound like hoover rejects found behind the plant in dumpsters.

Some are just copied / cloned wrong.....................

 

[Gainfreak]

Ok...serious question. I've tried a few pedals with my JH100 over the past week and it sounds as good if not better than most moded Marshall's and Marshally clones that I've owned....and I've owned a metric ton of them. Both feel and tone...it's all there. I had a JCM 800 about 1 1/2 years ago that also sounded killer on it's own with a good boost. Most of the tones back in the 80's where done with a low gain Marshall and a boost. Call me a convert, but trying different pedals to find your tone is easier and cheaper than sending an amp to be moded. Shipping your amp to an amp modded is both risky and expensive.

Plus, delay sounds great out front after the OD pedal(s)...no need for an FX loop (for me anyway...all I use in the loop is delay).


Go ahead...flame away

It's all good! Part of all this madness is to find something that works for you. If a good boost in front of a stock Marshall works for you then that's KILLER. No need for anyone to flame you

I could write a 10 page post right now about my findings on this subject and the amount of years I've dicked around experimenting with this stuff, but that would just bore everyone hahahaha!

 

[Vrad]

I agree... Some modding to the NMV amps make them usable for our Madison Square Basement purposes, but the don't need that much more gain than your average stock 2203... past that all you need is a nice OD pedal and by nice I don't mean $400 pedal... LOL!

I do that with all my amps actually. Set them up for a nice mid-gain crunch, then hit them with my OD808. I find that it has the right level of saturation and touch sensitivity for me.

 

[Zachman]

Ok...serious question. I've tried a few pedals with my JH100 over the past week and it sounds as good if not better than most moded Marshall's and Marshally clones that I've owned....and I've owned a metric ton of them. Both feel and tone...it's all there. I had a JCM 800 about 1 1/2 years ago that also sounded killer on it's own with a good boost. Most of the tones back in the 80's where done with a low gain Marshall and a boost. Call me a convert, but trying different pedals to find your tone is easier and cheaper than sending an amp to be moded. Shipping your amp to an amp modded is both risky and expensive.

Plus, delay sounds great out front after the OD pedal(s)...no need for an FX loop (for me anyway...all I use in the loop is delay).


Go ahead...flame away

It's all good! Part of all this madness is to find something that works for you. If a good boost in front of a stock Marshall works for you then that's KILLER. No need for anyone to flame you

I could write a 10 page post right now about my findings on this subject and the amount of years I've dicked around experimenting with this stuff, but that would just bore everyone hahahaha!

^^ THIS^^

 

[AmpliFIRE]

I agree... Some modding to the NMV amps make them usable for our Madison Square Basement purposes, but the don't need that much more gain than your average stock 2203... past that all you need is a nice OD pedal and by nice I don't mean $400 pedal... LOL!

I do that with all my amps actually. Set them up for a nice mid-gain crunch, then hit them with my OD808. I find that it has the right level of saturation and touch sensitivity for me.

Yeah...Volume is a totally different story for sure.

 

[Vrad]

I agree... Some modding to the NMV amps make them usable for our Madison Square Basement purposes, but the don't need that much more gain than your average stock 2203... past that all you need is a nice OD pedal and by nice I don't mean $400 pedal... LOL!

I do that with all my amps actually. Set them up for a nice mid-gain crunch, then hit them with my OD808. I find that it has the right level of saturation and touch sensitivity for me.

Yeah...Volume is a totally different story for sure.

I would seriously return my SL to stock then buy a Kemper then profile it cranked once and go off and enjoy myself... HAHAHAHAHAHA!!

Anyway, yeah there's no good way of taming the volume I've found other than converting my SL to a 2203.

But I boost my Budda, QR (I never use OD2) and my 6505+ as well. I'm boost-happy! LOL!

 

[JTyson]

Why do we have to pick a side? Good gain is good however you get it. I have and do both, but I'll take my Fortin Cali++ over a boosted stocker any day... Or my Langner..

 

[Vrad]

Why do we have to pick a side? Good gain is good however you get it. I have and do both, but I'll take my Fortin Cali++ over a boosted stocker any day... Or my Langner..

LOL!
There's no side to pick here I think. Just a preference.

 

[gibson5413]

Ok...serious question. I've tried a few pedals with my JH100 over the past week and it sounds as good if not better than most moded Marshall's and Marshally clones that I've owned....and I've owned a metric ton of them. Both feel and tone...it's all there. I had a JCM 800 about 1 1/2 years ago that also sounded killer on it's own with a good boost. Most of the tones back in the 80's where done with a low gain Marshall and a boost. Call me a convert, but trying different pedals to find your tone is easier and cheaper than sending an amp to be moded. Shipping your amp to an amp modded is both risky and expensive.

Plus, delay sounds great out front after the OD pedal(s)...no need for an FX loop (for me anyway...all I use in the loop is delay).


Go ahead...flame away

I think there is some merit on both sides of the fence. I have heard some killer stock Marshall clips with a boost that sounded killer lately. Don't you have one of the really killer original Jose mods? Would love to hear it sometime.

 

[AmpliFIRE]

Why do we have to pick a side? Good gain is good however you get it. I have and do both, but I'll take my Fortin Cali++ over a boosted stocker any day... Or my Langner..

Because my dad can beat up your dad...LOL. What OD pedals are you using?

 

[skoora]

Your odds of success are a lot higher and cheaper trying pedals but every now and then you will hear a modded amp that is so stellar it changes everything. I used to play with a guy who had a soldano modded jcm800. It was easily one of the best plug and play hard rock tones I've ever heard. Unfortunately when I got my jmp 2203 modded as well by soldano it still didn't sound as good as that jcm800. I would say unless you've heard several mods all consistantly sound good from the same person, you're taking an expensive risk. i'd say if the mod involves more than just extra gain (voicing switches, power options etc) it could be well worth it though.

 

[JTyson]

hmmm... I have a Magic Box Rocket Fuel, a Keeley SD1, an OCD, an EMAT Brownie, a Green Screamer, a Zakk MXR, a Radial Hot British,and a TS9 Ibanez Tube Screamer.
There are things I love and hate about almost all of them, some work with just about anything, some dont at all. some sound great for leads, but not so much for rhythm work. Others are the opposite. Some I have not used for a long time
Its all good, I was just messin with ya

 

[Les Zombie]

i personally like a marshall with a boost, but thats just me.

 

[boost]

I think it's obvious what side of the fence I'm on.

 

[snowdog]

I started a similar thread a while back, went down like the Titanic.

 

[AmpliFIRE]

Ok...serious question. I've tried a few pedals with my JH100 over the past week and it sounds as good if not better than most moded Marshall's and Marshally clones that I've owned....and I've owned a metric ton of them. Both feel and tone...it's all there. I had a JCM 800 about 1 1/2 years ago that also sounded killer on it's own with a good boost. Most of the tones back in the 80's where done with a low gain Marshall and a boost. Call me a convert, but trying different pedals to find your tone is easier and cheaper than sending an amp to be moded. Shipping your amp to an amp modded is both risky and expensive.

Plus, delay sounds great out front after the OD pedal(s)...no need for an FX loop (for me anyway...all I use in the loop is delay).


Go ahead...flame away

I think there is some merit on both sides of the fence. I have heard some killer stock Marshall clips with a boost that sounded killer lately. Don't you have one of the really killer original Jose mods? Would love to hear it sometime.

Yup...my Jose is a killer amp but there are many others (don't want to name names ) that my plexi with a boost will walk all over. It's not quite as saturated sounding as my HG Jose but it's close. It is tighter and more articulate than my Jose without a clean boost.

 

[AmpliFIRE]

hmmm... I have a Magic Box Rocket Fuel, a Keeley SD1, an OCD, an EMAT Brownie, a Green Screamer, a Zakk MXR, a Radial Hot British,and a TS9 Ibanez Tube Screamer.
There are things I love and hate about almost all of them, some work with just about anything, some dont at all. some sound great for leads, but not so much for rhythm work. Others are the opposite. Some I have not used for a long time
Its all good, I was just messin with ya

Cool...I would love to try a Rocket Fuel but it's a bit pricey. What are your thoughts on it?

 

[AmpliFIRE]

I've got a PlexiTone set to arrive tomorrow...can't wait! I'm stacking a Hardwire SC2 valve distortion as the gain pedal (saturated mode) and a MIJ SD1 as a clean boost (gain on 0, volume on 12:00). This is s killer setup IMO

 

[glip22]

I like to boost the modded Marshall with no diodes engaged sometimes. A modified Marshall is a different amp than it was stock. Boosting an amp is boosting an amp whether it be a modded amp or not. You won't even come close to the versatility of some Marshall mods with a pedal. A pedal hits the front end at the input. Thats it. A mod alters cathode bypass values, plate resistor values, filtering, tone stack alterations, changes in gain, feel, etc. It completely changes the circuit. You can't do that with a pedal. So yes a good mod is way more than worth it over boosting a Marshall with a pedal. I like Camerons amps. I'm sure there are many others that are more than worth it. When you have your amp modded by a mod guru, you are telling him what you want different in the amp. A great modder can take what you tell him and translate it to your amp personalizing and tailoring it to what you want.